A Bit About My Boys

These guys...sigh. I thought I'd take a few minutes today to jot down a few of the things I'd like to remember most about them at these particular ages.

Wes at age 6 years + 2 months is my tiny teenager. He's already picking up stuff from the kids at school that makes me both laugh and semi-terrifies me at the same time. Let's just say he now knows all about the middle finger. He also loves playing around on any iphone he can get his hands on and becomes a complete zombie in front of any screen (phone, tv, computer, whatever), totally tuning out the world around him. This could be a problem in the future.

He's still my super sensitive/dramatic one and will cry at the drop of a hat. While he does have his feelings easily hurt, half the time he's totally faking it and is not afraid to turn on the waterworks if he thinks it'll help him get his way. He likes to sulk and pout and tries his hardest to hold a grudge, but can only maintain a crabby demeanor for a few minutes at a time before he's back to his smiley self. He just can't help it.

He is usually quite cooperative and does his chores and the things we ask of him without too much complaint or foot dragging. That being said, he's still only six and it usually takes more than one request for him actually DO whatever it is we've asked. But, he usually does it without a fight and pretty thoroughly as well.

He is still my rule follower through and through. The perfect example of this is how when he was really into his dinosaur phase a few years ago Josh told him all about the movie Jurassic Park and how when he was a little older they would watch it together. Excited by the prospect, Wes pressed him about exactly how old he would have to be to watch it and Josh threw out the age of seven without much thought. Fast forward to a few weeks ago when Josh got a hankering to watch said pre-historic film and suggested Wes stay up late with him one Saturday night so they could watch it together. Wes said no. Because he isn't seven years old yet. Josh tried to explain to him that it didn't matter and that since Josh was the one who made up the seven year rule to begin with he could just as easily change it and that he thought Wes was old enough now to watch it. Everything would be fine, they would have fun! Wes still refused. Even after bribes of ice cream and popcorn and a living room sleepover with dad, he just could not bring himself to do it. (This also illustrates the fact that the child forgets NOTHING).

He's such a good little guy. He LOVES our cat, Lincoln. He would carry him around like a baby all day long if he'd let him. He loves all animals, really and has such a gentle and sweet demeanor around them. Over the last few years his teachers have all said that he never fights with the other kids at school and is always perfectly behaved and is a good listener. I don't see this part of his personality changing and I don't think I will ever have to worry about him getting into trouble at school. (Fingers crossed).

He's super smart and has begun learning to read like a champ. He also learned to ride a bike without training wheels at the end of the summer and just last week finally mastered the art of tying his own shoes. There's nothing this kid can't do if he puts his mind to it. Not to mention he's handsome as can be with the perfect smattering of freckles across his perfect little nose. Clearly, I am in love with this child.

Then we have my Oren Henry, who will officially be three and half years old on the 19th of this  month. This little boy has been giving me a run for my money since he tore into this world in a fit of chaotic frenzy on that fateful April morning in 2011 (and none of us has ever been the same since). He's wild and carefree and insanely cute and loveable. He's aloof and hilarious and despite how many times per day he gets into trouble I find it very hard to stay mad at him for long. He is just a FORCE.

He wears his heart on his sleeve. If he's happy or mad you and everyone around you are sure to know it. He hides nothing, he is an open book. He is endlessly affectionate with me and kisses me 50+ times a day. He loves cuddling in my lap and sneaking into my bed at night and pressing his little face up against mine in the dark.

Although he was born a good sized baby (8lbs, 10oz) he has been slowly falling down the growth charts ever since and is now tiny for his age. He still seems so little to me and I'm afraid that once our actual tiny new baby arrives he will start to seem giant. He loves candy and sugar and treats, but at the same time does a pretty good job eating just about anything you give him. He loves a hot cup of English breakfast tea on weekend mornings and one of his favorite snacks are olives - he'll happily scarf down things Wes would never even try. Food is just one more way that he's adventurous.

And boy is he adventurous. The child has no fear. He will climb, leap, jump off/on/over/under just about anything. He was the first and only of my children to need stitches and I fear for his safety daily as I watch him dart outside alone or jump down a flight of stairs or whatever it is dangerous he happens to be up to at any given moment.

The thing about Oren is that no matter how many bad or ornery things he does in a day I am so easy to forgive him. I find myself laughing at his transgressions when I should be scolding him and I probably let him get away with far too much. I find it hard to say no to his little angelic face smeared in dirt, and would happily give away the world to him if I'm not careful. Lord help me if I don't spoil this child for the rest of his life. I just can't seem to help myself, he's a total charmer.

Also the kid has eyelashes for days.

