Sold!!

I can't believe that it is actually true, but we sold our house. 2 weeks. 2 weeks?? Yes, that is correct, 2 WEEKS AND IT SOLD!! Z and I could not be more ecstatic. We were ready for a long and miserable summer of showing the house and than not selling it and then taking it off the market and then moving back in and whining. Pessimistic much? Yes, thank you. After a really super short 2 weeks we got an "okay" offer on it. We countered back with more than the asking price and they accepted!! We could not be happier. We decided that we could actually have some fun and look for houses now! Well, that didn't last long because we fell in love with the third house we saw. It is amazing. 4 bedrooms, 3 WHOLE baths...none of that 2.5 crap. It's got 2464 sq ft. The utility room actually has counter space!! It's funny the stuff we get excited about in our old age. I am secretly excited that we have a formal dining with carpet because I shall put our children's toys in there so I can watch them while I am cooking or watching tv. Muahahahaha. Z seems to think we are going to put a dining room table in there. We'll see how it goes. If all goes well we should be closing on both properties no later than July 31. We are sooooo excited!!

We celebrated Father's Day last week. This is Z's 2nd official Father's Day and he is now the father of 2. It makes me worry about next Father's Day. He had to work on the 'actual' holiday, so I told him we could do something fun for him on Saturday. What does he choose? To go to the movie and see Star Trek, sans children. haha. I guess all father needed was to regain sanity by distancing himself from the kiddos. I can't blame him, sometimes you just need a break. I must admit, it was not the most heinous movie I have ever seen. Suprisingly, I enjoyed it. Captain Kirk was pretty hot and it was quite funny. We went to the station on Sunday to visit. G was being his usual land rocket self and running around picking everything up and throwing it in the trash. He's so cute. Now if only he would learn how to pick up after his Dad and fold his laundry. I'll have to work on that one.


L is really starting to develop a personality. I have to say that she is quite charming. She literally can melt me with that cheesy grin of hers. I have never met a baby who was so into eye contact. G is all over the place and has never cared about it at all. But L will fuss, and if I am across the room and turn and look her in the eye she stops. She will stop fussing and laugh. She is always looking at my eyes waiting for me to make eye contact. It is really impressive. I know I haven't been around a lot of babies, but this just seems so unusual to me. I love it. I know that when she is looking at me, she is actually 'looking' at me. Weird. She is still rolling, but not quite as much as before. Apparently she thinks she has conquered that skill. She is getting really really good at reaching out and grabbing what she wants. She can easily grab the toy on her carseat. She will just stare at it and concentrate. She slowly extends her little hand and SHE'S GOT IT! She's always been pretty good at removing her binky from her mouth, but just in the last couple of weeks has she been able to get it back in her mouth. She will take it out and start fussing. She will eventually get it back in and then do the 'sleepy, roll eyes in back of head' grin. I love that. We just recently started a new thing. When I get up to nurse her in the morning, I nurse her lying down. She is doing a great job with that and it is starting to be much easier than wrestling her into position with the boppy. My favorite part about the new arrangement is that when she is done we cuddle up and snooze for a bit longer. Ahhhhh, she'll only be little for so much longer.


Nana took us shopping this weekend. And by us, I mean she took me shopping to get some stuff for the kids. Why did she do this you ask? Probably because she wanted to get L some jammies because she is sick of seeing my babies sleep in t-shirts. I tell her there is no problem with it, but apparently she thinks that babies need cute jammies, and if she's footing the bill, how can I argue? L got lots of cute jammies and outfits. G got some new t-shirts (Wolverine and Batman to be exact), 2 pairs of flip flops and a pair of tennis shoes. His flip flops are probably the cutest things I've ever seen...aside from my children of course.

G is completely obsessed with his new flops. When we got home he made me take them off and put them back on about 1 million times. I think I'm developing carpel tunnel. He finally got tired of that game and moved on to the one where he puts his flip flops around his wrists and runs around in his diaper with one flop on his foot. That was a fun game. I think my favorite part about his flops is that the ones with the little crabs on them have eyeballs that shake when he walks. so cute. G has the craziest hair ever. It is starting to resemble Bea Arthur's hair. When your 20 month old son starts to resemble a Golden Girl, you know it's time to chop those locks. I'll have to get on that, but I lack motivation. I like how it blows in the wind. I like sudsing it up in the tub. You can really get a good lather with lots of hair. What is the deal with kids when they get out of the tub? G never ever voluntarily gives me a hug. So why is it that when I get him out of the tub he jumps in my lap and gives me the biggest bear hug EVER? He is never that snuggly, but he seriously hugs me for at least a full minute. Even though I end up soaking wet, I still can't pull myself away and secretly like it. I won't be able to enjoy hugs like that forever. So I shall enjoy now! We topped the night off with some bedtime cuddles and him falling asleep in the half nelson hold. Yes, that's right. I have to wrestle my son to sleep sometimes. *sigh* Love it.


