May Catch Up

I feel like I need to bridge the gap in between posts. But there always seems to be something else to do that is higher on the priority list, and posting gets pushed aside. Also, I tend to sabotage myself by feeling like my posts have to be finished products. Something I will continue to work on...

So here's to rough drafts and posting more regularly!

My month of May in a nutshell:
1. A toothache turned out to be a cracked molar...the molar needed a crown...the crown upset my tooth's nerves...the nerves called for a root canal (through the new crown)...and four dental visits later I now have a happy, fake molar with a filling.

2. My iphone is hanging on by a thread...it fell out of my pocket and dropped on concrete, cracking the face pretty badly. It still operates, but is hard to read. The apple store took a look at it and informed me it also has water damage (oopsy-maybe it was that time it fell in the toilet?) So it was recommended I pay for a replacement or wait until December to upgrade. What to do?

3. I made a new batch of pendant necklaces to sell at a local spring boutique. I wish I'd taken a picture of the finished products all cutely packaged up, but here are a few I worked on.

4. I put on another ladies' activity night at church. We had dinner and some classes. I made the flyers (below) and managed to take home some extra flowers we used as centerpieces. Believe it or not these beauties all came from people's own backyards. The vibrant spring colors were amazing. I felt happy every time I walked by them.

5. And finally, I was busy helping plan a wedding reception. This was the first (and maybe last) time I've ever been asked to help with an event outside our activity meetings at church. A wedding reception is a much bigger affair. And I was slightly intimidated. But they assured me they only needed some ideas to get started. And really it was just the decorating aspect. Food and activities were already being handled. Thank goodness. I would have no idea how to feed that many people! Anyway, these are some inspiration boards I gave the couple to get started:

Black-Eyed G

It's a sad story really, so I'll spare you the details. Let's just say it involved the regular mischief and a fall. In fact there's been a lot of that lately. Mischief.

Gav is TROUBLE. And he thinks it's all fun and games. His latest antics include filling his mouth with drinks (any drink-water, milk, juice) and spitting it out everywhere. The thing is, there's no telling when he's going to do it. Just whenever.

He also likes to destroy things. He will break Owen's creations, scatter neatly-folded laundry, push buttons that shouldn't be pushed, climb things that shouldn't be climbed, and basically take apart the house tornado-style.

And worst of all, the scribbling. He's written on tables, walls, windows, himself. Just this week while I was changing a load of laundry he wrote with an inkpen on four separate cushions of our couch. I spent a good part of the morning cleaning it up. Luckily it all came out, but I fear for our furniture.

It's exhausting trying to keep up with him. And so far the time-outs don't seem to phase him much. When I give him the "no-no" talk, he smiles and replies, "OK Mama." He even looks remorseful. Then he proceeds to wreak havoc on something else in a happy-go-lucky way.

Wondering if the black eye incident will slow him down. Doubtful.

Why Don't I Have More Photos?

After sweet talking, then begging, then bribing, I was able to convince my boys to take some photos on Easter Sunday. I quickly grabbed the camera for a three-minute photo session, wherein I got the following photos.

"Ok guys, can you please stand together?"

"Gavin, get up.
Owen, can you help?"

"Just give me a quick smile please!"

"Owen, can you sit by Gavin or put your arm around him?
Gavin, stop making your pirate face."

"Aaaaand, we're done."

Hey Batter Batter

We decided to try out spring baseball since fall soccer went so well (not really). And Owen has really enjoyed it so far. He willingly goes to practice and actually participates without prodding and tears. We actually signed him up for coach pitch t-ball, which means a tee is used only after three missed swings. Here's Owen up to bat at his very first game.



What I did NOT capture on my iPhone was the last hit of the game. The other team was up and their star player was at bat. She was dang good. On the second pitch she swung and whacked that ball directly between second and third base....right where Owen was standing. It smacked him right in the head (or rather the bill of his cap). Immediately the coaches ran over to see if he was alright. No reaction. He just stood there. Silent. I think the coaches and other parents were freaked out because he didn't react AT ALL. No crying, no words, no response.

I knew, however, that Owen absolutely hates any kind of attention when he gets hurt. He usually runs away. But in this case he just stood there. Eventually he walked off the field and he was totally fine. But he has an amazing coach who felt so bad about the whole ordeal that he gave Owen a special game ball.

