Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from my little ghouls!



The kids are in bed after a successful night of trick-or-treating, that's hopefully the last of the jerks who don't realize lights out means don't ring the doorbell, and I think I've finally warmed up. (It's not super cold, but I'm a wimp.)



I really considered only taking Lorelai around the cul-de-sac and then letting her stay at the house with my mom to hand out candy, but she was just so super excited to go to all the houses with the boys that I couldn't resist. By the end of the evening, she was waving to everyone and saying trick-or-treat right along with the boys.



I'm bummed because I don't think any of the photos on my good camera turned out so all I have might be these crappy iphone photos. At least it's something though. And I can always just console myself in the 3 buckets of candy we now have. ;)

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Some of these spam comments are just so ridiculous, I have to laugh. Who knew my Junk food detox post would be like spambot catnip? I get like 3 new ones a day, which is always such a tease because for a sec, I get my hopes up that it's a real comment. The good new is at least they're not actual hateful people posting as anonymous just to insult me (yet)!

Pumpkin carving

Is it bad that the only reason I was motivated to carve our pumpkins is for the seeds? Not for the joy of my children and allowing them to channel their creativity on this once-a-year activity, but because I like roasted pumpkin seeds. The fun my children had was just a bonus on top of my fall treat. :)

Ok, ok, I really did have fun, too. I honestly love it when we can all do something special like this together. It's not every day you get to carve pumpkins and dig out seeds. This is prime memory-making time, and it's impossible not to enjoy myself when my kids are having so much fun.

But let me just say that pumpkin carving would have been so much quicker and easier if I didn't want to save those darn seeds! Luckily I employed slave labor to separate the seeds in exchange for carving their designs into the pumpkins. :) No, I'm still not cool handing knives over to my kids...which is smart if they're anything like me and really bad with knives. Don't tell Adam, but I almost severed a finger trying to cut the top off one of the pumpkins. (Note to self: bigger knives are not necessarily better!)


ewwwwww!!! 

Anyway, the finished results were totally worth the slimy mess.

Aidan came up with a brilliant original design of a flaming headed vampire ghost (on the left). Logan needed some guided inspiration, so we googled and he picked his favorite. I traced and cut the pumpkins with lots of "you're doing awesome!" encouragement from the boys.

Confession: after gutting and carving 2 pumpkins, I was really not into doing it a 3rd time for Lorelai. But thanks to this inspiration, we worked out a way for her to participate in the decorating. I even had the tissue paper already out for something else, so it was super easy. I just used my shape punches and we were in business.

I had contemplated having her paint her pumpkin (the boys really wanted me to carve "boo" and their plan B was to paint "boo") but I didn't have the right kind of paint, so maybe we'll do that next next year. Regardless, she had fun getting in on the action and the boys did a great job helping her.



Easy + fun = my kind of project (even if it doesn't look as great as the YHL inspiration photo--had I planned this better, I would have tried to find a white pumpkin).


They're all currently hanging out inside, nice and protected from the wind and rain courtesy of Sandy.

iPhone photo dump {week 35}

Another week, another severe lack of pictures during the weekdays. Eh, the fun's all on the weekend anyway.

• I think we're making progress with the potty training. Lorelai is not afraid of the big potty anymore, big win there! I'm so ready to get her out of those expensive pull ups.
• On Saturday morning, we went to a fall festival at daycare. Face painting, cookie decorating, bounce house-ing, corn dogs, nachos, candy, sugar, more sugar and just so much junk food. All day long. That obviously means the kids were in heaven.
• Saturday afternoon, we headed to Raina's birthday party. There was bobbing for apples (Lorelai even got one!), pin the nose on the pumpkin (Logan won), bean bag toss (Logan won) and some other fun games. Plus cupcakes and chips. So again, the kids were in heaven (and also so very loud and crazy, thanks to all that sugar).
• Today we decorated and carved our pumpkins (separate post later), and Logan went to a birthday party at a bowling alley, where he bowled a 97, kicking everyone except for Adam's butt. That includes the birthday boy's dad. Logan was so excited and Adam was really proud. :)
• I also did a ton of laundry, vacuumed the whole house and we finally flipped our really really heavy mattress, lest it seem like our weekends are nothing but fun and parties (ha!).

Flashback Friday: Raina's birth

Four years ago today, I was blessed to witness the birth of my sister's second child, Raina.


