It's Fall, Y'all!

Fall is my favorite season! I anxiously await its arrival....and everything that comes with it: football, cooler weather, hoodies, jeans, long sleeves, coffee to warm me up, Pumpkin Spice Latte's, soup, opening a window, orange, brown, Lucky Penny nail polish, comfort food/casseroles, and I could go on!

Riley has been anxiously awaiting the arrival of our Fall Directions he calls them....now he has decorations down, but it sure was cute hearing him ask when we could put out our fall directions!

Well, yesterday the went out. We started with the scarecrow on the front porch Riley named Jolly. He couldn't wait to put that little guy out and was so proud to help. We put out pumpkins, candles, scarecrows, acorns, pears, leaves, and still have a little more to do.

As I was unpacking the decorations, an overwhelming feeling came over me. I didn't pack up these things last year, I only took them out. Some of the decorations were gifts during my hospital stay last year. The flood came back...I missed the entire fall season last year. Yes, special friends and family visited and brought me pumpkin lattes, pumpkin decorations, soup, Indian corn, etc., but it's not the same from a hospital bed.

My "anniversary" is coming up. I've come so far, we've come so far. I've learned so much, I've taken in so much, I think differently, and every day I'm thankful. Thankful for my wonderful family, amazing friends, and the simplicity of a season. A season of change, excitement, and wonder...an entire season to be thankful.

Happy, but Drowning!

So it's been a while, hasn't it? Life is good...but there's no time for myself. I'm still adjusting to being the mother of a 4 1/2 year old and a (one day away from being) a 9 month old. I love my boys, they are a gift. But WOW....where did my life go?

My alarm goes off at 5. I'm up to shower, dress, makeup, and do hair. Cute hair, are you kidding? Ponytail is the cutest hair I can muster up unless it's a special occasion! Sad, but true. The ponytail might even be a wet one--classy.

I pack the diaper bag: 3 bottles, veggies, cereal. Pack Riley's lunch (he packs it every other day), pack my lunch (pray for leftovers), and then figure out what to eat for breakfast. In the car, of course. Coffee and nothing for me usually. Milk and something...for Riley (looking for some suggestions here if you have any)!

Hopefully I've accomplished all of that by 6:25 because that's when I wake the 4 year old.

Kace usually peeps somewhere/anywhere between 5 & 7. Usually he'll go back to sleep, but not always. I'll pick him up, hold him, and if we're lucky, he'll sleep a few more minutes. If we're not lucky, I have to pass him off to Daddy, who is NOT a morning person (but getting a liiiittttttle better now that he doesn't really have a choice). I might make Kace a bottle.

Riley's so much better early than I expected him to be. He doesn't want to wake up, but who does? We move on. Get dressed, brush teeth, brush hair, grab stuff, and go. Of course it never goes that quickly in real life, but we try. I need to be out of the door by 6:45.

At work, I work with some amazing people. I'm blessed to work with 3 very special ladies on my team. Ladies who took care of me and my kids while I disappeared to go to the hospital last year. I was SO looking forward to taking care of them for a change and with my new schedule (Riley's schedule), they're still taking care of me. Bless their hearts. I love them though. I just don't have time to be with them. Heaven forbid I eat with my friends and relax. Instead, I'm trying to catch up on being behind.

I was used to being at work around 7. I can't drop Riley off until 7:15.....and when I say drop off, I mean I have to park, get out, and walk him in. Go through 3 crossing guards, 2 school zones, and about 482 stop signs...all seem to be in a 20 mph school zone. Oh my patience is being tested!! Then in the afternoon, after my kids go and the building is quiet, I have about an hour to prepare/plan before I have to go and pick Riley up. Not enough time I tell ya!

I depend on those special girls to do my job....make copies, finish planning, and then they have to fill me in. It stresses me out tremendously. They have their own selves, students, families, and jobs to take care of. UGH!

