Mother's Day 2013

cheating a little - this one was taken Saturday. 

Sunday started out with a blank slate - no plans.  "The boys" got me a gift card to my favorite spa for a pedicure and 1 hour Swedish massage.  So looking forward to that pampering!  Theo has been asking to go to Scotty's for a few weeks now, so I told him to ask daddy if he could take me there for Mother's Day.  If you're local, and especially if you're local and you have kids, you need to go there!  They have a great kids' menu and kids eat free on Sundays and Tuesdays.  Little did I know that moms received a free dessert as well on Mother's Day!  All around win.  Food was delicious. The boys cleaned their plates!

Afterwards, we talked about where we could go and what we could do downtown that the boys would enjoy. It was a beautiful day, but a little chilly so the Central Library seemed like a good option. The boys had never been and I had not been there in a long time.  I think we were all awestruck at the enormity of the open space inside.  It is a beautiful, historic building that underwent a huge renovation a few years ago.  Modern function meets classic beauty.  The boys had fun playing on the computers, running from one end of the kids section to the other, and picking over a few million books.  Afterwards, we strolled around outside a little bit and I only snapped a few pics on my phone that I am having trouble transferring to my email/computer. Boo.

We went home and the boys took LONG naps, Ryan cut the grass, and I tore everything out of our bathroom vanity and re-orgainzed like a mad woman. Then cleaned the soap scum out of our shower that had been building for longer than I care to admit.  Doesn't sound too relaxing, but it's what I wanted. TIME. Time to do things that go beyond the basic laundry folding and dishwasher unloading.  I need lots more of it, but nothing is so pressing that it can't wait.  After they got up, we enjoyed a nice dinner and lounged around the rest of the evening.   I couldn't have asked for a better Mother's Day!

Oh, the boys were funny.  Dexter kept saying Happy's Mother Day instead of Happy Mother's Day.  Then Theo  got confused and kept asking "can you tell me the words again?"  I love those two little crazies.  And their dad is a-okay too. 

xo,

~C~

a day in the life

prepare to be green with envy, y'all.

Here's what a typical (week)day in the life looks like.

6:15AM:  The alarm goes off.  Sometimes Dexter is already awake, sometimes I'm stunned by the silence and actually waking up to the sound of the alarm clock.  Suppose on this day, Dexter was still asleep.

Nah, scratch that.  He's awake by now.  Starting over.

5:32AM:  Wake up to whining and temporarily wonder if I am on another planet or if it's the middle of the night.  Disoriented, I walk out to the kitchen with my eyes as squinted as they can be and still be useful for seeing things. Sort of.  I listen to Dexter through the monitor in the living room either calling "mama" or "I want milk hot."  Yep. We still give him warm milk. Shut up.

5:35AM: Dexter is tucked snugly in our bed between us and slurping down the last few sips of milk before handing me his cup and saying "Here. Here. Take it mommy. All gone."  We all fall asleep.

6:15AM:  Ahh, there you are alarm clock.  Now I hit snooze.
6:20AM: Again.
6:25AM: And again.

6:30AM: I roll out of bed and head to the shower.  Sometime while I'm in there, Theo wakes up and Ryan has started getting him and/or Dexter dressed.

7:20AM:  This is the goal time to leave the house.  At this point, we're usually still putting on shoes and jackets and it just depends how cooperative two little boys are as to whether or not we're out the door by 7:40.  If it becomes clear that it's not happening, I just leave and Ryan takes them because while my job is flexible, I feel the need to be there at a certain time. Ryan flies by the seat of his pants.

7:30AM: If I drop off the boys, this is the desired time.  I get them out of their carseats and follow them up the sidewalk, walk in, put their jackets, diaper bag, shoes, etc. in the closet and kiss them goodbye.

8AM - 4PM:  blahblahblahblahblah.