When I was pregnant with Oren it was hard to imagine having a kid who was anyone other than Wes. How could another child possibly be any cuter, any smarter or any more perfect when Wes was already the best there ever was?! (Only this parent's humble opinion, of course ;) But then we had Oren and he was just as cute, just as smart and just as perfect but in his own completely different and totally unique way. Now that we are expecting a third I am dying to find out who this little mystery being is and all the ways they will be different from Wes or Oren. And even though I know it's true, I still find it hard to imagine. But I'm just so looking forward to the day when we will finally meet our baby and watch as they carve their own totally unique and perfect place into our family.

A Weekend in Dayton/Tipp City

For one last hurrah before the baby comes we took this past weekend as an opportunity to spend a little quality time as a family of four in our last days together before we become five. Josh's mom and stepdad recently moved to Tipp City, OH which is a cute little historic old town right outside of Dayton, about three hours south of us. We spent the weekend with them, touring the old historic sights, trying out the local cafes and restaurants and touring the National Air Force Museum.

(In a total slap your forehead, what were we thinking move, I realized about a half hour into our drive that we'd completely forgotten the camera at home. OF COURSE WE DID. So fuzzy iphone photos will have to suffice.)

we be road trippin (and stopping every thirty minutes to pee)

For what it's worth, I give two very enthusiastic thumbs up to historic downtown Tipp City. From the delightful little tea house to the old fashioned toy shop (where I bought the new baby a very adorable winter hat). From the tasty breakfast place (with the ridiculously good signage) to the old hotel turned pottery shop/rug gallery, I loved it all. The best part was that since we were staying with family, Josh's mom kindly volunteered to watch the boys Saturday night so Josh and I could sneak away for a fancy dinner date at the Coldwater Café. All the reviews said this was the place to go, and it surely did not disappoint. The restaurant is in an old restored bank building downtown and we actually sat in what used to be the vault back in it's heyday. It was a pretty neat experience and the food was delicious. Their signature dessert is an English tea cake with a hot butter sauce that was SO melt in your mouth delicious. If you're ever in and around the Dayton area I'd highly recommend it.

(Also, a little inside information for those of you who do happen to find yourself in that area, there is a donut shop that sells apple fritters the size of dinner plates. It's open 24 hours a day and if you happen to stop in around 10 or 11pm you can get them while they're still hot. You should probably do that).

Then Sunday we spent the day at the Air Force museum touring the mammoth facility and seeing planes of all shapes and sizes and eras. It's a very neat place and the kids loved it. There's a lot to take in and that translates to lots of walking for someone 36 weeks pregnant, but it was very cool nonetheless.

Josh and his stepdad Todd did a flight simulator and beat the record score for the day! And when Josh volunteered to take the boys on a space simulator later in the day, only Oren was up for the challenge. Josh said he thinks Ori thought they really went to space because multiple times during the 6 minute ride he asked if I was back on earth and asked Josh when he would see mommy again. Gosh, I love that kid.

 

All in all it was a fun weekend away and I know the boys really enjoyed themselves. With family in the area now I have no doubt we will be back to do even more exploring next time. Have any of you ever spent any time in the Dayton area? Any tips or recommendations on good things to see/do/eat next time we're in town? If you've got 'em, I'd love to hear!


xoxo

Well, hello there October

“I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”
― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Things have been quiet around the internet lately, haven't they? Well except for E. Ivie who came back from her blogging hiatus with quite the bang. All these new posts from her have me terribly spoiled and I've been so enjoying getting to dig into her writing again. But unfortunately for me, I can't say the same. Things have certainly been quiet over here in my corner of the web. I have been working on the house, cleaning and organizing and nesting, I suppose. We've been getting into our new school routine with Wes, and into the hang of homework and sight words and lots and lots of book reading. 

Now that Wes is in school five days a week, I've been savoring my Mondays with Oren. After Wes was born and it came time to transition back to work after maternity leave I changed my schedule and began working four ten hour days (taking Mondays off to have an extra day home with him, just the two of us). This has been my schedule ever since and when Oren was born it became another day I got to spend with the two of them together. When Wes started Pre-K at age four, I still kept him home on Mondays with me (selfishly hanging onto our Mondays together for as long as I possibly could). But now that he's six and officially in kindergarten, four day school weeks are no longer optional, and off to class he goes on Monday mornings. I was (and still am) mourning the fact that our Mondays together have finally come to a close. I know he feels it too, and knowing he has to go to school while Oren gets to stay home with me has been a tough pill to swallow for him. But we're adjusting.  We're always adjusting and then re-adjusting to new schedules, routines, growth, life changes. But in Weston's absence I have been trying to really focus on these brief weeks where my Mondays are for Oren and Oren only. In between school starting in August for Wes and the birth of our newest babe at the end of this month (hopefully) I have these few, precious weeks of Mondays with my second born. If I stop to think about it, Wes had over two years of Mondays being the only child where all my attention was devoted to him and only him. And when Oren goes off to kindergarten in a few years, baby number three will have me to themselves for the few remaining years of their own toddlerhood before he or she begins school. But Oren? All he gets is this handful of weeks with my total, undivided attention. The plight of the middle child, I suppose. But what can you do?

