An I love you day.

An I love you day.

Alex says this all the time. He says "Mommy, it's an I love you day." And I don't really get an answer when I ask him what that means. He shakes his head, rolls his eyes, and says "it means I LOVE YOU." With such a "duhhhhh" undertone. Sigh. Sometimes, he says "It's not an I love you day." Then we had this conversation the other day:

Alex: "Mommy, my heart is so broken."

Me: "Oh. Well what does that mean?"

Alex: "Well, it means you have to say 'I love you.'"

Me: "Okay, I love you."

Alex: "It's all pieced together now!" With a very serious tone of accomplishment. Like, in that moment something had changed for him.

Silly.

Complimentary Strangers.

Complimentary Strangers.

When you're feeling particularly disappointed in something, or just down in some way, it's really hard to find a silver lining, or a bright point in your day. I have the obvious pick me ups - the way my baby lays her head on my chest when she falls asleep, or beating Nik in one-on-one basketball, etc. But sometimes, it's just nice when someone goes out of their way, to make you feel good about yourself - even though it's either a) their job. b) a complete and total lie.

I haven't been to the gym in months, really. Lilah doesn't like childcare there, and only on the most recent attempts, has she been receptive to it. So, we've been a few times in the last week. There are workers in childcare who remember Delilah & I, and have made the most kind comments the last few days. I guess when Josh has taken my boys, he never mentioned to anyone that I was expecting. So, imagine their shock, when I show up, and have quite the tummy. Lisa's comment went something like "Are you???" Which is funny, because I'm sure she was trying to be careful - she works at a gym, and in her line of work, I'm sure it could be easy to make that mistake! Heidi went out of her way quite a few times to tell me I looked great, and other such complimentary things. Jasmine made sure to stop me while I was on the treadmill to express her shock (lol), and congratulations, and to tell me I looked great. Along with other comments from other gym patrons, about my tummy and all it's cuteness.

Do they mean it? I doubt it. They get paid to make people feel good about themselves. But does it feel good to have someone say those things about you? Yep. It made me feel welcome there, missed, and it made me look forward to going back. And it's just the kind of feelings I needed right now.

Oh. And I'm 99.9% sure Lilla's got a cold, from being back in childcare. I'm still holding on to my "no pediatrician visits till August", so here's to hoping it'll pass quickly, and not cause her too much discomfort!

Peri Appointment.

It was also just amazing to see little Cece on the big screen today, at my peri appointment. She did all kinds of silly things, in her tiny, cramped living space. She's such a part of my heart. So far, so good.

Monday

Baby.

My little bugs has 3 baby dolls. She has what was her first baby doll, which shows by it's tattered appearance (yes, she is just 18mths old, but she's hard on her baby dolls!). She has her first baby Cabbage Patch doll, Gertie. And then there's this cheapish one, that my parents got her for Christmas. This last doll is my Lilla's "baby". And in the last few days, she's become very attached to her baby. If she can't find her, she comes to me with the most concerned look and says "baby?". I know what she's looking for, and if I don't respond quick enough, or pull a baby from behind my back, she gets far more aggressive, because I must not have heard her or understood the urgency.

While I can see how this might get old, I'm sure it's just a phase, so I'll appreciate it while I have it. It's very silly for now, and almost endearing the way she carries this baby, has concern for this baby, a preference for her, and even realized she can change her clothes! I'm sure I'll be over it the first time we leave "baby" somewhere, and my Lilla can't sleep. But for now, in her little 18 month old world, her baby means so much to her. And therefore, its the sweetest thing in the world.

Best Friends.

I love my best friend dearly, and I'm lucky to have her. This surely won't be the only post ever about her, but she's definitely one of the best things that's ever happened to me.

Late Night Activity.

Baby Cece reserves nighttime, as her most active time. I'm sure it's because it's nearly the only time of day that I'm still, but that's besides the point. From the moment my day slows down, she's there. Reminding me that she's growing, that's she's getting closer to being on the outside, and that she's strong. I wake up often during the night (not thanks to Lilla anymore, at least!), and there's my Cece. Moving like a wild baby, kicking and flipping, all hours of the night. I love it so much, and am so grateful that although this wasn't in my plan - she's thriving and sure to be an amazing little sister, and addition to my family. Her late-night antics now, are as they will be in a few months - just her & I, in the wee hours of the morning, our little time together.