Raina, 1 week old

Oddly enough (and unfortunately), I don't remember the details as vividly as I do the birth of her first child (and my first nephew) Shaun, but I do remember that I got the call from my mom on that Sunday morning that my sister was close to delivering so I should head over to the hospital. Jillian didn't have to push for too long with Shaun, so I figured I should hurry.

I actually got there before my mom, who I think had to leave to take Shaun somewhere, but Jillian was at a 10 and was basically holding her legs together (with the blessing of her doctor and courtesy of what I imagine was a pretty darn successful epidural) until mom got there.



The delivery went smoothly and I'm proud to say that I was the third person (behind Jillian and my mom) to hold her. I'm truly grateful to my sister for allowing me to be there for both of her deliveries because it's a truly amazing thing to witness.



In the 4 years since that day, she's turned out to be quite the big personality in a little body (she and Lorelai weigh about the same amount!) who sure gives my sister a run for her money...which I'm sure is payback for all of the (many many) times she gave our mom a hard time. :) (J-you know I love you!)


June 2010

Despite her mischievous side, she's such a sweetie with a megawatt smile, and I'm proud to call her my niece.



And I'm also really glad to have a girl cousin close by for Lorelai to play with. I have a feeling Raina and Lorelai feel the same way.



Happy 4th birthday, sweet Raina. Love you, girl.

A real live pumpkin patch, corn maze and more fall fun!

This year, I was determined to go to a farm with a legit pumpkin patch and corn maze instead of settling for a parking lot "pumpkin patch" with no fun extras like we did last year (and every other year before). So a couple of weekends ago on a simply gorgeous fall day (and after a soccer game that ran late and almost ruined our plans) we headed over to a local farm to get our fall fun on.



The thing I was most excited about was the corn maze. Aidan was the only one who had ever actually done a corn maze before (he went on a field trip last year)--this was a first for the rest of us, including me and Adam. I was psyched!



We grabbed our emergency "help me!" flag and a set of clues, and tried to keep up with the boys as they led the way to each stop. We chose the interactive maze with entertainment clues and learned that Dolly Parton was only 13 when she released her first album...after we went the wrong way at our first turn. Oops!. I was worried we were going to run short on time so we made it a race to see how fast we could get through.



We made it out in about 20 minutes with no more wrong answers (yay for being TV junkies) and only had to carry this little cutie for the last part of it. I think she was just mad we took the flag from her because she kept getting stuck and hitting people with it :)



There are a few of these types of farms in the area to choose from, and some of them are so expensive!! This one was the least expensive, but it was also one of the closest, so that alone made it a winner in my book. It had a lot of fun things to do besides the corn maze. I do wish it had a corn crib and a barnyard...but we still had a total blast with the activities they had.

No barnyard, but we did ride some "cows" around the pond. :)





There were big tractors and tether ball. Bonus: Lorelai only got hit in the face once!



I'm so glad Lorelai had no interest in the big, bumpy slide. The boys shot out of those things like a cannon. Twice down and they were ready quit bruising their bums.



The guys had a bit of friendly competition on the race track. Make no mistake, Adam was in it to win it--no Mr. Nice Dad going easing to let them win. I think he may have even cut Aidan off on a turn at one point. The boys didn't care one bit though, it was all in good fun...until the end when we realized Aidan couldn't reach the brake. Luckily the guy working the track caught him just in time.



After Adam's legs were sufficiently jello-y, we headed over to cornhole and the bounce house where Logan almost broke Lorelai (but let's just forget about that, yikes! They way he fell on her was seriously scary...).



Aidan and Adam also did some corn launching. They aimed for the Duke target, but no luck, darn! :)



Duck racing kept them busy for a while while we waited for the hay ride to take us over to the pumpkin patch.



But then we had to wait some more because the first one filled up. I just wish we had gotten the kettle corn they were making fresh while we were waiting. Yum!







Turns out, it was a hay ride minus the hay, which the boys were pretty angry about. Actually, and I kind of agree. Hay ride with real hay is going on my fall bucket list for next year! But once we got to the field, it was all about finding the perfect pumpkin.



Um, I didn't realize how much more difficult it is to find good pumpkins while you're trying not to trip through the field full of ruts and vines, while holding a camera and your toddler's hand, when she just wants you to pick her up because she keeps tripping (see also: this photo). All alone, since the eager beavers of the male persuasion just ran ahead and left us.



