hannah lyn

2012-01-18T21:26:00.000-06:00

Grrrrrrr! I've gained 10 lbs back from the 20 I lost. I'm so pissed off.

Bedtime went swimmingly tonight. Some things are good.

2012-01-16T21:58:00.000-06:00

being a parent is challenging, every day. every day, i'm pushed to the very brink of how much noise i can take before my head explodes, how many times i can calmly and loving say, "please stop _____" and how many iCarly episodes i can endure before my brain leaks out of my ears.

tonight, i did something i'm not proud of. my kids were completely ignoring me - yelling, talking over my voice, not doing what i asked - so i locked myself in my room. and they raced to the door and cried - my sweet baby boy cried like he thought he'd never see me again. and i heard his little scared voice, and i thought, "hey, maybe this'll get through to them." and micah said, "c'mon, let's go fix her a snack. maybe she'll come out." and i thought, "ooh, i hope they bring me the sorbet."

YUCK.

that's not what i want out of this. that's not what they deserve. but, hey, i guess i'm not the first mom to do that. and it might not even be the last time i do it, as sad as rowan's cries made me feel inside. we are all just doing whatever feels/seems/sounds/looks like it might possibly be the semi-right thing to do at that unique, brand new moment in time. right?

every day, the questions flood my brain - am i ruining them? do they know how much i love them? do they know i'd lie down in traffic, right now, for them? do they know i'd lift a mountain, swim to the bottom of the ocean, and lasso the moon? do they know, sometimes i sit in my room and cry myself into a snotty mess, just because i'm thinking about how crazily i love them?

they should know. if they don't know that, every day, every second of their lives, i'm doing it wrong.

2012-01-16T21:44:00.000-06:00

today was about struggling my way through some aspects of my personality that continue to annoy and disappoint me. i have a really hard time being consistent, with anything: with food, with the kids, with making plans, EVERYTHING. i've always been this way, but it hasn't always bothered me as much as it has started to lately. it's something i'd really like to work on this year.

well, i guess today the universe decided i should get started working on that. today, josh and i both had the day off from work, and we were very excited about having a family day. we'd planned to take the kids to quiggly's clayhouse in richardson. first mistake: i told them about it without checking our budget first. we ended up not having enough money to do this... but i put off telling the kids, hoping to distract them somehow. because i was embarassed and sad. then, micah's friend called and asked if she could go door-to-door selling girl scout cookies (micah's a daisy this year)... and against my better judgment, and even though it was not on the agenda for the day, i said, "sure!" see, this is the problem i have - striking that balance between impulsivity and rigidity. why can't anything be easy? so, micah went girl scouting, but it turns out she didn't really want to, and didn't understand she was doing that instead of going to quiggly's clayhouse (and the reason she didn't understand that is because i purposefully didn't explain it), then rowan had a meltdown because he was tired, and micah had a meltdown because she was tired and frustrated... oh boy, it was a rough day/evening. then both kids napped late and were up late, but i didn't care because we were happy and having fun, finally.

SO. what am i going to do? i'm going to:

STOP telling the kids what the "plan" is until i have actually fully thought out the "plan" and decided whether it's going to work at all
START breathing and being in the moment, and let go of anxiety over what's going to happen next or what's supposed to happen
START respecting myself enough to stick to what i say, and give the kids the stability and reliability they need (especially micah)

and a lot of other stuff. like quit eating junk. i weighed myself tonight, and almost cried.

2011-11-29T15:41:00.003-06:00

i was just re-reading posts from the past many months. that 5k so did not happen. haha. :-) but i am still going to zumba class twice a week, and trying, trying to eat better... but i'm not doing very well with that. i lost 20 lbs, then gained about 5.5 back. i need to start using the Lose It! app again, pronto.

i love my job, but i don't like being away from the kids so much. micah and rowan are both doing really well at and enjoying school. they're so wonderful. they fight CONSTANTLY. we were going through absolute hell at bedtime there for a while - partially because i wasn't being consistent and was trying something different almost every night, out of desperation - but we've finally settled into a nice routine that works for everyone. around 8 o'clock the kids brush their teeth and get into pj's. no later than 9 o'clock, they lay down in bed and i read to them until they fall asleep. if rowan falls asleep before micah, and if micah's still awake and not quite ready for sleep, she's allowed to turn her lamp on and quietly read, write, draw, etc. in bed until she's sleepy. this works great for her because she feels like she has a little bit of control over her bedtime (because i have learned finally that i can't make her go to sleep, no matter what i do); and it works great for me, because one of the things that's always driven me nuts about bedtime is that i have to be in there with them, either lying down or nursing or whatever, until they fall asleep. i am SO HAPPY they're finally at the age where i can sit in a chair and just read. don't get me wrong - when they were babies, nothing made me happier than to snuggle and nurse them to sleep every single night, and i wouldn't change a thing. but as they've gotten older, i've grown less and less patient with actively participating and facilitating every moment of the whole "falling asleep" process. i've been so ready for them to learn how to lie down and fall asleep on their own. not that they're really even on their own - i'm in the room. but sitting in a chair reading is so different from lying down with them, for me. again, i love it, i wouldn't have it any other way. all that is to say... this new routine is really working well for me because i can kiss micah goodnight, leave her to her journal or book, and check on her periodically, while getting to do what i want with the rest of the evening. before, after lying down with them, by the time they finally fell asleep, my nerves would be too shot to do anything.

rowan's so funny, he's always sound asleep within minutes of me starting to read. :-)

2011-08-25T18:21:00.002-05:00

micah is enjoying first grade! her first day went off without a hitch - she got a great night's rest, had a big breakfast (a sure sign that she wasn't feeling anxious), josh and i got her there on time and walked her to her classroom. sweet mrs. may was there greeting students at the door, and we walked micah to her desk. she asked me to hang up her backpack for her, then she sat down and opened her yellow play-doh. josh and i both bent down and kissed her head, i squeezed her shoulders, and we left! it was AWESOME!!

i got the produce supervisor position i interviewed for! the interview went great - i was very prepared, relaxed, and confident. i started this past monday, and i am having a blast. i already feel a sense of ownership about the floral department, and i'm looking forward to being able to implement some of my ideas. i'm tired as hell, but it feels good. i haven't gone to zumba class this week, but other than that, i'm happy.

2011-08-16T14:27:00.002-05:00

my med term class is going really well! every class, i feel all emotional and humbled by the design of the human body... i wish we all understood what goes on inside of us more clearly. i am getting only a tiny sliver of a glimpse of it in this seven-week course, and i want more!! maybe i'll go to medical school. nah... couldn't take it. mr. saunders, my instructor, likes to laugh at the faces i make when he pulls up google images of things like parasitic twins, tumors with teeth and hair, ruptured spleens, etc. i don't think i'm cut out for health care.

yesterday i took nine LLL helping calls. NINE. in one day! it was awesome. every call made me happy that i'm doing what i'm doing.

i have an interview tomorrow for a supervisor position on the produce team at work. i'm a little nervous about it because i don't have any experience in produce - or in any profit center, for that matter; i've only worked on the front end and in admin - but i think i've got a good shot at the job because i've been with the company a long time and i understand the financial side. we'll see. i've got some good ideas, but i just hope i get can them across in the interview without getting all nervous...

micah starts school on monday. the summer didn't zoom by as quickly as i was afraid it would. we went swimming a lot, had fun with friends, went to the park (before it got into the triple digits) and had a fun weekend in austin. it was a great summer. i'm actually looking forward to the fall, school, and getting back into a routine. all i have to worry about is getting her school supplies... she already has a whole new wardrobe for this school-year, thanks to generous hand-me-downs from mama. :-)

i did get down 17.5 lbs, but i gained some back. i seem to do really well for a while with my diet, then i get lazy. working out is so fun, but i don't have time to do it as often as i'd like. maybe when micah and rowan are both in school and i don't have lina anymore, i'll have more time to go to the Y.

starting in mid-october, i won't be babysitting lina anymore! it's going to be so strange! she's starting montessori school. she'll have so much fun. she's such a smart kid, it'll be a perfect environment for her, i have a feeling. we'll miss her, though.

2011-07-26T08:57:00.003-05:00

I can't wait to buy a house.

I'm taking my Medical Terminology class for the next six weeks. The class is really fun and clicking for me; I love words and language. My instructor is funny and colorful. Every class he tells us stories from his years in the emergency room that make me cringe and shiver, but they are FUNNY! and disturbing. We took our first test last night and I think I did well. Studying for the test was challenging, but I'll be able to study smarter for the next one, now that I know what they're like.

My friends Alison and Diana took the IBCLC exam yesterday morning. I'm so proud of and excited for them!! Alison felt like she was amply prepared for the test, which makes me feel good for my future exam. If all goes as planned, I'll be sitting for the boards in July 2013. I've been daydreaming about what I want my practice to be like. I don't know all the protocol for how to make it happen, but I am excited about the future.

Papi accidentally bought a Polar heart rate monitor for women, and he decided to buy the men's version and give the other one to me!! I am SO stoked. I can't wait to use it at the Y tonight. I'm very curious to see how many calories I burn during Zumba and weight-lifting. I'm going to practice using it at home first, which will be good because I haven't exercised since last Thursday.

On July 20th my great-aunt Dorris died. She was 89. She went to the hospital because she didn't feel right, and they admitted her into the ICU, and she died in her sleep. I only saw her once a year at the Wallis Christmas get-together; she was my paternal grandmother's oldest sister. I really loved her and she had a strong sense of family pride, loyalty, and hilarious sense of humor. The sadness I feel about her passing is mostly for my grandmother and my dad. My dad was close to her growing up; she always told funny stories about hosting ladies lunches and Bible studies at her house, and in the middle of them my dad would come bursting in the back door, grab something to eat out of the fridge, wave hi to Dorris, and walk right back out the door. He grew up playing and swimming at her house with his cousins. And my grandmother is very emotional and loves her family more than anything. The morning my dad let me know Dorris had died, I went over to Jo Ann and Sheridan's house and just hung out for a couple of hours, drank some coffee, and chatted about random things. Caleb was there too, working on the yard. Jo Ann was very weepy, but seemed to cheer up while we were there. Sheridan told me later that spending time with Caleb and me had lifted her spirits. The funeral was very nice; it was the first one I'd ever been to. Dan Stevens, my youth minister, led us in the same three songs that were sung at Daddy Clint, my great-grandfather's funeral in 1988. I thought that was a very special touch. Edd Eason also spoke at the funeral, and he's known my family since the late 70's; he said that Granny and Daddy Clint were the members of the congregation who first welcomed he and his wife, Tresia when they moved here. I loved hearing all those old stories.

At the funeral and gravesite, my grandmother was way less emotional than I thought she'd be. I was really nervous arriving at the funeral home because I hate seeing my grandmother cry; she seems very fragile and weak. My grandparents are so strong and larger than life to me, and I feel all shaken up when I see them in emotional states. I know I'm almost 30 and it's time to get realistic about their roles in my life, but I can't help it. :-)

2011-07-16T22:53:00.002-05:00

hi, little blog. i've lost 11.5 lbs. i was down 14.5 (a half-pound away from my mani-pedi, yeah!) but i fell off the "eating right" wagon and gained some weight back. oh well, i'm trying not to beat myself up about it. rachel and i are zumba-ing three times a week now, and jessica and i ran wednesday night after a two-week hiatus due to scheduling conflicts. josh has done something awful to his back and shoulders, but if he feels up to it, i'm going to jog tomorrow night - possibly with katherine.

the summer II semester at richland started this past monday, but the start date class i'm taking - medical terminology I - was pushed back to this monday, 7/18 to give more people a chance to sign up. i don't know if that means the class will be really small, or if it'll be cancelled. i'm hoping it's not cancelled; that'll put me behind a semester, and i'll have to make it up somewhere. i'm happy to be on track with my classes, thanks to mama and daddy who paid for this med term class. hopefully i'll be able to pay for the rest, but they've both told me they're happy to help if i need it.

i'm loving the summer with the babies. we've gone swimming more times than i can count, had playdates with friends, and eaten lots and lots of fruit. the kids and i have righteous tans. :-)

2011-06-18T08:46:00.001-05:00

hey-oh, i've lost 12.5 lbs!! i'm so excited. :) i tried a zumba class at the Y and it was so much fun; i can't wait to go again. jessica and i have been jogging once a week, and my endurance is getting so much better. it's nice to see improvement in these areas as i go. at work now, will write more later...

2011-05-18T08:22:00.002-05:00

i've lost 6 pounds. can't seem to lose more than that, which is irritating. i've been going to the Y three days a week and jogging one day a week. i'm starting to think that's not really enough. i've had moments of upset and discouragement, but overall, i feel like this is my new lifestyle and i won't be going back to couch potato status. my eating habits are a very long way from improved. for example, i ate apple pie for breakfast this morning... *sigh*

josh is on a cruise. he'll be home on sunday. the kids and i miss him, but have been having a nice time here at home. i've tried to do something special each evening with them. last night after the Y, we went to McD's for ice cream and playtime. tonight vesta's going to watch them while i go jogging with jessica. i hope i can actually jog the whole time tonight - i think i'll be able to. i jogged for about 10 mins on the treadmill last night. it's so much easier on the treadmill, though.

i'm feeling like a failure in the school-mom department. micah's report cards from the first couple of six weeks were really good, and she's been regressing in some areas. i'm not sure, but i think working with her more on thins at home would help. i've also gotten lazy about bedtime and wake-up time again, letting her stay up too late and sleep in too long in the morning. i should know better by now. she needs a good 20-30 mins in the morning before she's ready to eat anything, so most days she goes to school without breakfast because i haven't allowed time for it. what a horrible, selfish thing for me to do. :( this year was trial and error for me, and i'll do much better in the fall. my poor, sweet girl...

2011-05-07T09:44:00.003-05:00

i didn't bomb that test after all - i got a high B, and an overall A for my nutrition course!! YEAH!!! sociology final's on monday, then i get to decide what to take over the summer. NOT A&P.

josh's first art show was last night. his was by far the best stuff there, but i'm biased. his work is just so unique; there's nothing else like it that i've seen. that seems to be what everyone else thinks and says, too. he got a lot of positive feedback and sold three prints. i can't wait for his next show!!

i have three amazing friends who are helping me get healthy, and i'm very grateful for them. my high school bud, jessica, and i have been jogging at breckinridge park once a week, in preparation for a 5k in the fall. i said once before i was going to run a 5k, and it didn't happen... it's happenin' this time, y'all. believe it.

my friend from work, rachel, and i have joined the richardson YMCA and are working out there twice a week. i put in an hour on the recumbent bike before work this morning without her because she's a weenie - her words, not mine. :-)

and my friend alison is doing the Lose It! app alongside me, logging her food and exercise, and is throwing encouragement and support my way daily. love her.

i've been doing really well with my diet, staying well under 1,500 calories every day, and have been exercising as much as i can. i feel happy and proud and on my way to finding myself under these layers of babyfat and scones and carrot cake... i've lost 6.5 lbs so far.

josh tells me how proud he is of me every day, my dad and vesta bought me cute workout clothes for my birthday, my grandmother's paying for me to get my hair cut, and my mom's going to buy me some new running shoes since mine are from high school. everybody's holding me up!! grateful, grateful... my perpetual state of being.

2011-04-07T14:29:00.003-05:00

today i feel a lot better on way less food. my mood is on the sour side, but that's because i BOMBED my nutrition test last night. at least, i'm fairly positive i bombed it. the really frustrating part is that i studied really hard, but i didn't study all the right things. there is so much material, it's really hard to know what to focus on. i thought i was prepared, but as soon as i got to the short answer questions, my heart sank. i did very poorly on the math and chemistry questions. *sigh* i'm not looking forward to finding out that grade... and the other really frustrating thing is, there were two extra credit assignments due last night, and i did neither of them. smart, huh? >:/ i haven't gotten any exercise done today, but it's only 2:30... there's still time for some situps while i watch TV, or maybe even a bike ride with micah and rowan later this evening. we're going over to a friend's house after school, then joining them again for dinner at the chick-fil-a near our house, which is hosting a fundraising night for micah's elementary school. i've been very stingy with my calories today because i plan on enjoying a chicken sandwich, fries, and a sweet tea at dinner. :-)

2011-04-05T22:37:00.001-05:00

yay!! finished the day at 66 calories under budget. :-) :-) haven't done any additional exercise, but i might squeeze in 10 mins of situps before bed...

2011-04-05T13:48:00.002-05:00

my poor, neglected blog... i'm on a journey to lose some weight. i'm 5'7" ( i think) and i weigh 188.5 lbs. that's in the obese category, unfortunately, and it's the heaviest i've ever been without being pregnant. here's what i'm doing:

using the Lose It! app on my iPhone

exercising every, single day for 30 minutes even when i don't feel like it (walking, jogging, situps, weights, jumping jacks, biking with the kids in the trailer)

meditating every day and putting my intentions on taking care of my body, and visualizing myself all slender and healthy and happy

i would do weight watchers, but i can't afford it just now. i wish i had started this journey earlier so i could look cute in a swim suit this summer, but there's always next year! ;-) i like the Lose It! app - it was recommended by my nutrition instructor - but it seems to have fewer options that the WW app. day before yesterday i rode my bicycle for about 18 minutes pulling the 20-lb trailer with both kids, weighing together about 67-70 lbs. yesterday i ate too many calories and didn't do any exercise. today, i'm doing well so far, and did simple exercises like crunches or jumping jacks during commercial breaks while i watched TV and did housework. i get so depressed when i think about having to change my eating habits... i don't like change, and i especially don't like it when it has to do with food.

the weather's been so lovely, the kids and i have been spending a lot of time outside. school's going well. with alison's help i figured out that i'm on pathway one to becoming an IBCLC, and i should be done with my required classes in roughly 18 months. i should be able to sit the exam in july 2013. i'm so excited!! soon i'll begin taking my LCERPS online a little bit at a time, as i can afford them. i need 90 total, and have already gained about 20 (i think) through the LLL conference and a class i attended a couple of months ago.

micah is about to finish kindergarten. i simply cannot believe it!! she is growing up so quickly. josh and i briefly talked about homeschooling next year, but decided to keep both kids in school. micah has made so many friends, and i've gotten to know some of the parents, too. i really like micah's teacher and will probably request that rowan be in her class when he starts kindergarten in two years. i know they can't always honor those requests, but maybe we'll luck out!

i abandoned this blog post for a few hours. now it's 8:15, i have mucho studying to do, and i only clocked 15 mins of exercise today... *sigh*

Micah's favorite Christmas present...

2011-01-09T21:59:00.004-06:00

Merry Christmas :)

2010-12-24T21:50:00.000-06:00

my pretty girl admiring our pretty tree :)

Micah posing with the ornament that Rowan's sweet music teacher made for all the kids at the ELC.

Our tree topper, which adorned the top of our Christmas tree throughout my whole childhood. My mom picked it out. When my sister visited for the holidays, she said, "How come you get that?!" I replied, "Because I am the oldest. Duh."

Merry Christmas!!! :)

Heights Park

2010-12-19T21:14:00.000-06:00

2010-12-17T07:38:00.003-06:00

micah's class party was yesterday, and it was a huge success!! i am the only room mom for her class (three other people signed up, including josh. one of the other moms' daughter switched to another kindergarten class soon after the school year started, and the other mom has never responded to any of my phone calls or emails.) one of the moms in the class who did not sign up to be a room mom because she works a retail job and never knows when she'll be available, requested the day of the party off from work so she could help out. she was a lifesaver. i love volunteering at micah's school, but i'm not the leader type. i do much better when i'm working with someone else. katina and i went to walmart together to shop for food, drinks, treats, and party goods. we had turkey rolls, cheese cubes, pretzels, cheese crackers, baby carrots and ranch. the kids ate HARDLY ANY of the food. i think for the next class party, we'll get much less food! but the party was still fun. after the food and dessert, we had the kids do a quick little craft: they got to decorate a foam snowflake with some glittery snowman stickers. it wasn't perfect; the stickers didn't adhere too well to the snowflake, but the kids didn't seem to mind. they had fun drawing little smiley faces on the snowmen's faces. i was kind of bummed to see how few parents came to the party. obviously, parents have to work and some can't take time off for class parties... but it made me sad to see one little girl crying because her mom wasn't there. i'm so thankful that i work from home and am able to volunteer and be involved at micah's school.

Santa's Village

2010-12-10T21:07:00.000-06:00

Rowan loved the goats!

Micah wanted to take one home with us. I think the goat was on board...

Micah and Rowan in the Dr. Suess house. Thing One and Thing Two put on a show for us as we waited in line.

Posing with Frosty!

Waiting for Santa to arrive on the fire truck...

"Is Santa coming or what?!"

2010-12-06T08:18:00.003-06:00

we had a lovely thanksgiving last month. for the first time, on actual thanksgiving day, josh and i cooked at home for just us and the kids! it was really nice. my dad's side of the family usually does our thing on black friday, and mama, wesley, and maya were in brownsville visiting wesley's mom. sooo, that freed us up to have our own little family feast on thanksgiving day. we got a pre-roasted chicken, and made mashed potatoes and green bean cassarole from scratch. i used a mix for the stuffing, and bought a pumpkin pie. it was delish!

on friday we went to my dad's parents' house and had my grandmother's amazing lasagna, salad, apricot and pecan jello salad (a family tradition), along with some really yummy raspberry lambic my sister's boyfriend brought. we had a choice of pumpkin pie or homemade pumpkin cheesecake, courtesy of my stepmom and sister, for dessert. it was a nutritionally and emotionally nourishing couple of days. :)

this past weekend josh and i took the kids to santa's village. in years past, micah, especially, has not been much for going inside the little cottages. she gets anxious in crowds and feels shy. she also gets SUPER out of sorts when she's cold. last year i solved the cold problem by putting five layers on her, and she was as happy as a clam but didn't want to go in any of the houses. this year, she surprised me by being totally excited about all of it! first, we arrived in time to join in the countdown for them to turn on all the beautiful lights. the kids squealed with glee as the enormous tree over our heads lit up. then we got to see santa and mrs. claus arrive on the fire truck with the lights blazing, which the kids LOVED. we went into mrs. claus' bakery first, then a few more, ending with the petting zoo. the petting zoo made josh and i so sad. there were two ducklings huddling in a corner surrounded by shrieking kids, and a poor chicken running back and forth, back and forth, trying to get away from a group of toddlers. a big black and white goat climbed into my lap when i sat down next to him, and i could practically hear him begging me to get him outta there. the kids petted the goats and the rabbit, then our turn was up. i think we left after that.

