Life Never Slows Down

For a long time, I kept saying,"when things slow down, I'll get back on track" (or get organized, or get to one of those many projects on my to-do list, etc.). But it's slowly dawning on me that that day never comes. Life with my active young kids and our busy schedule just never seems to slow down. Summer wasn't slow. The school year has been nothing close to slow, well, except for all our many sick days, which just don't count as "slow days" when anything productive can get done. Maybe instead of waiting for a slow time, I'll figure out how to squeeze in more project time, or just be better able to accept that this is not a time in my life when I'll be able to do the "fun" things I want to do!

So, let's recap what the fall has brought us so far:
- sickness...lots and lots of sickness
- a speedy trip to Maine with lots of family fun
- more sickness
- swimming lessons for both kids, which has led to major progress for John and his willingness to go underwater! Yeah!!!
- Kara's birthday and a variety of small, but fun, celebrations for her
- fall soccer for John and a lot of fun times with friends playing soccer
- progress on upgrading Kara's bedroom from a nursery to a big girl room, which also included selling off our crib and dresser set. Very hard for me to part with, but it was definitely time to do it and I'm glad to have the space for new things.
- starting to think about a major renovation of our kitchen. While this is totally scary, it is also totally necessary and I'm excited about all the possibilities.
- the start of life with homework for John. He's been excited to work on it, so there's been a smooth transition on that front...thank goodness!
- Halloween! It was my first year without pre-decided costumes for either child, and boy was that hard! John decided early on that he wanted to be Scooby Doo, and thanks to a very generous neighbor, that was easily achieved. Kara, after MANY MANY switcheroos on costume choices, finally settled on being a "scary, bad, black cat." Boy, was she scary...well, more cute than scary, but it was an easy costume, for which I was very thankful! ;-)

And I'm sure there's much more, but it's been such a whirlwind lately that it's hard to remember all of the things that have taken place in between our various illnesses. I'm always hopeful that I'll get back to posting more often here, but it's so hard to tell if I'm going to meet that goal or be busy taking care of sick children instead. Any guesses as to which one I'd rather be doing???

October = Illness

Around here it seems that October cannot get by without bringing the first of the season's many cold bugs into our home. Kara's third birthday was October 3rd and she had a slight cold then. By the next week, it had passed on to John...and then turned into croup. Fortunately the croup part only lasted about two days, but the cold lingered on for him. After missing most of the week of school, we packed up and headed north to Maine for a long weekend, visiting my extended family and enjoying some fall color. During the whirlwind trip, I came down with the cold. I felt okay the day we drove back, thankfully, but have spent the last 3 days being pretty miserable. And finally, not to be left out of anything, Matt woke up this morning declaring his body's submission to the cold as well. I'm truly wondering what it would be like for our family to stay healthy through October. The last few years have consistently resulted in a thorough spread of illness through our household. It's unfortunate, for many reasons, but mostly because we all truly enjoy fall and all the many fun activities there are to do during this season. At this point it looks like we may need to scale down our fall activities we had planned for this weekend so we can just get some rest and recuperate. So tough.

At least we were able to enjoy Kara's birthday and our trip to Maine was great. A lot of good family togetherness and seeing my grandmother for the first time in two years was also good. Her older sister (just turned 90!!) was able to come out from California and that was great too. My grandmother has severe dementia, so may not have known who anyone was specifically, but definitely had some recognition of those around her and certainly was happy to see her sister after many years. It was a very special visit. The kids enjoyed playing with their cousins and I got to visit with my brother and sister-in-law, which I always enjoy. It was kind of a crazy trip to make for a weekend, but it was well worth it.

Now we're on to finishing off October with a potential camping trip next weekend, soccer games, starting swimming lessons, and of course, Halloween. Kara seems to be changing her mind on her costume choice by the day. She clearly doesn't understand yet that her options might be more limited than she thinks! Working on that....

I'm optimisitic that my blogging will become more frequent again soon. Once my head cold diminishes and I have a clearer brain, I'll get back on top of things...or maybe I'll get better about accepting that I'm always behind and figure out a way to enjoy it all more instead. Hmm, I think I might like that idea better!

So I'm officially crazy!

Well, at least I'm thinking it must be, otherwise I would not manage to totally over-commit myself like I do. One look at the calendar in our kitchen makes it clear to any rational person that we have a few too many things going on. I don't know how to make any of it "go away" and I'm scared to think about how much behind the scenes work has to happen to make it through it all.

I am volunteering my behind off, because I believe in supporting the schools, and of course, also so that when I do eventually go back to work I can show that I was not totally resting on my laurels and eating my yummy bon-bons (which is clearly what all of us stay-at-home moms do, right?). So I managed to get into the position of serving as VP for my daughter's preschool board. This one shouldn't be too big of a deal - not too much work for this position, mostly just meeting attendance and a project or two. Then at the Back-to-School Night for John's kindergarten class I managed to sign myself up to be the class parent. Not entirely sure what I was thinking, I guess mostly that I wanted to enthusiastically support the teacher and the class. yikes.

Yeah...so those are two biggies for me for this year. Add to that swimming, soccer, and ballet. Add to that bus stop runs twice a day, trying to squeeze in some walks for me and Kara's playgroup. Before long I'll also be trying to get some more time for doing my website work with my old employer too.

Did I mention that Kara's birthday is in a week, John's follows in December, on top of all the holiday fun. And my mom had major knee surgery this week, so I'll be trying to get in some visits and be helpful to my parents as they work through the recovery/rehab process for her (which is going extremely well so far, so that's great).

Like I said, CRAZY!!! No doubt about it...just crazy....

Another Week of Firsts

So last week was a big first - John starting kindergarten. This week was also full of firsts for us....

1. Kara's first day of preschool - went GREAT and she loved it. (and I loved it too!)
2. Kara's first day of ballet - also went GREAT and couldn't have been cuter.
3. First (of many) Back-to-School Nights for Matt and I - we enjoyed it and learned a lot about what John's days are like and are looking forward to a great school year for John.
4. First time I had to talk with John about bullies. A bus-ride incident with a neighbor kid resulted in a big conversation that I wasn't really ready to have so soon into school. But all seems to be okay for now.
5. First time John cried when the bus came. Wednesday morning, out of the blue, he cried when the bus pulled up that he didn't want to go to school. After so much excitement about school, I was baffled. Got in the car, drove to school instead, and all was better...for now. Today again had a bit of hesitation, but no tears, and got on the bus without a problem.
6. First preschool board meeting of the year for me - oh joy....
7. First drop-off birthday party that John will be going to (tomorrow) - should be a lot of fun. Matt's going to do a Daddy-daughter activity, so I'll get an hour and a half to myself on a Saturday morning. Ahhhhhh...Not sure what to do, but I'll enjoy it!

Anyway, you get the point. It's been a crazy, stressful, and fun week around here. But we're all really wiped out. The weekend ahead is almost as busy and will undoubtedly be fun, but I'm having a bit of trouble gearing up the energy for it! Thus my mantra right now is Power Through!!!!

And We're Off...

The first week of school has been a true success. Besides some issues with the bus schedule that seem to be working out gradually, everything has gone very smoothly. And John couldn't be more happy. While walking home from the bus on Tuesday afternoon, I asked him the standard, "So, what did you do today at school?" His response - "I'm so excited about going back tomorrow, that I can't even talk about today." What pure joy! It didn't give me the slightest clue into what had happened during the almost 7 hour school day, but it let me know that he was happy and had a great time at school. Any worries or concerns I might have had about things were quickly dissolved with his enthusiasm. The last two days after school, he's given me the same response, so I'm gathering that things are continuing in the same happy trend for him during the day.

I am glad to know that we will have a chance to get more of a glimpse into his daily life next week, when Matt and I get to go to Back-to-School Night. We'll get to meet his teacher (again), and explore the classroom, and hear from her more about what kindergarten life is really like. But until then, I'm just thrilled that he's having fun and enjoying his days at school. How cool is that?

The BIG Day

So our world is going to change tomorrow. Not only is summer officially over, but my oldest child goes out into the world, gets on a big yellow school bus, and goes to kindergarten. I knew the day would come, yearned for it even. But now it's looming over me like a dark cloud and I'm not particularly thrilled with it.

He's totally ready for this step. If he had to spend another week at home with me and his little sister, I think we'd all go nuts. He's ready for a schedule again, ready for new learning opportunities, ready to see some friends, and ready for everything else that goes along with this step.

