Thursday Thoughts

You know it...a random list.

1.  There is a real disorder called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).  It is when someone's mood is seriously affected by the weather.  It's cloudy today, it was cloudy yesterday, there is no rain.  I'm SAD.  *Disclaimer:  while this disorder is real, the definition is mine.  I'm not trying to poke fun, just claiming that clouds make me blue and that there is an actual named disorder for it.*

2.  You (my readers) are too kind.  I can't tell you what it means for me to go about my day - wiping bottoms and noses, soothing tears and forcing laughs, cleaning and picking up - to then write about it, and then receive some of the sweetest messages.  It means a lot to me.  Like almost cancels out the clouds and brightens my day, a lot.

3.  Kate loves her hands.  She always has.  She studies them, she waves them around even in her sleep, she thinks they taste tasty.  Lately Dan has been reading into this.  "I think Kate will be a sign language interpreter."  By this logic, Lauren will install TV's as she is just as enamored with remotes.  "Kate has really big hands."  This just makes me crazy...are they big?  Like too big, big?  Is she normal?  Is Lauren too small?  Ugh.  "Kate has hands like Gonstead."  Dr. Gonstead was the doctor who developed the type of chiropractic that we practice.  His hands where big and jointy.  Sometimes Dan is weird.

4.  My birthday is Monday.  I love birthdays and I'm not afraid to admit it.  I don't get worried about the number, I think of it as my personal holiday!  I don't get bent out of shape if nothing big happens...it's kinda just for me, a day all my own, even if it looks exactly like all the other days.  (Happy Birthday TOMORROW, dear Tracy!!)

5.  Pie is my favorite and yet the worst dessert to make.  I made a strawberry pie Tuesday.  I made it about 4pm.  I make dessert quite often, and I ALWAYS sample it before actual dessert time.  There is NO WAY to disguise the fact that you sampled pie.  Sad.  Especially when "sampled" means a hole about the size of 2 pieces.  "I had a little taste and saw something strange and had to dig around in it to make sure it wasn't something gross and then..."  It's a lie, it sounds like a lie right out of the gate.  Shoot.

6.  I'm an "I love you" over-doer.  I always have been.  I am of the camp of if you feel it, say it.  I told Dan I loved him entirely too early in our relationship - he physically flinched.  Well, true to form, I left it at the end of a message yesterday.  Now, in all fairness, I do love her, she's my ABQ bestie, she's a sister in Christ, but we hadn't gone there yet.  I'll always be the one who said it first!  She was a good sport, I was red in the face for about 90 minutes.

Costa Rica.  Dan.  I'd already said I love you...no takeseesbacksees, even after he does this.

Hope if it's cloudy at your house, it's raining.
Love.
E

Wordless Wednesday

Not quite wordless.  I just have to say that it's hard for me to wordless.  I have so many words.  Seems there should be a commentary for each picture.  A story.  Something.  I'll get better at Wordless Wednesday, just wanted you to know I'm struggling.

OK, actually, I can't stand it.  Captions....captions don't count as words, right?

This is about 6 mo preggers...timing of pretty belly shots was perfect, it got ugly.  Real ugly.

November.  This chokes me up.  4 day old peanuts with their daddy.  I can hardly stand it.

December.  First Secrets.

January.  Still fairly accurate take on their personalities - Lauren on the left.

February.  I'm melting.  Like seriously, my insides are butter.  Does it get any cuter than this?  Lauren.

March.  Yip, maybe this.  Kate.

April.  Wordless.  Finally.

May.  Delicious.

Uniforms and Tricks

Something about this title made me think of Pretty Woman...no hooker boots or THOSE kind of tricks, silly!
Uniforms.
One of the CUTEST things my girls wear is this pair of 'jeans'.  They are stretchy and soft and the only thing that I got as a gift in Newborn size, then searched for so that we have had them in every size since.  They just look so stinkin' cute.  If they have a 'uniform', this is it.  Not everyday, but every week, they were this outfit or a variation thereof.

