Ten little monkeys jumping on the bed

Ok, only three little monkeys...I do tend to exaggerate. Today was playdate Tuesday with the girls on my street. Well, just one girl and her kiddos for this one. Unfortunately, I am VERY mad at myself because I did not capture this fantastic moment. I am such a photography slacker these days.

Anyway, my neighbor Sonja has a little boy who is three (Teddy) and a little girl who is not too far from being one (Samantha). We ventured into Lila's room today and Teddy was trying to climb into Lila's crib. Teddy has been in a big boy bed for a while now, but his longing gazes into the crib told me he needed to reminisce for a bit. So, I did what seemed like the neighborly thing to do and hoisted him into the crib. Of course, the two little ones just had to follow suit and before we knew it there were three small children in a not so large crib. Samantha was by far the funniest. She gripped the bars of the crib like she was in jail only with a massive smile on her face. Teddy started jumping and Lila was just in awe of the fact that her most favorite place on earth was now inhabited by her friends. It may have been the cutest ten minutes ever.

Then Lila started getting dangerously close to stepping on Samantha and we decided it was time for the party in the crib (yea, I said it) to be over. Of course there were screams and looks of "mommy you never let me have any fun" all over the place. I'm just sayin'...if you have multiple kids and you need to pass the time put them all in a really small, confined place and see what happens. You could be really pleasantly surprised. In fact, I plan to do it tomorrow with Carson and Lila when they are both whining at me like they are bored out of their minds. I'm hopeful it will be as joyous as it was today but something tells me that Teddy made it the most fun it could possibly be. Without him it may pale in comparison, but it's worth a shot! This time I promise to get a picture....speaking of pictures...I am going to leave you with two just for poops and giggles (trying to be PG here).

This is what Lila did all weekend. Why do they LOVE the car seat when it isn't in the car?

And this would be how Lila has taken to "wearing" her clothes. Actually, this is one of Carson's burp cloths. Same difference. Anything cloth goes around her neck and is tightly gripped under the chin. Not sure how this translates because I obviously do not wear scarves in August. Maybe she just can't figure out how to make it go on over her head? Regardless, she thinks she looks like a movie star and who I am to disagree? There are many teenage years ahead for us to battle it out...for now I choose to let her believe that something you barf on is perfectly suitable around your neck.

Down a dark desert highway...

There is nothing more rejuvenating than going out of town sans child. I love my daughter more than I ever thought I could love anyone. However, now that I stay home and I am with her one hundred percent of the time mommy needs a break now and then. AND, Lila needed some serious daddy time. I am very lucky that I have an incredibly capable and amazing husband. I love that I have no qualms leaving for days at a time. He even washes the cloth diapers. Yes ladies, he's taken.

Anyway, Thursday after work mom, Sara, and I started our adventure to Asheville, NC. Fast forward approximately three hours and mom and I are driving down the darkest, windiest road into the abyss of Appalachia while Sara snores in the backseat. I knew that the cabin mom picked for our vacay was off the beaten path. I guess I wasn't totally prepared for the actual result.

We drove right past the "street" we were supposed to turn on and ended up at a gas station straight out of 1952 with a nice little lady that used the word "youins" instead of "ya'll". This was a new brand of redneck for me. I'm a straight up ya'll kind of girl. "Youins"(pronounced quickly but like you-ins) sounds way to foreign to me. Mom said she had heard it before but it had been quite a while. We seriously got there as they were closing and as I was about to run out of gas.  Thank God for little favors. We managed to get back on the road and successfully make our turn this time.

As we ascended up the mountain in the pitch black I turned into a five year old whiny little kid freaking out that the boogy man was going to come running out of the woods. Instead, a very excited dog jumped out of the creepiness near a lonely home and I may have peed my pants a little. Is that too much information? Well, I'm sorry but that's just life after birth now isn't it? Alright so we go around a curve on the now gravel "road" and in front of us is a cabin. Not the shiny, pretty cabin we saw on VRBO. This one looked like someone torched it or either decided to leave it thirty years ago. Mom and I looked at each other in a panic as I lurched my trusty Xterra around the curve to then see the shiny cabin we had hoped for. Again, thank God.

The cabin was adorable and the hot tub made us forget we were on the side of a mountain in the middle of nowhere. We played Boggle and drank wine and excitedly discussed what was to be done the following day.