Me? I thought I was ready. Maybe I convinced myself that I was ages ago, so that when the time came I would have brainwashed myself into believing it wouldn't be so hard. I was wrong or maybe I didn't do a good enough job with the brainwashing. I'm a mess inside today. Mostly I'm proud - proud of my son, who is strong, confident, caring, and sweet. But part of me is also nervous - nervous for all the changes that come with entering elementary school - all the social upheaval that we're heading into, all the many things that he'll be exposed to on the bus and in school with kids that are so much older than him. He's still my little guy and I hope he'll always be that for me. He's still so young and innocent (mostly). But that will change tomorrow when he gets on that bus. It may not be an instant change, but it will gradually shift for him and for us. I guess I am ready for the academic challenges of kindergarten, but not so much for the social challenges.

John is a great kid and I can't imagine him being any more ready for this step, but I just wish I felt more ready. Although truly, I'm not sure I'll ever be fully ready to let go. Fortunately the time comes regardless of my readiness.

Aha moment!

So 2 nights ago, during bathtime, I had an Aha! moment and it was just reinforced a few moments ago as Matt is doing bathtime tonight. My kids are, for the moment, still getting bathed together in the tub. But when it comes time to start washing hair we always get resistance. And it can be ugly. Which makes bathtime turn into a miserable time for everyone.

On Friday night, I was doing bathtime with the kids (because in our tiny bathrooms really only one parent can do the washing of the kids at a time, so we try to take turns doing our "chore" of bath duty). It occurred to me that there had to be a better way to get them to be more willing in the process. I first asked for a volunteer to go first with hair washing. No volunteers (surprise, surprise.) I declared (much to their surprise) that I would count to 3, if I had no volunteers by 3 then I would pick who would go first and that everyone would lose books at bedtime. If I did get a volunteer, then that person would get to pick the first book to be read at bedtime. :-))))) Hee heee heeeee! Guess what? I got a volunteer! John picked up on the threat very quickly and volunteered shortly after the "one" sound started coming out of my mouth. Kara was very dismayed that she didn't "win" the right to pick the first bedtime book. But, most importantly, everyone was a willing participant in the hair washing process.

Then comes tonight. A few moments ago...both kids in the tub with Matt at the bathtime helm.... He tells them he's going to use the same process that I started last time and before he even got to the counting, Kara says "Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee first!!!" Cue the AHA!!! moment for Mommy!!

I love it beyond words when a parenting trick pans out just the way you wanted it to!! There's not much sweeter than that. Mark one in the column for Mommy tonight. I love it.

Pictures to Come!

So you may have noticed a serious lack of pictures lately on the blog.... Well, I've been trying but the link to upload images to my posts has not been working for some unknown reason. This morning as I fiddled with it a bit, I just found a work-around for it and obviously just got a picture to upload with my other post. So hopefully that will continue to work and I'll be able to post some more pictures of our summer fun adventures. Sorry if things have been a little heavy on the text and light on the images lately!

Kara's Lesson

Yesterday there were more lessons learned around here. This time mostly by Kara. One lesson I learned is that we may be closer to giving up the nap than I would like to believe. On Sunday and again yesterday, Kara spent her naptime in her crib, but not sleeping. She was singing away, happy as could be, but definitely not sleeping. Then comes the second lesson...when she decided she was done, she climbed out of her crib and came downstairs. Hmmmm. Previous experience (a.k.a. John) leads me to think that we may be ready to move out of the crib and into the toddler bed. The timing on this is not great since I'm also preparing to make efforts on the potty training front and get both kids ready to start school shortly. I'd prefer for everyone to be getting enough sleep and be well-rested, happy kids during the day...things are just easier that way...for everyone. I've been trying to convince myself that Kara's transition into the big bed will be easier than John's was (it was almost a year and a half before he was regularly sleeping through the night again after moving beds.) It has to be easier this time, right?

All I can say is thank god for coffee. I may need a lot of it in the coming days. And a lot of patience.

Always Learning

One lesson I've learned during my parenting years is that if you pay attention, you can learn something from your kids every day. Some days I learn multiple things, other days I learn one thing, but maybe it's a big one. Today was a big day for learning around here. Time will tell what the kids came away with after today. All I know right now, tonight, is that my kids taught me two big lessons today.

1. Kara had a horribly cranky, fussy, grumpy day. Starting at the moment I walked into her room this morning to get her out of the crib (she just grunted and didn't want to be touched, but also didn't want me to leave the room...lovely...) and ending at bedtime when she melted down after a tantrum she was throwing resulted in the loss of bedtime books for her. She managed to pull it together enough for a few snuggles before getting into the crib, so at least there was a moment at the end of the day that wasn't filled with her screaming or grunting or crying or making other hysterical noises.

The lessons I learned from Kara today were twofold. First, the quickly approaching age of three is going to challenge every level of patience that I have and I anticipate it being a very very long year ahead for us all. Second, and more important, is that even through the rough spots, there were quite a few moments of her sweet tender side today, and I need to remember to cherish and enjoy each and every one of those every single day.

2. The second lesson was from John. This weekend we went to the pool each day with Matt, who doesn't get to come with us very often. For some reason, I got it stuck in my head that John really needed to work on getting more comfortable with going underwater. The kid has started going down the slide and can swim (doggie-paddle) across the length of the pool, and here I am pushing him to get that face in the water! I realized at the end of the second pool trip that John was getting way more anxious about the whole thing and was never going to be comfortable with the idea, much less be able to do it with me forcing it on him. After he was in bed last night it occurred to me how ridiculous I was being and that I needed to just back off. The summer and the pool should be about having fun and hanging out with friends, which is what we've been doing and loving so far this year. I intend to continue that trend for the next four weeks.

So with that lesson learned yesterday, I started the day off today with John by apologizing to him for my inappropriate behavior at the pool. I told him that there would be no more pushing for the underwater stuff and that he should enjoy the pool and have fun. Go down the slide, swim across the pool, and play games with your friends. And go underwater only if you want to, and only WHEN you want to. It was not exactly easy to give a very sincere and heartfelt apology to my son, but it was so necessary and I felt so much better once I had done it.

Two big lessons learned today. All in all, I love my kids and all the lessons they have to teach me about love and patience and life.

Tennis Camp and More

So this week is John's tennis camp. Not an intense thing, just half and hour of some kids learning some of the basics of tennis. He enjoyed it yesterday, but it was hot. Today is going to be even hotter, so it could be brutal on the courts by 10:00. But our plan is to go pretty much straight to the pool from camp, have lunch there and play with friends until Kara poops out and has to have her nap. Then the afternoon will be more relaxed with the only requirement being to get our bag of CSA veggies.

My non-athletic kid has picked up some athletic interests of late, much to my surprise. He continues this summer to surprise me with his increased swimming skills - swimming the length of the pool, going down the slide unassisted, cannonballs, etc. And now he's signed up to do soccer in the fall, and seems to be enjoying the tennis this week. It's funny to me how much he's doing and enjoying all of it. I can tell he's getting stronger through all of it too, as he keeps trying his skills at the monkey bars at the playground and he's able to do more and more each time.

At this age my focus has been to expose him to lots of different activities and see where his skills and interests land. It's been an adventure, almost bordering on being that mom who is running her kids around crazy without any downtime...but not quite to an extreme...yet. We'll definitely slow down in the fall with John starting full-day kindergarten, giving him time to get adjusted to the new schedule and demands. But it's great to me to see his growing interests in athletic activities and I'm going to do all I can to encourage and support that. I'm just so proud of my little man, who doesn't seem to be so little anymore.

New Blog to Check Out

I have a neighbor and friend who just this week has started a new blog that is really worth checking out - Manic Mom's Monthly Menus. If you are a mom and are looking for new recipes and cooking tips, Erin's site is awesome! I am already excited to try some of the recipes she's got posted. She's a great person and really likes to cook for her family. She's got some great tips and explains how she's adapting a recipe based on cost and food preferences, along with ideas of how she might do the recipe differently next time or alternatives to try.

Check it out and I hope you get some helpful information!

The Games We Play

We are a game playing family. And by that I do not mean electronic, video games, I mean board games. Before the kids came along, Matt and I would often spend a Friday or Saturday night playing games, just the two of us. We don't do that so much anymore, but we have recently started to pick it up again a bit. But the neat thing is now that the kids are a little older, there are a lot of board games we can play with them. Even Kara is getting into the gaming action. We've got a few that are just her speed, a few more that John can play on his own and we have to help Kara with, and a few that are just beyond Kara for now but that John loves.

The last few nights after dinner there has been enough time before bed to squeeze in a game or two. Monday night it was all of us playing a game called Bendominos. Then last night Matt and I were still finishing dinner and chatting, while the kids started to play checkers. I keep a careful ear out when the kids are playing a game by themselves to make sure all parties are being involved and no one is taking over or getting upset. Last night I heard John saying that Kara was winning and he was clearly going to lose this game. But it said it in sort of an awestruck kind of way, not like he was upset about it at all. Then on her next turn, he was still helping her out and suggesting moves for her to make. It was so great to listen to him willing to try to help her win the game, knowing that would result in his loss. I know that won't last much longer before his "help" becomes sabotage instead, so I really enjoyed hearing him being very sincere and trying to teach her the skills of checkers. By the way, he ended up winning the game anyway, but it was all amicable in the end. :-)

Zucchini Parmigiana

We love this easy summertime recipe and I thought it was worth sharing with everyone. Hope you can try it and enjoy it the way we do!

