Friday's Letters

Dear Weather Forecast for Sunday: You’re really gonna dump 6-8 inches of snow on me??? There’s a reason February is my least favorite month, and it’s pretty much only because the icky white stuff. At least there’s a Super Bowl or something on that day, I suppose. Can’t wait to hit the grocery store tonight & fight with all the crazies buying milk & bread as if the apocalypse was imminent.

Dear Me: PLEASE—for the love of all that is holy—figure out how to sleep without straining your wrist!!! The stupid brace makes typing kinda difficult.

Dear Rag the Dog Customers: THANK YOU!!! I’m only a few weeks out from celebrating a year since opening shop, and I’m sitting at 2 orders away from 300!!! Never in my wildest dreams did I think my little experiment in entrepreneurship would be so successful!!!

Dear Tom Bergeron Bobble-head Doll: Thanks for making me smile every time I look your way J

Dear Metabolism: Oh how I miss you. But I think I finally need to admit that you’re not ever going to be what you used to be. Time to grow up & take control.

...hullo? ...is this thing on???

So, I totally didn't mean to go on a hiatus.

For over a year.

{{{{{SHUDDER}}}}}

I think I just became a victim of life getting in the way, you know? But I have missed visiting my little blog and using it to keep track of all the things happening in my family's lives.

We're all good around here; Aiden's nearly 7 and rocking the 1st grade, Nolan's 4 and getting ready to head to preschool, and Justin is earning his stripes as our very fiery two-year-old.

Mike & I celebrated the ten-year anniversary of our first date (!!!!!) in December.

I started a little business back in March, and much to my surprise, it's really taken off!!!

Oh, and I would be totally remiss if I didn't mention I spent A LOT of time watching my most favoritest team EVER have a pretty great season...

But there'll be time in the future to discuss all of these things if I can remember to get on here & post.

So I'm coming back. Hopefully you don't mind. :)

The one with the dog

Everyone, meet Clancy.

We really didn't have much of a plan to get a dog, at least not yet. We'd rather be in a bigger house, or wait a few years for the boys to be older, and every other excuse that one can come up with. But then Mike's dog Bailey (who lived with his parents) had to be put down after a long, happy life, and suddenly we just decided it wouldn't hurt to check out the local shelter. So Aiden & I stopped at one before heading to the grocery store one Saturday afternoon, and as luck would have it, we met Sparky, a five-month-old mutt who seems to be a mix of miniature pinscher and some kind of terrier.

I kinda fell in love when he walked in the little get-to-know you room. Now if you know me, I'm not exactly known as a dog person, especially since our last get-a-dog attempt failed so miserably due to a pregnancy and financial considerations. But Sparky was sweet enough that we signed the papers on the spot and brought him home the next day, changing his name to the more appropriate Clancy.

 Getting acquainted.

 Boys' Club

 Feeling right at home.

Things have been pretty good since bringing him home; he's great with the boys, and they adore him right back. And he's crate-trained and MOSTLY house trained (we've had a few accidents, but we're working on that). But he's definitely going to need some obedience lessons, and we've got to get better about leaving the boys' toys lying around, lest they get destroyed by puppy teeth.

One thing is for sure--he's a cuddler. He hangs with me on the couch in the evenings once the munchkins have gone to bed. It's pretty nice. :)

Friday's Letters

Dear Ohio State Defense: Let’s try a bit harder vs. Clemson in the Orange Bowl than we did during the B1G Championship, shall we? I know your hands are tied even further without Spence and Roby…well, maybe not so much Roby. He’s been phoning it in all season, so why should we feign surprise that he’s “injured” for his last collegiate game??? Regardless, put up a decent effort tonight so we can win our last BCS game. ‘K, thanks.

Dear 2014: I’ve got big plans for you. And the key is that they’re POSITIVE plans. Don’t try to feed me (and my friends!) any of the negative crap that 2013 did. I’ve had enough of that BS to last for a while.

Dear Last Six-Pack of the Season of Great Lakes Christmas Ale: Having to give you up until November might actually hurt more than taking down the Christmas tree & getting the house back in order. I’m going to savor your liquid happiness this weekend before bidding you a teary see ya later.

Dear Nolan: I may be putting too much pressure on the special needs preschool we’re trying to enroll you in to help you grow. I know they’ll do wonders for your speech delay, but I can’t help but be hopeful they’re more successful in getting you to respect or at least acknowledge authority. No matter what happens, though, we all love you the way you are. :)

Dear January Weather: I get that it’s winter and all, so freezing temps and snow really should be expected, but is it really necessary on the day of Aiden’s first swim lesson next week for the forecasted high to be NEGATIVE ONE DEGREE?! Couldn’t you pick another day to freeze our butts off??? Just sayin’.