After a lot of promising but ultimately rejected pumpkins, we found our favorite three.



But by then, the last ride of the evening was waiting to take us back, so it was a mad dash from the far end of the field to pay and hitch our ride back.



We had some really great quality family time on a gorgeous day, making memories. Fall has never been my favorite season (I'm more of a spring girl, myself) but this type of thing could totally change my mind. I love watching the kids have fun and can't wait to do it again next year!



Who knows, we may even splurge for the fancy place next time...:)

Blah and ugh with a side of seriously?!

This basically sums up how I feel right now.



Work is craaaazy this week. I've got a cold that won't go away, so I just feel exhausted, run down, blah, and ugh. And to top it all of, I got freakin' pink eye again. Just me, not the kids. Seriously?!? (On the positive side, I had a refill on my drops from the last time I had it, so I didn't have to go to the doctor.)

I'm just ready for this week to be over. Hold me. Or "hold you" as Lorelai would say.

Because the fashion bloggers said so

The other day I told Adam I thought I needed a chambray shirt because they're apparently all the rage these days. I know this because they're all over pinterest and pretty much every fashion blogger I follow has one and tells me they're awesome.

But doesn't she just look so great?! via

So I pointed one out on a girl at the mall, and Adam looked at me in horror and said "you mean a DENIM shirt?!?! You can't be serious?! Oh please NO, don't ever get something like that."

And just like that, my hopes of being trendy like Kendi were dashed. But I think I'll live, because yeah. It's basically a denim shirt.* :)

Awesome image via Whitney, who I found while looking for the first image, and
who shares my sentiment on the influence of fashion bloggers :)

 *I know, I know. Chambray and denim are technically different fabrics, but still...

iPhone photo dump {week 34}

This is basically a photo recap of our weekend, since I didn't take a single picture until Friday afternoon. Oops!

• Adam and I took the kids to the dentist on Wednesday for a checkup. No cavities and compliments all around on what good patients they were (yay!) but Logan has a cracked baby tooth that's at risk for abscess (boo!). He cracked it a couple of weeks ago but has said it doesn't hurt, so I hadn't worried about it until now.
• On Friday, the kids came to my work for our annual trick-or-treating event. Darth Maul and Savage Opress were scary, and a little gnome added to my white board art :)
• Logan and Lorelai cuddled (for a rare still moment) on the sidelines while Aidan played soccer. His team won.
• My mom babysat so Adam and I could go out on a date. We headed to the mall for a movie (Taken 2) and dinner at California Pizza Kitchen. We dined al fresco under some awesome outdoor heaters.
• We did some window shopping and checked out the new West Elm store. That cute little owl kept catching my eye, but I resisted the urge to bring him home with me.
• On our way out, we stopped at the Cheesecake Factory for dessert. I got the Dulce de Leche cheesecake and Adam got the Oreo Dream cheesecake. So yum!

All in all, busy week, but nice weekend. Good times.

Wise Words Wednesday: Breastfeeding {nostalgia}

"It is only in the act of nursing that a woman realizes her motherhood in visible and tangible fashion; it is a joy of every moment." ~Honore de Balzac*


Sometimes I miss this.


Lorelai, 9 months. I think this is the only picture I have of me breastfeeding any of my kids which is kind of crazy when you consider that between 3 kids, I spent almost 3.5 years nursing them. I'm totally modest, which is why, but in hindsight, I wish I had captured it.

It's been a year since Lorelai weaned at 15 months. It was mostly mutual, but bittersweet. She was down to one morning feeding by that point, and I was holding on to  it because she's my baby. My last baby. Sniff.

Then I got an extremely nasty stomach bug and got really dehydrated, and what was left of my supply tanked, so Lorelai wasn't interested and didn't seem to mind. And that was that. I didn't try again that day or the next—it seemed like a convenient end. The fact that it was a very gradual weaning process made the transition easier.

On the one hand, I was definitely glad to have my body back to myself, but at the same time, I missed that closeness—the special bond that no one else in the world can ever have with her.

I'm just so thankful that I was able to breastfeed at all, let alone for as long as I did.  I look back with nothing but fond memories, which is why I'm feeling a little nostalgic that it's been a whole year.

My baby. Where did she go?



