Life... at home....

Now that we're a good, solid few weeks into the school year people have been asking me how I like being a stay at home mom. Mostly, I smile and say "It's so great!" and then try to change the subject. In all honesty, I DO (mostly) love it, but to say that it's perfect and wonderful and awesome... that would be a lie. 

I LOVE not having to get up and go to a "job" each day. I like that I can take a walk in the sunshine with my kids. I love being able to hang out in the evenings and help with homework and bike riding and lunch packing and not have the ever-present hum in my brain about all the stuff I have to do for work. 

With that said, I hate the feeling of "what should we do today?" that I wake up to each and every morning. For some people- that would be such a blessing... to have every day as a blank slate, filled with endless possibilities for adventure. I, however, am a planner... and having no "plan" for each day...well, it stresses me a bit. I'm working on getting into some sort of routine and hoping that helps. While it is nice to have the freedom to do whatever I want, I'm also on a very tight budget... which leaves some of those "endless possibilities" not so possible... 

I also miss "grown ups." Desperately. I love, love, love my kids... but sometimes I want to talk to grown up people... about grown up things. I shared an office with an awesome co-worker last year, and worked on a team with some amazingly supportive people... who I miss tremendously. I miss talking about how hot Bradley Cooper is or the great deal I found at Target on a pair of shoes for Lucy. Unless it has to do with Elmo, Hattie isn't much of a conversationalist when we're home together in the mornings....  Last week I had a doctor's appointment, and (other than Dan) that poor nurse who checked me  in was the most conversation I've had with anyone over 4 feet tall in days!

So... do I love being a stay at home mom? 
Pretty much.

Because I get to be home EVERY day to watch Lucy bounce off the school bus and tell me about her day.

Because I get to be the one to hear Hattie say new words for the first time, like "color," and "apple." 

Because I get to volunteer to teach Maggie's Sunday school class this year. 

Because, ultimately, I realize I will have the rest of my life to "talk to grown ups" because God knows, my girls will be all grown up soon enough. 

This is the look on Hattie's face when she sees Lucy's bus come down the block.... 

THIS face alone is worth staying home for!

PS: It totally helps that I was invited to join a BOOK CLUB that met for the first time tonight. I cannot begin to tell you how energizing and refreshing it was to sit with other women and talk and drink wine and talk some more! Just what I needed!

18 Months!

Holy bananas! Miss Hattie is already a year and half old! I thought the first year of her life went fast... but these past six months have truly flown by!

Eighteen months is such a fun time... it's a perfect mix of them becoming independent little people coupled with the snuggly chubbiness of babies. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE this age!

With that said, Hattie is by far the most outspoken and "adventurous" of all the girls. I never once considered purchasing child safety locks before this one. I have never once had a second thought about leaving the older girls upstairs briefly while I ran down to switch laundry. I have never once had to use the buckles on the stroller. This one? Check. Check. And Check.

Other than causing all sorts of trouble.... Hattie LOVES to color, read books, and do whatever it is that her big sisters are doing. She loves to say "Bess You!" whenever she hears someone sneeze, says "Woof!" for just about ANY animal she sees, and makes a "fish face" when she sees a picture of a fish (or is hungry for goldfish crackers... ) She tries on ANY shoe that is left lying around, repeating "Shoe! Shoe!" Her vocabulary is growing every day. Just this past week, we've added "color" (crayons), "poop" (pointing to her butt when she has a full diaper) and "cookie." She also (very clearly) says "Iwanna..." followed by some mumble-jumble telling the world what it is she wants. While she throws a good tantrum anytime I try to buckle her into the shopping cart at the grocery store, she also gives great kisses and is quite cuddly with her "Ella" (stuffed elephant) and an episode of "Elmo." So.... I guess we'll keep her! :)

Hattie's 18 month appointment was last week. She weighed in at 22lb 12 oz and was 32.25 inches tall. Just for fun, I looked back to compare her to the other girls at 18 mos. She was almost identical in height and weight to Lucy (22lb 11oz/32.75inches) but a bit smaller than Maggie (23lb 8oz/32.75inches) I also thought it might be fun to compare what they all looked like at 18 months. Because I'm their mom and know them all as little individual people, I also think they look so different than one another. Comparing these pictures, though... there is quite a strong resemblance! 

  Hattie- 18 months (September 2013) 

 Lucy- 18 months (December 2010)

Maggie- 18 months (October 2008)

Commute

Last Friday after naps, the girls and I took the drive down to Crystal Lake to visit Dan at work and take the girls to Portillo's for some famous chocolate cake (oh, and dinner, too!) We've been talking about taking this trip since he started working there over 2 years ago, but we finally did it this past week. 