4:20PM: Pick up the boys.  Chase Dexter around the babysitter's house for 10 minutes begging him to let me put his shoes on because he is doing anything he can to stall leaving.  Look, kid.  I'm glad you like it there and all but I'm sure your sitter is ready for you to get the H-E-double hockey sticks out of there and frankly, I just wanna go home myself.

4:40PM: Usually around the time we get home.  I'll flip on a cartoon for the boys to watch because that's what guarantees me the least interruptions while attempting to create some kind of Pinterest culinary masterpiece.  Check on them periodically to make sure no one's bleeding, they haven't knocked the t.v. over, or just taken off down the street for a stroll.  Okay -NONE of these things have just happened so back off.  Obviously because I'm checking on them periodically.

5:30-5:45PMish: Ryan gets home from work and dinner's ready.  (MUST BE NICE).  We eat. This can be a drawn out process, guys.  By the time dinner's cleaned up it could be 6:30 or 7.  There is a lot of redirecting to eat. Bribery. False promises.  True promises.  Encouragement. And surrender.  I'm just kidding. It's not that bad. They're pretty good eaters usually, just slow.

7PM: Bath night is every other night until they are getting sweaty and slathered with sunscreen every day.  So if it's bath night, we'll do that. I'll let them stay in there as long as they like unless they're splashing all the water out and acting too nutso for me to handle.  They're usually out by 7:30 and ready to play some games, read some books, or play with toys.

7:50PM: 10 minute warning! It's almost bedtime. Time to brush your teeth. Time to get your fresh diapers on.  So you (Theo) can fill it up with a big bomb since you won't do that in the toilet (again). Time to pick out what toy(s) you want to take to bed.

8:05PM: Lights out!  Good night.
8:06PM: Dexter's crying and begging for us to "rock-a-beebee" him.
8:15PM: 9 minutes and 14 songs later, they are both in their beds.
8:32PM: Theo calls for me and when I go in, he says he's pooped.
8:34PM: Theo's back in bed.
8:44PM: Dexter's finally quiet.  No blue lights on the monitor.  Whew.
8:50PM: Theo calls for me and when I go in, he asks me to snuggle up with him.

9:46PM: I wake up in Theo's bed and temporarily wonder if I am on another planet or if it's the middle of the night.  Disoriented, I walk out to the living room with my eyes as squinted as they can be and still be useful for seeing things. Ryan's still awake and asks me where I've been. As if.

10:31PM: I'm falling asleep on the couch again and announce that I'm going to bed.  Or maybe I've got the laptop right here, and I'm pecking away at the keys. Trying to document the things that my boys do. The things they say. Things I want to remember and things I'd rather forget.  Or maybe I'm watching Nashville or some other show on DVR.  Maybe I'm watching Ryan play a video game while I play on my phone.

At some point, I do go to bed and look at Pinterest for far too long. Until I cannot keep my eyes open and my phone slips out of my hand.  Then I do it all over again.

Good night,
~C~

Linking up with Melissa at Growing Up Geeky for Toddle Along Tuesday.

mommy's pet peeves

I'm participating in Toddle Along Tuesday with Melissa at Growing Up Geeky and this week's topic is Mommy's Pet Peeves.

Let me just say that I try to maintain a positive attitude overall, but sometimes it's just fun necessary to vent!  Here are some of my pet peeves:

1. I know I'm not a princess and my children are not royalty or anything, but for the love of Pete, hold the freakin' door open when you see a lady with an 188' long double stroller coming through. No excuses.

2. I've never denied that Dexter was a "surprise" to us but for crying out loud, don't ask a lady you barely know if her second pregnancy (or any pregnancy) was planned.  Geez.

3. You know how annoying it is when people park 3" from you and you have to shimmy into the car sideways to avoid slamming your door into their car?  Only because you don't want to mess up your own car?  Well, there's a whole new level of annoying to this when you have to put a toddler in a carseat.  Come ON!

4. How about every time you say something about your child to someone and they have to one-up you?  They feel the need to tell you something that their kid did that was bigger and better than your kid's thing.  Every.Single.Time.  Guess what?  It's not necessary.

