-When people use "ideal" incorrectly. "I thought about doing _____. I think that's a good ideal." NO.
-Mickey Mouse's ears on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. When he turns his head to the side the ears shift so one is on top of his head and one is sticking out of the back of his head. Is this an animation cop out? Can they not show the ears properly like circles that turn to the side? I've actually had an argument with my 5 yr old about the proper placement of Mickey's ears. The Disney channel is misleading our children on this important topic.
-When someone complains they don't have any money but then they are like "look at my new phone" "look at my new blah blah blah" Yeah- you have money. It's just how you spend it! There are so many people that spend money on stupid things and then don't have it for important things. I know I have done this as well- and everyone is entitled to do the same every-once-in-a-while. But all the time?! No. I fear for these next few generations and their bank accounts. I've made many spending mistakes but I'm trying to learn from them. I fear this next generation will be on the street starving but saying "hey look at my new air Jordan's!"
-That the simple fact that I haven't joined Pinterest suddenly makes me disconnected with so.many.things. From bubble necklaces to infinity scarves- I'll find out about things many months later. But then again I don't really care haha. It's just amazing that one website displays so much of "what's in." And for the record I have nothing against Pinterest and will probably join sometime. I have solely avoided that (and twitter) just because I know my tendency to get sucked into things (ahem...candy crush...)
-I've mentioned this before...interstate/roads signs that have the green right angle edges but then the white border is rounded at the corners. Stupid that this bugs me but I want an explanation. Why isn't the corner rounded too? (I'd post a pic but feel lazy right now- plus it's insignificant)
-When people blog about stuff that bugs them...oh wait...
-I could add many things to this list especially because I'm pregnant (hormones!) but the pregnancy brain is making me draw a blank. So yeah. Um...bye!
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
More randoms and a request...(I like ellipsis...)
****First off****
I want to meet you.
I'm getting some traffic on here and no comments.
And no, my purpose of blogging is SO not about the comments or the numbers (and some friends do comment on fb to my blog cuz it's easier). I blog simply because I enjoy it and it's a way to empty my brain and remember things I forget (cuz whoa kids kill brain cells big time). I did it years and years ago before it was popular and I'm glad to be back at it. But I would like to know who is reading this (hi mom). So any quick "hi, my name is..." comment would make my day even if you never comment again.
So please, say "hi." :)
++++++++++++++++++++++
*warning: most boring update/random post ever*
I fell at work today. I'm pretty sure it sounded like the building was falling down. Or the hulk perhaps (is this my punishment for trying to convince my 5 year old that I'm the Hulk's mama?) Someone on the floor below me sprinted up the stairs to see what the ginormous sound was and before long there were about 5 concerned faces staring at me.
My foot got caught in the suction cord and I went to walk away. All of me except my foot. I had the split second thought of "oh no- I'm falling. The baby!" And tried to fall the best I could. Leaving a bruised knee, a sprung ankle, and an idiot. Because I felt like one.
Grateful little Kevin is okay though.
+++++++++++++++++++++
We moved the boys in together in the same room. I had a spare toddler bed I had kept in the garage that Luke is now using, freeing up the crib and nursery for Kevin.
Nathan and Luke are super excited and after the second attempt Luke slept in his toddler bed all night! Someday we'll get bunk beds and a dresser for their room but for now it works.
We moved all of Nathan's "big boy" toys out of there that aren't safe for Luke to be around and we'll be working on a play area for Nathan this weekend.
Why did it take me 4 years of living there to have Marcus install a second clothing rack in the closets? It made me so happy to have more space to hang things and be able to organize more.
+++++++++++++++++
All of my friends move away.
They do. And it makes me sad.
I'm grateful for social media because it does make it easier to keep up with everyone. But lately everyone is gone (except Dana, I'm seriously going to glue your feet to the floor of your house)
My mom had a little party for my 30th and asked me to invite friends and I laughed and said "Who? Most of my friends are out of state now."
Maybe I should make any new potential friend sign a waiver that they will forgo all amazing job opportunities just for the sake of not leaving me. Yep. That should help keep them around.
+++++++++++++++++
Luke was going to be dismissed from speech therapy but his therapist started noticing that although he is repeating words somewhat well and his vocabulary is growing- he's still not saying many words spontaneously. He'll repeat lots of things but doesn't communicate his needs yet.
I'm glad he'll still be in the program when Kevin is born so we can address any backsliding that might occur with all the changes of adding a new sibling.
++++++++++++++++++++
Been cooking double and freezing food for when the baby comes. I didn't do this with the boys and honestly don't remember what or how we ate in those first days/weeks/months but hoping this makes life a little easier when a newborn is keeping me up all hours.
Except I have no idea what I'm doing and I'm hoping that everything I freeze will still taste a little like food by the time we eat it.
+++++++++++++++
For the last 5+ years I've had Fridays off.
Yay for long weekends but honestly I wasn't extremely productive on those days because I was so tired from the week. Also I usually have a tension headache by then from my job.
We recently switched to having Wednesdays off instead and I'm loving it. It's easier on my body (especially while pregnant) and plus I get to all of my to-do list before I'm exhausted from the week.
This also might come in handy when Kevin is here and I return to work because it can be a day I nurse a lot to keep my supply up and maybe get some one on one time with him. I dislike paying for that fifth day of children when I'm not working but it IS super awesome to have the option to take them there (especially since they like it).
