Teach Me How to Mommy

Note to self:   When approaching a big milestone (like sending your daughter off to kindergarten) make sure you and your husband (or partner) are on the same page. This week we took Lucy to her kindergarten orientation.  She seemed to adjust great.  She walked in with a skip, was whisked away by teachers to a classroom and came back with stories to tell. Her parents on the other hand?  A little off our game.  We got there "just" in time.  We were called last (to meet with the principal) and therefore allowed our nerves to get the best of us.  During the "interview" we struggled with how to adequately express what a doll Lucy is without looking like the parents who think their child walks on water.  In the end, I don't know if she understood that Lucy is kind, patient and hard-working (all to a fault).  Instead, I think she saw sweaty-palmed newbies who struggled with basic questions. We'll know better with the second kid, pros ...

Amy is the first person I talk to when my husband is really on my nerves.  She keeps it real (although almost always agrees with me).  I return the favor.  We are keeping each other happily married. For the record there isn't much to complain about, but I feel (or hope) that everyone needs an outside person to bitch to about their significant other.  I mean, I know Jerry doesn't want to hear all my gripes, so why not Amy? Yet, then he goes and does something like this... Lucy just turned five (cue tears), which means the world of recreational sports is at her finger tips.  In our town she can play softball.  We thought it would be fun and she was open to it, so down we went on registration day and signed our little girl up for "Softies." As is the case with most towns my husband was approached to volunteer.  His immediate reaction was yes, even though he has a stressful job and a new baby.  I was so proud. Yet, the kicker?  A wee...

Ok, well  maybe just don't... Last Thursday I woke up to a snow day (yeaaa) and the stomach bug (booo).  Jerry went off to work and even though I am NEVER like this I was resigned to have a really chill day with the kids.  I let them watch an extra show in the morning and instead of moving from one activity to the next I tried to kind of stay put in one area and have the kids play around me.  Heck I was 39 weeks pregnant, right?  You can't really go outside when the snow is coming in sideways, right?  Everyone deserves a day to just not be "super", right? Well that day was here.  I still made the kids their meals, we ended up doing a fort and we did eventually venture outside and walk to the neighbor's house, but I was working at about a 25% capability level. The only problem is, when it came to 3:30 and my regular one cup of coffee a day ritual, I couldn't stomach it.  I tried three times to sip it and it wouldn't go down.  I knew my ...

The first few days of summer are in the books.... The kids have been so happy with our summer adventures that they are currently on a 7 day no-nap streak.  So even though I've enjoyed it all along with them, there are some things I have learned by spending 7am-730pm with my beautiful, busy children: 1.  Fighting screen time is a worthwhile battle, but an uphill one. 2.  Speaking of rules, many have to be broken in the summer.  I know I'll pay later, but it feels good to just let go. 3.  Working full-time affords more breaks - I've been missing my 45 minute lunch (time to go to the bathroom, eat and chat, a luxury). 4.  Things go pretty smoothly until 4pm, at that point I better have a plan or be prepared to guard the kitchen cabinets for raiders.  It's nice to have tissues to catch the many, many fake tears that are headed my way. 5.  How can I be expected to watch  Orange is the New Black  if I can't start until 10pm?  ...

So this week my three year old turned four and my two year old got bunk beds.  No exaggeration there, it's just how my week is going.  Lucy was once three and now she's four.  Rather, she was once a baby in my arms and now she's a running, jumping, flipping, dancing, chatting four year old.  It's hard accepting the inevitable, but I think it's going to be a magical age. Right and so sometimes you mention to your father-in-law that having bunkbeds would be so fun for his grandson.  Then sometimes that same father in-law digs out his own son's bunkbeds from the early 1990s.  He then refurbishes and delivers them shiny, new and sturdy... They are awesome and we are so lucky.  I thought it would take some adjustment for John.  You know, still yearning for his crib - not yet ready for a true big boy's bed.  Yet for five nights straight he's slept cozily in his bunkbed cave.  His crib has been cast aside and serves him only as a ...

Ok, well that's an exaggeration.  No actually wait, I was pushed, just not with a lot of force. I was out getting a coffee, sans kids. It's been so long that I've been solo that I actually went inside.  What a luxury it was to look at the menu and take my time making my coffee just the way I wanted it.  Anyways, while I was waiting a little girl walked in front of me - on a wet floor - and slipped right on her behind.  She wasn't hurt, but she looked startled and literally couldn't get up.  My mom instincts kicked right in and went down asking her if she was ok.  I used my own arm to help her up.  This took maybe 20 seconds. I didn't notice her mom at first, I guess she was at my side.  In reaction to my assistance the other mother pushed my arm away and said "thank you" in a way that I understood meant "get your hands off my daughter."  It was all so quick I didn't have a reaction, but I left feeling really embarrassed.  I kno...