5. People that have to have every most expensive brand/thing for their kid.  Just because it's expensive.  Because it sure isn't always cute.  Can't use hand-me-downs because that's for poor people. Go ahead and call me poor, pal, that's one less thing I have to buy.

6. Rude strangers in public that ignore my {obviously adorable, sweet} children when they wave or say "hi."  As crazy as it makes me sound, I am always offended by this and am paranoid it will hurt the boys' feelings.

What annoys you the most?
~C~

birth order

I’m linking up with Melissa at Growing Up Geeky.  This week’s topic is birth order.

My older sister and I are just about exactly 2 years apart.  I don’t know if birth order affected our personalities or not.  We’re a lot alike.  We’re both quiet until we get to know people, then we are loud, talkative, and joke around a lot.  We’re both very sarcastic.  Neither of us are super Type A personalities.  I probably am more Type A than she is as far as having anxiety when things aren’t organized, planned, or in their places.  I like to plan ahead but I can also go with the flow at times.  I know that she had tighter curfews starting out than I did when we were teenagers.  I was friends with most of her friends so by default, I got to stay out as late as she did.  I think she was 15 (16?) before she was allowed to date and I was maybe just a year younger or so because we would go on double dates when I was too young to drive.  Outside of that, I don’t know that there were any major differences growing up.  I never noticed our parents babying me or treating me differently.  We did fine in school – didn’t get straight As but did better than average overall.

My boys are only 14 months apart.  I think about this – how their birth order affects their personalities (and even development) – quite often.  Theo has always been and will always be the oldest child I have.  He always, always, ALWAYS seems so much older at his current age than Dexter does when he reaches that same age.  From day 1, I’ve had different expectations for Theo than I do for Dexter.  I am aware of it, but I don’t know how to control it.  Theo is my gauge for what a 2 and a ½ year old should be doing.  Theo is my gauge for what a 1 and a ½ year old should be doing.  If Dexter isn’t doing everything Theo was doing at xyz age, then I start to worry. 

I also realize now what is realistic for a however-many-month old and a however-many-year old more with Dexter than I did/do with Theo.  I don’t go into a complete panic over giving Dexter sweets like I did with Theo because I know now that they are not going to ruin him and make him never want to eat vegetables again.  There’s no anxiety over still giving Dexter warm milk at night because I think he’ll still want it before bed as a teenager.  I don’t get bent out of shape thinking that my youngest child is going to be a hellion if he throws a fit or doesn’t cooperate.  Am I doing things or worrying about things with Theo now that I won’t with Dexter a year from now?  I don’t know.  I am still learning how to be a parent every day.  Theo is teaching me this month how to parent a 2 yr 8 month old child – I’ve never done it before, but you can bet I’ll use this learning experience 14 months from now when Dexter is 2 yrs and 8 months old. 

Did/does Dexter get ripped off on framed pictures and Shutterfly photobooks?  He sure does.  Are 99% of his shoes and clothes hand-me-downs?  Sure are.  Do I find myself telling Theo to look at things at the zoo or store or out the car window, without thinking that Dexter is old enough to appreciate it too?  YEP.  I try to catch myself and include Dexter, but he is still my “baby.”  The baby in our family.  I think of him as being younger than Theo was at the same age, and maybe I always will.  Theo leads the way.  Dexter plays with the same toys Theo plays with.  I have a million ideas for Christmas gifts for Theo and only and handful for Dexter.  I know that they will both play with whatever I buy, but Dexter literally does WHATEVER Theo is doing.  Dexter has no identified & unique interests of his own.  I’m sure that will change as he gets older.  Right? 

Truthfully, I do treat/view them differently.  Of course it has nothing to do with loving them differently, but it just is what it is…Theo is my big boy and Dexter is my baby.  At any age. Hopefully I'm not giving either of them a complex in the process of raising them!

xo,
~C~

my Christmas wish list

Linking up with Melissa at Growing Up Geeky for Toddle Along Tuesday.  This week's topic?  Mama's Christmas wish list! 



