Catch-up Post

Blogging has not been my forte lately. I just haven't been feeling like sitting down at my computer at night once the boys have gone to bed. I can't say that I've been uber productive in other areas, unfortunately. Mostly I've just been reading and going to bed. So it looks like I have a little updating to do.

• My mom was in town this weekend to help celebrate Seth's birthday. Seth requested pizza for his dinner, so Friday night, we picked up a pizza on the way home and waited for Baba to arrive. While we waited, Seth opened his birthday present from William (tools in a toolbox) and from Ed and me (a digital camera). Baba finally arrived with the birthday cake and presents for the boys. She got Seth a play grill, which Ed put together right away. Both boys love it. Overall, I think he had a great birthday.
• On Saturday, Mom and I took the boys to Target and the grocery store so I could get Easter basket fillers (nothing like waiting until the last minute!) and a few groceries. I forgot eggs at the grocery store though, (d'oh!), but I had 11 eggs at home, so we dyed those when we got home. Not quite the fun and exciting production that dying Easter eggs could be, but we got it done. Then we headed to Ed's parents' house for Passover dinner.
• On Sunday, the boys woke up and found their Easter baskets. Then we had the 3-minute Easter egg hunt in the back yard for the 11 dyed Easter eggs. Then we went out for breakfast. (Can you tell I'm really ambivalent about Easter?) Later in the afternoon, we went to Ed's aunt and uncle's "farm" where the boys got to ride the tractor and the ATV and we had Easter dinner. 
• On Monday, we went to the grocery store in the morning and in the afternoon, we took William to Taekwondo (where he earned his green striped belt) and then we showed Mom the new house and the new neighborhood. When we got home, Mom treated us to dinner at Chilis. We ate outside and the boys ran around in the grassy lawn that was adjacent to the patio. They had a blast and wore themselves out.
• I really hate these post where I give the play-by-play of our weekend. I know it's inanely boring for anyone other than myself. But I like looking back and reading these details. So all of you must suffer! If I were to think about what it is I'm really trying to convey, I would talk about the very half-ass way we celebrated Easter, how much fun the boys had at Uncle Craig's and Aunt Diane's riding the tractor and the ATV, William earning his green striped belt at Taekwondo, and the kids running around at Chili's on a warm spring night.
• Speaking of warm spring nights, the weather has been awesome! Despite a crazy thunderstorm or two, or three scattered here and there. Last night I made a quick dinner for the boys and me after work and then they piled in the wagon so we could walk to the water fountain at the entrance to our neighborhood. Seth ran practically the whole way there and much of the way back. And both boys love playing around the waterfall. (The fountain is  a big waterfall. It's pretty cool.) It set us back a bit in terms of our schedule. But it felt really good to get out and about again. Hopefully I can figure out a way to do that more often in the weeks to come.
• Operation Purge and Organize is moving right along. We sold a few more things on Craig's List over the last few weeks, including a big chest of drawers, a filing cabinet, and Ed's speaker from his gig-playing days. We still have a book case to sell, and a This End Up chair and coffee table. We also have an upholstered chair and ottoman we want to get rid of, but we might just give that to Purple Heart or some other charity. I have also managed to amass a large number of boxes so our official packing can begin. Ed spent time over the weekend cleaning out and boxing up his workshop. Not sure what to tackle next. Maybe books and nicknacks. The move is getting closer!
• After seeing the doctor on Monday again for William's cough, the doctor confirmed that allergies are the most likely culprit. We had been giving him Albuterol in addition to his daily Pulmicort, but that wasn't really stopping his coughing. Most likely, it's post-nasal drip brought on by allergies. So now's he's on Nasonex, and I'm trying Claritin, too, to see if that helps his itchy eyes and the drip. The Nasonex takes a while to become effective, so I'm hoping the Claritin will provide some more immediate relief. Seth, meanwhile, continues with his junky-sounding cough, although it's somewhat sporadic. I'm also still a little junky sounding and hoping it will go away without getting worse.
• Pictures: I did, in fact, take pictures of Seth's birthday party, his actual birthday, the boys at the farm, Easter egg hunting, and other odds and ends. And Seth and William have taken numerous pictures and videos with Seth's new digital camera. But I have yet to download any of them, and most of them suck anyway. But sometimes a crappy picture is better than no picture at all.
• Menu planning and food waste: the menu planning is going pretty well. I kind of have a menu plan for this week, but I'm winging it more than anything. It's okay, though--I'm not stressed out about it!  Food waste is so-so. I'm doing a better job of eating leftovers and forcing serving leftovers to Ed, but I'm still throwing out an embarrassing amount of food each week. Must do better!
• William has started watching Fat Albert on Netflix. He found it on his own and he watches it all the time now. This morning he said, "Hey, hey, hey! That's the game!" He was also on a Speed Racer kick for a while. Fat Albert is a pretty decent show, if you're 14 and live in the city. It's better than Speed Racer, though. Seth still mostly prefers Bob the Builder. When Seth watches Bob the Builder, he wants his tool box and his blocks right beside him, even at 5:45 a.m. Then he asks, "Who's gonna help me build a house?" My response? "It's 5:45 a.m. kid. You're on your own."
• Did I mention how much I love the warmer weather? I can't wait to move into the new house where the boys will be able to play on the patio unattended. (Well, not exactly unattended, but I won't have to stay on top of them like I have to now.) 
• I bought a pair of gladiator sandals. I'm usually about two years behind a trend. It takes me a while to warm up to "fashion" and by the time I'm ready to commit, the trend is no longer a trend. So I jumped on the gladiator sandals. They're really cute. But I have no idea what to wear them with. They look weird on my feet. Which is why I don't usually buy trendy stuff right away--it always looks weird. But I'm determined to be stylish, dammit! I don't care how stupid I look. LOL. 
• I guess that's enough for now. Life is good and I can't complain.
  

Happy 3rd Birthday Seth!

Happy 3rd birthday Seth! I can't believe you are already 3 years old, about to start your 4th trip around the sun. You are such a sweet, funny, happy boy, and you bring so much joy to our family. You have grown up so much in the past year and Daddy and I have loved watching you learn new things and take pride in your accomplishments. You crack us up every day, and you also push us to exasperation every day. You push the limits and test us and will go to some extremes to have your way. But we love that about you. On the inside, we are usually laughing. Some of your favorite expressions are, "Yeah, but . . . " and "You're right, but . . . "

You love to play outside, doing yard work, playing in the car, riding your scooter or tricycle. You can ride your trike pretty much anywhere, and you've started riding the big tricycle, too. You love the stomp rockets, and shooting hoops, and just about any sport involving a ball. You also love tools and can spend lots of time "fixing" things. You are an amazing helper, always eager to assist us, no matter what we're doing. You're an especially good sous chef, and you spend lots of time in both your little kitchen and the big kitchen making apple pie. You are a master at pulling things out of drawers and cabinets and leaving chaos wherever you go. You're also a master at getting out of cleaning up your messes. You pick very opportune times to use the potty!

On TV you love Bob the Builder, Dora, Wonder Pets, and Backyardigans. You enjoy lots of different kinds of books. You love to play with blocks and you love to paint on your easel. You enjoy people more than toys, though, and fortunately, you love to play with William, and he loves to play with you, too. He has discovered that you will often get toys for him from the basement or from upstairs, so he butters you up when he wants something. But you guys get in some pretty big fights over toys, too. The funny thing is, you rarely back down. And William usually gives in. He is bigger than you, though, and when he gets physical with you, you sure know how to play the victim. You can be quite dramatic when you want to be!

Despite the fighting, William really looks out for you, and you really look up to him, which completely warms my heart. And it warms my heart to see you so happy and engaged with the world. You are very observant and you are good at remembering things. And you love all your friends at school and you know so much about them all--their favorite toys and their siblings and what characters are on each of their underwear. You love to boss your friends around and make sure everyone follows the rules--even though you try to bend the rules all the time!