On it he wrote:
Owen
Cubs vs. A's
4/9/11

Inside, Outside

Is it just us, or are you having wishy-washy weather too? Some days we spend entirely outside in our short sleeves and sandals. Then it rains and we pull out sweaters and turn on the heat again. Here are a few ways we've been spending our spring days.

INSIDE. We've been crafting with beans, marshmallows, toothpicks, leaves, and other household supplies. Owen spent a good afternoon decorating this bean monster.

OUTSIDE. We've been breaking out the sunscreen and shades. Gotta love kids in glasses.

INSIDE. Renaissance of the toys. We have brought out a whole slew of toys that were forgotten. This racetrack was up for a week straight. Owen drew up a plan, we built it, and the boys took turns sending car after car down the raceway.

OUTSIDE. Day trips to our nearby Happy Hollow are always a hit. Carousel rides, animal sightings, and lots of space to run and play.

INSIDE. There have been plenty of Easter preparations. We've made bunny hats, grown flowers, and had lots of living room egg hunts.

OUTSIDE. It's all about the park. Last week we hit four different ones. Basic need of boys = getting energy out!

INSIDE. Movie after movie after movie. Sick days called for TV. Rainy days called for TV. I'm kind of done with TV.


Still waiting for that week of outside, outside, outside.

When it Rains

...make a pinecone bird feeder.

March has been a wet and sick month. I feel like it's been raining forever! Sure we get one good month of rain per year in this area, while many other parts of the country get much soggier. But it still seems like it's never going to end.

And with the bad weather came the under the weather. Seriously, someone in this household has been sick for the past 25 days. We've all taken turns, multiple turns. It feels like it's never going to end.

So during this season of hibernation, we have tried to keep ourselves busy with inside activities. Low key, keep-from-going-crazy activities.

One such activity is looking out the window. We spend a lot of time parked in front of a pane, watching things happen. Mostly we see garbage trucks and mailmen coming and going. Yard maintenance and repairmen making their stops. Even the occasional neighbor braving the rain to walk their dog.

And then there's the pinecone bird feeder. Owen found an awesome pinecone which we slathered with peanut butter and rolled in bird seed. Initially we put it close to the ground and sat back to watch. No birds all day. But the next day it was cleaned off. Not a speck of butter or seed. Must be the rain, we thought. So we made another and hung it from a small branch. Next day it looked touched but still no sight of any birds. Then a few days later there was a break in the rain and we caught this on camera:


We watched proudly as our bird feeder was doing its job.

Then the next thing we knew the bird had flown off only to be replaced with this:

That daredevil squirrel was hanging by his toes to reach the snack! Hungry? Yes. Impressive? Double yes.

In the days since then we've seen the occasional bird stop by, but mostly it's that gutty squirrel who's has been licking the pinecone clean.

Como Se Dice "Chubby"

I was doing some grocery shopping in Trader Joes a few days ago with Gavin. While in the dairy section I stopped to inspect some eggs and noticed two older Hispanic ladies looking at Gavin and smiling. One mumbled to the other in Spanish and they both giggled. Then she pointed toward Gavin and said, "gordito". The other nodded and agreed, "Ah, gordito." Then they smiled and spoke a few more words (in Spanish) before giving him a wink and heading down the next aisle.

I could tell they were enamored by him, so I was amused. I just wasn't sure what it was about him that made them stop and take special notice. In my mind he's not the chubby baby he used to be. Maybe it was the bag of snacks in his lap I had given him to keep him happy. Or maybe it was his round cheeks, chomping on the bits of snacks. Or perhaps it was the cart buckle that I strapped tightly around his middle (causing his belly to hang out). Come to think of it, he did look a little bit like a toad sitting there in the cart.

No matter. I like gorditos.




*By the way, I was in Joes again this evening with both Owen and Gavin. Have you noticed evening shoppers are not nearly as pleasant as morning shoppers? Sure I would be a little put off by a couple of boys that are bouncing around the aisles. But sheesh, I was the one who had to do the shopping with them.

Four Eyes No More

Gone are the days of waking up and reaching for my glasses in the morning. I still do it sometimes out of habit, but these old lenses are now obsolete. They will be making their way to Thailand (by way of an Eagle Scout project) for others to use.

My contact lenses and solution no longer take up space in my bathroom drawer. They were nice while they lasted. But come allergy season, they were sandpaper on my eyeballs. Pure torture.