1.  3x5 Chindi Loop Rug from World Market.  Two or three of these would look cute in my soon-to-be new kitchen.

2.  Bloom by Kelle Hampton - a memoir written by a mama blogger who has 2 daughters (one with Down Syndrome) and a baby boy on the way.

3. Early Bird lamp (in white) by Land of Nod for my nightstand.  Yes, it's a child's store. Don't care.

4.  Hamilton Beach Set n Forget 6 Qt Programmable Slow Cooker (amazon). I'm falling in love all over again with my crock pot but truthfully, it's pretty junky.

5.  Fossil Maddox Flap Crossbody bag.  Self-explanatory.

6.  Uglydoll Babo Ceramic Cookie Jar (amazon). The boys each have their own uglydoll and I thought this would be a whimsical addition to the kitchen.

7. Zoku Quick Pop Maker (williams-sonoma).  This just intrigues me! I think I saw it on someone else's blog quite a while ago.  I don't know how much I would use it, but it would definitely be a fun way to make sweet & healthy treats for the boys (and maybe myself).

8. Remove Your Shoes wall hanging by Lisa Leonard.  Ya know, because we have new carpet and all.  And really?  What DON'T I want from Lisa Leonard?

What do you want for Christmas?  Have you started making a list? 

And has anyone else tried the Zoku?  Thoughts? 

happy shopping,

~C~

happy/sad Halloween

Rooney Doodle from the Doodlebops

Pirate Parrot

The boys had a great time in their costumes and just loved going door to door.  Theo was excited last year but even more so this year.  Dexter just went along for the ride and had fun carrying his bucket.  It got really heavy but he would not let me hold it for him.  Too cute!

Ugh... now the not so great news.  I'm just sick about it and can't stop thinking about it.  We went to our old neighborhood to go trick or treating.  We closed on our old house on May 31st and neither Ryan nor I had driven back by the old house.  It's just been too sad ... we're homesick for that little house after everything we've been through.  Also, we didn't want to confuse Theo by going by there before we moved in to our new place.  Oh, did I tell you?  WE MOVED INTO OUR NEW PLACE!  That's another post.  

Anyway, we went to the old 'hood and drove by our house (it looks lovely) and by our next door neighbor's.  The lights were not on, but it was right at 6 so we thought maybe they just hadn't turned on their light yet. We went up a couple of other streets. Theo really was so cute, saying over and over "isn't this fun, Mom?  Getting candy is SO fun!"  His face lit up every time someone put more candy in his bucket.  By 7 we made our way back over there.  Kitchen light was on but not the porch light.  We went to see another neighbor across the street and learned that our dear neighbor, Roger, is terminally ill with liver cancer.  HE HELPED US MOVE at the end of May.  Needless to say, we went over there and visited.  He is about 50ish and has lived there with his mother, who is close to 90.  We thought if anything had happened, his mother would be the one to have fallen ill.  

Guys... Roger.  Oh my goodness.  He was lying there in his hospital bed.  His entire body swollen, his face gray.  He looked just awful. Let's just say he looked bad enough that I'm checking a certain section of the paper every day. The boys just stared at him.  Theo talked to him.  Roger told us we were wonderful neighbors and that he loved us.  He said he'd tell his mom to make sure to call us when he died. Seriously?  A night of fun and merry-making turned into THAT.  That quick.  Just as quickly as his health deteriorated.  It's a huge reality check and such a heart-breaker.  Anyway, sorry to be a party pooper. But that's what I think about when I think about Halloween 2012.  

Linking up with Melissa at Growing Up Geeky! 

xo,

~C~ 

bedtime routines

It's been awhile, but I'm linking up again this week with Melissa over at Growing Up Geeky.  The topic this week is bedtime routines.  Hmm....

This is one of those deals where it's different with baby number two than it was with number one.  With Theo, we were always so good about bath, rocking chair, bottle, bed and all by a certain time.  With Dexter, it was all about not waking up Theo.  So we would hold him out on the couch while we watched television and rock him to sleep, then go lay him down.  We rocked him to sleep until he was over 8 months old.  I think we started laying Theo down awake around 6 months.