2010-11-16T22:10:00.003-06:00

argh, i missed posting about halloween, one of my favorite holidays!! micah went as a mermaid (thanks to my friend, kim, who gifted us an old favorite dress-up item of her daughter's), and rowan went as... one guess... the batman. vesta snapped a pic of micah with her phone, i'll have to get her to email it to me. rowan did not make the photo op at daddy and vesta's house because he promptly stripped his costume off and climbed into daddy's chair to watch a scary movie when we arrived. my little guy is a major homebody. but the kids had fun, scored lots of candy, and stayed up late. i wish we had a camera so i could've gotten a picture of our across-the-street neighbors' house. it was done up right again this year, and the street was PACKED with people hanging out in and around his yard. so much fun. :-)

let's see... micah is still enjoying school, and drop-off has gone from "incident free" to actually pleasant and enjoyable. she smiles in the mornings, says bye and "i love you" to me as she gets out in the carpool line in front of her school. i never thought this day would come. okay, maybe that's dramatic, but... really. i never thought it would. she has been such an absolutely joy lately. she is beginning to read, and wants to be read to all the time. she tells funny stories and draws pictures for us. she is amazing with a hula hoop. she is still so strong and fiery and spirited, but... it's less challenging, nowadays, to nurture those traits in her. and she seems to have moved past the unsettling phase where she would ask me multiple times a day, frantically (usually after getting in trouble about something), "do you still love me?" that was heartbreaking. glad it's over.

rowan's first week (maybe two, hard to remember) of school were a breeze, then it seemed to hit him and he started having a little trouble at drop-off time. for a few days i had to hand him off to his teacher, miss kathy, and leave while he cried. that was very difficult, but - and it sounds uncaring - i was used to it, because of micah. but rowan is a different creature and "recovered" very quickly from his bout with separation anxiety. week before last, he was getting teary as i got him dressed and ready for school, and he asked me with a quivering lip, "mommy, will you come right back?" i said, "of course, every time." and he drew a deep breath and looked at me so bravely and said, "okay. i'm not going to cry this time." and he didn't. he paints and plays nicely with his friends at school, and pretends the plastic fort in the play yard is the batcave. miss kathy regularly comments on his good manners. :-) rowan is so affectionate and cuddly, and is soothed by physical touch when he's upset or angry. i love this about him. he and micah start out the night in their room, but rowan almost always ends up in bed with us. during the day, rowan and lina alternate between playing in-depth imaginary games together, and tearing toys out of each other's hands and screaming. never a dull moment!!

i'll brag about lina for a sec, even though she's not mine... she is learning to use the potty! smart as a whip, that one. she's truckin' right along with it, too; today i took only one wet diaper off for her. she is fiercely independent and willfull. i don't know anything about that at all... it's hard to believe i'll soon be in a house with all toilet-trained children. wow-weee!!!

josh likes working at whole foods, and i like his schedule. it changes from week to week, but most weekdays he's home by 3pm. we are planning a little family road trip to colorado in june. we are so excited; it'll be our first vacation with the kids. actually, it'll be our first vacation since our honeymoon. by "vacation" i mean a trip planned solely for joy, leisure, and sight-seeing. josh and i have taken little weekend trips and stuff, but one was to austin for an accounting conference, and another was just to wichita falls to see his sister... those don't count. oh, we did drive to oklahoma to surprise josh's other sister when rowan was a few months old... i guess what i mean is, this'll be our furthest vacation? whatever. i'm excited.

2010-10-05T07:48:00.002-05:00

working in micah's classroom last tuesday was so much fun! mrs. barrett had me stuff the tuesday folders, then i cut some red construction paper squares in the workroom and came back to the classroom to glue picture squares onto those (they were pictures of items like glue stick, markers, crayons, scissors, etc.). after that there were still a few minutes till lunch, so mrs. barrett had me sit out in the hall with a little guy in micah's class named aaron and work on letter recognition. i was supposed to work with another child after aaron, but there wasn't time. the kids lined up for lunch and i followed them out. it impressed me that micah continued to do her work and follow mrs. barrett's directions, even with me in the room!! i wondered if she would run over to me and not want to sit in her chair, but aside from smiling HUGELY at me when she saw me, she acted like i wasn't even there! it was great.

wednesday morning was josh's turn to have crosswalk duty, so he needed to take micah to school. she had HUGE meltdown over it, had to be put into the car kicking and screaming, then held by a teacher in the cafeteria at school kicking and screaming. josh and i decided that i'm going to do all the crosswalk duty from now on (whenever his work schedule allows), and he's going to take opportunities during the evenings that he's at home to connect with her. he feels really hurt that they don't have a close relationship right now... it's hard.

thursday was largely uneventful. friday we shopped for food and supplies for rowan's birthday party, saturday i worked and we had a little family party for rowan at mama and wesley's house. we ate mud pie ice cream cake (just about the most delicious thing i've ever tasted). he got a beautiful wooden tricycle, a wooden sword, a sweater, shirt and socks, and some batman guys (of course). we all had a great time. my grandparents told us about the car accident they had last week - their FIRST, at around 80 years old. they were driving down the highway and a car in front of them lost control and spun into their lane. somehow my grandfather managed to brake, swerve, and only hit the car right behind the driver's side door. no one got hurt, and none of the oncoming traffic behind them piled into them. pretty incredible for going 60 MPH.

sunday i worked again, then went into overdrive as josh and i rushed to get stuff ready for rowan's "friend" party at heighs park. i thought scheduling the party at 4pm would give me plenty of time to get things ready, but i still felt rushed. the party was super fun. the weather was PERFECT, josh made an amazing birthday cake for rowan, daddy and vesta brought balloons, and a fun time was had by all. the park was packed, but it didn't seem to bother anyone. rowan made out like a bandit: hot wheels, batman guys & stuff galore, a batman costume, a leap frog "scribble & write", and a bat cave. i loved watching his face as he opened the bat cave. he gasped and shrieked "A BAT CAVE?!" haha :) :) :)

and yesterday rowan projectile vomited all morning. good times. :)

2010-09-27T23:32:00.002-05:00

tomorrow i'm volunteering for a couple of hours in micah's kindergarten classroom, while rowan is at preschool. i'll be helping micah's teacher, mrs. barrett, put notes and things in the students' tuesday folders, then i might read to some kids or help them with work. i'm exciting! i hope to do this on a fairly regular basis.

i remembered a lot of stuff i wanted to blog about earlier, but now i'm so tired i can't remember any of it... :)

josh and i just watched a dark, depressing, violent movie about gangs. the fact that michael caine was in it was the only redeeming quality. i hope i don't have nightmares.

2010-09-20T23:36:00.003-05:00

this morning i did something very responsible, and something i've needed to get done for two years - i transferred the station wagon title to MY NAME, and got it registered. AUGH!!! the chevy's registration was up for renewal too. it feels so good to have that done. jill and her ex-boyfriend, richard (from whose grandparents we bought the station wagon) drove it down here to us in September 2008, the week that rowan was hospitalized for epiglottitis. needless to say, we were a little distracted and didn't make it to the tax office that week. no worries - one has 20 days from the date of purchase to transfer the title of one's new vehicle into one's name, without penalty. well, this "one" is a master procrastinator and sweep-it-under-the-rug-er.. sooooo... yeah, it's been two years and the thing was still not in my name. still had the handicap plates on it from richard's grandparents. so i got up this morning, folded the paperwork up in my purse, loaded up rowan and lina, and headed to the tax office. the kids behaved beautifully. i told the lady, "i need to renew the registration for my two cars. one is simple and straightforward; the other one's going to be a huge hassle." she opted for the chevy first... and as it turned out, the station wagon wasn't THAT big of a hassle. she just had to make copies of the paperwork i brought. she asked me when i'd bought the car, and i told her: "september 27, 2008." her eyebrows shot up and she told me there'd be a penalty for waiting so long. i said fine, but i only had so much cash to spend. she entered the data into the computer, then her eyebrows shot up even further and she stepped into the back for a minute, presumably to ask advice of someone higher up. she came back to the computer, scratched through the 9/27/08 date on my title transfer and wrote today's date instead. she grinned and said, "you don't want to know how much the penalty was." i said, you're right, i don't. my little tax office angel. :)

anyway, YES, both my cars are legal and in my name now. feels good!! maybe i am growing up.

2010-09-19T21:45:00.002-05:00

after work today i came home to an empty house. josh and the kids were at his dad's house. i sat down and wrote a home study from start to finish (it's due first thing tomorrow). then i picked up the house real quick, changed into comfy clothes, and went for a walk/jog. i plugged some of josh's headphones into my iPhone and fired up the pandora app. i chose a rage against the machine station. it was WONDERFUL - jogging to RATM is very instinctual. :) i even forgot i was jogging... and that's really sayin' something, for me. only problem was, after a couple of songs the app quit responding when i pressed the thumbs-down button to skip the song, so i got frustrated and took the earbuds out. after that, it was much harder to focus. when i got home i showered and sat on the bed, half surfing and half working on revising a questionnaire for daddy to take when he does kinship studies.

eventually, josh and the kids came home and we went to a little snow cone social at terrace park for rowan's school. we got to mingle with other ELC parents, and josh got to meet rowan's teacher, the director, and a couple of the moms i'd already met last week. it was a fun evening. rowan had fun playing with the other kids and soaking his t-shirt in snow cone syrup. we took micah's friend, hannah, with us so micah would have a playmate, and they had a blast making up songs and mixing "salads" in plastic cups out of wood chips, water and grass. i am starting to really love rowan's little school. the people there are all so friendly and personable... the director sat down with us for a bit and chatted with josh about his artwork... i thought that was so neat, especially since i happen to know she only knew he was an artist from reading the paperwork i turned in. neat that she remembered, and cared enough to ask him about it.

2010-09-17T09:07:00.002-05:00

rowan's first day of preschool was wonderful!! the night before i packed his little backpack with a sippy cup and a change of clothes, and i didn't even get emotional. we started the next day by dropping micah off at school (which is going so smoothly these days, thanks to her friend, hannah, with whom she walks in every morning), then we headed to samantha and christian's house to get lina. it was only 8 AM when we left with lina, and rowan's school doesn't start until 8:45; the doors don't open until 8:40. there really wasn't time enough to go back home, so i just drove to the school and parked. rowan and lina busied themselves with playing in the back of the station wagon, and i read my book and talked to josh on the phone. at 8:35 rowan could not wait one more second to get out, so we walked to the gate and played on the sidewalk a bit. a few minutes passed and jessica, the school director, opened the door for us and said, "good morning!" rowan grabbed his backpack and ran inside. he looked back to see if i was following him, and i was, with lina on my hip. he headed down the hallway in front of me, and walked right past his classroom. miss kathy, his sweet teacher, said from inside the room, "you're right here, rowan!" rowan turned and went inside, and never looked back! i hovered near the doorway, out of sight, and listened to him. i could tell he was looking at all the neat toys and things, and miss kathy was chatting with him and showing him things. jessica and another teacher, kim, who also happens to be my good friend and co-LLL leader, hovered in the hallway with me while i made sure he was going to be okay. and he sure was. so lina and i left, and i STILL didn't get emotional! lina and i bummed around the house; she played, and i mainly worked on a home study. at some point while milling around the house, i realized micah had left her teddy bear, layla, at home. she was supposed to take layla to school that morning for a teddy bear sleepover. mrs. barrett had this cute idea to have the kids bring their bears to school and leave them overnight; the note she sent home said, "rules for bears: no eating honey in the classroom, no growling," etc. and the bears with good behavior would have teddy grahams (presumably sitting in a baggy next to them for the students to snack on the next day). soooo cute!! anyway, there was layla sitting in the living room, and micah had seemed so excited the night before about taking her bear to school. so lina and i left the house a little early so we could take layla to school. we dropped her off in the office, then headed to rowan's school. once again, we were a little ahead of schedule, so i stopped by wendy's for a snack, then parked at the school. lina played in the back while i ate and read. my friend, susan, whose little boy, michael, is in rowan's class, pulled up next to us, so lina and i walked up to the school with her. i peeked in the classroom before rowan knew i was there, so i could watch him for a few moments. he was playing with some trains. miss kathy joined me at the door and told me he'd had a GREAT day, used the potty successfully, and had wonderful manners!! that was so nice to hear. rowan's had a bit of a stubborn streak lately, so i worried about how he'd do with the teacher. anyway, rowan heard my voice and turned around, and gave me a huuuge hug. he was really happy to see us. he said, "i'm ready to go home!" which i thought was so sweet. i thanked miss kathy and jessica, and we headed out. while we were loading up in the car, susan and michael came out too and invited us to mcdonald's down the road for lunch. i knew we didn't have much in the way of lunch at home that rowan would be excited about (plus, he'd overheard the invitation and got excited), so we said yes. i got to meet some of the other ELC moms at mcdonald's, so that was really fun. rowan had a good time playing with his new friends and classmates (although he did get stuck at the top of the play stucture, and cried, and i had to crawl up and get him). all in all, it was a very fun, exciting day, for me and for him. :)

2010-09-15T20:34:00.002-05:00

change of plans - rowan's first day of preschool is tomorrow!! i'll be taking him at 8:40 in the morning. today we've chatted a bit about how he'll go by himself, and he'll get to have a snack and play on the playground. i don't know how it will go tomorrow, but i've decided not to make him go if he ends up crying every morning. he's only 2, and i've got two more years before he starts kindgergarten, so he's got plenty of time to get used to school. if he doesn't like it this year, we'll try again next year - or maybe even after christmas.

josh is babysitting his nephews and niece until saturday afternoon, so i'm on my own again this weekend. today, we played hide-and-seek at home then walked down to holford park. the kids played on the playground for a while, and tried unsuccessfully to get away from a little girl (who, incidentally, goes to micah's school and recognized her) who insisted on chasing them and splashing water on them from her water bottle. i even asked her to stop, and she ignored me. :/ anyway, when we got home i stuck the kids in the shower, fed them, then snuggled them till they fell asleep. now i'm going to make micah's lunch for tomorrow, and get rowan's little teddy bear backpack ready for his first day. josh's dad ordered the batman backpack for us, but it hasn't arrived yet. rowan was disappointed when i told him before bed that he'd have to take his teddy bear backpack to school; i hope that doesn't push him over the edge tomorrow morning! :)

2010-09-12T22:48:00.003-05:00

so rowan was awarded a scholarship to attend preschool at the ELC in richardson. i'm very excited!! i think the social interaction will be great for him. josh is a little less enthusiastic than i am; he thinks rowan is a little young for school, and isn't sure how much good it will do him in the speech area to be older than his classmates. since his birthday is in the early fall, he'll always be the oldest in his class. at any rate, we're going to try this and see how it goes. he'll go tuesday and thursday mornings from 8:40 to 11:45. i ordered this backpack for him today. :-) he won't start going until october (the 5th, to be exact - the day of his 3rd birthday!) because we can't afford tuition until then, and it'll also give me three weeks to get him caught up on shots.

my med law & ethics class starts on tuesday! i'm excited, and a little nervous. the instructor sent out an email saying this is a fast-paced class. i hope i can keep up. i haven't been in school in a while, and the last time i tried, i didn't do so hot. but i keep telling myself, this time will be different because i'm highly motivated, whereas before i was just going because i felt like i should be doing something productive. there was a breastfeeding management class out in denton in late october that i was excited about attending, but they cancelled it due to lack of interest. i hope they reschedule it soon.

2010-09-11T22:16:00.002-05:00

today i had trouble remembering that it was the anniversary of the terrorist attack on the WTC in new york. i feel pretty awful about that. i know the families of those lost in the attack didn't have any trouble remembering. nine years ago today, i woke up in my apartment in north dallas that i shared with my friend jessica, got dressed and drove to richland college. i absent-mindedly listened to the radio on the way to school, but didn't focus on anything i heard... my mind was on something else. i remember feeling annoyed that there was no music playing on any stations, only talk and commercials. i wasn't paying attention. i parked, went inside the school, and immediately tuned in to a weird, unpleasant energy... students were crowded in the hallways and foyers, and everyone was talking on their cell phones. i didn't have one at the time. i saw a sign on the wall that said classes were cancelled. i made my way through the crowd to the pay phones and called my dad. he told me what had happened. i couldn't process it. i went back to my car and drove home. jessica was there, sitting in the living room, watching TV and eating a bowl of peas. strange, the things we remember... i sat down with her, and we watched the second tower fall together. i got on the phone with my mom, and she told me my sister was stuck in oregon, unable to fly home from a camp she'd been attending. jessica and i watched TV for the next couple of hours. i don't remember much after that. they kept showing the same awful footage on TV, of bodies falling from the towers. i remember watching george w. bush's address to the nation, and wondering, "is this the beginning of a war? will this be my war? my generation's war? will my children interview me one day about this event, for a project or research paper at school? they'll read about this in their history books." isn't it strange that i had that thought? our minds are so funny sometimes.

last night i bawled my eyes out because micah and rowan are growing up too quickly. today, i decided to be present in the moment with them all day, to enjoy and revel in every moment with them. and i did. we got up early, got dressed, and i dropped them off at my dad and stepmom's for the morning while i went to work. i got done with the deposit at work as quickly as i could, then picked them back up. we drove to laura's new house in murphy for chase's 2nd birthday party. it was so fun; the kids had a blast playing, they got loot from the pinata, and we had a good lunch of chicken nuggets, fruit, and birthday cake. we hung out for a while after the party festivities had wound down, and i got to hold laura's 3-month-old baby, reed, while she ate her lunch. reed fell asleep on me - joy!! :) after we left laura's, the kids and i drove back home and rowan took a nap. micah and i chatted and snuggled on the couch watching cartoons while he slept. when he woke up, i fixed dinner (poor man's meal - mac & cheese, pintos, leftover popcorn shrimp, and salad) and we ate while we watched toy story. after dinner, i felt like doing something fun with the kids, so we went over to rachel and joe's house to play with mink and lael. the kids had missed each other, and craziness ensued. micah and mink made custom artwork for rachel and me, and rowan and lael made clay traps for their superhero guys. i love those kids.

now my babies are sleeping soundly, and it's time for me to take a shower and go to bed. i miss josh. i'm glad he's coming home from houston tomorrow. he's been there since yesterday, photographing a friend's wedding.

2010-09-10T13:00:00.004-05:00

this past wednesday, i got DRENCHED to the BONE during crossing guard duty. it was fun. :) a sweet, sweet teacher whose name i didn't catch arrived at school at the same time we did. she noticed me hauling the crosswalk stuff out of the little foyer at the front of the school, and asked what i usually did with micah while i was out there directing traffic. i said, "she usually sits in the cafeteria, and she's usually the only one in there for a while!" the teacher clicked her tongue and said, "well, not today; you come with me to my room, honey, and i'll take you to your classroom when the bell rings." i held my breath as micah walked out of the foyer with her and disappeared down the hall. when i picked micah up that afternoon, she told me that the nice teacher had shared her breakfast with micah, and had given her a piece of chocolate to enjoy after school. what an angel. :)

last night (thursday) was "meet the teacher night" at school. jill was in town, so she played with rowan at home while josh and i took micah. we sat in mrs. barrett's classroom and listened to her rules and expectations. she walked us through what the kids do each day, and she shared some tips and stuff. it was really fun; i know it doesn't sound fun, but this is the kind of stuff i love. i could've spent hour after hour in micah's classroom, trying to see everything through her eyes. we found out that this is mrs. barrett's 9th year teaching kindergarten at cooper. it's nice to know micah's in the care of someone so experienced. i got to observe some brief interactions between mrs. barrett and the kiddos, and i liked what i saw and heard. she was playful, funny, but firm - and she didn't talk down to the kids. as the hour drew to a close, most of the parents drifted out with their kids, but micah and another little boy, kasyn, sat down at the reading center to flip through a couple of books. i took the opportunity to ask mrs. barrett how micah's been doing, and she smiled and said, "great. your worries are over." i felt completely comforted by her words, because i know mrs. turrentine must've talked to her about micah's separation anxiety... and micah has been doing wonderfully in the mornings. this morning i walked her into the cafeteria and handed her off to one of the teachers in there, and she went happily. she definitely still likes to hold someone's hand, whether it's mine or a teachers. and she seems to need to go straight from my hand to the teacher's hand - it seems difficult for her to walk from me to the kindergarten table in the cafeteria without being physically led there by the teacher. i am completely fine with this slow progression of her confidence and stability.

today (friday) micah had her best school friend, hannah (!), over for an after-school playdate. micah and hannah have been buds since the first day of school. i took micah over to hannah's to play earlier this week, and today hannah rode home from school with us. the girls had fun, and hannah told me she wants to ride home with us every friday. i told her i'd have to discuss that with her parents. :) i'm so happy micah has made a friend. i know it helps her to have a connection with someone at school. i think daniel in her class has a crush on her. he whispered a secret in micah's ear as we were leaving this afternoon, and micah wouldn't tell me what it was. ah, it starts!!! :)

2010-09-07T07:27:00.002-05:00

this morning was josh's turn for crossing guard duty again, so he had to take micah to school. it went very smoothly leaving home this time; i'm anxious for him to get home so i can find out how it went at school! she just REALLY likes for me to take her. last week she cried when i put her in the car to leave with him, and he reported that she cried and had to have the teachers take her into the cafeteria. SIGH. this is very difficult for her... and for us. but i think every day gets easier. we've found out that if we walk her to her seat in the cafeteria, stand behind her and rub her shoulders for just a few moments... it works. that's become our magic trick. i did this once, on impulse, on a morning when she was having a very hard time. it worked, and that evening she said, "i want you to rub my shoulders like that every morning." so that is what we shall do. anything beats the alternative of standing in the hallway with her while she hems and haws, then finally gets dragged off me by a teacher who (through no fault of his/her own) does not understand the circumstances, and probably assumes i'm coddling micah and making it more difficult for her. i wonder if this is something we will move past anytime soon, or if it's something we'll be handling for years to come...

we had a really nice labor day, albeit busy. i started out the day by getting up at 8, packing up my laptop, and driving a few minutes away to the generator, an awesome little coffee shop on the plaza in downtown garland. the place is so charming and hip, with fair-trade, organic coffee; twice-a-week, kid-friendly, free yoga classes; kitchy, vintage furniture; and a tub full of lincoln logs, legos and train pieces for the kids to play with. it is such a neat place, and i wish we had discovered it sooner. anyway, i drove to the generator yesterday morning, while it was still a little bit crisp and cool outside. i got a cup of coffee and a harvest healthy muffin, and went and sat in the sunshine at one of the tables near the front door. i whipped through my home study (which was due first thing this morning, and i knew we were going to busy the rest of the day yesterday). then i went home, got the kids and the husband ready, and we went to my dad's. we ate hot dogs, talked and played in the pool. then we went to josh's dad's around 4:30, ate more hot dogs and talked. we got home around 7:15, with both kids sound asleep in the car. i successfully maneuvered rowan to his bed without waking him, but micah took forever to fall back to sleep. i think it was after 9 when she finally did. but she seemed to be in a great mood this morning, so it's all good.

so since yesterday ended up being jam-packed with family obligations, we didn't start our week 2 running base training. this morning, as soon as josh gets back from micah's school, he's heading over to whole foods for an informal interview with the grocery team leader (yay!) so he can maybe get 10 or 15 hours a week there. when he gets back, we'll do our thing. we've been making it with just my income, but we decided there are some things we want/need (some materials to make art displays for josh, a new computer desk, a new fridge) so we're going to save josh's paychecks for those items. i'm actually kind of sad that he'll be going back to work. i never anticipated how much i would enjoy having him home all the time. he keeps me company, where i used to be alone with the kids for much of the day. we feel like more of a team when it comes to parenting stuff and housework. i know we can stay that way, i'll just miss him when he's at work. i've been spoiled!! oh well, back to reality... :)

my med law & ethics class begins a week from today! i am sooo excited. today, after josh and i do our walk/jog, we'll go to richland and i'll pay my tuition. my father-in-law ordered my textbook for me from amazon.com, using his special membership to get free shipping, but i'm a little bummed... the book's condition was described as "very good", but it has writing all throughout. there are notes written on some pages, and some of the chapter reviews are filled out. argh! it was $33.60 compared to what it retails for in the richland bookstore, $120. so i guess i got what i paid for. :/ i don't know whether to have josh white out the notes and answers to the reviews for me, or just wait and ask the instructor. i don't want the instructor to be like, "yeah, you shouldn't have bought your book used online, dummy." i'm sensitive, i don't want to cry on the first day of class.

