LATELY. OR RATHER: AN UPDATE ON MY KIDS

i feel like a post is due, but haven't much to write about... we have been busy little bees, but when i stop to think about what we're up to, i draw a blank. haha it's crazy to me how much of life is like that with two little kids running around. i'm always doing something, but at the end of the day, i've got very little to show for all my hard work. i've been trying to remind myself lately that happy, healthy kids are a real accomplishment!

speaking of the kids, they are at a SUPER fun and exhausting stage. lia is a giggling machine, especially for luc, so watching them together is my favorite thing. she is also a human tornado. she is into EVERYTHING, and her speed of destruction is impressive. in the time it took me to brush my teeth this morning, she demolished an entire roll of toilet paper. she even ate some, yum! i'm certain that luc was just as energetic and mischievous as she is, but he was my only child and somehow his messes didn't seem as daunting- they were funny and cute instead. plus, he was not easily entertained, so twenty minutes of him ransacking the tupperware cupboard was well worth the 20 minutes of freedom. this time around, i feel like i am surrounded by endless messes and they are no longer funny or cute. poor lia, she does not get the same liberties her big brother got. no tupperware cupboard ransacking allowed!

lia has always been a picky eater, but thankfully we have recently discovered that she LOVES breakfast food. pancakes, hash browns, eggs and french toast, she devours it all. this makes me very happy because it means she's not going to starve! her favorite time of the day is bath time and she has a very goofy/silly personality- around her family at least. she is still very shy in public. she has a mega sweet tooth and will throw quite a tantrum for candy/treats. she is sleeping through the night now {hallelujah!} and is so easy to put to bed. we just kiss her, lay her down in her crib, and hand her the binky and the three stuffed animals she loves {a lion, goofy, and a polar bear}. walk out, shut the door, and bam! she's done! we still marvel at this, it's like the greatest thing of all time. pretty sure we rocked luc to sleep until he was 2.5 years old.

luc is three and hilarious, and he talks nonstop. most of the time, i love this. he is really into asking what things are made of, and he wants to know what every item of food on his plate will do to his body before he eats it. so we talk a lot about how fruit helps us fight germs and milk gives us strong bones and meat gives us bigger muscles 'LIKE THE HULK!' he will loudly growl with flexed arms. it's the best. sometimes though, after answering his 1000th question, i am so out of answers. especially when those questions center around thomas the train or rescue bots or another of his favorite shows and he's asking essentially the same thing over and over. i can only answer 'why did the rescue bots rescue the boy?!' in so many different ways. the other day i told luc it was my turn to ask him questions and he replied, 'no mom, i'm busy! you're not busy so you answer my questions.' HA! he is usually very sweet though, he likes to stroke my hair and say 'wow, mom you look very beautiful!' and he tells me that when he is 'strong like the hulk!' he will carry the groceries for me.

i'm really glad they have each other, they play so well together. lia follows luc all around the house trying to do everything he does. she thinks she is as big as he is, and gets frustrated when she can't do everything he does. luc loves having a little shadow, except when lia breaks his train track. then he tells me to 'take her away!' haha they crack me up. even on days when i want to yell 'i need five minutes peace from all of you!' i am still extremely glad they're mine.

PARK DAYS

 lately our lives revolve around park days. we are enjoying this amazing weather daily! we run and climb and play and by the end of the day we all need a bath, and the kiddos sleep so well at night! this is why i love love love arizona. yes, we get fried in the summer, but in the winter, its perfection. i never get tired of it!

SICK-AGGEDDON

i'm sure you've had it too, it's been everywhere this past month! the kids came down with cold on november 13th, which lingered through the entire next week. then we went to san diego, where lia caught a stomach bug, and luc's cold revived into a monster snot/hacking cough version. by thanksgiving, orlando was also sick and there was no end in sight. after an dr. visit for the kids, an ear infection apiece, and all three of my family members on amoxicillin,  it looks like we are finally on the mend. the kids are tons better, and orlando is getting there slowly. and it's december 2nd. that's almost three weeks of bad sleep and nonstop sickness. it was a looooong three weeks. i am very grateful, however, that i was spared, and that it's about over. we celebrated with a jaunt to the park, and it felt AMAZING to get out of our sick cave for a bit! fingers crossed and prayers said for a healthier winter from here on out!

THE RETURN OF PARK DAYS

all we have to say is HOORAY AND HALLELUJAH!

MUDDY PUDDLES

today i'm thankful for cool, rainy days, muddy puddles in our backyard, and these two happy kiddos. i love being a part of their childhoods!