Things have changed as the boys have gotten older.  Their bedtime used to be a pretty strict 7:30, which was nice for me, since I have to leave for work at 9.  It gave me time to pack my lunch, watch one t.v. show on DVR and chit chat with my husband for a bit at the end of a long day. Well, the end of his long day and the beginning of mine, I suppose.

Theo has been staying up a little later... and even a little later than that lately.  Like getting in bed around 8:30. And lots of times, it's after he's watched one episode of Doodlebops.  I don't mind him watching 30 minutes or an hour of television every day, it kind of helps him unwind.  But I don't feel so proud of myself and I'd rather spend that time reading or playing with him.  But I still have to pack my lunch and clean up dinner or switch the laundry and get Dexter in bed and blah blah blah.  So our routine has been a little relaxed lately.  I must say though, he knows when we tell him it's time, it's time.

I grab his favorite blanket, "kanket," and carry him back to the bathroom to brush his teeth. He sits facing the mirror and I brush all those pesky dinner crumbs off his teeth.  If he wants to brush his teeth, I give him a couple minutes to do so.  Can't hurt, right?  Then I carry him to his room and hold him like a baby (which is getting pretty dang challenging at this point) for a minute or two before laying him in his crib.  Changes coming soon there, I think.  Maybe.

With Dexter, he starts showing signs of being ready for bed a little earlier. He gets fidgety and clingy and whiny. But you can't hold him when he's tired like that.  He must be afraid he'll fall asleep if he gets still.  So I sit in the rocking chair with him and he takes his last bottle of the day.  Sometimes he falls asleep as soon as it's gone, other times he thinks about fighting it.  Usually I can rock him for a few minutes, other days he won't let me.  So I put him in his bed and it's lights out.

Both boys are super easy to put down 99% of the time, for which we are very lucky and grateful.  Now if we could just get Dexter to sleep past 5am.  Eek.

~C~

i hope i give them something good.

I'm linking up with Mama G over at Growing Up Geeky for this week's Toddle Along Tuesday.



The topic is traits that you hope you pass along to your child (or hope that they don't inherit from you). 

It's so tempting to spill out a big list of things I don't like about myself, things I think I do wrong, or inadequacies I see in myself.  When I was throwing ideas around for this post in my mind, those were the things that I thought of first.

With that being said, I hope my boys don't inherit my self-doubt.  I hope they aren't too critical of themselves.

I hope my boys inherit my laid-back personailty.  Since having kids, I have become a much more anxious person.  But in general, I don't worry too much about things I can't control.  Marrying into a family of worry warts, I realize what a blessing that is.

I hope they inherit my dream and mission of tolerance and acceptance.  Gay couples, multiracial families, people with developmental disabilities...I don't want my kids to stare or have a single negative thought about people that so often get stereotyped and discriminated against.

I used to worry before I had kids that they wouldn't be cute, because honestly? R and I are both pretty much chin-less.  I thought maybe their lips would just be somewhere in the middle of their necks.  So I hope as they get older, they each grow a better chin than I did.  I love that Dexter inherited my blue eyes and that Theo inherited his dad's brown eyes.  I hope they inherit their dad's athleticism and willingness to try new sports, games, activities, etc., regardless of whether it makes them look like a fool.  I'm not too good at that.

I hope they inherit both me and their daddy's common sense.  We are both down to earth, logical people.  Despite our little Dexter suprise, we're planners.  We like to know what's going to happen.  I hope they are able to be responsible, but adventurous and spontaneous at the same time somehow.  Is that possible?

What do you hope your kids inherit from you?

~C~

meet Daddy in the Midwest

I remember sitting in birthing class when I was pregnant with Theo, anticipating my turn to introduce myself.  You were supposed to say your name, if you were having a boy or girl, and what you were looking forward to the most about having your baby.  I'm sure I answered with some sort of rosy, sappy, hormonally driven response.  R said "when I can play video games with him." 

