Long Days

Now that Chris's hours have changed from 9pm-7am, to 4pm-2am, mine have too. Chris used to wake up around 4:00 in the afternoon and shower then come downstairs and be with the kids while I cook dinner. We would all get to eat together and clean up and head out for an evening walk. Well, now he's up between 10am and 11am, and gets to see Devon as she is getting home from school. He leaves now about 2:45pm. So there really isn't mealtime opportunity because Devon eats at school and Chris eats when he gets hungry.

After one week of this schedule I realized cooking the dinners I used to is pretty much not going to happen because Matthew isn't quite big enough to stay happy by himself that long. So I've been making lots of pasta, and almost homemade pizza. I get credit for putting on my own sauce, cheese and toppings right? This also makes my days seem much longer. I'm definitely more worn out by the time the kids are asleep at 8pm.

I have had one bit of salvation though. My good friend Bridget who lives just around the corner. We hang out most nights walking around the neighborhood, in each others front yards or at our houses, whatever we are in the mood for. It's really been nice having company in the evening. And I really adore her kids. Devon and her three year old are best friends, and on days when we don't catch them after dinner Devon is really bummed.

Chris seems happier with these hours because he's not flip flopping his sleep hours, and that makes me much happier too. But like I said these days seem awfully long now. Let's just look at today.
Wake up at 6:30am
Feed both and dress kids
Get Devon to school on time
Go to the grocery store
Put all the groceries away
Unload dishwasher
Sweep kitchen floor
Clean out litter box
Sweep the cat room
Play and read to Matthew
Bring Matthew to bus stop and get Devon
Feed Matthew lunch
Help Devon with homework
Put Matthew down for a nap
Punish Devon for swinging Xander around
Put Matthew back down for his nap because he never really fell asleep
Put Devon down for quiet time
Watch Twilight with a few interruptions (this is rare)
Let repair man in to fix laundry machine
Kiss Chris goodbye
Do two and a half loads of laundry
Water vegetable plants
Play with kids outside
Make almost homemade pizzas for dinner
Clean kitchen
Reload dishwasher
Take kids for walk
Come home and play a little longer
Bathe both kids
Put Matthew to sleep
Put Devon to sleep
Fold third load of laundry
8:15pm plop into glider and blog

Now I go read until I fall asleep, which should be soon.

Just an Ordinary Day

Yesterday was fantastic. Although it started out like every other ordinary day.

I was feeling a little icky when morning came at 6am, so Chris jumped up and took Matthew and got Devon ready for school. I manage to get out of our warm and comfy bed about 10:30. All is quiet and I'm wondering why Chris didn't wake me up to nurse Matthew to sleep for his morning nap. When I walk out of our room I notice Matthews bedroom door is closed, so I peek in, out of curiosity. And he is out cold in his crib.

I head downstairs and Chris is watching a Harry Potter movie, and he tells me putting Matthew down was easy, so he didn't have to wake me. At first I was a little hurt because I wasn't needed, but I got over that pretty quick because I was excited because maybe this weaning business wasn't going to be quite so horrible (on Matthew).

I went to the bus stop to get Devon and we came home and did homework. So far, like I said it was very ordinary, for the most part. Then we head downtown because Chris needed to go get some of his uniforms replaced because they had holes in them. After that it was yet another instance where we were like, "Well, now what?" Whenever Chris has weekdays off, it can be a little tricky finding something to do that doesn't cost money. So I head south not sure exactly where I'm going.

At first I wanted to go to SoCo (south congress for you non-Austin folks) and just walk around all the fun shops. But then I wasn't paying very close attention and drove right past Congress. Smooth. I know. So I changed my mind (this has been known to happen frequently) and since we were headed for the Town Lake trail (I refuse to call it Lady Bird Lake because it was Town Lake when we moved here almost four years ago). We park and check out this new area where there is this awesome fountain that is great for kids to run around on, but it's too cold, so we head to the trial.

The side of the river we were on has a leashless dog area, so there are cute dogs every where! Matthew had an unwanted encounter with a little puppy lab and got a kiss. Let me tell you, he did NOT like that at all. I suppose he felt very violated. I can see that. ;) So from then on when a dog got too close he protested from his stroller. As we're walking Chris suggests we cross the river at the next bridge and head over toward the animal shelter. Sounded fun to me, so we headed that way.

