Ten on Tuesday

1.  We are blessed this year to have a family membership at a local pool.  Boy do we ever feel spoiled! Pretty sure the boys are going to be expert swimmers by the end of this summer.

2.  Speaking of swimming...Grant cried the whole last class on Friday, but I know he learned a lot.  Pretty sure he was just playing an attention game since daddy was watching.  He has stopped wearing his swimmies and is only using a ring or pool noodle.  I am so proud of him!

3.  Ashton is a little dare devil in the pool.  He walks right in, lifts his feet up and starts to paddle away.  I won't let him near a pool without his swimmies on!

4.  Last week we went strawberry picking.  We may have gone a little crazy on the picking.  I have LOTS of jam in the freezer.

 

5.  I love going on fun adventures with these two...

6. This weekend we went out for dinner and ice cream in the next town over aka the town that we will call home once our house is built.  We walked into the ice cream store and Grant was immediately drawn to this little girl his age.  He went right over and started talking to her and within minutes they were holding hands and running through the store laughing.  It was so out of character for Grant and I want to remember this in case he someday marries a girl named Olivia because it was almost one of those fate situations that you see in movies where they reunite in college and realize they met 15 years ago at Kilwins!

7.  Recent conversation...
Me:  Ashton, I saw you carrying the tv remote.  What did you do with it?
Ashton:  cause (his answer to EVERYTHING!)
Me: Not why Ashton, where did you put the remote?
Ashton: my belly button.
Me: Hey smarty pants, I think you are going to cause me a lot of trouble when you get older.
Ashton: yah with a big smile

8.  Gap Outlet just started a Style Cash program.  This could be REALLY bad for my gap outlet addiction issues!

9.  My house building poll of the week.... gas stove or electric.  I have been an electric person all my life, but am open to change because I hear so many good things about gas.  Do any of you have opinions on this one?

10.  Blessing of the week:  I know I say this about every 6 months (when my dad comes) but I really do just feel so blessed to have amazing family.  I love having grandpa pat here to love on/spoil the boys, go on lots of adventures with us and keep me company since I tend to get lonely spending all my time with a 3 year old and a 1 year old!

Ten on Tuesday

1. I hate putting my favorite pants on and having to suck in to button them!  I think we have been indulging a little too much with my sweet tooth addict partner in crime aka Grandpa Pat!!!!!

2. 3= the number of ticks we have found in our house.  Yuck.  I think I will make Jason strip before entering the house when he comes back from our property from now on! 

3.  REALLY glad we decided on that screened in porch in our new house.  With all those bugs out there in the woods, I have a feeling it will get used a lot.

4.  Ashton has been getting his eye teeth.  He gets extremely crabby and clingy to momma when he is teething.  He just clings to my legs and cries to be held.  I am starting to re-think wanting a momma's boy.

5.  If you are looking for a good book to read this summer, I recommend Charles Martin.  I think I read Mountain Between Us in 3 days.  I just couldn't put it down. 

6. Out of the blue the other night Grant prayed over our meal by himself.  He usually just prays along with us, but this time he went solo..... "Dear God, please bless this meal to our bodies and thank you for the roof over our heads."  Precious!

7.  Our free trial of XM radio is ending soon and I am so sad.  I have become quite addicted to 40s on 4.  There is something magical about turning up Frank Sinatra to drown out all the whines in the back seat for windows to be down, windows to be up, fries when we pass McDs, to go to the park that we just passed, to not go run errands, etc, etc......

8. My big boy on his first day of swimming lessons.  

9.  Yesterday morning, Ashton woke up early so I grabbed him and put him in bed for snuggles with us before we started our day.  He was crawling under the covers and saying,"hide" and then made us come find him.  I cherished every moment even though it was earlier than it needed to be!  The funniest part was out of the blue Ashton pushed J (who wasn't enjoying the moment as much as I was!) and said, "Jason move."  We both cracked up and wondered where he picked that up from!

10.  Blessing of the week:  YOU are all my blessing!  I am so thankful for the encouraging words about my situation last week.  It is so nice to know that you are out there supporting me!

1.  We picked my dad up at the airport last Friday.  As we were driving home Grant said,"grandpa pat, you have no hair" and started cracking up laughing.  Only from the mouths of babes!

2.  On another note I told Ashton that it was time for bed and he looked at me and said," I said no momma."  How did he turn into a 3 year old all of a sudden?

3. Grant started swimming lessons this week.  I am SO excited and hoping the next two weeks teach him to put his head under water and swim without his "arms" on. 

4.  It has come to my attention that someone is using info from my blog to cause pain and difficulty in my life.  Sadly, this isn't the first time this same person has brought up this same issue.   I realize by putting myself out there in such a public display, I will get negative comments, etc.  I guess that is the risk I am willing to take. But to have this come from a person I trust, really hurts.  I pray that you will see the error of your ways and stop trying to stir up drama where there is none.  FYI- when my posts appear on Tuesday, it does not mean that I am blogging from work.  I write these posts throughout the week and schedule them to appear at different times on Tuesdays.

5.  In light of that issue, I am really frustrated because I write this blog for my out of town family, for my baby loss momma family, for memory books for my boys and for a release when I need to "journal".  I don't want to stop and I don't want to have to go private because I meet new people all the time that are just going their loss and I love that I can be a support to them. Please, if you have malicious intent in your heart, leave me and my blog alone so I can do what I feel like God wants me to do- help others go through the loss of their child.