LATELY

lia is a crawling machine! she started about 10 days ago, and is already up to full speed. it's super adorable, and she's been tons happier since she can now follow me around the house as she pleases {as she feels pretty strongly about being within eyesight of mama at all times}.

luc is loving preschool. he has such great stories to tell me everyday, and he's been bringing home some awesome art projects. it makes me so happy that he enjoys it. he has struggled a bit with listening to his teachers here and there, but he's making quick progress and this week he's been awesome. we are so proud of him!

we are still in summer mode, thanks to this 102 degree arizona fall. we are swimming and splashing and wishing for cooler temps and breezy park days. yesterday it was only 80 degrees {thanks to a nice long thunderstorm in the middle of the night} so we spent three hours at the park, running and playing and getting so dirty. and we LOVED every minute. it was lia's first time in a swing, and she wasn't sure about it. but she loved crawling around eating sand, so you know, whatever works. 

we've been staying in a lot of afternoons lately, thanks to lia's extra long naps {i think she's working on teeth?} and we have a newfound hobby- baking cookies! luc is great at helping me measure out the ingredients, he's a pro butter-unwrapper, and he loves to turn on the mixer. and we both love eating them when they're done, of course!

luc and lia have started to 'play' together- meaning he runs in circles around her, acting silly, and she giggles and giggles. it's my favorite thing ever. they're growing so fast and i adore their little personalities! i hope they're always best friends.

orlando is working hard at his jobs, and i am starting to pack- we are moving! again, yes again. but not far this time, just to a house a few blocks away. it's in our ward, it's bigger than our apartment, and it has a fenced in back yard for luc to run wild and free. WE ARE SO EXCITED! 

WINTER…BUT NOT REALLY

it's a winter unlike any i've ever experienced. 67 and sunny every day of the week. it's one of those seasons that makes you feel super guilty on the days you don't go outside, because you just wasted a perfect day. we LOVE it. i know it comes with a trade-off {scorching summer} but right now, i'll take it. luc begs to go outside daily, and i m only too happy to oblige. though i will confess, it has made it harder to get into the whole 'plan thanksgiving dinner' and 'decorate for christmas' spirit, because i keep forgetting it's november. november 20th no less! my birthday is in two weeks, but i can't seem to wrap my head around it at all, with these sunny days and short sleeves.

but i mean, if that's what i can complain about, i've got it pretty darn good. and i'd love to share the goodness- if you're dying to escape the snow and freezing cold this winter, we love company!

FEEDING THE DUCKS

one of my very earliest memories is of an overcast, rainy day in logan ut. it's a hazy memory overall, but there are a few moments of clarity. i was maybe three, and was wearing my favorite blue raincoat with my matching rain boots. i remember waiting on the steps of our house while my daddy put on his blue jacket, and then he took my little fingers in his big, warm hand, and we walked to the duck pond, splashing in puddles along the way. i have this very clear still shot of him from where i stood, looking up, of his black hair and scruffy face, the way his mustache curved when he smiled down at me. i remember thinking he was so big and so safe and so handsome. 

when we got to the duck pond, he broke up pieces of bread for me to feed to ducks and i remember worrying that they would get cold because it was starting to rain and they didn't have rain coats on. i don't remember anything else at the pond, but i do remember he carried me home in the rain, and i remember the way his mustache tickled my cheek when i laid my head on his shoulder.

apparently, this was a favorite pastime of ours, feeding the ducks. we have tons of pictures of it, of me and dad and mom and baby trevor, and though i don't remember very many times individually, i always think of it with overall fondness.

remarkably, until this weekend, i've never taken luc to feed the ducks {mostly due to a lack of duck ponds in ohio}, so i was excited when i heard about a big duck pond here in az. we went on sunday, as it was perfectly sunny and cool, and i ripped off pieces of bread while luc threw them in {after i handed him a slice and he threw it in whole}. it made me all sappy and nostalgic, the whole circle of life and childhood memories and such, and i just couldn't help but grin, watching him cheer 'yay duck yay!' every time they ate a piece and 'pome back, pome back duckses!' when they paddled away.  it was short lived, he'd thrown all our bread in about three minutes tops, and then ran off to explore something else, but it was a sweet while it lasted. 

i keep wondering what his earliest memory will be. i hope i'm in it, doing something like this with him, just soaking up these precious moments of childhood.