So although I usually face the thought of change with the enthusiasm of Ben Stein- I'm all for this one. Woot.
+++++++++++++++++++++++
Ok. Boring post but look at my boys...they love each other (most of the time)
Psst...don't forget to say hi.
I want to meet you.
I'm getting some traffic on here and no comments.
And no, my purpose of blogging is SO not about the comments or the numbers (and some friends do comment on fb to my blog cuz it's easier). I blog simply because I enjoy it and it's a way to empty my brain and remember things I forget (cuz whoa kids kill brain cells big time). I did it years and years ago before it was popular and I'm glad to be back at it. But I would like to know who is reading this (hi mom). So any quick "hi, my name is..." comment would make my day even if you never comment again.
So please, say "hi." :)
++++++++++++++++++++++
*warning: most boring update/random post ever*
I fell at work today. I'm pretty sure it sounded like the building was falling down. Or the hulk perhaps (is this my punishment for trying to convince my 5 year old that I'm the Hulk's mama?) Someone on the floor below me sprinted up the stairs to see what the ginormous sound was and before long there were about 5 concerned faces staring at me.
My foot got caught in the suction cord and I went to walk away. All of me except my foot. I had the split second thought of "oh no- I'm falling. The baby!" And tried to fall the best I could. Leaving a bruised knee, a sprung ankle, and an idiot. Because I felt like one.
Grateful little Kevin is okay though.
+++++++++++++++++++++
We moved the boys in together in the same room. I had a spare toddler bed I had kept in the garage that Luke is now using, freeing up the crib and nursery for Kevin.
Nathan and Luke are super excited and after the second attempt Luke slept in his toddler bed all night! Someday we'll get bunk beds and a dresser for their room but for now it works.
We moved all of Nathan's "big boy" toys out of there that aren't safe for Luke to be around and we'll be working on a play area for Nathan this weekend.
Why did it take me 4 years of living there to have Marcus install a second clothing rack in the closets? It made me so happy to have more space to hang things and be able to organize more.
+++++++++++++++++
All of my friends move away.
They do. And it makes me sad.
I'm grateful for social media because it does make it easier to keep up with everyone. But lately everyone is gone (except Dana, I'm seriously going to glue your feet to the floor of your house)
My mom had a little party for my 30th and asked me to invite friends and I laughed and said "Who? Most of my friends are out of state now."
Maybe I should make any new potential friend sign a waiver that they will forgo all amazing job opportunities just for the sake of not leaving me. Yep. That should help keep them around.
+++++++++++++++++
Luke was going to be dismissed from speech therapy but his therapist started noticing that although he is repeating words somewhat well and his vocabulary is growing- he's still not saying many words spontaneously. He'll repeat lots of things but doesn't communicate his needs yet.
I'm glad he'll still be in the program when Kevin is born so we can address any backsliding that might occur with all the changes of adding a new sibling.
++++++++++++++++++++
Been cooking double and freezing food for when the baby comes. I didn't do this with the boys and honestly don't remember what or how we ate in those first days/weeks/months but hoping this makes life a little easier when a newborn is keeping me up all hours.
Except I have no idea what I'm doing and I'm hoping that everything I freeze will still taste a little like food by the time we eat it.
+++++++++++++++
For the last 5+ years I've had Fridays off.
Yay for long weekends but honestly I wasn't extremely productive on those days because I was so tired from the week. Also I usually have a tension headache by then from my job.
We recently switched to having Wednesdays off instead and I'm loving it. It's easier on my body (especially while pregnant) and plus I get to all of my to-do list before I'm exhausted from the week.
This also might come in handy when Kevin is here and I return to work because it can be a day I nurse a lot to keep my supply up and maybe get some one on one time with him. I dislike paying for that fifth day of children when I'm not working but it IS super awesome to have the option to take them there (especially since they like it).
So although I usually face the thought of change with the enthusiasm of Ben Stein- I'm all for this one. Woot.
+++++++++++++++++++++++
Ok. Boring post but look at my boys...they love each other (most of the time)
Psst...don't forget to say hi.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
I flushed my 5 year old down the toilet...
*Please excuse my irrefusable need to back-story. I would make a very bad villain by giving the hero/heroine a chance to strike while I drone on and on...and on...*
Last week we had a random day that Marcus and I took off work for Luke's doctor appt with the allergist (which I really need to do an update about soon) Once I realized that the whole afternoon would be free I asked Marcus if we could do something fun with the kids.
The dentist I work with recently took her kids to a nearby Children's Museum so we thought it would be a fun thing to do since our original plans backfired (had free tickets to an indoor water park that we come to find out is closed indefinitely)
We had a great day in Columbus, Indiana and ended up spending maybe $34 for the whole day of family fun!
First up...the Children's Museum called Kids Commons. Not a huge place but definitely big enough to spend a few hours in.
After the museum we went across the street to a free indoor community play area. The kids had fun there as well (except when I didn't catch Luke going down the slide because I was taking his picture instead...sorry kid) We all thought the climbing area was so unique! The curved panels were all surrounded by reinforced netting so it was much safer than it looks in the pictures. Nathan climbed all the way to the top!