2010-09-04T13:58:00.002-05:00

josh and i finished our first week of establishing a running base, so we can begin training for our 5k! i'm excited. we really do need to buy new running shoes, workout clothes, heart rate monitors, interval timers, etc.... i can't wait till we can get all that stuff. today i'm going to take the kids for a walk, tomorrow josh and i will do a workout video at home, and mon, weds, fri of next week we'll do the week 2 walk/jog schedule - walk 5 mins, jog 2. i think it's hilarious that i can walk faster than i can comfortably jog right now.

micah and rowan are "swimming" in the bathtub right now, in their swimsuits and everything. they started out splashing in the sprinkler out front, until they both got cold (!!!) and asked to come inside. apparently they weren't finished with water play, though, because they wanted to get directly into the tub. now i can hear them pouring cupfulls of water over each other's heads. cute. :-)

this morning micah FREAKED OUT when it was time for me to leave for work. i think it was overwhelming for her to be separated from me every morning for school, and not to have a break on the weekends. monday will be nice; we'll sleep in, then go swimming at my dad's.

i think tonight we'll go to white rock lake park and have a picnic, and let the kids play on the playground. this weather is so lovely, i don't want it to go away...

2010-09-01T09:07:00.002-05:00

this morning was my first crossing guard duty. it was way less stressful than i anticipated! i always get worked up about stuff like this; i guess that's where micah gets her anxiety. i pictured a pile of kids waiting to cross, and a pile of cars waiting to get through, and a bunch of angry commuters glaring at me through their tinted glass... didn't happen. there was a seasoned crossing guard there to help me on my first day, and it was really fun. micah went into the cafeteria more easily with me than she did for her dad yesterday. the kids all lined up at the door, and micah's best friend, hannah, was there. she held a place in line in front of her for micah while micah hemmed and hawed next to me. finally i guided micah into place in front of hannah, and the kids just filed in. micah never looked back! she's getting the hang of this. i just hope she doesn't have another meltdown at lunchtime... i didn't send a lunch with her because she said last night that she wanted a tray (chicken nuggets, veggies and peaches is on the menu for today), but this morning she got upset about it. i should've made her a lunch, but something told me to go ahead and let her get used to eating the school lunch. homemade lunches are healthier for her, no doubt, but this is about more than just the food. i NEED her to relax and go with the flow and experience new things at school.

i just looked up local 5k races online, and josh and i picked one to run on november 6th. i'm super excited!! i've lost a little bit of weight over the past couple of weeks without really trying, which is encouraging, because think of what i could accomplish if i really TRIED! josh and i researched how to begin a running regimen and how to train for a 5k. we're going to start today by following these guidelines. now the silly girl in me wants to go buy new running shoes, gym shorts, an interval timer, heart rate monitor...

2010-08-31T22:03:00.002-05:00

all right, THAT'S IT. i just read my best friend's blog post, and she looks amazing. i am working out and paying closer attention to weight watchers, RIGHT NOW. DAMNIT.

phew. micah got upset this morning because josh took her to school. he had to; it was his morning for crossing guard duty. they arrived at 7:30, and micah needed to go sit in the cafeteria but wouldn't. josh said a teacher helped her, but she was crying. he felt so badly. crossing guard duty went well (it was his first day, half training and half experience). it's my turn tomorrow, and i'm a little nervous. micah was in a grouchy mood when she got home, and told me that she cried at lunch because she had to get a tray. this slightly irritated me, A) because she wouldn't give me any information as to WHY her reaction to getting a hot meal at lunch was to CRY, and B) before school began all she could TALK about was how much fun it was going to be to get a tray at lunch. that's what she calls eating the school lunch, "getting a tray." i think at pre-school last year she saw the kids eating breakfast in the cafeteria and thought it looked neat. anyway, i finally got it out of her that she was all bent out of shape over getting a tray because she'd never done it before, and was nervous. so she tried to eat the little bag of graham cracker cookies josh had tried to get her to eat for breakfast, which were still in her backpack, but mrs. barrett wouldn't let her. i'm sure that mrs. barrett thought to herself, "her parents paid for a hot meal, so she probably shouldn't eat this bag of cookies instead of her lunch." micah was hurt that she couldn't eat her cookies; she told me at home, "i should be able to eat whatever i want for lunch! it's not up to mrs. barrett what i eat!" i cannot express how much i love micah's... i don't even know what to call it anymore. FIRE. anyway, i explained that mrs. barrett was looking out for her and doing what she thought was best, and didn't intend to offend micah or hurt her feelings. i think she understood.

2010-08-30T14:59:00.003-05:00

i realized yesterday that even though i'm not homeschooling, the opportunities to teach my children at home are endless. last night we had an impromtu science lesson during our bath. i taught the kids about volume, by demonstrating the displacement of water when i got into the tub. then i taught them about gravity, and how an object's weight changes how it's affected by gravity. i demonstrated this by dropping different bath toys into the water, and observing which ones floated and which ones sank. we talked about the meanings of the words "observe" and "predict".

it was amazing today, the difference between rowan's behavior at the hearing test and the way micah would've behaved in the same situation at that age. he was so calm and comfortable, not alarmed in any way by being in an unfamiliar place. had i not followed him into the sound booth for the test, he easily would've gone in there without me. i think lots of things are going to be a whole lot easier with him.

2010-08-30T08:47:00.003-05:00

i was expecting this morning to be rough for micah, because of the two-day break, but she did FANTASTIC!! she woke up in a good mood (although i couldn't get her to eat one bite of breakfast), chatted with me on the way to school, and did not say "i don't want to go to school", which she has said once every morning so far (although usually with a sheepish grin on her face, as if she's just saying it to see what my response will be). we arrived at school just after mrs. barrett had come to the cafeteria to pick up her class, so for a moment i wasn't sure how micah was going to get to class. i can't walk her there anymore, and there weren't any teachers hovering around to help. i asked micah if she thought she could get to her class by herself, and she shook her head, but... a moment later, a first grade teacher walked by, noticed our predicament, and said to micah, "honey, if you'll just follow those kids down that hallway right there, you'll find your class." and somehow micah believed her, and she let go of my hand and just started walking. it was perfect! she did stop after a few steps, turn around, and look a little lost, but i had hidden behind a door by then so she couldn't see me. i watched her stand there for a few seconds, then give up on anyone coming to her rescue and start walking to her classroom. i was so happy and proud!! and the whole time, she was not upset or scared or near tears; she was just a little unsure. i could FEEL her gaining confidence in herself. i think when she gets home today, i'll talk to her about arriving at school a little earlier and waiting in the cafeteria for mrs. barrett. i think that would be a little easier for her.

rowan has backtracked on potty training a little, but that's okay. he's not even three yet; i'm in no rush. last week he started telling me he didn't know how to use the potty, and he wanted diapers again. i think it was starting to bug him how often he had to stop playing and go to the bathroom. :) he won't let me put underpants on him anymore, but he will use the potty at home if he's naked (which he usually is). i took him to the Harris Hill GISD building this afternoon for a hearing test. when he first had his speech therapy evaluation here at home, they gave him a paper test, but this was a more in-depth screening. they had us sit in a sound booth and listen to sounds through headphones. he did wonderfully; he gave them his full cooperation, and passed the screening with flying colors. he has excellent hearing. the two people who administered the test told me the kids rowan's age who come in for testing are usually not as high-functioning as he was; they joked that he probably could've given himself the test. it made me feel good, and a little silly. if rowan doesn't qualify for services through the school district (and at this point, from what i've heard, i don't expect him to), i don't think we'll pursue private services. i feel like his articulation is becoming more and more clear every day, and the breakdown in his artic during connected speech, i'm told, is very normal and common for his age. SO - we may be nearing the end of his therapy, for now. i think, since he has a fall birthday and won't start kindergarten until 2013, we will wait until around his 5th birthday to see if we still have any concerns.

2010-08-28T07:13:00.002-05:00

micah survived her first week of kindergarten with no bumps, bruises or hurt feelings. i think she likes it! i'm excited for "meet the teacher" night the week after next. and i can't wait to start eating lunch with her.

josh and i have found a free, local yoga class. there's a coffee shop on the square in downtown garland, five minutes from our house, called the generator. on monday mornings and wednesday evenings, a certified yoga instructor (who happens to be a friend of josh's) gives free classes. the one on monday mornings is for parents and kids; kids are welcome to the wednesday evening one too, it's just geared more towards adults. josh and the kids and i checked out the wednesday evening one earlier this week, but when we got there with micah and rowan in tow, we discovered they actually hold the class outside, on the plaza in front of the shop. there's a huge sunken pond in the middle of the plaza, and we knew immediately we wouldn't be able to participate in the class. micah would've done fine, but rowan would've made a beeline for that water. not to mention the fact that the plaza is surrounded on all four sides buy... downtown garland traffic. josh and i are going to take rowan and lina to the monday morning class next week, and we're going to swap turns taking micah to the wednesday evening class. it goes from 7pm to 8pm (even though the website says 8 to 9; they've changed the time but haven't updated the site), so we'd still be able to get her into bed at a somewhat decent time on a school night.

speaking of bedtime on a school night, we've been doing a pretty good job of keeping everyone here on a schedule. here's how our days go now:

7:00AM - wake up

7:15 - eat breakfast, get dressed

7:40 - i take micah to school

8:00 - christian drops lina off at our house

from here, it changes every day... sometimes we just do stuff at home, sometimes josh goes and runs errands, sometimes i do - having him home has really been great.

2:50PM - one of us (usually josh) either drives or bikes to micah's school to pick her up. she's released at 3:10, but it helps to get there a bit early.

3:20 - freetime around the house; sometimes we go out or to a friend's house, sometimes i take the kids to the mall or the park. (and here's where we'll do homework, when that starts)

5:30 - eat dinner

6:00 - freetime

7:15 - brush teeth, pajamas

7:30 - in bed (although sleep actually happens between 8 and 8:30)

last night we went to joe & rachel's for dinner and a movie, then went to target for some groceries. i put apples in the cart, and apples are rowan's fave right now, so he promptly grabbed one and took a big bite. i scolded him for eating it before it was paid for (not realizing this concept means zilch to him), then decided to let the cashier just weigh one of the unscathed apples twice. i barely had time to congratulate myself for coming up with this brilliant solution before i heard rowan choking on his stolen bite of apple. josh and i rushed to the back of the cart where rowan was sitting, and grabbed him and started smacking him on the back and sticking our fingers in his mouth. it was chaotic, and micah started to scream. several people stopped and watched. in just a matter of seconds, the piece of apple was out, and everything was fine - in fact, it took much longer to calm micah down than the whole ordeal had lasted in the first place. no more whole apples for rowie!

2010-08-24T21:11:00.003-05:00

micah's second day of kindergarten was better overall than the first. she cried at drop-off, but it was kind of a special circumstance; i don't know if she would've otherwise. i accidentally got her to school a little early, and apparently if the students arrive before 7:50 they can't go straight to their classrooms. they have K through 2nd wait in the cafeteria, and 3rd through 5th go to the gym. so micah and i headed into the cafeteria, and it was loud and full of kids. i just led micah to the kindergarten table, and picked her up and set her on the bench. she was crying and holding on to me, and i just stood right behind her and placed my hands on her shoulders and pressed down gently. i bent down and said in her ear, "can you feel my hands? i'm right here. i will not leave until you're ready." she squirmed and whined for a few more seconds, then quieted. i waited until she was very quiet and still, then i lifted my hands from her shoulders and took a step back. she didn't turn around, so i took that to be her signal, and i left the cafeteria. on my way out of the school, i passed mrs. turrentine, and she asked how it had gone. i made the "so-so" gesture, and she said, "i'll go check on her right now!" that woman is so sweet. she's like an angel, just for micah and me. anyway, i got no phone calls or anything, so i'm assumming micah did great. josh picked her up (in the car this time) and took her to whole foods for some lunch fixings, and by the time they got home, she was in a great, chatty mood, and spent the whole evening laughing, pretending, and putting on dance shows for me.

after sept. 7, josh or i can eat lunch with her at school every friday. we had already decided to take her for donuts every friday morning before school, so whichever one of us takes her for donuts, the other one will go eat lunch with her, and we'll trade weeks. that way we'll both get to do it. micah has to wear sneakers to school every monday and wednesday, because those are the days she has PE. she brings home a daily folder every day which shows how her behavior and participation were in class, and every tuesday she brings home a different folder with important dates and other information.

2010-08-24T00:08:00.004-05:00

my girl, putting on her lip gloss before school :-)

daddy, micah and rowan before school this morning.

my beautiful, sunny girl!! :-)

miss micah had a great first day of kindergarten! we had a bit of a rough start, but she settled in nicely. she arrived late to class because i had to drive to the clinic a couple of miles from our house to get a copy of her shot records. then we went to school, and she and i went to the nurse's office so she could update micah's records in the computer. then mrs. turrentine, the awesome counselor, walked micah and i down the hall to mrs. barrett's room. we arrived just as the students were lining up outside the classroom to go on a little tour of the school. micah clung to me on the way, and cried when it was time for me to go. but as soon as i was out of sight, i didn't hear her crying at all, so i relaxed a little bit. but i didn't fully relax until josh called mrs. turrentine a couple of hours later and checked on micah. mrs. turrentine reported that by the time the tour was over and the kids returned to the room, micah was totally fine. that made me happy. it was hard being away from her for seven hours, but the time actually passed more quickly than i thought it would! as soon as we got back home from dropping her off, i called my mom and dad to let them know how it went, then i put on my sneakers and went for a little walk. it was nice to get some exercise and clear my head before it got too hot outside. then i just played with rowan and lina all day, and tidied up the house. it was nice! i got to chat with a good friend whose son also started kindergarten today, and felt jealous of the ease with which he made the transition. but i reminded myself that kids are so differnent, and they do things in their own time. josh went on a couple of errands, got a couple of job applications, and went grocery shopping. then at 3:00 he got the bike ready, put her helmet, some water and a snack in the trailer, and headed to the school to get her. turns out it's still way too hot at 3PM to ride the bike, so we'll be biking in the mornings and driving in the afternoons for now. micah was very tight-lipped and out of sorts when she first got home. she was baby-talking a little bit, not being herself. i think she just needed time to process everything she'd been exposed to, and regroup a little bit. she whined and cried for a while, then around 4:30 she crawled into our bed and fell sound asleep. our friends, the russells, arrived for dinner and playtime at 5, and micah woke up even crankier at first. so i shut the door and snuggled her for a minute, and she recovered. she ended up having a fun evening with one of her best friends, mink, and behaved beautifully (i wondered how it would go, what with her being so tired). the girls chatted a little bit about their first day at school, but mostly just pretended and imagined. rowan and lael (one year apart in age) played with batman guys and cars, and rowan got grabby, as he is prone to do lately.

speaking of rowan, i feel like i've been tootin' nothing but micah's horn lately, so let's talk about my boy. he has abandoned both pacifiers and diapers (for the most part). he's 100% reliable diaper-free at home, and about 85% reliable out in public. i always bring a change of clothes in the diaper bag when we go out, and i use it pretty often. the past couple of days, he's asked for a diaper instead of undies, and i've complied because i don't want to push him. he had one false start before that lasted about a week. we're past that point now, but i still don't want to jinx it. he's the sweetest boy, but he is a stinker at the same time. he'll randomly tell me how much he loves me, or how pretty my hair is, then poke me in the back with his pretend screwdriver and giggle when i tell him how badly it hurt. :-) he loves his sister, and she loves him, but they don't get along too well most of the time. they scream at each other a lot, and grab stuff out of each other's hands. we work on it all the time, but it doesn't seem to be getting better. just a phase, i guess..

.

2010-08-22T15:29:00.002-05:00

i went out with the girls last night, for a movie and dinner. it was SO fun and relaxing. the movie, 'eat, pray, love' was good - it followed the book well, including all the important moments and leaving out some inconsequential ones - and the acting was great. i especially loved the guys who played richard and philippe. there were a couple of cheesy moments, but i still enjoyed the whole thing overall. and dinner was excellent - we shared all our dishes, family-dining style, and elena brought a bottle of pinot noir. i had a little bit too much and felt loopy on the way home... and on the way to work this morning. :-/ it was great to spend kid-free time with my closest friends who i see often, and a couple of others i haven't spent much time at all with this summer. (i say kid-free, but alison brought connor with her - he was so happy all evening, you hardly knew he was there!) yay for girls' night!! can't wait to plan another one.

i lost micah's shot records. :-( now my vision of her first day of school is ruined (i'm being dramatic) - instead of fixing her homemade waffles with strawberries and powdered sugar for breakfast, loading her up in the bicycle trailer, taking her to school, and walking her into mrs. barrett's room right on time... i get to haul ass to the clinic at 8AM, get a copy of her records, then go sit in the nurse's office while she updates micah's school record so she can attend class. i was in tears yesterday, tearing my house apart looking for the damn thing - i hate it when i do stuff like this. oh well. i have ALMOST forgiven myself. oh, and the school nurse's name is hannah. :-)

2010-08-20T23:25:00.002-05:00

josh took the kids out to lunch and to visit his grandma this afternoon so i could get a home study done. he came home with stories of less-than-ideal behavior from the kids and a pounding headache, so i decided to take the kids back out to dinner and to the mall for some playtime while he relaxed and worked on some art projects at home. micah, rowan and i headed to the galleria, and the kids zeroed in on mcdonald's as soon as we got to the food court. i was too tired to argue, so we all got chicken nuggets and fries. blech. when we were finished (the kids only ate half of their happy meals; not something that usually makes me happy, but in this case, it did) we walked across to the indoor playplace. i sat and chatted with another mom for a while, and the kids had a good time until a little boy they were both playing with got a little rough and handsy. i don't think he had a good concept of personal space and boundaries. he really liked rowan's batman toys, and asked to play with one, but he kept sucking and chewing on it, so when i saw him drop it on the floor i snatched it up and stuffed it in my purse. when the boy came back looking for it and couldn't find it, he tried to pry the other one out of rowan's hand. shortly after that, the little boy started wailing on another boy, whose mother got a little heated over it. i decided it was time for us to head home. the kids cooperated immediately; i think they were tired. when we got home, one of my best and oldest friends, jake, was hanging out in the garage with josh. the kids were happy to see him, so i let them stay up a little bit. jake left, and i got the kids inside, pajama'd and into bed. we watched one episode of 'i love lucy' (our latest bedtime routine) then turned the lights out. they fell asleep within two or three minutes. now josh and i are going to hang out in our room and watch a movie while i fold and put away clean laundry. g'night. :-)

2010-08-20T15:08:00.003-05:00

also this month, we rearranged the rooms in our house a little bit. we decided the kids and all their stuff had outgrown their room, so we switched them with the office. now the kids have a new, cool room with plenty of space and a bigger bed for them to share, and josh and i have (or will have, once we get it organized, and buy a new desk and reading lamp) a cozy office/reading room. i'll post pictures of the office once we get it the way we want it. for now, here's a dark, washed-out pic of the kids' new space. :-) we really need to buy a camera...

2010-08-19T20:26:00.004-05:00

micah's elementary school porch party was a wild success!! we arrived with a huge tote full of school supplies, and as we approached the school i saw a crowd of people gathered in front of the windows. we got closer, and i saw each grade had a section on the window with teachers' names posted and their list of students. i quickly found micah's name on mrs. barrett's list. i told her her teacher's name, and we headed inside to find her classroom. we stopped by the cafeteria first, where i signed my name and josh's on the "room rep" and volunteer lists for micah's teacher. then we wound down a couple of hallways with a bunch of other parents and kids, and finally found mrs. barrett's room. mrs. barrett greeted us as soon as we walked in the door, and asked micah her name. she responded, a bit shyly, but smiling. mrs. barrett had me label all micah's supplies with her name, then put some of them in assigned boxes on the floor and arrange the rest on a table by a piece of paper with micah's name on it. josh held sleeping rowan. while we were messing with the supplies, the school counselor, mrs. turrentine, came in. i'd had a conversation with her a few days ago about micah's separation anxiety at preschool last year. she'd said she'd find me at the porch party so we could put faces with the names. we chatted a bit, then she gave me her business card and went to see the other rooms. then i filled out a couple of information sheets. micah seemed very happy and comfortable the whole time, and i heard her help another little girl find the right box to put her kleenex in. we hung around the classroom a little bit longer, and rowan woke up. then we headed back to the front of the school where the sno-cone table was. the kids each picked "blue and green" (bubble gum and lime) and we sat on a porch step near the table to enjoy our treats. once the kids' mouths were dyed sufficiently blue and green, we headed for home. :-)
i was really happy that micah seemed so at ease the whole time. when we first pulled up in the car at the school, she asked me to carry her. but i told her i had to carry the bag of school supplies, and she'd have to walk. i didn't hear another thing about it. she also wanted to be completely in charge of organizing her supplies in the classroom. i kept trying to arrange her things just so, but she asked me not to help. i thought it was neat that she was taking ownership of her school things that way. she smiled and talked to mrs. barrett and mrs. turrentine. josh and i think she's going to do just great. i'm still anxious for monday morning, but more in an excited way than an apprehensive way now.

oh, and josh and i also signed up to be on the safety committee, which means one morning or afternoon a week, we each get to be the crossing guard in front of the school! i've always wanted to do that! i can't wait for my first shift.

