Category Archives: parenting

No time to say, hello, good-bye!

It seems like the majority of my posts are really just rambles lately. I think I’m bored, though, I really have no reason to be bored because there is always something to do. I think the problem lies in the fact that the things I should be doing aren’t necessarily the things I want to be doing, and there isn’t always enough time to do the things I want to do. I knew going into having kids that priorities would shift and our lives would change, but even after several years of doing this, I still find it difficult to find a balance.

It’s good for the kids to see us doing things that interest us, but let’s face it, more often they’d rather we be doing something else, and I can’t fault them that. I want to spend time with them too considering the majority of our days are spent apart. I struggle, though. If I spend all my time sitting and playing with them, then the house and other responsibilities get neglected. I can put those off until after they go to bed, but then that usually means I’m just tired and flop into bed afterwards. Josh and I try to split household things, but for some reason we can never seem to keep up and at the same time meet our own personal needs.

Then I start to think about what’s important to me and start to feel dejected because I don’t feel like I can juggle so many things and don’t know what to give up or how to make our lives more organized and less stressful and yet more fulfilling. I want time to concentrate on my health physically and mentally. I want time to read, but also time to catch up on a few shows with a glass of wine. I want to finish a certification or two. I want to learn how to sew (well, I know how, but I have some projects I’d like to give a go). I have several hobbies I enjoy, but don’t seem to have time.

Where has all of the time gone? Do I need to prune my interests and somehow decide which hobbies to keep? Do I need to schedule my free time? I really need to find a way to get all of my adulting more stream-lined, I think, and then hopefully the other things will fall into place.

*Photos of cute children are to remind me how much I love them and how worth it they are.*

**I jest!! I absolutely love them and they are worth the sacrifice.**

Today you are 4.

And just like that, we have a 4 year old. Gone is my baby with the chipmunk cheeks, but he still has his blue eyes, a dimple, and a laugh that is just as infectious as ever.

Where to begin? Our boy is growing up, which is terribly obvious, but sometimes is so easy to forget and admittedly to try and ignore. He’s becoming his own person more and more each day, which is probably why there won’t be as many pictures of him on the blog either. More often he has requested that I not take his picture, so I will respect that. I still manage to take photos here and there, but if he specifically asks me not to, down goes the camera. It’s actually a good reminder to be more present, which I sometimes forget to be.

I am loving the independence of our 4 year old. For the most part he dresses himself and if he doesn’t like what clothes we’ve picked out, he’ll request a change. I like seeing what he’s in the mood for and we’re going to go shoe shopping as he noticed his sister has a lot more shoes than he does and he would like more options as well. Fair enough!

As far as interests go, he still loves books and is working on learning how to read. His favorite shows are Power Rangers (any incarnation), Paw Patrol, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Sonic the Hedgehog. As far as movies go, he loves Disney and right now his favorites seem to be Jungle Book and Beauty and the Beast (he finds the ending when the household fights off the village to be hilarious). He is really into Legos and anything he can build with.

His imagination is fantastic and he has his own little worlds and stories that he acts out with his toys. While he really likes it when he has someone to play with, he also enjoys playing on his own just as much. Much like his dad, he could spend endless amounts of time playing video games, but we’ve been limiting him. His favorites are Disney Infinity and Skylanders on the TV, but he loves Angry Birds on his Kindle as well as some really great learning apps. Thanks to the warm weather, he’d rather be outside and has hardly picked up his Kindle at all lately.

Most importantly, we have such fun with our Enzo. He has a wonderful sense of humor and picks up things so quickly. He is a caring older brother and always looks out for his sister. He has a dimple and a smile that go straight to my heart (and he absolutely knows it!!) which often causes me to cave and give into little requests like just one more book or one tiny piece of candy before breakfast. We love you, Enzo!

Happy Friday!

We are so ready for this warm weather we’ve been having. Enzo asks every morning if he can wear shorts and Phoebe has been loving skirts and dresses. I think we’ve finally turned the corner and can kiss snow good-bye. Maybe I shouldn’t say that out loud and jinx it. Josh has already started our outside yard projects and opening up the windows has been awesome! Enzo is already asking about when they’re going to start doing water day at Preschool and can you tell we’re all really excited about warm weather?