Last week we had a random day that Marcus and I took off work for Luke's doctor appt with the allergist (which I really need to do an update about soon) Once I realized that the whole afternoon would be free I asked Marcus if we could do something fun with the kids.
The dentist I work with recently took her kids to a nearby Children's Museum so we thought it would be a fun thing to do since our original plans backfired (had free tickets to an indoor water park that we come to find out is closed indefinitely)
We had a great day in Columbus, Indiana and ended up spending maybe $34 for the whole day of family fun!
First up...the Children's Museum called Kids Commons. Not a huge place but definitely big enough to spend a few hours in.
Learning how evaporation works in the "Wacky Science" class.
This was part of a house display that teaches kids all about how the interworkings of a house.
It was such a neat area to play in and there were a lot of
nooks and crannies to explore and crawl through. If I wasn't pregnant I would
have definitely went down the "toilet slide"!
Robot Arm
After the museum we went across the street to a free indoor community play area. The kids had fun there as well (except when I didn't catch Luke going down the slide because I was taking his picture instead...sorry kid) We all thought the climbing area was so unique! The curved panels were all surrounded by reinforced netting so it was much safer than it looks in the pictures. Nathan climbed all the way to the top!
Before heading home we went next door to check out Zaharakos, an ice cream parlor built in 1900 that still had most of the original woodwork, counters, lamps, etc. The whole place smelled like vanilla and it sort of felt like we walked back in time when we entered. Zaharakos has received a lot of recognition for it's history and of course...yummy food and ice cream.
Enjoying our ice cream (Luke had special cookies I brought for him due
to food allergies)
The boys chillin' after their snack.
It was a perfect family day and we were excited to find some fun things to do not so far from home. The boys were both asleep in the car within minutes and as all parents know...that's a very good thing :)
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Randomroo
-I'm one of those pregnant women with swollen ankles towards the end of pregnancy. My ankles already starting to swell at 28 weeks is not a good sign. Summer? Be nice to me mkay?
-Nathan is completing level 2 swim class this weekend. We have decided not to put him in level 3 until maybe next year. He just isn't really applying himself so he isn't getting as much out of it as he could. Thinking with some time and maturity he may be ready for the next level in Spring.
-School starts when I'm 38 1/2 weeks pregnant. Will I have had the baby by the time Nathan starts school? Afterwards? Will I be pushing on his first day? Hoping he adapts well because that is a lot of change all at once to throw at a 5 yr old. And well, for momma too.
-Root beer floats. Yes.
-Too bad sleep isn't as tangible and transmittable as a currency. For instance- when a friend says they are trying to make it through the day on 2 hours of sleep I wish I could hand them a card for "8 hours uninterrupted sleep" in which they would immediately be refreshed and rested. Yep. That would be nice. Then I could stock up on sleep before baby Kevin comes.
-Boys, boys, and more boys. Just found out my cousin is pregnant with a boy. Boys are awesome. But I guess this family just wasn't meant to have a bunch of girls. My dad's family had 5 boys before my aunt was born.
-Iron Man 3 and Star Trek were both awesome. I love movies like that. I want to see "Now You See Me" soon.
-After having Fridays off from work for about 6 years I will now have Wednesdays off instead. I'm super excited about it. Yes I have to give up the 3 day weekend thing but I think this will be good for our family. For instance, by Fri I'm usually an exhausted mess and my body hurts so I'm not very productive. So maybe on Wed I can get more accomplished and then focus on family time on the weekends.
-So You Think You Can Dance is back on! Booyah! My fav. (Oh my gosh there is a little 4 yr old boy auditioning right now doing a popping routine. Cutest thing ever.)
-Pomegranate Popsicles are yummy.
-Luke put two words together for the first time yesterday. He said "help Mommy" :)
-My heart goes out to all of the families affected by the recent tornadoes. I know what it's like to have a disaster destroy your entire house. Yet things are replaceable. People are not. I just can't imagine the ache of losing a close loved one and I pray that although weeping and mourning have their place that joy comes in the morning.
-Sigh. Parenting is hard. Nathan is getting older and I know he's only 5 1/2 yet I keep finding Marcus and I having to sit down with him and having more and more conversations about...well...life.
The feeding and bathing and clothing of our kids is just the surface of actually parenting and raising them. And all I can say is stubborn people give birth to stubborn kids. I just keep reminding myself that it can be a good thing to have a stubborn child if you raise them to be stubborn about the right things and to stand up for their beliefs and for other people.
-I try to use "green" products to clean my house (not that my house is "clean") I mainly use vinegar and water. However sometimes you just need to give in and buy some strong chemicals to get the toilet bowel clean. I caved and after going months scrubbing and scrubbing the insides of my toilets they are finally sparkly! So I am forcing my whole family to use the restroom outside so as not to mess up my pretty toilets. ;)
-The iPhone just isn't user friendly for commenting on blog posts. 70% of the time I type out comments it doesn't work and then I'm like "forget it."
Annnnnddd ok this is long enough.
Cute photo of the boys...
-Nathan is completing level 2 swim class this weekend. We have decided not to put him in level 3 until maybe next year. He just isn't really applying himself so he isn't getting as much out of it as he could. Thinking with some time and maturity he may be ready for the next level in Spring.