*I don't agree with "only" because obviously there are moms who can't or don't breastfeed, which is perfectly fine. But the rest of that quote resonates with me.

On the subject of blogging

As I was talking to Adam the other day about wanting to do more blog networking, he asked me what I hoped to gain from that, and from my blog in general. What does more readers mean to me, will it mean more time involvement on my part...basically, he's all "what's the point? I don't get this whole blogging thing, it takes up your time, why do it?"

That's fine if he doesn't get it, I'm sure a lot of people unfamiliar with blogging don't get it. But his questions got me thinking. Why do I blog? What do I want to get out of it?

 

While I was on maternity leave with Lorelai, I got really into reading lots of DIY and mommy blogs, which inspired me to start my own as a way to document our lives for my own (admittedly terrible) memory and to keep friends and family in the loop since I never (like ever ever with anyone except my mom) pick up the phone to chat and catch up.

I never set out with the intent to become rich and famous from blogging, because let's be honest...the odds of me becoming the next Kelle Hampton or YHL are next to none. Despite my journalism degree, I'm no writer so I'm definitely not trying to parlay this blogging thing into a book deal or anything (hahaha, excuse me while I snort-laugh over that one). I haven't set up google adsense, I don't have any product sponsorships or reviews in the works, I'm just blogging. Dazzling you with my pretty pretty pictures (ha!). Documenting. Plain and simple. That's not to say I wouldn't gladly accept money or product as a part of this whole blogging thing because, duh. But when it comes down to it, that's not my ultimate goal.

I guess I just feel like if I'm going to take the time to blog about it, I might as well have people want to read it, right? To me, blog networking is not solely about the number of followers or google reader subscribers I have, but truth be told, there is some validity in that. It means my ramblings have meaning to someone. The more someones the better, because we all want to be liked and appreciated at least on some level, don't we?

Ultimately, I've seen the kind of amazing support and friendships the blogging community has to offer. Why wouldn't I want to be a part of it? I'm basically a hermit (aside from a little thing called my full time job), so making online friendships is right up my alley. :)

I've also seen some not-so-nice things which is maybe why it's taken me a while to really start to actively put myself out there, but I'm hoping the good will outweigh the bad. Ever the eternal optimist I am (oops, I snort-laughed again).

All that to say, I am going to start networking more. Aside from now doing sponsorship trades (in my sidebar-----> see?) to get more visibility on my little corner of the interwebs, I don't know how this blog will change (hopefully not much, I'm still going to ramble on about me and the kids and post all those pretty pretty pictures). I don't know where it will lead. I don't have any expectations, just hope that wherever it leads is good.

 

Maybe? Or maybe not, that's cool.

And if you're a new blog friend, or even an old one, say hi? I want to meet you (said in the least creepy way possible). I truely appreciate everyone who reads and every single comment I receive. I appreciate that I have family that will read even if no one else does. I also really appreciate positive feedback from fellow bloggers like Mia who gave me a shout out on her blog recently and Ariel who's always so supportive, to name a few.

PS: Adam's not included in the family shout out because says he doesn't read the blog. Crazytown! Maybe he'd get it if he read. Haha!

PPS: While I'm putting it all out there, I might as well shamelessly ask for votes, right? If you like the blog and can spare a click, would you mind? 

Like, totally 80s!

For the month of October, my office is having a themed spirit day every Friday. This past Friday was decade day, so I dressed up in my finest 80s attire. And by that, I mean I butchered Adam's old sweatshirt, stole a scrunchie from my mom and sunglasses from Aidan, and cut my old field hockey socks into "leggings." Totally legit  tubular, right?

If only I'd had a pair of these righteous Reebok high top aerobic shoes that I coveted when I was a kid (that my mom never got me, lame), my outfit would have been even more radical, dude. Like, totally.

source

I thought about going with the 90s, but I didn't have any overalls or oversized patterned sweaters and turtlenecks laying around (thank goodness!). If only Adam had kept one of his flannel shirts, I could have worn that as a jacket or tied around my waist with my french-rolled jeans. I think I do still have some slouch socks in a drawer somewhere though (shame). Those were the days...(but seriously, I can't tell you how excited I was when the rolling trend ended--it was a painstaking process every morning getting it *just* right).

My friend Kiley nailed it though--she looked like she walked straight out of a 1992 yearbook with that hair.

We've got spirit, yes we do! We've got spirit, how 'bout you?!