Seth, I can never tell you enough how much I love you and how happy you make Daddy and me. You have the best sense of humor and are so silly. But you are also thoughtful and kind and so affectionate. You love to give kisses and hugs and I can never get enough of them. I can't wait to see all the things you will learn in your 4th year of life and all the ways you will grow. There is so much that Mommy and Daddy want to give you: confidence and knowledge and patience and peace. But mostly, I hope you feel special and loved on your big day, and always.

Thanks for being such a wonderful son--the best Seth a mommy could ever have! Happy happy birthday. I love you always,

Mommy

What a Day

I'm pretty tired, and although most of you will be reading this Friday, it's Thursday night for me. But Friday is Seth's 3rd birthday! And I have his birthday post all ready to go, to be published at 12:12 p.m., which is when he was born. So come back and read it!

In the meantime, though, today the boys had their dentist check-up and their annual check-up at the doctor's office. And since I'm tired, here's the highlights, bullet-point style.

• First of all, Seth did end up going to the doctor yesterday. He has an ear infection and was wheezing slightly. So he's on antibiotics and has to be nebulized for a few days.
• Now back to today. Our dentist appointments started at 10:00 a.m. I was supposed to go first and then the boys. This would be Seth's first official dentist visit, so I've been prepping him for a few weeks now. We walked out of the house at 9:30 and opened the car door . . . and that's when I realized that Seth's car seat was in Ed's car. Crap.
• I called Ed, but he couldn't come home right away because his car was in the shop for maintenance. Crappity crap. I was pretty upset at this point because I had taken the entire day off to take care of these appointments. Without the car seat, I couldn't go anywhere. I called the dentist to ask when we could reschedule. Not until July. The boys were pretty upset, too, and did NOT want to miss their appointments. Not the typical reaction to dentist and doctors' appointments! LOL.
• Judgement call time. Target is about a half mile from our house. DO NOT FLAME ME, but I put William in the regular seat with the seat belt and Seth in the car seat and drove to Target and bought a new car seat. I was desperate. Of course, William thought it was really cool. There are just times when a mom has to use her best judgement. Not everyone would have made that decision, but I ended up only missing my dentist appt. and the boys made all of their appointments. Day salvaged.
• William went first at the dentist and was awesome. No cavities. Woot-woot! No x-rays this time, though. Next visit. Seth's turn came, and Seth was not happy. Crying ensued. He wouldn't sit with me on the chair. So we got up. He calmed down. After we chatted with the hygienist for a few minutes, he let her look at his teeth. She counted them. Then she asked him if he wanted her to clean them. He said yes. She cleaned them while he stood up. God bless her. Then the dentist came in and Seth let him look at his mouth, too. He got a clean report! Whew.
• Both boys were great for the doctor. Seth talked a mile a minute. Didn't freak out at all. William got two shots and didn't flinch. Seth got one shot and cried, but didn't freak out as badly as he has in the past. That's progress, right? William weighs 35 lbs and is 41.5 inches tall. Seth weighs 28 lbs and is 36 inches tall. Both are between 10th and 20th percentile. We grow them little here!
• When we got home, both boys had fallen asleep in their car seats. I sat in the car for almost an hour while they slept. 
• Overall, a pretty good day. Mom comes tomorrow and my house is a wreck. (Sorry mom!) Luckily my mom is very forgiving. The boys can't wait to see her. Busy weekend ahead for sure.

Cough . . . Sneeze . . . Cough . . . Cough

We are a household of sick people. (Except for Ed, who is staying as far away from us as he can!) I can't tell if it's allergies or a cold virus or some combination of the two. It started with William on Friday night--just a bit of a runny nose. On Saturday afternoon, I started feeling a tickle in my throat. Seth's nose started running on Sunday, and Sunday evening, my sore throat returned, along with a drippy nose. Then we started coughing. Poor Seth had never fully recovered from his cold/cough that he got three weeks ago. I felt really sick Monday morning and thought I'd stay home from work, but once I got up and ate and got going, I decided we'd go in. Today was better for me--definitely felt more like allergies than a cold virus--but the boys have been stuffy and coughy and tonight, I'm pretty sure Seth started wheezing. He's vomited twice from all the mucus (I've never seen someone be so cheerful after throwing up!), and as I type, he's downstairs with Ed (at 9:45 p.m.) coughing every two seconds, and wide awake.

Since I wasn't sure if we're all suffering from allergies or a regular cold, I had Ed get some children's Claritn at the store tonight. Both boys took it when we got home from work. Maybe that's why Seth is wide awake. It didn't make his cough any better. William, however, fell asleep two seconds after his head hit the pillow. Go figure. He said he didn't feel good all day, although his teacher assured me that he had plenty of moments where he "forgot" that he wasn't feeling well. At any rate, Ed will probably stay home with Seth tomorrow. Seth and William have their 3-year and 5-year well visits on Thursday. But Ed might need to take Seth in to see the doctor tomorrow. We'll see if we have to postpone their well visits.

Despite all the sickness, I managed to be a little productive tonight. I had 4 pounds of ground beef that I needed to divvy up. I made tacos for dinner with one pound, made 4 hamburger patties with another pound, turned the 3rd pound into meatloaf, and froze the last pound. (I froze the burgers and meatloaf, too.) So all is not lost, right? Now if we could just get Seth to go to sleep. I'm beginning to wonder if an ER visit is in the cards tonight. He's not acting the least bit sick, though. He's just coughing every 30 seconds. I hope he's better by Friday for his birthday. I have plans to make a grass caterpillar with his class and create fruit flowers for their snack! With a birthday on Earth Day, it's never hard to find something to do.

The Menu Plan . . . The Birthday Party . . . The Not Keeping Up With the Blog

I have no good excuse for not keeping up with the blog last week. I just haven't been turning on the computer a whole lot in the evenings. And not a whole lot has been going on, so not much to blog about.

Except . . . We had Seth's birthday party on Saturday! Can you believe I never even mentioned it? (Maybe I did, but only briefly.) It turned out to be the least amount of work I've ever done for a party, and that's because of my genius-ness in hosting the party with two other families. Seth and two of his classmates all have April Birthdays, so we decided to combine forces and have one party for the three of them. Brilliant! I did all the pre-party planning. I booked the place and set up the evite and got everything rolling. We booked at Pump It Up, one of those inflatable party places with the huge slides and bouncy, uh, things. Anyway, the place provides pizza, balloons, and paper products. One of the families brought cupcakes and the other brought drinks and fruit/veggies. So all I had to bring was the birthday boy! (Ed brought William after his taekwondo class.) It was awesome! We also requested no gifts, having decided ahead of time that we would just exchange gifts with the two birthday kids. And we didn't do goody bags, instead donating a few books to the kids' classroom at school. Again--brilliant! So Seth had two gifts to open when we got home, which was perfect. Enough to make him happy, but not so many that he was overwhelmed. And each kid got to take home a balloon and a cupcake topper.

The funny thing is, Seth's actual birthday is not until Friday, so he is confused about his party being early and the fact that we will be celebrating his birthday 3 times. (My mom is coming to visit this weekend, so we'll do cake on Friday night and let him open his gifts from Ed and me and William and mom, and then we'll combine a party for him and William with Ed's whole family in May sometime.) As he gets older, though, I'm sure he won't mind multiple occasions to celebrate!

In the meantime, the move looms closer. We weren't as productive the past weekend as we have been, but we're gearing up for the next several weekends. We plan to start packing up nick-knacks and books, and we'll do another Craig's List ad for some furniture items that didn't sell last time. And there is still tons of stuff to go through and get rid of. We are getting super excited about the move!

And I'm excited that my menu plans have been working out so well! Although I never posted it, I had a menu plan for last week, and I made one again for this week.