Would also be kinda grateful for a Celtic win in game 4.

Ramen Soup

I'm not hungry anymore tonight, and I have ramen soup to thank for that. Food was coveted when I was a kid, there were 8 of us kids, you know? But there was always ramen soup. The perfect meal. My Mom made it with eggs, I had no idea that wasn't just the way it was made, until I was an adult, but I still do it that way. I still buy it (now, granted, when I make it for the kids I use much less of the sodium-indulgent seasoning), and still have very much love for it. Delilah will eat an entire pack (although hers is super buttered up, for the fat), Nik will eat 2! It's easy, fast, versatile, and at $1.29 for 6 packs, there's seriously no better value meal.

Last Place Baseball Teams

Nik's always been on the teams that don't seem to win much. For basketball, baseball, soccer, etc. But this season, playing Little League (vs. Parks & Rec), he's been on a winning team. I don't know the stats, but I know he's much improved over his last 2 baseball seasons. And they've won games, something kinda new to him! They hit a terrible 3 losses in a row, but tonight had a game against the last-place team. They won, and they felt great and confident afterwards. While I know how much it sucks to be on the consistently losing team, and always hoping you'll pull off a miracle win - I'm really glad that the boys were able to go out get a win tonight, and have their confidence renewed for their last game Saturday. So, thank you last-place team for helping our boys get the win they desperately they needed.

Target Customer

Yes, I take responsibility for my girl baby having access to my phone in the cart. I had it next to her, because I had my list on it. I needed (yes, needed) ingredients for white chocolate bread pudding, and had to be sure I got everything. Somewhere between linguine (for dinner tomorrow), and milk, my cell phone had gone missing. Definitely wanted to call Josh and tell him what his daughter had done, but yeah. No phone. Searched, and searched the aisles. Scanning the customers, judging them as to whether I thought my phone was in their pocket. Worrying that someone found it, and might not take it to guest services till they had finished their shopping. Concerned that since she probably threw it, it might not be in working condition. Hoping someone would recognize the perpetrator's face on the screen and see me searching. I get in line, after giving up the search, and hear them call "Rebekah Wrye to Guest Services". Yay! Some customer, probably one I had judged, turned my phone in - and quickly! Either the customer, or guest services, got my name by calling the entry labeled "Mom" and getting my name from her. Genius.

After hours of painting.

I've been painting the nursery for hours today. After taking a big break from Sunday-Tuesday, it was back to work today, as baby-time is fast approaching! For those who don't know, I've taken on a super ambitious project of painting a floral mural on the window wall in the blue girl's room. I don't really have an artistic bone in my body, so I just hope it comes out decent. I just completed a 3 hour marathon of painting (after doing more earlier at naptime), so I'm sleepy. I want to go to sleep, but must watch Top Chef Master's finale - and blog. Because I made a commitment.

Here goes!

Triple Roll Toliet Paper

There are a lot of things I don't like to hear come out of my the mouth of my boys. But I'm not just talking about curse words, or other such ugly things. I'm talking about the phrases that sound like this... Nik: "Mommy, there's just no more toilet paper in here. Can you bring me some?" Alex: "Mommy, there's no more paper, I just need the baby wipes." and Ethan with the "Yeah, I wiped. There was just a little left." When I knew for a fact there wasn't any in there, and had personally thrown away the empty roll, and not yet placed a new one/extras in there. Sigh.

So, here's to you, something that has to be a great thing to be at least a little bit grateful for, if it enables me to hear these phrases just a little less often.

*And I just want to add - the day they learn to check for TP before they handle things? There will so be a post about that.

The Emergence of Pride

Nik would be beyond embarassed if he knew I was posting anything about this. So, those who know him (or have children who do!), this is top secret information. Never to be spoken outloud, or reprinted. Nik had an accident last night. It never happens to him, not in many, many years. Not even when he's sick, it's just not his style. And this incident proved to me that he had matured in a way that was incredibly bittersweet. He told me what happened, I told him to just go clean up, sleep on the couch, and he didn't need to say anything else. He was clearly embarassed, and it's almost like he was trusting me with the information, and worried I would tease him. We are pretty big on teasing in this home, relentless really. This was a huge moment, because this wasn't something he could be teased about - he's developing pride, and that's a pretty big deal. His brothers don't know what happened, but I sure bet (hope) Nik thinks twice before he teases Ethan or Alex the next time it happens to them.