30 WEEKS

i LOVE 30 weeks! something about 30 just feels so much closer to the end than 29. when you're stuck in the twenties, you feel like that precious due date will never come, but once you hit thirty, its a whole new feeling of possibility! and a light at the end of the tunnel! and hooray, this too will someday end!

friday was the 30 week mark, and it also happened to be my first dr. visit here in az. and, don't think i'm a terrible person, but it was also my first dr visit since we left san diego…ten weeks ago. between the move, transferring medical records, setting up insurance, finding a dr. etc. etc., it's taken me this long to get an appointment. but baby girl has been so mobile and happy as a clam in here, that it actually made me question the need for all those dr. visits in the first place. things continued along just fine without them, and it totally spoke volumes to my inner hippie. it was kind of nice to use my own intuition and her constant movements to measure her well-being. i felt like she and i were more in-tune with each other, like we had a running conversation of 'how are you doing in there?' and 'just fine, mama!' going strong.

that being said, i am grateful for good healthcare, and it was nice to hear that everything with baby girl is moving along perfectly. because i missed so many visits, we played catch up at this one and i had my blood drawn AND took the always fun glucose test. i was hoping to get out of that one this time, but nope. that test is a doozy. every time, before i even finish chugging my bottle of sugary nastiness {fruit punch this time} i can feel the nausea rising in my stomach and the hour wait until the blood draw is a fun mental game of 'don't throw up, don't throw up' because if you do, they make you do it again. with luc i had to take the one hour AND three hour tests {because nobody told me to fast before} so i'm hoping this time it's just the one and i don't have to go back for another. i feel nice and pukey for a whole day after, and it's not my favorite.

so now i get to go to the dr every two weeks, and with the holidays coming, i'm hoping the next ten weeks fly by. only 70ish days until we get to meet our little sweetheart! send good vbac vibes my way, i'm really hoping everything/everyone will cooperate this time and i can avoid another c-section. fingers crossed!

30 weeks, waiting for the blood draw, determined not to throw up.

HAPPY WEDNESDAY

ten things making me happy right now:

1. the yummy smell of black bean soup filling my house
2. making christmas lists {eeek! so excited!}
3. our awesome craigslist find yesterday for luc's big christmas present. i won't spoil the surprise, but i am giddy with excitement about it!!
4. a great conversation with my best friend yesterday
5. chocolate milk
6. 75 degree park days in NOVEMBER!
7. a little new makeup splurging at bareminerals this morning
8. luc is napping! nap time has been hit or miss lately, so i'm especially grateful today.
9. reading harry potter and the chamber of secrets
10. tis the season for our favorite treats!

hope you're having a happy wednesday!

A WEEK INTO NOVEMBER

i'm sure i said this about october too, but i will say it again. i can't believe it's already november. thanksgiving is right around the corner, christmas lists are being written, and i can hardly wrap my mind around the idea that 2014 is quickly coming to a close. we haven't been up to much- orlando is putting in as many hours at work as possible, i'm still growing this baby girl, and luc is as mischievous as ever, which keeps us laughing. this week especially, we are soaking up as much of this 70 degree weather as we can. is there anything better than winter in arizona? so far, it's seriously winning.

at almost 29 weeks, i'm feeling pretty good. baby girl is active but a lot calmer than her brother, and my insides are grateful. i'm starting to feel like we are finally {FINALLY!} nearing the home stretch with only 11 weeks left, and that's super exciting, because i'm dying to see her cute face! i found a practically new baby swing on craigslist this week and am on the hunt for a double stroller, so the baby shopping has officially commenced! my craving for sweets is large and in charge these days- we've been eating lots of chocolate frosted donuts {luc can't resist a good donut either!} and the halloween candy was gone by the end of the weekend {that was all me}.

luc has been going through a papa phase the past week or so. the first thing he says after he wakes up to find papa has gone to work is 'mommom go work. papa stay home with luc' with this intensely moody frowny face {see picture} that seriously cracks me up. and throughout the day, whenever he gets in trouble or i say no to something, he says 'i need papa now, get him. i need him.' hahaha! sometimes my pregnancy emotions make me want to cry about it, but most of the time, it makes me laugh, and i love that he loves his papa so much.

we got flu shots this week and luc astonished us all by not even flinching when he got his shot. he looked at his arm/the needle while the nurse gave it to him, and i waited for the tears, but nothing happened. he didn't even blink. in the car, he was proudly holding his treat and he told me 'luc have owie mom' very matter-of-factly. haha this kid! he's the best.

and that's our november so far. i'm working on some homey projects that will hopefully be done soon so i will have something exciting to blog about. until then, xoxo!