-School starts when I'm 38 1/2 weeks pregnant. Will I have had the baby by the time Nathan starts school? Afterwards? Will I be pushing on his first day? Hoping he adapts well because that is a lot of change all at once to throw at a 5 yr old. And well, for momma too.
-Root beer floats. Yes.
-Too bad sleep isn't as tangible and transmittable as a currency. For instance- when a friend says they are trying to make it through the day on 2 hours of sleep I wish I could hand them a card for "8 hours uninterrupted sleep" in which they would immediately be refreshed and rested. Yep. That would be nice. Then I could stock up on sleep before baby Kevin comes.
-Boys, boys, and more boys. Just found out my cousin is pregnant with a boy. Boys are awesome. But I guess this family just wasn't meant to have a bunch of girls. My dad's family had 5 boys before my aunt was born.
-Iron Man 3 and Star Trek were both awesome. I love movies like that. I want to see "Now You See Me" soon.
-After having Fridays off from work for about 6 years I will now have Wednesdays off instead. I'm super excited about it. Yes I have to give up the 3 day weekend thing but I think this will be good for our family. For instance, by Fri I'm usually an exhausted mess and my body hurts so I'm not very productive. So maybe on Wed I can get more accomplished and then focus on family time on the weekends.
-So You Think You Can Dance is back on! Booyah! My fav. (Oh my gosh there is a little 4 yr old boy auditioning right now doing a popping routine. Cutest thing ever.)
-Pomegranate Popsicles are yummy.
-Luke put two words together for the first time yesterday. He said "help Mommy" :)
-My heart goes out to all of the families affected by the recent tornadoes. I know what it's like to have a disaster destroy your entire house. Yet things are replaceable. People are not. I just can't imagine the ache of losing a close loved one and I pray that although weeping and mourning have their place that joy comes in the morning.
-Sigh. Parenting is hard. Nathan is getting older and I know he's only 5 1/2 yet I keep finding Marcus and I having to sit down with him and having more and more conversations about...well...life.
The feeding and bathing and clothing of our kids is just the surface of actually parenting and raising them. And all I can say is stubborn people give birth to stubborn kids. I just keep reminding myself that it can be a good thing to have a stubborn child if you raise them to be stubborn about the right things and to stand up for their beliefs and for other people.
-I try to use "green" products to clean my house (not that my house is "clean") I mainly use vinegar and water. However sometimes you just need to give in and buy some strong chemicals to get the toilet bowel clean. I caved and after going months scrubbing and scrubbing the insides of my toilets they are finally sparkly! So I am forcing my whole family to use the restroom outside so as not to mess up my pretty toilets. ;)
-The iPhone just isn't user friendly for commenting on blog posts. 70% of the time I type out comments it doesn't work and then I'm like "forget it."
Annnnnddd ok this is long enough.
Cute photo of the boys...
Sunday, May 19, 2013
The Big 3-0
This past "weekend" I said goodbye to my twenties and hello to my third decade here on this earth.
Wait...I have COMPLETED 3 decades so I'm saying hello to my fourth decade here on earth. Yeah, that's right. I blame pregnancy brain.
On May 17th at 12:18pm I turned 30.
A few people asked if I felt 30. If I wasn't pregnant I probably would have said "no." However, since my pelvis feels like it's being pried open (tmi?), my right hip keeps threatening to pop out of socket, and I cry every time I drive for more than 10 minutes because I pulled a muscle in my shoulder a month ago and it only hurts when I drive---the answer is "yes. I definitely feel 30." (for the record I DO love being pregnant most of the time and am super grateful for this little baby boy)
This weekend was crammed full of Family Time, Lunch Dates with Friends, Dinner with my best friend (yep, Dana, you've been dubbed), A Movie with Marcus, Ice Cream Dates, a Pedicure, a Lunch Birthday Celebration with Family (to also celebrate my Dad's and brother's birthdays), Cake, Cookies, Did I Say Ice Cream? And why did I type all of that in caps? ...
Anyways- point is. Pretty awesome birthday weekend. I feel very loved and blessed to know so many wonderful people and add this weekend to our mini-vaca last weekend and this has definitely been the best birthday ever.
Of course it can't be ALL butterflies and rainbows. Apparently yesterday was also National Toddler Temper Tantrum Day...or at least according to Luke it was :/
Here are some pics to document my turning 30th.
Dinner with Dana. I had the fun idea of each of us writing 30 things that the other person doesn't know about us and we went through the list. It was so interesting to learn new things about each other. For instance, one of mine was "I like the smell of turtles" because I had a pet turtle as a little girl and I thought it had a sweet musky smell. Then I added out loud "But it's been a while since I sniffed a turtle..." and noticed the waiter was standing right there. He got a weird look on his face and walked away hahahaha. I'm pretty sure he's never overheard someone say that before!
So if you have a dear friend that you know well ask them to write down things you don't know about them---it makes for a fun dinner date! Dana's birthday was the day after mine so we celebrated both of ours by eating "the wall of chocolate cake."
Wait...I have COMPLETED 3 decades so I'm saying hello to my fourth decade here on earth. Yeah, that's right. I blame pregnancy brain.
On May 17th at 12:18pm I turned 30.