Zofran

This one kind of speaks for itself. A wonder drug, that enables me to live each day a little better than I would have without it. Today I was really pregnant sick. Some days are worse than others, even at 30 weeks. I was cursing the Zofran, wondering why on earth it wasn't helping me feel better today. But really, shouldn't I be grateful for the 6 out of 7 days a week it does help? Shouldn't I imagine that today could've been much, much worse had I not had the Zofran? How ungrateful am I, that there's this chemo drug, that I'm fortunate enough to be allowed to take during my pregnancy, to make the days livable. And that's when I knew it would be on my list tonight ;o)

How it all began.

This is my blog. It's my first jump into the much-hyped world of blogging, so we'll see how it goes. I'm hoping it doesn't end up in a virtual pile of other unfinished projects. (does that make me a virtual hoarder?)

School lets out for the year on Friday. I've got a challenge for my boys. They'll each be given a spiral notebook, and a pencil. Part of their daily routine will be writing down 3 blessings/happy things for that day. Now, I'm sure this'll be soo easy for them in the begining. They'll start with things like "my family. food. water. air conditioning. cars." Alex's list might look more like "xbox. garages. railroad crossing signs." Nonetheless, I think after the first week or so, it'll become more challenging, and really make them think of all the little things that they're so lucky to have in their lives. Simple things, like the way Delilah yells "Naaaa!!" for Nik, when he's upstairs. Or the squirrel that climbed the front window screen, and they all thought he was crazy.

I kinda decided that I'd bring this challenge on myself, and see what little blessings in my life I can learn to recognize. If I could add up all the little things, the little moments (which are always the ones that will matter the most), they would clearly add up to a days full, weeks full, and a life full of happiness. The blog is completely indulgent, it's really just a vehicle for me to document my life while being grateful for the experiences I have, and to hopefully become a better person somewhere along the way.

3 for start.

Snuggling after naptime.

I love sleeping in. With the combination of pregnancy, Josh working from home, my poor sleeping, and dark blinds in the room - it's the perfect storm. But, I used to snuggle with my Bugs in the morning, for as long as she'd let me. That was back when she nursed. Once she weaned, she still cuddles, but it didn't necessarily have to be me. So, Daddy gets his snuggle time with her in the mornings - sometimes she's as generous as 6am! When she wakes up from nap though - she's all mine. I was worried when she weaned, that we wouldn't have the same cuddly, intimate time together. But she's really humored me with this post-nap snuggling, and it certainly has helped me in my acceptance of her toddlerhood. It's something that we'll have as long as she'll let me, and I never take it for granted.

Alex's ability to sometimes listen.

Today Alex had a great day, where his listening ability surpassed that of his 7.5yo brother. Super impressive stuff! Dinner was rushed, because we had baseball, so there was absolutely no room for error in my prep. Alex came down from his nap (which was also a fantastic thing that happened today!), and chilled until it was time to eat. He sat down to eat, only speaking up to say he wanted more pork. I was giving him instructions while he ate, that he needed to finish up, get his socks & shoes on, and if he wanted to bring crayons & a notebook - that would be his responsibility to remember. I spend the next 10 minutes taking Delilah's shorts off her head, putting in her tiny piggies, packing her diaper bag, filling up water bottles, finding the girl's other sandal, and then rush into the kitchen to rush Alex along. Only to have him meet me halfway, socks & shoes on, crayons in one hand, and a notebook in the other.

On the way home from baseball, I turned right on red - legally. He followed that up with "Mommy, you ran that light." He's clearly listening sometimes... If you know of an effective way to explain right on red to a 4 year old, I'd love to know. It was exhausting, and he still just thinks I ran the light.

Paper plates.

I love the environment, do some green stuff and all. But I do love paper plates. I'm not a fan of doing dishes, and it's not even my chore. I don't even like to look at dishes. It's certainly not the most offensive thing I could do to the environment, so I'll take some comfort in that. But yeah... I'm a pretty less-than-ambitious person, so I can't give them up. When I reached in the cabinet to get some down for their pork chops & potatoes, I realized I only had 5 left. Which isn't many, in this house. I instantly regretted using them for banana pudding earlier. I mean, who does that? Who has remorse at misappropriating the paper plates? Sigh.