Zucchini Parmigiana
6 medium zucchini, sliced thin
2 red or green peppers, diced
1 onion, sliced
1/4 c. tamari (soy sauce)
1/2 t. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
14 oz. tomato sauce
4 c. grated cheese (mozzarella, swiss or muenster)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine all ingredients, except tomato sauce and cheese, in a large bowl. Stir well. Transfer half of the mixture to a large, lightly greased casserole. Pour one-third of the tomato sauce over the mixture. Top with one-half of the cheese. Pour the remaining mixture into the pan and then another one-third sauce, the remaining cheese and then the rest of the sauce.

Bake covered for about 1 hour or until the zucchini is tender. Serves 6-8.

TV Challenges

Shortly after our beach trip, Matt was able to work out a deal with our cable provider to bundle our phone, cable and internet services for a lower rate than what we had been paying previously. In a tough financial year, with no raise for Matt (we’re thankful he still has a job), we’re looking at ways to save some money instead. There was a chance this was going to mean a change of phone numbers for us too, which I think we’re going to manage to avoid…thank goodness! The installation was on Tuesday of this week, and it means that we now have a cable box. Somehow we have navigated the world of cable without having to get a box for many years now. Not sure how we did that, but boy did it make things easier. Not only do we have a box, all the channels are different, and I can’t seem to find the shows I like to watch (not that summertime tv is much to watch anyway). This afternoon John asked to watch a dvd we have from the library…should be simple, right? NO. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to get the darn thing to work. I had the cable box on and off, the tv on and off, and all combinations of the above. Nothing worked. Then when I was ready to quit trying it (and wait for Daddy to come home), I couldn’t get it back to having the box on and tv on and actually working normally again. It took me another 5 minutes to get it back to showing regular tv and I’m still not sure what on earth I did. Now I consider myself a reasonably intelligent person, but when it comes to these ridiculous electronic set-ups that no one ever seems to actually understand I am baffled. It really should not be that hard to watch a tv show or to get a dvd to play for my kids. No wonder so many parents just do not let their kids watch any tv at all. After another experience or two like this, I’ll be done too! Bah!

Jelly Beans?

Yesterday, after writing the post about the potty training, I was all focused and ready to move forward a bit on the process. So after Kara's nap I changed her diaper and asked if she wanted to use the potty. She was a bit skeptical at first, but then I suggested that if she went tinkle there would be a jelly bean for her (which I always swore to myself I would NEVER do - ha!). At that her enthusiasm soared and she immediately went in and did the deed. Feeding off her energy, I pulled out a pull-up and asked if she wanted to give that a try for the afternoon. She considered it carefully and decided she'd prefer a diaper instead. I tried to convince her to try it, but she just wasn't buying it. So we came downstairs and got the jelly bean. I started to unload the dishwasher and then she announced she needed to use the potty again...so she could get another jelly bean. After reminding myself that this is what potty training is like, we marched back upstairs and she dripped a few more drops out, we cleaned up and got another jelly bean for her effort. She tried to do it one more time about 3 minutes later. I convinced her it would be better to wait until she felt the need to go, and later I felt guilty about putting her off mainly because I didn't want to truck back up the stairs, but oh well. Two things were made clear to me: 1) CLEARLY I need to get a second potty for her for the main floor bathroom and 2) I still need more energy to get through this.

Of course, today we haven't done anything in the potty at all the whole day. Whatever energy I had about this yesterday must have left the premises. Wonder when I'll get it back.....Hmmm....

Pending Potty Training

So, like I mentioned yesterday, potty training is looming on the horizon for us. Kara is supposed to be potty trained before starting preschool in September. But she has not shown quite enough interest in it yet for me to be ready to make the big effort that it takes. This summer so far has been too busy for us really to take the time to stop and focus on this "project." In a few more weeks, John will be done with camps and then things will (in theory at least) slow down for us. I'm trying now to gear myself up mentally for the process of potty training once that time comes. Part of my challenge is that Kara is fiercely independent and will not take kindly to any situation in which she feels like she doesn't have control. If she's truly not ready to do this, it just will turn into a battle and no one will win. I'm so not looking forward to it! But it is an effort I feel like we have to start soon so that we might have a chance of getting through it before preschool starts. So today I'm vowing to pick a time on the calendar in August when we do the whole spend up to a week (some say it only takes 3 days) and go nowhere and focus on the potty training. Sounds like a fun week to me...NOT. But it must be done and my attitude about it needs be strong and positive. Here we go, on the potty training express! Who hooo!! (Wish me luck...I think I might need it.)

To Do List

Upon returning from the beach my to-do list grew by leaps and bounds. Our grand plan was to enjoy our beach trip, come home, and put a moratorium on our spending. Great idea, right? Well, unfortunately, it's just not going to work.

To Do List:
1. Clean House - well, the vacuum is only half working, need to replace it before things will get truly clean the way I like to keep the house, which is by no means a spotless house, but I still definitely need a working vacuum.
2. Get new phones - just got updated phone service and new digital/high-def cable service today, so now the phones can get upgraded too (ones that are not a big pain in the butt to dial the numbers will be a big improvement).
3. Get school supplies for John - he needs a new backpack and a TON of school supplies from a list the school gave us.
4. Get new tennis shoes for the kids - both kids have worn out their current shoes, hoping to hold them through the rest of the summer, but will need new ones for school...not to mention that mine are getting older too.
5. Get new shutters, gutters, railings, and molding around the front door - $$$$$$$$$
6. More work to be done on the inside of the house too - $$$$$$$
7. Find and apply labels to John's jackets, hats, etc. for school.
8. Get Kara potty trained - fun...NOT.
9. Figure out new decorations/arrangements for Kara's room once she's out of her crib - $$$$$
10. Purge, purge, purge, purge, and purge - truly, we could not possibly need this much stuff!!

And that's only the big stuff on the to-do list. As you can see, most of these items involve spending more money, many of them are non-negotiable items, some are more expensive than others (thank goodness), but all need to get done sooner rather than later. I was hoping the pace of the rest of the summer would be a little more relaxed, but I'm guessing that's just not my fate this year. Add in a lot of time at the pool, garden, and other outdoor activities, and the summer is almost done. I'm not even caught up to where I should be now, there's no way I'll be ready by the end of the summer! Oh well, I guess I'd better just have a mojito and enjoy the day instead.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Sorry there hasn't been any posts in a bit, but we've been busy bees here. We just got back from our week at the beach. Today John started his third week of summer camp - nature camp this time. Our master bathroom renovation that has been ongoing for approaching three years has finally been completed as of today. It's just been an all around crazy time lately.

Our beach trip was great. The kids and I hit the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond and spent a few hours in their AWESOME children's garden. Totally worth a visit if you're ever in the area. Matt took the train down and met us in Richmond to start the trip. We drove the rest of the way to Topsail Island, NC the next day. The kids watched Little Mermaid and Cinderella for the first time and loved it. They were thrilled to get to the beach the next day and play in the sand and waves. They spent the next 6 days playing like crazy and exhausting themselves (and us). It was so much fun. The group of family and friends that we stay with is totally great and the kids adore them all. One day we even rented inflatable ocean kayaks and took them out. John wished he was big enough to go out in them, but was content with filling them with water and sitting in them on the beach with Kara. We had a really fun trip and we are all ready to go back.

Now to get through the rest of the summer!

A Couple of Noteworthy Items Today

1. Yesterday while we were at the pool celebrating a good friend's birthday with super yummy cupcakes (thanks Heather!), John actually swam the entire length of the pool on his own. We've been practicing the swimming in shorter lengths, but this time I kept moving back and he kept going. Pretty soon we were almost the entire way across and so we kept going and he made it - no swim vest, no help from me - all on his own. I was so proud of him. I think he surprised himself even! Now if he can just start swimming with his face in the water he will be all set! Each time we go to the pool lately he's been trying new things and doing great, so I have every confidence that by the end of the summer he'll be more comfortable with the underwater aspect too. For now I'm perfectly happy to celebrate his big doggie paddling successes!! Yay John!!!

2. Today we pick up our first bag of summer vegetables from our CSA. We split our share with a neighbor again this year, so they actually picked up the first bag last week and now it's our turn. I'm very excited to see what yummy veggies will be in our bag. The kids always get excited too, even if it's not always stuff they're going to eat. But they are often willing to try things that come in the bags, more so than if it's something I just pick out at the store. Ohhh goody!

