We Have a Walker!!!

379 Days

My Dear Liam,
I'm late writing this letter. But please know that it wasn't because I didn't want to write it or just forgot. I've been busy chasing you around the house and keeping your sister from ending your life. You'll thank me when you're older.

A couple weeks ago you turned one. I really dont know where the year has gone - can it really have been that long? We celebrated by taking you out for a picnic in the park, giving you a gift from Nana and Papa (thanks for the bath toys!) and swinging you on the swings. You loved it.


The next day we rolled out and took you camping with Grandma and Grandpa. This was your second camping trip. I'd say you loved, it, but I know that you were thoroughly annoyed at the fact that you couldnt get down and crawl around like you usually do at home. You DID seem to love getting someone up at 6am and enticing them to walk you around the campground so everyone else could sleep. Stinker!

I'm envisioning you enjoying camp trips much more next year and even the next although I'm sure we'll be uttering things like "Where's Liam?" and "Liam don't touch that!" and "Liam take that poisonous spider out of your sister's hair!".


The awesome pool at Jellystone Campground in PA.
We celebrated your birthday at the campground and had mini chocolate cupcakes with vanilla frosting and sprinkles. You made short work of that cupcake and had no question what to do with it. I think you've got your Mama's sweet tooth!

You also appear to be our picky eater. We still haven't been able to get you to eat eggs and you're not too keen on whole veggies so we've had to stick to baby food veggies. I believe you could practically survive on fresh fruit though. You follow in the family tradition of getting very excited about food in general. Its a very primordial sort of response. There's usually shrieking involved (well, THAT happens all the time). This sort of excitement is really a good thing, because, around here, we love to eat! I'm just wondering what you'll be saying when you start to talk!



It's really hard for me to imagine you as a walking, talking little guy. I'm interested to see how your personality manifests itself. Especially in relation to your sister. I'm sorry for all of the hard times you've had to endure at her hand. Just the other day she was delighted to be the one to greet you after your nap so I agreed to let her climb into your crib with you and play for a few minutes while I finished a few things in the next room. I'm sorry she decided to put you in a choke hold with her thighs and your face had the misfortune of being wedged in her crotch. It didn't look pleasant and I imagined the future-you dying of embarrassement that such an event ever took place.

I also have to apologize for the general shoving, pushing and holding down that she puts you through on a daily basis. You really are a good-natured kid and I notice that you try not to out her too readily (although she thoroughly deserves it). You seem all to happy that she would play with you, even if you are on the receiving end of her evil schemes. Oh what a good playmate you'll be! I must confess, though, that I'm looking forward to when you can defend yourself a little bit more (for your sake, that is).

Buddy, you are such a smiley kid. I hope this always is the case. This world has lots of things that can bring you down, cause you heartache and generally steal your joy. I pray that this never happens to you and your infectious smile continues with you throughout your entire life. Besides, that, it has the effect of melting my heart.


Ms Jody giving Liam his birthday present

Bubbies, I can't imagine my life without you. And I'm so entirely grateful for the opportunity to be your Mama. Please promise me now that you won't grow up to be a thrill-seeker/dare devil/stunt rider or any such thing? Okay, well I'm also hoping not to raise a 30 year old mama's boy either (although, you will need to call me at least once a week). Somewhere in the middle would do. Perhaps an accountant or maybe an IT guy? (because all know how normal THEY are!) =)

No, really, I'm excited to see the man God wants you to be. Let's just hope that just doesn't happen too fast.

Love,
Mama

Grilled Chicken and Artichoke Braid with Homemade Pesto

Hmmm... what to do with a bunch o' chicken breast I'd thawed out for dinner tonight? No time to marinate and not interested in just grilling and eating with vegetables.

This recipe really came together out of a need to use a bunch of ingredients I had on hand. Fun that it came together even in the midst of kids crying, etc. Ahh... dinner time is always such a LOVELY time at our household. *rolling my eyes*

I used this recipe as inspiration.

And then made my own pesto using this recipe. It seemed to need a lot more olive oil though. Maybe I used too much basil? I DID follow the recipe. Who knows?

