{you are two}

You are two.

You call fireworks "big booms."  You still are petrified of the vacuum cleaner.  You now say please and thank you - though not as consistently as I would like.  Your hair is thick and grows like a weed.  You hate when I cut your fingernails.  You say "I love you" like "wuv yooo-OOO!" which completely melts my heart.  You can sing the entire Bob the Builder theme song without my help.  We cannot pass by a rock pile or gravel patch without you snagging a few for your pockets.  You give me "flowers" that you pick out of the grass and do so with a shy, boyish smile.  You throw some crazy tantrums.  You also give kisses randomly, with wild abandon.  You say "no" a lot.  You say "yes" like "wes."  You sleep from 8pm-7am with no problems whatsoever.  You nap 2-3 hours a day.  You love trucks and trains. You have no interest in potty training.  You weigh 28 pounds.  You can count to five.  (Sometimes ten.)  If there is something in a book or on TV that you like you try to "GRAB!" it with your hands.  You will grab my hand and pull and yell "run, run, RUN!"

You make each day interesting.  You have a LOT of personality.  You are a challenge.  You are a joy.

I could go on and on.

But let's get to some photos, shall we?

you help me in the garden every day.  er, sort of.

you like to wave and say "HI!" to everyone

you eventually figure things out

popsicle lover like dada?

"Cormac, screaming is an 'outside noise'"

you still sign "more" and "please" 

your eyelashes are incredible.

you are the best big brother.

+ + + + + + + + 

And here are a couple two-year-olds that would someday grow up to create you.  Crazy to even think about!

oh my gosh - there are those dimples I fell in love with.  and those pacman cakes are AWESOME!

You are two.  You are awesome.  We love you.

g

sweet somethings : 2nd birthday party!

The "construction truck" party turned out great!

The weather was absolutely gorgeous.  We had it at a local park, so the kiddos/parents could venture to play at the splash park or playground.  I managed not to go overboard on the decorations, and even enlisted help with the food (both of these are great feats for me!)

We had about fifteen guests {some of hubby's fam and friends with little ones} plus our little family of four.  It was perfect!

Here are some photos from the day....

hubby's sister and me

Rocks and trucks was the theme for the day!

 This plastic bin full of rocks and trucks and scoops was a big hit with the littles!

me and hubby - prom pose

the boys - playing in the "rock quarry"

hide and seek?

watermelon eatin'

eating cake with nana

finola in her party dress, with mimi - I love this picture.

Cormac had a blast - and promptly fell asleep in the car on the way home.

Thank you to those that helped celebrate -  

your kindness is great

 and we appreciate you being in Cormac's life. :D

g

mama confessions : handling two

It is no secret that our little Finola was a surprise.
I really wasn't expecting to get pregnant when we did, or to have two littles so close in age (less than 2 years.)

I wouldn't trade Finola for anything...but I still wish they were a little farther apart in age.

"What have I been born into???"

As a stay-at-home mom, handling two so young can be challenging. It is a juggling act that I often feel ill-equipped to perform.

Both need diaper changes.  Both cry often to communicate - despite the fact that Cormac talks a ton now.  Both want to be held.  Both want to be interacted with, but in totally separate ways.

Yes, those are marshmallows on his tray.  It is my latest form of bribery.

"Help!"

The hardest part - I constantly feel like I am failing one of them.  We can't really all "play" together.  I have to try to play with Cormac while I hold Finola.  I have to nurse Finola while trying to explain to Cormac why we can't go outside right this second.

I hear a lot of "No Baby!  Set down Baby!!!!"

"I think they forgot about me again."

Meanwhile, though she is patient as a saint, even Finola has her moments.  The past two days Hubby was out of town for work, and I had two days with no breaks, and doing the night time routine myself.   For some reason Finola didn't feel like napping much yesterday, which made it especially hard.  I didn't get my normal "alone time" with Cormac, or any time to myself for that matter.  Bathtime for both of them went okay, but at bedtime I had to set her down while reading Cormac his books.  She screamed next to us nonstop while I read Cormac Green Eggs and Ham.  I am not sure he could even hear what I was reading, although he seemed mesmerized.  I sang him a song and said prayers to the sound of screaming as well.  That was fun.

When I was finally able to leave the room and comfort Finola (while listening to Cormac fuss sadly and say "Mama come back!") I went to the nursery, offered her the breast and broke down into tears myself.

Yup.  Sometimes you just need a good cry.

Then she fell asleep and I skulked downstairs to pour myself a rather large glass of wine and eat some chocolate.

I know it will get easier.  She will get bigger and they will eventually play together.  He'll get potty-trained.  She'll go full-time on the bottle, which will make things more scheduled.  Her naps will become more regular.

It will all go so fast.

So, for now I will: 1) take one day at a time 2) thank God that Hubby doesn't travel often 3) view it all as a challenge that clearly someone up there thought I was capable of handling  and 4) religiously take my birth control.

I think two tiny ones are about all this mama can handle.  :o)

g

{thirty-two}

Yesterday I turned thirty-two.
It occurred to me I couldn't really remember how I celebrated my past two birthdays.  I'm sure I could research it -- ask Hubby, look back on photographs we took, etc.  I am beginning to think once you have kids things kind of become a blur.  Time speeds up.  Days blend together.  You stop thinking about your own birthday and, rather, obsess about theirs.  (Okay, maybe that is just me???)

Anyway, I wanted to record the events of this past weekend - my first birthday as a mama of two - so I wouldn't forget.  It wasn't particularly exciting...but it was lovely all the same.