3. The last notable item for today is that Kara will be having her first haircut. That's right, her first EVER haircut. Yes, I do realize that the poor girl is approaching three, and she's got a seriously crazy mane of hair. But it is beautiful hair and until now I haven't been able to bring myself to have any bit of it cut off. Finally now though, it is time. She's got a ton of dead ends that are only continuing to get worse and tangle more and more. And with our beach trip next week, the wind will not add good things to her hair situation. So I made her an appointment with my hairdresser for her very first haircut. I have been going to my hairdresser for over twenty years now and she also cut John's hair for his first haircut (of course, he was 5 months old, and had a full head of hair). We talked a little bit at dinner last night about what the haircut experience would be like for her. Kara asked if it would hurt. :-) I told her no, that other than a little bit of combing her hair out, the cutting part would not hurt at all. I'm excited to watch her go through this rite of passage, but the reality is this truly will only be a trim. I'm not quite ready to cut it short or anything so dramatic, but hopefully it will make the brushing process easier for us and maybe we'll even get some more of her lovely curls as a result. My baby is really growing up.

Bedtime Stories

Tonight at bedtime John asked Matt to tell them a bedtime story about Scooby Doo and some new zany adventure for Scooby and the gang. After getting in their pajamas and brushing teeth, the three of them snuggled into our bed and listened to the crazy tale that Matt created for them. I was reminded of a long ago phase in our parenting life when John was having trouble sleeping through the night. It was quite a LONG phase in our life...like the almost year and a half following his exit from the crib. At some point toward the end, Matt started telling John bedtime tales centering around none other than Thomas the Tank Engine. John requested Thomas stories pretty much every night and we almost ceased reading any bedtime books during this time. But the stories were pretty creative and lengthy and John had strict expectations for them. There could be no repeat stories, they had to be a certain time length, and there had to be a lot of crashes and "confusion and delays" involved. It became increasingly difficult to appease his growing need for these stories. But he had miraculously at about the same time started to sleep through the night and we were going to do anything we could to encourage that behavior. So Thomas stories lived on, for quite a long time, around here. Tonight's Scooby Doo story reminded me of that long ago time, and hopefully Kara's imminent exit from her crib won't result in so many sleepless nights for us all. Or Scooby Doo may become a more regular bedtime character for us.

Sleep well my children.

Soccer isn't so bad afterall

This week John is doing a sports sampler camp through the Herndon Community Center. He's doing it with a good neighbor friend and it is in the mornings from 9-11am for just this week. Yesterday, and again today, they focused on soccer. Other sports they might do include: t-ball, basketball, golf, and football. In the spring of 2008, John participated in a popular kids' soccer program and hated it. He had been really excited about it, but then when there were too many new kids all at once, it was awful. Ever since he's been pretty much against any efforts to play or try a different (a.k.a. smaller) program. But after two days of soccer exposure at this camp, he's very interested in it again. Today, on the way home, he even asked why we don't have goals at our house. Really? Well, probably because you hated soccer three days ago! Anyway, now I'll have to be creative about finding new ways to engage this interest on his part and see if I can keep it going. He's also very interested in t-ball, so I'm hopeful that they'll do that one day this week too so he can give it a try. Camps are such a great way to give new things a try!

The Sun Shines Again

The first part of this summer has been so rainy here many people we know started talking about building an ark. Which was very hard on the kids and I, to spend so many days cooped up indoors and not drive each other nuts. Finally, this week the sun has decided to grace us with it's wonderful light! And I couldn't be happier about it. We've been getting outside each day so far - to a big park, the pool, and the playground all in just two days. We even walked over to our playgroup location yesterday, which was a lot of fun too. The kids have been sleeping better, as have I, after all of our outdoor activities. We have also just been having fun getting to spend so much time with our friends. It has really been great. And it's just now Wednesday morning! The next few days is only going to bring more warm weather, which means more time at the pool and more time with friends! Yahooo! I feel like summer just finally got here and now we can run around and truly enjoy it. Bring on the sunshine and warm weather!

Thankful Thursday

I'm up early this morning, with a totally quiet house, so I'll do a second post while I can think in peace.

Today I am thankful for:
1. the quiet of the house this early in the morning.
2. the really good book I'm reading - The Red Tent - a must read for anyone who hasn't read it yet!
3. a quiet, unscheduled morning ahead.
4. the playdate we have planned for the afternoon with preschool friends.
5. a dry house on a rainy day.
6. beautiful Kara and her long crazy curly hair.
7. sweet John and his loving caring funny personality.
8. a hubby who is taking some big steps right now.
9. some really great mom friends, without whom I would have trouble making it through the day.
10. a weekend ahead without travel.

Changes Looming Ahead

I have been feeling a little funny lately and couldn't quite put my finger on why, until yesterday. As I was walking with a neighbor in the early morning hours and we were talking, I realized that there are a lot of big changes coming in the not-too-distant future for my kids. John will go to kindergarten (that's probably the biggest change coming at us), but is also working hard on getting better at riding his bike and thus will be ready to take off the training wheels before long, and is progressing with his swimming skills too. Kara has a bunch of pretty big things herself - preschool starting in the fall, which forces the issue of potty training this summer (yikes), and another biggie - moving out of the crib and into a big girl bed (which pushes me into doing a complete redesign on her room - ugga). All of these life changes are coming within the next couple of months and I'm not sure I'm totally ready for them! Some days I wish I could just press the pause button and stop so I can better appreciate things now before the changes start coming at us. But truly, I know that can't happen so I do try to take a breath now and again so that I can be more in the moment for myself and for the kids. Most of the time it works. ;-)

By the way, just had to share an awesome dinner I made last night for Matt and I. Felt like the ultimate nutritionist meal, but it was quite tasty! Brown rice, with salmon with yogurt dill sauce, and steamed broccoli on the side. The broccoli and dill were both from my parents' garden. The salmon dish was so easy - just grill or broil the salmon, however you prefer. The sauce was just blending up 1/4 c. dill with 1 clove of garlic. Then blend in 1 tsp. lemon juice and 1 c. plain yogurt. Drizzle it over the salmon. That's it! So easy and so tasty! I used some of the sauce on the broccoli too for good measure. I've been trying hard lately to find good healthy meals for us and definitely felt like I accomplished that last night. Score 1 for Mom!

Rainy Day Memory

This morning my father-in-law provided me with a little break and took John for the morning (thank you Grandpa!!). I took advantage of just having one child and went out to run a bunch of errands, even in the rain it's easier with one kid! Anyway, as Kara and I were driving around I remembered a funny day a few years ago with John. He must have been about Kara's age now, maybe a bit older. We were in the car and we started telling jokes. I remembered an old classic knock knock joke.

Me: Knock Knock
John: Who's there?
Me: Banana
John: Banana Who?
Me: Knock Knock
John: Who's there?
Me: Banana
John: Banana Who?
Me: Knock Knock
John: Who's there?
Me: Orange
John: Orange Who?
Me: Orange you glad I didn't say Banana???

We must have done the joke 10 times over and he was laughing hysterically. The best part was that I was laughing too, even though I'd heard the joke so many times before, mostly due to his cute little voice and the inflection he gave it when he said "Banana Who?" The "Who" part went up about 4 notches in pitch to make this funny little question when he said it. I couldn't stop laughing at how cute it was and he couldn't stop laughing because he just thought the joke was so funny. It was a great day.

Busy Saturday

Today has been productive and busy and fun already and it's only 2:45! We so rarely have a full weekend with hardly any plans, it's very nice. I got up early and went to our farmers market with a neighbor, without our kids. ;-) The weather was perfect and there were so many beautiful fresh veggies there. So yummy. Once I got home, we got the kids geared up for a walk/bike ride down to the preschool. John's getting much stronger with all the bike riding lately, and his confidence is growing as well. It's great fun to watch him learning and figuring it all out. Anyway, then we had an easy lunch all together and while Matt and Kara took naps, John assisted me out in the backyard. I've been wanting to take out a much-too-happy butterfly bush for some time now, but the rain and our schedule hasn't given me an opportunity. Today was the day! I started clipping it back only to discover that the ground was soft enough (thank you rain!) that I was able to just pull out the bulk of the roots! Yeah! I was able to do a lot of other work on trimming rose bushes and weeding that I wasn't thinking I would get to today. It all left me feeling very productive and pleased.

Now if I can get to the pool, menu plan for the week ahead, and get a shower in before dinner, this day would be just about perfect. Oh yeah, I guess I also need to figure out what dinner is going to be! Well, I'm not going to rush into these things!