2010-08-19T14:57:00.006-05:00

hilarious. i haven't posted anything in over three months!! it's not as if nothing post-worthy has been happening.

i just read my last post, where i complained about four of my best friends igoring me on my birthday... and i feel compelled to update that two of them showed up at the surprise party josh threw for me the very next day!! the other two couldn't make it because of other obligations. but, anyway, i felt silly for being so hurt. :-) the surprise party was amazing; i was so touched that josh planned and pulled it off, and had such a blast with everyone who came.

micah and one of her best buds, isaac, shared a 5th birthday party in may. alison and i made rainbow cupcakes, the kids lived it up in the bounce house and destroyed a pinata filled with organic lollipops, and both birthday stars got some really neat presents. fun was had by all!! :-)

let's see, june... josh and his twin, jill, turned 31, and josh and i celebrated our 8th anniversary. our family also celebrated a year of being in this neat, perfect-for-us home.

july was hot, hot, hot, and we spent a lot of time at the richardson, garland and mesquite city pools. alison introduced us to two pools in her area, and we had regular playdates there. micah started a gymnastics class with another one of her best friends, mink. the girls had class together every thursday morning, up until last week when they switched to monday evenings in preparation for school to begin.

and that brings us to august, and school!!! micah is starting kindergarten on MONDAY! i can hardly believe it. we had fun shopping for school supplies, a couple of new back-to-school outfits to add to the gobs of awesome hand-me-downs she's received this year from rachel & mink (thank you!!), and a cute new haircut. tonight, we'll bike a couple of blocks to her school and attend the "porch party" where the kids will get to set up their cubbies, meet their teacher, hopefully connect with a few classmates, and eat snow cones. i'm excited, and micah seems to be excited, too. her new lunch bag arrived today. i think i'm more excited about fixing her lunch than anything else! :-)

josh and i have a new 2-3 year plan. he is going to stay at home and help me with the kids, while also working on furthering his career as an artist, while i continue to work for my dad, babysit lina, and go to school part-time. i'm going to school to get my required courses to sit the IBCLC exam in July 2013. i'm very excited, as i have never until now felt motivated and driven to pursue a specific career.

my mom, stepdad and little sister are moving to austin sometime in september. i'm going to miss them a ton, but i'm so happy my little sister is able to attend the waldorf school that my mom and stepdad love so much and feel so connected to. it's an amazing school, and i know i'll get to see them often - austin isn't too far away!

and now i gotta go get ready for micah's school function tonight. it's nice to be back, little blog!

what's goin' on

2010-05-07T00:56:00.002-05:00

oh, little blog... precious journal, i have ignored and neglected you.

a lot is happening with me right now. i just turned 28. my daughter starts kindergarten in 3 months. i'm rededicating myself to my volunteer work. i'm eating small meals every three hours to lose weight (on day 4 now). i've decided i want to adopt a haitian orphan.

i think that's about it.

i had a neat birthday. i spent the day hanging out with the kids, then ate homemade enchiladas and chocolate cake at my dad's. daddy and vesta got me a black Keurig mini brewer - exactly what i wanted!!! i'm so ridiculously excited about this thing. josh doesn't like coffee, so every time i wanted some, i'd make a whole pot, and would end up pouring more than half out. so silly and wasteful. not to mention the hassle of getting out the coffee filter, measuring the grounds (i never felt like i put the right amount in), cleaning out the pot and the filter holder afterwards, blah blah blah... NOW, i just put in one of the little pods, fill the resevoir, turn it on, and voila, one perfect cup of coffee, brewed right into my mug. i am a total sucker for stuff like this.

lots of sweet friends wrote a "happy birthday" to me on Facebook. four of my oldest friends didn't call me or write all day... i'm trying not to let that bother me. i know they're busy. and i can't complain, because i never call them.

micah is doing so well in pre-school. she has gained all this confidence and strength, and is now walking into class by herself (it was a struggle there for a while). her letter and letter sound recognition has really improved, and she's interested in math. i don't think she's going to be much into art. the drawings she brings home from school are usually pretty small (i.e. a couple of flowers on the page, and nothing else), and sometimes she just brings home blank pages. she doesn't seem too motivated to express herself in that way. she tells me that she enjoys home center the most at school, because no one tells her what to do. :) i'm gonna have my hands full with that one... she is enrolled in kindergarten at one of the elementary schools in our neighborhood. i can't believe she'll be 5 in a couple of weeks...

rowan is a total scamp lately. he delights in making messes, and when we ask him to pick something up or do something, he says, "no, you do it!" nice, huh? he's still a sweet, gentle boy, though... he gets his little feelings hurt when we discipline him, but a hug and kiss is all he needs to move on. he loves picking micah up from school, and loves playing pretend with her.

ugh, i'm tired. more tomorrow, i just felt compelled to update...

2010-02-14T23:35:00.003-06:00

i'm really enjoying being back at WFM. the job is easy and familiar, i feel comfortable and at home there, i know a lot of the team members and am getting to know the new ones, and it's stimulating for me to use my mind in this way, at least for a few hours every saturday and sunday. i'm finding myself daydreaming of going back to work there full time... then i get home to my sweet babies and wonder what the heck i was thinking!

today is valentine's day. traditionally josh and i don't do anything special... we both kind of view it as a made-up holiday to make money for hallmark, russell stover and flowers.com. but lately josh and i have been connecting in a rejuvinated, new way - mentally, emotionally and physically. we've made some changes in our financial habits and our eating habits, both of which were bringing us a lot of guilt and strife. maybe the fact that we've been making these changes together has brought us a newfound closeness and satisfaction with our life in general. maybe it's something about the fact that on february 21st we will have been together for 10 years. whatever the reason, we're in a really good place and i'm enjoying it thoroughly. josh surprised me last night with my first vday gift, then at work this morning i received a vase full of peachy-orange roses (the kind i carried on our wedding day) with a note from him. when i got home from work, he gave me two cards - the sweetest one from him, and one from micah and rowan, with micah's little handwriting in it - oh! - and tucked inside his card was a gift certificate to a nail salon! YEAH!! i am so excited. :) turns out katherine helped him get the GC, so she and i are going to go get our nails done together and go to a wine bar near the salon afterwards. i am so looking forward to this relaxing girls date. :) i'm going to get a spa pedi, which includes a hot stone massage and a peppermint mud mask, and a spa mani. i won't get polish on my fingernails, but i think i'll get a deep red on my toes.

i've been following the olympics this year, mainly because of the ravelympics. i'm not on ravelry as often as i'd like to be, i think because i don't have a camera and can't post pictures of my knitting, but i decided to join my knitting buddies, mama and katherine, and cast on a new project on the evening of the winter olympics opening ceremony, which i intend to finish by the end of the games on feb 28th. i chose this cozy cashmere hat for my project. i've already hit a snag, but katherine's coming over tomorrow to help me figure it out. i can't wait to wear this hat!

2010-02-04T08:45:00.002-06:00

so i ripped out the top part of my fingerless mitt ("i" meaning my mother) and redid it, and now it's perfect. PERFECT, i say. now all i have to do is finish the thumb! and by "i" i mean my mother! oh, and i guess i should knit the other one.

micah is doing so well at preschool. they had a "100th day of school" celebration this week. on monday she took a little art project made of 100 macaroni noodles and lentils. she glued them onto a little piece of thin cardboard in the shape of a tree, with some grass at the bottom. she arranged them and josh glued them on. it looks a little too perfect to be the work of a 4-year-old, because her daddy's a perfectionist artist, but i'm sure the other kids got help with theirs too. then yesterday, she wore a necklace that she made out of 100 beads. now, on this she did almost all the work on; she picked out the beads herself at the rockbarrell with josh, and strung about 70% of them onto the fishing line herself. when she got tired, she asked me to take over. she told us that she got to walk across the little stage at assembly and show off her handmade jewelry. : ) josh and i wished we could've been there to see her!

a bit of kid news:
- rowan has graduated from pronouncing his name "row row" to "rowan", and he usually adds "poole" to the end if you ask him what his full name is.
- rowan is getting closer and closer to potty training. if he's naked, he will ask to go to the potty. if i put his underwear on him, he forgets to ask. i think it's the sensation of having something against his skin; his mind and body just assume it's still a diaper.
- he is really talking a great deal, and becoming more and more clear. the other day micah was watching lady gaga's grammy performance on youtube with me, and was disturbed by the part where they toss her into the tank thing that catches on fire. she crinkled up her nose and said, "mama, lady gaga's weird. if you see her on redbox, don't buy it." (we rent movies from the redbox at the gas station near our house now and then.) rowan repeated her word for word! i was impressed, and amused that such an odd sentence would come out of his mouth.

- micah, as mentioned, is doing fantastically well at school. she has 6 friends; 5 girls and 1 boy. she loves her teachers, especially the aide, ms. brown.

- we've started working on simple math and writing the letters of the alphabet in upper and lower case at home. we bought her two workbooks from staples and she's been enjoying them, even asking to work in them in the evenings.

2010-01-28T08:22:00.002-06:00

well, i've completed my first fingerless mitt except for the thumb... but i think i'm going to need to rip out the top part and redo it, because it's too long. it covers my pinky finger, instead of stopping right at or below the bottom knuckles on my fingers, like it's designed to. somehow i made 6 cable twists instead of 4, like i was supposed to! oops! :) i'm so happy that i was able to knit cables and use dpns to knit in the round, though - this was my first time using both those techniques. i'm waiting for either mama or katherine to help me with ripping out the top part of the mitt - i'm not confident enough yet to do that on my own. i'm afraid all the stitches would just slip away, and the whole thing would unravel before my eyes. i haven't been able to meet for knitting group for a while, since i started working on the weekends. and this weekend's free time may just need to be dedicated to 24...

the new season has begun, and my dad has the 4-hour (!!) season premiere taped at his house, waiting for me. i'm thinking i may head straight over there after work on saturday or sunday and watch it. although, i will have to deviate from the 24-standard chicken stir fry that my dad fixed for me every monday night last year.

i have decided to stop eating meat for a while. my first day back at whole foods this past weekend, the team members in the cash office were talking about an animal compassion class they'd just been required to sit through. every once in a while, WFM has these classes and seminars to keep everyone on track with our philosophy, the reasons behind our quality standards, etc. the team members were discussing the footage they'd seen, and the array of alarming conventional and factory farming practices out there. i got this sinking feeling in my stomach as they were talking, and was struck with nostalgia for the way i used to eat and think and feel about such things when i first worked at WFM, before micah was born. for some reason, i just decided right then to take a break from eating meat, and i went home that day with some tofurkey and gimme lean meatless ground beef in my shopping bag. i made our staple dish, goulash, with the meatless ground beef the next night. rowan and i LOVED the new recipe, but josh and micah were not impresssed. josh says that he would love to reduce the amount of meat that we eat, and to introduce more vegetarian meals and fresh veggies, but he's not interested in eliminating meat completely from his diet. he was a vegetarian with me before micah was born, and i think he enjoyed it, but we're pretty sure he's hypoglycemic now, and it's become extremely important for him to get enough protein. neither of us are educated or disciplined enough to make sure he gets enough from plants and beans and nuts, so for now, meat is still on the menu for him. we're just making a committment to buy it all from WFM, now that i have a discount again. the kids, i'm sure, will continue to eat meat, but, again, only organic from WFM.

speaking of food, i've been on a huge amish bread kick. it seems to be all i want to eat. healthy, huh? i'm such a good vegetarian...

2010-01-19T08:10:00.002-06:00

my first attempt at cables is successful, so far! it looks like it's supposed to! i'm so excited to wear these things. i took a picture of my progress with my dad's camera, but forgot to download the pics to the computer before giving the camera back to him. knitting group was really fun on sunday. and yesterday was a nice day off from school and babysitting; the kids and i just hung out and kept the house clean. this morning i took micah to school and she had a little bit of trouble, i'm guessing for two reasons: it'd been three days since she'd gone, and she was really sleepy. she woke up early yesterday morning and didn't nap, but for some reason i couldn't get her to go to sleep until around 10 PM. i'm going to try to get her down much earlier tonight. i also need to get her up a little earlier tomorrow morning. she seems to do better at drop-off if she's had a good 30-45 mins of awake time with me at home, eating or watching a movie or something. i'm learning, i'm learning........

last night i knit something from a pattern, from start to finish, without any help. i was so proud of myself! i made this little heart, for a pin for grandmommy. it's for her birthday/valentine's day. i'm picturing her wearing it pinned to a denim jacket, or maybe a bag. i hope she likes it! i think i'll make pins for micah's two teacher's for V-day, too. they are so easy and quick!

2010-01-17T10:11:00.002-06:00

i think micah is actually allergic to the adhesive on those bandaids. she has a big red welt on her thigh, where one of them was. i'm going to take our own bandaids the next time we have to get shots.

this has been a fun weekend so far. yesterday we woke up early and cleaned house, something we've been badly needing to do. we got everything straightened up from the room switch we did last week (we switched our bedroom and the computer room). i mopped the kitchen and entryway tile. it felt good to get everything neat and orderly. after we were done with our chores, we took the kids for a bike ride around the neighborhood. then we headed to gabriel's 1st birthday party - gabriel is josh's dad's step-grandson. the party was fun - we watched an adorable video of the birthday boy, played a pin-the-nose-on-the-elmo game, and swung at an elmo pinata in the front yard. we left the party early so we could make it home in time for my dad and vesta to come over. they watched the kids while josh and i went on a date! it was so nice. we had plans to eat at olive garden, and use the gift card josh got from his sister for christmas. we ended up not leaving ourselves quite enough time to eat there before our movie began, though, so instead we ate at charley's, a grilled sub shop. it was....... not good. our sandwich tasted all right, but it left both of us feeling nauseated. from there we walked around world market (we were at the firewheel shopping center) for a bit, then walked to the AMC movie theater. we saw 'sherlock holmes'. i had been warned against it by my dad and my stepdad, my dad saying "it has nothing to do with the real sherlock holmes story!" (he's a HUGE fan of the holmes stories and has been reading/telling them to me and my siblings all our lives, so he's a purist and wasn't going to settle for anything less than a perfect, idealistic representation of sir doyle's eccentric characters), and my stepdad saying the acting was okay but the story was stupid. i tried to leave these preconceptions in the lobby. it worked - josh and i both loved the movie! i laughed a lot, jumped and squirmed in my seat, and drooled sufficiently over robert downey and jude law. we also saw several previews for movies for future date nights. i think firewheel is going to be a frequent destination for our dates - it was really fun walking around from restaurants to our favorite stores to the movie theater. it made me feel like we were in new york or something. :)

i'm going to knitting group this morning! i'm so excited. i didn't try cables yet, as i earlier posted, so i get to do them today under the wise guidance of my mom and katherine. :) i should be successful.......

2010-01-17T00:44:00.003-06:00

micah loves school. my attached, spirited, quadruple-gemini little firstborn loves school.

day one: cried

day two: no tears, a bit wary...

day three: let go of my hand, took off down the hallway with backpack, didn't look back

i'm really, really, really glad it's going well - and i'm having a surprisingly fine time letting go and embracing this change. i'm ESPECIALLY happy that we did this first, before making the switch to full day kindergarten. that would've been hard on her, and on me. i'm glad that i'm gradually weaning myself away from spending every waking moment with her. :)

2010-01-11T23:40:00.002-06:00

took micah to her pre-school this morning, only to discover she was lacking two vaccinations. so we made an early appointment with the pediatrician, got those taken care of, and continued on to target (after a fast-food breakfast) to get her a backpack. : ) i wasn't sure if she needed one, but at the school this morning i noticed all the kids had them, and i want her to feel prepared and taken care of. upon arriving on the backpack aisle she immediately notified us that she would only accept one of those backpacks on wheels with the handle that you pull along behind you, like luggage. we looked around a bit and finally found this one in our price range. i wanted her to have this one, but it was too expensive. maybe for kindergarten. speaking of kindergarten, i just found out two things that make me nervous: one, i'm scheduled to work at whole foods the day of micah's test for admittance into the GISD's gifted and talented program so she can go to the academy for excellence near our house for kindergarten - so josh will have to take her instead of me (which may turn out to be a good thing...); and two, kindergarten is full day. from 8:00 to 3:15. i was not counting on her going to school for 7 hours at the age of 5. that just seems like too much........ goodness.

anyway, after backpack shopping we came home and did our normal stuff. it was nice enough outside for us to play in the backyard for a while, which was wonderful. our friend jake came over and played too, for a while. he brought some cherries to share, which made me long for summer even more. the sun was shining and the air was warm enough for micah and rowan to just have their light sweaters on. micah watched 'sleeping beauty' (she can't get enough of the disney classics lately), rowan played with his race track and his swords - until bathtime rolled around. i convinced micah to peel off the two bandaids she recieved at the doctor's office this morning. our pediatrician's office buys super-duper industrial strength bandaids that would probably be the last thing standing on a completely dessicated human being. they are the stickiest, most stubborn bandaids i've ever encountered, and micah HATES the moment when they have to be removed. last month i let her leave those suckers on there until they were literally hanging by a tiny thread, at which point i "accidentally" caught them on her pants as i was helping her get undressed for bed. after they were off, though, i noticed the skin where they had been was red, irritated and almost bruised-looking. i told her we wouldn't be able to leave them on that long anymore. tonight, i reminded her that we needed to take those things off before bed. she asked me if she could do it herself, and i said of course. i didn't realize she meant that she would sit and methodically, with the steady hands of a pre-school surgeon, pick and pluck at the little fabric bandaids, millimeter by millimeter, until they were loosened from her skin. i was going CAH-RAZY watching her do this, so i left the room. when i came back to check on her a few minutes later... she was asleep, sitting up, with her little fingernail hooked under one edge of the bandaid. i gently scooped her up and placed her in her bed in her room - yes, as of the night before last, she's sleeping in her own bed (ch-ch-ch-ch-changes).

i'm making progress on the fingerless cabled mitts i'm knitting for myself. tomorrow i'll attempt my first cable, without my knitting buddies to walk me through it. wish me luck!

2010-01-06T14:15:00.002-06:00

i enrolled micah in pre-k today. i'm freakin out a little bit. the florence parons pre-kindergarten school is right down the street from our house, and i noticed it when we moved in. it looked like it was part of the public school system. i didn't really think anything more about it then. then josh and i had several conversations over the summer about whether we wanted to homeschool or send the kids to public school (since we obviously can't afford private right now). i've had this overbearing sense for a while now that i do not want to homeschool. i would love nothing more than to spend every waking moment with my children... but i am not a teacher. i do not have the patience or the self-discipline to make sure they're getting the exposure that they need to ideas and concepts, and i don't have the knowledge or the skills to expose them to it in the right manner. this is all probably kinda amusing to my older friends, who've been listening to me bash public school and sing the praises of homeschooling since micah was born... so i guess i'm just gonna eat a little crow here. i can't help it, i have just completely changed my mind.

she seems excited. we left the house early today to drop josh off at work so i could use the car, and she said, "are you dropping me off at school today?" and her tone wasn't scared or apprehensive, it was excited. when i said no, she said, "oh" and sounded bummed. i explained that we have to get through today and the weekend, then she gets to start on monday. i'm bracing myself for a tough first week, but i hope things get easier after that.

2010-01-04T10:29:00.002-06:00

january feels really good this year! i absolutely adore the holidays and the time spent with family, and i'm usually a little blue after it's over - but this year, january feels like a deep, clean breath and a fresh start.

although today, it's a little colder than i can stand. 16 degrees with a wind chill of zero!!!!!

2009-12-31T14:38:00.002-06:00

rowan had his articulation test here at the house with his speech therapist, maria, this past monday. we won't know how he scored for a couple more days. rowan did very well and was very cooperative during the test, which took about an hour. maria said that she was impressed he was able to get through it in one sitting. she said usually she has to split it into two sessions with children rowan's age. anyway, after the test, he crawled up in my lap and promptly fell asleep! before maria arrived, i was fretting about doing the test right at his naptime... turned out not to be an issue at all.

tonight is new year's eve, and we are spending it at my dad's. we're eating dinner around 6:30, then playing poker and watching movies till the ball drops at midnight. i kinda wish we were doing something more exciting and "grown up" this year. the kids still aren't ready to go to bed without us, so i guess we'll try for next year.

i am still fervently enjoying knitting!! i cast on a pair of basic cabled fingerless mitts last night. i can't wait till they're done. i'm nervous about doing the thumb, but i know mama and katherine can walk me through it.

2009-12-27T00:40:00.002-06:00

merry christmas!!!!!!

we had a wonderful, joyous, WHITE christmas this year! josh and i got some money and gift cards with which to buy goodies for his bike, and clothes for me (and quite probably a spa pedicure). micah and rowan got everything that was on their lists, and some surprises too. our big present to the kids was a bike trailer like this one. we can't wait to take them for a ride in it! if it's not too cold, we'll take it out tomorrow. there's space in the trailer behind the kids' seats for a blanket and picnic lunch. josh and i are so excited to use this a lot this spring and summer!

i'm so thankful that christmas fell on a friday this year and we got to enjoy a three day weekend! thursday night we had some family time and yummy food at my mom and stepdad's house. then we woke up early on friday and opened stockings and gifts at our house. this was the first year that we've put up a tree and lights and put the kids' gifts under the tree after they'd gone to bed, so it was REALLY fun and exciting. after that, we headed to my dad and stepmom's house for breakfast and gifts. i got to give my grandparents their handknit gifts (the only ones i did this year): an infinity cowl/scarf like this (pics of the one i made to come) for my grandmother, and a neck warmer like this for my grandfather (again, pics of his to come, as the ones in the picture there are more feminine than the steel gray one i made for him), to keep his neck warm on the golf course. it was really fulfilling giving handmade gifts to at least two people this year! after my dad's, we drove to rowlett to celebrate with josh's dad, stepmom and family. we ate a late lunch over there and hung out all day. around 5:00 we went to plano to see josh's mom. we ate dinner with her, visited for a while, then finally took our sleepy, overstimulated babies home and put them to bed. this morning we slept in (yay!), then went back to my mom and stepdad's for stocking stuffers. see, christmas is all over the place when both you and your husband's parents are divorced and remarried! i just think that makes it more fun. anyway, after stockings at my mom's, josh and i took the kids to run a few errands before going to my other grandparents' house. we all hung out and chatted and knitted for a while, the ate a delicious early supper, sang christmas carols and hymns (my favorite part of the evening), and played the traditional several rounds of catchphrase. if you've never played this game, you must. it's a riot. anyway, then we ate dessert, cleaned up, and left around 11:00. micah and rowan fell sound asleep in the car on the way home. phew! what a fun, busy few days! i love it so much and am energized by all the social activity, but i think it's a bit trying for josh and the kids. i'm a complete extrovert, while josh and micah are introverts, and rowan is just two. he can only share and play nicely with others for so long! : )

this week i'm bracing myself for the usual upheaval of emotions that i experience after a major holiday or event. it's kind of like an endorphine withdrawl - the anticipation and excitement of the upcoming event wooshes away and leaves me ever so slightly blue. it happens every year after christmas, sometimes after my birthday, and it happened after the births of each of my children. it never lasts that long, but the older i get, the better i get at readying myself for it.