No one fully appreciates the art of sleeping in until they have a baby. I slept until NINE, showered alone, drank coffee while laying on the couch, and stared off into space while mom and Sara got ready. Now that's how you start off a vacation.

Our first stop was the Biltmore Village where we ate some scary good Mexican food (the beginning of an intense love affair with Asheville food) and we bought Lila things she doesn't need. Don't worry. We ALMOST bought her a hot pink poodle costume for Halloween. Sara was kind enough to tell mom and I that it was ugly. Instead, mom bought her the book "Once Upon A Potty" at Sara's insistence along with two very cute hair barrettes. I bought her a magnetic wooden puzzle that you will see soon in the next installment of Tot School.  By the way, if you have never read "Once Upon a Potty" or if it's just been a while, you must read it again. It's really priceless.

We then did the touristy tour of the Biltmore complete with a wine tasting. The Biltmore is pretty incredible. We all enjoyed the basement the most with the servants quarters, kitchens, and the swimming pool. If you've never been, the Biltmore is worth a trip!

We avoided the insanely high priced food near the winery and exited the Biltmore for downtown Asheville. Friday nights in the park include a drum circle where Sara could have stayed all night if we had let her. And it was much more than a circle. It was thirty people deep complete with dancing children, teenagers playing hacky sack, and tourists ogling. This would be local Asheville at it's finest.

Sara did some fantastic research on where to eat, but I'm pretty sure we couldn't have gone wrong. We went to Mayfel's for dinner where I ate more than my fair share of my favorite...fried green tomatoes. Let's back up. Asheville is well known for it's farm to table motto. In terms of food this town is perfection in my eyes. If I could transplant this mentality into a five mile radius of my house I would feel like all was right with the world. Who doesn't want to eat an entire plate of food grown down the street and molded into fine dining cuisine? I mean, if you're into canned vegetables who am I to judge? I'm just saying, this food was the BEST food I have had in my entire life. I can put back some food and I have done a pretty tremendous amount of traveling so you could say this is an impressive statement about Asheville.

Now I am starting to babble (or maybe I started to babble eight paragraphs ago) so I am going to wrap things up:
- We shopped like maniacs the rest of the trip....Sara bought many earrings, I bought a gorgeous and completely biodegradable purse, and mom bought many lovely things for her house.
- We ate A LOT more. If you ever go to Asheville, Early Girl Eatery and Tupelo Honey are a must. You will wait, but you will forget how long you waited upon first bite.
- We basically did a drive by at the Grove Park Inn. We went in, went to the bathroom, took a picture in front of the massive fireplace, and left. That's how we roll.
- We were met by the same dog every time we returned to the cabin. We played more games, sat in the hot tub, and slept in.

Speaking of pictures, I took some but it's late and I don't get to sleep in tomorrow. Plus, Sara took more than I did. When she gets them to me I will post them. Sorry for the length of the post....happy Monday!!!

Really good day

And here's why from start to finish:

- I went on a fabulously long walk with a neighbor using my new (gently used) double jogger for the two little munchkins.
- Carson drank and ate everything I gave her and seemed happy to do so. In fact, I am starting to feel like she may like when I feed her and that makes me happy.
- I accomplished quite a lot with two babies today. Did laundry with Lila's folding "help" while Carson was having a BLAST throwing clean socks in the air over and over again. I also attempted to vacuum. Carson was in the Ergo. Lila was not happy with this so while Carson was in the Ergo I carried Lila and for about ten minutes I felt like super mom. I vacuumed the kitchen and the dining room and then realized I was sweating on Carson and decided to stop.
- Both babies napped at the same time today. I don't really know how it happened, but it did. And it was glorious. I have been struggling with getting up before Lila in the morning to shower because we have been walking and I feel pretty gross after the walk. So what's the point of showering early to just feel gross again? After the walk and the vacuuming I had visions of Katie coming in to get Carson and vowing not to return to my house due to the stench. Lila and Carson apparently didn't want that to occur so they slept well at the same time so I could clean up. Thank you ladies.
- Lila woke up from her nap looking like this and I seriously laughed so much I think she got embarrassed...and then I felt bad. This picture doesn't even come close to doing the hairdo justice.