A few people asked if I felt 30. If I wasn't pregnant I probably would have said "no." However, since my pelvis feels like it's being pried open (tmi?), my right hip keeps threatening to pop out of socket, and I cry every time I drive for more than 10 minutes because I pulled a muscle in my shoulder a month ago and it only hurts when I drive---the answer is "yes. I definitely feel 30." (for the record I DO love being pregnant most of the time and am super grateful for this little baby boy)
Me and my Lukimus (who is going through a "mommy hold me" phase)
Of course it can't be ALL butterflies and rainbows. Apparently yesterday was also National Toddler Temper Tantrum Day...or at least according to Luke it was :/
Here are some pics to document my turning 30th.
Dinner with Dana. I had the fun idea of each of us writing 30 things that the other person doesn't know about us and we went through the list. It was so interesting to learn new things about each other. For instance, one of mine was "I like the smell of turtles" because I had a pet turtle as a little girl and I thought it had a sweet musky smell. Then I added out loud "But it's been a while since I sniffed a turtle..." and noticed the waiter was standing right there. He got a weird look on his face and walked away hahahaha. I'm pretty sure he's never overheard someone say that before!
So if you have a dear friend that you know well ask them to write down things you don't know about them---it makes for a fun dinner date! Dana's birthday was the day after mine so we celebrated both of ours by eating "the wall of chocolate cake."
Excuse the poor quality photos and oh my I want that cake again...
Pedicure with Friends
Graeter's Ice Cream with Marcus (coconut chocolate chip...yum!)
"3" was the theme of the weekend. Turning 30 with 3 boys and entering my 3rd Trimester!
Here's to another decade of watching my babies grow, love, laughter, tears, making mistakes, learning from those mistakes, falling deeper in love with my husband, winning, losing, growing, and every up and down that comes to us in life.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
From Heavenly Love to Lazy Rooster
I think it's good for couples to get away even if only once every year or two. To shake off all the "parentness" and focus on just being human for a few days.
It has been about 2 years since Marcus and I had a few days alone together and I was starting to feel like it was time. Life is about to get a little more crazy with three boys (!!!) and I knew if we didn't get away now that if we did in the next few years I would be nursing and dealing with bringing a pump and keeping breastmilk cold etc.
I had been looking online at log cabins for a while and inquiring about good places to vacation. I wanted something that was close to Indiana yet still felt like a "get away". Most cabins I ran across were expensive and plus I had no idea if the quality was worth it.
Recently one of my friends went to Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg Tennessee with her husband and stayed in a cabin. I immediately hounded her for details and before long I had the same cabin (called Heavenly Love....swoon) booked for three nights with the most amazing breathtaking views (and for much cheaper than a hotel would cost!)
I was so excited! I had never stayed in a cabin and was giddy about it. I looked at the website's picture of the cabin's view on a daily basis.
I couldn't wait to sit. In the quiet. The Quiet! Stare at God's creation. Just to breathe and soak it in.
Thanks to Marcus' mom and my parents splitting up childcare duty we were officially free to get away for a few days. We dubbed this trip as our Babymoon/Early Anniversary/Birthday (I turn 30 in a few days!)/ Mother's Day Trip all rolled into one.
We honeymooned in TN and although we certainly created memories (although fuzzy after having a few kids) we definitely dealt with some least than ideal honeymoon situations on our trip 8 years ago. Bad sunburns, losing an expensive digital camera that wasn't even ours (I still have no idea what happened to that thing and I was protecting it so closely), and to top it off we had a wreck on our way home.
So this was TN's chance to prove to us that the beautiful state was not out to get us.
Despite some car sickness on the way and leaving a few hours late we were making decent time and almost in TN. Then I got a phone call from the company we booked the cabin with. There was no water at the Heavenly Love cabin and we were going to have to pick another cabin to stay in. We laughed and wondered what all might go wrong on this trip.
For about 30 minutes the extremely polite woman on the phone went through about 12 cabins with me while I tried to look at pictures on Marcus' phone and compare and contrast. So we ended up trading in our weekend at Heavenly Love with a weekend at the Lazy Rooster! A lovely cabin but one that definitely didn't have a view.
But the lazy rooster set the tone for weekend. We were indeed lazy. And it was awesome.
Playing pool, movies, yummy food, putt putt, desserts, pancakes at the cabin, hot tub, kingsizedbed!, walking around Gatlinburg, naps, sleeping in (not answering a million questions from a 5 yr old or changing a ton of poopy diapers)
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Picture overload...I know. We had fun eating dinner in Gatlinburg and just walking around seeing things.
Aaaaah. It was lovely and lazy. We laughed. We smiled. We had fun. We made inside jokes (like Pizza Hut's Guard Rooster) And then we left for home somewhat holding our breath that this time we wouldn't wreck!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
On the way home we were able to stop for a late lunch with our long time friend, Cliff, whom we haven't seen in a few years. It was nice to see him again and then we set out for my parent's house to get the boys.
We missed them. I swear we saw about 125373 red headed little kids while we were away and as we turned on my parents road I felt my heart leap that I was about to see my boys!
I'd like to say they screamed "Mommy! Daddy!" and ran into our arms. Nope. Luke was unsure what was going on and therefore didn't want anything to do with us for awhile. Nathan was pouting that our arrival meant he had to leave Papa's house.
But we hugged and kissed them anyways and gave them their little stuffed bear and fox souvenirs.