2009-12-21T10:19:00.002-06:00

yay, we got to go to santa's village on friday night! the weather was perfect. i got the kiddos all bundled up, and micah had a blast - she didn't get cold. i was soooo happy. we met several friends and family members there - some we had planned to meet up with, and some just happened to pick the same night to go. micah was a little wary of going inside all the different little houses at first. they ended up enjoying the petting zoo, the bakery (where they got a green, sprinkly sugar cookie from mrs. claus), the music house, the fire dept. house, and the "beary" hospital, where they got weighed and measured. we also heard some great live music and danced, and got to see santa leaving for the night. the line to sit in santa's lap is always ridiculously long, so we didn't do that - BUT, they have a clown to entertain the kids waiting in line, and he was a riot. it was the same clown who does the garland library summer program. we missed him this summer, but now that i know how much the kids loved him at santa's village, we'll have to catch him next year.

rowan has un-potty trained himself now. he wore underpants for two days with no accidents, then on the third day decided he preferred diapers. it was a bummer for me, but as several people have pointed out, when he actually is ready, it will be a complete breeze because he already knows what to do.

i was only able to get two handmade christmas gifts done this year, and one of them isn't even done - it's only begun.

2009-12-14T12:51:00.002-06:00

still haven't made the kids' dentist appointment. i really need to do that today. i've been feeling extra lazy lately, and just haven't wanted to do anything but knit and watch movies all snuggled up in bed! luckily (or unluckily, depending on how you look at it), that's pretty much all the kids have wanted to do lately, too, since they've been feeling under the weather. the weather is SO gorgeous, i wish we were feeling better so we could enjoy it!

rowan potty trained himself a couple of days ago. he refused a diaper, and began telling me he needed to go to the bathroom. i went out and bought him some underpants and everything. he's been going all day long, with almost no accidents. yesterday he wore his underpants from the time he woke up, over to my mom's at 1:00, back home asleep in the car, and for an hour at home while he napped - and he stayed dry the whole time! i was amazed he could go that long without peeing. when he woke up from his nap, i was SURE he needed to go... but he didn't want to sit on the potty. i kept asking, but he kept saying no. so a few minutes later, micah made him mad in the dining room and he started to cry, and he peed all over the dining room floor. i guess he got a bit overwhelmed! today, so far, he's been a little hesitant to go. just now in the bathroom, he was standing on the step stool and started to pee. he's getting the hang of it, definitely. i'm just amazed at how this has all his been his idea and initiation! i wasn't even thinking of trying to potty train him yet.

hopefully this weekend the weather will be okay and we can go to santa's village. i'm so excited!!

2009-12-04T22:20:00.003-06:00

i took the kids to the pediatrician this afternoon. rowan had his 2-year check up, and they each got shots. they each had a really hard time today. i guess it's because they haven't been since may. for a while there, we were going once a month to get them caught up on immunizations. then our medicaid lapsed when we moved because i failed to give the HHS office our new address quickly enough, and our recertification letter went to the duplex. we just now got coverage again, so we're getting back into the routine. they'll need some time to get used to it again. micah was so brave beforehand - she said she wasn't going to cry or be scared, and that she "loved" getting shots. haha :) when it came time to actually sit down and hike up her pant leg for the nurse, she lost it. it makes me sad to see them so scared and uncomfortable.

i'm curious to see how they do at the dentist (haven't made that appointment yet, but i'm going to tomorrow). since that visit won't involve any pain, i'm hoping they'll do much better!

micah is 32 lbs, and rowan is 28.5 lbs. i can't remember how tall either of them were! it's funny to me that they're so close in size. a lady at the grocery store today asked me if they were twins.

2009-12-03T19:57:00.003-06:00

we had plans to go to christmas on the square in downtown garland tonight, but it was just too chilly out. micah is really sensitive to the cold and gets really cranky, and the moment we got out of the car to walk over to the festivities tonight, she said she wanted to go home. i knew it wasn't a matter of her just warming up to the idea... i could tell she was cold and uncomfortable, and that it would only get worse. so instead we drove around our neighborhood for a little while and looked at christmas lights (one of my FAVORITE christmastime activities!), then came back home. oh well! :) i'm hoping like crazy that the temp sunday night isn't quite as low, because we're planning on going to santa's village with jill, alison, and possibly mel.

jill is coming into town this weekend, and she's going to spend all day sunday with us. i'm so looking forward to it! she's josh's twin sister who lives in wichita falls; we get to see her five or six times a year. while she's here, we're going to put lights up on the house, put up and decorate the tree, and go to santa's village. it should be a super fun weekend. :) the only thing i'll miss is knitting group - it'll make two whole weeks since we've met! waaahhh!! i'm going to bind off my scarf tonight, and i'm making progress on josh's scarf and hat, which will be his christmas presents from me. next i'm planning on starting mittens and socks for micah (not sure which of those i'll do first), and a hat for me.

2009-12-03T08:19:00.002-06:00

a few weeks ago i called an 'early childhood intervention' program and set up an intake and assessment for rowan, to see if he needs speech therapy. i'd noticed him making some different noises when he tries to talk, and not trying to sound out too many words. a few different friends mentioned to me that i should have him assessed for speech services, and since we have medicaid and it's free, i went ahead and set it up. they came out yesterday morning and did his assessment. the ECI assessment team is made up of three people: a teacher, a nurse, and a speech therapist. i really liked all three of the women who assessed rowan. they were all really friendly and open with me and josh, and had a wonderful, nurturing way of talking to and working with rowan. i was worried about him cooperating for the tests, because he gets really shy around strangers, but he warmed right up to them. the speech therapist, maria, was primarily the one working with rowan. she sat on the floor with him and showed him different pictures - for example, she had him look at a picture of three non-food items and three food items, then asked, "can you show me all of the things we eat?" the test took about an hour, and maria kept commenting that he was focusing and participating remarkably well for his age, and that she was having to go further and further into the material with him because he had surpassed what was normal for his age and kept going higher! that made me happy and proud. on the 'receptive development' - his cognitive skills - part of the test, and he ended up scoring at 30-32 months, i think. he scored at 22 months for the 'expressive development' part - his language. he is 26 months old, so that's not TOO much of a delay... but enough to qualify him for weekly speech therapy. maria noticed during the assessment that he drops the beginning and the end sound of a lot of words, and sometimes when he talks he puts the sound in the back of his throat instead of in the front of his mouth where it ought to be - which is what i had been noticing too. he makes a sort of gutteral sound in his throat sometimes when he tries out new words, kind of like gollum (i told micah that and she got the biggest kick out of it. "rowan talks like gollum!" luckily he's not old enough to take offense...). so, they told me rowan has to have his 2-year check up at the pediatrician's office before the weekly therapy sessions can begin, so both the kids have an appointment tomorrow afternoon. rowan will have his 2-year well visit, and they'll both have a vaccination. then i get to take them to the dentist next week - yipee. not looking forward to that.

2009-11-22T19:01:00.004-06:00

okay, that's it. no more ignoring my blog because my camera's broken.

nothing too earth-shattering has happened over the past few weeks. josh got a bump up to full time and a 75 cent raise at work. he's still enjoying school, and is planning his classes for next semester. he doesn't have much time for his hobbies lately, but he and i are excitedly planning a vegetable garden for next fall, and he plans to start bicycling every friday night with our neighbor, poncho, at white rock lake. he really needs some "him" time in the midst of work, school, family time, and making sure i get a break on the weekends. we're hoping he gets a drafting job after he completes this semester. we're looking forward to being able to get the jeep running, pay back some family members who've so generously helped us out over the past several years, and get some things for the house that we've been wanting for a while.

micah will officially be 4 and 1/2 on saturday. she's really turning a corner as far as her obstinate and defiant behavior. she seems to be channeling her fierce will and determination into learning new tasks. she incorporates it into her pretending, too; i hear her playing with her dolls, and sometimes she sounds like a drill sergeant! but i prefer her ordering her dolls around to her being bossy and demanding with me or rowan. and she doesn't seem to act that way with her friends, except on occasion, and then we talk about it. she's quick to correct it when i explain that her friends won't enjoy being around her if she's bossy. her tantrums and meltdowns have almost disappeared. when they do happen, they're over quickly, and she's able to talk about it immediately after. i'm so amazed at her ability to understand why she's feeling a certain way. she seems very self-aware for her age, to me. her letter and number recognition is moving right along; we don't sit down and actively teach her with flashcards or anything, because so far that has not been enjoyable or effective for her... and results in the teacher (me) getting a little impatient and frustrated. i've just been following her cues as to what she'd like to learn, and how she'd like to practice it. she now recognizes letters and numbers on clothes, signs, buildings, packages, anything. she randomly surprised me yesterday by spelling her name out loud - something i'd been trying to teach her for a while, and had been getting very irritated about her refusal to even try repeating the letters after me. turns out, she was listening and taking it in the whole time, she just needed to show me on her terms. we've also been doing simple adding and subtracting, using tangible objects like blocks, spoons, hot wheels, etc. she really seems to enjoy this, and asks to practice sometimes. maybe she's going to be one of those people for whom math comes a lot easier and more naturally than reading and writing. she does not seem to be at all interested in arts and crafts. we decorated christmas ornaments with our friends a few days ago, and she enjoyed painting and decorating her little wooden stockings and wreaths, but she goes for weeks and weeks without touching paper, paint, brushes, stickers, markers, or anything of the sort. she occasionally asks to paint, but hardly ever wants to color or draw. her favorite activities lately are reading books, pretending with her dolls and playing dress up.

rowan celebrated his 2nd birthday a couple of months ago, and he is an absolute joy. he is a climber (just like micah was/is), is into everything, and the word "no" does not yet register in his big, beautiful world! he is very active, playful and outgoing, as was demonstrated for me yesterday morning when i took the kids to one of those bounce house party places for a friend's birthday. rowan practically leapt out of my arms, disappeared into the array of bounce houses, and never looked back to see if i was nearby. ha! he can count up to two things, brush his own teeth, kick a soccer ball around with me, and ride his tricycle. he's had a huge language explosion over the past week; he can say all sorts of things, and seems to learn a new word or combination of words every day. right now he adores hot wheels, his little farmhouse and animals, and playing dolls and dress up with his sister. he's not too crazy about books; when we do sit down to read, he wants it to be short and sweet. if i drone on too long (more than two pages) he takes the book, flips to the end, and hops up to find something else to do. i have dreams of reading "the hobbit" aloud to my kids every night at bedtime, so i hope a love of stories grows in rowan over time!

i've been staying really busy with the kids, knitting, volunteer work, and typing home study reports for my dad. the extra money i'm making working for daddy has been a huge help! i also really enjoy the work, and getting to chat with my dad just about every day. : ) five of my good friends are expecting babies right now, so i've got baby fever to the max. josh has agreed to keep the subject open, and to talk about it more in the future when he has a good drafting/designing job and we're not struggling so much with money. sounds like an excellent compromise to me.

today was thanksgiving! i loooooove this time of year. we went to josh's dad's house in rowlett this afternoon and had turkey, ham, stuffing, cranberry sauce, etc., including these awesome sweet potato empanadas josh's stepmom makes. i ate... oh, i don't know, twelve of them. i was kind of embarassed when ellen (josh's stepmom) went to send the rest of the empanadas home with her mom and grandma as they were leaving, opened the basket and exclaimed, "oh my god, they're all gone!" i didn't say anything; i'm hoping she took it as a compliment. anyways..... i'm excited about the kids' christmas presents this year. i think they're going to love what we got them. i'm also excited about decorating the house for christmas. this upcoming saturday we're celebrating thanksgiving with my dad, vesta, jo ann & sheridan. the day after we plan to put up our tree and lights. i'm hoping naomi will come over and help out, so we can spend some extra time with her.

phew.

2009-10-25T23:52:00.002-05:00

BAH! not having a camera makes me lazy about posting on my blog. our digital camera broke; the screen got smashed in my purse, somehow. i feel foolish for having it in my purse without the carrying case. oh well... perhaps we can get a new one for christmas.

speaking of christmas, i wish like heck i'd started my knitting hobby earlier in the year so i could give everyone handknit gifts!! i'll have to settle for PLANNING everyone's gifts for next year, which is just as fun for me, but slightly anticlimactic for the recipients. i love my knitting group, aka mama and katherine. we met today at starbucks, where i drank a pumpkin spice latte, shared a piece of banana walnut bread with mama, then for round 2 had a blackberry izze and a pumpkin cream cheese muffin. holy cow, that muffin was good. before knitting group, wesley fed me a yummy spicy lentil burrito!! i have eaten gooooood today. back to knitting group... i look forward to it all week long! today, i get to the end of one of my skeins of araucania chacabuco multy yarn on my long scarf for myself. i also made some progress on my malabrigo poncho for rowie. the colors are looking so incredible together... i might ask mama to take some pictures of my projects for my ravelry page, and here on my blog. in fact, i will definitely do that. tomorrow.

this weekend has been so much fun! on friday we met some friends at the mary heads carter park in carrollton - the most awesome playground i have found, and so worth the drive. i don't know if our friends agreed, though; they got lost... anyway, after playing at the park, we met them for dinner at cici's pizza in richardson. they have two young kids just about micah and rowan's ages, so it was a lot of fun. on saturday, we went to two birthday parties for two of our most favorite kiddos! my best friend, alison's middle child, gabriel, turned 3 on october 6th, the day after rowan's 2nd birthday. they had his party on saturday afternoon, and it was pirate themed. the kids wore costumes (though mine didn't, because i forgot), and ate yummy homemade cake and vanilla frozen yogurt, and got to swing a bat at a pirate pinata. micah was in kind of a funk and preferred to observe the pinata goings on, but rowan got right in there and took a swing. we stayed till late in the afternoon, and THEN headed back to richardson for miss lina bean's 1st birthday party! now, i love lina, and thoroughly enjoyed kissing her and wishing her a happy 1st... but the highlight of this party was the food. seriously. lina's dad, christian, is an excellent cook, and he made the best brisket and mashed potatoes. lina's mom, samantha, followed it up with THE BEST banana pudding you have ever put in your mouth. EVER. come to find out, it was paula deen's recipe, so... you know, DUH. and i was just kidding, lina was totally the life of the party... she was so cute, playing around with her aunts and grandparents, and ripping into her gifts with 1-year-old gusto. now, on to sunday... i went to starbucks to knit while josh took the kids to the huffhines art festival. then we took the kids to trunk or treat at church! micah was NOT into it at first... she didn't want to walk up to the people by their decorated trunks and hold out her basket, but she definitely wanted candy, and did not want to leave. so it was kind of frustrating there for a while. but she warmed up, and made the rounds with her brother. rowan and i tried some homemade root beer, which was good, but it ain't had nothing on A&W. the kids collected lots of candy, which they sampled on the way home and before dinner... oh well. more to come next weekend!

i love knitting. i love the thunderstorm that's going on right now. and i love working for my dad so i can make a little extra money. and did i mention i love knitting? i'm going to go knit myself to sleep right now...

some party pics (thank you, alison!)

2009-10-04T19:38:00.004-05:00

2009-10-03T22:58:00.002-05:00

today we celebrated my sweet boy's 2nd birthday with friends and family! he officially turns two at 3:28 pm on monday, october 5. today was his party, at terrace park (which is starting to feel like "our" party place... earlier this morning i imagined showing up to set up for his party and finding another group of people there, and getting all territorial on their asses... "this is OUR park, i've been having my kids' parties here for the past FOUR YEARS!!"). i was nervous about the rain, but the sky was kind enough to wait until the kids had gotten some good time on the playground before opening up on us. some folks left when it began to sprinkle, and some waited it out with us under the covered pavillion. we sang, cut the cake, and rowan opened his gifts while it drizzled, then the rain let up and the kids ran back out to play some more. all in all, it was such a wonderful day. after the party was over, we went home and played with all of rowan's awesome new toys, games and books. my precious boy was sooooo tired, he crashed on the way home from the park (around 6:30 pm - his first nap of the day!!), but woke up as soon as we pulled into the drive. he knew he had new stuff to play with. he and micah both ended up staying up pretty late. i'm so grateful for all our wonderful friends and family who helped us celebrate!

2009-09-27T10:44:00.002-05:00

a lot has gone on since my last blog post! josh lost his job the day after we returned from orange beach at the beginning of the month; he has a third interview at staples in richardson tomorrow. they really like him and are excited about the experience he had at kinko's. so if you're reading this, say a little prayer for them to hire him!

in other news, my childhood friend, courtney, had her first baby on the 21st! he was lotus born (they did not cut the umbilical cord; baby and placenta remained connected until the cord naturally detatched from him yesterday, day 4), and born at home, unassisted! i haven't talked to courtney yet, but i can't wait to hear all about it!!

rowan has started talking! he says: mama, dada, micah, rowan, mia, dog, cat, owl, hop, walk, up, help, banana, and milk. he still signs a lot for milk and "all gone" or "all done". he's starting to make sentences; he says "i want to go on a walk", but the only word that's really discernable to anyone else is "walk". : ) he loves to go on walks in our neighborhood and play with sticks outside. his other favorite passtimes are playing with all his little matchbox cars, and playing elaborate pretend games with micah, involving dolls and doll strollers and pots and pans and pretend food. she is the director of the game, and he does whatever she says. : ) for now...

rowan falls asleep so easily these days. when he's tired, we lay down, he nurses to sleep, then i gently roll him onto his tummy and give him his paci, and he's out. if he wakes in the night while josh and i are still awake, i go in to him and lay down next to him, snuggle him up close, and he goes right back to sleep - i usually don't have to nurse him. he really likes his paci (i'll deal with that later; for now, it's nice). he wakes up happy and energetic and playful in the mornings - though not always from his naps. if he gets a nice, long nap, he does, but if micah wakes up him before he's ready, or he just wakes up early on his own, he's usually on the cranky side for a little while. he is starting to demonstrate his little 2-year-old will; he's been experimenting with hitting and kicking, and shouting "no!" but it's so mild compared to micah. when he hits, we gently take his hand and show him "gentle", and sometimes he hits again... but we just show him a gentle touch over and over, and eventually he moves on. and when we ask him to do something and he yells, "no!", we just say, "yes, please" and he does it. : ) i get the feeling he's going to be more joyful and pleasant in general than micah was at this age, but a more physically rowdy and rambunctious. which figures; he's a boy.

micah has been delightful lately. she has VERY few meltdowns these days, and they're short-lived when they do happen. she's learning letters and numbers, and even did a little subtraction with me the other day. she loves to be read to; i could read her 50 books a day, and she would want more. she also loves to sit and "read" her books out loud to me. what's funny is, she has an excellent memory, so if it's a book she and i have read together, she'll often tell the story almost word for word. micah's been enjoying doll play, dress up, and reading the most lately. she also loves to play outside, but seems to enjoy getting lost in an imaginary world in the playroom even more.

orange beach, AL pictures!

2009-09-10T23:38:00.007-05:00

2009-09-10T18:36:00.003-05:00

our second trip to orange beach, AL was amazing!!!! we had such a blast; our time in the sun and on the sand was so peaceful and relaxing, and the water was wonderfully warm. i actually got to dive and swim in the ocean, which thrilled me to no end. the trip over there was really perfect; we made excellent time (the trip without stops is 10 and a 1/2 hours, and we made it 11 and a 1/2 - which we thought was pretty darn good, considering we were traveling with six children under the age of 7), and the kids did great. the ride home was a little bit of a different story... unbeknownst to us, there was an LSU/AL football game on september 6th, the day before labor day, and the day before our return trip. SO, when we left the condo around 11 AM on the 7th, we hit traffic. and when i say "we hit traffic", i mean that we traveled 54 miles in 6 hours. !!!!!!!!!!!!! it was horrendous. it was a nightmare. in the middle of all that traffic, it started to rain... and one of the windshield wipers on alison's van flew off. we pulled off the road and into a shell station, where two very nice men (i think they were brothers - they looked just alike!) helped us fasten it back on. we continued on down the road... having no more mishaps (other than being about 7 hours behind), until later in the day, when a man driving next to us on the road signaled that one of our tires needed air. we pulled over and tried to use alison's portable air pump, but it wasn't cooperating... so we got out the spare change and tried to use the gas station's pump, but the little needle thing on the thing that goes on the tire valve was missing and we couldn't get a good seal on it for the air to actually go into the tire. a nice man tried to help us, but he didn't have much success either. we shrugged, said "i hope it holds!" and got back on the road. then later that evening during another patch of rain, the other windshield wiper flew off!! ?!? this time, we just let it go - the rain let up right after that. UGH. it was rough going there for a while... i called my dad to let him know what was going on, and he made me swear we would stop for the night somewhere, so that we wouldn't get too sleepy driving at night. however, once we reached monroe, LA and saw that shreveport was only another 2 hours away... and from shreveport, only 4 and 1/2 hours till home... we talked ourselves into pushing on through. i didn't call daddy because i knew he'd make me stop (funny how i'm 28 years old and would still do whatever my dad told me, even from 300 miles away), and we just kept on driving until we got to garland - at 3:45 AM!! for a total of 17 hours driving, with, i think, three short stops. BLAH!!!

for some reason, i'm anxious to go on another road trip. i think i'll go to austin for the weekend, after naomi gets back from maui.

we've been back to our regular routine since we got back. micah and rowan have been playing together very nicely. rowan started talking a little more on the trip, probably because he was surrounded by talkative kids. he said "i want that", "i want dada", and since we've gotten home, he's said "bath" and "october". it's exciting to hear him trying out new words!! every once in a while i get anxious about the fact that he's not talking much, but then i calm down and remember that boys usually talk later than girls, and he is completely engaging with us, making eye contact, playing with other kids, playing with toys, etc. (in other words, i'm not concerned about anything on the autism spectrum) he even answers our questions in his own way, and it's obvious that he understands everything we're saying. i can ask him to go get me something from another room, and he'll do it. i can ask for his help cleaning up the living room, and he'll happily oblige. he's such a sweet little guy... i can't believe he'll be 2 in less than a month. i've already got some ideas for his party...

speaking of parties, it's ridiculous that we never had a 4th birthday party for micah moon. we moved into this house the weekend of her birthday, and we were so busy with unpacking and getting situated over here, that we just never got around to it. LAME!! i feel so bad. i hope she doesn't remember how we neglected her... : ) we'll just have to make up for it by making her 5th birthday party extra special. earlier tonight we were talking about what kind of cake to make for rowie, and she suggested he might like a hello kitty cake. i grinned and asked if that's what she wanted, and she said, "yes, with a dora the explorer candle on it." perfect! i think i might attempt to make her cake and frosting from scratch next year. i may even try that for rowan's birthday next month... we'll see how brave i'm feeling.

our cat, sara, is about to pop. anyone wants a kitten or knows someone who does, let me know...

