Zoey at five: 15 things
- She's so sweet and kind and funny and endearing...
- Is a little reserved until she gets to know you, then loud and boisterous and full of ideas and plans...
- She sees herself as an engineer...right now she's working on a "Back in Time Machine." And she's frustrated that it's not yet operational...
- She likes to do art and be read to, ride her bike and go to the hot springs (she's a great swimmer already), be outside but also play board games and "restaurant" and build forts... "Want to play with me Mommy?" is something I hear a lot...
- She love, love, loves her Daddy. I know she loves me too but she makes it very clear her preference is for Daddy Time whenever she can get it...
- She always does her chores, although she hates feeding the dog at night...
- Right now she's loving the My Little Pony party game on her iPad. And Elena on TV...
- She likes scratchie and song at night, but then likes me to get her a few books so she can read herself to sleep...and it has to be different books every night...and they can't be scary...and she like her fan on...and certain blankets put on in a certain way...
- She likes to--no, insists on--dressing herself. "Mommy, you don't pick out my outfit. I do!" she said to me the other day. She loves dresses. No jeans...
- She's super sweet to her Bubs. Except when she's not. Which is generally when she wants some alone time and he's not giving it to her...
- She's good about eating healthy food but doesn't eat a lot...
- Her smile and laugh melts my heart...
- She gives me lots of snuggles and love, but she also wants her space at times...
- Her favorite color is pink...oh, and she thinks that hugs cure hiccups...
- She's the best daughter I could possibly have...love her madly...
XO
Luke at five: 15 things
- He's so sweet and loving. Almost always up for a hug or a snuggle...
- Hugely outgoing...makes friends all over the place...
- Super smart with numbers and letters he's adding and subtracting and on the verge of reading...
- He loves his Mama (and his Dada)...
- He likes to cook and be read to, to hike and ride his bike, to make up games with Sis and play Ninja Football at night...
- Right now he's loving the goat game on his iPad...
- He always does his chores, always gets his allowance (although there is some whining at times)
- He falls asleep best with me snuggled up with him...he loves me singing "Matthew" and "Man in the Moon" and "Blackbird." He only likes me to sing at tuck in though, not during the day e.g. in the car he'll yell at me to stop if I'm singing, lol...
- He's a fearless skier, hitting every little jump he can and going into the trees at every opportunity
- Hot wheels and marble tracks are big in his life. And his stuffed duck collection...and of course Tiny the enormous bunny...
- He's a jeans and T-shirts, shorts and flip-flops kind of guy...
- He's super sweet to his Sissy. Except when he's not. Which is generally when he's in the mood to tease her...
- He's not very excited about eating unless a treat is involved...
- He loves having Newton the dog do trick...
- He's the best son I could possibly have...love him madly...
XO
Mother's Day 2017
What a great Mother's Day weekend, with my mom up and we hiked Spring Creek and went to the hot springs with the kids and brunch and the homemade gifts from the kids brought tears to my eyes, so incredibly special, the flower cards and the "all about my mom" interviews and thumbprint hearts and painting their Me-Ma helped them make...I'm so incredibly blessed...
XO
Mamas + kids at the beach
Most of the MOPS steering team and all our kids got together Saturday at the beach at Stagecoach. What a great morning...
XO
Autumn
This lovely woman has been huge in my happiness here in Steamboat. We met at this playground (which we call "The Moose Playground") shortly after Jeff and I and the kids moved. What a great friend she is. We have the best time together and our kids adore each other as well. She's been such a great support to me too when that's what I've needed (and I've tried to be for her as well.) I'll miss her sooooooo much. But I know we'll be getting together...she's not going that far...and there's always phone calls and texts although it's not quite the same as lunches and MOPS and playdates all over town...
XO
Meri + Charlotte
Love these girls. We're so sad they're moving away...but thankful it's only to Colorado Springs...
XO
Grace in small things, May 11, 2017
- I don't have an office these days, but the corner of the breakfast bar works just fine...
- Pretty sane work week this week...and I've also been doing such a good job with taking a little time for myself in the mornings, which makes such a difference...
- I am obsessed with bullet journals at the moment...have been playing around with ideas and feel like I'm getting incredibly organized (and also more realistic about what I can actually accomplish in a day, which is one of the areas where I really need help...I think I can do way more than I actually can...)
- A day at preschool with Luke and Zo, super fun...so glad I got to spend one more day with them there before they're done...just a few more weeks, so crazy...
- My dad finished the Camino de Santiago today, so happy for him. :) Have been loving his pictures and commentary...