I finally bit the bullet and had LASIK done about a month ago. It was the best surgery I've ever had...hands-down. And I couldn't be happier with the results. In fact, I went to a followup appointment and learned that my vision is even better than 20/20. Amazing. Life-changing.

Farewell to you, eyewear.

Laundry

Doing my husband's laundry is so enthralling.

Gav Look-Alikes

When I'm out and about with Gavin I get comments about his round cheeks or his bruiser physique. He's been called cute and handsome a time or two. But I also get told fairly often that he looks like someone famous. He's a bit of a look-alike I guess. I've done a quick comparison to show just who he's been compared to.

William Moseley. You may recognize him as "Peter" from the Narnia movies. I guess I can see it.


Prince Harry. I'm thinking the hair color and the teeth are the comparisons. I wouldn't mind if Gavin grew up to look like Harry. Very handsome.


Barney Rubble. Now this one came as a surprise. A cartoon with beady eyes? Kind of a stretch. But it could be worse I guess.


Matt Damon (in The Informant). I have to give Mark credit for this comparison. When we dressed Gavin up as Nacho for Halloween he strangely resembled the heavier version of Matt Damon. Just picture some glasses with that mustache on Gavin and I'd say the look-alike is pretty true. In fact Mark now nicknames Gavin "Fat Damon". So endearing, don't you think?

I guess I should also add the most recent comment - a comparison of Gav to the late Chris Farley (from the back side). Again, maybe it's his hair? His curves? Either way it's safe to say Gavin looks like a little man. Part handsome, somewhat quirky, and a bit round.

Gav 1.5

Gavin is eighteen months old. And that feels just about right. As much as time flies, it seems like Gavin has been part of our family forever. He is such a lovable little boy. His personality is fun and cheerful. His body is round and cuddly. His cheeks are rosy. His hair is swirly and awesome. And that little gap between his teeth is no longer there. In fact, he's almost got a mouth full of teeth. It seems each time he opens his mouth I see a couple more coming through.


He now weighs 29 lbs and is 33 inches tall. He is getting pickier with foods, but still manages to pack on the pounds. He regularly goes to the fridge and helps himself to his cup of milk or any other item on the lower shelf. And he's learned to pull a chair up to access the pantry or countertop. Scary!


He likes to help around the house and gets excited at the sight of a vacuum or broom. He loves to throw things in the garbage (Owen's clothes and random toys included). And he follows me everywhere. Eve-ry-where. My little shadow.


He is learning to mimic everything. If he hears Owen making vroom sounds with cars, he makes the same sounds. If he sees us laughing, he automatically begins to laugh. And he's acquiring more words in his vocabulary. He's mastered mom, dad, and Owen. Then there's the classic hi and bye (he LOVES those). And he's got animal sounds down. Plus he knows grandma, grandpa, ball, bath, backpack, wow, uh-oh, and a new favorite - dogpile.


He's pretty attached to his blanket. He loves to be naked (what little boy doesn't?) He is always up for bike rides, playing at the park, chasing or being chased, and snacking on crackers. He's starting to scribble (on and off paper), do puzzles, kick, throw, and roll a ball, stack and destroy...typical toddler tasks.

The kid is healthy, happy and loved.

A Christmas to Remember

There's been a lot of holiday action going on around here. And by action I don't mean baking and shopping and caroling. Action of a very different sort. I'm talking hospital visits. This Christmas season has already proven to be one I won't soon forget.

SATURDAY
You see, we're spending the holiday in Utah with Mark's family. And on Saturday night Mark's pregnant sister (who has been in the hospital on bed rest for several weeks now) went into labor. The problem is she is only 26 weeks along in her pregnancy. We waited and wondered and hoped things would stabilize. And they did.

SUNDAY
So on Sunday morning we decided we should go to church. It was the Christmas program afterall. Yet not more than 30 minutes into the meeting we found ourselves abruptly leaving and heading to the hospital. But not for Mark's sister this time.

Gavin had gotten wiggly and Mark took him out to the hallway to wander a bit. Gavin busied himself with opening and closing a classroom door, and in the process caught his middle finger in the door. This heavy wooden door didn't just pinch his skin. It nearly severed the tip of this finger. So off to the ER we went. Not long after that we found ourselves at Primary Children's Hospital getting an x-ray of the finger for bone damage. Luckily the laceration did not fracture the bone, but they needed to stitch the finger back together. So they decided to put our little Gavin under for the surgery.

