Loveliness

Time to get some happy and think about the things I'm loving these days. First up is the pool. We went to the Webster Groves kid time last Friday for the first time. It was wonderful. Nate played in the water like a pro and even branched out to do a few activities by himself. I was so proud and relieved because I wasn't sure how having 2 at the pool would go. Well, let's just say I can't wait to go back this Friday. I love getting our swimsuits on, the sweet smell of sunscreen, the splashing and playing, and even the way your dry clothes feel after you've been swimming. Yes, I'm truly a swim nerd.

This is not our pool, just A pool to illustrate my point...

I don't know if they had these or not when Nate was little. But they are a lifesaver. Lila is still kind of hot and cold on baby food, but she loves these. And they keep her busy in the high chair while I'm making dinner. Score.

With our hard wood floors, we have to have a vacuum that can be easily run at least once a day. I had one when we first moved to STL but it died last year and we replaced it. But the replacement just never worked the way I wanted it to...well...I finally found a suitable replacement. It is a Shark and it works great! And it's purple!

I said all I wanted for Mother's Day was some new dish towels. I got an iPhone. I'd say I traded up on that deal. But the fact remained that I needed new dish towels. Scott picked these out and they are my favorite dish towels of all time. You wash them in bleach to activate the microbial protection. Yes, I believe that they are cleaner than most towels. The marketing worked on me.

Do you love anything that I would love if you told me you loved it????

Disclaimer: I am not receiving any compensation for the product likes listed above. Just passing on the love from my heart to your computer screen!

Revelation

You know, sometimes I fall into the trap of thinking I do it all. Having two kids is a little more work that I planned for it to be (isn't it always?) and of course there is always something to do. It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking you do more than your co-parent. Well. This weekend, I realized, if you live in a glass house, don't be throwin' no rocks. Scott left early Saturday morning to go to Atlanta to attend a wedding party for a dear friend of ours. A dear friend who's wedding we will not be able to attend later this summer. I encouraged him to go. I mean, it's only Saturday & Sunday and then I take the kids to school on Monday morning. He would be back on Monday afternoon. No problem, I say. It won't be any different than every day, right?

Well. Well. Well. And some more Well. Since I'm off on Fridays, I was with the kids all day Friday. I saw Scott for about 30 minutes total on Friday night because Nate and I went to the movie and then we all headed to bed shortly after we got home because frankly I was tired and Scott had to get up early on Saturday morning. Then I was with the kids all day Saturday. And Sunday. And Monday morning. I'm used to doing Fridays by myself. But Scott always comes home and we are all together for the weekend.

To say it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be is a huge, bigger than huge, understatement. I did not have time to do one single thing for myself from sun up to sun down. And since I let Nate sleep with me, I couldn't even go to bed when I wanted to because I had to stay up past him to get a few minutes to myself!

Lila would not sleep for more than 20 minutes in her crib (a new development in her sleep habits) and gets up at 5:30 AM. And Nate is not hard when he's awake but gosh dern he makes you talk, all.the.time. And if I had to talk about Star Wars much longer, well, let's just say, I might as well be dating Luke Skywalker. And if I remember, he's not that cute:)

When one kid would go to sleep, the other one would get up. When one kid wasn't screaming, grunting, or whining, the other one was. Or both at the same time, even better. Lila was on a new antibiotic that was doing fantastic things to her unmentionable output. And Nate decided he wanted to be sitting in my lap any time I was sitting down (which was about 2 minutes on Sunday morning, or when we were in the pool).

But there is something about this weekend that made me appreciate my children more and the little things they do. Like Nate's soft breathing while he is sleeping or Lila starting to put her head on my shoulder voluntarily. Or Nate asking what he can do to help me. Or Lila waking up happy as a lark, even if it is early.

I love my kids. Wow, I love them so much. I told them so many times this weekend. They didn't ruin my weekend, they enhanced it. They made me appreciate motherhood in ways that I've never appreciated it before. And they made me be very, very, very, very, very thankful that I am not a single mother. All those things I thought I was doing all by myself? Yep, not so much. Scott does a million billion things that I probably don't give him enough credit for - including whisking the kids away when I think I'm going to lose my mind. And taking out the trash. And cleaning the kitty litter box. And picking up the 5,987 Legos that collect themsevles on the coffee table. And entertaining the kids while I'm cooking dinner. And holding Lila so I can eat dinner. And playing with the kids so I can pick up the house so my OCD doesn't go into overdrive. And reading Nate's books before he goes to bed. And washing the bottles out at night so I don't have to in the morning. And keeping the kids so that I can go to the grocery store and Target by myself. And watering the tomato plants. And taking the kids to school. And finding things we lose, like bike helmets. And telling me that Lila is not allergic to the antibiotic, just a mirage I made up.