Now back to life. Back to reality. But definitely refreshed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
We are super super grateful for our wonderful family that allowed us to get away for a few days by taking excellent care of our boys. My mother-in-law even took Nathan to his kindergarten orientation (which was hard for me to miss but I was glad he still got to go). They definitely enjoyed their time with all their grandparents and Nathan's asking to do it again.
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It has been about 2 years since Marcus and I had a few days alone together and I was starting to feel like it was time. Life is about to get a little more crazy with three boys (!!!) and I knew if we didn't get away now that if we did in the next few years I would be nursing and dealing with bringing a pump and keeping breastmilk cold etc.
I had been looking online at log cabins for a while and inquiring about good places to vacation. I wanted something that was close to Indiana yet still felt like a "get away". Most cabins I ran across were expensive and plus I had no idea if the quality was worth it.
Recently one of my friends went to Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg Tennessee with her husband and stayed in a cabin. I immediately hounded her for details and before long I had the same cabin (called Heavenly Love....swoon) booked for three nights with the most amazing breathtaking views (and for much cheaper than a hotel would cost!)
I was so excited! I had never stayed in a cabin and was giddy about it. I looked at the website's picture of the cabin's view on a daily basis.
(patriotgetaways.com)
I couldn't wait to sit. In the quiet. The Quiet! Stare at God's creation. Just to breathe and soak it in.
Thanks to Marcus' mom and my parents splitting up childcare duty we were officially free to get away for a few days. We dubbed this trip as our Babymoon/Early Anniversary/Birthday (I turn 30 in a few days!)/ Mother's Day Trip all rolled into one.
We honeymooned in TN and although we certainly created memories (although fuzzy after having a few kids) we definitely dealt with some least than ideal honeymoon situations on our trip 8 years ago. Bad sunburns, losing an expensive digital camera that wasn't even ours (I still have no idea what happened to that thing and I was protecting it so closely), and to top it off we had a wreck on our way home.
So this was TN's chance to prove to us that the beautiful state was not out to get us.
Despite some car sickness on the way and leaving a few hours late we were making decent time and almost in TN. Then I got a phone call from the company we booked the cabin with. There was no water at the Heavenly Love cabin and we were going to have to pick another cabin to stay in. We laughed and wondered what all might go wrong on this trip.
For about 30 minutes the extremely polite woman on the phone went through about 12 cabins with me while I tried to look at pictures on Marcus' phone and compare and contrast. So we ended up trading in our weekend at Heavenly Love with a weekend at the Lazy Rooster! A lovely cabin but one that definitely didn't have a view.
But the lazy rooster set the tone for weekend. We were indeed lazy. And it was awesome.
(The cabin was nice except this sign by the front door- what in the world?!)
We ate some pretty awesome food...the teriyaki steak (upper right pic) was my favorite!
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Putt-putt. I will say that Marcus won (I will not say by how much) He waitied until the last few holes to let me know that I was hitting it too hard and once I lightened up I did SO much better. I was the only one who got a hole-in-one though!
And he did beat me at pool too but only by one.
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More belly pics (27 weeks)...hey, it's what you do when you're pregnant :)
Aaaaah. It was lovely and lazy. We laughed. We smiled. We had fun. We made inside jokes (like Pizza Hut's Guard Rooster) And then we left for home somewhat holding our breath that this time we wouldn't wreck!
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On the way home we were able to stop for a late lunch with our long time friend, Cliff, whom we haven't seen in a few years. It was nice to see him again and then we set out for my parent's house to get the boys.
We missed them. I swear we saw about 125373 red headed little kids while we were away and as we turned on my parents road I felt my heart leap that I was about to see my boys!
I'd like to say they screamed "Mommy! Daddy!" and ran into our arms. Nope. Luke was unsure what was going on and therefore didn't want anything to do with us for awhile. Nathan was pouting that our arrival meant he had to leave Papa's house.
But we hugged and kissed them anyways and gave them their little stuffed bear and fox souvenirs.
Now back to life. Back to reality. But definitely refreshed.
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We are super super grateful for our wonderful family that allowed us to get away for a few days by taking excellent care of our boys. My mother-in-law even took Nathan to his kindergarten orientation (which was hard for me to miss but I was glad he still got to go). They definitely enjoyed their time with all their grandparents and Nathan's asking to do it again.
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Nathan and Papa
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Pink Grout
Today I told Marcus that I was going to go clean the master bathroom.
(Which trust me- it needed it. Nathan had dropped my blush a long time ago by the toilet and I feared the grout was going to be forever stained pink. It was one of those things I looked at on a daily basis but never got around to cleaning. Which pretty much means I spent way more time thinking about cleaning it than it would have taken to actually clean it.)
Nathan turned to me and said "Ooo- I want to help you clean the bathroom! Can I help? Please?!"
I internally debated because I usually say "not this time" when he asks because 1) Most likely he'll lose interest quickly 2) It would take me longer 3) He might make a bigger mess trying to clean 4) I usually have odds and ends things to put away that I don't want him handling (like my new unbroken-for-now blush) and did I mention it might take me longer? Oh and it would probably take longer.
But psssh!
What's wrong with me?! My 5 year old is wanting to HELP ME CLEAN.
So today I pushed my petty reasons to the side and said "yes." (Plus with 3 little boys growing up in this house there will be lots of bathroom cleaning. Might as well teach him early.)