Sunday: Grilled chicken with white barbecue sauce, broccoli, dinner rolls (Seriously people, if you haven't tried this yet, TRY IT!!! I used boneless chicken breasts this time.)
Monday: Salmon, asparagus, roasted potatoes
Tuesday: Tacos
Wednesday: Breakfast for dinner
Thursday: Fried chicken, green beans, biscuits
Friday: Seth gets to pick for his birthday :-)
Saturday: Passover dinner with Ed's family

Show Me the . . . . Chicken?

Since I have no pictures of me AGAIN this week, I decided to post my homemade chicken nuggets recipe, with pictures! I make these about once a month or so and throw them in freezer. It takes a little time to bread all the nuggets, but it's worth it to me. My version below is not the healthiest in the world. I used commercial chicken, processed bread crumbs, and jarred garlic. So If you're going for truly homemade, organic, and sustainable, make your own bread crumbs, chop your own garlic, and use organic, free-range chicken. And you can bread the nuggets with flour and eggs instead of butter, to be a bit healthier. But now on to my version!

Here are my ingredients. I used about 1.5 lbs of chicken (3 breasts) this time. I also did not have any Parmesan cheese, which kind of bummed me out, but that's okay.

I slice the chicken and usually cut each slice in half. The pieces are rarely uniform, but I try to make them normal, chicken-nugget sized. I also try to make them a little thin since they'll cook faster.

Here is all the chicken cut up.

Next, I get the bread crumbs ready. I mixed the panko bread crumbs with the Italian-seasoned bread crumbs. Obviously, you can use whatever breadcrumbs you prefer--seasoned, not seasoned, homemade, whatever. Also, if I had the Parmesan cheese, I would have added it, too.

Then I melt the butter and stir in some garlic. I started with 1/4 cup butter and I don't know how much garlic. (Maybe a teaspoon?) I ended up using 1/2 cup butter (1 stick). Halfway through, I melted more butter and added more garlic.

Next, I roll the chicken in the butter mixture. (If you want to be healthier, put some flour in a bowl or plate, and beat an egg--or two, depending on how many nuggets you have--with a little bit of water in a separate bowl. Roll the nuggets in the flour first, and then dip in the egg mixture. Then carry on with the breadcrumbs.)

Then, I roll the chicken (or press it) in the bread crumbs.

Then I put the breaded pieces on a cookie sheet or tray or plate--something that will fit into the freezer. (I lined the pan with foil for easy clean-up.)

If you want to eat the nuggets right then, put them on a cookie sheet or pan (something with raised edges, because the butter makes them sizzle and drip a bit) and bake in a 400-degree oven for about 15 minutes or so. For really good flavor, you can drizzle melted butter over the top before baking.

If you want to freeze, put the pan/plate of breaded nuggets in the freezer to flash freeze. Remove the pan when they're frozen and throw them into a freezer bag or container. (My picture of the chicken all bagged up is below. The setting sun was pouring into the kitchen window and I couldn't get my flash to work--not enough juice in the battery--so this picture will have to do. You get the point.

To cook frozen nuggets, put however many you want on a pan into a 400-degree oven, for 15-20 minutes. I'm very imprecise with measurements, so keep an eye on them. And at some point, I'll add a "recipe" for this, but for now, you can go to Simply Recipes, which is where I got it, loosely adapted: Parmesan Chicken Recipe. Bon Appetite!

Keep On Keeping On

Busy busy week, and it's only halfway over. Between the potential government shutdown, the daycare center, looming deadlines at work, and and our Operation Purge and Organize at home, I am stretched to the limit. But it's a good stretch. The boys are great (except that Seth has another cold which turned into a cough today--fingers crossed with can get through this with no sick visit to the doc), the menu plan is on track, and I'm being productive, so I guess I can't ask for much more than that.

My "job" as president of our daycare board is a huge and time-consuming undertaking, but I have to admit that it's given me a big boost of confidence. Of course, I have a LOT of help from my fellow board members, but every once in a while it sinks in that I'm in charge. People turn to me for answers and guidance and leadership. It's a little bit scary, but I'm not nearly as stressed out about it as I thought I'd be. I'm only four months in, but so far, it's been a good thing.

Luckily, my boss is very supportive. And speaking of my boss (and ergo, my job), although I know a government shutdown would be a very bad thing, selfishly, I'm hoping for at least 2 or 3 days of shutdown. Our daycare will be open, and if I could drop the boys off and have 2 or 3 days to continue the purge-and-organize effort, that would be so awesome.

And speaking of purging and organizing, I have all the toys and baby equipment that I'm selling at this weekend's consignment sale tagged and ready to deliver. If everything sells at full price, I'll bring in $168. Considering a lot could sell at half price (on the last day of the sale, after noon, everything is marked half price), I could end up with a lot last. But even if I make $100, I'll be doing pretty well. My two big-ticket items are a pack-n-play with changing station, and a bedding set that includes a lamp, picture frame, curtains, valance, pillows, bedskirt, crib bumper, etc. etc. I'm debating on whether or not I should hold those out and try to sell them on Craig's List, since I could make more that way. With the consignment sale, I only make 60% of the sale price. Hmmmm. I'll have to think about it.

Anyway, that's a little bit of my scattered thoughts tonight. Time to go to bed.

The Big Purge (And Menu Plan Monday -- April 4)

We had an awesome, fantastic weekend. We began The Big Purge, wherein we go around the house and get rid of all the junk we don't want to bring to the new house. If we don't want it and don't like it, it goes. Doesn't matter if we don't have a replacement. It goes!

Saturday morning started with me cleaning and the boys off with Ed to Taekwondo. Ed's parents picked them up at Taekwondo and took them back to their house so Ed and I got the day to ourselves. Woo-hoo! I had managed to get a lot of de-cluttering done around the house during the week, so by the time Saturday morning rolled around, I quickly wiped down bathrooms, spot cleaned the floors, and vacuumed and swept. The house was so clean (maybe not clean so much as neat), and since the kids were out, it stayed clean ALL DAY! A miracle, if ever there was one. After the landlord left, Ed and I got to work. We took pictures of all the furniture and lawn tools we wanted to sell and then posted them to Craig's List. Then we went out to lunch and browsed around Home Goods. Then we went home and went through file cabinets and drawers and tossed a bunch of stuff. And before we knew it, it was time to go pick up the boys. Even though we were busy doing stuff, we had such a great day together. I hate giving up time with the kids on weekends, but the boys had a great time with their grandparents, too. So really, everyone wins when you do it once in a while.

On Sunday, lots of people came by in response to our Craig's List ads, and we managed to get rid of our dining room table and chairs, a dresser, a bookshelf, and a file cabinet. The boys played all day and enjoyed the stream of people coming in and out of our living room. Seth spent most of his day outside on the front steps with some scrap wood and his tools. He was so busy and so serious about what he was doing. I imagine he'll do it again this evening when we get home! In between greeting people and playing with the boys, we tackled more cleaning out and purging.

We ended our day with dinner at a restaurant with some good friends and their little boy. We went back to the restaurant where we ate last week--the one with the separate room for kids. Awesome! William was actually excited to go out to eat! Can't ask for more than that.

This week, the purging continues. There's a huge kids' consignment sale this weekend, so I need to tag all the toys/baby stuff I want to sell. There's a lot more than I thought we had! I may be up late the next couple of nights, but hopefully it will be worth it.