2009-09-03T08:03:00.002-05:00

we're off to orange beach, alabama this morning!!! i'm excited for a repeat of our spring break trip. it was so fun hanging out with alison and her kids on the beach, and this time the weather should even be a little warmer and more pleasant for us. i packed last night, and went to the stupid grocery store at midnight because i had to wait for our EBT card to be loaded with this month's benefits. that was annoying. i was sooooo sleepy by 10 PM and wanted to go to bed (of course - had i not needed to do something later, i would've been wide awake at 10 and probably would've stayed up till midnight or later anyway). now i need coffee. when alison picks us up, we're going to stop at a gas station for a bag of ice for our little cooler (necessary to keep the A&Ws cold), and i'm going to get a cup of coffee for the drive.

i hope i have plenty of snacks and stuff for the kids in the van. when we made this drive for spring break, the kids did amazingly well for a 13-hr drive. alison and i were impressed. i hope this trip goes as well!

i'm sad to be away from josh, though. he's pushing himself really hard right now with work every day and school 4 nights a week, and while i'm sure he'll benefit from a nice stretch of quiet and low-energy time at the house by himself (he plans to work on the garage and get some painting done - and feed the neighbors' dogs), i know he'll miss us like crazy. his new schedule is taking some getting used to, but we both knew it would be difficult, and it's completely worth it so he can get his degree and get into his dream career. i can't wait to see him living his dharma!

i jammed my toe really hard on a leg of the hutch last night. it HURTS. hope it doesn't bother me too much on the trip. be back monday...

2009-08-29T23:49:00.002-05:00

i'm annoyed with myself for not utilizing this perfect outlet for my random thoughts and activities. part of the reason for my chronic blog neglect has to do with the fact that for months now, our memory card for the digital camera has been M.I.A. it's fun to post recent pics of the family and our shenanigans on here, so i guess since i've not been able to do that, just journaling hasn't been a priority.

tonight was awesome. josh and i went on a much-needed date. we dropped the kids off at daddy and vesta's at 4, then we went to addison and had dinner at sweet tomatoes. i'd heard about this place from several friends, and had been told it was like souper salad, but a notch above. it was delish! i had an asian salad with crunchy wontons on top, a baked sweet potato with butter, some bread, and i tried two kinds of soup: corn chowder with potato and bacon, and yellow curried split pea. both were awesome, but i slightly preferred the corn chowder - the split pea had an aftertaste that i didn't love. for dessert, i had a warm blueberry muffin with butter. yummm!!! not the healthiest, i know - i could pretend i had "salad" for dinner and feel super healthy, but i ate a ton of carbs. and butter. after dinner, we met my brother, caleb, and his girlfriend, beth, at adventure landing for a game of miniature golf! it was josh's idea, and it was so relaxing and fun. not one of us has a competitive bone in our bodies, so we just played around and had a blast. i got three holes-in-one, josh and beth each got one, and my stinkin' brother got three also, including one which he achieved single-handed, with his LEFT hand, AND while talking on his cell phone. show-off.

in between dinner and golf, while we were waiting for my punctuality-challenged brother to arrive with his girlfriend, josh and i went down the street from adventure landing to super target to get josh a 3-ring binder, spiral notebook, and usb flash drive for his drafting class. i also picked up a new memory card for the camera, and a cute shirt for micah and a two-piece outfit for rowan that were on clearance. i fell head over heels in love with all of the autumn boys clothes that were there, and wanted to buy everything for rowan. i can't wait until i start making extra money typing for my dad and i can get him his fall wardrobe! as much as i love buying cute clothes for my kids, i'm glad my aunt and mom have micah pretty much outfitted in oilily for the rest of her life (until she becomes a teenager and decides she only wants to wear white, black and brown), because two wardrobes to purchase might be hard on the wallet. i still can't keep myself from buying cute stuff for micah at target or old navy. it's just too fun.

my latest hobby, knitting, makes my heart so warm, and hopefully one day soon it'll make my head warm, because i'm trying to knit a hat. i say "trying" because i've attempted this hat three times now, and it keeps coming out too enormous for my head. mama, katherine and i are going to dunn bros. in addison tomorrow to knit together, and to cast on our first "knit-a-long" - this booga bag. i'm so excited about this! i don't get to sit down and focus on knitting too often during the day, so i'm sure i'll be tagging along at the tail end of the knit-a-long, but that's okay. i'm just so excited to have a bag that i can actually use, that i MADE, at the end of it!

micah has been asking me to read to her non-stop lately, and i love it. we have gobs and gobs of books, a lot of them from my childhood, and looking through them gives me warm fuzzies. she wants me to read them all, every day. rowan likes books, too, but he seems to want to look at the pages on his own, quickly, moving from book to book. he's not too interested in sitting in my lap and being read to. he makes lots of sound effects to accompany the story, and doesn't like how long it takes me to finish each page. the super early-reader board books are right up his alley - the ones with a picture and one word on each page. he digs those.

in other kid news, rowan has sporadically been using the potty! usually before his bath, or right after. the other day, while he was naked in the playroom, he actually stopped playing, found me in the computer room, led me to the bathroom, climbed on, and peed - twice! i was impressed. josh and i briefly discussed buying him some training underwear, but quickly realized, upon turning and finding him sprinkling the hallway carpet, that he's not there yet. he just likes to do everything his sister does.

ahhh... that's enough for now. i have so much more to ramble on about, but i'm very sleepy, and i'm reading a great book, and am anxious to snuggle up in bed and read until i can't keep my eyes open.

2009-08-15T00:14:00.002-05:00

i love to knit. i love to knit. i love to knit!

i haven't posted in a while; i've been busy knitting. :) we've been doing the same old things around here; taking care of baby lina (who is 10 months old now!), playing in the sprinkler out back and at the splash parks and swimming pools as often as possible, hanging out with friends, and doing fun family stuff. josh has been working and getting ready to attend classes and richland community college so he can get a drafting job. today he went and got a new driver's liscense, and returned some books and paid a fine at the college, so he's all ready to register for his two classes on monday! he'll take developmental math and auto cad 1 (don't know what that is exactly, but he's excited about it). i can't wait for him to be working in the field he's so passionate about. i'm guessing it will do wonders for his overall happiness and health.

he continues to be a sweet, supportive husband, even in the midst of really hating his job. tonight he took the kids to his dad's to swim while i went to my mom's house and indulged in my latest, greatest hobby and passion... knitting! mama taught me to knit when i was 7, and when i was 10, and naomi was in her waldorf kindergarten, i learned to knit mittens. i actually completed a pair, and mama has them somewhere... i will hopefully post a picture of them on my ravelry page soon. anyway, katherine, my dearest friend, has become something of a knitting prodigy since teaching herself (!!!) how to knit last thanksgiving. she's made all this neat stuff for me and the kids, and is always working on something... so when i ran across this baby blanket pattern online, i forwarded it to her, thinking she'd probably love to make one for, i don't know, me. she wrote back and said, "this pattern is super simple, why don't YOU make it?!" and as of that moment, i've resumed my knitting, after a 20-year haitus. so far i've made a little doll blanket and pillow, a doll scarf, and am currently working on a doll dress. after i finish the dress (and either a skirt or pants to match), mama, katherine and i are going to do a "knit along" - we're all going to make a booga bag at the same time! since i started up again, mama, katherine and i have been having "knitting dates" where we just get together, chit chat, and knit! it is so fun and relaxing and rejuvinating. we've met a couple of times at coffee houses, but tonight we all had some skeins of yarn that needed winding, and mama has a swift and a ball winder at her house, so we met there. it's so fun for me, the novice, to listen to mama and katherine talk about different yarns and projects they're working on. it inspires me to get better and better so i can do what they're doing! i have all sorts of things in my queue on ravelry - projects i'm going to do as soon as i can. this... is so much fun. :)

tomorrow i'm going to a blessing way for one of my oldest, sweetest friends who's expecting her first child next month. there are all sorts of reverent, meaningful rituals planned, and i wrote a poem to read during one of them. i'm a bit nervous, and i'm sure my voice will be all shaky... but i hope i can be calm, and deliver the words with the spirit with which i wrote them.

earlier today, before my knitting night, josh dropped the kids and me off at terrace pool (our favorite!) while he went to run his DPS and richland errands. we had lina with us, and samantha met us there. alison and her crew, and laura, eli and chase were there as well. it was such a fun afternoon! the kids had a blast, had some yummy snacks, and played hard. by the time we were ready to leave, josh was still an hour away from being finished at the DPS office, so alison was nice enough to drive us home. as soon as we got our wet suits off, we piled in bed and promptly fell asleep - but when josh got home minutes later, micah and i woke up. i was disappointed - a nap sounded sooo nice. rowan got a nice one, and micah and i got up to eat carrot cake. then the kids got to swim again at josh's dad's community pool in rowlett. they came to pick me up at mama's house around 11 tonight, we got home by 11:30, and both kiddos were sound asleep by 11:45. i was almost asleep in bed, but had to get up and upload some cute baby pics to facebook. and i miss my blog, so i had to post here. i've been neglecting it.

oh, and sara the cat is pregnant. : ) for sure, this time.

2009-08-02T22:34:00.002-05:00

i just noticed that rowan's picture on the side of my blog here is a little outdated... he looks so different now, but i can't stand to remove that one!! i'll leave it there until his second birthday.

rowan and micah are awesome little swimmers! i really need to take some pictures and video of them swimming before the summer is over, and post them here and on facebook. i'm pretending it hasn't happened, but the huge memory chip for our digital camera has been misplaced (i'm not pointing any fingers, but rowan was the last one seen playing with the downloading component) and all i have are two really small ones that only hold about 15 pictures each. i have no idea how much memory chips cost. we may be buying a new one later this month, because we cannot find the old one. sigh...

tonight i did some reorganizing of the hallway linen closet and the medicine cabinet in the full bathroom. there was tons of stuff in the medicine cabinet that we don't use regularly, and it was taking up too much space - it's a pretty shallow cabinet. and the linen closet was not arranged in a way that made sense. so i waited until the kids were asleep tonight, and went after it. it's fun to get organized, especially in a new house. sometimes i still feel very unsettled... mainly because the kids' playroom has no storage or organization in it at all yet, because i haven't bought the stuff i want from target or IKEA, and the computer room shelves are all still mainly empty, and what is on them is just clutter that's been put there temporarily. i can't wait until those two rooms are finished, then i'll really feel like we've unpacked and moved in completely.

a couple of weeks ago we planted some pink periwinkles and some blue daze in the little flower bed by the front porch. it looks so neat and pretty! i'm so proud of our yard and our little house. i cannot wait until we have a swingset in the backyard for the kids. i'm hoping to get that by spring, so we can be out there playing and enjoying the gorgeous weather.

i have finally decided to start reading the harry potter books. it's ridiculous, i know, but i've never read a single one of them. my dad, brother, sister, and grandfather have all read them and are huge fans of the series. i just always reach for my crime dramas when i get a chance to sit down and read.

micah's cousin, sydney, is coming over to play with us tomorrow while my aunt susan attends some meetings at work. sydney's staying with susan and my uncle, tony, for a week and a half before school starts for her up in oklahoma where she lives with her mom, my cousin julie, and her dad, stephen. sydney and micah get along really well together, even though syd is 5 years older. my aunt's dropping her off at 8 AM, right as lina gets here too, so i am going to have my hands full tomorrow! i told myself i'd go to bed before midnight, so i better keep my word...

2009-07-24T23:08:00.002-05:00

the last week has been fun; we've just been hanging out at the house, running errands, and meeting up with friends and family. last week my friend sarah and her two boys, who are close to micah and rowan's ages, came over for a play date. the kids got along great and had fun, and we all had a new, yummy snack: raw milk and raw cheddar cheese! sarah is always discovering new foods, and is also inclined to notice the natural and alternative. she bought some raw milk and cheese at a co-op and brought it over for us to try. it was awesome!! the cheese was wonderful, flavorful and mild at the same time. and the milk tasted just like the milk i buy at the store, but it was so cool to know that it was raw and unpasteurized. i wish i could afford to have raw milk in the house all the time, but it's on the expensive side, and the co-op doesn't take food stamps, of course.

last night (thursday) mama and maya came over for dinner, which was really fun because it was the very first time i've had my mom over and cooked dinner for her at my house. sounds weird, but it's true. i made meatloaf, broccoli rice & cheese, and cornbread muffins - three things i know she loves. she and josh both liked the meatloaf, but i thought it turned out a little bland. i need to practice that more... after dinner, my aunt shannon and cousins emma and audrey came over to play, and they ended up staying until almost 10 o'clock. the girls all had so much fun together. the next morning (this morning) they all left on a little weekend trip with grams & sweep to mississippi. i hope they're having fun, and i hope we get to see them again on sunday night, when they get back, before shannon and the girls have to head home to austin.

today (friday) i had lina with me - i usually don't have her on fridays, but her mom needed to finish a project at work. we bummed around the house until lunchtime, then ate leftovers with josh, and drove him back to work when his break was over. then we picked up caleb and took him to work. we arrived about half an hour early, and i'm so glad we did! they were having a 50% off sale, and i have been anxious to plant some pretty, colorful flowers in the front flower bed. so micah and i went in, found what we wanted, and ended up getting 80% off on our purchase because the cashier gave me caleb's employee discount! SWEET!! i'm going to get up early tomorrow and work on getting them planted before it gets too hot. i'll take pictures and post them as soon as i can. : ) tonight (friday) daddy and vesta came over for dinner! i looooove having people over for dinner at my new, pretty house. : ) anyway, i made this chicken enchilada recipe that i got from my friend, jessica, and they turned out soooo yummy. the ONLY thing i'll do differently next time i make them is bake them for a slightly shorter amount of time. the corn tortillas were very soft, and i think i would've preferred them a little less... mushy.

naomi was supposed to come home this weekend, but she forgot that it was a friend's last weekend before going somewhere, so she stayed in austin. jill is in town, though, babysitting melanie's kiddos, so i think after we do yard work tomorrow, we're going to head up to mckinney and swim with the boyle children (josh's nephews and neice). then i hope to make a stop at half price books to get a copy of roald dahl's "the witches" for micah, and dr. sears' "the birth book" for me, for my LLL leader application. i want to read "the witches" to micah because she got two rats as a late birthday present from me and her daddy, and i think she'd enjoy the story of the boy and his trained, pet rat. : ) i also hope to pop in the old navy by mel's to see if i can find a dress to wear to temple's wedding tomorrow night!! which is also in mckinney, so we will pretty much be there all day long. i can't wait for temple's wedding. it's going to be so much fun, and honestly, it will be the first wedding i've been to in a long time in which i'm not a bridesmaid. so it'll be a nice change to sit in the chapel and enjoy the ceremony. : )

2009-07-14T14:14:00.002-05:00

we were supposed to go on another LLL field trip to old city park in dallas this morning. but my morning did not go as planned... and i can't seem to do anything right today. first, i neglected to inform christian and/or samantha last night that i'd be taking josh to work this morning, so i could keep the car. so this morning at 7:24 i called samantha and she was already on her way here to drop lina off. i told her i'd meet her at belt line and 75, but soon realized i wasn't going to make it in time. so she ended up being late to work because of my poor planning - UGH! then, i headed north to our bank with my check from samantha for this week, with the intention of depositing part of it and cashing part of it. when i was about two-thirds of the way there, i realized that, since our account is overdrawn at the moment, they wouldn't let me keep any of it. so i pulled off the highway and drove around for a while, trying to find a bank of america branch where i could go in, cash the check, then take $100 of it to our bank in mckinney and deposit it. when i finally found a BOA branch, the sign on the door said the lobby would be closed for another 15 minutes. my stomach was cramping like mad, and i knew sitting in my car for that long would result in an accident the likes of which i haven't had since i was about 3 years old. and by this point anyway, i had grown so accutely irritated by the fact that we live in GARLAND and our bank's nearest branch is in MCKINNEY, that i angrily drove out of the parking lot and all the way back to richardson. i went to the BOA branch by my supertarget (the bathroom had stopped calling me for the time being), where i went in and cashed my check (NEVER, and i mean NEVER take three children under the age of 5 into a bank; you're just askin' for it). after that, i was hungry and annoyed and suddenly needing to poop again, so we went next door to chick-fil-a and resolved two of those three issues. even after that, i had one more errand to run: for several days now, my fingernails have been in desperate need of clipping, and i can't find our clippers anywhere. so we stopped in at the CVS right by our house for a new pair. THEN we went home, and my annoyance level has decreased since i was able to get the two younger babes down for naps at the same time. so, needless to say, we skipped old city park (it was, what, 100 degrees by 10 AM anyway), and have had a quiet afternoon here at home.

micah is hungry all... the... time these days! i bet she's going through a growth spurt. i'll be anxious to see how much she's grown by the end of the summer. rowan's appetite hasn't changed, but his crankiness has upped a bit. i don't know if it's because he's getting some molars in, or if it's just the slow march towards 2. he's also giving lots of unsolicited kisses, and is "talking" and make some new gestures to get his message across.

the big 3-0!

2009-07-12T16:58:00.003-05:00

here are some cute pictures we took at josh and jill's 30th birthday party last month.

josh and rowan in their matching hats. so cute!

rowan, me, katy (josh's youngest sister) and hope, josh's neice (a year older than micah)

micah and her favorite cousin, hope ann, having fun in the pool!!

2009-07-06T23:30:00.001-05:00

i have baby fever! a good friend's sister had her first baby, a girl, at the end of june. i've been spending time with my friend, jessica, and her sweet 7-month-old boy. one of my LLL friends had a baby boy in mid-june. my friend in pennsylvania is pregnant with her first, and another friend here is pregnant too. gosh... i want another baby. : ) and the cool thing is, josh no longer winces when i bring up the topic! we even have names picked out for #3. shhhhh...

we had SUCH a fun 4th of july in wichita falls with josh's sister, jill, and her boyfriend, richard. we stayed at their house and slept in their wonderfully comfy guest bedroom with a roomy king-size bed. josh didn't want to come home and go back to sleeping on his stiff, creaky twin trundle bed mattress!

on friday we arrived pretty early and played rock band at the house, then went out for a nice dinner. on saturday josh and i took the kids to a flea market, then in the evening we all went to a fun kids event at the civic center where micah got to ride one of those spinning carnival rides (with her aunt jill; those things make me barf) and eat cotton candy. the fireworks turned out to be a bust... it started pouring down rain, and we were waaaaaay too close to where the fireworks were actually launching from, and the noise was overwhelming for micah and rowan. they had fun running around inside the civic center, though, listening to the booms and pows from a distance.

the next day, sunday, we got up and had an early lunch, then went roller skating! it was micah and rowan's first time to do this, and they both had fun. rowan wore his skates for about ten minutes, holding my hands or josh's hands and scooting around, then he sat down and pointed to his laces and said, "uh, uh, uh!" translation: get these crazy things off of me so i can walk normally again! micah stood perfectly still on the carpet next to the rink in her skates for a long time, maintaining perfect balance and watching people zoom around in a circle. after about 45 minutes of watching me, her daddy, aunt jill and richard skate around and have fun, she decided she was ready to try it - and she did very well! : ) she held my hands first and skated forward with me behind her, then held one of jill's hands and one of richard's hands and skated in between them. it took her a while to get the hang of centering her body over her feet so her feet wouldn't shoot out from underneath her, landing her on her tail bone (that happened several times - ouch). once she got the feel of how she needed to balance a little differently, she enjoyed it. i love watching her learn how to do something brand new. it gives me the neatest feeling, and i hope i remember all these moments forever.

from the skating rink, we went to an early dinner, then josh and the kids and i headed home. we made really good time, so once we got to richardson we stopped at the grocery store for some stuff we needed for the house. micah slept the whole trip home, so she was a bit wired, but rowan, for some reason, stayed awake and whiny the whole trip home. he had a weird burst of energy once we unloaded the van (we borrowed joann and sheridan's van for the trip), then crashed at his normal time.

micah and i stayed up watching the dog whisperer. wesley, my stepdad, has us hooked on this show. it's got me totally psyched to be a better pack leader to mia!

today my aunt and cousins came over to play, and we had so much fun! micah always has the best time playing with them. then tonight we all ate dinner at my grandparents house. ahhhh, heaven. : )

and rowan signed his first sentence yesterday: he signed "milk" then "all done", to tell me he was done nursing. : ) : )

catch-up time

2009-06-30T21:31:00.003-05:00

i've been really bad at updating my blog lately!!

our A/C has been partially restored... a small, used unit was installed last week to tide us over until sometime this week when the new unit is supposed to arrive. the landlords are replacing the entire cooling and heating system in the house. it'll be about a 3-and-a-half hour job. meanwhile, the unit we have is struggling to keep the whole house at a comfortable temp (80), so i've been keeping the vents and the doors closed in the playroom and the office during the day. that way the bedroom, living room and kitchen get all the cool air, and the unit isn't running nonstop all day long to try to keep up. i am not looking forward to our utility bill next month...

kid news:

rowan is communicating a bit more. he says owl, bagel, mama, micah, and bye-bye on a very regular basis. he has certain sounds he makes for certain needs/wants, and he signs "milk" and "all done".
micah and rowan both are both becomming fantastic little swimmers this summer! rowan can jump off the steps or the side and go completely underwater, before being swooped up by me or whoever is playing with him. sometimes my dad and i play "catch" with him: i dunk him under and push him through the water to my dad, and my dad brings him up to the surface. he voluntarily dunks himself underwater all the time, then pops back up smiling. micah can put her face underwater and hold it there for several seconds, and can glide from your arms to the steps several feet away with her hands out in front like a torpedo. she also loves to kick around in her 'dora the explorer' inner tube.
micah is loving her dress-up clothes these days. she spends a lot of time wearing her beautiful dresses, skirts, headbands, crowns, purses, etc. we recently got some princess dresses and high-heel shoes from my friend alison, and they've been a huge hit!

we are all still adoring our new house!! the backyard especially is so fun for me; we have one of those little fisher-price cars (also from my friend alison - thank you!!), a small slide, and an airplace swing for lina. my grandparents have a blow-up pool for us, but they haven't brought it over yet.

we've been enjoying the summer so far, at home, in my dad's swimming pool, and going on several outings with my la leche league group. earlier this month we went to owen's farm in richardson and got to feed some goats, see and learn about many different farm animals, go on a barrel ride, and plant a pumpkin seed! today, we went to the flight museum at love field in dallas and went on a guided tour, got to see tons of vintage aircraft, climb aboard a real plane (some of the kids were nervously asking, "are we really gonna take off?!") and enjoy a nice, big, air conditioned play area! we also got to hear one man's first-hand account of WWII, including his memories of normandy and omaha beach, and the loss of his best friends. his story was very moving, and i had a hard time keeping it together in front of all the kiddos. at the end, when he was talking about how many men died on D-Day, he pointed to all the kids and us and said, "and each of you are worth every bit of that sacrifice." i thought about how blessed i am to have two grandfathers who served in the Korean War and lived to see their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

2009-06-19T23:43:00.003-05:00

i... can't... believe... my A/C seems to be broken again. it's not blowing cold air, and it won't get below 83 degrees in here, even though i have the thermostat set at 75. i'm going to scream, or cry, or maybe both. and we're supposed to have company again tomorrow night. lovely... at least tomorrow is saturday and i know my landlord will come over here to check it out. geez...

josh, the kids and i played with maya at her house tonight while mama and wesley went out on a date for their anniversary. we had fun dancing to music, molding things out of beeswax, and playing with dolls and wooden food. i took some cute pictures of maya and micah dancing, and will post all sorts of pictures from the last couple of weeks very soon...

i was frustrated this morning because i didn't get up to drive josh to work, and was stuck at home without a car until noon, which meant that i missed two fun playgroups with my LLL friends. alison and laura and their boys were at the splashground, which is where i really wanted to go, and vicky and others were at a shady playground in dallas, which sounded like a bit of a drive but still would've been fun. my other friend miranda was also at the dallas playground, with her 3-yr-old son, jack, and her brand new baby girl, lily! i'm sad i missed out on seeing her. she's having a "meet lily!" party tomorrow afternoon, but we won't be able to go because we've got a full day tomorrow already. i'm also super excited for my other friend, marina, who had her baby boy last week! i can't wait to meet and hold these precious, new babies!!

i'm looking forward to getting some plants and flowers for the small bed right next to the front porch tomorrow. i have an idea of what i want to put there, but i don't know the names of the plants or the flowers. we're also going to go buy a cheap weedeater tomorrow. we'll worry about buying a lawnmower next year; my dad said we could borrow his whenever we need it, and it fits nicely in the back of the station wagon.