WEEKEND FUN

weekends are our favorite because papa is home! we always try to get out and do something fun together as a family, and last weekend our friends invited us to a fun carnival right by their house. knowing luc and his strong love for the quarter rides at the mall, we knew this would be a hit! he and enzo were in little boy heaven, which of course, makes it super fun for us parents :)

PAY IT FORWARD

this story is a little embarrassing for me, but i would feel completely ungrateful if i didn't acknowledge the incredible, heaven sent kindness shown to me today. plus, i want to remember this so that the next time i see someone in need, i don't hesitate.

today, after story time at the library, luc and i headed over to walmart for a pretty big grocery run. my list was long and luc's ability to sit still is pretty short these days. so i shopped as fast as i could while he ran laps up and down the aisles, climbed the shelves, and in general, ignored my requests to 'stay by mama please.' at one point he ran in front of an elderly woman's cart and she gave me a mean glare and stood there shaking her head at me while i pushed my heavy cart and pulled my limp, fussing toddler into the next aisle. then toward the end, he ran around behind me and was hiding behind the full cart, and for like twelve seconds, i could not find him and i was almost in hysterics. he popped out with a grin on his face, yelling 'boo!' but i seriously thought i had lost him, and my hands were shaking. i scooped him up and didn't let him out of the cart again, which resulted in very smashed bread and grapes, but at least i knew where he was. 

after two hours of this 'fun' i was finally done. frazzled, sweaty, and trying to hurry and finish before luc's 'it's nap time' meltdown began, i hauled us all up to the checkout stand and unloaded the groceries, and picked up all the candy luc knocked down while i was unloading groceries, and then reloaded the bagged groceries into the cart. $150, right on budget. phew! at least that went right. i swiped my card, and it didn't work. hmm, that's not right. payday was friday, so it should work just fine. try again. nope. the cashier was annoyed, but she suspended my transaction and let me move aside to try and figure out what was wrong. after a few tearful phone calls {i'm pregnant and this had never happened to me before, so out of hormones, exhaustion, and embarrassment, i started tearing up almost immediately} i had to tell the cashier i wouldn't be getting anything, there was a bank error that couldn't be fixed today. TWO HOURS OF TORTUOUS GROCERY SHOPPING, DOWN THE DRAIN. i felt completely defeated. i was so flustered and frustrated, i quickly scooped up luc and grabbed my purse, eager to get out of there before i started really crying. 

i was halfway across the parking lot when i heard someone calling after me. i turned, hurriedly wiping the tears pouring down my cheeks, to see an elderly gentleman pushing his near-empty cart after me. he had to have been in his 70's and was struggling to keep up with my speed walking. out of breath, he said, 'ma'am, come back inside, i'd like to pay for your groceries'

embarrassed, i stammered out a long string of 'oh thank you so much for offering, but you don't have to do that. it's way too expensive, i couldn't let you do that. thank you though, for offering, you're very sweet. really, we'll be fine. thank you.' as i inched away, trying to get to my car and hide.

he was unfazed as he walked closer and placed his hand on my arm. 'you remind me of someone. once, i was eating dinner at a restaurant all by myself and i was feeling pretty down and lonely, and there was this young mother with a little boy on her hip, just like you. they walked past my table five or six times during my meal as she chased him around, and each time, she smiled at me and told the little boy to wave hello. she was so kind and watching her and her son really made me feel better. then when i went to pay for my meal, i was told that it had already been paid for, by that same young mother. it made my whole day and i've been looking for a way to pay it forward ever since.'

i shook my head and opened my mouth to protest once again when he chuckled and interrupted me 'i already told the cashier, and gave her my card. it's paid for, you just have to come and get your cart.' i didn't know what to do or say so i just cried harder and hugged him and thanked him a hundred times while we walked inside together. i offered to pay him back, but he said 'no honey, that's not how paying it forward works' and then he wished me a good day and he shuffled off with a smile, leaving me there, crying, next to a full cart of groceries. 

i didn't even get his name, but i'll never forget his gift. i don't know if he knows how much it meant to me, but on this day where everything was going wrong, he changed it all around. i went from defeated and frustrated to humbled and amazed and so so grateful, in an instant. i'm so grateful for his kindness and his example. i'm going to try and be more like him, because you never know how much something little- or big- means to someone else. 