To the sound of Christian Contemporary music thanks to Pandora we sprayed, we wiped, we cleaned and cleaned. We wiped down the baseboards and cleaned the pink grout. And we may have done a little boogy dance when we realized we finally got the floor of the shower clean thanks to my friend Dana suggesting the Magic Eraser (I'm a believer now)
Was it perfect? No.
Did I have to help him and show him and calm him down when he got frustrated when he couldn't get a certain spot clean? Yes.
Was it fun? You-betcha!
And best of all I think it actually went quicker (more quickly?)! Because once I showed him how to do something I would move on to the next thing. He worked the entire time without losing interest.
Afterwards, while we left the mopped floors to dry, I said "Thank you so much for all of your help Nathan. I really appreciate it."
Anticipating turning this into a this-is-why-it's-important-to-try-to-keep-things-picked-up-and-clean lesson, I said "Cleaning is hard work, huh?"
While he casually walked away he said "I know, Mommy, that's why I wanted to help you. Because it's hard and you have a baby in your belly."
Melt.
My heart grew 3 sizes.
Moments like this make you realize that although there are times you feel like you mess up as a parent you must be doing something right. Especially when your child shows a glimpse of a servant's heart.
Now hopefully I can keep the bathroom remotely clean while I dye my hair tonight.
Here's my little man hard at work and pics of our finished product (with no pink grout thank you very much!)
(Which trust me- it needed it. Nathan had dropped my blush a long time ago by the toilet and I feared the grout was going to be forever stained pink. It was one of those things I looked at on a daily basis but never got around to cleaning. Which pretty much means I spent way more time thinking about cleaning it than it would have taken to actually clean it.)
Nathan turned to me and said "Ooo- I want to help you clean the bathroom! Can I help? Please?!"
I internally debated because I usually say "not this time" when he asks because 1) Most likely he'll lose interest quickly 2) It would take me longer 3) He might make a bigger mess trying to clean 4) I usually have odds and ends things to put away that I don't want him handling (like my new unbroken-for-now blush) and did I mention it might take me longer? Oh and it would probably take longer.
But psssh!
What's wrong with me?! My 5 year old is wanting to HELP ME CLEAN.
So today I pushed my petty reasons to the side and said "yes." (Plus with 3 little boys growing up in this house there will be lots of bathroom cleaning. Might as well teach him early.)
To the sound of Christian Contemporary music thanks to Pandora we sprayed, we wiped, we cleaned and cleaned. We wiped down the baseboards and cleaned the pink grout. And we may have done a little boogy dance when we realized we finally got the floor of the shower clean thanks to my friend Dana suggesting the Magic Eraser (I'm a believer now)
Was it perfect? No.
Did I have to help him and show him and calm him down when he got frustrated when he couldn't get a certain spot clean? Yes.
Was it fun? You-betcha!
And best of all I think it actually went quicker (more quickly?)! Because once I showed him how to do something I would move on to the next thing. He worked the entire time without losing interest.
Afterwards, while we left the mopped floors to dry, I said "Thank you so much for all of your help Nathan. I really appreciate it."
Anticipating turning this into a this-is-why-it's-important-to-try-to-keep-things-picked-up-and-clean lesson, I said "Cleaning is hard work, huh?"
While he casually walked away he said "I know, Mommy, that's why I wanted to help you. Because it's hard and you have a baby in your belly."
Melt.
My heart grew 3 sizes.
Moments like this make you realize that although there are times you feel like you mess up as a parent you must be doing something right. Especially when your child shows a glimpse of a servant's heart.
Now hopefully I can keep the bathroom remotely clean while I dye my hair tonight.
Here's my little man hard at work and pics of our finished product (with no pink grout thank you very much!)
Saturday, May 4, 2013
What chu talkin' 'bout?
A few months ago we noticed Luke wasn't really on track verbally with his age. He wasn't saying any words. He wasn't referring to us as "mama" or "dada." It basically was all about pointing and "eh eh" noises. Anytime I tried to get him to repeat a sound he would just stare at me like "what chu talkin' 'bout crazy woman?"
Once when we were at the doctor's office when he was about 17 months old his pediatrician said that he should be saying several words by now and that it was up to us if we wanted to look into speech therapy.
Thinking that he most likely will get caught up on his own we decided to wait a little bit. We knew that most likely this small delay was due to the very large amount of ear infections that he had before his ear tubes (and even recently at the beginning of the year he started getting them about other week with the tubes in place still)
Once we started to realize that soon we'll be having another baby and therefore less time to work with Luke we thought it would be best to go ahead and have him evaluated with First Steps. Plus one of my patients at work used First Steps for her son at this same age and gave me a boost to do it.
If you aren't familiar with First Steps- let me just say it's a pretty amazing program. Luke had physical therapy through them when he was around 7-9 months old because he wouldn't turn his head to the right at all and rarely used his right side. This program provides several types of therapy for children up til age 3 either for free or a very discounted rate based on income.
Luke's evaluation went well and cognitively his scores were high but he was lacking in speech and social skill.