Friday night I had my first girls night out since having Finola.  Hubby did double-duty while I got to go out with two sweet friends of mine.  We got dinner at a cool new restaurant.  I drank a tall, amazing beer and ate a fabulous shrimp and risotto dish.  We ate and talked for several hours, then walked around, found a cool swinging bench to sit on and talked some more.   Lucky ladies that we are, we just happened to be sitting in the perfect spot for the weekly Friday night fireworks show by the river.
Then we got frozen yogurt - my first time having Orange Leaf.  Yum!  Sweet end to a fun night with friends.

Saturday night my bestie M volunteered to babysit the babes and Hubby and I got a date night!  We went to the seafood restaurant we love near our home - the same one where I popped the question six years ago.   We ordered a bottle of one of our favorite wines {Cakebread Cabernet - 2009} and ordered a bunch of appetizers, including oysters, which I haven't had since before I got pregnant.  Loved it all!  Then we saw a movie and I might have inhaled an entire box of Milk Duds in lieu of birthday cake.  Totally worth it.

Sunday, my actual birthday, was a rather normal Sunday.  Highlight was Cormac serenading me by singing "Happy Birthday"  Here is the video...



Pics from my birthday - taken before church.  Usually I make sure to get a few photos of Hubby and I before our 'birthday date.'  This year I forgot to do that.  Instead, we have some of me and the kiddos.  (Well, mostly me and Finola, since Cormac ran away as soon as we suggested he stand still.)

+ + + + + + + 

Lastly, it was unintentional but Hubby took a photo of me and Finola that reminded me of a photo of me and my mama...

Here they are -

 My mother and I.  She is 34 and I am probably about 4 months.

Finola and I.  I am 32 and she is nearly 2 months.

 Mamas and daughters, 

thirty two years removed.

Love this.

Best birthday I can remember.

g

stuff to never forget...

There are things I never want to forget about Cormac.

Little things.

The way he climbs into my lap every time he wants to read a book.

The way he has to be touching me in some way when we watch a show together on TV.  Either he is standing on the floor between my legs as I sit on the couch using them as armrests, or leaning against my knees, or sitting on my lap with his hands on my arms, which are around him.

The way his kisses come out of no where.

The way his hair smells - of shampoo and sweat and dirt and rain.

The way he can sense if I am upset and frantically tries to make me feel calmer/better.  It always works.

The way he "helps" me cook.

The way he prays.

The way he hugs and kisses the Buddha statue in our flower garden and assumes Buddha's folded hands are praying to Jesus, so he says our mealtime prayer.

The way he picks up rocks and puts them in his pockets wherever we go.

The way I find rocks in my purse that he has snuck in there...oh, and the washing machine because I forgot to empty the pockets of his shorts.

The way he dances.  No rhythm at all, but a lot of heart and erratic movement goes into those dance moves.

The way he now sings songs with me out of no where.  I have always sang a TON in front of him.  Amazing to hear his little voice chime in.

The tantrums.  Yes, even the tantrums.  There was one the other day that was so epic I accidentally burst out laughing.  Which made Cormac burst out laughing, too - despite the angry tears streaming down his face.  I know it is just a phase...and the kid has some big emotions, both happy/loving as well as angry/frustrated.  (I completely understand this trait.)

The way he adores his sister.  Has to touch her in some way every time he sees her, saying "Grab!"  Repeats "Bed, bed, bed" over and over until I lift him up to peer into her crib.  The way he points out all her facial features and names them.  The way he points to her and says, "Small!"  and then points to himself and says, "Big!" The proud look that comes over his face when I let him "hold" her.

I can't believe that this will all change.  He'll become a teenager and tell me hates me.  He'll be embarrassed by my constant kisses.  All he'll want to do is sleep, instead of fighting naps to spend more time with me.

And of course, then some other woman will come along and be the one he turns to for love and comfort.

But for now it is me.

For now I must relish all of it.

And not forget the stuff that sometimes drives me crazy.

That will be the stuff I will miss the most.

g

the renovation : finola's nursery (so far!)

The nursery is a work in progress.

We have done a LOT of work to it so far,

transitioning it from a blah and musty bedroom,

to a sweet little room for our 

baby girl.

• new flooring
• caulked, spackled, sanded and repainted all the trim
• added door - connecting the front and back of house
• repainted ceiling
• painted walls
• added new light fixture
• re-did the closet into an open concept (and added lighting)
• replaced plastic blinds with bamboo shades.

Well, really Hubby did all of that.

Then came my part...

the decorating.

We used mostly all the same things we used in Cormac's former nursery in our old house.

I've added a few new things, 

and will continue to!

Here are the before and after shots...

The details...

crib: craig's list

chair: ikea Hovas

ottoman: ikea Ektorp

round rug: urban outfitters 

wardrobe: ikea Hensvik (with antropologie pulls)

changing dresser: ikea Birkeland

chandelier: lowe's

paint: valspar 'granite dust' 

crib bedding: land of nod (discontinued)

white rug: ikea Tejn

turquoise curtain: target (discontinued)

"new"door: re-used from a closet in a different room {the hardware is stamped 1858!}

boppy cover/changing pad cover: etsy - {this shop}

stool by chair: thrifted and repainted/stained

bookshelves: ikea {spice racks}

closet shelving: ikea Lack

(I will update this post periodically to update the photos and give info on new items.)

* * * * * *

I'll do a separate post on the art and accessories...

I have a few things in progress!

Anyway, I'm sure this room is going to change as Finola grows

and begins to show her personality 

and opinions - of which I am sure there will be many!  

I am excited for all of that!

g