And most of all being there to tell me I'm doing a good job. Thank you Scott for all that you do. I hope your weekend away was fun! Cause you can never go away again. Just kidding...sort of:)

To Swim or Not to Swim?

Swimming, swimming, swimming. It's no secret that I was less than thrilled with Nate's trepidation with the water when he was younger. He's still not a huge fun of putting his face in, but at least he likes to go swimming now so we've made progress. But I have to admit, this was a hard one for me to get over - him not having an instant love affair with the water and all. I mean, by age 4 (going on 5), I was on the swim team. At age 5 (Nate's age now), I was swimming in swim meets. Sigh. We aren't there yet with him, but I'm okay with that. To each their own.

But Lila...now, that's a different story. I'm bound and determined she is going to take to the water faster than Nate. We went to the pool on Friday for the first time this year and I was pumped to give her a taste of pool life. Well. She cried when I put her feet in. Awesome. What is the deal with my kids and water???? She was happy to sit on the side though and the whole trip was a success so I had to be happy about that at least.

We filled up the pool at home and again I tried to impress on her my love for the water. And whaddayaknow? She squealed with delight and wanted to sit, stand, and splash in the water. Success! We played in the pool both days this weekend and had a great time.

Yes, Lila has on a semi-wet suit. The child is as pale as a white bed sheet. Another thing that I was not able to impress on her. Olive skin tone.

Nate looks a little pained. But trust me, he's not. That's just his smile when I ask him to smile, smile. Awesome, isn't it?

That's better...except my baby really doesn't look like a baby in this picture. Sigh.

Recipe Monday

This is an oldie but goody from my sister-in-law, Amanda. The best enchiladas ever!

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

1 1/2 cup cooked, shredded chicken
2 cups shredded cheese
1 cup picante sauce
4 oz cream cheese
1 tsp chili powder
8 soft flour tortillas
1 1/2 cup bottled taco sauce

Pre-heat oven to 350. In large skillet, mix chicken, 1/2 of shredded cheese, picante sauce, cream cheese & chili powder. Cook on medium until cheese is melted.

Spoon into tortillas. Drizzle with taco sauce and the rest of shredded cheese.

Cover & bake for 25 minutes.

Enjoy!

A First

Nate has never really showed interest in going to the movie theater. When we asked him about going, he would just say that he wasn't old enough yet, it was too dark there, the screen was too big, etc...last summer when Toy Story 3 came out, I just knew he would go to the theater. Nope. He politely replied, "Mom, I'll just wait until it comes out on DVD."

Well, this summer, I decided I was going to softly prod him to go because I knew he would love Kung Fu Panda 2 and Cars 2. And yes, he still tried to play the waiting for it to come out on DVD game. But he finally gave in.

And so we went...just the 2 of us. It was heaven. We do operate on the split up, each take one child technique around here. I mean, you have to sometimes to get things done. But I usually take Lila and Scott takes Nate. Nate usually prefers it this way. So I wanted to do something just with him. I forgot how easy he really is and how nice it is to have a walking, talking, potty trained companion.

The before picture that wasn't meant to be...

We went to eat before heading over to the theater in the mall. I didn't realize it was 3D but that just sweetened the deal for Nate. He loved it. I could tell he was timid at first but he really got into the 3D effects and the story.

I appreciate Nate so much and can't believe the big boy he has grown into. I can't see any of his baby face anymore and that could make me sad, but I have to say he is the the most handsome little boy around and he makes me so happy.

Squeal Worthy

Lila Lou is just growing up so much these days. She even looks bigger to me most mornings. She loves to stand up when you hold her hands, so I put her in her crib to see if she could hang on to the side. She loved it! Soon after she was holding on by herself, Scott & Nate came in the room. She squealed the biggest squeal and was so excited to be standing at Nate's level. Thankfully Scott had the camera ready.

Lulu, please slow down. Please. Thanks. Love, Mom.

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies!

Yes, I've already done a recipe this week, but I had to share this scrumptious treat that I made over Memorial Day weekend. Oh.my.word. These little morsels are so divine. I got the recipe from my Taste of Home magazine. Check it out here.

But the magazine also goes on to say this little tidbit about where they got their name...

"Wondering how whoopie pies got their name? One story has it that Amish women prepared the tasty cookie sandwiches and tucked them into farmers' lunch boxes. When the farmers discovered the sweet sensations after a long morning of hard work, they shouted, "Whoopie!"

Taste of Home, February/March 2011