I roasted artichokes (from the can) while I cooked the chicken (coated in Penzey's Pizza Seasoning) on the grill.

I built my braid first with the chopped up chicken, roasted artichokes, then dollops of pizza sauce, dollops of pesto, mozzerella and feta cheese, slivered red onion, and topped it with sliced roma tomatoes (from Kevin's garden) before folding it all up.

It probably could be a prettier braid, but, hey, I've never made one before, so it just had to do.

Brush with egg wash and throw it in the oven at 375 for about 25 minutes.

Kevin groaned the whole meal. (The good kind of groaning when one eats food!)

Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Downyoceanhon!

You have to read the title of this post all together and hold your nose while saying it. Then you'll be on your way to a true Bawlmer (Baltimore) accent.

A couple weeks ago we went to the ocean (Ocean City, MD to be exact). We always have a good time, but we've decided that going with little ones is more of a "trip" rather than a vacation. A vacation has to involve me taking a nap on the beach or by a pool without kids to watch. Will it ever happen again?!?!!

Liam decided that 530am was the appropriate time to rise in the morning whilst at the beach. I disagreed but didn't have much say in the matter since all four of us were sharing a tiny bedroom. Needless to say we got a lot of naps!



We shared a condo with Kevin's parents that literally was 25 feet from the beach. For all of the hassle it is to get two little ones out TO the beach, I'm so thankful that it wasn't that far to go. Kevin's brother's family was in the condo right next to us so it made it nice that the cousins could all play together. It helped our sanity many a time as Natalie rarely got bored.



We had crabs, went to the boardwalk one evening, biked the boardwalk one morning, toured the bay on a pontoon boat, hung out at the beach and did putt putt. Such a fun week!

Grandma reading to Natalie. Natalie put up such a fit everytime Grandma put on her reading glasses (wanting her to TAKE THEM OFF) that Grandma bought Natalie a pair just for her when they read together. That fixed that and the result is too cute.

We went out to eat a couple times and lemons kept Liam from screaming (happily) through the entire event. He LOVES lemons, but you'd never be able to tell from the faces he makes!
To top it all off we had several friends who were staying downyoceanhon the same week we were so we got a chance to meet up with them twice to hang out and go swimming in their pool.

Oh My Word...

I started out with SUCH a good attitude today. And perhaps that should have been my first clue. Like maybe that's akin to asking God... "Hey, give me a little lesson in patience today. I'm READY!"

So we get up at 730 and are on a mission to get ready and get out the door by 930. Hey, those of you WITHOUT kids may think, "TWO HOURS?!". But when you have yourself, a 1 year old and an almost 3 yr old to get dressed, feed and get out the door (while trying to clean up after yourself and pack for the days necessities) then, yes, it really does take that long.

Here's a run-down of what happened after that...
1. Within the first hour of being up I had to tell Natalie to stop pulling or pushing Liam three times. By the third or fourth time I'd had it and I punished her for pulling him down the hallway by one arm. Seriously!

2. I put Liam in his carseat only to realize that the bananas he'd had for breakfast were stuck to his pants and low and behold they were now completely smashed into the side of MY shirt as well. Roll the car windows down, run in the house, throw on a new shirt, run out the door.

3. At our first stop, Target, I ALMOST locked the keys in the car. Thank the Lord I did not. I did spend 5 minutes in the parking lot digging in the depths of my purse for them though. Sweating commenced.

4. In Target the items on my list were not advertised on sale (as the circular had mentioned). Spent 5 minutes in the diaper aisle looking for coupons and calculating price per diaper on my cell phone calculator. Liam screams (not upset but just being REALLY REALLY vocal). Because that's just what he does.

5. Realized, after 5 minutes, that the diapers weren't THAT good of a deal. Decided not to get them. Shoved coupons back in purse while trying to get out of the way of other customers.

6. Realize I've lost my list. Spent 10 minutes looking for list. So far there's NOTHING in my cart and I've already been there for 15 minutes. Grrrr.

