Observant One

Every five years, teachers in Virginia are required to renew their teaching license.  As part of my licensure renewal, I had to take a First Aid and CPR course, which I completed last night.

This morning, as we were all getting ready for work/school, I told my family that I had an announcement to make: I could now save their lives in a medical emergency.

I heard Brad whisper to Hannah, "No, she couldn't."

So I started to defend myself by listing off my new skill-set: rigid splints, soft splints, compression wraps, Epi-pen administration, CPR, stop bleeding, and the use of an AED.

Brad especially didn't believe that I could operate an AED.  So he asked me, "What does AED stand for?"

To which I replied, "I don't know, but I know how to use one to save your life."

He laughed, I laughed, Hannah laughed, and then Brad shared that he knew that I wouldn't know the answer to that question before he even asked.

"Notice how Daddy makes fun of me?" I asked Hannah.

"Yeah...I noticed that a long time ago!" she giggled.

Adorable

While we were eating dinner tonight (and when I say dinner, what I really mean is a frozen meal I heated up because I am so very, very tired), we were talking about after dinner snacks as we were trying to convince Hannah to at least try the chicken enchiladas.

Jack was listing the various things he might have eaten if he finished his dinner, and at some point, I shared the fact that I often eat a bowl of cereal right before I go to bed.  (Don't judge.)

Jack was intrigued by this fun fact: "Really?" he asked.

"Yeah, I do it a lot.  Why?"

"Aww...that's so adorable."

Just like that.  It was the cutest thing, and I immediately smiled and jotted it down.  I'm not sure what is so adorable about me eating breakfast right before bed, but the fact that Jack had that reaction to it was the most adorable part.

10, yes. 15, no.

This boy - I love him so very much.  I can't believe he's already eight, and every time he snuggles with me, I soak it up as much as possible because I worry that one day, he won't.

Having a sister (and no brothers), I never quite know what to expect from my ever-growing son.  We are very close, but I try hard not to baby him or smother him.  He seems to be at the age now where he's easily embarrassed.  He likes to pre-approve his pictures for my social media...  At the same time, I don't want the fact that he'll always be my first-born baby to slip away.  I don't want our closeness to disappear over time.

The other night, he came up from watching a show to snuggle me.  So as we snuggled, I asked him, "Will you still snuggle me when you're 10?"

"Yes."

"What about when you're 15?"

"No." 

So there we go.  I have at least two, but no more than six years left to snuggle him.

Good to know.

dreams really do come true

And no - I'm not talking about Disney dreams.  Although we're in preliminary talks for our first Disney excursion with the littles.  More on that to come, I'm sure.

Saturday was great.  We had a lazy, pajama day at home.  I took a nap while Hannah slept mid-day, and then I got cleaned up, and Jack and I went to the store to get a fall tablecloth and napkins for an upcoming fall birthday celebration.

On our way home, the light near the entrance to our community turned red, so I decided to "save time" and take a right into our neighborhood, rather than going the long way around.

In the front of our neighborhood, we have a beautiful street lined by trees on both sides, and the lighting and the colors of the leaves felt like it couldn't have been more perfect than on Saturday afternoon.  Jack and I rushed home to grab my camera and Hannah Bear and Daddy, so we could head back out to that perfect spot.

I've dreamed of taking pictures at this spot since we moved to this neighborhood -  we've been here for four years.  It's gorgeous.  Winter, spring, summer, fall - just beautiful.  Lucky for me, I was able to get everyone ready quickly, and Brad agreed to come along to help with traffic control.  It's not a busy road, by any means, but people coming and going to the clubhouse need the road, and we wanted to be safe.

I'm so glad we went.  I didn't get the best pictures - but the kids had fun running around, posing for Mama, and chasing the local geese:)  We had to share this beautiful spot with a couple of girls posing for Homecoming pictures (their moms have good backdrop taste), and a man who was walking the road for exercise.  I didn't care - it's that pretty.

See for yourself...

So, as I was saying - this was a dream come true.