So I have been spoiling him extra good, with breakfasts out and trips to the pet store and ice cream shop. Lots of couch cuddling and movies of his choice. Trips to the park and a few too many glasses of soda. He probably won't even remember this time we have spent together, but I certainly will. I am clinging to him for all it's worth for these next few weeks and enjoying every last moment while he's still my youngest and still my baby. And as much as I am looking forward to meeting our newest little one I will try my best not to wish away these last few weeks. I will enjoy this last small part of what will soon be my old life. I will savor this October.

Fall is in the Air!

 

We kicked off my favorite season with apple picking over the weekend at our local orchard's annual fall festival. There was homemade cider and hot donuts, pony and hay rides and even a petting zoo, The boys had a blast needless to say and it made me so excited for everything we have to look forward to in the coming weeks. Pumpkin carving, and costumes and new babies, oh my!

Fall we are so ready for you!

A new post!

I am sitting myself down to write a blog post. Yes. No more excuses today. Of course things are busy, but things are always busy. So, I am making the time.

Now, what to write about? There has been so much going on in the world, scary, horrible, frustrating things that I should probably be writing about -- no, I KNOW I should be writing about, because discussion is good. And talking about things is the first step to changing them. But to be honest with you I can hardly get through a day without crying about my own stuff right now (which I realize are mostly silly, trivial and definitely hormonal problems). So I have been sort of hiding out in my own little shell with blinders on trying to ignore the news as best I can for the next little while. Because I am so tired of crying you guys.

No one likes a complainer and positivity is key, right? So let's visit some of the good and wonderful.

I have been making time for friends. Breakfast with a girlfriend whom I haven't been able to connect with in far too long and an adults only over night trip to celebrate another friend's birthday have been oh so good for the soul lately. And Josh, in his infinite wisdom, has even set up a dinner at our house Sunday night and invited a couple we're acquainted with and their two little boys. It's a sort of first date, potential friends in the making, we hope you like us because we like you kind of deal. Because it's hard to make new friends as an adult, isn't it? "And we need more friends that live close by!" says Josh. And you know what, it's true. So Josh just went for it. We're going to be vulnerable and make them a lasagna and just put ourselves out there and see what happens. Anybody else out there wanna be friends in real life? Let's do this!

Our house has been getting some much needed TLC. We've been finding ourselves with a bit more free time on our hands now that summer is winding down and most of the weddings and grad parties have been attended. We've got the nursery about as finished as it's going to be before the baby comes. The shelves and walls are still mostly empty since we're waiting to find out if our little "E" is a he or a she, but the furniture is in place, the walls have been painted, the new light is installed. This weekend we tackle the baby's bathroom.  New sconces have been ordered and Josh is going to finish up the painting. I promise a full tour of both rooms once baby is here and we really finish the place. I seriously can't wait.

Josh has also been tiling, grouting, fixing leaks and being a general handy-man extraordinaire the last few weeks. We took our first steps towards updating our enormously tall two-story rear stairwell with the purchase of this AMAZING ladder (seriously though, I never thought I'd get so excited over owning a ladder) and this beauty of a light fixture. ...two points here while I'm thinking about it...when I link to something online please don't ever think I actually paid the list price you see for anything for our house. I'm lucky enough to have a job where I can get house stuff at wholesale prices straight from the manufacturers themselves. (I just don't want anyone out there mistakenly thinking I'm miss richy rich over here ;) Also, my mom is crazy. Wonderful, but crazy. And she kicked in a good portion of the money for that light fixture as an early christmas present. Because she starts christmas shopping in August, y'all. And whenever a gift giving occasion rolls around and she asks me what I want, I always inevitably answer a new light fixture for somewhere in the house. So she told me to go ahead and get it ordered. And now it's here and I loooooove it. And Josh used the new ladder to install the new fixture and now I'm dying to start the painting. Unfortunately, painting from a ladder two stories up whilst 33 weeks pregnant does not seem like the wisest decision. So, that's going to have to wait just a little while longer.