2009-06-19T11:37:00.002-05:00

we are almost completely settled in and unpacked over here on archery lane! a few boxes remain in the kids' room, and the office needs artwork hung on the walls and the shelves loaded up with books. there are a lot of boxes of books and DVDs in the office closet that need to be unpacked. i am trying to come up with storage ideas for the kids' playroom. i want one of these storage systems from IKEA to house all their small toys, dress-up clothes, etc. maybe i can get them this for christmas.

micah and rowan are loving the new place! they love the backyard, even though we don't have a swing set or anything out there yet - again, hopefully christmas! we do have a small toddler slide that they're enjoying in the meantime. and of course, the sprinkler is always a hit. my grandparents have a blow-up kiddie pool they're going to bring over sometime next week; i'm excited about that!

josh and his twin sister, jill, turn the big 3-0 on monday, the 22nd! we had a birthday party for them at their oldest sister, melanie's house this past wednesday night. it was such a blast. i will post pictures soon. we swam and listened to music and ate brisket sandwiches, and had the yummiest cupcakes you've ever tasted for dessert. josh got a charcoal grill with all the accessories, a new wallet, a stainless steel water canteen, a drafting pen set, a gift card to hobby lobby (which he's already spent on some brushes, paints, mineral spirits to use with oil paints and to clean his brushes, and a sketchbook), and an awesome t-shirt with a record on it (his younger sister, katy, made it).

before the party, jill and katy stayed with us for one night each, which was wonderful but - our A/C was broken for part of the time! our landlord came out to the house four differet times to try to fix it, and he finally determined what was wrong and got it repaired. but, ugh... it was kind of a pain having it broken while we had company. i love, love, love it when josh's sisters come to stay with us.

we've also had my dad and vesta over for dinner, and my grandparents (jo ann and sheridan, my dad's folks) over for pizza, my friend alison and her boys over to play and help unpack, and last night katherine came over with smoothies and hand-knitted gifts! she made me a dishtowel with the breastfeeding advocacy symbol on it (i will post pictures of this very soon, and can't wait to take it to my next LLL meeting to show it off...) and she made micah two knitted chocolate cupcakes with pink frosting and chocolate sprinkles!! they are amazing. she also showed me pictures of some of her other projects... she is so incredibly talented, and she's only been knitting a short time. she just has a knack for it.

in other news, rowan is still not saying much at all, but has no trouble communicating. he uses hand gestures and little sounds to get what he needs, and he's started to sign more. he signs for milk, all gone, and thank you (sometimes). and of course he waves bye, and stretches his arms out for a hug. it's really cute. : ) he has his pacifier in his mouth a lot, and i've wondered if that might be contributing to his speech delay... so maybe this week i'll try to keep the paci away as much as i can. i'm not worried about it; i'm sure he'll talk when he's ready.

2009-06-11T00:09:00.002-05:00

our landlord, gary, came over last night and sprinkled some bug killer on the lawn out back. hopefully that will take care of the chiggers and the little black ants that have been plaguing us.

we had some excellent thunderstorms this evening! all day long it was overcast and humid as anything, but the rain didn't start until around 6:30 pm, i think. the kids and i were over at my dad's eating dinner, and josh was here at home working on a painting. the rain started coming down, then started pouring down, followed by lots of strong wind, thunder and lightning. the warning sirens came on at one point, and we were a bit confused because the news channel we were watching was telling us the tornadoes were south of us, in hebron and cleburne. we found out later that a wall cloud had moved through our area, and tornadoes can drop out of wall clouds, so hence the reason for the sirens. it was a little nerve-wracking being separated from josh during all this excitement, but i knew we were all right, and at least we were both inside strong, safe houses. i was glad he was here with mia; she is terrified of storms. micah and rowan weren't too frightened at daddy's house. i went out back with rowan at one point to watch the storm, but he was really nervous, so we came back inside.

i'm looking forward to having jo ann and sheridan, my gandparents (daddy's parents) over for pizza and to see the new house on friday night! they're also being kind enough to give us an extra printer of theirs, so we can finally have a printer hooked up to our computer. i don't think we've had one since we lived in the house on greenville ave., right after we got married. i know printers are fairly cheap, we've just never felt the need to go out and buy one. but i will so love having one and being able to print directions to places, random information, and ... this one prints quality pictures, on photo paper. : ) yay!! speaking of pictures, my grandmother is also bringing with her on friday some picture frames and some old photos that she's going to let me look through to see which onces i want. my other grandmother, mama's mom, also has some family photos she said i could look through. i need to do that soon... there's nothing i love more than looking at old familiy pictures and listening to all the stories!

every time i visit my grandparents, i try to get them to tell me some old family stories. grandmommy, mama's mom, recently told me a really interesting one. her oldest brother, wayne (she had seven brothers, and one sister), was in the european theater in WWII, in france. he went missing over there; apparently, he went AWOL and went to live with a french family, and ended up marrying a young girl. well, back home, memaw and pepaw (grandmommy's parents, my mom's grandparents) of course didn't know this, and they were frantic when they found out he was missing from his unit. at that time, lyndon baines johnson was in some sort of government position in florence, tx, where they lived (my grandmother couldn't remember what his title was exactly). memaw and pepaw asked him for help, and LBJ personally tracked wayne down in france, and let his family here know where he was and that he was all right. so, grandmommy said, her mom and dad thought LBJ was "the savior of all the earth." wayne ended up coming home unharmed (sans his young french wife) and started a family here, but grandmommy said he was never really the same. i'll bet a lot of families had/have the same feeling about their sons, fathers, husbands, etc. returning from war.

2009-06-08T11:58:00.003-05:00

I LOVE MY HOUSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ahem. micah is ill right now, and i hate it. i wish i could take her tummy bug out of her body and swallow it into mine. i can take it. she's so skinny already... she (and rowan) had fevers all day long on friday. then late friday night, micah finally threw up, and did several more times throughout the night on saturday. all day sunday, she seemed fine; we even went over to my dad's to celebrate her birthday. she wanted to get in the pool and everything. then sunday evening she seemed to be feeling really yucky again... and then began the diarrhea. the kind where she wasn't able to make it to the bathroom every time. my poor sweet baby... she's sleeping well right now, and i hope this doesn't last long.

her birthday party yesterday was so fun, though. my sweet, wonderful, loving stepmom, vesta, made her a "my little pony" birthday cake.

doesn't it look incredible?! this was vesta's first attempt at decorating a cake! it was absolutely delicious. micah got two beautiful summer dresses, and a kid's cookbook is forthcoming from my grandparents. she will be so excited about that. she really loves to help me in the kitchen lately.

our house is so much fun. we have the living room all arranged except for paintings that will go on the walls, and a cool piece of furniture we're getting in a few weeks from josh's sister jill and her boyfriend. the bedroom is almost all unpacked. the office only lacks the futon assembly, and then the kids' room will be the last. we have determined that we have a major chigger infestation in the backyard; i left a message with the landlords this morning to see what we can do about that. we figure any future pest control issues will be our responsibility - like ants or roaches, since it'd be a direct result of our habits, like leaving food out and whatnot. but the chiggers were well established before we moved in, so... we're hoping the landlords will just send someone out to spray the yard.

micah has developed a fear of the wind. one day last week, we were out enjoying the backyard and i had the kids' tent set up for them to play in. a strong breeze came through and knocked the tent over. micah flipped out, thinking the tent was about to float away - just like a balloon of hers floated out the car window weeks ago (that's what started it all). since then, she and i have had many talks about what can and can't float away in the wind - leaves, feathers, little bits of trash vs. play tents, chairs, dogs, people, houses, etc. she's having a difficult time relaxing outside, though. i'm hoping she gets used to it soon. right now, whenever the sliding glass door in the kitchen is open, she whines until we close it. it puts a damper on our backyard enjoyment. i'm trying to be patient and help her get to the bottom of her fear, but sometimes i just want to sit in my backyard without someone complaining and begging me to come back inside - especially since the backyard was one of the things i looked forward to the most about living here. i know it will pass, and i just need to be patient and understanding...

josh hasn't painted since we moved in, and i know he's missing it. i can't wait until he gets the garage organized so he'll have space to paint out there. the smaller canvases he says he'll work on in the office; that's why we put the child-proof door handle on the office door.

mia is loving her new yard, although she has tons of chigger bites too. i hope we get rid of them soon...

2009-06-04T17:53:00.002-05:00

it's official!

engineer moon and firefighting bear

2009-05-29T23:49:00.001-05:00

2009-05-28T10:38:00.004-05:00

happy birthday, my sweet micah moon!!!!!

i can't believe you are four years old. you mean everything to me. you are my soul-mate, and i am eternally grateful that you chose me to be your mama. i love you!!!!!!!!

2009-05-28T10:36:00.002-05:00

we've been in the process of packing for weeks now, and all my pictures are on my laptop. i can't figure out how to download pictures to the new computer, so until we move and get everything set up at our new house, i will continue to be REALLY bad at uploading pics on my blog. : ) but... check out this incredibly beautiful picture of my mama. isn't she awesome?!

2009-05-27T21:50:00.002-05:00

i can't believe my baby turns 4 tomorrow morning... at 7:24 am, to be precise.

we had a fun, educational day today! we spent the first part of the morning at the pediatrician's office for micah's 4-year-old well visit (she weighed in at 29.5 lbs, and is 3 ft 2 in tall!) and shots for both, so that was neither fun nor educational... but then... we went to the richardson fire station for a fire safety talk with wesley! our neighborhood friends joined us, and we learned all about fire safety in the home, deciding on a place to meet outside your home if you have to use different exits during a fire, etc. we also got to tour the fire station, and see inside the ambulance and fire truck. but the coolest part, i thought, was getting to see one of the firemen in full gear, with his mask, helmet, oxygen tank and all. the kids got to listen to him breathe like darth vader through his mask, and talk through the little speaker attached to it. this was all to make them comfortable with the ominous-looking uniform, and the scary-sounding mask, so that if we're/they're ever in a situation where a fireman is there to help them, they'll run to the firemen instead of away from them! we also each got a free dual-chamber smoke detector out of the deal.

after the excitement at the fire station, we got home and micah promptly fell asleep on the couch, so after samantha left with lina i ducked out with rowan for some groceries. we got back, rowan gently woke his sister by pouring ice water onto her from his sippy cup (gotta get ones that work), we quickly fixed and ate dinner, then the kids and i were back out the door for a dallas symphony orchestra concert in the park, at the fretz recreation center in dallas. except that we did not plan for approximately 2 million people being there, so instead of parking a block away and hiking across a big field of grass to sit way in the back of the crowd to hear the music, we parked a block away and walked a short distance to a little playground by an elementary school, where we spread out our picnic blanket, ate some cashews and dried fruit, and could hear the music just fine! we enjoyed the playground and the sunset, and the kids grooved to the long-distance performance. the air was nice and cool, and micah and rowan were so cute and fun. it was a heavenly evening, though not quite what we'd planned. : )

tomorrow, for micah's birthday, my mom and maya are joining us for lunch at kalachandji's (i pray they have burphee, it's all micah wants!), then we might go get micah a bicycle helmet for her birthday, then go to dinner.

2009-05-22T12:46:00.002-05:00

the kids have both had low-grade fevers over the past couple of days. micah really seemed to feel under the weather, but rowan is running around the house like normal. they're both asleep right now... which means it'll be a late night. but i don't mind, on the weekend.

we went for a walk around the neighborhood earlier today, because due to the fevers we've missed out on several planned activities, and we all needed some fresh air and a change of scenery. while we were out we passed my grandparents' house, and my grandmother gave me a flier for some free kids classes they're offering at my church this summer. i think micah will really enjoy them, if i can get her to participate! they're free, so even if she spends the whole session watching from my lap, at least we won't have spent money.

after our walk we went to target for some odds and ends. i found a fun toy for our friend joshua, who turns 4 on monday and whose party is on sunday; it's a truck with a trailer attached, pulling two motorcycles. i took it out of the bag at home to go ahead and wrap it for the party, and rowan saw it and went nuts! he hadn't seen it at the store, when i put it in the cart. anway, he got so excited about it, we decided to give it to him and go back to target tomorrow to get joshua a new one. he's been playing with it nonstop! it says 3 years and up on the package, and i suppose that's because he can't get the trailer on and off without help - and also because of small parts that could come off and present a choking hazard.

i've found so many things on craigslist tonight! first of all, i found a new, clean-looking white fridge for sale for $75 in mesquite, and i am really hoping the lady calls me tomorrow so we can go get it. the lady and her husband bought it, then decided what they really needed was a deep freezer. i also found a lawnmower with a bag (so josh can put the clippings in the compost) for $65. hope they contact me tomorrow, too. then i found a wooden swing set for sale in lewisville that looks awesome and perfect, and if that person gets back to me soon, i'm going to ask all the family members to pitch in for it for micah's birthday gift. then i found a red bike and a trailer for the kids that i really want. : )

yesterday was sort of a long, demanding day for me - micah, rowan and lina were all in needy moods - so when josh got home from work, i put rowan down for a nap and micah and i went out for some one-on-one time. first we went to the park - i walked, she biked - and played for a while. then we walked back home, got in the car and went to braum's for ice cream cones. we had a blast. i love going out with just her, and talking with and listening to her. while we were at the park and she was on her bike, though, i had a funny thought. you know how when you're little, some things seem really huge, and then you revisit them as an adult and you can't believe how small they really are? there's a very small, gradual little hill in the pathway that goes over a concrete drain pipe, next to the baseball diamond at our park. micah loves to ride up one side of it and coast down the other. she calls it "the hill." and as i was watching her gleefully ride down it yesterday, i wondered if she'll see it when she's older and say, "man, i used to think that hill was HUGE! i used to be so proud that i could ride over it by myself!" i wonder if she'll even remember...

the only thing i'm sad about regarding our move next weekend is the fact that we won't be within walking distance of my mom, my grandparents, some of our friends, and terrace park and pool anymore. this summer, on thursday mornings, my la leche league group is planning on meeting at terrace pool. i wonder if i'll be able to join them, with my kids and lina. my kids really enjoy that pool - i have the fondest memories of taking them there last summer - but i'm not sure how samantha and christian will feel about me taking lina to the pool. my friend kim reminded me that i could use a water sling with her, but i still don't know if her parents will be comfortable with the idea. it's worth asking...

there is a playground and a pool within walking distance of our new house. it'll just take some getting used to, because it's... different. : ) i don't like change. but i am so incredibly excited about our new house.

2009-05-20T14:43:00.003-05:00

moving day is getting closer and closer! today i arranged for our utilities to be turned on at the new house on may 29th, and disconnected here on june 1st. we are continuing to pack things up slowly, but it's still proving a little annoying - i was just looking for the laptop to upload some pictures onto my blog and FB, but can't find where josh put it.

we were supposed to go to a birthday party for one of micah's friends this morning at a really cool playground downtown, but micah woke up with a 99.0 temp. we went to the zoo with friends on monday and had a blast, but micah got in the little wading river in the children's zoo and got her clothes dripping wet, then wore only a shirt and her socks and shoes for the rest of the visit. i saw her wet hair sticking to her face and the goosebumps on her legs, and felt the cool breeze that day, and thought... i know she's going to get sick. and she may not have gotten sick because of that; we have been playing at various parks and playgrounds nonstop lately, and she could've picked something up anywhere. she's been laying around all day long, snacking lightly and wanting to be held a lot (which i love). she says she feels "a little yucky."

food moment: i love, love, LOVE mandarin oranges. i could eat a can of them every day. they are so juicy and sweet and bite-sized and PERFECT. i wonder how they would taste baked into a pie, or made into homemade marmelade.

if micah is feeling better by this friday, we'll meet with friends at amigo's, the yummy neighborhood mexican restaurant, for a surprise birthday party for dustin, my friend temple's fiance. they're getting married at the end of july. i can't wait!

i also cannot wait to move. i can't wait to plant three rosebushes on the east side of the house, and i'm already thinking about what i want to plant in the front beds. i also want to make a corner bed next to the driveway in the front yard, and there's a small shelf outside the kitchen window that we'll line with potted plants. the backyard will be the kids' zone, except for a small patch at the far end of the yard, in the southeast corner, which will be a vegetable and herb garden.

2009-05-15T19:53:00.002-05:00

we enjoyed playgroup so much friday morning. the air was warm - almost hot - but there was a nice breeze. micah and rowan wore themselves out in the sun, then we went home and had a nice lunch and spent the rest of the day indoors. josh had planned to spend saturday night at his friend, brandon's house learning how to paint with oils... but, my dad decided at the last minute to join my stepmom, vesta, the kids and i in madisonville, tx for a bishop (that's my stepmom's maiden name) family reunion. originally just vesta, the kids and i were going to go, but vesta really wanted daddy to join us, so he decided to come along, but he needed someone to take care of callie. my brother already had plans, so josh was nice enough to switch his saturday-night plans to friday night, and he spent last night at my dad and vesta's, keeping callie company.

we had fun at the reunion! the family had rented a small recreation center on lake madisonville (a very small, manmade lake) next to a cool little playground. the kids (mine, plus about 4 other young ones) were only able to enjoy the playground for about an hour before it began to rain - and it proceeded to rain and thunder and lightning for the entire remainder of the day. we had fun indoors, though. we got to meet many of vesta's family members about whom i'd heard plenty of stories, but had never even seen any pictures of, so it was nice to see everyone. the kids amused themselves by running/crawling/skipping around the rec room, watching the rain through the windows, and spying on a nest full of baby birds in the eave around the building, right outside one of the windows. we watched the mama and papa birds (really pretty - some kind of swift, i think) fly back and forth with bits of food. as for what the people had to eat, the event was catered and we had BBQ, beans, chips, dip, etc. some folks brought dessert, and there were these incredibly yummy lemon shortbread cookies with lemon creme sandwiched in between. i ate sooo many of those!

after spending the day in the rec room with all the family, we adjourned to our motel rooms at around 8 pm last night. it took forever for micah and rowan to settle down, but they finally did, and we all slept like rocks. we woke up early the next morning, had mcdonalds and coffee for breakfast, then hit the road! we were back home by noon. we took some cute pictures, which i will post here (along with the long-overdue pics from our weekend trip to wichita falls earlier this month!) as soon as possible.

we are slowly but surely getting packed up around here and ready to move to our house! although, i'm finding we packed some stuff a little too early... micah is asking for some of her dolls and toys that we've already boxed up, and i needed a band-aid earlier and it took a little while to find one. but i'd rather be mildly inconvenienced now than in a mad, hectic, stressful rush at the end of the month!

i am having a heck of a time trying to figure out when and where to have micah's birthday party! a lot of our friends are going out of town in early-mid june, and i can't have it the last weekend of may, because that's when we're moving. i don't mind pushing it farther into the month of june, but i'm still not sure where i want to have it. i don't know that i want to have it at the new house, because we won't have anything fun to play on in the backyard yet, and besides, i don't really like having parties at my house... it's too stressful, and i work myself all up beforehand because i have this fear that no one is going to have fun, or everyone will think my house is messy and dirty, or that everyone will be bored... i don't know why. i really want to have her party at the little splashground at heights pool in richardson, but i don't know if we'll be able to afford it. we'll see... if anyone has any suggestions, let me know! this is the first year i've stressed out about this; maybe we'll just end up at a neighborhood park as usual. : ) that's always so fun and relaxed for me.