Now I'm only hoping that the leaves will remain on these trees long enough for our family photo shoot coming up next week!

Quick Snippets (I'm tired...)

Last night was nacho night at our house.  Jack was loving the smell of the taco meat, and when I gave him his plate of nachos he made a comment about what a great chef I am.  This made me swoon because A) I am not a good chef, and my whole house knows it, and B) he was being oh-so-sweet.  I went over and gave him a kiss right away.  (I tell you this part of the story because it's important here in a bit...)

I also offered soft tacos to the littles.  Well, actually, I offered a soft taco to Hannah (who rooted in the pantry and found the bag of tortillas all by herself), and when Jack saw what his sister had, he wanted one too.

Until he tried it and decide he didn't like it.

He asked me how much more he had to eat, and I told him I wanted to give it another try and take another bite.

And that's when he said, "Mom, you're such a good chef!"

And as soon as I smiled, he told on himself.  "You know why I said that, Mommy?  So maybe you wouldn't make me take another bite!"

*****

Every night when Brad gets home from work, Jack goes off to hide so that Daddy can find him when he comes inside.  Usually, Jack hides under the kitchen table and reminds me to say "my part" while Hannah happily hangs out in her high chair and continues to eat her dinner.

Daddy walks in and I make a big deal about how I lost Jack, and that I don't know where he is, and then Brad looks for Jack.

Apparently, Hannah has also learned "my part" because tonight when Brad got home from work, Jack found a new place to hide, and Hannah walked right up to her daddy and said, "I lost Jack."

We both just laughed out loud, it was so adorable!

*****

Tonight, Jack picked an ABC book about the Navy for his bedtime book.  It was one of the new books I brought him from IRA, and we hadn't read it yet.  While we read the book, Jack seemed to really enjoy himself, and when it was over, he started to flip through and explain to me why he chose it to read.  The teacher in me was getting all excited because I thought he was going to talk about how he liked the pictures and he was interested in the planes...

Instead, he shared that when he flipped through the pages, the book seemed really long, and he knew he'd be able to stay up later.

Oh, okay.

He's a crafty one, that boy!  I need to be careful:)

Wordless Wednesday - Winter Wonderland Edition

{thank you, snow day}

Moments ago...

Tonight while tucking Jack into bed, he asked if we could all play The Animal Game.  I gave it three valiant attempts, and all three times, the boys guessed my animal within the first two questions - I think I give up.

Take 1:

     Jack: How many legs does it have?

     Mommy: Two.

     Daddy: Is it a kangaroo?

     Mommy: Really?!?!  Yes, it was a kangaroo!

Take 2:

     Jack: What shape are its ears?

     Mommy: I don't know - triangular?

     Jack: Does it have antlers?

     Mommy: Not really.  I don't know...

     Daddy: Is it a giraffe?

     Mommy (kicking and squirming):  Are you kidding me?!?!  Yes, it was a giraffe.

     Daddy (laughing hysterically): There aren't many animals with quasi-antlers.


At this point, Jack starts to feel bad for me that my animals aren't going so well, and Daddy and I are laughing so hard that we're almost crying.  He was being very sweet and wanted to make sure that my feelings weren't hurt!

I tried one more time, thinking of the most general animal I could come up with so as not to have an awkward question that would immediately give away my animal.

Take 3:

     Daddy: Does it live on land or in the water?

     Mommy: On land.

     Jack: What color is its nose?

     Mommy: Black.

     Daddy: Is it a bear?

     Mommy:  Are you serious?  It lives on land and it has a black nose and you know it's a bear?!?!
     Yes, it was a bear.  Now I'm really done.

We laughed some more and decided we'd give The Animal Game a rest, and I'd do some animal research.  Jack suggested I try a snake or a dolphin...

*****

Then - there was this:

{don't worry - I fixed her little leg after I took the picture!}

*****

I'll be back later to catch up on the week and a half I missed.  I have no excuses except for the fact that I was tired!

Friday

Friday was a full day for us.

