Favorite Photos #1

I love looking through our old pictures. Once I start clicking through the photo albums I can get stuck sitting there for a LONG time. I thought I'd share some of my favorites from trips we've taken.



From a tour of Naples Italy

From our trip to Edelweiss in Germany

From Pompeii Italy

From Rome Itlay

From Sorrento Italy

From Koln Germany

From Paris France

From Trier Germany

From Las Vegas

What is a parent?

Parent:



Giver of hugs

Reader of books

One who worries

One who is peed on, pooped on, drooled on, and spit up on but doesn't really mind too much

Person who never sleeps

One who pretends to be interested in things they are not "Why yes I would like for you to describe in great detail every Star Wars battle beginning with episode 1."

Kisser of boo-boos

Provider of food...especially Lunchables

Holder of hands (as long as you agree that the hand can be held.)

Maker of Mac and Cheese

Singer of silly songs

Person who takes photos like a paparazzi

Finder of teddy bears or other lost stuffed animals

Unfortunately also the finder of legos, especially very small clear pieces that HAVE to be found right away

Person who turns on the bathroom light to keep monsters away

One who replaces batteries...even though noisy toys are well noisy and annoying

Receiver of smiles

Chauffeur

Expert at tucking you into bed

Drinker of wine after you are in bed

Person who is amazed by watching you grow and learn

Person who wants time to slow down

Holder of memories

One who cherishes the laughter

Holder of kleenex

Holder of EXTRA kleenex

One who reminds you to wear a coat

One who reminds you to use the bathroom before leaving

One racing to find a bathroom because you didn't use the bathroom before leaving

Person who wants just one more hug




Person who will love you forever and ever no matter what happens.

So What Wednesday

I'm linking up today with Shannon from Life After I "Dew" for SO WHAT WEDNESDAY

This week I'm saying SO WHAT if:

~ When I took the stroller out of the car at Target I found a package of chicken underneath it. I bought that chicken TWO WEEKS ago! It's a good thing it was sealed and didn't stink the car up. That's why I need to remember to remove the stroller before I go grocery shopping. 

~ I downloaded what is supposed to be an awesome yoga app and haven't had a chance to use it.

~ I took a picture with Emily and only then realized how bad my split ends are.

~ My Christmas tree is still up... The rest of the decorations are gone though. I get points for that, right?

~ My house is a mess. I think it will always be in some stage of messy.

~ I said I would swap my morning coffee for tea because I put WAY less junk into my tea but haven't.

~ I cry when those P&G moms commercials come on.

~ I almost forgot that Noah has no school on Friday or Monday. He had to remind me...

Dream House

While I've been thinking and praying about moving a lot lately I've also been dreaming about the perfect house. We've lived in two apartments in Germany, one house in Italy, one apartment in Italy, One house in Louisiana, and now the house here in Illinois. I definitely know now what I do and do not want in a home! If and when we buy a new home I'm going to be VERY picky. I settled on our last two homes and I'm not doing it again.

Want:
Big kitchen with center island
Lots of storage space
Playroom- OR large bedrooms big enough for the kids to actually play in
Room for Joey to have his Sports stuff
Craft space
Must have a garage
Open floor plan
A nice master bathroom with a big tub

Don't want:
Stairs!
Any kind of septic system
Busy street
Houses too close together

I can't seem to find a photo of our fist apartment in Germany...

Our second apartment in Germany.

Our House in Italy.

Our apartment in Italy.

Our house in Louisiana.

Our house in Illinois.

What will our next home look like?

To do...

I have a constant to do list running through my head. It seems like it never gets shorter. As soon as something is mentally checked off something else gets added. Most days nothing gets checked off and more items are added. A lot of it is every day stuff. You know... dishes, laundry, vacuum...
I just can't find time to get any of it done. My day pretty much goes feed Emily, burp Emily, change Emily, play with Emily, and put Emily to sleep. Put that on replay. Play it all day.