Our loooong search for a new dining room table has finally come to a happy end. The dining table we've had forever was an undeniable POS. I bought it online from Pottery Barn on final clearance for like $400 years ago. When it showed up the finish was already flaking off in some areas before I'd even gotten it assembled. Of course they wouldn't take it back or replace it because it was final clearance, so we've been stuck with it ever since. In addition to the already spotty finish the boys have added their own little touches to it over time in the form of permanent marker and glitter glue. So, yeah, we needed something new. Problem was everything I was drawn to had a super smooth polished finish to it.

Super smooth polished finish + young children = disaster waiting to happen 

I needed something that could get a little beat up. A table that wouldn't show every single scratch or mark. I mean, I don't plan on letting them anywhere near a new table with glitter glue ever again, but they are going to be using it for homework and eating and whatnot and it's bound to take a few hits. Then I discovered Ariele Alasko. If you haven't heard of her she's this amazing wood worker and furniture builder who makes all these great custom pieces from reclaimed wood (technically plaster lath) that are just drop dead gorgeous. I'm serious, she is an incredible artist. Her stuff is amazing, and wouldn't you know she does dining room tables. Well, technically, she did dining room tables. She doesn't anymore, and she's not currently taking commissions nor am I a bajillionaire who could afford to commission a custom Ariele Alasko dining table. (I wish.) But, it did get me thinking. Maybe I could find someone who IS taking custom commissions and also works with reclaimed wood. I mean, it's already a bit beat up, so the boys can't really hurt it, and that's part of the beauty and charm of these pieces anyway, right? So to Etsy I went and that's where I found Sarah at New Antiquity.

After a few good conversations about color and design she understood what I was looking for and drew up a custom dining table for me that was just about the prettiest thing I ever did see. She has been a dream to work with and even sent me progress shots of the table during the construction process to make sure things were looking correct and so I'd know we were on track.

Anyway, here it is.

I mean.

AND tomorrow's Friday? Things are certainly looking up around here. See, there's plenty of good and wonderful when you just take the time to look for it. I think I should just end this post on that note, right?

Proud new owner of her dream dining table out!

Happy weekend, friends

A 32 Week Check In

I have been so bad at documenting this pregnancy. Actually, I am bad at documenting all my pregnancies and have only a handful of pictures of my growing belly from each of them. So here I am, dutifully documenting week 32 for the sake of posterity.

(Lincoln photo bomb!)

How I should be feeling at 32 weeks pregnant is happy, glowing, grateful. How I actually feel at 32 weeks pregnant is done. Which is unfortunate because I still have about eight weeks to go (seven if this little cub is anything like his or her brothers). Josh keeps saying, "only two months to go!" and I keep telling him to stop counting in months.

(I AM grateful though, just so we're clear ;)

Things of note at 32 weeks pregnant ---

The Good:

Baby kicks. The best part of pregnancy by far. This baby is actually pretty chill, maintaining a steady stream of calm but consistent movement which helps to keep me from worrying.

Oren loving on the baby. He kisses my belly constantly, is adamant that there's a sister in there for him (Wes is still pulling for a boy, so someone is sure to be disappointed) and seems really into the whole pregnancy and baby idea. He is such a lover and I can't wait to see him with the actual baby.

All seems well. Glucose test came back fine, blood work was good, baby is measuring correctly and I've had no crazy or out of the ordinary symptoms or complications thus far. Fingers crossed we continue to be so lucky.

The Bad:

Braxton hicks all day err'y day. This is a first for me to experience this many, this frequently and this early in pregnancy. I had them a lot at like 38 weeks with the boys, but not even close to the amount I have been having with this babe already. They don't hurt, but man are they uncomfortable. Especially the other day when they were coming like every five minutes for an entire day. No amount of water consumption or moving around would calm them and having my belly turn hard as a boulder off and on all day while trying to work and sleep was very distracting.

Heartburn and indigestion. Tums are my new best friend. I never had this at all with my guys before so I've been kind of surprised by this one. Doesn't that mean baby will have a full head of hair or something? I have had two dreams, one where baby was a boy with thick black hair, and one where baby was a girl who had a face just like Wes's but with a mop of curly blond hair. So, maybe that means this kid is destined to have a wild mane of hair upon delivery? We will know soon enough.

The Ugly:

What are the hideous blue veins I found bulging out of the back of my right thigh two days ago?! I suspect they've been there awhile and I've just now discovered them. It's not often I get a glimpse of much of what's going on below the belly button these days and I was shocked upon this discovery. I shouted for Josh to hurry over and inspect them whilst having a mini panic attack about the possibility of them being permanent. ARE they permanent? Just don't tell me, it's better if I don't know.