Sometime in the last few weeks, I have become acutely aware of how often I wear my 'uniform'.  I still dress up to go to work, and I still wear stretchy 'lounge' clothes a few days a week, but this ensemble happens at least once a week.  Well, last week, it suddenly occurred to me that there are more than one similarities in our 'uniforms'!!!!  Headband, check.  Cuffed jeans, check.  Muffin top, check!  (Just kidding, babies.)  Again, is this ok?!  How did this even come to be?  I think my subconscious mind just thought they were SO cute, I must have wanted to be like them...  I can't even promise I'll stop.  I like my uniform.  I like theirs.  I guess I just wanted to beat you to the punch in case you see the three of us out and about and think..."Wait, are they?....Do they?....No, SURELY Erin isn't trying to dress like a 6 month old."

I was going to act like I was busy doing something else, at least not posed, but then I remembered that the ONLY reason I wanted the picture taken was for the sake of this story, and you had to see the whole ensemble, so, I posed.  Again, just beating you to the punch.

Tricks.
They are doing baby push ups.  They can put their pacifiers in their own mouths, and each others.  They are sitting up, kinda.  They are super into noises...tongue clicks, motor boats, claps, stomps.  **Aside:  this is a strange ego boost for me.  They think I'm super good at a flamenco style dance with lots of clapping, and also excellent at river dancing.  I may have missed my calling.**  They like to "stand".  They LOVE to be bounced on the bed.  They are camera hogs - Kate cheeses up, Lauren gets her serious face on trying to figure out how it works, what it does, and how to fit they whole thing into her mouth.  They have figured out how to un-do their diapers.  (You know there's a story to come from that new trick!)

It truly seems that they do something new and awesome everyday. 

Have a happy day,
The Momma

A Few of My Favorite Things...

OK, with a title like that, it must be said that the secret #1 on my list is The Sound of Music.  I love it.  Romance, nuns, mountains, singing...it's the perfect mixture.  Now, on to the real stuff.

1.  I love Kate's little curl.  It's only on the right side of her head, it's always there, and it always curls up.  Love.

2.  Lauren has discovered her favorite teething toy.  Noses.  Any ol' nose will do.  She clamps down, just about goes cross-eyed, because eye contact is still important, and makes this sweet little growly noise.  Love.  Of course, I cannot capture this on camera.  I'll keep trying, promise...it's a must-see.

3.  I just about slept through the night last night and it reminds me that sleep definitely belongs on my list of favorite things.

4.  Headbands.  Am I the only one who thinks it's ok to wear headbands?  I never see someone else (my age) wearing them, but I justify it by thinking that if they were terribly out of style, they would be harder to shop for???  Maybe it's ok because I'm trying to grow my bangs out, and every woman knows the pain of that?  Ok or not, they have become part of my "uniform" (tomorrow's post).

5.  Beth Moore Bible studies.  They are just good.  Studying David now, loving it.

6.  The green filler flower in this pre-birthday, bought-it-for-myself-at-CostCo, because-I'm-worth-it bouquet.  Don't know it's name.

7.  Barely pink finger- and toenails.  On other people.  I'm sure I'd love it on myself, but I CANNOT find the perfect pink.  Mine is either "might as well have painted them clear" sheer or "is that White-Out?" opaque.  I'm on a mission...I'll find it.  And then I'll tell you it's name.

8.  Back to sleeping.  I'm kicking myself/wiping tears.  They both almost slept through the night last night.  Kate really did, Lauren only up once, and then, only kinda.  The variable, you ask?  We left them unswaddled.  I'm so sad.  I love a swaddled baby.  But, I love a baby who sleeps through the night a little bit more, so, I'm over it.

I know it looks creepy, but they like having their noses up against the bumper.

9.  Chiropractic.  Kate was constipated.  Kate got an adjustment.  Kate is VERY unconstipated.  ***I swore to myself early on that this blog would never have an agenda or be preachy.  BUT.  Chiropractic is super cool, I know a thing or two about it, it's important for kids, and I'd love to talk about it.  There.***

10.  These two little girls.  And their dad (not pictured).

Ok, I think that's it.  I'm thinking of having some structure to my posts, whadya think?  Monday lists, Wordless Wednesday (stealing this, pics only), Friday Feasts...I don't know, any suggestions or preferences? 

Love ya.
E

Update, Take 2

Thought I'd better update you, just because it's been a while.  It's been a while for a lot of things around here...most notably from this vantage point, it's been a while since I vacuumed the living room floor.  Poor babes, they lay here all day.  It's dirty.  I digress...