2009-05-14T20:11:00.005-05:00

seriously? 5 days since my last blog post? i don't know why i'm doing this. i love my blog. facebook takes up all my time.

my night owls are asleep early tonight; rowan went down around 7:45 pm after eating his dinner, then josh, micah and i sat down to our dinner. after we ate, micah and i took a bath, then got in bed to nurse, and she fell asleep around 8:30 pm. we had such an enjoyable day today; this morning we went to my friend laura's house for a mother's day brunch for the la leche league group i'm a part of. we ate delicious food and sat around a chatted while the kids played. micah and rowan had fun, but not as much fun as lina had - she absolutely loves to be at social gatherings like that! she napped for a bit in the mei tai, but other than that, she was awake and happy. after we left the party, we went to target to buy some sodas and things for the house. when we got home, we cleaned up around the house a little and played, and i fed the kids some lunch (they were both too busy playing at laura's house to eat anything). lina got picked up around 4:30, and micah and rowan and i played out front until josh rode home on his bike. when we're playing out front when josh arrives home from work (which is most days), he and the kids have a fun routine: josh rides up to the curb, scoops one of the kids up and gives them a ride around the cul-de-sac, then comes back for the other one. it's probably not very safe and it makes me nervous, but the kids squeal with delight the whole time.

moving day inches closer and closer!! two weeks from this saturday, we'll be in our new home. i know we're just renting, but i still like to refer to it as "our new home." : ) i can't wait.

(edited to delete the part about getting rid of our sweet dog, mia, because we came to our senses, thanks to a good friend who had all the right answers. i love you, wendy.)

tomorrow we'll go to playgroup in the morning, then visit with wesley, mama, maya and tita (sondra, wesley's mom) in the afternoon. tomorrow night i believe josh has plans with friends, so the kids and i will keep packing and cleaning and organizing. i'm so excited, we made it happen with the house!! : )

2009-05-09T22:31:00.003-05:00

we went to terrace park this evening. i wanted to go to heights park, but micah really wanted to ride her dora bicycle, so we went to terrace. the night air was warm, but there was a cool breeze blowing. i had the kids in short sleeves and pants, and thought they could've used light sweaters. we had fun anyway, though. our neighbor rachel and her kiddos, mink (4) and lael (2) were there attempting to fly a kite, and we joined them on the playground. micah and mink are almost exactly 4 months apart, and they have a lot of fun together. i'll be sad to move away from our friends, but...

come may 30th, we're moving to the new house in garland!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! we got it, yes we did. : ) i can't believe we actually signed the lease. woo hoo!!

2009-05-04T15:53:00.002-05:00

we had a fun weekend in wichita falls! pictures to come as soon as i get overcome the laziness that is preventing me from unhooking the internet cable from the back of the CPU and hooking it up to the laptop. laziness is a real problem for me lately... i need to do something about that .

anyway, we drove to wichita falls friday night, and got to the house that jill, her boyfriend richard, and his mom sharon share, in time for a late dinner before climbing into bed. we ate tacos and rice and beans, then richard blew up the air mattress for us in the guest bedroom/office. the kids and i slept on that while josh slept on the bottom bunk bed. saturday morning josh woke up and got richard out of the house so jill, the kids and i could start getting ready for richard's surprise 40th birthday party! (the main reason for our visit). once they were gone, we got out all the snacks, sodas and party supplies. around noon, as guests were starting to arrive, rowan and i ducked out the door to go buy bags of ice. josh and richard returned at 12:30 (rowan and i were still at CVS, so i missed their entance), and richard was totally surprised! a friend of the family grilled hot dogs and burgers, and everyone lounged around eating and chatting for the next couple of hours. someone else bought yummy chocolate and vanilla birthday cupcakes. jill and richard's neighbors came with their three young children, and they kept micah and rowan busy. it was a really fun, relaxed party.

once everybody left, josh and richard both took afternoon naps (they had both stayed up late the night before playing video games together) while jill, sharon and i cleaned up the party debris. there was a ton of food and cupcakes leftover, and we snacked around a bit for the rest of the late afternoon. around 5 or 6 o'clock, jill and richard took us to see this really cool, outdoor skating park near their house. micah enjoyed climbing and sliding down all the big bowls and ramps made for rollerbladers and skateboarders to zoom around on. we were hoping to get to watch some of those in action, but i guess it was a little too cool and overcast for anyone to be out. after that, we drove into burkburnett (maybe a 15 minute drive from wichita falls) to eat dinner at the feedlot restaurant, one of jill and richard's favorites - and i can totally see why. the food was delicious; it reminded me of the black-eyed pea. we all had an awesome meal, and jill and i split some homemade raspberry crisp for dessert - yum! after dinner we went back to their house, and i tried to get the kids to bed early so us four adults could play on the wii for a while, but that did not happen. they were all riled up from the excitement of being in a new place and seeing new things, so it took forever for them to settle down and go to sleep. by the time they did, i was too sleepy myself to get back up and join the others in the living room.

the next morning we all slept in, and had a late breakfast of party leftovers. after we'd all showered and changed, we drove a few blocks to lucy park, a beautiful bike and nature trail alongside the wichita river. we walked up the trail to where the official "falls" of wichita falls are located, but they'd been shut down due to a lot of mud and debris in the water that could clog the pumps. micah had a fantastic time, nevertheless, climbing on all the rocks with her daddy. and rowan had a blast finding sticks and scraping them around in the mud. we took lots of wonderful pictures, which i will post soon!

after our nature walk, jill and richard took us to a butterfly conservatory - but we got to see so much more than butterflies! micah, josh, richard and i (jill stayed with rowan in the car while he napped) got to say hello to a tarantula, two turtles, a toad, a millipede, a hissing cockroach, two quail, and about a dozen butterflies! everybody but the quail and butterflies were housed inside the conservatory building, in terrariums, and the guide was nice enough to let micah feel the millipede's legs and the hissing cockroach's back (she was so brave!). outside, in the glass-enclosed butterfly habitat, there were lots of native plants, a pair of cute quail named bonnie and clyde, and, of course, beautiful butterflies dancing all around above our heads. a black and blue one even landed on my hand. it was such a fun, exciting experience!

next, we went to diner at a mexican food place down the street. after dinner, we headed back home and josh and i got all our stuff packed into the car. we said our goodbyes and left for home around 6:30, sunday night. and that was our awesome weekend. : )

2009-04-29T15:49:00.005-05:00

the mother's day surprise at patti's place was a huge success!! my stepmom and grandmother were totally surprised and delighted. it was so much fun. : ) they loved the coffee and baked goods, and enjoyed the decor and atmosphere of the place. i knew they would; the whole time i was there for the coffee break with my mom friends saturday before last, i was thinking about vesta and joann and how much they would love it! i am proud of myself; usually, this type of surprise outing is something i would think and daydream about doing, but probably wouldn't end up following through with. but this time, with my dad and grandfather's help (they helped orchestrate the surprise part, and watched the kids for me since josh already had plans), i actually pulled it off! maybe coffee at patti's place will be our new mother's day tradition.

yesterday the kids and i went to our la leche league toddler meeting. it was a fun meeting; the topic was loving guidance, and it was one of those topics that is so reassuring to discuss with other moms, because everyone else is dealing with the same issues and is feeling like they don't know what in the world they're doing sometimes! it's easy to forget how many other parents are out there, struggling with the same challenges... and it's easy to tell yourself, "anyone else would be able to handle this the right way; what's the matter with me? i'm going to screw my kids up for good." but after getting together with other like-minded moms - like at la leche league meetings - i always feel reassured and comforted, and reminded that i have a huge support network of moms whom i know would be happy to talk me through any tough time! what an awesome feeling.

after the meeting yesterday, we met my mom and maya at highland park cafeteria for lunch. it was delish, as usual. the meeting and lunch were a breeze because i recently discovered that lina loves being carried on my back in the mei tai.

today, it's raining. we had plans to meet alison and her boys at story time in garland, but as we were getting ready this morning, micah told me she didn't want to go. i asked her why not, and she said, "because it's not fun." i asked her if she enjoyed the evening story time at our neighborhood libary that we recently attended with some friends who live diwn the street, and she told me she did. i asked what she liked about that story time. she replied, "it's fun." it doesn't get any simpler than that, i guess. one's fun, one's not. so, we skipped story time. then we made plans to just meet at alison's for playtime, but micah proceeded to have an hour-long meltdown... so i opted to just keep everyone at home for a calm, quiet day. i figured if we did get together with our friends, that would just be pushing micah too far and asking for multiple altercations. i knew she needed a day at home, with her toys and things. and she did get upset when i told her we weren't going to alison's... but once she calmed down, she's been playing happily by herself all day long.

a little while ago, rowan surprised me by asking to sit on the potty! when i say he "asked", i mean that he opened the toilet lid, put the potty seat in place, got the step stool situated, then lifted his arms for me to put him on. he was naked, having just gotten out of the tub, and i thought, "oh my gosh, what if he actually pees in the potty? this is wild, he's 18 months old!" but no, he just wanted to experiment. he was so adorable; he just sat there with his hands on his legs, sort of tapping his fingers, looking around and waiting for something to happen... then he'd grab a bit of toilet paper, put it in the toilet, get down, flush, then want to do the whole thing over again! it's sooo much fun watching them imitate and practice doing things like this! he always comes in to watch micah use the potty, and it was so sweet that he wanted to do just what she does. i've always heard that younger siblings learn to use the potty earlier because they watch their older siblings doing it.

anyway... samantha picked lina up at 3 o'clock today, and rowan's napping, so right now i've got micah all to myself. and, of course, she's nursing. : )

this evening at 6:30 i'm going to bryle's research in richardson for a taste test that pays $25. it takes an hour; for that much of my time, i was hoping it would pay more. but, i'm going to do it anyway. it's close to the house and it sounds like fun. after that, at 8, micah and rowan and i are meeting wesley and maya at chick-fil-a for dinner and playtime.

i have neat pictures to post, but we got a new computer from josh's boss and i haven't figured out how to download yet.

2009-04-24T23:44:00.003-05:00

i took rowan in for his 18-month check up at the pediatrician's this afternoon. he weighed in at 24 lbs (25th percentile) and measured 32 and 1/4 in. long (50th percentile), with a 19 in. head circumference. the dr. and i talked about the fact that he only says "mama" and "bye bye" with any regularity, and she was not concerned in the least. she told me boys speak later than girls, and that as long as we are talking to him and encouraging him to use words, then he will start to talk whenever he's ready. i already knew that, but it was nice to hear her say it. : ) and he is starting to speak more... he said "grape" in the grocery store yesterday, and when micah asked him how his day was, he said "good." and earlier tonight, i would swear he said, "i fell down."

we had a wonderful, relaxing day today. we played around the house and watched movies (there's been a little too much of that going on lately, i'm afraid) all morning and early afternoon, then at 3 pm we went to rowan's appointment, then we came home and played some more, ate dinner around 6, then closer to 7 we headed down to the playground. there were a bunch of kids there, including one 2 and 1/2-year-old little girl named ava with whom micah immediately bonded, and they spent the whole time running around after each other. ava's dad was nice; we chatted while the girls played, and after hearing that they live near audelia and forest, i told him about the splash pad that our LLL friday playgroup meets at on friday mornings during the summer.

i am sooo excited about tomorrow! i'm surprising my stepmom, vesta, and my grandmother, jo ann, with an afternoon coffee break at patti's place in plano, for an early mother's day present. this is where i went to the mom's day out last saturday. it's right up vesta and jo ann's alley; i can't wait. my mom and dad are being kind enough to help with the surprise part, and with watching micah and rowan. i was originally going to do this on may 9th, the saturday before mother's day... but patti's place is only serving high tea that saturday, which sounds fun, but is twice as expensive per person. and because of other scheduling conflicts, the only other saturday i could've done it was may 22nd... and that just seemed too far away! so i made plans at the last minute for tomorrow, which meant i needed someone to watch micah and rowan because josh already had plans for tomorrow with andy. SO, my dad called and invited my grandparents over tomorrow for a "late lunch", and when i arrive to take vesta and jo ann to patti's place, they will be sooo surprised (my grandfather's in on it). : ) yay!

2009-04-23T23:25:00.003-05:00

a post a week, that's what it's come to... darn you, facebook.

well, micah's biting phase seems to have been very short-lived. maybe it was taking her over to my mom's to see maya's bite mark, several days later, that did the trick. it was all red and bruised, and i said to micah, "this is what your teeth do to another person's body - don't ever use your teeth to do this again!" she seemed pretty solemn about it, but then dashed off to ride maya's tricycle, so i wasn't sure if the message sunk in. but i guess it did, since we have had no more issues. yay! i really wasn't looking forward to missing a whole bunch of fun social activities to stay at home with my almost-four-year-old biter.

rowan was in very rare form today. he is usually so mellow and quiet. today - tonight, rather, since he woke up from his last nap - he's been very vocal and angry. he wouldn't let me put him down! he threw several fits, and was a lot more communicative. today he said "mama" when i opened his car door to get him out, and he said "grape" at the grocery store. maybe he has a lot of excitement over gaining some language, and it's coming out in all sorts of new ways. this is such a thrilling time, watching him learn more and more... i wish i had paid closer attention to micah's early talking days, but it was so early that i think i didn't realize what was happening.

we were supposed to go to the park for a picnic with my friends alison and marina and their kids yesterday, and were supposed to have a playdate with jessica and baby ascher and take bluebonnet pictures with mama and maya today... but we had to cancel all of that because of illness at our house. night before last, rowan had a low fever all night long, then was fine by morning and has been fine since, except for a runny nose. yesterday morning i woke up with a dry, scratchy throat and aches and pains in my arm and back (which i later realized were due to carrying micah's bike home from the park in a very awkward position, handlebar pinned under my arm and the rest of the bike digging into my back - ouch). then last night, micah ran a temp of 100.6 all night long, and wasn't feeling well for most of today. so we took it easy, venturing out of the house only one time to return and get more movies at the library.

i'm listening to the train go by a block away from my house as i type this... weird, how some nights i can hear it and some nights i can't.

i am totally, completely addicted to the tv show "24", with kiefer sutherland. this is the show i abandon my husband and kids for every monday night, so i can eat the most delicious stir fry known to mankind and curl up on my dad's couch with my feet jammed under my brother's leg for warmth (my dad tries very hard not to ever use his central heating or A/C), and watch jack bauer be a badass and knock terrorist suspects around - and, this season, deteriorate rapidly as a victim of mad cow disease (how exactly they're gonna pull this storyline off, since kiefer sutherland has signed on for one more season, is a total mystery to me). i just cannot get enough. i just got through watching season 3 of the series, which i own, and tonight i started season 2, which i borrowed from the library. i've seen all the seasons a couple of times each, but it's fun to re-watch.

josh and i discovered that if you mix a can of frozen orange juice concentrate and a can of frozen cranberry juice concentrate together with 5 cans of filtered water, it makes THE yummiest juice ever!!

what other random things have i been wanting to blog about... oh, i found two bras i really want, from the gap. you know you're at a certain point in life when you get excited about a bra because of the support it offers. sigh...

we've been spending so much time outside lately. it's been heavenly. i just can't express how excited i'll be to finally have a backyard, where we can go out and spread a quilt on the ground with some water and snacks, and just play and play. i'm sure we'll still go to the playground and the public pool all the time... but just to be able to open the back door and run out into your own, fenced-in grassy meadow... i can't wait. i know it will also need mowing and watering and weeding, and there will occasionally be dog poop and ant hills, but i'm more than willing to deal with all of that in exchange for the sense of ownership of my own, personal yard. instead of the community strip of grass between parking lots at the apartment and townhouse complexes we've lived in, and the postage-stamp sized dirt pit we enjoy right now.

2009-04-17T18:16:00.002-05:00

i can't believe i haven't posted since easter! i've been spending time on facebook instead of my blog. facebook is eerily addictive...

micah has been spending all her time lately playing with dolls, my little ponies, or riding her new bike to the playground. i absolutely love this time of year, when we can spend so much time outdoors. and i LOVE living within walking distance of a park! i will be so sad to move away from terrace park, in particular. i grew up playing at that park (it looked quite different then: all wood and metal instead of plastic, and gravel instead of wood chips), and my whole family meets down there occasionally for picnics... and micah's had several birthday parties there. it's just a neat park, and a big part of my life. oh well, i'm sure whatever park we end up living near next will be just as special and memorable to me.

rowan has been pretending more and more lately, especially with micah. last night micah was pretending he was her baby, and she had him all snuggled up underneath blankets on the couch. the neat thing was, when she would say, "okay, go to sleep, little baby!" he would actually lay his little head down and close his eyes. it's so neat to see them playing together this way! micah can be a little rough with him sometimes, but he really seems to enjoy playing with her.

micah's had some behavioral issues these past few days... biting, namely. it started day before yesterday, on the playground with wesley and maya. she bit maya, twice; the second time, it left a big bruise and a red mark. we left the park after that happened, but we had been about to leave anyway, so i'm not sure the message of "we are leaving right now because you bit" sunk in. so, we had a big talk about it that night. then, last night, she bit rowan on the cheek! not as hard, but there were little teeth marks for a while, and now it's just a bit red. we had a longer, more serious talk about it afterwards. josh and i explained to her that no one will want to be around her if she bites. she won't have any friends, and we won't be able to go to friends' houses, la leche league meetings, playgroups, etc. i think - i hope - it will sink in. all i know for sure is, the next time we're out with anybody and she bites, we'll be in the car headed home before she can blink, no second chances, no questions. i am nipping this in the bud. (i don't know what that actually means...)

anyway. : ) on a happier note, we went to take some pictures in the bluebonnets yesterday, with alison & co. it was kind of overcast and windy, so it wasn't the best day to go, but i managed to get some good shots, and the kids had fun together. we'll go back with mama and maya on a nice, sunny afternoon and try to get some more. micah was such a trooper... we'd only been there for about 10 minutes when she hopped up out of the flowers and started screaming; she'd stuck her hand into a fire ant pile. she got 7 or 8 bites on her hand, and 3 or 4 on her back. and after that, she still smiled for the camera! rowan was really sleepy, and he cooperated for as long as he could. : )

happy easter!!!

2009-04-12T22:02:00.005-05:00

we had a delightful easter this year, with both kiddos being old enough to enjoy an easter egg hunt. all of our festivities actually took place yesterday, because today's weather was supposed to be rainy and cloudy - and while it didn't actually rain today, last night's rain did soak the ground, making it too wet and muddy for an egg hunt. i know lots of families who just brought the fun indoors, but we opted for doing everything a day early.

we started out at the house cafe (a little breakfast and lunch spot near my house) for brunch with everyone on my mom's side of the family. a couple of hours later, the kids and i (josh stayed home sick) headed over to my dad and vesta's. we had a yummy lunch followed by micah's presentation of her new big-girl bike riding skills...

while micah was having her moment, my brother sneaked around the yard and hid eggs. when the bike was put away, we gave micah and rowan their easter baskets and turned 'em loose! the weather was so gorgeous! my stepmom did an awesome job this year of putting things other than candy in the eggs. rowan got three little miniature tonka trucks and two play-doh eggs in his basket, and he also got a yellow pail and shovel (in preparation for a sandbox my dad's going to be building in his backyard for them in the next few weeks) and some crayons. micah got six big eggs with a miniature my little pony in each one (thank you, alison, for telling me about those!!), two play-doh eggs, a pink pail and shovel, and one regular-size my little pony, whom she has deemed the mama of all the mini ones.

later in the evening, everyone on my mom's side of the family met up again at terrace park, right down the street from our house, for a picnic. it was a little chilly and windy by then, but we still had a great time. we had ham, pinto beans, potato salad, fresh veggies and fruit. the kids played on the playground while the adults huddled under the pavilion and ate and chatted. i wish it had been warmer, but it was still fun. i adore my family!!!!!

i hope everyone had a wonderful easter this year, full of fun memories. : )

2009-04-11T09:51:00.003-05:00

my back hurts so badly this morning!! it felt fine when i went to sleep last night, then at about 2 am i woke up for some reason (probably because my bedside lamp was still on), and my back was burning. i must've been sleeping in an awkward position. i really hope it relaxes soon... i've got a fun, busy day planned. the kids and i are meeting my mom and maya, my grandparents, my aunt shannon and her girls, emma and audrey, my uncle tony and aunt susan, and my cousin julie and her husband and daughter, sydney, at the house cafe for brunch. then, at 1 o'clock, the kids and i are going over to my dad and vesta's for an easter egg hunt and a late lunch. and this evening around 5 o'clock, everyone on my mom's side is meeting at terrace park for an easter picnic (we probably won't hunt any more eggs, we'll just let the kids play on the playground). it's supposed to be mostly cloudy with a high of 70. i hope it feels okay on the playground tonight...

micah has learned how to ride a bicycle with training wheels!!!!! i REALLY wish i had pictures to post, but so far we've only gone outside to practice at night. we plan on letting her ride down to the park later today for the family picnic, and i'll definitely get some pictures then. josh found a dora the explorer bicycle on craigslist for $15, and we couldn't pass it up, even though we had to drive to frisco to pick it up. it's the perfect size for her! it took her a few tries to get used to the way the bike wobbles back and forth between the training wheels, but now it doesn't bother her at all. we went for a walk last night and she was riding so quickly that josh and i had to walk full-speed to keep up! it's so fun watching her learn a new skill.

since micah's upgraded to a bike, we gave her tricycle to rowan, and he loves sitting on it and moving around flintstones-style. i practiced with him by putting his feet on the pedals and pushing his legs alternately. he'll get the hang of it soon enough. : )

2009-04-10T18:57:00.003-05:00

my mom's side of the family has many food traditions: grandmommy's rice pilaf, pimento cheese sandwiches and pepsi on road trips, sweepie's homemade caramel candy every christmas, my aunt susan's pot roast... the list goes on. also on this special list are the zucchini muffins at highland park cafeteria (which isn't actually in highland park; it's in east dallas). my grandparents have been taking me to this restaurant since i was little. all their food is delicious, but the best thing on the menu is the zucchini muffins. they're on of the most nostalgic foods for me. the cafeteria closed for renovations for a while, and i was so relieved when they reopened! my mom and i went there recently for lunch, and i was able to get a picture for comparison purposes...

here's me, at about age 10, enjoying a zucchini muffin in my grandparents' living room (i vividly remember taking this picture. the same drapes are hanging in that window right now.)

and here's rowan, partaking in tradition... i love him : )
i think we look a little bit alike!

our easter egg hunt with the neighbors

2009-04-10T18:42:00.001-05:00