Dutch Wonderland

For those that live anywhere near us and have preschool aged kids, you have GOT to take your family to Dutch Wonderland! It's in Lancaster, PA, which is about 2 hours and 45 minutes away from Reston. We went last week for a couple of days and had a great time. Dutch Wonderland is a theme/amusement park geared totally for kids aged 2-7. It had all the traditional rides, games, shows, and park-style food options, only it was all kid friendly. There was nothing there that John couldn't ride! Some things he needed to do with a grown-up, but he was riding roller coasters, swings, boats, bumper cars, slides, trains, and so much more. And he loved it all! There was also plenty that Kara could ride, by herself and with an adult. It was fun for all - no child was left behind! There was also a water-play area that we didn't go into, but it looked like fun as well. We went for a few hours on a Sunday evening, and then went back on Monday for the day. It was not crowded, since it was early in the season, which allowed us to ride everything we wanted with very few waits. The kids had a great time, the adults were exhausted just trying to keep up with the kids! Clearly we will need to build in an annual theme park trip into our budget for the future.

We spent two nights in Lancaster, which allowed us to relax and enjoy the trip without feeling rushed. The last morning before we headed back we stopped in a nearby Amish "village"/shopping area to browse some stores, have a snack, and see some animals. There is so much to do in the area, we had a very hard time deciding what to do!

This trip was a birthday present for me from my parents and it was a great gift and enjoyed by all! Thanks again Mom and Dad! :-)

Pool Slide - Here We Come!

Well, after all those swimming lessons this winter, I'm seeing the fruits of John's labors. Yesterday afternoon we ventured up to our neighborhood pool for the first time this season. We've been to several other pools already, but this was the first time to the one we're likely to get to the most this summer. Anyway, we went with a neighbor and her two boys for a quick swim before some thunder forced the lifeguards to close down the pool for awhile. As we got into the pool the water seemed pretty cool to me, but quickly felt better, thank goodness. The kids all had a blast with the swimming and splashing. Then they started asking about going down the slide. The guard said it was okay, so up John went. He had his swim vest on and was very excited. He came flying down and went splashing into the water and was thrilled! He went down about 10 times and loved every minute of it. I was at the bottom with one arm extended for him to grab, but several times he missed me and was on his own - going all the way under and coming back up. With a few blinks and a moment resting on the side, he was ready to go again. It was really great to watch him be so much more comfortable in the water than he has ever been before. I have no doubt that this summer will be great for him with LOTS of swimming time with and without his swim vest on. Bring on pool season, I think we're ready!!

Thankful Tuesday

I'm feeling really tired, but really thankful for many things today, so I thought I'd share:

Today, I'm thankful for:
1. My husband and kids.
2. Many many great friends and great moms
3. Our fun playgroup that came over this morning. I enjoy it more and more as our group has grown.
4. The many great preschool families that we have grown to know so well over the last year or two. Many playdates and fun times are on the calendar for the summer to keep us connected to the preschool families and I'm very thankful for that.
5. All the activities that are already on our calendar for the summer.
6. A warm, sunny day.
7. Kids that sleep through the night....mostly.
8. John, who has grown so independent and is constantly challenging and charming me in the same breath.
9. All of the kids' grandparents that we get to do so many fun things with.
10. Long-distance friends that I miss dearly, but am happy to know that we're still good friends.

Alright, I believe Kara's waking from her nap, which means it's time to go to the grocery store! On the run!!!

Great Start to the Weekend

We are in the midst of a holiday weekend and boy, is it a good thing there is an extra day this weekend. We'll need it to recover from the first two days of the weekend!

Friday afternoon we had John's preschool graduation, which was wonderful and sentimental (more for me than for him I think) and exhausting. Then that evening we went to Friday Night Live in Herndon, Va for an outdoor concert, picnic dinner, and hanging out with some good friends. We met up with a neighbor family there and just had a great time. It was fun for the kids and the adults and the weather was perfect for it. All in all, it was a great day!

Then Saturday (after I went to the farmers market in the morning) we went down to my in-laws' marina and spent the afternoon on their boat. We opted not to take the boat out due to wind conditions and the crowds reported to be out on the river. But instead we went for a great swim in the marina's pool, where John was thrilled to show off his new swimming skills, and then just relaxed on the boat to enjoy the fabulous day. Afterwards we went back to their house to have a big traditional cookout. A great day all around. The kids did well, staying up late for a second night in a row and Kara only had a short nap in the car. I'm expecting to see some behavior issues today from both of them, but that's certainly understandable. Today I think we'll try to stick closer to a normal schedule for them.

The great thing about a holiday weekend is that even though it already feels like we've had a very full weekend, we still have 2 more full days to enjoy! Yahooo!!!!

1 is Almost Done

With preschool, that is. He finished up the season of swimming lessons yesterday, with the grand result of being "graduated" up to the next level - after a lot of hard work. It was really wonderful, but hard to say goodbye to the wonderful instructor he's had for most of the winter. I'm hopeful Kara may get her when she starts swimming classes in the fall.

The bigger event though is that today is John's last day of preschool. It's so hard to imagine that he's all done with preschool. Our school experience has been SO positive. I just can't say enough to praise our school and teachers and school families for making this be such a wonderful place to start our schooling. John has grown socially and academically there (even though academics truly aren't their main focus). I keep feeling like I'll miss the school, which is just silly since Kara will start there in the fall and I'll continue to be on the board of the school. My involvement is nowhere near being over, but John's is, and for some reason I'm having a bit of a hard time with that.

John is totally ready for kindergarten, and is finally getting pretty excited about going to school too, which is great. Last night I went to a gathering of the preschool class moms with the purpose of assembling scrapbooks for the kids of their year at the preschool. I had so much fun chatting and laughing with these wonderful moms. And the pictures, whoa! These kids have grown and changed so much over the year. I never did a book for John from last year's class, so I was starting at the beginning, 2 years back. It was so funny to look at how young he and his classmates looked from the previous year. Amazingly I got through all of year 1 and started on year 2 before we all got tired and called it a night. But the fun was immense and I'm hopeful that I will actually finish the project with John's help over the summer. I also think we'll have enough room in our book to include a few artwork pieces, of which we have SOOOO many. I'm excited that we'll have this great collection of pictures, projects and memories of his days at the preschool.

Thank you to Hunters Woods Preschool for all that you have given to my son and my family and countless others. It's been a wonderful two years for John and I look forward to the coming years with Kara.

Thankful Today

I woke up this morning feeling very refreshed and thankful, so I thought it'd be a great day to do a "thankful" post. Here goes....

Today I am thankful for:

1. a beautiful spring day (and entire week for that matter)

2. a very restful night's sleep for me and Matt and for the kids

3. a relaxing morning with nowhere to rush off to

4. great friends that we played with at the playground yesterday

5. my yoga class last night

6. the long walk I was able to take yesterday

7. the coming summer break...coming quickly, but I am looking forward to it

8. the great preschool that John has been able to experience for the last 2 years - great teachers, great kids, great families

9. a wonderful and supportive husband

10. the green nail polish that's on Kara's toes and the wonder that it has inspired in her - she keeps being amazed when she sees her own "green pretty toes" - too cute

There are many many more, but I'll save those for another day. Time to go enjoy this fabulous day!

Early Veggie Season is Here

Our Reston Farmers' Market has been open for 3 Saturdays now (at Lake Anne, 8-12 on Saturday mornings). I missed the first week, but made it over the last two weekends and was richly rewarded for my efforts. Kara came with me both times, which made for a nice mother-daughter outing for us. The tents were many and the produce was plentiful. I was pleasantly surprised by the variety I found so early in the season. I was pretty sure it was going to be sparse pickings, but was totally wrong. Over the first two weeks I found salad greens, spinach, asparagus, broccoli, strawberries, cucumbers, snap peas, onions, lettuces, radishes, zucchini, yellow squash, even some early tomatoes, and much more. Many vendors were selling plants - flowers and herbs, and also some veggie plants. Along with the dairy vendors (from which I purchased some fresh feta - heavenly), there were also several vendors selling meat and eggs. It was amazing and inspiring. Both weeks I came home with a full bag of delicious produce for us to feast on and feeling great about the fresh, local, organic food I was going to put on our family's dinner table.

It made me very ready to start getting our veggie bags from the CSA. But that season won't start for another 6 weeks or so. In the meantime, I'll be very happy to frequent the lush farmers' market we are so fortunate to have. Supporting these local farmers is a great side benefit, but the high quality of the food is the best reason to go! So please, oh please, visit your local farmers market. Go often and buy, buy, buy!! And then ENJOY the fruits of your efforts. I promise it will be well worth it!