Oh Martha
In this post I went on and on about what a good homemaker I am.  I talked about projects and painting and Martha Stewart.  Well, I still really, really love that I get to be home with my girls, but I haven't done a new project since this post.  I have high hopes for remodeling our bathroom.  This is what it looks like now:

Nothing terrible, nothing great.  I think it's weird that the toilet is just kinda out in the middle of the room.  And, I stopped using the shower around the 6th month of my pregnancy - I could no longer turn around.  Now I just have bad memories.  Gross.  Anyway, it's on the list.  I'm trying to have a plan and a budget and an end product in mind, unlike the last bathroom we updated.  You see, I painted the walls white and it made the fixtures look dingy, so I ripped them out.  I was pregnant, don't judge.  It's awesome now, and Dan learned valuable plumbing and drywall skills, so all ended well.  This almost happened again last night when I thought I needed a new refrigerator...turns out, I just needed to clean the one I have.  I'm gross, and spoiled, I know.

Sufferin' Succotash
I still love okra.  This week I'm on to desserts.  I made this Rice Pudding.  It was delicious. 
I still tell my girls weird details about semi-factual stories.  I can't help it.  They seem to like it.  I have told them way more stories about me and Uncle Darin growing up at Meme's suggestion though.  It is important that they know how cool we were as Ponch and John patrolling the neighborhood on our "motorcycles". 

Jinx!
It's uncanny how often it happens.  Like, it might be my magical power.  I almost don't talk anymore...wonder if I could just start saying the opposite of what I want to happen and it would!?!?  It happens when I describe their personalities..."Lauren is more active and needs a lot more interaction.  Kate, on the other hand is so laid back and just likes to chat".  The words come out of my mouth and within minutes Lauren is taking a little mid day snooze and Kate is climbing the walls and looking around like she's going to make an amazing discovery.  People probably think I don't know my babies.  Oh, but I do!!  I know that they are little sneaks and love to make mommy go "Huh???!?!?!".

Keepin' It Real
I'm still OBSESSED with Monopoly at Albertson's.  I'm also convinced more than ever that it's a scam.  I need one more piece in about 8 sections.  Last week I got 17 tickets in one shopping trip and didn't need ONE of them!!  I was so bummed...and so were the babes, it took me a long time to open all 17, poor things were READY to get out of their carseats!  Disclaimer #1:  I know that the number and lingo of this game mean nothing to you, sorry, it's important for the story.  Disclaimer #2:  I bring them in the house with me, I just leave them in the car seats a little longer than usual. 
I'm back to confusing pillows for babies in the middle of the night.  As in "Here, will you take Kate back to her room?" while holding out my snuggle pillow to Dan.  He's so confused, I'm so confused, Kate's snuggled so peacefully in her bed across the hall.  Wow.

Tie Ball Game!
They are totally winning.  Is it a growth spurt?  Are they teething?  Are they just outsmarting me?  Who knows?  All I know for sure is that we hang out often in the middle of the night.  Cereal is going great!  They love rice cereal and oatmeal, sweet potatoes and green beans.  They still really love to nurse though.  I'm tired, but they're only little once, right?  Right?  Seriously, right????

Such unique earing styles:

Lauren: Baby bird approach 

Kate: We'll call this the Popsicle

Sporty Spice
I am not a gym rat.  I don't like it.  I don't like the smell or the sweat, the unfamiliar exercises or the super fit people who hang out there.  More than anything, though, I don't like that I never know what to wear!!  I have plenty to "gym" clothes, I just choose to call them "lounge wear" and wear them about 4 days a week while just hanging at home.  Like today, for example, I'm wearing my favorite stretchy pants, tennies, and a long sleeve t-shirt.  There is a decent chance that I will go on to sleep in this ensemble and then wear it to the gym at 7:30 in the am.  Does that make me despicably gross or just laundry savvy?  I'm still going, I feel good, I look the same, I want a new wardrobe for this new endeavor.

That's all the news!  The girls are awesome.  They had their 6 month check-up (my performance evaluation) last week.  Kate was 13 pounds, 11 ounces, and Lauren 13 pounds, 2 ounces!  They were still barely on the chart for height and head circumference, but almost 20% for weight!!  So hard to believe of my 5 pound pumpkins.