XOXO
Horsey friend and construction
A day with just the family today...so nice after being on the go, which is fun too but we really need our down time. Lots of little tasks around the house plus errands plus the kids built one-person forts and we went to the library and had lunch there and read and the dry cleaners and visited our horsey friend--always fun--and then Daddy took us to see the construction which was so cool. We held hand TIGHT. :)
Farm visit + a day in the life
Our Tuesday:
- 6 AM: I wake up and Zo is in the brown chair by the fireplace waiting for me. She's been up for a while...has a whole little party set up for me upstairs with stuffies and pretend snacks...I drink (real) coffee and hang out with her at the little party she made
- 7 AM: Zo and I snuggle and watch a cartoon--two cute dogs on a mission, don't know the name of it and I hadn't seen it before but Sis had. Luke wakes and joins us
- 7:30 AM: Bagels (Zo's toasted with cream cheese, Luke's untoasted with butter) and scrambled eggs and milk for breakfast, take the dog out
- 7:45 AM: I wake Jeff and spend a little time with him, shower and dress, check in with work. Kids play "camping" upstairs (which involves making a terrible mess) and get themselves dressed
- 8:40 AM: Drive to see friends
- 9 AM: Lindsay hosts us and others (Thanks Lindsay!) and we check out her chickens and pigs and baby goats and farm equipment. I love these women and their kids. And I love Lindsay's place...it reminds me of where I grew up
- 10:45 AM: Head home, make lunch (ham and cheese and fruit and milk for kids, for me snacking on what they didn't eat and an artichoke that was in the fridge), make sure I'm prepped for my 12 PM presentation
- 11:30 AM: Get ready for preschool and drive Luke and Zo to school
- 12 PM: Naming presentation for me. Went great
- 1 PM: 1/2 hour to do my own thing (today read/watched some information about bullet journaling), walked the dog, did a little work. I'm trying really hard to have a 1/2 hour a day where I can do whatever I want and I'm pretty good at getting it
- 2:25 PM: Pick up kids
- 2:45 PM: Kids start their grandma time (today they read and played in the rainy afternoon splashing in puddles etc and cleaned up the mess upstairs, among other things), I work. Kids come in a few times for hugs and to give me artwork they've made...love their little interruptions...
- 5:15 PM: Stuffed poblano peppers and guacamole and chips for dinner, I start prepping
- 5:45 PM: Jeff home, helps with dinner
- 6:15 PM: Kids and Jeff watch a cartoon snuggled up in our bed while dinner's in the oven, I work on some organizational stuff
- 6:45 PM: Dinner
- 7:30 PM: Bath, jammies, toothbrushing. (Luke has black pen spiderwebbed all over his body, he and Sis say their 3-year-old friend Charlotte who we were playing with yesterday drew on him while her mom and I were packing and not quite as attentive as normal, lol). I help with their (Luke and Zo's) washing and toothbrushing and also put away laundry
- 8 PM: A chapter of Winnie the Pooh, snuggled on the gray couch upstairs one kid on each side (the chapter where they are floating sticks down the river and Tigger bounced Eyeore into the river)
- 8:20 PM: Sis is "first tuck in" (we alternate) tonight (and really tired from getting up so early). I snuggle in bed with her, look at the full (or almost full) moon out her window, sing "Man in the Moon" and she's asleep by the end of it. I tuck in Luke, rocking him in the rocking chair and then scratch his back in bed, sing "Matthew," snuggle him until he's asleep, which I really like doing for both him and Sis, trying to get the nights of it that I can before they decide they're too grown up for it...
- 9 PM: Walk the dog and go out on the porch to say goodnight to my husband. Normally I'd sit out with him but my blanket out there is wet from this afternoon's rainstorm. Wash my face and change into PJs
- 9:15 PM: Blog
And after this I'll probably watch a little TV ("Designated Survivor" maybe? I just finished season 1 of "The Crown" last night...oh my gosh so good...) and should be in bed by 11.
Great day. Love our life.
XO
Luke finds a robin's egg
- We've just been reading about robins, and out for a walk Luke found this robin's egg...he was so excited...
- Winnie-the-Pooh on the porch with Bubs snuggled under a blanket...and practicing reading with him...he's starting to get the idea it's pretty amazing to watch...he's starting to get addition and subtraction as well...
- Sitting outside at Back Door Burger with my family at lunchtime + Daddy taking the kids to visit the birdhouse...
- Playing ring-around-the-rosie at the hot springs with Sis...also loving how much she's talking lately about building her back-in-time machine (and it's not just talk, she spends time working on it each day)...
- Cooking dinner together with my husband...
XO