- Seth came home at 6:00 pm. This is early for him believe it or not. We ate dinner and went on a walk to the end of our street sans stroller. Two minutes out Lila excitedly fell in the street and scraped her hand in multiple places. She cried, got up, and started yelling at Molly again as she took off. I love that kid.
- Instead of just emptying her drawers Lila decided to attempt to put her clothes on for the first time tonight. She was SO proud of herself and we told her how pretty she looked.
- AND, I am leaving tomorrow to go to Asheville with my mom and my sister for the weekend. That being said, have a great weekend and I will be back on Monday!

Tot School - Lesson One

Alright, while both babies are (shockingly) asleep for probably three minutes, I am going to sneak in a quick post about Tot School. I found the website for Tot School and LOVED it. I have taught preschool and elementary school and I have been a nanny. However, I feel like for the past month I have been struggling with trying to find things to do that don't cost a lot of money but are educational and fun for Lila. She isn't quite ready for things like finger paint and Play doh, and she is pretty much uninterested in the mass quantities of toys we have that she sees every day. (Side note - when it comes to toys, I am thinking the more you have the less they care to play with them). Anyway, enter Tot School. If you do not have a toddler (or kids for that matter) I apologize for how boring this post may be to you. But, if you keep reading you might at least find it entertaining because things with a toddler never really go as you planned them to. You can take a look at the website linked but here is a quick synopsis in my own words:


Tot School is time spent each day with your toddler exposing them to different ways of looking at and working with a varied set of items.


That's all I've got so far :-) I mean, the woman who does the website has planning sheets and assessment sheets and GOBS of other things that go along with it. I had my fill of those things while teaching and I feel like now, just like I felt while teaching, that filling out forms all day means you aren't spending much time teaching anything. Or, you are staying up till all hours doing paperwork. SO, I am adapting Tot School to suit me and my child. Of course, some might say "well that's what we are doing all day with our toddlers isn't it?". I don't know about other moms, but aside from trying to educate my child I am also running errands, going to the park, cooking dinner, doing laundry, playing, etc. etc. To me, Tot School is just a little bit more structured play. It's also a time where you bring out things and utilize them and then put them away. That way your child is less apt to get bored with them and you can see a progression of their learning.


Ok so I am getting a little too in depth here. Let me just tell/show you, so far, where I'm at.


I read through the website and she gives ideas and suggestions for items to buy and how to do them. I am off to a very slow start. I am trying to only use things I already have. She suggests buying trays (think cafeteria style) for each "activity" you want to do. Activities would be things like pouring, transferring, beading, spooning, sorting, matching, etc. I haven't done the trays yet, but I plan to. Here is what she shows on the website:

Right now I just have the items I want to use in containers on top of the armoire in the playroom so that little hands can't get to them on their own.  It's highly unorganized. I'm thinking baby steps with this. Here are the three things we have tried so far and how they went:

Activity #1 - Stickers - This doesn't really fall under a specific activity, but I have an abundance of stickers leftover from my classroom. I cut a large piece of poster board in half and give her one sticker at a time to apply to the poster. She is very good at this. However, she also fed two stickers to Molly.

Activity #2 - Transferring with pasta - I put a box of pasta in a tupperware container, gave her measuring cups, and started to show her how to move the pasta from one container to another using the cups. She prefers her hands at this point, but she transfers the pasta very well. She LOVES this activity. She also has always loved hiding things in my lap when I am sitting Indian style on the floor. And she also fed Molly some of the pasta.

Activity #3 - Clothespins (sorting or transferring) - I also had a lot of clothespins from my classroom. Some are plastic and different colors and some are the wooden kind. I am trying to show Lila how to clip the pins to things and sort them, but she is still too little for that. She likes playing with them and taking them apart when I attach them to each other. And she didn't have to feed them to Molly because by activity #3 Molly took it upon herself to eat one on her own.

What have we learned? Lila may be a little young still for some of this, but it's a lot of fun and a good start! Molly may have to be expelled from Tot School until Lila learns that we do not feed the dog.

So, somehow I just wrote a much longer post than I planned because both babies are still sleeping! I would say I am just that good, but it's really a result of cause and effect. Lila woke Carson up twenty minutes after Carson went to sleep so I think Carson is making up for the interruption by sleeping longer. I will take it!