This evening we are leaving for the in-laws house. We are super excited to go and cannot wait to hang out on the beach...lake beach that is. At least we don't have to worry about sharks!

This has been a different kind of week for us. We are living with Nana and Grandad. It's not a bad thing, it's just a different thing. We are still working on getting a routine going and making everything flow easily. As smoothly as it is going, we still want to sell our house STAT. We have had several showings, but apparently nobody is *that* interested. They are obviously missing out on the total coolness of our pad. I mean, come on. It's complete with baby toys and a pink nursery. Geez, it doesn't get any cooler than that!

One of the big issues in Nana and Grandad's house is the stairs. It is impossible to remember to bring everything up the stairs when you need it or down the stairs. I am constantly running up and down those stairs looking for the boppy, spitty, binky, a shoe, a sock, and an occasional Wonder Pet. It never ends. And just as I get up the stairs L will start to cry from downstairs. So I have to run downstairs. And then, of course, G is interested in the stairs. So then I have to comfort her and rescue G from a terrifying plummet down the stairs. He is obviously not too frightened by them. When I was at work the other day apparently G decided to stair surf. And by stair surf, I mean that he pushed to hard on the baby gate at the top and surfed down the stairs on it. I'm thinking he liked it too much because he DOES NOT shy away from them. Now he just tries to relive that experience. Toddlers. Yikes.

G has really had a rough couple of nights sleeping. He usually goes to bed without a single problem and doesn't wake up until 8am. He is literally the best sleeper ever. The last three nights he has thrown a fit when we lay him down. Horrible screaming fits until we go in there. I have to pick him up and lay on the day bed with him for about 5 minutes and then I tell him "night night". Last night he just looked at me and smiled. Cue heart melting into a pile of liquid on the floor. So I picked him up and snuggled with him for a minute. I laid him in his pack-n-play and snuggled him up with his favorite blankies, a.k.a. night nights. I walked out and he didn't make another peep. I'm thinking that he is probably over stimulated at Nana and Grandad's house. Too many people to play with. Too many fun things he must be missing out on by sleeping.



L hit a big milestone this week. She rolled over. I thought it must have been a freak accident, but nope. I'm not so lucky. She is definitely rolling over. This frightens me because G didn't roll over until he was 6 months old. Shoot, he didn't even show signs that he could move until 5 months! I think I knew that L was going to be getting around a bit sooner than G, but 3 months?? My baby girl is growing up so fast. Oh my gosh, toddler, rolling baby and stairs. My worst nightmare! Yeah, she looks pretty nightmarish....or no.



Last Friday Z had to work, so Nana decided she was going to bathe the kids. She wanted to do it all by herself. I will certainly not argue with that. She bathed G, put lotion on him, brushed his hair and got him dressed in his jammies. Then she did the same for L. When she was getting L dressed I heard a loud crash coming from the bathroom. I ran in there and apparently Nana had not let out the bathwater. Because there was G chilling in the tub in his Batman jammies. He had the funniest look on his face. It was a mix of "this is awesome" and "I think I'm in trouble". Too cute. I'm just glad I was paying attention and heard him jump back in. Daredevil I tell ya.

I would say that this last week has been quite eventful. Not eventful as in we went to Disney World, the Poconos and Wisconsin, but busy as in my kids are crazy busy all the time. They are keeping me on my toes, but are just awesome to watch!

As I think I mentioned earlier, L and I are having some nursing issues. She wants too, she doesn't want too, she wants too, she doesn't want too. *sigh* I discovered a good soothing technique to use when I nurse her. I just sing her a little Weezer and she focuses in and "gets the job done". haha. Her personal favorite is "My Name is Jonas". I have to say, it's one of my faves too.

G has been a little busy body. He is constantly discovering new things and exploring EVERYTHING! For instance, he has discovered the kitchen sink. What he has discovered is that he can knock everything on the counter into the sink. And that he can also go get all of his toys and put those in the sink as well. It was a quick reminder for me to make sure that I drained the sinks. Although turtle Tuck enjoyed his swim. haha.

I spent a good portion of the week getting swashbuckled by G. His Nana bought him a swashbuckler (sword), made out of foam of course. However, when you continuously whack somebody with it, it does start to hurt. He loves to chase us and the kitty around the house with the swashbuckler. It's 30 minutes of entertainment for him...which is long in toddler time. And any "babysitter" I can find is helpful. His other favorite activity this week was unpacking what I packed. We are living with Nana and Grandad while our house is on the market, as to avoid cleaning it every 5 seconds. So we were packing everything up and G had sooooo much fun unpacking everything. After he would unpack our stuff he would then happily place his favorite toys in there. It was a little frustrating, but hilarious to watch. I think I resorted to tying him up in the corner while I packed. Just kidding. I did consider it, though.