The GPS said it would take about an hour. 

The GPS lied. 

It took almost TWO hours. And it sucked. A lot. It was a lot of in and out of little towns- very stop and go. 

After dinner, Dan took the 2 bigger girls with him, and I followed him on a different route home. This ride was a bit faster (only an hour and 15 minutes!) but so, so boring. Through farm fields and more small towns. There truly is no "direct" route to Crystal Lake... but let me tell you. I have a newfound love and respect for my husband- who drives that awful ride every day, TWICE a day. Yuck. Yuck. Yuck. 

On a happier note- Dan's office is really cool, his co-workers are super friendly, and the chocolate cake was delicious!

Pears!

We have a pear tree in our backyard. I hate pears, so I kind of just ignore it. Last year the girls ate one pear each from the tree before I went back to ignoring it. This year, I have some more time on my hands, so Dan got the ladder out and picked all the pears from the tree last week. We had to get them early, or the darn squirrels eat them first. We let them ripen... and this morning I spent a better part of three hours peeling, coring, cutting and canning all the pears with  a cinnamon pear recipe Dan came across on the internet. Don't get me wrong... I'm still not a fan of pears, but I have to admit- the color of the ripe pears was amazing...  Yeah, I'm a nerd... but they were so, so pretty! I wish the basket of fake ones I have on my kitchen table as a centerpiece were as colorful! 

Oh, and three hours of work? We managed 6 (SIX?!?!) quarts of cinnamon pears!

Lucy Heads to 4K!

This morning Lucy boarded the bus to 4K! She was all smiles, and excited to go. I had a bit of a breakdown once I saw her little self get on that bus. She was so bitty I couldn't even see her to wave goodbye to her in the window! 

While Maggie is more confident and always ready to take on new adventures, Lucy is a bit more cautious and (surprise!) quiet in new situations and unfamiliar surroundings. Just last week, we stopped at school to fill out some paperwork, only to learn the teacher that Lucy had met during Open House would not, in fact, be her teacher- as they were interviewing for an additional teacher that afternoon (two days before the class arrived... poor, poor teacher....) As a mom, this tore me up inside, but I had to put on my "happy and excited" face for Lucy- she is so, so sensitive and I didn't want her to see me stressing about the situation. But... it all seemed to go well today! She hopped off the bus, but wouldn't tell me ANYTHING about her day- until we saw Gramma and Papa because "she didn't want to tell the same stuff five times." Um, OK. 

Traditionally, our "first day of school" dinners are kind of a big deal. There's a "kid-chosen-and-approved" meal, presents, and normally Gramma and Papa are invited to hear all about the big day. Tonight, I have a meeting to attend at Maggie's school, so Lucy got a special "first day of school" lunch instead. She got to choose the restaurant ("Burger Kingdom with the playground!") and there were still presents, of course! 

 Her sisters were just as excited as she was for the school bus to arrive!

 Waiting for the bus... 

 My brave, brave girl!

 All smiles at Burger Kingdom!

Mary Tyler Mom

Two years ago, I stumbled across a blog written by a woman who called herself "Mary Tyler Mom." Not quite sure how I got there... but it happened to be near the end of September. Unbeknownst to me at the time, September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and each day she was writing a post covering a month of her daughter Donna's cancer treatment. I was catching the it all at the tail end, but her amazing story pulled me in. I sat for hours and read each and every previous blog post for the month that I had missed, cried, cried some more, and I have been a loyal fan and Facebook follower of hers ever since. 

Why am I telling you this? Because two Septembers have passed since I first found Mary Tyler Mom. Twice I have read (and reread) the story of her beloved Donna. It never gets easier. The ending never changes. This year MTM is changing it up a little and is posting a series of "guest bloggers" writing about their own experiences with childhood cancer. I'm not going to lie. It's hard to read. For the most part, it's NOT "feel good" reading to end my day... As a mom it breaks my heart into a million pieces and makes my soul hurt in ways I can't begin to describe. But I do it because it's important. These are stories that not only need to be told, but need to be heard. While I am exceptionally blessed to have three healthy children TODAY, there is a horrifying possibility that could change... and I would want the world to know, too. I would want the world to hear my story. I would want people to be aware. To advocate for change. To fight for MY child's health. To save my baby's life. These kids (and their families) are nothing short of amazing, and I feel I owe it to them to hear their stories.... 