So in case all of that wasn't enough, here's our menu plan for the week:

Sunday: Dinner out
Monday: Halibut with asparagus and wild rice
Tuesday: French Dip sandwiches, sweet potato fries (this is the 3rd time I've delayed this meal; I'm cutting it close on getting use out of the leftover roast!)
Wednesday: Ice skating (sandwiches and fruit and crackers and cheese in the car)
Thursday: Spaghetti, salad, garlic bread
Friday: Fried chicken, mashed sweet potatoes, green beans
Saturday: Meatloaf, roasted potatoes, salad

Allergy Update

After talking to the allergist, we tested both boys (with the skin prick test) for peanuts, pecans, almonds, walnuts, and cashews. William got an immediate reaction to peanuts and a milder reaction to walnuts. Seth had no positive reactions. (Yay!) We have to follow up with a blood test for William to determine if his numbers have changed. I didn't have the boys tested for seasonal allergies because they aren't showing any signs of seasonal allergies. They don't have the runny noses, itchy eyes, or dry cough at night. They only seem to show those symptoms when they catch a virus. So for now, we'll wait and see. I meant to ask that Seth be tested for dust mites, but we can do that next time. William is allergic to dust mites so I'm glad we'll be moving to a house with all hardwood floors.

So that's about it. The appointment went about as I expected. William was great and didn't even flinch when his arm got pricked. Seth did great up until it was to for his arm to get pricked. Then it was holy Hell for the two minutes it took to hold him down and nick his arm. (Probably less than 2 minutes.) And one minute later, he was completely fine.

Since I don't have any pictures for Show Me the Mommy, I'll post these from ice skating Wednesday night:

Brief Respite

This week has been long and busy. Lots going on at work, lots going on with daycare, and trying to get ready for our landlord's visit on Saturday. In the evenings, I've been going through toys, sorting out the ones that it's time to get rid of, and reorganizing the rest. I'm trying to stage the house for our landlord, who's coming on Saturday to discuss our deposit and to take pictures for her new listing. I signed up to take tomorrow off, but things have been so busy at work that I really need to go in and get some things done. I may be up late tomorrow night cleaning!

This morning we have the boys' appointments with the allergy doctor. Both boys will get tested, so we'll finally see if Seth is allergic to peanuts. We'll also test them for seasonal allergies and dust mites. And we'll talk about how their allergies might be related to their viral-induced asthma. Our appointment isn't until 10:30, so the boys have been downstairs playing since they woke up. Since 6:30 a.m., I've unloaded the dishwasher, showered and dressed, started tonight's dinner in the crock pot, made french toast for the boys, made my bed, checked emails, and now I'm blogging. This is the life! Traffic has been horrible this week, and I've been leaving work a wee bit late, so Monday night we didn't get home until 6:45 p.m. and Tuesday night, we rolled in at 6:30 p.m. It's really hard for the boys when we get home so late. No time to play, no time to hang out. And if we try to fit that stuff in, they go to sleep at 9:00 and then I feel guilty for shorting them on sleep. Ah well. What can you do? Last night was ice skating and both boys did great. Seth didn't participate in the class (he still runs away from the teacher if she so much as looks at him), but he was out on the ice "practicing" the whole time, and even threw a loud fit when it was time to go home. William is getting more and more comfortable on the ice, and he really enjoys it. Can't ask for much more than that. So, since our week has been so busy and rushed, this chance to hang out, play, and relax this morning is much appreciated!

Of course, once we get to the allergist's office, I'm sure Seth will throw an awful fit. But we'll survive. And despite the craziness of the week, we aren't too far off the menu plan. We had fruit and cheese Monday night, saved the salmon and asparagus for Tuesday night, last night was a sandwich and pretzels on the way to ice skating, and tonight we're having the roast beef in the crock pot. Tomorrow will be French Dip sandwiches, and we'll put the pizza off for next week. It really is nice to have a plan.

For a future post, I'm working on a response to a book I read, How She Really Does It: Secrets of Successful Stay-at-Work Moms. Great book, but it was much more about dealing with the emotional aspects of trying to balance work and motherhood, and less about details, like how you get dinner on the table, and how you work out child care and how you keep your house clean and how get errands done and how you spend time with the husband and the kids and your girlfriends and how you manage your life. Those are the things I want to know, and that I want to talk about. And I imagine those are all issues that stay at home moms have to deal with, too. So more on this topic to come!

Weekend Report and Menu Plan Monday -- March 28

We had a whirlwind kind of weekend, filled with errands, chores, and time with friends and family. On Saturday, after hitting the grocery store with Seth, I cleaned out our van--really cleaned it out. (Seth helped me, of course. Lucky me!) I wiped grime and crumbs and God-knows-what from just about every surface that I could see. There are still lots of places that need attention, but it looks 90 percent better than it did. After that, I took the boys to McDonald's and then the library. They both fell asleep in the car on the way home so I sat in the car and read when we got home while they napped for 45 minutes. Saturday night, we met friends at a restaurant for dinner out. The restaurant is great because it has a separate room where kids eat. There's a server just for the kids, and they show movies in there. It's awesome, although Seth felt the need to go back and forth between our table and his table the whole time. That's okay--it was still a very enjoyable night out.

Today, the boys and I went to the mall while Ed went to work for a few hours this morning. I've never done the mall with both boys by myself. It wasn't too bad. We started at Barnes & Noble, where I trusted William to take Seth into the men's bathroom to use the potty because the women's bathroom was being cleaned. That was interesting. First, I told William to see if anyone was in there. It was clear, so William and Seth went in and William gave me the blow-by-blow of what Seth was doing. A nice man went in shortly after but when he realized what was going on, he told me to go on in and he would wait at the door. So I quickly helped Seth finish things up and wash hands. Thank goodness for nice strangers!

After B&N, we hit the Lego store, and then the crazy play area. Our mall has this designated play area with climber toys and a soft, resilient surface. It's a mad house and today was no exception. But it was nice not to have to be the parent hovering right next to her kid. I sat on the side and kept my eyes on the boys, but for the most part, it was pretty easy. When Ed was done with work, we went to his aunt and uncle's house for a family gathering. The boys had a blast since they got to ride the ATV around (with Ed or his cousin driving, of course). Ed's cousin hooked up a little trailer/wagon to the ATV and the boys took rides in there, too. It was pretty funny.

So, a quick and busy weekend, but enjoyable nonetheless. And I managed to plan this week's menu, too. Last week we did pretty well. I had forgotten about ice skating on Wednesday night, and we met up with my brother on Tuesday night, so that switched things around quite a bit. We ended up having chicken tenders on Thursday night, and burgers/tacos on Friday night. So pizza and fried chicken are carryovers. So here's this week's menu:

Sunday: Leftover tacos & fruit
Monday: Salmon, asparagus, dinner rolls
Tuesday: Bottom round roast (crock pot), broccoli, potatoes
Wednesday: Ice Skating
Thursday: Pizza, fruit
Friday: French dip sandwiches (using leftover roast), sweet potato fries
Saturday: Fried chicken, green beans, stuffing

Show Me the Mommy--Family Style

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera when we went out with my brother Tuesday night. But not to worry--I had my iPhone! We asked William to take our picture, but his turned out blurry. We asked Seth to take one, and here's his shot:

Too bad we were standing in the wrong spot for the light. Otherwise, it would have been a great shot! Seth has a steady hand.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Lots Going On at Casa Hahn

Things have been pretty busy and out of the norm at Casa Hahn. Yesterday (Tuesday) my brother was in town for a conference so after work, the boys and I met him for dinner. We went to a really popular local restaurant in Chinatown (not a Chinese restaurant, though--a place known for its pizza and sliders). We got there at 5:30 so we beat the crowd. And the boys did pretty well, thanks to the markers, paper, and play-doh I brought for them to play with. It was great to see my brother, and the boys enjoyed the break from our usual routine. (Terrible iPhone photo, but you get the idea.)

Tonight was even more of a break from the usual routine. We had ice skating after work. Seth decided not to skate tonight (although halfway through he cried because he wanted to skate after all but I wouldn't let him) while William did an awesome job. He really found his balance, and he didn't fall at all. At one point, as I sat on the bleachers and talked to my cousin* (who was nearby and came to see us) while keeping an eye on Seth and watching William, I heard William's voice above the din of the ice rink shouting, "Look Mommy! I'm really ice skating!" The ear-to-ear grin on his face was worth every penny of the class.

