Really? Has it been that long?

So, it's 2:30pm.  I haven't showered. My glasses are smudged. My lunch consisted of a few handfuls of chocolate chips. I haven't heard back from my awesome job interview in over two weeks now and it had been so good!  I just noticed that I haven't blogged in 7 months. The house is more of a wreck than it was this morning and I haven't done even one thing on my To-Do List. In case you're curious, here's the first part of today's list:

Monday's To-Do List
*Clean my bathroom, especially the shower and floor.
*Clean my bedroom, especially...everything. Reserve at least 2 hours!
*Iron clothes so Joe doesn't have to go to work wrinkly again for a few days.
*Think of something yummy to fix for dinner & pull out what we'll need.
*Swish all the toilets and swipe all the sinks (anybody else a FlyLady?)
*Do one load of laundry.
*Work on condo advertising, schedule housekeeping, and contact incoming guests.
*Look up class holiday party ideas, make a 12 Days of BoxTops thing, and email X's teacher about a class gift for her.
*Return stuff to toy library, regular library, Kohls, Macys, Wal-Mart, and Dollar Tree.

I'm thinking, perhaps, that my list should be a little simpler,  especially since I hardly ever actually do what is on my list, or at least make it a little more realistic,...Today's list could have looked something like this:

To-Do Today If I Can (but not a problem if I don't)
*Get showered & dressed with makeup on within 20 min of waking up.
*Say good morning to spouse & make sure he has something for lunch & a relatively unwrinkly shirt. Kiss.
*Answer every phone call. Wait 10 min to return a text.
*Do something, any one thing, toward my personal goals/current projects.
*Invite the neighbor kids over for a BoxTops trimming "party".
*Pick up 10 items that don't belong in my bedroom and put them in a bag. If there's extra time, put away 10 pieces of clothing that shouldn't be where they are.
*Plan on making spaghetti every Monday (no need to plan!).
*Wait for someone to need (and ask for) socks or pants before starting a load of laundry.
*Pick up X from school (don't be last!)
*Pray for patience with potty training and 2-yr-old tantrums.
*Do one thing for the condo.
*Do one return.
*Snuggle in new flannel sheets whenever it feels like a good time to take a break or go to bed.
*etc, etc.

I may not have it all together today (or any day really), but I'm feeling okay because this is what I did do: I cheered for A during potty-training time, bringing her water, cleaning up her accident, and supplying stickers, book readings, and chocolate chips as needed.  I trimmed a few hundred BoxTops to send in for X's school fundraising efforts. I talked to my sister about Christmas plans and future desires. I made the house smell like cinnamon from craft time with A when we made Christmas tree decorations from 3 Tbsp of applesauce and 3Tbsp of cinnamon (1/2  of a spice bottle!), thanks to a recipe from her new Strawberry Shortcake book. And she and I both got some sunshine while I scraped and painted the trim on two garages and two regular doors in the hopes of making the outside of the apartment look a little less run down. I even let the UPS guys know our neighbor was home, and waved hello to several neighbors. Now...agh! Now I'm late picking up the X-man!

*****

Sure, we live by the three dumpsters with broken razor wire dangling above them, but I'm starting to think that, in general, home is what you make it. I've never had a landlord until now that lets us put nails in the wall so after a few months of hesitation (is it really okay?), I pulled out our hammer and nails and went to it! It is wonderful to have our pictures on the walls. I've also become a fan of wall stickers and put up a cute nativity wall sticker set ($8!) and love it.

The Screen-Free Ski Lesson!

This is the very happy face of a boy cashing in on a well-earned reward - his first ski lesson!  