7. After praying FOUND my list (thank you, Lord).

8. Broke up fights between my kids for taking things from one another and "He's touching this", etc. Quarantined Natalie to the back of the cart.

9. Hightailed it to the checkout to find that one item I'd bought was the wrong one. Left my groceries with the cashier and ran to the socks (of all things) to get different ones and then back. After all that decided I didn't like the socks on sale. /sigh

10. Raced to the library, 15 minutes late, for a playdate with a friend who's got a son Liam's age. Realized she was late too. /Sigh of relief

11. Chased Liam all over children's area of library while trying to look for books for Natalie and keep an eye on her too.

12. Apologized to the ladies checking us out at the counter because Liam was screaming so shrilly (it literally hurts your ears so much that one of them was plugging her ears).

13. Left the library and went to Chick fil A.

14. Had Natalie use the car potty first in a VERY crowded parking lot (I wonder what people think when they see my preschooler peeing in the back of our SUV?)

15. Fielded two kids eating lunch while grabbing things away from Liam within his reach that he couldn't have. Cut up food for both kids, blow on it to cool it off, throw food in my mouth, hold cup for Liam, shove more food in my my mouth, try to hold a conversation with my friend, stop Natalie from tipping up her cup to drink it (it had a straw in it). I swear its an Olympic event feeding both kids, cutting up food, throwing food in my mouth, making sure Liam doesnt throw everything on the floor, etc, etc.

16. I miss Natalie tipping her cup up again and she gets a deluge of milk in her lap. My cup leaks tea all over my lap. I go get a refill and Liam grabs my straw shooting tea all down my shirt and inside my bra. We could all officially use a bath.

17. We play at the Chick-Fil-A playground and then head off to the car for another round of potty in the car and de-germing from all of the crawling around on the playplace floor. And then it's homeward bound.

It's only 1:30 and I already feel like I've run a marathon!!! Looking forward to a little downtime this afternoon before craziness commences again!

Summer Bounty

Kevin's the gardener in the family. I wont even pretend that I've got a green bone in my body. I have trouble keeping any plant alive. Although I have been known to grow a mean weed (that's the "pest" kind... not the DEA-knock-down-your-door kind, mind you).

Anyway, last year was our first year at the garden and while I helped out more then, I was really just the cheerleader. I mean... how much help can a fully pregnant woman really be in the whole gardening arena? I can imagine if we lived in the plains in the old days being pregnant wouldn't have gotten me out of much. Oh well... thank the LORD for modernization (and air conditioning)!

We made some mistakes last year (i.e. planting too early and getting hit by a couple frosts) and suffered garden envy as our neighbor across the street would constantly yield exponentially more tomatoes and cucumbers than we ever did. Yet we decided to try again.

Well, to be exact I decided to WATCH THE KIDS while Kevin did the gardening, but that's beside the point. Come on, you can't really have a 1 year old crawling around in the dirt with the bugs and pesticides now can you? What did those frontier women do in the good ole' days? Strap the kid to their back? With no sunscreen? And bugs? And that whole natural childbirth thing? With the doctor in the next town and maternal death rates what they were? Let's just say God knew what He was doing when he chose for me to be born with all of the comforts of microwave ovens, the internet, a grocery store 5 minutes down the road and Kotex.

Because you dont even want to THINK about THAT aspect of life as a woman on the frontier. YUCK!

Anyway, I digress. We got back from the beach on Sunday and Kevin's vegetable garden was busting with growth. We had gotten so much rain while we were gone (a blessing as everything was pretty brown) that the zucchini and the melons literally took off!

Natalie had a good time helping pick all of the ripe produce and did a better job than last year at refraining from plucking the green tomatoes from their place on the vine. (Last year you might have thought she was color blind!)

We were hoping that by picking things like eggplant and zucchini and fresh green beans she'd be more likely to eat them. Alas, that has not yet proved to be true, but we'll keep trying.

The broccoli was a hit though. It was more on par with broccolini (if you've ever seen that). A bit smaller than regular broccoli and every bit as tasty (especially smothered in cheese). Okay, you could probably smother an old tire in cheese and it would taste good, but that's not the point.