We had a two-hour delay due to icy roads first thing in the morning, and while I'm usually super-excited to get an extra two hours in the morning, we had so much to accomplish at work to prepare for a training on Monday, that I had to go in a little bit earlier than I normally would.  I got myself and the kids ready, packed up all of their Friday gear and snow gear for school, and off we went.  For some reason, Jack was exceptionally emotional about his clothing choices (everything was itchy or didn't fit right).  Some morning we have these problems...it's part of the reason that we recently installed an extra closet rod at Jack's height so that he can choose his own shirts.

Friday morning that didn't seem to matter, and I was starting to get worried.  I couldn't figure out exactly what was going on with him, but I tried really hard not to lose my cool (which is very hard for me in the mornings when I'm trying to shuffle us all to get ready and out the door), and by the time we got to school he was fine.  Thank goodness.

I also learned on Friday morning that my cousin survived a life-saving surgery that he was not expected to survive.  I don't quite understand all of the details, but I know that he lived through the surgery and is alert and recovering.  Doctors are still concerned and he will need more surgery, but he is a fighter and holding on.  I was so relieved to hear this news...  On Thursday I was on pins and needles while doctors were operating - the surgery lasted for over 10 hours.  My mom was in Cleveland to support her brother, and she was texting updates along the way, but it was so hard to understand what was going on and to get all the details.  Friday mornings message brought a huge sigh of relief. Please keep J.J. in your thoughts...

After receiving that message, I had one of the busiest days at work that I can remember in a long time, and at the end of the day I was exhausted.  I was a little nervous about entertaining the littles that evening since I literally could have fallen asleep anywhere, but our evening went very smoothly.

We made an easy, kiddie-pleasing dinner and watched them play before baths and bedtime.  They are at a perfect age for playing together adorably:)

Hannah went down without her binky again, but this time she cried and cried and cried, and I nearly caved.  The doctor did say she could have the binky at night time.  And she is getting new teeth.  But I held out.  I was proud.  You should be too - for that small moment.

(Because yesterday at nap time - I caved.  And now, as I type this, she is running around the room with Jack, binky firmly in place.  She will not let it go.  Probably for fear that it will disappear.  This could be tricky...)

And then there's Jack.  Our adorable Baby Jack who is growing up to be such a big boy.  He was just oozing cuteness at bedtime.  He wanted to read this story about animals that has magnets, and as you read, you're supposed to put the magnets on the page.  He loves it - it's not our favorite because of the magnets and the time.  I'm not sure what I was thinking when I bought it on one of our zoo trips, but he loves it, and I very firmly believe in letting him choose his book at bedtime even if we read the same damn book every night for a week.  I let it go.  

I had to leave the room for a bit to try to console a crying Hannah (it didn't work), so Daddy and Jack finished reading the book and then Daddy somehow convinced Jack to leave the magnets in place so that next time we can just read the story:)

When they were explaining this to me, Daddy said something to the effect of, "Then it will just be a night time story...and not a burden,"  really talking to me, and thinking that Jack would not understand this at all.

And Jack?  Jack goes, "Burdens are, like, so not awesome at all," in his dramatic teenage way, smiling from ear to ear.  How is it that they learn this dramatic teenage way in preschool, by the way?!

We laughed and kept talking.  We were talking about how on Saturday, we were going to go out and do some birthday shopping for Daddy.  Jack, proudly, leans over and whispers into my ear (loudly...loud enough for Daddy to hear and smile at me over Jack's head), "Maybe we could get him a new tool like a screwdriver or a hammer!"

And he came up with that all on his own.  Such a kind heart...

After I left, Jack and Daddy were snuggling for a few extra minutes, and later Daddy told me this part:

Daddy was snuggling Jack, and whispered, "You're the best little boy in the world."

"I know," Jack replied.

Kind, and modest, to boot!

***** 

On Saturday, I got to wake up to this:

It doesn't get any better than that...

The Things They Say...

We'll come back to the fact that Hannah has croup and is simultaneously cutting four teeth and that we haven't slept in days, but for now, if Brad and I don't write these stories down, we'll forget.  And we can't forget - they are too cute.