Love.
Erin

P.S.  I need computer help.  I want a cooler blog, a more streamline way to get pictures on my posts, lots of things to make it look better and be easier to post blogs quickly (this one is about 2.5 days in the making).  I have so much to say, and so many pictures to share, but there's got to be an easier/faster way!   How do I learn these things?  Who do I ask, where do I go, what should I even ask???

Drinkin' from the Saucer

I never know if a saying is unique to our family or if the whole world uses it, but today my cup so runneth over that I'm drinkin' from the saucer!  The bar was set HIGH for Mother's Days to come!

First of all, I am a mother.  Finally.  I feel that I was born to be a momma.  I love every second of it, even the seconds when I hide in the garage or the days when my favorite "time" with my girls is when they're asleep.  I am so grateful for the gift and responsibility of sharing in the lives of these two little girls.

Second of all, I am a daughter, and I got to spend Mother's Day with my momma.  One of the things I love the most about my mom is that no matter how many hats she has to/gets to wear, when relating to me, she's always the momma.  The best example of this was the weeks after my girls were born.  She LOVES being Dodie (her grandma name) and had longed for the day our babies would arrive.  She is excellent at being grandma, and I know she could have spent all day, every day holding the babies.  She did, some, but she let me hold them the most.  She babied her baby (me) while I was learning to baby my babies.  She made sure I was drinking plenty of water, taking advantage of every second to close my eyes, eating well, not lifting too much, etc.  She did laundry and grocery shopped, made dinner and breakfast for Dan.  She swept floors and kept track of thank you notes that needed to be written.  Would she have rather sat and rocked a baby?  Sure.  But she was FIRST my momma and fulfilled every need she could, and THEN she was Dodie and loved her some babies!  I have the best mom.  If ever you think I'm doing an OK job at my new role, it's simply because I had a great example.

I'm a wife.  And he done good, ladies.  Gifts, a nap (20 whole minutes, peeps!!!), errands ALONE, dinner.  He took care of me today!!   Our life is MARKEDLY different since our two housemates arrived.  We do way less fun stuff together.  We eat out NEVER (please notice the implication of actually going out being less, not eating food that someone else prepared less often!).  I still really like him.  And I think (I know) he really likes me.  I love to watch him love our girls.  I love even more to watch them love him.  Check out one of my gifts here The Vintage Pearl.

The cream on top of the sundae that was today (I know, I know...is it a cup of tea or a sundae?  Just go with it!) was the we dedicated our girls to the Lord today at church.  It was such a sweet little ceremony and reminder of what a gift they truly are.  The verse that was used was I Samuel 1:27-28.  What is it about the Word that truly is living?  How pertinent, how true for us, what a tough thing to truly give your child back to the Lord.  To say "Thy will be done" and trust that it will be GOOD, but not know that it will be what you would have chosen.  I have had a lump in my throat all day.  So grateful for our church.  So grateful for answered prayers.  So grateful for a loving God.

I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. ²⁸ So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD.”

Like I said, drinkin' from the saucer.  I'm so grateful.  I hope you had a great day, too.  It has crossed my mind more than once today that this would be a tough day for many women...those who've lost their moms, those who long to be moms, those who have lost children...too many scenarios.  I mention these to let you know that I am not saying I'm blessed in a cliche way.  I am seriously overwhelmed, grateful, and unworthy.

Love to you.
Erin

This is about the 85th time together where I MEANT to get a picture with my mom and my girls and didn't.  Next time.

Closed Captioning

I sometimes pretend like they are speaking in a language I can't understand (they are) and interpret it for myself.  It's almost always funny, and they are always saying nice things about their Momma.  Enjoy!

Oh wow, Mom, thanks!  We love it when you plop us down on the floor in the living room for the 100th time today.  Oh look over here, same stinkin' toy as yesterday...and the day before that...and...

Let's see if we can figure out how this thing is held together and DESTROY it!  It'll take some work, but maybe, if we work hard, we can do something else tomorrow!

YES!!!!!!!!  We did it!  Kate, you ok?  Yip, escaped by my super fast rolling technique, you?  I'm trapped under it, but I think I have a plan...

I'm going to smile, and play the cute "Oops, did I do that???" line.  Keep cool.

Ok, got it.  I'll just act like I had no idea you were even over there.  Just give me the sign if you need to me puke or cry, I'm ready.

Yip, this is what I do with my day now.  Jealous much?!

E dot P dot