The other night we were eating dinner and Nana and Auntie KK got into an argument. We all started arguing and KK started laughing and pointing at G. I turned around and he had his fingers in his ears!!! It was hilarious!!!!! We all got a good laugh at that...and soon forgot what we were arguing about. I have no idea where he learned that from. He is learning all sorts of new things these days. We have been teaching him to sign for more. I think we started teaching this to him at 6 months old. We weren't having any luck, but we kept signing regardless. So we were sitting on the bed the other morning and he was drinking his milk. He laid the cup down and lifted his hands above his head to signal "all gone". I was shocked at this because he had never shown that he 'got' the correlation. And than, as if I wasn't shocked enough already...he signed "more". I thought that surely he was just being silly. So I picked up the sippy and I couldn't believe it!! It was empty!! It really was all gone and he needed more!! My child is a prodigy!! Well, maybe not, but I think he's pretty smart.

Things are going smoothly at Nana and Grandad's house so far. We look forward to selling our house so that we can start seriously looking. Come on full price offer!!!

Dog Food, Shoes and Cap'n Crunch

It's been a pretty uneventful week so far. Z has had to work 3 out of the 5 days this week. So those are always harder. The kids and I have had a good time, though. G is seriously into eating dog food. I just don't get it. He won't eat most fruits...but he eats dog food? Gew. He likes to use the dog food scoop to carry the dog food around. That is fine. It is only problematic when he decides to pour it out in, say, a laundry basket. Or...on his sister's head. Sweet boy. Couldn't love him anymore.


He is finally starting to learn how to hug. I tell him I want a hug and he will actually put his arms around my neck now. I say "squeeeeeeeeeeeeeze" and he giggles and squeezes me. Ahhhh, sweet baby. Speaking of sweet, he shoved some Captain Crunch in L's mouth the other day. I bet that was sweet. She didn't seem to mind, but I'm not quite sure she's ready for heavy starchy cereal. I think we'll stick with breastmilk for a while. G also likes to steal L's binky, run around the house until she cries, and then he shoves it back in her mouth. I'm not going to lie, sometimes he pokes her in the eye with it. Thank God she's such a trooper. I have a feeling G has a lot of payback coming his way someday.


G has a new obsession...and no, it's not dog food. This goes far beyond any dog food craving he might have. He loves shoes. Not his shoes, but my shoes. Yes, my son loves women's shoes. I think he prefers them over Z's because there is more of a variety of color. Anyways, he will walk to our closet and knock on the door. That's what he does when he wants to go inside. He will go in there and rummage through all of my shoes. He searches until he finds the perfect unmatching pair for him. He will shimmy around the house with them on, and then when I sit down he will shimmy over to me and yank on my foot. When I lift my foot he slides the shoe on. Given, it is usually upside down, on the wrong foot or bottom up. Sometimes I will let him tug on my foot for a bit before I lift it just so I can hear him say "naaaaaah. naaaaaah" I have no idea what that means, but he purses his lips up and opens his eyes as wide as they will go. Cracks me up. I hope that's not considered torture.


L is just as precious as ever. We are having some difficulties breastfeeding...as in, she prefers the bottle because it flows faster. Grrrr. Darn bottles. Too bad I can't just bring her to work. Now that would be fun! I could have the pack and play in the corner for naps and the boppy under my desk for feedings. I'm sure the clients would really appreciate it. Ha!


New house drama is still continuing. I find that Z and I get way too ahead of ourselves. We have started looking for a new house and we haven't even gotten ours on the market yet. Buying is always more fun! Z has the crazy idea that we should build. I don't think I'm quite ready for that just yet. I guess only time will tell. Having 2 kids has shot my patience to hell. And I'm pretty sure you need patience to build a house.

Z is loving life as a paramedic. After more than 2 long and trying years he is finally done! We couldn't be more proud of him. When I say we, I mean me, because I'm not sure the kids have any idea whats going on. G can't even say banana yet, so I doubt he understands daddy's job. I love that fireman!

As far as I go, not a whole lot is new with me. It is a struggle just to keep on task everyday. Working full time and having 2 kids and a husband that works 24 hour shifts can be a bit difficult at times. I honestly wouldn't have it any other way, except maybe the no working part. I always have so much to do at home and that is not always the case at work. But I do know that in times like these, I am thankful to have a job, and a great one at that.

I'm really itching to get some more pictures taken by our most favorite photographer. It's a little pricey, so Z is making me wait. We do agree that she is worth every penny. I can't wait to get our next family portrait done with our new addition! She is so smiley now, all we need to work on is getting her to smile on que. Come to think of it, her brother doesn't do that...and neither does Z. Hmmm. Interesting.