Our First Crush

There was a girl.... Isn't that how it always starts? I can't believe I'm already starting a statement about my own child that way. But...well, there is this girl...in John's preschool class, named Cristina. She's positively charming and adorable. She was in his class last year and this year and John has been buddies with her all year, but it seems to have stepped up a notch or two over the last couple of months. They're inseparable now, holding hands, hugging, making pictures for each other, and even professing love and planning marriage! It's so sweet. They both have been known to cry and moan for the other when they're apart and awaken before they should in the morning if it's a day when they'll be seeing each other before school. Don't get me wrong, they're not a mushy-gushy-in-love kind of pair. But they are definitely more than the buddies they used to be. They play very well together, are interested in similar things and also respect each other's divergent interests too. They're pretty good about including other kids in their play, but they will also stick together when they're ready to move onto other activities.

The hardest part for me is that this all has developed at the end of the school year. We're a little over a week away from the last day of school. And while they do have a school picnic the following week, their class time together is coming to a close. It's kind of sad for me to think about it. But the positive thing is that Cristina's younger brother will be in Kara's preschool class next year. So our contact with her family is guaranteed to continue and hopefully we'll be able to keep them connected in some way. I can't imagine the relationship will stay at this intensity for long after school's over, but it is good to know that it won't entirely fade away either.

My little boy's growing up. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's scary, and sometimes it's just too darn sweet. Thank you Cristina for seeing the good in my son and being such a good friend to him. He loves you too.

All About the Moms

As usual I started off this Monday morning with a severe energy shortage. We had a very busy and full weekend. But I wouldn't have traded a minute of it.

Friday night I got the chance to hang out with a few of my mom friends (without the kids) and had a great time. We so rarely get to see each other without the little ones around, but when we do get together we laugh, share, dance, drink, and enjoy the time to be adults!

Then Saturday morning I took Kara to the Reston Farmer's Market and was amazed at how many vendors were there with so many yummy things to eat. It was impressive and made me yearn for the summer veggies that I know are in our future. How wonderful. With only limited cash in my pocket I purchased asparagus, strawberries, spinach, a head of romaine, and a bag of mixed baby greens. I also ran into both of John's preschool teachers and relished sharing the experience with Kara on such a gorgeous day.

Kara and I headed home (after a run to the regular grocery store for our staple items) to prepare some food for the evening's meal for which my parents were coming over. We took a break after her nap and all four of us went over to a neighborhood playground social event. The weather was wonderful and many neighbors came out to the meet and greet. The kids enjoyed the time to run and play after all the MANY days of rain we've had lately. Then we headed back home just in time to meet my parents as they arrived to celebrate my dad's birthday (last week) and Mother's Day (a day early). We had a great evening with them - yummy food and great wine and a very nice visit.

Sunday morning I took the chance to sleep in just a bit before we were back at the entertaining thing again. I was up and cooking and preparing for a visit from Matt's parents for brunch/lunch for Mother's Day. Matt and the kids went and got flowers and bagels for our own breakfast while I worked on getting lunch together. Then we had a very enjoyable visit with the Rankins. They even took the kids out on a big walk while Matt and I cleaned up after lunch and had a few moments to rest a bit. After they left, Kara took her nap and I changed clothes and took the opportunity, on another gorgeous day, to take a long walk by myself. It was so nice! When I got home, Matt and John went off to the pet store and I even got a little snooze in. What a Mother's Day! After Kara woke up, we took the kids' bikes outside and spent the rest of the afternoon riding bikes and hanging out with neighbors. Later Matt prepared dinner (cheese fondue - YUMMM!!) and we were all so wiped out. The kids got into bed and we were not far behind them. I think I could have slept all day today I was so tired.

This morning was a little hard to get going, but it was worth the fun and good times we had all weekend long. I am not sure I could handle another weekend like this anytime soon, but I am thankful for all the family and friends I was able to share time with this weekend.

Happy Mother's Day!

Rain, Rain, Go AWAY!!!

It's been raining here for many, many days straight. I'm starting to wonder if the sun will ever come back out. Well, I guess I know that it will, but it's been hard with two young kids to be trapped indoors all this time. Keeping the kids entertained and getting them enough exercise has been a challenge of epic proportions. This afternoon we're supposed to get a bit of a break in the rain and I'm hoping that we'll get out for awhile, for a walk at least. This has made me start thinking about what I'll do this summer when I don't even have preschool time to myself during a rainy day.

The summer has all of a sudden filled up. We now have four weeks of various camps (sports, nature, tennis, oh my!) scheduled and a week at the beach. Starting at the end of June through July and into the start of August we are going to be busy. Well, at least John is going to be busy. I hope he does okay through it all and maintains the excitement he has right now about these camps. Kara and I will have to find ways to get her some activities too. And then I'm hoping to add swim lessons in to the mix as well. We'll see.

And then I'm looking forward to having some free time in early June and in August to just play around and enjoy some lazy summer days before John starts kindergarten. My goal is to make as much of these days as I can. I feel like a chapter is going to come to a close in September and while I'm so ready for school to start, I'm also sad to see our flexible, less scheduled days come to an end. John's been an amazing kid to watch grow and learn. He's funny, curious, loving, and so very enjoyable (well, most of the time).

I had someone recently tell me they thought my kids were so even-tempered all the time. I was surprised, since I see the intensity of their tempers regularly. But I also realized that clearly, while they feel comfortable expressing things with me (which is great), they also know that in the classroom or other public places, other expectations apply. That's a hard thing to learn, even for adults. And it's something that is hard to know whether your kid has learned or not, since they'll always behave differently around their parents. I am crazy for my kids, while they sometimes do make me crazy, but they are mine and I am so proud of them both.

Most summers have come with a sense of dread as to how I was going to fill all those many summer days. This year I'm looking forward to finding new things to learn with John and Kara and the many days of fun with family and friends.

Thanks...Oops!

I just realized that I haven't done a "Thankful" post in quite a LONG while! I got off track with the blog altogether for awhile and totally forgot about those posts. So here's my musings for today:

I'm thankful for:
1. John's enthusiastic swimming experiences & his awesome instructor
2. Our fabulous playgroup friends - Alexandra, Megan, Sonja and Diane
3. The warm weather we're having right now - I know it will cool down soon, but it makes me excited for the summer.
4. Cute summer dresses for Kara and her girlie side coming out in full form!
5. Definitely thankful for allergy medicines!
6. All the great upcoming activities on our calendar to spend time with our friends and family. So many things to look forward to!
7. My health - ITP seems to be staying away - yeah!!!
8. Great neighbors - the warm weather has brought everyone back outside to play and socialize and I love it!
9. The kids - they may drive me nuts some days, but they're great most of the time and I love them dearly.
10. The hubby - he works so hard and makes it possible for me to stay home and care for the kids - Thanks Honey!!!

Have a Thankful Tuesday everyone!

Swimming Again

So John started swimming lessons again this morning. This will be the last session of classes before the summer and John's loving it. He's made so much progress this winter with his skills. I'm constantly amazed by him. He's had great instructors and it's been a great winter of classes for him. I'm so glad I kept him in classes for most of the winter. His instructor, Miss Linda, told me today that he's very close to being ready for the next level of classes. We'll see. He has to jump into the water on his own and swim back to the wall in order to move up. When I told him that after class today, he said that next time (which will be Thursday) will be the last day of this level for him! What enthusiasm! I don't think they'll move him up mid-session, but I don't know. The other three kids in his current class are much further behind skill-wise than he is. So it would be nice if they could move him up, but I don't know if the policies at the community center will allow that. Anyway, he's excited and enjoying his swimming classes and I'm so proud of him. I learned yesterday that our neighborhood pool will be offering swimming lessons this summer and so I'm hopeful that we'll even be able to keep up our classes over the summer too.

Pool season, here we come!

Potatoes are Wonderful

So I thought I'd share a recipe for scalloped potatoes that is actually quite light, but very tasty, very flexible and very easy. I clipped this from Cooking Light many years ago.

Scalloped Potatoes with Cheese
1 garlic clove, halved
Butter-flavored cooking spray (I just use an olive oil sprayer)
6 medium red potatoes, cut into 1/8 inch thick slices
2 T. margarine, melted
1/2 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1/2 c. (2 oz.) shredded Gruyere cheese
1 c. skim milk

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Rub an 11x7 inch baking dish with cut sides of garlic halves; discard garlic. Coat dish with cooking spray.
2. Arrange half of potato slices in dish; drizzle with 1 T. margarine. Sprinkle with 1/4 t. salt and half of pepper; top with 1/4 c. cheese. Repeat layers with remaining ingredients.
3. Bring milk to a boil over low heat in a small saucepan; pour over potatoes. Bake uncovered, for 40 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Makes 7 servings (size: 1 c.)