When we get to the shelter Chris goes straight for the dogs, but after a little while there are these girls in front of us talking to every dog they pass, so we detour to the cat house. There we meet Rebel. The 18 lb five year old cat. Chris and Devon go in to play with him and then I went in because he was adorable. But he hid in his cat house when I went in so we looked at the other kitties and we met Xander. He was cute and the volunteer said he was great with kids, so I take Devon in and he is very playful and sweet. One of the shelter workers heard us talking about Xander and she told us his adoption rate was reduced from $75 to $35. Wow. We hang out a little longer, including one more visit with Rebel and head back out to the dogs.

Chris found a pure bread Siberian husky and takes him out for a walk and into a pen. He's not very social, but he does listen well coming straight to the leash and doesn't fight it. Then we find a german shepard, lab mix. He's cute and playful so we take him out too. He basically acts the same as the husky, but Chris seems disappointed that I'm not interested in any of the dogs. We walk around some more and head out.

It's about 4:30 and we start walking back on the trail toward the car. We start talking about the animals we interacted with. Chris brings up the dogs again, talking about how we will never find another pure husky again at the shelter, trying to win me over. I wasn't really thinking about the dogs. I was more concerned about Xander, the playful black cat. So we talk about the possibility of getting a cat and the next thing I know we are in the car grabbing some drive thru food so we can go back to the shelter and rescue Xander.

I knew there could only be one reason they were cutting his rate. He had been there almost two months and his free room would be needed for the next kitty. So we sign some papers and hand over the credit card and wah-lah! We now are the proud owners of Xander!!! They give him to us in a cardboard pet carrier and off we go. In the car he seems a little concerned so at first I let him peek him head out and then I just open the whole box so I can pet him and comfort him.

When we get home we quaranteen him in our bathroom, give the kids a bath the put them to sleep then we give Xander a bath, just to be on the safe side. He does surprisingly well. After the bath he just roams the house for a couple of hours and then after that he just follows me everywhere. It was cute. We headed to bed and he came with us. I think he has done this before because as soon as I went in the bed room he hopped on the bed and layed down. So we get in bed and at first he lays on Chris and then moves to the end of the bed where he stayed until about an hour before we got up.

Once it was time to get up Xander got to get reacquainted with the kiddos. Devon was very good with him, but for some reason Matthew would protest if Xander got too close to him or me. It was funny. Nothing too loud like crying, he would be pretty much go, "Ehhh" like saying "hey!" It's been fun. However Matthew does seem to enjoy the cat scratcher just as much as Xander. And already Xander is good at sharing. So now, we have a third kid in the family.

Xander has quickly made himself at home. And I've got to admitt it's going to be nice having some company at night when Chris is at work.

Genetics

I am so fascinated by genetics these days. Not necessarily the heavy scientific jargon, but just the evidence I see watching my two munchkins grow up. Devon and Matthew are so different, yet the same at the same time it's incredible.

Devon was pretty chubby as a baby, but still always managed to stay in the 50th percentile every doctors visit. Matthew started out in the 15th percentile, but has climbed up to the 25th! He's just got little genes, from Chris's side of course.

So if you're reading this, you are very aware of just how often and how many pictures I take of the kiddos. Lately, whenever I take one of Matthew I can almost always think of one from when Devon was the same age and I go back and look at just how much they really do look alike. It's remarkable!!

Here is Devon when she was 12 months old. She was sitting in the azalea garden at SFA, playing with pine needles.

Now here is Matthew at 10 months, in a similar pose, outside playing with leaves. Isn't that awesome! Maybe it's not so much that they look alike, but that I tend to repeat photo shoots with Matthew that I did with Devon. Haha! I am seriously laughing at myself now.

And here is Devon on her first birthday practicing walking for the first time with a push toy. I can still remember that night. She walked back and forth between me and Chris for the longest time and every time she hit an obstacle and couldn't keep going she would just stand there and cry, waiting for us to "make it go again."

And here is Matthew on Christmas day pushing the same kind of push toy. The only difference is that he is two months younger. And that is just a difference in personality. To this day, Devon is still rarely in a hurry. And Matthew, well he just loves trying to keep up with the rest of us.