I'm not complaining. I LOVE the time I have with her. I'd just also like to get some stuff done. Usually when she's asleep I rush to do the necessary things like shower and eat. Somehow I'll find a way to complete my to do list.

1. Remove pictures from iPhone. I have no more storage space. My computer tells me transferring all of my photos will take 5 hours and 30 minutes! That can't be right... I need my phone. I don't have that kind of time.

2. Finish our bedroom. The master bedroom is the ONE room that isn't decorated.

3. Get the stuff to make the ottoman for the living room...then make it.

4. Take Bella to the vet! She's needed shots since November...

5. Put pictures in out empty frames.

6. Exercise!

7. Clean the house. REALLY clean it. I'm talking wipe the walls, clean the baseboards, clean the appliances...

8. Reorganize Noah's room. All of the birthday and Christmas gifts are just kind in his room in the corners of the room. They don't really have a place in the room yet.

There are other little things but these are the ones I really really really need to get done. I guess until I find time to do any of it I'll just stare at this cute squishy baby face. =)

Why the human race still exists.

Why have we survived so long? I'll tell you why. I'd like to call it Pregnancy Labor Recovery Amnesia.

It's amazing how quickly we forget all of the bad stuff.
We forget how awful the morning sickness is. We forget the aches and pains of pregnancy.
We forget the insane pains of labor. Even now I can't really remember exactly what contractions feel like even though I know they are B-A-D. We forget the tearing and the stretching. We forget how uncomfortable stitches are. We forget all of the gross things that happen to our bodies after we have the baby.

We forget so easily.
If we didn't no woman would ever have a second baby. She'd demand to have her tubes tied and make her husband have a vasectomy just to be safe.

Perhaps this is why most first time moms are so surprised by it all. Their friends didn't say it could be that bad! Second time moms are easily fooled by their memory. I know I was. I kept thinking my recovery with Emily was SO bad. Much worse than with Noah. Then I sat down and really thought about it. I realized it was pretty much the same. I just forgot how bad it was.

There has to be something in our brain that says, "Okay it's been a while. Let's wipe her memory clean of all the not pleasant parts. Soon she'll see a tiny baby. Soon she'll see a tiny pair of newborn socks. If she forgets all the bad stuff she'll want a baby!"

It doesn't help that babies smell so good. What is that smell? How do they smell like that?
Why does it go away? =(
I wish I could bottle that baby smell up and keep it forever.

We are done done done having babies in this house. My brain hasn't been wiped clean yet lol. We knew two was the number for us. We have a boy. We have a girl. I do not want to be pregnant or give birth ever again. Joey had a vasectomy shortly after Emily was born. There will definitely not be anymore babies. Even if I get a little sad sometimes when I see how big Emily is getting already. Even if I smell her tiny baby head and wonder how much longer she'll keep that baby smell. I know I just do not want to go through all of it again.

I'll leave the procreating to the rest of you...

A letter to the dog...

Dear Bella,

So you've noticed by now that we have an extra person in our house. People come to visit a lot but this noisy little one is here to stay. Let me start by saying I am so so so sorry about your new state of neglect. I'm pretty sure you've forgotten what a walk is. Not that you'd want to go anyway in these sub zero temperatures. Your days of napping on the couch with me followed by a nice long belly rub have taken a back seat to feeding, changing, and entertaining this new little one. I PROMISE I will make more time for you. I really do feel awful about it.

I love that you love Emily as much as we do. Let's try to keep the face licking to a minimum though...okay? I like seeing you lay next to her while she plays. She loves to watch you. Look out though, soon she'll be crawling after you in hopes of tugging on a soft ear or two. It's very sweet to see you sleep by her crib. I can tell you've already decided that she is part of your pack.