I also want to brag about my latest Craigslist find...a double jogger in fabulous condition!

Have a great day!

Do the shuffle

Last night Kim and I went to see Ray Lamontagne. Well, that's what we told people. Turns out, he was just opening for David Gray which was a little disappointing. I like David Gray, but I LOVE Ray. I posted on Facebook that we were going to see him and Meg texted me with "who is Ray Lamontagne". Sorry to call you out Meg! Anyway, It got me thinking about how I have the music tab that I add to often enough but that no one ever looks at. On the one hand I think I need to revamp my blog, and on the other I think I need to talk about music more in the main posts. One, because people like Meg need to be made aware of the amazing musicians out there like Ray. Two, because I love music and it makes me happy.

I think this went around as an email once and I remember finding it entertaining so I'm going to give it a go. I put my Ipod on shuffle and I am going to list the first ten songs that come up. This make me a little nervous because I have music on my Ipod that I would have listened to a very long time ago. It could get a little embarrassing. I mean, I loved PM Dawn back in the day, but Seth has made fun of me to no end for having it on my Ipod. Whatever...you be the judge:

1) Sin for a Sin - Miranda Lambert
2) Heartless - Kanye West
3) Up to the Mountain - Patty Griffin
4) Money Made You Mean - The Indigo Girls
5) Carry Me On My Way - James Taylor
6) Uninvited - Alanis Morissette
7) Say You Love Me - Fleetwood Mac
8) The Rooster - Big Boi
9) Slow Like Honey - Fiona Apple
10) Gossip in the Grain - Ray Lamontagne

Alright, that wasn't so bad! The only way this will work is if you comment and do it too. If you don't have your Ipod (or whatever music player) with you just tell me songs I would find if I took a peak at it. I won't judge...I am hoping to maybe be inspired to listen to something great that I haven't heard before.

Another fantastic weekend

Recently, Lila and I have been lucky to have Seth home on a couple of weekends for more than a few hours. This weekend, he was with us ALL weekend and it was such a treat! Somewhat last minute we went to the BBQ and Bluegrass Festival in Oakhurst with Vince and Patty. Seth and I decided Oakhurst is where we want to live...when we win the lottery. I am lame and brought my camera but did not take any pictures. In my defense, Lila was running around like a crazy person having the time of her life. Here are a few pictures that Patty took.

I don't think I'm usually the gushing type, but today was such a nice day and I feel so incredibly lucky for my little family and the opportunities we have to spend time together. It started with Seth letting me sleep in. By sleeping in I mean I slept until almost 9!!! Not only did I sleep that late, I woke up to the smell of bacon. Yes, that is how every single person should start every single day. I am positive the world would be a better and happier place.

Anyway, Seth and I had planned to take Lila to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens last weekend only to be abruptly halted due to work related issues. So, we rescheduled it for today. If you haven't been since all of the additions and you loved it before, you will love it even more now. Lila wanted to run all over the place. We tried to let her to some degree. However, as I have mentioned before, she is the sweatiest kid ever. She especially loved the water area of the children's garden. We got an annual pass so if you ever want to go with us let me know! Lila and I will be frequenting the ABG :-) Seth took a zillion pictures so I made my first slideshow instead of putting all of them in a line in one post. Happy Monday ya'll (to those who don't stay up late reading my blog posts).

I'm sorry but, it's really late, I want the video in this post, and you will just have to be ok with it being sideways. Check back again later and maybe I will have sorted it out.

Night and Day

Thus far in their lives Lila and Carson couldn't be more different. It's really astonishing how different one kid can be from the next. There's so much talk about milestones and your baby should do this by this time. I personally see that as a bunch of nonsense. When Lila refused to lift the sippy cup to drink from it a while back, Katie said "it's not like it's a skill she won't ever learn". That really stuck with me. I mean, obviously you want to pay attention to red flags. I'm not saying you should always assume your child will just get there at some point. BUT, I think so many parents get so wrapped up in what is "supposed" to happen by a certain age. I will admit, I have gotten nervous a few times when Lila wasn't doing something I thought she should be doing already. I think that has a lot to do with first baby nerves. You create a lot more stress for yourself if you focus heavily on time frames and rigid expectations.