Time to get your 2014 on...

As I sit here, with some bowl game on in the background and lamenting the fact that I have to go back to work tomorrow for the first time since last year in nearly two weeks, my thoughts have turned to resolutions. You know, I really hesitated as to whether I should post any here. I haven't been great at keeping them...but then again, really, who is?! I jokingly posted on Facebook yesterday that my only real resolution was to NOT have a baby in an even year for the first time since 2006. I'm 100% positive I can keep that one (which is a whole post on it's own--later). But I have a few more that things that I'd definitely like to work on, so I guess I'll share them so you all can keep me honest.

1. Get Healthier is replacing my typical lose weight goal. Yes, I would LOVE to lose about 20 lbs, and that will come with just generally improving my overall health. I'm hoping it will also help out with the anxiety I was diagnosed with last year (which again is a whole other post). This is the one requires the most positive reinforcement, so get your pom-poms out and cheer me on!

2. Unplug Regularly. UGH, this one's gonna be hard. I'm a bit of a social media addict. And I've been feeling very guilty about that lately. My family & friends deserve my full attention, not my distracted nods when I really have no idea what they just said because I'm too busy Instagramming some mundane situation (and oh yeah making sure it hits Facebook as well). This one's important.

3. Get Organized, in more ways that one. This house is too small for the number of people living in it, not to mention all our stuff. A garage sale has already been planned for spring, so come help me get rid of ALL! THE! THINGS! We also need to organize our finances better due to changes in jobs & insurance coverage, so that stuff is all underway. Sometimes I so dislike being an adult.

I think that's it. I'm gonna keep this list small, mostly because these are each pretty lofty. Wish me luck!

Monthly Mumbles, December Edition

10. I need to get back my blogging mojo. For realsies. One post in each of the last two months just isn’t cool. Though we have been enjoying ourselves around here. Mike’s work schedule is changing yet again, though, so I’m going to have to make time.

9. My darling Justin turned one last week. What the what?! Easily the fastest year of my life. We had a whole weekend of celebrating his huge milestone, complete with a both a Christmas party at the Shamrock Club where the boys got to meet Santa, and my little man’s own candy-cane themed birthday party yesterday. Yup. Mommy’s tired. 

8. The weekend wasn’t all good, though; my Buckeyes lost their first game (in two years!) Saturday night to M*ch*gan Lite (MSU). Truth be told, it’s okay. Until we can get a solid defense, I’d rather not lose another National Championship. So it’s the Orange Bowl for us, which makes me very happy since it’s on a Friday night! GO BUCKS!!!

7. Aiden is just rockin’ and rollin’ his way through kindergarten. He’s already reading books!!! I know I sure wasn’t that quickly. It’s awesome to watch him learn tricks to sound out words he’s unfamiliar with. The kid, like his brothers, is just growing up way too darned fast.

6. I CANNOT listen to enough Christmas music this year. Seriously. I have worn out the Mannheim Steamroller channel on Pandora because I’ve been listening at work since November 1^st. And I play it every time I’m in the car. Gotta get my fix, ‘cause before you know it, the holidays will be over, and we’ll have spring to look forward to…

5. Got my third Erin Condren Life Planner last month. Oh, how I love these glorious books. They’re just so pretty and organized and GAH I LOVE THEM. I was even able to customize my cover to reflect my love for scarlet & gray. :)

4. Very excited about a new fundraising initiative I’m going to help facilitate at work in February. A co-worker made me aware of The Pajama Program, whose mission is to get books and pajamas in the hands of needy children. What a great cause! Click on the link if you’re interested in finding out more.

3. Turning three hasn’t really done anything to alleviate our roller coaster ride with Nolan’s behavior. I was especially hopeful when he had a stretch of a few good weeks around his birthday…and then things went right back to difficult. We tried every tactic we can think of with him, but nothing works more than twice. And what sucks is that he’s a bona fide sweetheart when he wants to be. But he just rarely wants to be. *SIGH*

2. I know you’re all on pins & needles to find out my opinion on the newest NCIS character, Agent Ellie Bishop. Truth is, I don’t hate her. I wanted to, which I found odd. I didn’t realize I would miss Ziva this much. But Ellie might be just quirky enough to keep me interested.