Uh.  Yeah.  It's gonna be awhile before that happens, buddy.  Two years later, here we are.  Our visions of what having kids would be like has certainly gone through a few transformations.  There is no doubt in my mind that he is still looking forward to playing video games with the boys, but between now and then, there are plenty of things that we have learned to look forward to each day.

Mama G's Toddle Along Tuesday topic this week is "Babies and their Daddies."  Bounce on over there and see what other mommy bloggers have posted about their baby daddies.  I've suggested to R before that he write a guest post on Mommy in the Midwest but he's been reluctant.  What better time than now?

Without further ado...an interview with the Dada.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You and Mommy in the Midwest don't have a typical schedule.  How do you really feel about being home alone with the babies at night and getting them ready for the day all by yourself?

Most nights it's fine.  Most of the morning is fine, until Theo starts throwing fits or they wake up in an inconsistent order.  The nights when they wake up multiple times in the middle of the night are not good.  Like when they're sick - those nights are rough.  It's gonna be more stressful when Dexter is as old as Theo is now because then I'll have two kids running around.  

Honestly.  How did you feel after Mommy in the Midwest told you she was pregnant again when Theo was just 6 months old?

(Laughs).  Devastated.  Scared.  Helpless.  Guilty.  Regretful.  Worried.  (Laughs some more).  I felt like it was something I was always going to look back on, feeling like I ruined everything.  I felt bad for you and I felt bad for Theo because I felt like he wasn't going to get as much attention as he should have. 


And now?

Now I feel like I wouldn't want it any other way.  I'm excited for them to grow up together so close and be friends hopefully.  I'm excited to move past some of these early stages and not have to go through it again.  

Do you want to try for a girl?

Uh-uh.  Not right now.  I don't think I do. I wanted a girl but now I'm really happy we have brothers and I think a family of four is good.

If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

Pittsburgh.    

What's your idea of the perfect day with your family?

Everything revolves around eating, sleeping, and playing.  They don't wake up before us.  Theo is happy to see me in the morning.  I'd like to have some sun-gluss (Theo's way of saying snuggles) in the morning, followed by breakfast.  Follow that with some play time with the kids, outside time would be nice.  Go on a walk or go to the park.  Then we'd go eat lunch.  The kids take a nap while mom and dad catch up on DVR or play the Wii.  Then repeat everything that happened between breakfast and lunch.  Maybe we take the kids shopping.  Theo says some funny stuff and we have a laugh or two.  We come home and eat dinner then go back out for some frozen yogurt.  We'll come home and get ready for bed. 

So far, are you the kind of dad you thought/hoped you'd be?  Is there anything you would do differently as a parent?

Hmm.  I never really pictured myself being a dad at this stage.  I think I'm a good dad so far.  I just never pictured myself playing with babies.  I always pictured myself playing with older kids.  I wish I would take more video and pictures. 


Do you have any advice on keeping the spark in your relationship, while balancing all the day-to-day responsibilities?

Yeah, find time to be alone.  Find time to go to dinners together.  Find time to do the things you had fun doing alone before you had kids.  Also, learn to support each other and work together.  Don't let the responsibilities of parenthood stress you out because stress leads to fighting. 

What's your favorite thing Theo does right now?

My favorite thing is when he just snuggles with us.  This is bad, but he will now watch an entire 30 minute show on t.v., and he'll just sit there and snuggle and suck his thumb and hold his Elmo doll.  My second favorite is listening to all the cute things he says and how he comes up with new things every week.  Like "who's that name" when he wants to know what something is called and "talk about....(fill in the blank)"  He says it while he's examining something. 

What's your favorite thing Dexter does right now?

I think my favorite thing about Dexter is that he's so easy to make happy.  It's easy to make him laugh.  

Will you ever write a guest post on Mommy in the Midwest?