At any rate, aside from the obvious blonde versus brunette physical differences, here are some examples of how different these ladies can be:

- Carson has been crawling pretty much since birth. Lila is still very much a drunk looking walker.

- Lila will talk to a wall ALL DAY LONG. Carson rarely says much and seems to favor grunting.

- Carson is either a really picky eater or she just likes having the control of deciding when and what to eat. Lila is and always has been a bottomless pit.

- Lila is apprehensive and rarely gets into things if she doesn't already know what they're about. Carson is fearless and curious at all times.

These are just the things I have noticed in the short time I have been watching Carson. I will say that both girls are serious dancers. Turn on some music and everyone is bopping to the beat. I feel the need to yet again credit Sara with this. Carson has actually begun to sing as well which is freaking adorable. Whether they both actually have any rhythm is yet to be seen...

(SIDE NOTE - Katie, if I talk about your child too much let me know :-)

Wordless Thursday Night

That's right. I'm a rebel....who needs Wordless Wednesday when you could have Wordless Thursday Night?  AND when it could actually not be all that wordless. Whatever. I just needed a reason to post twice in one day and all I wanted to do was tell you that Lila found her belly button. I have decided I want to teach her to call it her tummy button like they say in The BFG by Roald Dahl. Anyway, the pictures were taken on my phone so please excuse the blur that cannot be avoided when photographing a toddler on a cell phone (and it's late so please excuse the ridiculousness of this paragraph).

PS - Even though the name changed eight times, I have decided on the Favorite Things tab and put some stuff in it. Take a look...

Progress

This would now be the second day in a row that I have gotten up before Lila to shower. I must say, I should have done this all along. I think I got excited about sleeping in (who was I kidding?). Never in my life have I ever been or will I ever be a morning person. BUT, I could totally dig this showering alone, drinking coffee before it's cold kind of start to the day. Today I just barely got mascara on so I missed the coffee, but it doesn't matter. The day starts off so much better.

Today I plan to go to Ace Hardware and buy the items I need for canning/jarring things. Patty has totally inspired me. I am also in the beginning stages of planning a diaper bag for Josie. Again, here I go being overly ambitious but I'm excited for the challenge!

In the progressing world that is Lila there are MANY things going on really quickly right before our eyes. Here are a few tidbits about how she is changing and growing:

- SIDE NOTE - Every bit of our child looks like Seth....but almost every bit of her acts like me (now or when I was little). If you know me well, see if you can find the similarities.

* She has developed quite a shy side. Don't let her fool you though. Just ask my friend Christine. Wait ten minutes and Lila will talk your ear off. Christine found a quick in with Lila by discussing Molly.

* She also embarrasses easily. If she takes a tumble she runs to me and hides her head. Sometimes she even cries. It's heartbreaking really.

* She has learned the art of a good hug. I can't seem to get her to kiss yet, but her hugs are breathtaking. She lays her head on your shoulder, pats your back with one hand, and grips tightly with the other. 

* She can be a bit unconventional. In Lila's world you go up slides, not down them. You also feed the dog stickers but that's another post.

* She doesn't like to be unstable. Swings, as you have seen, are not an option. Neither are big jumpy things at Monkey Joes. I think it's a control thing.

* She has a flair for the dramatic. Yesterday I actually started jumping up and down when she was fake crying hysterically and she busted out laughing. Then she realized I caught her in the act and started fake crying again. I'm totally hip to her game. I just wish she knew that and would give it up already.

* Her most recent word of choice is shoe. She brought me Seth's shoe this morning and said it a zillion times while trying to put on the shoe. Then of course I tried to take a video of this and she stopped saying it.

*She has somewhat of an aversion to Carson. I don't think it's actually Carson per say, but babies younger than her touching her stuff in general. Right now they are only awake at the same time for about three hours of the day. I spend most of that time trying to figure out how to teach Lila not to grab things from Carson. Any pointers?

Alright, that's all I've got for today. We are off to a consignment sale....wish me luck!

Keep dreaming

When I realized I was actually going to have my dream career I daydreamed about things I would accomplish. Aside from the obvious extensive list of things I would be doing for and with my child I felt like now I could become the mom and woman I always wanted to be. I tend to be an overly ambitious person. I make iffy choices sometimes. For example, the other day I tried skipping Lila's first nap and going to a consignment sale after cleaning an office (with Lila in tow for that as well). In a perfect world this might have been beneficial. In my world the sale was total crap and Lila threw Cheerios everywhere.