This is the picture of the harvest we brought in. It's exciting as it's the first major harvest this year. Our tomatoes are still pretty green as we planted kinda late this year (perhaps we were gun shy after last year). But if you look at the garden now, you can tell that there's going to be lots to come. Hooray!

Of course the neighbor across the street STILL has better looking plants and we're envisioning some sort of National Lampoon style sabotage going on. If you come over to our house and notice the motion detecting camera set up on the garden, you'll know what's up!

Playing Catch Up

I know, I've fallen off the face of the planet. Bear with me. It's been more than a little crazy and I've got lots of pictures I need to go through to post.

We've been enjoying the summer as it's now in full swing. For the 4th, we celebrated with some friends (Dave and Jill) that live close to us (on Rumsey Island) with a cookout and fireworks over their cove (their townhome backs to water).




Jill and Sequoia


Stud Muffin Deluxe

We had a blast that night except for all of the bug bites Natalie sustained from rolling around in the grass. That part was NOT so fun to deal with the week following and we went through a LOT of cortizone cream. =)

The pool is now open for business and quite the backyard hotspot. The plastic slide support broke at the end of last season so Kevin rigged up a log and a couple paving stones to support the slide in it's stead. It's right next to the extra commode and broken washing machine we have in our backyard (just kidding!). Feel free to stop by if you need to take a dip though. It will really cool down your ankle!




Well it's late and I'm signing off. I'm planning more posts tomorrow... I promise!

Kevin Doesn't Like It

because he thinks that it's a 17 year-old's haircut.

But I dig it!

There's No Place Like Home!

Well a couple weeks ago I mentioned the kids and I were flying to Kansas City to visit my parents. The thought of the flight with a fairly mobile 10 mos old and a 2.5 year old who is working her way through potty training was frankly pretty worrisome, but I'm proud to say we made it. The trip TO Kansas City was a little dicey. I borrowed a portable DVD player from a friend and went to start "promised movie" for Natalie on the flight and realized I had A)not charged the dvd player and B)not brought the power cord with me.

?!@!?@!@?

After some quick back-pedaling, we had a very interesting flight in which I had to be rather creative to entertain both kids. Natalie played with ice cubes, we had a jar of play-doh and we stuck stickers to our bodies. Fun times.

But we made it. And fortunately Radio Shack had a car charger adapter that I could purchase for $11. I think my sigh of relief could be heard all the way back to Baltimore.

To say we had fun in Kansas City is an understatement. I went shopping, I went to Schitterbahn, we went to the pool, I got to spend time with my sister and see her new place, my dad and I went on a 25 mile bike ride on his tandem bicycle, we went to see my grandparents and someone watched my kids practically the WHOLE time we were there. /sigh It was so relaxing. (Okay, the 25 mile bike ride wasn't exactly relaxing, but it was some GREAT bonding time with my dad!)

I took lots of pictures so you could see some of the highlights...

Liam chillin-like-a-villian with Poppo

Natalie LOVED Mommo's dollhouse

I love the A&W in Boonville, MO. It has so many good memories for me. Especially the icy cold glass mugs that they serve the rootbeer in. There's just something special about rootbeer in an icy cold mug.

Rootbeer Buddies

Me, Liam and Poppo

Papa (my dad) and Liam

Nana and Natalie

I was trying to figure out a way to fit them (my parents) in my luggage so I could bring them back home with me.

I used to ride a tandem with my dad when I was in high school. This brought back the memories!

Spandex is so flattering... =P

Natalie went to the pool a lot in KS

My sister, Elizabeth, showed me her new place. It's SO neat inside and so close to the Plaza and all sorts of restaurants.

My sister made this awesome scallop and orzo dish with a red pepper cream sauce and my dad grilled super thick steaks to go with it. I've been eating ready-made heat and eat stuff for the past 10 months. I was in heaven!!!