Maybe.  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


That's about all I could get out of him!  Hope you enjoyed meeting the Dada!

xo,
~C~

you might think.

Dear Mommy-to-Be:

You might be scared to death of giving birth.

But millions of women have done this before you.  Your body was built to accomplish this scary feat.  You might not know what to do, but your body already does.  And so does your baby. 

You might worry about your recovery and how much it will hurt afterwards. 

You’re right, it will hurt.  But not for long.  In a few weeks, you’ll be saying “was I ever even pregnant?”

You might think there's no way you can get pregnant while you're nursing, and not having your period.

That's a lie.  

You might think you already know it all, but you don’t.

You might think you don’t have a clue how to care for a tiny helpless baby, but much of it will come naturally.

You might think you can do it all on your own and it might be hard to ask for help.

And you really might be able to do it on your own, but 90% of the people that offer to help really do want to.  So let them.

You might think that your baby will never smile.  But then one day she will and you’ll know she’s smiling because she loves you and then?  Then your heart will melt into a puddle at your feet. 

There will be nights when you wonder if you even deserve to have become a parent because it is too hard and you are too frustrated and this baby stays up way too long in the middle of the night.

But this (like everything with babies, good and bad) is just a phase and it will be a memory in the blink of an eye.

Your back might be tired from carrying the baby that has NOT LET YOU put him down for the last 12 hours.  You might want to put him in the crib the second he falls asleep.  But don’t. 

Sit there, with him in your arms, and look at that perfect, innocent face.  Stare at him.  Memorize the curve of his cheeks and the tip of his nose.  Listen to him breathing and fall into rhythm with the rise and fall of his chest.  Because before long, that tiny baby won’t want to be held much at all. 

You might panic when other babies are teething and crawling and cruising and eating solids and _______ (enter every other milestone known to woman) before your baby does.  But try not to place yourself under that unnecessary stress.  Your baby is an individual and he will do what he’s supposed to do on his own time.  He’s just perfect. 

You might find yourself saying over and over I can’t believe she’s ____ (insert age of child by days, weeks, months, then YEARS) old already!  Because even though it’s cliché, these little ones really do grow like weeds and time really does fly when you’re having fun.  Turns out, it even flies when you’re not having fun. 

So try to enjoy every moment as much as you can.  And when you find yourself in a particularly un-enjoyable moment, just remember “it’s just a phase it’s just a phase it’s just a phase it’s just a phase.”  Think about it this way.  You’ll remember the good times.  The bad moments are just moments.  They will fade and become blurry in your memory.  The smiles, the daily joys of parenthood, the wonderful memories – that’s what you’ll remember. 

Love,

~C~

I'm linking up with Mama G at Growing Up Geeky for the Toddle Along Tuesday blog hop.  Today's topic?  Advice for mommies-to-be.  Click the link to see what other mamas have to say.

What would you add?

what i can't (or don't want) to live without

I got my Canon Rebel T2i for Christmas in 2010.  I am incredibly disappointed in myself for not taking the time to learn more about all the functions and what all those letters and numbers mean so that I can maximize the quality of the pictures I take.  Of course, I am mostly taking pictures of my kids.  I don't feel that they rise to the level of professional photos, but that is where I would like to be.

I've just started researching lenses and I'm trying to sort through a lot of information to determine what would be best for my needs.  They are just so expensive.  And fragile.  And I have 2 little kids.  Eek. 

Photography is definitely a hobby of mine, but I'm nowhere near good enough to take pictures of other people's kids for money.  I enjoy taking pictures for fun.  I think taking them for money would be too much pressure and I'm into low-stress livin' as much as possible. 

So while I could live without this camera, I sure wouldn't want to!  It is especially vital now that I have challenged myself to Project 365 - taking a picture every day for an entire year.

I'm linking up with Mama G at Growing Up Geeky for her Toddle Along Tuesday blog hop.