I am so grateful that I get to spend my days at home with them. I've been doing this for almost five years now and (this is so cliche) it has just flown right by! Next year Devon will be in school all day for kindergarten. Matthew is really going to miss her. I can tell all ready.

Thank You Santa!

Christmas morning was great!! Devon didn't wake up too early. She managed to sleep in until 6:15am, yeah me. She walked right past the tree (which was in the loft this year) a couple of times without even noticing the new additions. Matthew slept in until 7:15am, which is late for him. But even though both kids were up, we still had to wait until Chris came home. So I cheated and put on PBS to distract Devon.

About 20 minutes later Devon heard the garage door opening and jumped up screaming, "Dad's home! Dad's Home!" Chris managed to come in and tell me a little about his evening before we went upstairs to see what was under the tree.

Now that the lights were on Devon saw the new pile of gifts under the tree and was very excited. Santa did good on his promise to bring a ball for Christmas, but Devon didn't expect it to be a big ball with a handle to hold on to while bouncing! She was very pleased. Little does she know it almost had to stay in the box. Last night when I went to put the Santa toys together I went hunting for our bicycle pump, but it was nowhere to be found. So I went to our neighbors house, but she didn't have one. So I went across the street and luckily he had a small one for basket balls. It took me over 10 minutes to pump the thing, and that was after 10 minutes of figuring out the attachment for the ball. Ahhhh, the joys of Santahood. Santa also got Devon a doctor's kit, and a Bearenstein Bears Video, along with some small toys in her stocking.

Matthew got a push toy so now he can, in theory, stop rearranging the kitchen chairs. Just a simple gift from Santa since he's so young. We got him a CD player for his room, a gripy ball, and some big plastic cars. We got Devon a veggie tales lunchbox, two new sweat shirts, a new Cars car, and a gripy ball like Matthew.

Chris got a new leather jacket a couple of months ago that he considered his Christmas present, but I still couldn't resist getting him a few things. The kids got him an iHome, to listen to his ipod at home. I got him The Dark Night and Iron Man as well as some traditional candy he always gets.

I got more than I should have since we were trying to stay on a budget, but has never been known to stick to gift limits. He's so generous! I got an awesome wireless printer that is also a scanner copier. Woo-hoo! No more dragging the lap top up stairs at night to print something! He also got me some movies; Saved, and season 1 & 2 of Dexter, my favorite show!! And I got the Tales of Beetle the Bard, the new J.K Rowling book, and Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire.

Tonight we will have a small version of a Christmas dinner. I just bought a ham steak instead of a big ham, because only me and Chris will eat it. And some potatoes for mashed potatoes, mac and cheese and frozen yeast rolls. Yep. It's going to be that simple. :) And hopefully Chris will be feeling a little better too. Poor guy has been sick for almost a week.

Bed Time Schmed Time

Well, today was exciting! It was very chilly and it was a Saturday which means Farmers Market day, Hooray!! My favorite. We get out there and it is so windy that most of the vendors took down their canopies, but I wasn't worried because we were all bundled up.

Matthew had on two pairs of socks, sweat pants (that are huge on him!), a onesie, a sweatshirt, a beanie, and he was snugglied to me with a blanket over him. We were warm. Devon was sporting her new coat I bought on Friday while she was in school. I'm so proud of myself for paying attention to the weather forecast and snagging a coat before they were all gone.

So we walked around and got the veggies we will need for next weeks meals and had some lunch. Then we headed over to the library for new kid books and cook books. I'm two pages away from starting on spiral number three for all my recipes. Then back to home. It was almost one by the time we got home and we were all pretty pooped. I made some grilled cheese, since we ate lunch at 10:30 like Devon is used to doing at school and then Matthew was ready for his afternoon nap.

I popped in Cars and we all snuggled on the couch. Matthew was the first one asleep, nursing knocks him out quick when he's tired, then me and at some point Devon even fell asleep. It was cute! I woke up at the end of the movie to both my sweeties sleeping on me. It was heaven. But I knew I would have to wake them up. It was 4:15 and if they nap too late, then they won't got to bed. So we woke up and then went to wake up Chris.