After the class was over, we went to my cousin's son's band concert at his high school. The concert started at 7:30, so I was definitely going out on a limb by going there. But the theme of the concert was "March Madness" and they were performing a variety of marches. So I thought the boys might enjoy it. They've never been to an auditorium-style performance before, so it was a good experience for them. Seth spent most of his time playing with the seats (the spring kind that fold up when you stand up) and dancing in the aisle. William enjoyed the music, although he did keep asking if they were done. We stayed for about 4 songs and left around 8:00. Overall, it was a fantastic night, despite the fact that the boys didn't get to bed until 9:00 p.m. They'll survive, and every once in a while, it's okay to stay up late.

Switching gears a bit, the day was also a bit crazy because we had the inspection for the new house this morning. It was good to walk through the house again and start thinking about what we want to paint, where we want to put our furniture, and what we think we want to buy for the new house. The inspection went well and the house passed with flying colors. Now I have to begin the intimidating part--decorating. I am determined to make this a home I will be proud of. I'm sure I'll be asking for lots of help along the way.

As for details of the house, the development is just one long street of townhomes, built around 1980. Each home has a unique facade and floor plan, and they all have yards and nice landscaping. The homeowner's association maintains all the yards and landscaping, which is a huge relief to Ed, who does not enjoy yard work. He also loves the fact that everything is very well maintained. We have a big patio in back with a koi pond and several beds that need a lot of work. There's a big grouping of holly trees in one corner that provide shade, and another big tree closer to the house. I think we'll be spending lots of time out there this summer. The house is located in Falls Church City, which is a small, incorporated city within the boundaries of Fairfax County. It has its own school system which is highly sought after in the area. The breakdown of the schools is very unique--one school houses pre-k, kindergarten, and first grade; another school has 2nd through 4th grades, the middle school is 5th through 7th grades, and the high school is 8th through 12th grades. Interesting, huh? William will catch the bus to school right at the end of our street. And maybe the most exciting news of all is that the schools have an after-care program, and there's no wait list! Registration begins June 1. In Fairfax County, where we live now, I had to sign up for after-care last July, and I'm still number 35 on the wait list. I was pretty convinced that we would have to hire a nanny to pick William up from school and stay with him until we get home. We may end up deciding that that's a better option for us, but at least we have options!

I'll get into more details about the house itself in another post, or maybe even another blog. Toying with the idea of setting something up to help me decorate the place. In the meantime, I have style and design websites to peruse!

*My cousin is my father's sister's daughter. Like me, she is the youngest of five children. I moved to the DC area almost 16 years ago to be a nanny for her first son. Now that son is 16 years old! In my earlier days of living here, I babysat for them quite a bit (she had another son a few years later) and it has been awesome having family in the area. She's more like a big sister than a cousin. And it's even more awesome that I can turn to her for advice on how to raise two boys! These days, we hardly see each other, so it was great that she could meet us tonight!

Menu Plan Monday -- March 21

Beautiful productive weekend. We spent a lot of time outdoors. I got bathrooms cleaned and laundry done. Went to Target, grocery store, pet store. William went to "Ninja's Night Out" at his Taekwondo studio.  (From 5:30 to 9:00 p.m., the kids play games, eat pizza, and watch a movie. Unfortunately, Seth is too young to attend, so Ed and I didn't get a date out of it, but William had a blast nonetheless!) We put a contract on a townhouse. Overall, we got a lot done.

I even managed to plan this week's menu using up food from the freezer. It's not very exciting or original, but my groceries only cost $70 this week.

Wait, what was that? Oh, the contract on the townhouse. Yeah--thought I'd just slip that one in. Wanna see it?

It's a lot smaller than I was envisioning our new home would be. But what it lacks in size, it makes up for in charm. It has a front and back porch. (Back porch is screened in.) A really big patio in the back. A full bathroom and den/guest room on the first floor. Good-sized bedrooms upstairs. And it's in an awesome location with fantastic public schools. The lawn is maintained by the homeowner's association, and the street is quiet and private. Our closing is at the end of May. So Ed and I have already begun the big assessment about what goes and what stays, and what we thing we want to buy for the new place. I'm a little worried about where we will put all of the boys' toys. But I'm sure we'll manage. I'm really excited to get in there and make it ours, meet our neighbors, register William for kindergarten, and feel settled.

So now, back to this week's menu!

Sunday: Grilled chicken thighs with white barbecue sauce (this was soooo good! The white barbecue sauce is fantastic!), asparagus, dinner rolls
Monday: Breakfast for dinner (waffles, eggs, bacon, fruit)
Tuesday: Tacos/quesadillas (using up frozen taco meat)
Wednesday: Chicken tenders, broccoli, dinner rolls (using up a bag of frozen chicken tenders)
Thursday: Homemade pizza (using up mozzarella cheese that's been in the freezer a while)
Friday: Hamburgers/free for all (Found two hamburger patties in the freezer, so we'll use those up. The kids will probably eat something else.)
Saturday: Fried chicken, green beans, biscuits (using up frozen chicken legs)

So that's about it from me. Pretty awesome weekend, although now I'm exhausted. and just for the record, both boys seem to have runny noses again. I'm debating on whether or not I should take Seth back to the doctor tomorrow. He's not coughing a whole lot, but the cough is still there and it still sounds pretty cruddy. I guess I'll see how tomorrow plays out.

Show Me the Mommy--Reflections

We are finally getting some warmish spring weather, and I can't wait for the weekend. There are some flower pots that are begging for pansies and snap dragons and I intend to oblige. In the meantime, Seth is better and went back to school today. And even though it took us over an hour to get home tonight, which means we walked in the door at 6:40 p.m., the boys still got to play outside for a little while. I couldn't say no. Fortunately, dinner was in the crock pot, so while the boys messed around in front, I put the cabbage on to simmer and changed my clothes and got out the tricycles. I pushed Seth on the swing and they both rode around for a while. Then Daddy came home and I went in to get dinner on the table. William and Ed and I ate corned beef and cabbage. Seth lay on the couch. Three out of four ain't bad! We nebulized both boys, skipped bath, and had lights out by 8:30 p.m.

It's nights like this that I really, really, really wish I had some more flexibility at work. Don't get me wrong--my job is much more flexible than most. But an hour makes so much difference. It's nights like this that I question our choices--not just my choice to work, and to work full time, but also where we live, both the DC metro area, and our neighborhood. I can go over it in my head a hundred times, and it always comes down to the same conclusion. The good in our situation outweighs the bad, even if it's not by much. As we look for a new place to live, and as we face kindegarten and elementary school and all that it entails, we are rexamining everything, trying to be open minded, knowing that there is no perfect situation. There will be compromises, no matter what decisions we make. And things will be changing quite a bit anyway with William starting kindergarten. I'm a bit apprehensive, but for now, things work pretty well, despite the occasional traffic disaster.

So in the spirit of my reflective mood tonight, I thought I'd post this picture for Show Me the Mommy. I took this several weeks ago, when we had our first bit of nice-ish weather. Seth loves shooting hoops (with a soccer ball), so I managed to capture us both:

There are no right answers. Things can, and often do, change. And I'll keep reflecting on my choices, and I'll always wonder if I could be doing better. I think that's human nature. At least, it's my nature.

Sick Day

I wonder how many posts I've titled, "Sick Day"? I bet it's a lot. Today it was Seth's turn. He caught William's virus and started coughing on Sunday. He was acting fine though, no fever, so he went to school on Monday. He had a great day at school, but overnight, he woke up coughing several times and felt a little warm. This morning he had a low fever (100) and his coughing sounded worse. So we stayed home and made a doctor's appointment. The doctor said his lungs sounded okay and his throat looked fine. One ear had some fluid, so we are on a wait and see pattern. Despite the fever and fluid in his ear, Seth was totally normal all day. So it was kind of nice to spend a day with them at home.