Xavier really wanted to try skiing this year and we wanted him to have that experience too, so we made a deal that if he earned $15 toward the trip, we would pay for the rest.  Of course, it's not easy making money when you're five, and I had been wondering how to let him monitor his own screen time each day, so I came up with a plan that helped with both.  First, I made a "screen-time cup".  Then I told Xavier that each morning I would put in 12 nickels.  Each nickel was worth 10 min of screen time (the total was 2 hrs of screen time - the daily max recommended by professionals).  If he wanted to watch TV or play a computer game or do anything involving a screen, he had to decide how many nickels he wanted to use.  If he ran out of nickels that was the end of screen time for the day.  If there were nickels left over, he could add them to his ski lesson cup.  Every few days we would use a chart of traced coins to exchange small coins for bigger ones until he had a dollar.  He still had to ask for permission to watch tv each time because sometimes it was bad timing (like when it was dinner time) but most of the time it was just fine.  After a few days he got really good at negotiating short amounts of game time and skipped lots of TV.  I loved it and he was getting richer every day!  After several weeks and as the end of ski season got closer, we had a few "dime days" to help speed up his savings.  :)  And here are pictures of his well-earned reward!

1. Pay for your lesson & get a tag.

2. Get fitted for ski boots & put them on

3. Model your new look & practice walking with limited ankle movement. 

4. Eat a big hot dog from the outdoor vendor so you won't be hungry during the lesson. 

5. Check-in and meet your teacher.

6. Play follow the leader while you learn ski techniques like how to stop and go! (X was lucky, there were no other kids in his level there that day so he had a 2-hr private lesson!)

7. Ride the "Magic Carpet" up the practice hill.

8. First ski run!

9. Occasionally fall down and get back up. 

10. Graduate to the ski lift!

(This is what August did while we waited for X to come down the mountain. She went up the Magic Carpet on foot and then slid herself down.)

(Then we found a sled, which was another good distraction for her)

11. Watch Xavier come down the hill.  He was a natural!  

12. Do it again!  (and again and again!)

13. Go home happy (and ready to ski again!)

It was really impressive to see him take to skiing so quickly.  I hope we can let him do more next year!  What a great day!

Bears, Hearts, & Snow

X has a great time finding things for Joe and I to play with him.  The other month, he found a book about teddy bears (by Build-A-Bear) and decided he wanted to make some of the "bear-y" cool stuff he saw in it, like the camping scene.  So we made a tent out of a grocery bag, found two little bears, made a campfire out of rocks, twigs, and paper and X set up the bears with twigs for roasting marshmallows.  I cut out some fabric to make sleeping bags and we had a blast doing this all while the baby was napping.  It is so nice to be able to have quality one-on-one time with each child.  

 I've been rocking A a little extra some nights just for that one-on-one with her as well, 

just reveling in her "babyness" and smelling her baby shampooed hair.  Since she's getting more molars, she likes to bite and hold my finger on her gums to make it feel better.  One of my favorite times with the kids is at bedtime when I get to cuddle and talk and sing with them, rub X's back, and listen to what he remembers about his day.  His mind jumps around a lot like mine and I have to ask him to clarify so I can keep up with his train(s) of thinking.  

This year, I tried to let Valentine's be a reminder of love on more than just Valentine's day.  I listed 30 ideas of little things to show love to Joe and the kids after seeing (on Pinterest probably) the idea of "Love 'em up!" or showing love to your family for 30 days.  I made it through the 14th or 15th  and that felt successful to me!  I did things like stick hearts on X's school shoes, made cinnamon buns in a heart pan for breakfast, decorated with crepe paper streamers (this was a hit!) and showed the family how to make heart hats out of paper plates for FHE.  

 I also got to help X get ready for Valentine's day at school .  X loved this little Yoda card that Joe found so we printed off a bunch of "Yoda one for me" cards. Then we bought juju hearts and put them in little heart baggies which I had found brand new for 25 cents at a thrift store! I wanted to be there for X's school party, and even though I hadn't heard anything about a party from the room mom's or the teacher, I showed up.  I figured lots of moms would be there but I was the only one.  X's teacher really doesn't like having parents in her room, so she just doesn't invite them.  If they ask to come help, though, she always says yes. Anyway, his teacher really downplayed the whole day and just had the kids one-by-one go put their Valentine's in each others' bags while they worked on various worksheets. Then we stapled them up for them to take home and open. It was a little dull to me, nothing like a room filled with moms, cookies, frosting, and hyper kids walking all over trying to find each other's boxes to put the Valentine's in, like I remember!