Right before we started speech therapy it was like a light bulb went off for Luke and for the first time he started repeating some sounds and saying a few words (ough oh, shoes)
After 2 months of speech therapy with his therapist, Ms. Sarah, Luke has come a LONG way. He can sign several words and often says them along with the sign. He signs more, please, all done, and help (plu s few others we rarely use so I can't remember). He can say "mama", "dada", "shoe", "bubble", "thank you", "food", "water", "papa", "baba" (for Kiba) and pretty much can repeat or attempts to repeat any word you ask him to. He does several animals signs and knows most of his body parts.
Listen to him making different sounds with Sarah. Just a few weeks ago he couldn't do any of these!
Once he figured out that saying "mama mama mama" will get my attention he pretty much sounds like this on a regular basis....
If we pass cows while we are driving...
Luke: "Mama mama mama mama"
Me: "Yes Luke?"
Luke: "Moo!"
Me: "Did you see a cow?"
Luke: "Mama mama mama mama mama"
Me: "Yes Luke?"
Luke: "Moo!"
...and repeat several times.
I love it.
Once when we were at the doctor's office when he was about 17 months old his pediatrician said that he should be saying several words by now and that it was up to us if we wanted to look into speech therapy.
Thinking that he most likely will get caught up on his own we decided to wait a little bit. We knew that most likely this small delay was due to the very large amount of ear infections that he had before his ear tubes (and even recently at the beginning of the year he started getting them about other week with the tubes in place still)
Once we started to realize that soon we'll be having another baby and therefore less time to work with Luke we thought it would be best to go ahead and have him evaluated with First Steps. Plus one of my patients at work used First Steps for her son at this same age and gave me a boost to do it.
If you aren't familiar with First Steps- let me just say it's a pretty amazing program. Luke had physical therapy through them when he was around 7-9 months old because he wouldn't turn his head to the right at all and rarely used his right side. This program provides several types of therapy for children up til age 3 either for free or a very discounted rate based on income.
Luke's evaluation went well and cognitively his scores were high but he was lacking in speech and social skill.
Right before we started speech therapy it was like a light bulb went off for Luke and for the first time he started repeating some sounds and saying a few words (ough oh, shoes)
After 2 months of speech therapy with his therapist, Ms. Sarah, Luke has come a LONG way. He can sign several words and often says them along with the sign. He signs more, please, all done, and help (plu s few others we rarely use so I can't remember). He can say "mama", "dada", "shoe", "bubble", "thank you", "food", "water", "papa", "baba" (for Kiba) and pretty much can repeat or attempts to repeat any word you ask him to. He does several animals signs and knows most of his body parts.
Listen to him making different sounds with Sarah. Just a few weeks ago he couldn't do any of these!
Once he figured out that saying "mama mama mama" will get my attention he pretty much sounds like this on a regular basis....
If we pass cows while we are driving...
Luke: "Mama mama mama mama"
Me: "Yes Luke?"
Luke: "Moo!"
Me: "Did you see a cow?"
Luke: "Mama mama mama mama mama"
Me: "Yes Luke?"
Luke: "Moo!"
...and repeat several times.
I love it.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Name Your Derby Horse
Living pretty close to Louisville, KY the Derby is a big deal around here. Like many who live in this area though, I haven't actually been to Churchill Downs (and don't have a big desire to go)
Yesterday I ran across a list of the Derby horses for this year's race and read them to Marcus.
Black Onyx
Charming Kitten
Falling Sky
Fear The Kitten
Frac Daddy
Giant Finish
Golden Soul
Goldencents
Itsmyluckyday
Java's War
Lines of Battle
Mylute
Normandy Invasion
Orb
Overanalyze
Oxbow
Palace Malice
Revolutionary
Verrazano
Vyjack
Will Take Charge
We started wondering the story behind some of these names and began coming up with names of our own. Of course many of them stemmed from old inside jokes between us. Yanno- the ones so old that the joke origin is fuzzy now and all you know is they make you giggle?
Here's our Derby horses:
Random Concrete
Knitster
Mama Moo
Functional Dysfunction
The Situation
And my favorite....
And of course- who can forget the horse lovingly named "Hoof Hearted"? Because...well...watch....
What would you name your Derby horse???
However, I usually partake in Derby Party festivities with close family. Basically it's an excuse to get together, hang out, eat good for you food and watch the races (unless we're sick like we were last year)
And like many people we choose our horse to root for based on the horse's name (hey, who needs statistics when the horse has a cool name?) Remember the year Silver Charm won? 1997. Yep- he was my pick because his name is pretty.
Yesterday I ran across a list of the Derby horses for this year's race and read them to Marcus.
Black Onyx
Charming Kitten
Falling Sky
Fear The Kitten
Frac Daddy
Giant Finish
Golden Soul
Goldencents
Itsmyluckyday
Java's War
Lines of Battle
Mylute
Normandy Invasion
Orb
Overanalyze
Oxbow
Palace Malice
Revolutionary
Verrazano
Vyjack
Will Take Charge
We started wondering the story behind some of these names and began coming up with names of our own. Of course many of them stemmed from old inside jokes between us. Yanno- the ones so old that the joke origin is fuzzy now and all you know is they make you giggle?
Here's our Derby horses:
Random Concrete
Knitster
Mama Moo
Functional Dysfunction
The Situation
And my favorite....
Zombie Jellyfish
And of course- who can forget the horse lovingly named "Hoof Hearted"? Because...well...watch....
What would you name your Derby horse???
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