This recipe can be used with virtually any variety of potatoes (trust me, I've tried it with many), and also with many different kinds of cheeses. We had mozzarella in it last week and it was super yummy! Anyway, give it a try and enjoy!

Spring Pounds? Yikes!

So I've spent most of the winter feeling pretty good about my weight, despite the fact that I was getting virtually no aerobic exercise (I do love my yoga, but it's certainly not aerobic). Somehow I managed to eat with minimal restrictions and did not see any pounds creeping on. Yet recently, of course as spring and summer approach, I was appalled yesterday morning to find out that I have gained about 9 pounds in the last couple of months! I knew that things had shifted a bit and I had put on some weight, but never felt like it was more than just a couple of pounds. Saturday, as we had a hot summer-like day, I had to dig out some shorts to wear to the preschool picnic and chose a pair I knew to be fairly loose. They weren't so loose. They were not tight either, just not the same as I remember them. Not good.

Two years ago I was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder (ITP - immune thrombocytopenic purpura) and a thyroid condition. I spent the summer of 2007 on steroids for the blood disorder and started taking thyroid medication as well. My weight (which was already not where I wanted it to be after my 2nd pregnancy) was bouncing all over the place. At first I managed to lose 5 pounds, then I gained about 12. In the fall once I was off the steroids, I was able to shed those pounds, but it was slow going. Now I'm still on the thyroid medication, and will be for the rest of my life, and I think it has an effect on my weight. Last summer/fall I had lost some weight with zero effort on my part - no exercise and no change in my eating habits. I blame it on the thyroid condition. Now I've put on a few pounds and I blame it mostly on my own habits - still low exercise and some very relaxed eating habits. But I also wonder if the thyroid condition has righted itself a little and now might be working against me a little bit. Impossible to know without a blood test, but definitely a possibility.

It's a little frustrating because I never feel like I know whether my body is working with me or against me anymore. The blood disorder could come back at any time and get pretty serious before I'm even aware of it (there are virtually no early symptoms to ITP) and the thyroid condition is not full of tangible symptoms either. It's hard to know whether what I'm feeling is simply exhaustion from chasing the kids around all day, allergies, or just fatigue from being out of shape (which I definitely am).

This weekend the weather here was very hot, so we were able to get outdoors quite a bit. I was able to sneak in a fair amount of exercise and felt pretty good about it by last night. Since stepping on the scale yesterday morning, I've even made some adjustments to my eating habits and made better snacking and meal decisions over the last two days too (with only a few slip-ups...). Hopefully I'll be on the road to a healthier, and happier, me. I really can't afford to buy all new clothes for the summer! Motivation is the key, and right now I'm really motivated!

Our Easy Week? Not!

Okay, so I thought (mistakenly) that this past week would be a light week for us. We were between swimming class sessions, which is a 2 time a week activity; I thought I might not have to work at the preschool; and I finished up several bigger projects that I was working on for my old employer. It turned out that the weather was pretty good, so we spent large parts of our days outside, playing and exploring. We had a few errands to run, but were mostly free of actual time commitments. Then it turned out I also had to work at the preschool on Thursday and Friday afternoons, which I don't mind because it is lots of fun, but it is a day that I don't get to putter at home during school. Thursday I got to work at the science table and helped the kids dig at a decaying log in search of bugs and worms. So much fun! The week was pretty much non-stop, which I guess I really should have been able to predict. It seems anymore that unless one (or more) of us is sick, we are just on the go, all the time. It's good for all of us, but it is also pretty exhausting! And doesn't leave much time for blogging. ;-)

We'll start swimming again this week for John. We have one more Little Bits class for Kara. And we have our playgroup one morning as well. It's shaping up to be another busy week ahead. But again the weather is supposed to be pretty good, and that means lots of time outdoors with friends. Good for all! My attitude just feels better when we've had a day that has been spent mostly outside exploring and playing with our friends.

Yesterday afternoon we attended the preschool's family spring picnic. It was a very hot day -over 90 degrees! But the turnout was great and no one seemed bothered by the heat. The kids ran around for 3 hours straight and played so well with their friends. The food was good and we were all wiped out by the end. We came home, did a quick bath for the kids (to wipe off all the sweat!) and then straight to bed (after drinking a fair amount of water). It was a great day for everyone who could make it and reminded me about all the fun activities of warmer weather days. It felt more like summer than it usually does in April. I even had to dig in a box to find a pair of shorts to wear. But the picnic was definitely a success. A great family time for all.

Helmets and TV

Who knew that it's better to watch morning tv cartoons with bike helmets on? Well apparently my kids knew this tidbit. They are both currently watching "Little Einsteins" and are wearing bike helmets! Kara started it, but John thought it was a good idea as well and immediately put his one helmet on too. It's too funny.

We have been outside enjoying the wonderful spring weather the last few days and that has also meant several opportunities to ride bikes. They definitely need the practice, so it's been good for them. And thus the helmets didn't quite get put away last night when we came in from outside. So upon seeing the chance to wear the helmets again, they insisted on putting them back on. You never can be too safe! Hee hee.

Happy Spring!

Fishing

So one of the favorite activities John was able to do with my Dad last week was to go fishing. They went twice and caught one fish the first day and two the second time. John's very excited about being able to keep the fish, instead of having to catch and release them. So Dad made sure they went someplace where they'd be able to keep the fish. I'm not quite sure why John's so insistent on keeping the fish, since he's not all that interested in eating them. But like any good grandfather, Dad kept the fish, per John's wishes, and brought them home.

Instead of eating them, John was apparently interested in dissecting them. I was not much into biology as a child, so this intrigues me. But John was very excited to relate to me upon our return how they had taken apart the fish's eyes, head, and body. For example, the fish eyes have black "gooey" stuff inside them - yuck! Anyway, John was very scientific about the exploration of the fish insides and was thrilled to find that one of the fish had egg sacks inside its belly, and that the egg sacks had "thousands" of eggs in them.

It was one of those stories that as a parent you think it's a great experience for your child to have, clearly he's interested in science-type things, but you're SO glad you didn't have to be the one to experience it with him! Thanks Grandpa!!!

Chili dinner

As I was making my Mom's basic family chili recipe today for two preschool families who recently had babies and also for our family dinner tonight, it occurred to me that this would be a great recipe to share. I've given it out to many friends over the years and it is a favorite of ours. It's a basic chili recipe that uses ground beef. Of course since we don't eat meat, I use the vegetarian fake ground beef crumbles (sold by Morningstar Farms or Boca - both good and easy to use). So I thought it'd be a good recipe to share with others. It's easy and very yummy. Enjoy!

Mom's Chili

1 lb. ground beef
2 small onions, chopped
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
2 15 oz. cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 t. salt
1 T. chili powder
2 t. oregano
1 beef (or veggie) bouillon cube
1 T. cumin seed
1/4 t. cayenne

Brown the beef and onions. Add the other ingredients and simmer over low heat for one hour.

How much easier can it be?

Can we have more Spring Break?

We are back to things as normal around here, well, we will be tomorrow when classes, playgroups, and preschool resume for us. Last week was Spring Break for us. The kids had a FABULOUS week with the grandparents (and the grandparents are still speaking to us, claiming they had a great time too, so that's good). And Matt and I had a GREAT week in Kitty Hawk, NC without the kids! It was a very fast four-night trip, but we had a lot of fun. We ate dinner out every night, eating lots of yummy fresh seafood and enjoying the relaxed pace of child-free meals. Our days were very relaxed and pretty much schedule-free (since life at home is definitely NOT schedule-free). We shopped, walked on the beach, ate a lot, and played games. The highlight of the trip was probably the hang gliding (well, that and not waking up to yells of "MOMMY!!" each morning). The day we went hang gliding, the wind was pretty strong, making it a lot easier for everyone in the class to take flight, but also a little hard to tolerate standing on the top of a huge sand dune for 3 hours. We had a blast, but were very exhausted by the end. All in all the trip was big success and reminded us that the kids will be fine without us and we definitely need to do more small adult-only trips in the future.

In the days since we've been home we've had Easter, the joys of unpacking and getting resettled all while Kara's been sick. She came down with a fever and the blah's at the end of the week (I'm suspecting a light case of the flu) and has continued to be on the tired and cranky side since we've been home. Nothing like a clingy toddler to make you wish you were back at the beach! Easter was good, just us, just at home, not too exciting, but good family time together. The kids hunted their eggs, we had a yummy breakfast, then hung out most of the day. John helped me to make fresh noodles for a lasagna dinner (the best with fresh noodles) and we got out for a walk around the neighborhood before a nice early bedtime.