Valentine's at the elementary is also the day to learn about manners.  The whole school dresses up really nicely and the kids go have a snack and learn about good manners from volunteers.  The PTA did an Angry Birds theme (Valentine edition) for decorations this year.  Why?  I have no idea, but the kids loved it.  A kind of funny/sad thing the night before the Valentine's Tea was when I was having my bedtime chat with X.  He told me that he just wasn't going to drink ANYthing at the manners lunch because he'd been told that if they spilled the juice on their clothes it would NEVER come off.  He took it so seriously he was almost in tears.  I told him not to worry because I knew he would drink carefully and even if he spilled, I had a special spray that would take out any stains. It was really cute to see how relieved he was at that and he was very proud after the "tea" when he announced that he hadn't spilled anything!

The crepe paper streamers between the kitchen and dining room were a favorite decoration for both kids and my cute niece.  They would all just run around and around through them and thought they were so much fun!

X wanted to help me wash dishes one day and when A saw him playing with water in the sink, she wanted to be a part of it, too!  So I plunked her on a stool and they had a great time and were totally soaked by the end!

This is often how I find the baby girl during the day.  Plopped down somewhere with feet stretched out in front and a big book on her lap.  She loves to look through books now that we put a book basket down on the floor.  Her favorites include the Humpty Dumpty part in a nursery rhyme book and a page about kids helping their parents find food at the grocery store in a book called Thank You.

Cute Valentine outfits on Sunday.  X made sure to wear a red tie.  August wore her red bumblebee dress.  Both kept dancing and sliding around on the floor and doing funny poses.

Okay, this winter has been the mildest winter we've had out of the three here so far.  The snow melts so quickly after each snowfall BUT we did get a couple of sled-worthy snows.  For one of them,  Joe made a sled run from the balcony stairs, which was great!  The kids went down it a million times and I was sad it melted so soon after.

Once the baby girl was too wet and cold, we watched Joe and X sled from the window.  :) Then we all had hot cocoa. Yum!

It's hard to believe we've been housesitting for two-thirds of our time already.  We've really enjoyed living in such a nice house with a great view and in a friendly neighborhood.  I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for the fact that we  will be back to renting a much, much smaller place in just a few months.  I really wish we were ready to buy a house, though.  I'm a little nervous at how the kids will adjust, since baby girl has her own floor here practically and gets to sleep in quiet and seclusion for naps and bedtime.  X likes being really close to us, but there's no guarantee how the room setup will be at our next place.  I've been starting to pack since a Home Depot moving book suggests starting to pack up pictures and non-essentials starting three months ahead.  Usually I wait until the last month and then get completely stressed out, so I'm starting early this time (although it would be nice to know where we are moving...within the city?...to another state?)   So far I've only gotten through infant items and taking down some pictures, but I think the momentum is starting to build.  Next up?  Toys! These will have to be done during X's school hours and discreetly put in the garage.  Thankfully, toys from the owners' kids will still be here to keep the kids entertained and we don't have to pack up essential furniture like the tables or couches! Yay!  Wish us luck!

A little of this

We got to see the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie

Little girl is growing up! Her hair is getting long, she has a mouthful of teeth, she can hop and do the splits, and is talking (and signing) a lot!

Big brother is happy after a great visit with Gma Hope. He is our best helper.  He loves to play with friends.  He wants to learn to ski and play the guitar, and maybe the piano.

 

Baby girl likes to pretend to read.  X knows how to read!  He reads for her.

My new skill is learning how to manage a vacation rental. It is a LOT of work but also lots of fun because I can put my creative juices to work.  I learned about spraypaint, rental agreements, and how to fold the towels a cool way this month (hope I can remember next time!)

 The condo living room

Happy New Year (and Christmas & Thanksgiving)!

Happy New Year!  I know I accomplished at least one of last year's goals...to sing in church. Yay! I'm still figuring out what to make for goals this year (adding pictures to this post should be one of them). Goals require a delicate balance of motivation and reality.  Too vague and I never feel accomplished; too long and I give up if I miss a day; too hard and I won't get past the first week. And you can't make goals for other people because that just doesn't work.  So, I started writing down ideas on a blank recipe card (the only scratch paper in the kitchen) and Joe said, Oh, is this your recipe for success?  What a great way to see it!  He's brilliant. Tomorrow I will finish writing up this year's recipe for success. Our family goal might be to say morning prayers together or to read the whole Book of Mormon together.  We're not sure yet. I'd love to hear what friends and family are choosing for their goals this year...