STAYING HOME

long before i had luc, way before i even got married, it was my dream to be a stay-at-home mom. it wasn't my only dream, but it was an important one. looking back, i feel like my reasons for wanting to stay home were a mix of selfless and selfish- i wanted to do what was best for luc, i wanted to give him as much (or more) nurturing and attention as he would ever need to be happy and healthy. and i wanted to sleep in and wear yoga pants everyday and go to lunch with my girlfriends and not miss a moment of luc's babyhood. when i was pregnant with luc and working full-time at the bank, i was seriously counting down the days until my sweet boy would arrive and i'd never have to get up at 6:30am again.

hahaha.

there are lots of yoga pants days but not much sleeping in included with this gig.

today though, i got us both up and ready and we trekked over to the aquarium for a few hours of SHARKS! and lots of other fish that luc didn't care much about. but he loved the sharks, so it was a win. as we were waiting to head out, i snapped this picture of the two of us, sitting on the steps outside our little home, just me and my little buddy, like it has been almost every morning for two+ years. me and that dimpled face, we're a team, and we get through everyday- both the good days and the bad days- together. later when i looked at the picture, i was overwhelmed with deep gratitude and complete love for my full-time job. i love being a stay-at-home mom! yes, it's full of hard moments and it's, more often than not, very unglamorous looking, but i wouldn't trade a day with those dimples for all the glamour and all the sleep in the world. i love playing trains and sharing a bowl of ice cream and i love his little 'dank doo mommom' and 'i wuv you mommom' and i love kissing owies and starting tickle fights. i daydream about having a day off, but if i ever really had one, i'd miss this. 

this is the best.

ARIZONA SO FAR

we've only been here two weeks, so i know it's a little early, but i have to say, so far we LOVE it! it's definitely super hot during the middle part of the day, but the morning and evenings are really nice, plus it's prime swimming weather all the time- even at ten pm.

-luc loves the pool and the splash pad, and i love that we have so many things to do when the mountains of boxes are driving us crazy.

-it's hot, but not that hot. maybe i haven't experienced enough of it yet {and it isn't july either}, but compared to the humidity of ohio summers, this isn't miserable at all. we have had to switch up our usual daily schedule- in ohio we used to have a slow morning and then leave the house around 11am for a playmate or errands or whatever. then home for nap time, playtime, papa's home, and dinner. here we get up and are out of the house by 8, playing at the park or taking a walk and enjoying being outside for a few hours. then we are home by 10am and we stay inside until after nap time. then we usually go swimming in the afternoon when it's really hot. it's a pretty good system we've got going on, i like it! though by 4 pm, i'm usually beat haha. this early morning exercise is going to take some time to get used to!

-the sky here is stunning. i feel like it's more blue, and the contrast with the red rock and dirt is beautiful. plus orlando and i both mentioned the other day that somehow it feels closer, like you're actually touching it all the time. not sure why, but that's totally how it feels.

-we love our apartment. it's a bit smaller than our last place and has required some creative storage arrangements but it is SO NICE. it already feels like home! i haven't hung any pictures yet, but we're ready for visitors, so everyone come see us!

-our ward has been one of the nicest wards we've ever been in. we've had several people tell us that they found this ward and then bought a house here and they've been here twenty years and they're never leaving because it's the best in the world. everyone has been really welcoming and social, and there are lots of toddlers and playmates for luc and i, which is a huge bonus. we really lucked out!

-i live three blocks from a super target AND a hobby lobby. jackpot! {my bank account is in trouble}

so far, we're happy here and excited about the future. thanks for being such a gem, AZ!

WE HAVE INTERNET!

hooray for internet! now that it's finally set up in our new apartment, i have so much i want to write about- moving, life in arizona thus far, how awesome luc is, being 20 weeks pregnant, etc. it's not going to happen today because nap time is almost over and i promised luc we'd go swimming as soon as he wakes up. and my legs aren't going to shave themselves!

but. i will be back very soon, i've seriously missed being on here. it's good for my mind and soul and i definitely start to feel it when it's been awhile.

until then, enjoy this snapshot of our new daily ritual- swimming on the porch in a makeshift mini-pool. genius, if i do say so myself.

BEACH BOY

i didn't have to ask luc to smile, the beach just naturally makes his face look like this. and what's better than a cold slice of melon on a perfectly sunny beach day? 

summer, you seriously rock.

SAFARI PARK

sorry for the radio silence over here. luc and i both got the summer cold from hell and we've been hiding/sleeping/slowly dying in our sick cave for almost two weeks. but! we are getting better, and orlando is here now {hooray for the bar being OVER!} so things are looking up considerably. we even ventured outside the house yesterday! after nap time, we took advantage of the perfect late afternoon weather for a few hours at the san diego safari park. this place is seriously so fun! they have a train you can ride around the park and a splash pad right next to the lion enclosure, plus acres and acres of really amazing animals and exhibits. it's one of our favorite stops in san diego.

also, can you tell luc loves having his papa back?

can you see the week-old baby rhino? ahhh so cute!

i can't even tell you how good it feels to be all together again. i love my family!