1. I’ve made a calculated effort to make our holidays as stress-free as possible this year, especially since we’ve now got a December birthday boy in the house. And so far it’s worked out great. Shopping is done, gifts are wrapped, and cards have been sent. I’ll have a few days off with the kids before the big day, so I’ll let them help me with the baking. But I don’t think we’re going to be victims of any last minute forgetfulness, and that is really helping my anxiety. We’ve even gone to see the light show at the zoo (for the first time) already, and have plans to do it again!!! Making memories, good times. :)

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY, JUSTIN!!!

The day of your birth was not without drama.

But we made it though. Truth be told, I'd endure it all over again a thousand times to get your sweet self as reward.

Happy First Birthday to my third scrunchy-faced munchkin, and here's to many, many more. :)

Eleven Months Old

My littlest man is 11 months old today.

(And as you can see, it's hard to keep in one place--upside-down teddy, anyone?)

It's insane for me to think that in just one stinkin' month, we'll be celebrating his first birthday. That means he'll be getting one year photos, and a party (which as of press time is in decent shape), and all the good things that come with this milestone.

(...and now my uterus is screaming at me because we have no plans to do this a fourth time...)

At eleven (ELEVEN!) months, Justin:

--has GOT to be around 25 lbs. He's HUGE, at least by our standards.
--is in 18-month clothes most days, but I still manage to squeeze him into a few 12-monthers.
--eats anything put in front of him, no questions asked. We're getting into a lot more textures as opposed to purees lately; he went to town on one of my pancakes at IHOP over the weekend.

--isn't walking yet, but I'm not pushing it! He did take a few steps behind the walker (GASP), but hasn't seemed very interested in repeating that feat. All in his time.
--popped out three more teeth in the last two weeks, and so currently sits with a total of eight, but he has at least two more on the verge of emerging.
--has a favorite "word"; he continually asks "Dis?" all day long. It's pretty cute. And I'd be lying if I didn't think he'd correctly said "Daddy" a few times :)

--seems to be a bit of a climber, as I keep finding him on the fireplace hearth (SIDENOTE: I really wish this house had better sight lines from the kitchen...). That scares me for him down the road.
--is going to need to move up to Size 5 diapers soon, which is something no son of mine has ever done before.
--is just the sweetest little munchkin. He's only angry irritated when he doesn't get fed fast enough or when Nolan steps on him. We are trying our best to soak up all his baby loveliness before time runs out.

See how he compares to Aiden and Nolan at eleven months.

Ten Months Old

Double-digit months.

There are only two stickers left.

I don't even...

Justin's had a great month, just a-growin' and a changin'. Mixed with my L-O-V-E of fall, it's just been a hunky-dory mess of happiness around here lately.

At ten months, Justin:

--is by my estimate around 22 lbs (no official weight stats until is 12-month well visit). Dude hurts my back.
--is easily in 12-month clothes, and possibly ready to move up to 18-monthers. Which is cool, because we are STOCKED in that size (one reason having three boys is awesome).
--can now pick up puffs!!! It's not very pretty, but he gets the job done. So I'm a touch excited to start giving him something other than pureed foods.

--has mastered crawling, standing, and cruising. Part of me thinks I'll be documenting his first steps by his next monthly update. E-gads.
--is still rockin' just the five teeth, but more are on the way.
--thinks his brothers are about the coolest things ever. He actually tries to wrestle (wrestle!!!) with them. It's ridiculously cute until Nolan forgets he's a baby.
--has discovered a love of reading. And ripping out the pages of non-board books.

--loves to do "Soooooooo Big!" by raising his arms high above his head. We're still working on "O-H-I-O."
--has somehow managed to make his older brothers get along better with his presence. They both adore him and somehow that has increased the harmony between the two of them. Smiles all around. :)

Check out how he compares to Aiden and Nolan at ten months.

Week in Instagram

Well, haven't done one of these posts or ANY posts in awhile. But it's FALL, and apparently we tried to jam ALL THE THINGS into the first week. Good times prevailed. :)

Sunday 9/22/13: We went to the pumpkin patch on the FIRST day of Fall. We totally win at Fall.

Tuesday 9/24/13: Time for your checkup! Time for your checkup! 

Aiden did great--and we found out he's got two loose teeth already.

Thursday 9/26/13: FALL IS AWESOME (noticing a theme yet?)!!!

Friday 9/27/13: Ladies & Gents, we've got a cruiser :)

Saturday 9/28/13: Apple-picking with the family! SUCH a good time. 

Sidenote, if you need apples, we still have about 496 left.

 

Saturday 9/28/13: Classic Buckeye ice cream at the Velvet Ice Cream Old Mill.

Huge, and delicious.

Saturday 9/28/13: THIS!!! YOU NEED TO BUY THIS!!!

Sunday 9/29/13: Early morning trip to the park before the rain. 

Such a great weekend with my boys.