Life is so busy that I'm thankful I have two little journals that I write in to the kids or I would never have a record of anything they do! During the last couple of weeks, our baby girl got her first molar and started saying a bunch of words (which most people probably wouldn't really understand, but I do!) like baby, hop, mine, bye, da-da, ma-ma, bubble, and soap. She is really trying to say whatever we say.  She is also a whiz kid at baby sign language, signing things like "cracker", "wash hands", "blanket", "frog", "grass", and "cloud". Not all of them are helpful but I do love seeing her try to communicate. Tonight she stayed up until 11pm (yes, she had a very late nap thanks to a new, later, church schedule...grrrr....grrrateful, yep, I'm going to learn be grateful this year even though church once again messes up her naptime which means I spend all week getting her back on schedule only to get messed up each Sunday)...anyway, she stayed up late repeatedly bouncing (and falling off of ) an exercise ball.  I got one for Christmas and there is a small one where we live, so we just bounced around together all night.  So funny!  She is definitely a daredevil. Earlier, we heard, Mom!, Mom! and ran out to see our baby girl standing on top of the play kitchen just holding on (it's always easier to go up). Maybe we should take bets on when she gets her first trip to the ER for an injury...

X is loving all of his toys and is so thankful for Santa sending him a letter (it told him he was on the good list) and giving him presents that he includes Santa in his prayers.  I'd better include all of my extended family and relatives in my prayers more because we certainly were blessed with plenty (and to spare) this Christmas.  Thank you Santa and all the other elves in the world!  X is becoming so much more independent and channels all of his energy into play. He informed me that he wants to change classes at school because his friend's teacher lets her class play all the time.  Hmmmm. Not sure what to say except, sounds like you need some more playdates! I hope that his goals for this year include (see note on making goals for others above)...1) sitting reverently in church, and 2) keeping his thousands of Lego pieces off the floor.  His goal is to play guitar.  That's a good goal, too.. :)  X got to stay up until midnight last night and he was just thrilled! We ate lasagna (family tradition), watched Cars 2, did haircuts, and played Battleship to stay awake.  It was no problem since our sleep schedule is pretty off right now anyway from all of our traveling.  He had no idea about New Year's Eve traditions and was so excited about every new thing we told him about.  We clinked glasses at the end of the countdown, watched fireworks go off all over the city, banged pots and pans, and yelled "Happy New Year!" outside as loud as we could. He loved it all and I loved watching how amazed he was. Plus, he loved being able to do something that his little sister wasn't allowed to...yet. :)

 One thing I've learned this holiday season is that the closer you get to retirement, the busier you are, at least, that's what I've been seeing in my parents and in-laws. They have so many work responsibilities at this point in their careers, plus retirement, insurance, and homeowner issues to worry about (not to mention kids and grandkids to think about and make time for), that I'm amazed so many adults actually make it to sixty.  It's great to have a heads-up on these kinds of things. I'm not very good with change (although I always want things to change), so having insight from others on upcoming periods of life and major life changes or challenges is very helpful to me.  I'm taking mental notes from people in my ward and neighborhood as well. While I'm at the beginning of raising a family, my neighbors are mostly nearing the end, and there IS a difference. I'm baby hungry; they are grand-kid hungry.  I'm eating on paper plates and decorating with non-breakables; they eat on...actually, I don't know...but they definitely decorate with non-kid-friendly decor (I am a nervous wreck every time we have to visit anyone because kids touch things! and break them or spill them or pull them apart...). They miss their kids being little and are amazed how fast they grew up; I'm amazed how fast kids grow up and sometimes give an extra cuddle or story just because I know it won't last.  Basically, I've learned a little more about different stages in life, some better than others and I hope I can plan for them now and live through them well when I get there.

Best wishes for the New Year!