Back home and it's time to get dinner ready.....with Riley and Kace needing love, diapers, milk, conversation, a snack, some attention, etc. What I wouldn't give to sit and be with them at this time. If I do, I'm worrying about dinner, the clothes in the dryer, or the dishes in the dishwasher.

While I eat I'm feeding an impatient 9 month old or bribing a 4 year old to finish his meal. Sometimes both. My poor husband has a 2 hour drive to work and back and I never know when he'll be home. That's tough too. Sometimes 5, sometimes 7 or later....

Don't feel sorry for me, please understand that I love my children, love my husband (who has his own lengthy version of this blog too), love my home, my family, and my job more than ever. I just don't feel that I'm succeeding at any of them right now!! I miss my friends, I miss watching a movie with my husband, jeez....even a sitcom, a conversation. I know this will eventually be a breeze ...and I'll get the hang of it, right? In the mean time, bear with me, please. I'm honestly doing the best I can...and it's not good enough for me!

There you have it. My 6 minutes of alone time. I should've been working. Or going to the restroom or something.

At the Movies

Riley very patiently waited to fill up that penny jar, but he finally filled it with pennies representing good choices! We anxiously awaited this day (all 3 of us) so that we could go see Toy Story 3 at the movie theater. This would be Riley's first trip...we thought his attention span might finally make it through a movie at the theater. We did it up right with popcorn, peanut M&M's, and Reese's Pieces!
We all loved the movie, of course, we knew we would. What a great "first!" Now to fill up that happy jar again!!

A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned

We've had a challenging summer with our precious little 4 year old. He's still the same little cutie, but with a stubborn streak (wonder who he gets THAT from)? I took the "marble jar" idea and incorporated it into a reward system at home. We have 2 glasses and a handful of pennies. One is the "happy jar" and one is the "sad jar." Riley gets pennies in the jar based on the type of choices he makes. We worked hard to follow directions, listen, and say nice words to earn pennies in our happy jar for making good choices. Saying bad words ("stupid") earned a penny in the sad jar. Riley finally got all of the pennies in the happy jar and was rewarded with at treat of his choosing.

He had to call his grandmothers to tell them the GREAT news! He was so proud of himself--and so were we. We can't wait to take him to his first movie at the movie theater!!

best. dog. ever.

We said goodbye to our sweet puppy tonight. Doak went to play with his friends in Heaven. We knew it was coming, but that didn't make it any easier. We miss him already...

I'll miss your slobbery shaking self slobbering all over the walls. Thank you Magic Eraser!

I'll miss your soft, fuzzy ears and your black, velvety nose.

I'll miss the way you HAD to lay on someone's feet, the way you had to be where we were, better yet RIGHT under us.

I'll miss your pretty singing voice.

I'll miss Russ snapping to make you stop licking.

I'll miss you prancing around in your puppy boots.

I'll miss putting water on your food so you could lick up the gravy first.

I'll miss you laying on any blanket that just might be hanging off of the couch or the bed...you especially liked to lay on the comfortor when we changed the sheets.

I'll miss you barking when we are having conversations that don't involve you.

I'll miss you running to the door every time the doorbell rings AND when anyone says, "Who is it?"

I'll miss hearing you snore...and watching your legs run as you dream about chasing those cats!

*Photo Credit: Tina Russell (shotofwhimsyphotog.com)

Put Me in, Coach!

Riley's first T-ball practice was today. He was so excited...and so were we. We've never played or practiced before (except in our front yard), so this was new on many levels.

The teacher in me spotted the youngest one on the team very quickly, my son. It was so obvious! One on one with a coach, he paid attention and listened better than I expected. He listened so well that he was "deprogrammed" from throwing underhand! We have lots of work to do, but our little guy made his mommy and daddy so proud today. I'll only choose a few of the 95 photos I took to share!!


*During fielding practice, Riley proudly got his coach's attention to show him that he could snap!
*He thinks he made a homerun because he ran base-by-base to home!
*He asked when he was going to get to play "over there" (which was first base--he was ready for some more action!)