I digress...so, there is this long list of things I feel ambitious about. Tonight at girls dinner my desire to jar and preserve things came back up due to Patty's foray into doing just that. I made one jar of pickles and took gobs of proud pictures and posted it on my blog. Patty has things jarred everywhere in her house...I am SO behind. Anyway, that got me thinking about all of the things I want to do (in no particular order):

- sewing everything and anything
- walking/running every day
- tot school (post coming ASAP once I get started....I did say ASAP so now I'm committed)
- making my house and my life as green as possible
- gardening things I can eat....without letting them be taken over by bugs....
- writing a book
- reading more than one book
- going to the library
- going to tutor at Livsey (really? that's just silly)
- waking up before Lila to shower

I could go on and on, but I will spare you. I'm not saying I haven't done these things. I've half done some of them. I am blaming my lack of getting on the ball on Carson and Lila. Yes, I said it. I am blaming my laziness on babies. But seriously, between the two of them I can't seem to get up off the floor long enough to accomplish something. Case in point (please don't be jealous by how hot I look):

(I had to post this one too because the expressions are even more priceless than the first one)

Let's be honest. I wouldn't have it any other way. I mean, look at them. You can't tell me you aren't jealous of my life. BUT, this list has now (kind of) motivated me. I guess we'll see how long that lasts.

I am such a wannabe

If you haven't heard of The Pioneer Woman you have been living under a rock. She is superwoman. She is supermom. She is superteacher. She is superphotographer. The list goes on and on. I mean, I'm assuming she is all of these things based on the crazy amount of stuff she posts on her blog.

Here is my sad attempt at being like her.

Homemade pickles are something I have always wanted to try. I recently came across a recipe in a magazine with the easiest looking way to make your own pickles. I grew up with a sister who has had a long love affair with pickles. Seeing the recipe brought back feelings of home and childhood. Making them has ruined store bought pickles for me, but it was worth it. Give it a shot!

You will need a jar. I used a jar that had store bought pickles in it previously. Genius, I know.

Cut two cucumbers into fourths and put them in your jar. Measure 3/4 cup white wine vinegar.

Cut a small Vidalia onion into small strips. Chop two cloves of garlic...toss both into the vinegar.

Add in two Tablespoons of sugar.

Also add one teaspoon of black peppercorns and a bay leaf (I had chopped bay leaves so I used one teaspoon). The recipe also calls for a teaspoon of dill seed, but I didn't have any this go round. Hopefully that won't be too big of a deal.

Next, add two teaspoons of salt. Also, put in 3/4 cup of hot water.

Pour your mixture into the jar with the cucumbers. Refrigerate for at least one day. Enjoy!

15 months

Alright so, for the first time (I think) I am behind on the header. Lila was officially 15 months on Friday. My only excuse is that I was in a funk this weekend. Well, my other excuse is that I wanted a better picture than either of these:

Yes, that's my 15 month old reminiscing the good old days in Carson's carseat carrier. 

Anyway, I took my grumpy pants (oh and my family) to the park today. If you have kids and you have never been to the Liane Levetan Park at Brook Run in Dunwoody you must go stat. They have playground equipment for every age, including toddlers. Seriously, it's glorious. Granted, it's surrounded by dilapidated, run down buildings. Not sure what's going on with that. BUT, we had a great time.

Of course, there were things she did not like. For some reason the swings have never been her thing.

And those big blue tunnels? Let's just say we tried to show her how much fun they can be. I mean, Seth tried.

But even after he went through, she turned around and left. 

And only our child would choose to play with the rocks in the grass for extensive amounts of time in the midst of a playground wonderland. We see a geologist in our future.

Finally, the sweaty aftermath ensues. Can you tell she had fun?

Sorry for the picture heavy post. I am tapped out tonight. 

PS - Apparently I need to recant my admiration for the the flight attendant in the previous post. Seth told me he was wasted during the job and some other details about his actual behavior I can't recall right now. Regardless, the sentiment of my post remains the same :-) Happy Monday ya'll.