Memorial Day... A Little Late

The past couple years we've had a carnival come to town on Memorial Day weekend. Last year was Natalie's first year at the carnival and while she had a good time, she also was a little young. In fact, one of my favorite pictures of her last year was in the moon bounce (for the first time ever).

I know it seems strange to love a picture of your kid where they are crying, but it was a funny situation and she was not hurt but was a little freaked out by the whole thing. Okay... you can think I'm a sadist and a bad mom. But you had to be there. You'd be laughing too.

Anyway, this year was a compeltely different story. She had a BLAST. And I was kicking myself for not getting discount tickets to Dutch Wonderland for this summer as I hadn't realized she'd be so gung-ho about the whole ride situation.

Oh well.

So she rode ALL the rides she could feasibly ride this year, being only 36" and not 42. Fortunately for her, tall is in her genes so she should be able to ride the "big rides" next year. We went this year with our friends Dave and Jill and their daughter, Sequoia. Natalie and "Squeeze" are only 7 mos apart so they really enjoy each others company. I have to constantly remind Natalie that Sequoia doesn't want to be pulled on, pushed on or constantly hugged, but otherwise, the friendship is shaping up nicely. I haven't figured out if touch is Natalie's love language or if it's just the age. If she's still like this when boys start to be of interest we may have to move to the middle-of-nowhere Wyoming.

Liam thought it was a riot. So much so that he passed out in the backpack carrier. I'm imagining it will be a different story next year!



The rest of the weekend was stellar. Super weather, lots of good cookouts - just the way Memorial Day SHOULD be every year. I made ribs for the first time with this recipe. They turned out amazing and really didn't require much effort on my part. I was pretty impressed with the recipe and will definitely be making again. All-in-all a super fun weekend and a GREAT start to the summer.

Top Left: Natalie's favorite church dress!
Top Right: My in-laws and Kevin at our rib/chicken feast on the patio.
Bottom Left: Liam chillin in the walker... no steps without holding on to anything yet!
Bottom Right: Natalie trying out the pool for the first time this year.
I LOVE summer time!!

Girls Night Out

Once a quarter I venture out of the house sans kids for a night on the town with two girlfriends I've had ever since I moved to Baltimore nearly 9 years ago, Kera and Melissa. They are the wives of two of my husband's best friends from middle and high school and we've been blessed to hit it off as well. The six of us have been through some pretty crazy times together and definitely have some stories to tell (although perhaps not all to the kids)!

Kera, Me, Melissa
So we girls have made it a priority to get out on our own and try to find some sort of respite from the chaos we have waiting for us at home. We always take care to make sure that we pick a place that has a fun and interesting menu, an exciting wine list and is free from little ones throwing grilled cheese sandwiches on the floor.

This past quarter, we went to Pazo, a somewhat over-priced, but fun, tapas restaurant in Fells Point (a historic, waterfront and culinary-rich neighborhood in downtown Baltimore). The ambiance there makes you feel like you've stepped out of the everyday and the food makes you feel more sophisticated just by eating it. Granted, the whole tapas thing is really misleading as a $7 "small plate" may only consist of 3 bites. The whole affair, as you can imagine, can add up quickly. But, regardless, we had a good time. We dined on homemade empanadas, lobster pintxo (on a stick), duck with papas frites (french fries), bread with warm cheese fonduta and more.

After enjoying a terrific meal we met up with the guys at DuClaw to cap off the evening and compare dinner stories. Duclaw is one of our favorite after-dinner spots to kick it until it comes time to go relieve the babysitter. It's nights like these that allow me to regain SOME of my sanity I've lost from wading through the "valley of the diapers".

Slog, slog, slog...

It's also great to have the time to connect with good friends and share this time of life together.

Guys-only camping!

Kevin here - with Lauren and the kids out to visit Nana and Papa, there was a definitely opportunity for some male bonding time in the woods. My friend Devon and I ran off to Harpers Ferry, WV to a new campground that is all waterfront, right on the potomac river! Took the new camper for its second trip now, and it was a blast! The campsite was on the only deep water section of the potomac, and about 100yds downstream starts more rapids. We hooked up with River Riders on Saturday and went white-water tubing for a few hours. That was awesome. The water was 70 deg and swimming was great.