These pictures were from the first really nice weekend and we all went outside on the deck in our pajamas to get some of that morning sun. I can’t remember where Josh was, but the kids and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The cats are also excited about being outside, but I have some dead plants I need to remove because if it’s a plant, Uzi will eat it and vomit it up. Time to buy some catnip and grass just for them, even though he’ll still get into whatever I end up planting this year. I would love to have houseplants, but no matter what I do, he always finds a way to get into them… that or I have to stick them in a place where we forget about them entirely and no one gets to enjoy them.

Sigh, cats. Anyhoo, we’re going to make the most of this weekend and the great forecast by getting outside! I’m taking advantage of the library’s smART passes and we’re going to go check out the Bell Museum of Natural History. We haven’t been yet, so getting to go for free is an even better way to finally experience. We haven’t decided what we’ll do afterward, whether it be wander some more, go to one of the zoos or another museum, but it will be glorious.

Going with the flow

It was one of those mornings yesterday. Phoebe girl was being a tad clingy and fussy, but the kicker came when she started crying while saying, “No day care. I go to work with Mommy! I no feel good!” The crocodile tears were flowing and unlike most days they kept coming. I wasn’t sure if she really wasn’t feeling good, so I thought about it for a couple of seconds and said, to heck with it. I asked Josh to take Enzo to day care and told Phoebe she could stay home with me. Her response? She still wanted to go to work with me.

So, I shrugged and said, why not? She hasn’t been to my office since she was a baby and I knew that people wanted to see her, so we packed up and in we went. She quickly made herself at home and was checking out my manager’s office (who thankfully is a mom too and had no problem with me taking the day off last minute) and wandering around the building. We colored at my desk and then I had to convince her to leave. Go figure.

I think she just needed a “Mommy” Day. She wanted nothing to do with anyone else and stayed glued to my side well until bedtime. It was nice, though. She picked a beautiful day to play hooky and we even went for a walk. I think I needed it too. Enzo, thankfully didn’t mind that he still went to preschool and was happy to see Phoebe when we went to pick him up.

It’s thrown off my week a tad, but on the plus side tomorrow is Friday when it feels like it shouldn’t be yet, so that’s a nice turn of events!

*I love that Phoebe had grabbed one of my cookbooks in the pictures above. I have always loved looking through cookbooks and apparently she does too. Ha ha.

Let’s wrap it up!

Bring on the weekend! We’re in for a busy one, but hopefully we’ll get some rest and relaxation in as well. Tomorrow morning Enzo and I are going to his early childhood screening thing and then probably will do some grocery shopping since he has been chowing down on strawberries and we’re about out. Then on Sunday a friend is turning 4, so the kids are looking forward to that party as well.

I don’t expect to learn much at his screening simply because we know he’s on track… he’s smart and his eyesight and hearing seem to be good, so… I guess we’ll see. Day care thinks we need to mention how active he is and that his listening skills aren’t always the best, but at that age aren’t most kids that way? Sure, his tantrums might be a little intense, but he’s just an emotional guy. With age he’ll learn how to handle his emotions as long as we help him learn how, so if anything we need to learn how to do what’s best for him.

We try not to spend too much time with video games and TV, but the kid has a knack for it. He learns quickly and really enjoys it. Sometimes it surprises me just how quickly he picks some of this stuff up and I have to ask him how to do something. He’s also been working a lot on sounding out letters and learning how to read and all that good stuff. We do try to make sure he’s active too. As for Phoebe… well…

While Enzo might be more like me in personality, Phoebe is my spirit creature. We like to curl up and read or watch movies and too much TV doesn’t affect Phoebe the way it does Enzo. Granted, she is entering the sassy twos right now, and it’s sometimes hysterical to see how Enzo handles her random and ridiculous meltdowns. He already has the eye-roll and heavy sigh down. Ha ha. As they both get bigger I find myself trying to hang onto their “babyhood” as long as possible welcoming the snuggles whenever I can and probably letting them getting away with more than they should since I’m a sucker for dimples and toothy grins. They know it too.

Dino and Bunnies

Every day adventures