The Weekend!!

Finally, the weekend!!!

It all started out great. Every Saturday morning that Z has off from work, we have a cinnamon roll picnic on our bed. L woke up around 7 and I fed her. I didn't feel like taking her back to her crib, so we cuddled for a good hour in Z and I's bed. I don't let her lay next to Z because he gets a little crazy in his sleep. And by crazy I mean that he tosses and turns violently and has smacked me in the face on numerous occasions. It's funny in hindsight....

G woke up at 8. I greeted him with his usual sippy cup with milk and a little bit of Karo syrup to, um, keep him regular if you know what I mean. haha. We all sat on the bed eating our cinnamon rolls and watching our favorite Saturday morning show, Property Ladder. I don't know what it is about this show, but it's just like a trainwreck that I cannot help but watch. What on earth gives people the idea that they can flip a house with $10k, not know what they are doing, and make a huge profit?? Something AAAALLLLWWWAAAYYYSS goes wrong, and we love it! We always end up shouting at the t.v. and reassuring each other that we would do sooo much better than that. haha!

Aunt B showed up around 9ish to help out with the kids while Z and I prepared to paint the house. Yes, we are undertaking quite the project. It flows into the insanity that is us putting our house on the market. But first, it is off to the DMV to renew my tag on my car. I figured it would be a short little jaunt to the tag agency and then to Home Depot. Boy was I wrong. I forgot to bring my current car insurance AND my drivers license was expiring in 2 days. Ugh. I had to take my new picture with no makeup on and my hair slopped back into a ponytail. Whatever, it's not like I show anyone anyways. Z made sure to make fun of me about it. Gotta love him.

After Home Depot, we returned home and started painting the house. My assignment was to get the flowers planted and looking good. I was happy to take on this chore because ladders terrify me. If it wobbles even a little bit than you can forget it. After a few hours the flowers were planted and our new plants were potted. I have to say I did quite the job. But the job that I did does not even compare to the job that Z has done on the house. That man is such a workaholic. I tried to help him paint and I was bored and hot after 30 minutes. He was out there allll day long for 3 days straight. You have to love a man that goes out of his way for his family. I know I do. Sheepishly, I retreated to the house several times to feed L. I'm the lactating one, so by default I get to feed her, woo! I hated to use that as an excuse to bail out on painting, but gosh darnit, I did anyways!

That night we stopped painting by 6 in order to spend some time with the kiddos. I really hate when I get caught up in other activities on the weekends and don't get to give G and L my full attention. Working full time does not allow for me to be busy with anything other than them on the weekends. So we ran around the house with G who has recently been bestowed with some crazy energy. I have no idea where it came from, but that kid is a land rocket. He never stops. Whether he is chasing us with a swashbuckler, eating dog food, throwing toys, "feeding" his sister, climbing on the table, high pitched hysterically laughing, or spinning around in circles he never ceases to amaze me. It is like we have our own entertainment show at the house. I really could watch him for hours...ironically, I do. So we spent some time with the kiddos and headed off to bed by 9:30. We are such party animals!

L slept all night long, so it was a good night. Sunday morning started off with pancakes and bacon! G has taken quite the liking to bacon. He doesn't really understand how to say more, so he holds his hand out making a grabbing motion and says "mmmmmm". And then if you give him what he wants he starts giggling insanely. But if you bring him the wrong thing, oh my. The mmmming turns violent and then the screaming and crying ensues. I usually get it right on the second or third try, thank goodness.

After breakfast we all headed back to the Home Depot because we severely underestimated how much paint we would need for the house. A couple gallons of paint and a few more plants later, we spent another $100. That store is a black hole for our money. We returned home to start the whole process over again, and luckily Aunt B was there to pitch in. It wasn't blazingly hot like Saturday, so we let G run around outside with us for a while. He tried to help by sweeping with the giant broom. It was so cute. He took particular interest in the potting soil. I realized that it is not too difficult to wash out of clothes. G likes to test our boundaries. He likes to take a step towards the street and then look back and grin. He's lucky he's so darn cute. After about an hour and a half, it was time for him to go back inside for some lunch.

We wrapped up around 6 again, but we still aren't finished. We will have to finish next weekend. I have to give Z props. He is amazingly dedicated to the task at hand...just like he is to our family. I am so blessed to have that man in my life. I sure hope he knows that. I'm hoping to get back to a normal weekend again where we can all relax and hang out as a family doing things that we love. However, I feel as though it will be a while before we can do that.

On a side note, I have a little Hollywood update: Sister K sat next to Kelly Kapowski at a restaurant in L.A. this past weekend!! Yes, 'the' Kelly Kapowski!! Wooooo!