At one point we had two fires going (just because we could) because there was so much firewood laying around. Good times.

Ready or Not... Here We Come!

It starts out as a wonderful idea (taking a trip to visit Nana and Papa). But as the actual day arrives and the reality of the impending mayhem hits me I rethink my decision. Who thought that flying halfway across the country with two kids under 3 by oneself was a good idea? What if I'm THAT person on the plane (the one with the screaming children). What if Natalie has to get up and go to the bathroom 10 bazillion times? What if I have to breastfeed in public? What if I have to change Liam in the teeny tiny plane bathroom? What if?

*BREATHE*

I've thought through all the scenarios. It's a crap shoot every time. Usually they're good, but there have been moments and even a full plane ride of anguish. Let's hope that's not the story today.

Southwest sent me some free drink coupons. I'm guessing it's not socially acceptable to partake myself in the company of my kids so I've considered offering them to people sitting around me as a peace offering should things get ugly.

Hopefully I have enough.

If I can just make it through the next 5 hours unscathed, I should be set. Good things await me in Kansas City. Lots of doting on the kids (and subsequent relaxation for me), a waterpark (YEAH, Schlitterbahn!) and, of course, some good quality time with my parents, sister and grandparents. Stay tuned next week for pictures from our misadventure. Let's just pray that the plane doesn't decide to kick us off in Tennessee. I don't know anyone there.

10 Months Old

Well we've all been sick this weekend. Not much fun. But in the chaos, we did manage to find a little bit of time for fun. Kodakgallery.com has a cute baby photo contest and I found myself trying to take some pictures my little guy. I just can't believe he's going to be 10 months old this week. He's pulling up, saying "Mama" and starting to cruise the furniture. I also recently discovered that I can take his 9 mos old jeans (that don't fit him anymore) and roll up the cuffs to make shorts for Natalie. I am not even joking.

Next week, the kids and I are off to Kansas City to visit my family. I'm SO excited, but incredibly nervous, about the plane ride with both of them by myself. Natalie's out of diapers now and Liam is crawling. Should make for an interesting trip and blog post....stay tuned!

We Made It

Well, we made it! I would have posted pictures earlier, but I was too busy with a 24 hour stomach bug and then taking care of 2 kids with upper respiratory infections + fevers. Fortunately we didn't start feeling poorly until AFTER we got back from camping. THANKFULLY.

Bouncing

Hayride around the campground

This is actually TWO sites right next to each other. We had about 15ft between us and the next camper. Ridiculously small!

I'll have to say it was more fun than I anticipated. The KOA we stayed at in Harpers Ferry, WV has A LOT of amenities: heated pool, big bouncy blob-style thing for kids and adults alike to bounce on, tons of coordinated activities on the weekends, movies, a museum, etc, etc. We were a little concerned when we arrived because the sites were so super small. That was the only drawback, though, and fortunately we had nice neighbors.


Our camper... I think she needs a name!
Camping with a camper is a completely new experience and I have to admit - it doesn't feel much like the old way of camping at all. However, its SUPER comfy for sleeping and housing a couple little ones. The first night we slept with the A/C on and then the next night we used the heat. You don't even have to trudge to the bath house in the middle of the night for a midnight pee! How exciting is that?!?!

We went on the trip with two other couples (Mario/Simone and Dave/Jill) with five kids between us and a dog. We definitely stayed busy corralling all of the kids and enjoying all of the activities. Both Liam (9.5 mos) and Cheyenne (10.5 mos) aren't walking yet and were fairly content to stay in their screened in playroom (except for the occasional breakout for a snack of small rocks and dirt). However, I'm envisioning camping with them in the fall is going to bring a whole new level of baby-proofing. I'm imagining a giant gate around the fire.



We ate GREAT on the trip (no hot dogs and beans here!) and took turns preparing the meals. I think our only regret was not being able to stay longer. It's really a bit comical to think that we prepared ALL week for a trip that was really only one full day and two half days.

Nice.