Unfortunately, today is the monthly board meeting for our daycare, so I had to spend two hours on the phone in the middle of the day "attending" the meeting. Fortunately, Seth slept through most of it, and William managed to entertain himself for most of it. I did have to break up one fight towards the end of the meeting (between my kids, not the board members), and they were more than ready for me to hang up the phone by the time the meeting was over (the kids, and probably the board members, too). But all in all, it went really well. I was proud of William for respecting my need to be on the phone. And I was shocked that Seth actually willingly went down for his nap five minutes before the meeting started. I guess the stars aligned!

Other than the mid-day meeting, our day included a quick trip to Target, playing outside, building with blocks, drawing with new markers, and watching TV here and there. I'm tired, but this is the kind of sick day I can handle. Seth will stay home with Ed tomorrow, and hopefully will be well enough to go back to school on Thursday. Sick days every once in a while are great, but you definitely don't want to overdo them!

Menu Plan Monday -- March 14

I'm back on the menu-planning wagon. I was planning on having an "empty the pantry/freezer" week, but Ed loves corned beef, so I figured I should live it up for St. Patrick's day. The pork piccata, chicken breasts, and chicken thighs are all from the freezer, though, so I'm making progress. The pantry is a bit  more of a challenge, though. We have a lot of pasta and rice that no one really eats (other than me). I might try to come up with a few things to make over the weekend that I can bring to work all week. We'll see. In the meantime, the menu:

Sunday: Pork Piccata, green beans

Monday: Fish fillets (from Trader Joe's), broccoli, sweet potatoes

Tuesday: Spaghetti, garlic bread, salad

Wednesday: Garlic-lime chicken breasts, asparagus, dinner rolls

Thursday: Corned beef & cabbage with potatoes

Friday: Reubens

Saturday: Grilled (or baked) chicken thighs with white barbecue sauce (hoping to break out the grill!), broccoli, and maybe corn

Mummies

William has become very interested in Ancient Egyptian culture--especially pyramids, sphinxes, and mummies. After tonight, though, he might not be quite as interested in mummies. On Saturday we checked a book out of the library called Mummies. I didn't even open it to flip through the pages. I kind of wish I had because the first three pages of the book (the front matter) had pictures of pretty gruesome mummies. As William became a little less sure that he wanted to read the book, I start reading the introduction. The second sentence of the book reads, "A hook was pushed inside a nostril and into the skull and then twisted to break the brain into pieces to be drained through the nose." Um, yeah. I got to "a hook was pushed inside a nostril," and William said, "Maybe I don't wanna read this book." No kidding.

Instead we read about trains. And I'm crossing my fingers all night in the hopes that he won't suffer from nightmares. In the meantime, I've got a book about mummies to read. If you don't mind the gruesomeness, it's actually pretty cool!

Not My Brightest Mom Moment

On Saturday the weather was pretty nice so the boys decided they wanted to ride their tricycles to the pond in our neighborhood. The community center is across the street and I remembered that there was a big pile of sand in the parking lot next to a parked skid steer loader. I thought the boys would enjoy playing on the skid steer loader and climbing in the big pile of sand, so I told them to pick out a few diggers and trucks to bring along.

When we got to the pile of sand, William was ecstatic and started climbing immediately. I noticed the surface of the sand was kind of crusty, but I figured it was from the recent rain we had gotten. As the boys played, I noticed a white film running onto the pavement (anyone see where this is going?), and it started to dawn on me that it was salt. The pile of sand was the stuff they load into the trucks that salt and sand the roads during snow. The thing is, they usually use chemicals, too. And here I am letting my kids play in it. A couple of people had walked by and I noticed they were looking at me kind of funny, but I was thinking they were probably thinking it was cute that the boys were having so much fun on the sand pile. They were probably actually thinking, "I can't believe she's letting them play in that sand!"

Live and learn. Hopefully they'll be okay. I made them take a shower as soon as we got home. And I got a few good pictures out of the adventure. William absolutely loved it. And fortunately for me, when we passed by the parking lot this morning, we noticed that the sand pile and the skid steer loader were gone. So at least I don't have to worry about William wanting to play in it again. I didn't have the heart to tell him that there might be dangerous chemicals in the sand. Good going, Mom!

Good thing I'm cute, huh?

Photo Shoot with LauraC

Here are my favorites from the photo shoot with LauraC. Considering how uncooperative the boys were, and how unphotogenic I am, she did an amazing job! We have a photoshoot with a professional planned for late May, and I can't wait to compare the professional shots with Laura's. Something tells me Laura is going to be super successful when she goes pro!

Ice Skating!

Tonight was the boys' first ice skating lesson and they were awesome! I am so proud of them. They were taught how to fall, how to get up after they fall, and how to bend low and put their hands on their knees if they start to wobble and lose balance. William paid attention and followed directions and was very proud of himself for how well he did--hardly falling down at all!

Seth was raring to go when we first got there and had absolutely no fear. He fell down lots and lots of times, and got a little discouraged. A few tears were shed. Halfway through the lesson, he decided that listening to the teacher was for the birds. He was ready to go skate "with the big kids" who were having free skate. We'll see how he does for the rest of the lessons. But I was impressed with how well he was able to stand up on the ice and even skate a teeny tiny bit. He was by far the youngest kid there, and the other parents were very impressed with how well he did. The instructor said he catches on fast. That's my boy!

William is already looking forward to next week, wishing that his lesson was tomorrow instead. Maybe we'll take them to a rink this weekend for free skate time. Overall, I'm very encouraged!

Good Riddance, February

Well, maybe my title is a bit harsh. But I'm so ready for spring. We had nice weather on Sunday and the boys spent lots of time outside, helping Ed with yard work, riding their tricycles, playing on the playground. Today it rained most of the day, but the temperature was pretty mild. I'll take it. Tomorrow is supposed to be colder, but then Wednesday, a projected high of 63! And then back to colder on Thursday and Friday and the following week. Spring teasers for sure, but at least it's closer! We're hearing lots of birds in the morning, the days are getting longer. It's just around the corner!

What other random thoughts can I spew here? We looked at houses this weekend. I saw three that I would have been pretty happy to live in--one that I really really love. Ed is hesitant, though. I'm trying to be patient and I'm trying to not get all hung up on any one house because basically, I'll be pretty happy anywhere. I'm just frustrated because Ed seems incapable of making a decision. Yes, it's a huge deal and a HUGE amount of money, but we need to make a decision soon because we need to enroll William in kindergarten soon. We need to get him on waitlists for after-school care. It just seems like NOTHING will satisfy him. Ugh.

Over the weekend, I bought the first set of BOB books for William. He got the hang of reading them pretty quickly. It's mostly sight reading, but he can figure out the words by sounding out the first letter and the last letter. The best part was how excited he was that he was actually reading. It's a start anyway! He read one of the books out loud to his class today. I'm impressed! I think I've been underestimating him a bit.

I also bought the "My First Bob Books" for Seth, mostly because one of the charaters is named Seth. My Seth, of course, loves the books. There are 12 books in the box and we've already read them all twice. You gotta love vanity!

Back to William, he has discovered the Evolution of Dance video on You Tube. He loves it and watches it over and over. The funniest part is that he sings along to all the songs. He also loves the flash mob videos, especially the Michael Jackson tribute in Stockholm. I get worried when he starts browsing You Tube on my iPhone, though. There's a lot of, um, inappropriate stuff on there. I always make him hand me the phone if what he starts playing doesn't sound familiar.

Seth's birthday party is all booked. We're going in with two of his friends from school who have birthdays right before and right after him. Makes much more sense then figuring out who wants which weekend, and then having three separate parties. Yay for combining forces! We're doing it at Pump It Up, one of those big inflatable slide/jumpy/bounce places. Seth is excited. Now I need to get cracking on William's party. I think we're going to have it at his Taekwondo studio. But I need William to comfirm that it's definitely what he wants. I can't believe we're already making plans for their birthday parties! Forget birthday parties, I can't believe it's time to register William for kindergarten!!!