Eat, Play, Love

I'm currently reading Eat, Pray, Love and thought I'd put a little kiddie twist on the title for this post. Like the book so far and it's making me want to head back to Italy, for a very extended period of time! That won't happen, so I'll live vicariously through the author, as we do when we read. This was a fun way for me to give a little picture of where my boys are right now.

AND share this photo that I'm so incredibly proud of. I snapped it one evening while Kace was sitting in his Bumbo eating...as the meal progressed, the setting sun lit up his face and it was beautiful. Then Riley came in from the backyard and I was so lucky to capture this well-lit moment. I just LOVE this!

Riley:

Eat: He's always been a good eater, except for scallops, which do have an unfriendly texture. This week, he particulary liked the Honey Mustard Chicken I made and served with asparagus and some cheesy/veggie noodles. Funny thing about this meal is that he ate all of the veggies first, then the chicken.

He loves snacks--right now it's apples with yogurt/peanut buter dip, Nutri-Grain bars, or applesauce (with a scoop of cottage cheese), or yogurt--blueberry is his favorite flavor. He's always drank lots of milk and while I was in the hospital, he expected chocolate milk with every glass. Well, when Mommy arrived, that was no longer the case. He still does get chocolate milk--a little chocolate and a lot of milk, but I also try to make sure he alternates a cup of water between non-water drinks. He knows the pattern too, "Mommy, this was milk, so water is next."

Play: He is still loving riding his bicycle and doing beautifully without those training wheels. We love to go outside in the evenings after it's cooled off and hang out with our neighbors and their children while they ride bikes and play.

He has learned how to play a video game that Mimi bought him and has just taken an interest in it lately. I'm very thankful for the volume control and the headphones. He just doesn't understand why we don't want to hear the game he's playing. Ugh!

He's also playing a little more alone. He will get out his cars--usually the ones with lights and sirens--and zoom them around to emergency after emergency. I'll hear him pretend playing and it's fun to listen to the little adventure he's creating. He also likes his monster trucks and crashing them into each other.

Riley is also joining a baseball team and will have his first practice on Sunday. We're excited about this new adventure!

Love: Riley has been such a challenge lately. I keep wondering what I've done wrong. It seems like everything we say or do gets a "No", "Never", or "I don't want to" and it is exhausting. It drains me physically and emotionally. There have been countless conversations about good choices and bad choices, hurting feelings, listening, following directions, etc. I've even spanked his sweet little hiney. Something I thought I would never do.

When he's not angry and defiant, he's the sweetest, most loving little guy. He loves to snuggle and is generous with hugs and kisses. He loves to "help" take care of his litte buddy.

Kace:

Eat: Kace is so happy at mealtimes! I tell him what he's eating while I'm feeding him. He is eating apples, pears, acorn squash, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, bananas, peaches, rice cereal, and oatmeal cereal. Plums and peas are up next! He's significantly reduced his bottle feedings--or at least it seems that way. There for a while I felt like all I did was feed Kace, make bottles, wash bottles, and start over again. Now he's having 4 6-8 ounce bottles a day with 2 feedings of solid food.

Play: He's really grabbing things with hands right now, trying to grab anything and everything--our faces and anything that's not his toys in particular! He's continues to roll over, but has only rolled from his belly back over to his back once. He's tolerating tummy time so much better now and can lift his head and shoulders completely off the ground. He loves the rings on his car seat carrier (and will be outgrowing that carseat soon), his exer-saucer, playmat, and sitting in his Bumbo watching the action in the kitchen.

Kace has discovered that he can not only play with toes, but he can get them into his mouth! They're a new little "always with me" toy for him. He also had a splash fest in the bath tub recently. He went all out and had a great time!

Love: Kace has a smile for everyone, but I think he favors me right now. I'm anxious about going to back to work because we think separation anxiety is kicking in. It's going to be tough all over again. He loves it when his Daddy tickles his belly, under his chin, and in his armpits! He always has a great laugh with Daddy. He also loves it when Riley talks to him in nonsense words or sings silly songs.