Once the weather is nicer I see lots of stroller walks with you. Please be patient with me while I try to balance all of this newness. At least no one has forgotten to feed you.... Also? Enjoy the nice quiet uninterrupted naps while you can... =)

3 Months- Emily

Can she really be 3 months old? Time is going by so fast! Not that I want to go back and relive the first few weeks. Those weeks were BRUTAL. I like where we are now. I know what to expect from her and she knows what to expect from me. Her personality is coming out more and more every day. She's a funny, crazy, and impatient baby. If she wants something you better get it NOW or she'll let you know right away that she's not happy about your decision to make her wait 2 seconds.  She has the cutest little squishy cheeks. I love to see her smile. We're still waiting to hear her laugh. I love this little baby!

Noah holding Emmy when we got home from the hospital and at 3 months!

New things-She likes to blow spit bubbles...and wipe them all over our shirts. She likes to chew on our shoulders when we carry her around. I go through a lot of t-shirts! Her cries are easier to read now. She makes this funny little Wah! Wah! sound when she's alone in a room. It's her calling out to see if anyone will come in the room lol.

Nicknames- Piglet. Emmy. Little Chomp Chomp

Sleeping- Eh.... She does okay. At night she sleeps for 4-5 hours, wakes up, eats, goes back to sleep for about 3-4 hours, wakes up, eats, and goes back to sleep for 2-3 hours. She normally starts her day around 7am. Naps are iffy. Sometimes she'll nap for an hour or two and sometimes only for 30 minutes.
I'm going to start sleep training with her so I'm sure I have some long nights ahead of me. Normally when she wakes up that first time at night we put her in bed with us. I can tell it's already starting to become a habit for her. The long naps we get out of her are the ones that I lay down in the bed and nap with her. So I see that she's liking sleeping in the bed with us and not wanting her crib. So once operation Emily sleeps in the crib begins I just have to stick with it until she's used to spending the night and naps in her crib.

Likes- Her farm toy ~ Noah had the same toy. I got rid of it.... I searched and searched for a new one for Emily only to find that they don't make them anymore. Luckily I found one on Ebay!
Being carried around the house ~ She LOVES to be involved in everything we do.

Dislikes- Being in the car seat! ~ Actually sitting in the seat is fine. It's the buckling in part that she hates. Any time she feels like her movement is being restricted she screams. That makes for really loud car rides.
Sling ~ I have a sling that I started using with Noah when he was about her age. I thought it would be great since she loves being carried around the house...nope. It's the restriction thing again. As soon as shes in it and starts to wiggle around she wants out. I'm hoping it's just a phase. She also hates having her hair washed!

Recently- Emily had her 2 month checkup (last month of course) THAT didn't go well. She's perfectly healthy and everything but a 2 month checkup means shots. She didn't handle them well at all. She had a slight fever which wasn't too bad. Her attitude was AWFUL. If she was a wake she was the grumpiest baby in the world. I could tell she just didn't feel good. The angry monster Emily lasted about 2 weeks. Two very long weeks.
Falling ~ Emily "falls" a lot! It's called the Moro Reflex. Her doctor explained that something in their brain tells them they are falling and that's normally when babies startle them selves awake. Emily does it when she falls asleep in the car or in the swing. One minute she's sleeping peacefully and the next her arms are thrown out, eyes wide,and she's screaming. It's a terrible, sad, help me cry. Hopefully this reflex fades away soon!

She keeps me SO busy all day and night but I love it. I can't believe how much she's already changed!

This year.

I love taking the old calendar off the wall, pulling out the new one, and transferring all of the important dates. I like seeing all of the activities and plans we had during the year scribbled across the little squares. I almost want to keep the calendars.

It's 2014. Noah is 8. Emily is now 3 months old. I'm 28. I've been married for 10 years. I've seen many New Years Eves come and go. Some were spent out being crazy, some spent sitting at home, and the last few I've slept through.

This year I just want to spend more time being present in the moment with Noah. Too often I'm there but my mind is on other things. This year I need to have more patience. This year I need to get healthy! This year I want to get back to reading even if it's just a few minutes a day.

I'm really hoping that this year brings us a job in Louisiana. I'm more than ready to move back. I can't handle another winter here. It's just too cold and there is way too much snow.

Welcome to 2014.