For my final thought, I made ribs last night and the boys ate them! They thought the rib bones were pretty cool. Yay for adding more meals to our repertoire. And speaking of food, I need to go figure out what to make tomorrow night. Ugh. I really hate having to figure out what to cook every night. Whether I do it night by night, or weekly, or monthly, it still sucks!!

Wednesday Randomness

• Ten minutes ago, I thought of at least three things to blog about in randomness. And now those things have escaped me. I guess this is how it is as I approach 40!
• Oh yeah--I remember one thing. William has been eating!!! This is pretty exciting. Last night I made meatloaf, green beans, and mashed potatoes and he ate all of the meatloaf, all the green beans, and half of the mashed potatoes. (Eventually, the pull of the mashed potatoes got to him and he succumbed to playing with them. But he ate half of them!) Tonight, we made homemade pizza (with homemade whole wheat crust) and he ate his entire generously sized piece, along with a whole bunch of grapes. This morning he ate two waffles. Not to mention the three waffles he ate one morning at Laura's. I'm hoping this means he's having a growth spurt! He could use one. He only weighs 33 pounds!
• I fell off the bandwagon and bit my nails some time last week. Work is super busy right now, and there's a lot going on at the daycare center. Both have me pretty much completely absorbed during the day. Oh well. I'll just start over!
• Along with eating, William has been drawing like crazy. Today it was all about spaceships. Last week was volcanoes. He's been using the dry erase board on our easel, much to Seth's dismay. Seth likes to paint on the easel, and doesn't like to share it with his brother.
• Tonight was a very good night. I brought a huge box home for the boys to play in after work. They drew all over it and told me where to cut out windows. I love cheap entertainment! They also helped me make the pizza. After they ate, the happily cleaned up while I made them ice cream. (Except that Seth conveniently had to use the bathroom during the clean-up. That boy is so manipulating!) Little to no whining (except when they wanted sippy cups). No losing my patience and no yelling!
• We're getting the Incredibles for Friday night movie night. William hasn't seen it so he's going to be thrilled! I haven't seen it either. Looking forward to it.
• Seth was recounting something that happened in school today and he used "like" several times. As in, "he was like, 'oh no!' and I was like, 'yes!'" How does that word enter their vocabulary at such a young age??? Is it relentless???
• Government shutdown might occur week after next. Lots of decisions to be made as for whether or not our daycare will stay open. Best case scenario--work shuts down and daycare stays open. I'd gladly sacrifiice a few days of pay to have a few days to myself!!!

Weekend at Laura's

Over our long holiday weekend, we visited LauraC and her twins, Nate and Alex. To say we had a great time would be an understatement. William and Seth had a blast and I loved catching up with Laura and hanging out. Laura was the perfect hostess and I actually felt like I was on vacation. It didn't hurt that the weather was mild and sunny! The boys were really good and they got along really well with Nate and Alex. I also got to see HeatherV and meet Ben and Ian, which was icing on the cake. And as if all of that wasn't awesome enough, Laura took some pictures of the boys and me. Despite the fact that William and Seth were less than cooperative, she managed to get a few great shots, including the ones she posted on her site. I am so fortunate that THE Laura Case lives within driving distance!

I didn't bring my camera, but I got a few shots with my iPhone. Seth loved all the sports equipment in the Case's backyard.

William loved the light sabers! (Don't ask me about this pose though.)

And this is what four 4-year-old boys, a 2-year-old boy, and a 10-month-old boy look like together at the table:

Our trip almost didn't happen, though, due to sickness and car trouble. When Ed took the car to get the oil changed on Wednesday, they reminded him that he needed to replace the front brakes. Meanwhile, Seth continued to cough and cough, and it got worse by mid-week. On Thursday, I took Seth to the doctor and fortunately, his lungs sounded clear and his ears were fine. It's still the upper respiratory virus, but the doctor prescribed an oral steroid for him and suggested he stay home on Friday and lay low. So that's what we did. We hung around the house all day and he was noticeably better. Meanwhile, Ed got the brakes fixed on the car, and all the planets aligned. I had originally planned to visit both Laura in Cary, NC, and my mom and brother in Charlotte, but I didn't want to push things with the boys, so I decided to just go to Laura's for a 3-day trip. (She lives only 5 hours from here, while my mom and brother would take an additional 3 hours.) I'm glad we did that because it was nice to have today to recover and hang out. (The boys' daycare was closed today for teacher training.)

Seth's cough is better, but it's still not knocked out. And on Saturday, William started getting the sniffles again. I guess this would be back-to-back-to-back-to-back colds for us. Hopefully, we can get through the rest of this week without having to go to the doctor's office!

In the meantime, I left Laura's inspired to make a few changes in our house. First and foremost, no more sippy cups! It's funny how your second child often gets to do things or see things much earlier than your first child ever did. But on the other hand, sometimes your older child hangs onto things much longer than you would like because your second child extends the boundaries a bit. William LOVES his sippy cups and is loathe to give them up. And because we use sippy cups, we pretty much let them drink anywhere in the house. Thus the chocolate milk and juice stains all over the sofa in the living room. After being at Laura's with nary a sippy cup in sight, I realized I just need to rip the band-aid off. When we got home, I declared that sippy cups will only be used in the car. At home, we drink in the kitchen from regular cups. They both whined and complained about it all day. I did let them use straws, but they still wanted sippy cups. I stayed strong, though. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

The next thing to work on is getting them to play without me in the room. They are so freakin' attached to me, it's ridiculous. And you would never have known that while we were at Laura's. They left me alone there. (For the most part.) But at home, I can't be out of their sight for more than 3 minutes. Drives me crazy.

The third thing to work on is staying calm when the boys are pushing my buttons. Laura showed amazing discipline and restraint when one of her boys pushed her buttons all weekend. I was so impressed, and it reinforced what I already know--that getting upset and angry and then yelling does nothing to address the behavior and is very ineffective. Unfortunately, I was not very successful at remaining calm and unaffected today. But I will redouble my efforts tomorrow.

So to summarize, awesome relaxing weekend with Laura, Nate, and Alex. Professional pictures taken. Inspired to be a better mom. Boys still sick, but not so bad. And I almost forgot--newfound love for Trader Joe's! I dragged the boys there today and got a bunch of goodies. Score! Definitely could not have asked for a better weekend. Thanks a million Laura!!!

William 4.75 and Seth 2.75

I've been working on a post in my head about the boys--William at age 4.75 and Seth at age 2.75. I have lots to say about them, but I'm so freakin' drained at the end of the day, I just don't have the energy to make the words flow from my brain to the keyboard. So I'll have to aim for a brief summary. The best way to describe the boys at these ages is challenging.

William 4.75 is surley, saucey, obnoxious, demanding, and not always my favorite person. He talks back. He whines. He complains.He thinks it's hysterical to utter any word having to do with any bodily function or private body part. He thinks it's hysterical when he snorts while laughing. Which induces him to snort while laughing even more. He thinks that I was put on the earth to serve his every need, at the instant that he needs it. He thinks it's okay to punch his brother when his brother doesn't do what he tells him to.

Seth 2.75 is stubborn, argumentative, and prone to fit-throwing when we make him do something he doesn't want to do. He often thinks that the rules don't apply to him. And he's pretty confident that he can talk his way out of anything. He is demanding and not very good at entertaining himself. And did I mention the fit-throwing? Ah yes, I think I did.

Despite all of this, and thankfully so, there is still much to love about William 4.75 and Seth 2.75. William 4.75 is, for the most part, a very thoughtful and sweet boy. When I was sick, he spent hours drawing pictures for me to make me feel better. He has done the same for his favorite teacher, who recently lost her father. He also loves to giggle and is quick to laugh. He is curious and inquisitive and has a fabulous imagination. He loves his little brother and is very protective of him. He engages Seth in his imaginative play and he is, in fact, capable of negotiating with Seth and working out compromises. Much of the time I am proud of him.