Had a conversation with a coworker this week that really got me.   The jist of it was how hard having a teen girl really is.  It wasn't sugar-coated.  The things he said I could relate to (you know having been one myself and having two sisters). Yet, somehow I had forgotten...wasn't I always this amiable and easy to deal with? Wasn't I born sweet and awesome, just like Lucy is? (I think my parents my have a response to that...).  Instead of dreading it I am going to enjoy my time with this dancing queen.  Spending some extra time on these snow days building her up - making sure she knows just how great she was.  What else in the world could be any more important? PS.  Take me back to days at Memere's pool.  This dress won't fit her this year (although she still won't let me donate it) and I bet Memere's shoes are already going to start looking small.

Seems like it's been a long January, no? It could be the cold (although it's hard to complain this year) or maybe it's just the political climate.  Either way getting through the winter can sometimes be a challenge.  Personally, I've had my fill and I've got my eyes on summer, but I'm also in touch with reality.  So instead of dwelling on things I cannot control, I'd rather talk about things that have made January wonderful. 1.  Strangers - It's not what it seems.  My favorite podcast, Strangers , has been killing it this month.  All the stories are true, but not all are happy.  Yet, somehow putting in my earbuds and listening to them makes grocery shopping at 9pm on Friday just that much less painful.  If you can, listen to "Wouldn't it be Nice" and "Two Men and a Baby".  They both filled me with positivity about the human race. 2. This is Us - Need I say more?  All my students know my favorite kind of movie is the kin...

Having my husband home this week has been useful and exciting in many ways.  Little nit-picky arguments aside, we managed to have a lot of wonderful family time and actually get some stuff done around the house. Rather, I should say we got a lot of different projects started and nothing actually finished.  Like, my husband gutted our upstairs bathroom (you know the only one up there) so that's a start.  Then we arranged the family room for a new couch and went shopping, but came home empty-handed.  We are making progress. More importantly my husband and I both when through our closest and dressers and purged (donated) all our old/ugly/ill-fitting/stained clothes.  We had three black industrialized bags full and it felt so good to drop them at Savers. I am not positive what I'll be wearing over the next couple months, but everything is so much cleaner and lighter.  It's worth having to go naked to the grocery store. While I was playing with the anti-na...

Christmas was magical in every way.  The cookies, late night bedtimes, parties, Santa and presents (oh my the presents).  The last four days have been a whirlwind.  We (gladly) lost any sense of schedule and we bop from one new toy to the next (and back again and then to something new and then back to the beginning - or the ever popular "let's open something new").  As soon as Jerry and I get the house "cleaned" it's back to a tornado, yet we haven't given up. We will never give up. It does get more fun every year, so (as we all know) it's worth the extra work it takes to make it right.  Yet, when I came up on this saying on my Insta, I thought yes, yes, yes.  Christmas is over so now what ?  Like, what day is it?  And how many days do I have left on this vacation? Am I supposed to be somewhere right now? A couple months ago I had planned to paint Lucy's room and the bathroom over vacation.  Seeing as though I haven't gotten th...

Cute kids- not so cute sleep avoidance I know last week was a long week for you.  It was a long week for me too.  I know this because I can't believe Thanksgiving is tomorrow and also, I didn't really have time to reflect on anything that occurred last week until now (and even this is a squeeze).  What's even more exciting and nerve-wracking is that after tomorrow the Christmas spirit will fill the air we breathe.  I can't wait for it all and I'm on pins and needles all the same.  I am wondering how I'll juggle it all -  I know I am bound to screw up somewhere along the way.  I think that's why I got to thinking about what happened to me last week... I am trying to do a special bulletin board/project in my classroom.  If I ever actually get it done I'll post it - it has potential, but right now it is just under construction (like permanently under construction).  It required a laminator which I don't have and to my knowledge my school...

My sister, Laura, has written a few times before .  She is just weeks (perhaps days) away from welcoming my second niece into this world.  I am oozing with excitement, but her recent sentiments have brought me back to the days before I welcomed John into this world.  Those days are riddled with both excitement, fear and dare I say  - doubt.  Anyone who's been through this can relate and those waiting like her well you already know.  Her raw words say it better than I can... I’m now 3 weeks away from my due date with baby number 2.  The anxiety is starting to really set in.  I’ve been really anxious about things my whole pregnancy because I’m not sure I’m really prepared to have a toddler and a newborn (but who is?!) but now that it’s really getting down to the end, my anxiety is higher.  When you are trying to prepare for baby number 2, the anxieties are different than the first time around.  I’m prepared for taking care of a n...