Kace loves his brown Lovie that Ashley and Cami gave him. It's the object he's really shown to favor. It helps calm him down and comfort himself to sleep.

And ending with a funny...because this is my blog!

Funny: This week, while we were eating breakfast, Riley said, "Mom, I don't want to get old. Do you get old when you get married?" I hesitantly asked, "Is Mommy old?" (please don't say yes, please don't say yes) "No." he (correctly) replied. We were both extremely relieved after that conversation!! :-)

Mother's Day Out

Russ left to go out of town this morning for a good friend's bachelor party. Ever hear of a bachelor party leaving at 7 a.m. Thursday morning? Hmph! I'd been dreading this weekend for some time for many reasons: I miss him when he's gone, I'd be with the boys all weekend alone--missing my partner in crime, my relief pitcher, and it's tough managing a strong-willed 4 year old and a chunky monkey 6 month old!

Things started looking up when I scheduled a lunch date and a play date/happy hour. Then Nunny and Buzz decided they wanted to go to the ranch this morning and take Riley with them. He eagerly stayed home from school today, helped pack his bag, and off he went, blowing kisses and announced from his carseat, "Look, Mommy, I can hug you from here!" while hugging himself...and melting my heart. Mimi and G were looking forward to keeping Kace while I went to lunch.

I met Rachael at Mandola's Market. I wanted to go somewhere I'd never been and let Rachael choose the spot. It was excellent. The place was packed, it's a market/bakery/deli/restaurant. I ordered a Veggie Panini and it was delicious. I ate half for lunch and wished I had room for the other half...so I saved it for dinner!

(Thanks to the you, Mr. Complete Stranger Man, for taking these pictures of us. You did a great job and doesn't Rachael look GORGEOUS?)

After lunch, we walked over to Embellish and had a pedicure. It is a girlie little boutique and salon. Exactly what us Mommy's-of-two-boys needed!

Our pedicurists brought out these beautiful, hammer coppered pots filled with hot water for our toes. I want one.

and warm, cozy neck wraps

Rach went for a sparkly turquoise and I found the orange I've been looking for!

It was just what I needed!

Battle of the Squashes

Today Kace was introduced to Acorn Squash. I was honestly worried that he might not like this because it's the least sweet of all the foods he's tried so far. So, I snapped a picture of the butternut face and the acorn face.


Butternut Squash (introduced last Sunday)

and Today's Special: Acorn Squash



Judging by his eagerness and facial expressions, he loved them both!

Lofty Goals

I'm typing a little list of things I'd love to accomplish around the house soon. Like I said...I'd "love" to accomplish these things and in a perfect world, with no interruptions, I might get it done. I'd be happy to finish just a few in the near future.

1. Paint my archway and island a deep red.
2. Purge, purge, purge. My stuff, everyone's stuff. Ugh!
3. Organize all of my scrapbooking stuff and start scrapping again.
4. Create some sort of mud room in our entry way. Somewhere to put all of our stuff we dump on the island.
5. Cabinets in my laundry room. And our water closet.
6. File all of our bills/papers instead of just making the stack bigger, which means more filing later.
7. Start adding photos to my frame collage in the dining room.
8. Need a family of 4 photo in this house. I'm embarassed there isn't one yet.
9. Books....keep them to decorate the shelves with or get rid of 'em.
10. The backyard...where do I begin? We've planted nothing this year and I miss being out there, but where will we find the time? Russ does a great job of keeping it mowed but there are no new plants and not much color. Really...I'd like the DIY Yard Crashers guy to kidnap us while we're at Home Depot. Now THAT would be awesome!

I'll stop for now...the minute I walk away and post this, I'll think of more things to add. You know, it's just like when I get home from the grocery store, I have to start a new list before I even finish putting all of the groceries away.