It's been a good start to our spring, but of course as it always does the list of chores has grown while we've been having fun. The yard is in desperate need of a spring cleaning (things are starting to grow and bud, and I haven't cleaned up the old stuff yet!), the house needs to be cleaned inside, the kids' closets need organizing, we have a few items that need to get cleared out (a.k.a. purged!), and the list goes on and on. For now, I'm looking toward getting through tomorrow - we start back to swimming class for John, playgroup for Kara, back to preschool for John, and then YOGA for me tomorrow night!

My motto right now - take each day as it comes - enjoy and cherish. It goes by so fast, even though it doesn't always feel that way. Three families in our neighborhood have newborns now and it has really reminded me how far we've come in such a short time. Sometimes I miss that newborn stage...and then I'm just glad for where we are today.

Fondue - Yummmmm!

This week was Matt's birthday and in order to celebrate last weekend we had a family fondue night. Fondue is one of our favorite special meals. We've never done it often exactly, but before the kids we did have it for special occasions, birthdays and anniversaries. This was only the second time we've had it with the kids. And John absolutely loved it! I was expecting them both to just eat the bread pieces without dipping it into the cheese, which is what Kara did. But John actually really got into the dipping process and ate a ton of the cheese fondue. It was a great family birthday dinner!

So I thought I'd share the recipes for the fondue I made last week and the one we will make next week on our beach trip. The first will be a pizza fondue recipe, which I know sounds odd, but it really is yummy. The second is for a basic swiss cheese fondue and is very simple and is our favorite. I hope you enjoy!


Pizza Fondue
14.5 oz. can stewed tomatoes
1/2 c. tomato salsa
4 c. grated cheese (cheddar/jack)
Fresh ground pepper to taste1 large loaf crusty bread - cut into 1" cubes
Assorted veggies - cut into bite sized pieces

In the fondue pot, use a pair of knives to chop the stewed tomatoes into bite sized pieces or smaller. Add salsa and bring to simmer. Adjust heat to prevent boiling. Slowly add cheese by the handful, stirring regularly to melt evenly. Reduce flame and grind pepper over the top. Makes 6-8 servings.

Often for the pizza fondue I will do the cooking part in a pot on the stove and then once it's all melted, then pour it into the fondue pot. Melting 4C. of cheese takes awhile and doing it on the stove saves the fondue burner. Just a tip.

Fondue Chablis (our favorite!)

1/2 lb. swiss cheese
1 1/2 t. flour
1 clove garlic, sliced in half
1/2 c. chablis (or other dry white wine)
1/4 t. salt
pinch pepper
pinch nutmeg

Grate cheese coarsely and toss with flour. Rub fondue pot and wooden spoon with garlic and then discard garlic. Pour in wine, heat. Add cheese and flour. Stir until melted, then add seasonings. Serves 3.

We often have this one with a big salad and the rest of the bottle of wine. How yummy!!!

Silly Putty

Yesterday we had a first around here. There was a silly putty in the hair experience! Yes, I know, it's hard to believe, but it did happen. Late in the day, as I was about to start making dinner, the kids were playing nicely together and I was puttering on the computer. Then all of a sudden they come running over to where I am and tell me that there is silly putty in Kara's hair. I looked and it was a big chunk of silly putty now nicely wrapped up in a sizable section of hair. Lovely.

Her hair is finally long enough (and occasionally she's willing) to put it up into pigtails or headbands. Cutting it now would likely take off her beautiful curls and make it short enough to not be able to pull it back. I was about to cry when I saw how much hair was being affected by the silly putty.

After a few declarations of amazement and frustration directed at John (who truly felt very badly for what had happened), I then got Kara to sit down and I gently pulled out as many strands of hair as I could in order to avoid having to resort to the scissors. I was actually able to get out most of it, but it took 15-20 minutes and was very challenging to do. Kara was a super champ through the whole process and John pretty much sat quietly and watched me. He went and got everything I asked him for and was very cooperative for the rest of the day. Anyway, I was able to whittle it down to just a small section of hair that was thoroughly entangled in the silly putty and then the scissors did have to come out. I was VERY thankful I only ended up having to cut a tiny bit of her hair. It really could have been much much worse than it was.

In the end no one will be able to tell it ever happened, except for me. But it was quite the surprise that I really was not in the mood for yesterday afternoon after what has been a very long week. I hope today is a quieter, less eventful, day!

A Walk for Sunshine

I am about to finish reading a fabulous book written by a man who thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 1998. The book is titled "A Walk for Sunshine." He used the hike as an opportunity to do a fundraiser for Sunshine Home, a collection of group homes and services for individuals with mental retardation and other disabilities located in Ohio. The cover of the book says he's raised over $100,000. His original fundraising goal was $10,000.

It's a well-written account of his experiences on the Trail and provides insight into what a person must conquer during such a trek. Weather, animals, gear, other hikers, motivation and other obstacles must all be overcome to reach the final destination. It's quite an impressive task.

There was a time in my life when I thought I might section-hike the AT. I've never aspired to do a thru-hike, but section-hiking appealed to me. Who knows, someday that might still happen. It's a nice option to be able to say you completed the AT, without the intensity and grit required for a thru-hike. We'll see.

The AT is something that has always been around during my youth. I spent a lot of time camping and hiking when I was growing up. And have done many day hikes on the Trail. It's a beautiful place and I always find hiking a very peaceful and serene experience, not to mention the fabulous exercise it provides! Reading this book has reminded me of how valuable a resource the Trail is and how close it is to us. I am now inspired to get out and get on the Trail sometime soon! Anyone want to join us??

Spring is Coming

I can tell this is happening each year in our neighborhood when the daffodils, which are everywhere here, start popping through the mulch. Tulips are coming up too, and yesterday I pointed out all the clumps of bright yellow forsythia around. It truly is my favorite time of year. The weather is getting warmer, finally, and we're starting to spend more time outside with friends, many of whom we haven't seen much since the fall.

Of course, I'm also reminded of all the work that comes along with spring. There is a ton of yardwork to be done, even in our very small yard space. Fortunately, John loves to help with this, so it's really just a matter of finding a dry day to work on it. There's also trips to prepare for - our Spring Break adventures and potentially two camping trips this year as well. I'm thinking about plans for the kids for the summer already too, and appreciating the time we have left of this school year. There's lots of clearing out of old things and cleaning to be done as well, which is always a struggle in our small house.

But this year, as the kids are a little older now, also brings me optimistic hopes for the coming seasons. We can do a few more things now and I'm looking forward to new adventures with them. We were hoping to get down to DC for the annual kite festival this weekend, but the weather may keep us from doing that. So we'll just have to find another activity to keep everyone busy during what's likely to be a wet weekend. I'm sure we will find something fun and we'll have to remember that the rain will just help those daffodils and tulips grow so that next week when we get a break from the rain, the neighborhood will be in full-spring mode. Just the way I like it!

Happy Spring!

We all survived

We've managed to come out on the other end of our week without Daddy and we all survived just fine. We're all a little tired and my sanity might be a little stretched, but it's okay. Matt returned yesterday from his association's annual conference, and he was gone for a full week. It was a long week, for everyone. The kids and I stayed quite busy, so the days went fast and everyone was exhausted at bedtime. The weekend was spent at my parents' house and with good weather there was plenty to do there - gardening, cooking, building the weather changer, and much more. The kids were pretty good this week and I'm so thankful. I was still not feeling all that well, so I needed the few breaks that I got. I'm just now starting to feel a bit better and am very much looking forward to a weekend together for all of us. Matt's birthday is coming up next week, so the coming days will be filled with fun family activities and celebrations and visits with his parents.

I'm thankful to have us all together and am looking forward to being able to enjoy our quality time this weekend. And maybe some blogging and a yoga class or two as well! ;-)

Getting Busy (and Sick) Again

The coming days are going to be hectic to say the least. Matt leaves on Wednesday morning for a full week for his association's annual conference. It's A LOT of work for him, and leaves me with the kids for a week, which is also a lot of work, with no breaks. This week we're full of activities (John starts swimming classes again, and Kara starts her Little Bits class as well), we're also babysitting preschool siblings and already watched some neighbors today. Last night I found out about a deadline I have for my work that is this week as well (and I'm a bit behind the curve on getting the work done). And of course, to top it all off, I've come down with a brand new round of head cold business. Great timing!

It's certainly going to be a push to get through the rest of this week and then on Friday we'll head out to my parents' house for the weekend. It'll be a welcome break for me and give the kids a change of scenery. I think we'll all be ready for it by then.

I can tell it's going to be a long week when on Monday morning I'm already looking forward to Friday afternoon. And even more looking forward to Matt's return. And even MORE to the adults-only trip we're going to take over Spring Break. We've planned a mom and dad only trip to the Outer Banks for four nights and it's a LONG overdue trip that I'm more than ready for now.

For now, I'll have to be content with getting through the next three weeks, day by day, and dreaming of the beach trip to come. Ahhhhhhhhhh......