Mark and I sat in the room while the doctors gave him oxygen and worked to repair the damaged finger. It was all so surreal. I'll never forget seeing his little body on that large hospital bed. Limp and hurt. And then sitting by his bed after surgery and waiting for him to wake. He looked like a little doll.

We spent nearly half the day in the ER. But we had a remarkably good experience there. The staff quickly brought activities to entertain Owen during the ordeal. We were served food and drinks. And the doctors and nurses were so sweet with Gavin. We felt very well cared for.

MONDAY
However the action was not over yet. Early Monday morning we got word that Mark's sister was delivering her baby, ready or not. Pins and needles! She delivered a 1 lb 15 oz baby boy. T-I-N-Y but breathing on his own.

TUESDAY
Today we headed back to Primary Children's Hospital for our first follow-up on Gavin's finger. Everything looks really good and the finger is healing well. Then this afternoon we headed to the hospital again to meet our newest nephew, lying in an incubator in the NICU. He is the tiniest human being I've ever seen. He is beautiful and precious. And I love him.

All these holiday happenings have kept us busy and left us a bit tired. But I can't think of a more perfect way to remember this season than seeing my happy boy with a healing finger and a newborn baby boy making his way into the world.

(Gavin's hospital souvenirs: a soft reindeer blanket, a plush dog, wristband and medical supplies)

(Owen's souvenirs: Hospital Buddies he decorated and cared for during our stay)

Handmade Gifts

It is a tradition in my family to do a gift giving swap each Christmas where we draw names and give to three different people. This year we incorporated a new rule that one of the items must be handmade. And I happened to draw my sister's husband for that one. So...what, what, what to do? I think it'd be a whole lot easier to make something for my sister or sisters-in-law. But no. I had to get creative. Since my brother-in-law is in a band, I decided to make him a guitar strap cover. And because he isn't a reader of this blog I won't spoil anything by sharing the finished product:



I also spent some time creating a few handmade crafts to sell at a holiday boutique my friend hosts in the area. These are the countdown blocks I made:


And while looking around the boutique I met a grandmother who hand knits these lovely little baby sweaters. They were so cute! I just couldn't resist. I had to buy this adorably festive one (for only $8 I might add). It is just tiny and sparkly and I love it.


One other thing I should share is a fun kit we put together this year for our neighbors. We gave them an assortment of goodies to make gingerbread houses. I like the idea of giving them something they can do together as a family. And who doesn't love to eat the leftover sweets!

'Tis the Season

It's gift giving season already! I can hardly believe it! And as part of our annual church craft fair I put together a table of gift ideas. Simple ones to give to friends and neighbors. I found a lot of cute ideas online so I thought I'd share.


1. Candy Cane Mint Milanos - Milano cookies are great as is, but this idea makes them even more festive and delicious.




2.S'mores Kit - I love this idea for a cozy winter evening!




3. Produce from Santa's Orchard - What a lovely little way to give fresh fruit!




4. Reindeer and Snowman Pops - I took this idea and altered it to be even easier. I dipped Oreos in chocolate and made both reindeer and snowmen.




5.Caramel Apples and Granola - A perfect holiday snack. I used a can of sweetened condensed milk as the caramel (turns to caramel when microwaved)




6.Donut Snowmen - This couldn't be simpler...or more tempting.




7. Hot Chocolate on a Stick - A tad tedious, but it turns out absolutely delicious!



8. Drink Toppers - Break out the bubbly! Dress it up and drink it down.


See? Cute AND easy. Now go get your giving on!

Soccer...

...or "How we've spent our Saturdays for the last three months"


We just finished up our first season of soccer with Owen. And I count it as a success. Not because of our winning record, I might add. (We lost every single game.) But because we started the season like this:


And ended like this:


Our little #6 once again approached things on his own terms. He refused to play for the first month of practices and games. It was pure torture. Mark would coax and lead, beg and plead. But to no avail. Then slowly Owen warmed up to his coaches and teammates and at least stayed on the field for the whole game. By season's end, he was kicking the ball right along with the rest of them...and enjoying it.

Last week we celebrated the season with a team party. Pizza was eaten, trophies were handed out, and we got a piece of this amazing cake:


Now that soccer's through I wonder if we should attempt baseball in the spring...