What's your one MUST-HAVE item?
~C~

nursery and play space tours

I'm participating in Mama G's Toddle Along Tuesday Blog Hop once again. Today's topic: Your child's room and/or play spaces. Hmm. Disclaimer: No rooms were cleaned in the making of this post. (Maybe I moved a couple things around in Dexter's room, but the tornado that is Theo's room was left as is).

First of all, what part of my house isn't a play space? This post will make it all too evident to everyone else why I have been complaining that WE HAVE GOT TO MOVE. Stat. It was never our intention to raise two babies in this house. But yeah - ya know!

Here we go.

Behold: The area of the living room where all things baby are shoved. The Jumperoo which Dexter refuses to use anymore. The pile of blankets we no longer bother putting on the floor because he crawls right off of them. (Hello, kitty!) The basket of toys that Theo dumps over at every opportunity. The giant red Target bag full of extra fake food for Theo's new (used) kitchen that we literally have nowhere else to hide. The bouncy seat that Dexter uses as a jungle gym.

The aforementioned play kitchen that now plays a starring role in our real kitchen. Theo's little step stool. Hiding behind the step stool, you can see Dexter's booster seat that we will start using ASAP (as soon as he quits leaning forward to take a bite, therefore requiring us to recline his Space Saver High Chair seat). (Oh, hello there, Elmo. Cooking dinner tonight?)

Dexter's room. We're using the old old old telephone cart for the humidifier right now. I'd love to get rid of that dumb thing altogether.

Oh, hey there peanuts!

Little bit better view of Dexter's room. Small clear tote on the floor holds a few toys. Dresser is overflowing with baby clothes, size 6-9 and 6-12 months mostly. Sigh...the baby boy is getting too big! The glider/rocker to the right in this picture has gotten lots of exercise. It has been on loan from my mama for a couple years now and I'll be glad when we can free up the space that it takes in the next few months.

I couldn't resist sharing - Dexter got some rad new shoes for Christmas! I can't wait til these fit.

Another view of the dresser corner. Why, yes. We are still rocking the baby Christmas tree.

Dexter's bed, complete with handmade blankets, Twinkle Twinkle Little Scout, Lamaze Northern Lights Soother, and Kimberly Grant Zoom Zoom Bedding.

Finally, the changing "table." This is a super old, cheap, and junky dresser that I've been using for years because our closets are so small that I have to keep my clothes in a separate room. Well, I gave up the top two drawers for Dexter's burp cloths, receiving blankets, extra wipes, diaper genie refills, etc. The dresser originally was too low for a changing table, so my awesome father-in-law whipped up the nifty platform that the dresser is sitting on to make it the proper height! He's amazing. The small tub on top of the dresser hold diapers, lotion, and ointments. Diaper Genie to the right. Rolling plastic storage thingy to the right of that for blankets, extra diapers, and the like.

See? I told you...he is awesome.

Moving on to Theo's room...

I told you I didn't clean anyone's room for this post. Here's the proof. I do it from time to time, because the fun of playing is apparently the process of dragging everything out, but it proves to be a futile effort if I ever do it for any other reason.

Ahh, yes. The room we actually decorated in great anticipation of our baby boy's arrival. Sorry Dexter, we will hang something on your walls someday. Maybe.

Theo's bed, complete with Pillow Pets, Fisher Price Projector, a couple of Elmos, and Migi Alphabet Bedding.

The dark blue ITSO cubes hold quite a few toys, but not enough obviously.

Theo's changing table could use some re-organizing. We just don't use it for the things we used to use it for (burp cloths, receiving blankets, etc.) so we could probably make better use of the space.

Ah. I just realized I forgot to take a picture of our giant bookshelf, full of baby/kid books. First thing you see when you walk into the living room. Yes, it is time to move. And when we do move, we will have a playroom where so many of these things can be tucked away. Oh, I can't wait for that day.

If you want to know what my "dream play space" looks like, just flip through the pages of a Pottery Barn Kids catalog. Have you ever seen such rooms!?

Here's a taste.

Seriously!? Who lives like this!?

Hope you've enjoyed the tour!
~C~