So.... here it is, y'all. I'm inviting each and every one of you to tune in this September. Check out MTM's blog here: http://www.chicagonow.com/mary-tyler-mom  You can follow the September Series by clicking on the link at the top of the page. I also encourage you to read Donna's story (there is a link at the top of her blog for that, too!) You will fall in love with her, just as I did, I promise. If you want, you can head on over to Facebook and "like" Mary Tyler Mom, too. While Donna is a big part of her life, you will also hear about Mary Tyler Son, fun shoes, and chocolate. What's not to love? 

Maggie J. Salmon... First Grader at Last!

Yup, my Maggie is officially a first grader! While this year was a bit less emotional and nerve-wracking than last year, it was still tough. Maggie started a new school this year. She was hesitant all summer, but that changed to complete excitement after she had the chance to see her classroom and meet her teacher at last week's Open House. Still... the new school is a small charter school. Since there is only one class per grade level, Maggie is truly coming in as a "newbie." With the exception of three other students who were added when they increased the class size, Maggie is with a class that all knew each other from kindergarten. While I am confident in Maggie's ability to make new friends, it's always difficult to watch your baby have to find her place among a group of kids who already have an established relationship.... But... she did great! I teared up a bit as I walked out the door, but at last glance, she was busy emptying her backpack, chatting it up with the little boy whose desk was next to hers, so..... 

With all of that said, I have to say how amazed and impressed I am with the staff and parent group at her new school. When we arrived for Open House last week, there were parent volunteers greeting families at the entrance. As we walked up, the woman at the door stopped us and introduced herself because Maggie was "a face I don't recognize!" It was nice to be acknowledged and it was impressive that a parent volunteer was familiar enough with the students to recognize a new student at the school. This morning as we were getting out of the car, the mom in the car in front of us also stopped to introduce herself and her daughter (who happened to be a classmate of Maggie's!) Again, as we were walking in, another school staff member stopped Maggie to introduce herself because she realized Maggie was a new face at the school. It definitely put my mind at ease and helped reassure me that we had made the right decision in transferring her... 

Oh, and Maggie's "best part" of her first day? The monkey bars, of course!

 It's hard to read, but it says "a cupcake baker!" (and yes, her handwriting took a slide this summer- if you're comparing at all to her 'last day of kindergarten' pictures... when she wanted to be a scientist!) 

Green Meadows

Green Meadows is a small petting farm about 45 minutes from our house. We went for the first time last year, and fell in love! It's full of hands-on activities, lots of animals to pet, and (my favorite part) it's clean! We headed back again this year (funny coincidence- as I uploaded this year's pictures, I noticed we went exactly one year earlier- 9/2!) and had even more fun now that Hattie is old enough to join in! 

 Patty... the VERY big pig!

 This was Maggie's favorite part of the day... you could "race" rubber ducks by pumping the water into the tubes. 

 While Hattie wasn't quite big enough to pump the water, she was pretty impressed watching those duckies float by! 

 Driving the tractor! 

 Merry go round!

 Maggie says, "Whoa, horsey!" 

 "Giddyup!" 

 Hattie was just fascinated by his ears... 

Not quite sure what Hattie was thinking here... 

 Maggie was a little apprehensive about petting some of the animals

 Hattie was OK- as long as mom or dad was close by!

 Coloring? Yes, please!

 Artists, hard at work!

 This is when Dan took over with the camera. He was fascinated by these 2 dumb animals that 1) could not figure out that the water was too low to get their horns down in the bucket low enough to drink it and 2) there was no way they were both going to get a drink at the same time

 This was a *brand* new calf. Having birthed 3 babies myself, it was pretty obvious when looking at the mom (thanks, Dan for NOT taking any pictures of that!). Selfishly, I didn't want to answer too many questions, so I hurried the girls along...She was also QUITE protective of the new baby, and kept charging at the fence when the kids got too close. 

 Milking the *fake* cow!

 Lucy was brave enough the try the real thing! It was fun until she squirted her shirt... 

 Checking out the donkeys...

 This was Lucy's favorite part- an entire truck of drums and things to beat on and make lots of noise. We couldn't get the girls away from here!

 

 They all tried the "bumpy" slide!

 Washing clothes... by hand!

 Probably my favorite picture of the entire day... possibly, ever. 

 Pony ride!

 Hattie was enamored by this little guy... 

 Playing in the corn!

 Riding bikes!

My girls!