*****

While driving Hannah to Grandma and Grandpa's house on Friday, Daddy was explaining that she was going to spend the day with them and that they were waiting to snuggle with her.  Matter of factly, Hannah replied, "Okay," from the back seat.

***

Tonight, Jack and Daddy went on an adventure.  They had a late-night birthday party to attend, and when they came home they were full of stories.  Apparently, while they were driving around, Daddy asked Jack, "Buddy, do you think I'm old?"  {Side bar - Brad saw a picture of himself the other day that he didn't exactly love.  He thinks he looks like an old man...}

Immediately, Jack responded, "No."  {Daddy already felt much better.}

"Well, who's old?" Daddy asked.

Jack, without missing a beat, replies, "Goats."

Daddy busts out laughing, not only because of the ridiculousness of the response, but because he immediately understood Jack's logic.  He thought he'd ask for clarification.  "Why are goats old?"

"Because, they have those manes and {stroking a fake beard on his chin} those long beards."

***

Somehow it came to our attention this evening that Jack calls buffalos, buffalopes.  And he was completely serious.

***

Today, I asked Hannah if she wanted me to put her socks back on cause her feet were chilly.

"Yep," she said.

Everything is "yep" right now:)

***

While playing the animal game before bedtime, my animal was an Emperor Penguin.  Our game went something like this:

Daddy - Do you live in the water, on land, or in the air?

Mommy - On the land and in the water.

Daddy - Mommy doesn't know where the animal lives.

Jack - Do you hatch out of an egg?

Mommy - Yes!

Daddy - Are you like a crocodile or an alligator?  {I think he determined that perhaps I wouldn't know what a reptile is...  Please, does he not know which house I live in?}

Mommy - No.

Jack - Are you a penguin?

Mommy - Yes - what kind of penguin am I?

Jack - One of those penguins with the noodle hair {fluffing the front of his hair up tall}?

Mommy - A Macaroni penguin?  Good guess, but I'm not a Macaroni penguin.

Daddy {incredulously} - Noodle hair?  Did you tell him that's why they're called Macaroni penguins?  Because their hair looks like noodles?  Buddy, that is NOT why they are called Macaroni penguins.

Mommy {laughing} - I did not tell him that.  He came up with that all on his own because they have big yellow hair like noodles.  That's pretty creative.

Jack {smiling} - She didn't tell me.  That's just what I know:)

***

Thank goodness these children make us laugh because otherwise, we may not have survived the last five days.

Now I must sleep.

A Perfect, Fall Day

Last weekend, I took the kids to a local farm for some fall festival fun.   

We had such a blast!

The place wasn't too pricey, and there was so much to do there.  

 I could tell Hannah was a little overwhelmed just because she was so quiet and busy looking around everywhere, but she had a lot of fun too.

It was a little crowded, but the lines moved quickly, and there was so much to see that the kids didn't mind the down time while we waited for our turn.  

We certainly wore Hannah out because when we got back to the car to go home, I quickly changed her diaper and she was about to fall asleep right there in the back of the Jeep.  

She was out before we left the parking lot! 

The weather was beautiful - 

blue skies and crisp, fall temperatures.

It was absolutely....

 a perfect, fall day!

Me and My Little Man

Today, Miss Hannah spent some time with Grandma and Grandpa so that I could have a special day with just Jack.  On Monday, Jack spent the day with Grandma and Grandpa so I could have some special Hannah-time, and now it was Jack's turn.  I'd planned to take him to a nearby park that he loves and then to Chuck E. Cheese's for lunch.  We had a blast!

After we played for a long time at the park, I set up my tripod and told Jack I wanted to take some pictures of just the two of us.  And he happily obliged...

He was such a good sport:)  It was kind of drizzling the whole time we were at the park, but there's a lot of tree coverage, so it wasn't bad.  But right after I got this picture, which I love...

...it started to rain.  Can you tell by his facial expressions?

Uh-oh

it's starting...

...to rain!