No sleep. I'm not even going to get into the insomnia discussion again because I'll start to cry just writing about it. Just know that it is easily the most frustrating thing in my life right now. I know I won't be much more (if any more) rested when the baby comes, but at least I'll have a tangible little baby to snuggle with through the long hours of the night instead of my ridiculous pregnancy pillow. And I'll be on maternity leave. Which miiiiight be two greatest words in the english language. Now THAT I'm looking forward to.

Anyone else out there in the last stretch of pregnancy? How are you holding up? I'd love to hear/have someone to commiserate with. And I know we (I) will get through and I know how lucky I am to even be here in the first place. I mean, I've got a baby waiting for me at the end of this marathon, and I can't think of anything more worth the trouble. So, let's do this. We can totally do this.

Carry on sisters, carry on.

What I Read This Summer

This last batch of books were my summertime picks. Ones I thought might be a little easier to get through, a bit of lighter reading compared to the type of books I typically choose. (I love a book that makes me cry!) So, these were some of the maybe "fluffier" books I had loaded onto my Kindle/audible app and I figured this was the perfect season to give them a whirl.

Obviously I started with this baby. I mean, does a title even get any fluffier than that? Nevertheless, this was pretty good one. And even though this book did maintain an overall air of lightheartedness, it wasn't pure fluff. It's actually set in the channel islands post WWII and it follows the lives of the citizens of Guernsey Island immediately following the end of the german occupation when everyone is just pulling themselves out of the post war haze. It's a book that makes you smile, but it also has it's moments of depth and tragedy too. And it was far more emotional than I thought it was going to be, which is always a good thing.  It's worth a read and I'd totally recommend it.

This was such a good one. I know they made it into a movie awhile back but I'd never seen it, so I didn't know much about this book going in. It was really, really well done. It's a novel, not a real memoir, but it seemed SO real. I mean up until the last few chapters (when things took a bit of a fairy tale ending twist) it was such a convincing description of Geisha life you'd have thought it was a true story. Albeit a true story told by someone who remembers an incredible amount of detail over many many years, but still. I was totally sold and totally engrossed in this book. Makes me wanna see the movie now.

Another one that's been made into a movie I've never seen. This one was just sort of eh for me. I KNOW it's about people who run off with the circus and everything but it just seemed way too far-fetched to get behind. The characters and how they immediately seem to fall into love and hate with not a whole lot of explanation as to why - was just not believable. I think if this book was maybe twice as long and and if the author would have fleshed out each character a lot more it would have done more for me, because the story is entertaining for sure. If the relationships in the book would have been given time unfold more naturally and with all the complexities they do in real life, I would have been way more into this whole thing. But as it stands, the book just felt really rushed. Has anyone seen the movie? I'd love to know how it compares.

This one was surprisingly interesting. It's a novel, so it's not a true story but it is about the life of former first lady, Laura Bush. Names have been changed and a lot has been added and imagined to create a cohesive story but it also does follow loosely the actual events of her true life, which I found really fascinating. It's clear that the author has done his homework and I think tried his best to get into her head and really see things from her point of view. To think about growing up in an average, middle class family and somehow ending up thrust into the spotlight as the wife of the president of the united states, it's messy and complicated and hard to imagine. You even start to empathize with her a bit by the end (even if you did vote for the other guy). So props to Sittenfeld for making a Bush seem likable, that's gotta be soooome talent ;)

This one was...not my favorite. It's about an adolescent girl who, after her mother (a bi-polar ex-beauty pageant queen, of course) tragically dies is sent down south to live with her wealthy and kind great aunt whom she hardly knows. It's so far fetched it's kind of ridiculous. This is the kind of story that could only be made up and is therefore completely un-relateable. And what's worse, it reminds me of "The Help" wherein which the characters of color are so blatantly and boringly stereotyped it's annoying. Hoffman literally describes one scene where the house cook (a black woman, obvs) is "cooking collard greens and singing a song about Jesus."  Really. I think I'll leave it at that. 

And at the completely other end of the spectrum, we have "Gulp". This was like reading a documentary! It's all about the fascinating inner workings of the human digestive system. Which might seem weird, but I promise is actually really interesting and totally engrossing. It's a hard one to explain, but the author basically gives you a tour of the entire digestive system from mouth to, well, you know. All the while citing interesting facts and studies and scientific experiments related to each stage of digestion. There are also fun little anecdotes thrown in about history and celebrities. Like, for instance, did you know Elvis did not actually die from a drug overdose but from complications of having a mega-colon? I'm telling you, this book is totally worth a read. You may never think of your the colon the same way after this. 

So what about you guys? Did you have any good summer reads? I'm stock piling titles for maternity leave now, so any recommendations are hugely welcomed (as always)!

xoxo