Tonight I went out on a limb and made something I wasn't sure Devon would like at all. I made crunchy chicken and blackbean tacos. Turns out if you put anything in a crunchy taco shell, Devon will eat it eagerly!! I'll store that bit of info for future meals. Every bite she took, she dramatically mmmhed. It was great.

So now, it is 8:30 and while I should be having quiet Mommy time, Devon is now hanging out in the living room reading her knew library books because she is not tired. Big surprise there! So I'm going to join her on the couch and read her the new books until 9:00 and then I will have to put my foot down for bed time. It's ok to fudge the rules from time to time, it's all for the love of reading!

Bi-Yearly Illness

Well, this weekend I was sick as a dog. I haven't been sick for just about two years, so I suppose in the grand scheme of things that's not too bad. I was pretty miserable though. And as Chris loves to remind me when I'm sick, "Misery loves company, but you're driving me crazy so go to your room!" Yeah I was quarantined to my room so I wouldn't spread the disease.

It started Thursday of last week. I had a bit of a sore throat, but nothing horrendous, little did I know that was just the beginning. Friday, it's much worse. So I try to be proactive and go to the doctor to get some meds early before this gets too serious. However, there is no help with the medical profession, because it's a virus and there's not a damn thing I can do about it. Grrrrrrr.

Friday night I try my darnedest to suck it up, so I don't spoil Halloween. Devon and Matthew get all cuted up but I stayed in my pajama's. Chris took Devon trick or treating in our neighborhood and Matthew kept me company at the front door to pass out candy, which I had never done before. As the night grew later, I started getting worse and worse. To the point where I specifically remember telling Chris, with tears in my eyes, "I don't want to be sick anymore."

I don't know what happened, but my body was literally body slammed by the virus. I was sweating, then shivering, and I could feel my throat swelling up. My body felt like it was bruised on the inside, it hurt so much. Misery.

Saturday, the body aches were considerably better, but all the other symptoms were there. Sunday my main problem was my throat and the same goes for Monday. The whole weekend just flew by and I kept getting confused as to what day it was. Chris was a real trooper taking care of the kids, you know keeping them happy and bringing Matthew to me when he was hungry.

I don't remember a lot, but here are a few random memories that did stick.

• Chris baked a cake.
• Matthew came tapping at the bedroom door all by himself. (ADORABLE!!)
• I watched some episodes of Dexter.
• I slammed down some serious OJ.
• Oh yeah, and looking at my throat in the mirror with a flashlight.

Five days later, my throat still hurts. It hurts to talk, eat, and drink, even to swallow my own saliva. But I don't feel nearly as bad as I did, so there's the good news.

Keeping Our Roots

I know I'm probably 80% Italian and Chris is around 50-70%. We like pasta, and especially pizza. The other night when Chris had to go into work early and wasn't able to eat dinner with us I took to easy route for dinner. I simply made spaghetti with butter and parmesan cheese. Easy. Cheap. And one of Devon's favorite meals. I also took this opportunity to let Matthew play with some noodles and have a little taste.

Of course he loved it. What baby wouldn't want to make a big mess and eat it up at the same time. Devon and I got a big kick out of watching his amazement and the faces he made.

I Love Fall

Saturday was amazing! I am so ready for fall. We started out our adventure by going to the farmers market downtown, which I love. The weather was cool and the sun was shining. People were walking their dogs. There were a ton of other families with kiddos and there was a band playing music. I just love the complex simplicity of it all. We enjoyed some good food too. Homemade empanadas, mmmmm. Next week I'll try to be smart and plan the weekly meals so I can get the produce I need there.

Then after that we went to the library, also downtown, to get Devon new books for the week and me too. Man let me tell you, I could seriously spend all day there looking at books and be perfectly content. It is so huge. I just love it. I got some new recipe books and a book on preserving food, because that just seems like an awesome thing to do.

Then after that, yep it was a busy day, we went to the Austin flee market, which is conviently on the way home from downtown. It's a buck per car to park, if you hadn't noticed this whole day was pretty cheap. We walked around, had some ice cream. Then we headed back home. When we got home Matthew was passed out and stayed asleep for another hour. So I watched Cars with Devon while searching for new recipes in the library books I got. It was just so mellow and exciting at the same time. I loved it. It was a great family day.