Seth 2.75 is often too cute for words. And speaking of negotiating--if that kid does not end up as a lawyer, I will be shocked. He tries to talk his way out of everything. He is not super sensitive--things tend to roll off his back pretty easily. He is tough and independent. Although he definitely enjoys the company of other people. He is also very affectionate and very funny. He likes to walk around with no pants and one sock on. That's just his thing. He loves his brother, but he doesn't take any you-know-what from William. He has learned, however, how to play the victim when William lashes out at him. He has quite the dramatic flair. Like his brother, he is thoughtful. And he is super helpful, in the way that 2 year olds can be helpful.

It's really hard to reconcile how crazy you are about your kids with how crazy they can make you. Each phase of their lives has the good, the bad, and the ugly. Making it through the bad and the ugly and hanging on for dear life to the good is what parenting is all about. Really, that's what life is all about. Fortunately, the good tends to linger long after the bad has been forgotten.

The Money Shot

The weather warmed up today (into the 50s) and we FINALLY got to play outside for an extended period fo time. We got out the trikes and the boys had a blast. I grabbed my camera, and while I know this won't win any photography contests,  I LOVE this picture.

They have been playing together so much lately. William wanted to wake Seth up from his nap this afternoon because he wanted to play "helicopter" with Seth. It is gratifying to be at this stage, to see the relationship developing between the two of them. They fight all the time, don't get me wrong. But I don't think it's going out on a limb to say that they are friends.

As far as my lack of posting goes, we've been busy. The boys are still coughing a bit, and I've got another sinus infection, but it seems like we're all on the road to better. I'm swamped at work and my house is a wreck and I'm definitely not getting enough sleep. But we've got a plan for that! More on all of that later. For now, I'll revel in a good weekend and hope that everything else falls into place.

February Not Turning Out as I Had Hoped

So February has started out much the same as January ended--with sickness. Seth caught another cold last week that started with a bad cough and ended up with wheezing. He went to school for part of the week, but we were home on Monday and Friday. William started showing cold symptoms on Thursday. Or maybe it was Wednesday, Hard to keep track. At first it just seemed like an average cold. But this weekend he started wheezing. And last night he spiked a fever. So home again yesterday and today. (Yesterday with me, today with Ed.) 

We went to the doctor yesterday and she ruled out ear infection and strep. She sent us to get a chest x-ray to determine if he has pneumonia. William did such a great job. I had Seth with me, so we had to wait outside the room while the technician took William to get the x-rays. He wasn't the slightest bit concerned that I wasn't going in with him. They let him pick out stickers when he was done, and he got one each for Seth, Daddy, and me. So sweet!

So anyway, the doctor called a short time later to say that the x-ray showed no pneumonia. So she diagnosed him with a viral-induced infection that caused asthma flare-up. She prescribed an oral steroid and said if he has a bad night, we should give him the oral steroid for the next 3-5 days.

In the meantime, I started feeling bad again on Saturday. Great! Fortunately, it's just a cold so far--enough to make me tired and grumpy, but not enough to allow me to stay in bed all day. Seth, meanwhile, is still coughing away, but otherwise seems fine. Nevermind that he has been throwing monster fits lately, crying so hard that he can't stop crying. He cried this morning on the way to school for 20 minutes and I had to carry him into school screaming. Not fun. His teacher said he calmed down quickly, so that's something, right? Man, this parenting gig is hard.

So that's where we are. Good thing I breastfed, right? (Note the sarcasm.) William is supposed to outgrow this whole asthma thing, and we're still waiting. If it gets much worse, I may have to pull on FMLA leave to get through this winter. Not good. But to keep things in perspective, they could be soooo much worse. If viral-induced asthma is the worst of my troubles, then my life must be pretty damn good. For now, we'll just keep hoping that tomorrow will be a better day.

Show Me the Mommy--Mommy Style

I FINALLY asked Ed to take a picture of the boys and me. It wasn't easy. They didn't exactly cooperate. But it's a picture of me and my boys, so I'll take it!

Happy weekend!

Wednesday Randomness--on Thursday

• Bridget's surgery went well and she is on the road to recovery. Thanks for your prayers and kind thoughts! In true Bridget fashion, her final thoughts expressed to me before her surgery were: "Please don't let me wake up with a headache." Hopefully, the pain meds are doing their job!
• Ed stayed home with Seth yesterday (Tuesday) because he was still coughing a LOT, and because I was afraid he'd go to school and tell everyone how he threw up the night before. Even though the vomiting was caused by mucus and gagging, I didn't really want to have to explain that to his teachers and the director. His teacher was already less than thrilled that he was at school on Monday. Not to mention the fact that now that I'm president of the board at our daycare, I feel like I have to adhere to a bit of a higher standard. Fortunately, he's better today, not coughing nearly as much. Hopefully he'll have a good day!
• I still haven't bitten my nails. Woo-hoo! I have to admit that it's getting harder. I keep reminding myself that it's cold and flu season, and really, it's disgusting to be biting my nails this time of year!
• Dinner this week is going well, even without a plan. I made salmon and asparagus on Sunday, with my own butter/garlic/white wine/dill/lemon juice sauce. It was pretty good! I rarely stray from recipes and wing it, so I was pretty psyched it turned out well. On Monday we did waffles and sausage and fruit. And last night, I made fried chicken, broccoli, and biscuits. Tonight I may be winging it a bit. Maybe chicken nuggets for the boys. They're homemade, so it's not as bad as it sounds!
• I'm signing William up for ice skating lessons. I'm debating on whether to sign Seth up for ice skating, too. I was thinking I'd sign him up for soccer. But it would be nice to have the two of them taking the same class together. I'm also trying to decide which class to sign them up for--weekend or weekday. Since William already takes taekwondo on Saturdays, I don't want to overload his weekends. I could sign them both up for a Wednesday night ice skating class that starts at 6:30, but I might need to leave work a little early to make it there in time to get both boys in their skates. And that would definitely make for a late night once we eat dinner and get home. Not the end of the world, but something to consider. I could sign William up for a Sunday class. There's only one time-slot available right now, so that would leave Seth out. But I could sign Seth up for soccer and let him wait on the ice skating. Decisions, decisions.
• I never finished this post yesterday (Wednesday) so I'm wrapping it up today (Thursday).
• I decided to sign both boys up for ice skating on Wednesday nights starting Mar. 2. The class goes for 6 weeks. After that, soccer starts, so I'll sign Seth up for a Saturday morning class. Woo-hoo! I hope the boys both like it and it doesn't kill us.
• I never did post about the snow storm that hit DC last week (or was it the week before that) right during rush hour. It had been raining all morning, and then it turned to wet, heavy snow. The rain had washed the salt and sand and chemicals off the roads, so everything turned into a slippery, awful mess, and traffic turned into a HUGE nightmare. Ed ended up staying in his office all night because he could not get onto the road that would take him home. There were cars stuck everywhere, and no one could go anywhere. It took people on average 4-5 hours to get home. Luckily, I left work at 3:00 p.m., just as the snow was starting, and it only took us an hour to get home. I've never been so thankful in my whole life!
• I think that's all for now.
  

My Thoughts Are with Bridget

My friend Bridget is undergoing brain surgery today to remove a tumor from her pituitary gland. Her quality of life over the last several years has suffered greatly, and I hope and pray (as much as I'm a praying person) that this surgery will be successful, without complications, and that she can begin the journey to getting her life back. Bridget is an amazing and strong woman, and I don't doubt for a second that she will get through this. She is the epitome of a steel magnolia--gracious and charming and stylish and one of the funniest people I know, and at the same time, smart as a whip and tough as nails. But if you can send your thoughts and prayers her way, I'm sure it wouldn't hurt. I mean, it is brain surgery, after all.