6.  For the first time since being pregnant with Ashton, I had insomnia.  I was up with Ashton, then up with Grant then couldn't go back to sleep.  I finally got up and read my book for 2 hours and it still took me an hour to get to sleep after that.  I only slept 2 hours but amazingly enough I made it through the day without passing out.

7.  I am not sure if it was the triple chocolate cake I ate at ladies night or the fact that my mind is buzzing with anxiety about all this house stuff, but I sure hope I don't have insomnia again!

8. I am pretty sure Grant is going to be an actor when he grows up.  We were playing dinosaurs the other day and he did the best re-enactment of a long neck being eaten by a t-rex that I have ever seen.  He even had the face gestures down perfect. 

9. Remind me next time I think it is a good idea to go to the zoo on Sunday afternoon that it really is not a good idea at all.  We enjoyed the local zoo with about 50,000 other people on Sunday.  The boys had fun, but this momma was claustrophobic!


10.  Blessing of the week:  watching the kids play with Grandpa Pat.  I just love watching the boys get to know their grandpa.

Ten on Tuesday

1.  Don't ya just love it when your husband comes home at 5 and informs you that he can see your striped underwear through the dress you just wore for the last 8 hours at work?  To make it better, I threw a luncheon for about 50 volunteers that day too.  Guess I need to start doing a full length mirror check before I walk out of the house.

2.  It seems that the lack of anything to watch during the summer has pulled me into yet another season of The Bachelorette.  The previews for next week have me on the edge of my seat!

3.  The other day I told Grant that he could not have another cookie and he looked at me and said,"momma, I am so disappointed in you."  LOL- at least I know now that he is paying attention when I say that to him!

4.  Jason and I attended a family wedding this weekend.  Not only was it a beautiful celebration, but it was a great reason for us to get all dressed up and go out for the night!

5. Ashton's 18 month birthday passed a while back.  Since I have been putting so much info in my weekly posts, I think I will pass on doing a monthly post and just add some facts for my memory books on here.  Sorry if this bores you!

6.  Ashton wears size 12 month pants, 12-18 month shirts, size 4 diapers.  He loves to eat cheese sticks, green beans, mac and cheese and oranges.  He is not a huge fan of any type of berry and definitely doesn't like bread- he will take the meat and cheese off of it.  He says "miwk" when he is thirsty and "nack" when he is hungry.

7.  Ashton talks like crazy, has a huge adventurous spirit and is starting to get really naughty.  His new favorite thing to do is look at me and run the other way. He loves to swim which he reminds me of every morning when I get him out of bed, he loves to go head first down the slide and pretty much anything for that matter!  He loves to climb and play with his big brother and do everything that Grant does.  It really is so cute to see them together and watch how much Ashton adores his brother.

8.  The other day we let the boys play in the rain which quickly turned into playing in the mud.  Ashton fell in face first but didn't care at all- he had the biggest smile on his face even through all the mud!  This is his "cheeeeeese" face.

9.  The same day, Grant had come home from day care and walked in and just looked at me with a funny look on his face.  I suddenly broke into laughter because he had on Ashton's shorts and they fit!  They were size 9 month!  We had a good laugh together and since I hate doing laundry, I let him stay in them for the sake of not messing up anymore clothes:)

10.  Blessing of the week:  after finding out about our girls, my neighbor brought me two Remember Me hostas for our yard.  It was so thoughtful of her and really touched my heart.

Ten on Tuesday

1.  I tackled homemade cinnamon rolls for the first time this weekend.  They were SO delish!  Grant even asked for seconds- you know they were good then!

2.  We had a pretty laid back holiday weekend.  Jason was actually home on Saturday which was a nice change.  We went to the Parade of Homes for some house ideas and then chilled out and enjoyed some much needed family time.

3.  On Monday morning, Jason and Grant rode grandpas tractor in the parade.  Both of them just loved it!

4.  Ashton sat on the sidelines and enjoyed the parade.  I am pretty sure he was the most enthusiastic person there.  This boy loves himself a good parade.

5.  Afterwards, Ashton got his time in on the tractor.  He was a little hesitant at first, but once on, he loved it as well.  We may need more tractors for the parade next year....

6.  After lunch on Monday Ashton said,"potty" and walked into the bathroom.  Grant has been trying to get him to go potty before baths so I would put him on and he would say he was done and I would take him off.  He never went, but I loved the idea that Grant was encouraging him and putting the idea in his head.  I actually was trying to figure out how to get Grant to potty train him because that was not my favorite experience of parenting!  Anyways, I put Ashton on the potty and he actually pooped.  I was in shock and fully expect this to never happen again for 6 months, but I was pretty impressed to say the least.  When he gets something into his mind, there is no stopping him. 

7.  I finally watched Les Mis this week.  It brought back so many memories of my high school choir field trip to Chicago to see the musical.  I felt very blessed to be able to experience that in person and pray that we are able to give our boys those same experiences as well. 

8.  I can never resist a picture of a sleeping baby.  This one just loves his blankies.

9. Grant was playing in the living room for about an hour while I watched Les Mis.  I had to laugh the next day because he was singing everything.  I guess he picks up on more than I realize even though he isn't actually watching it!

10.  Blessing of the week: safe holiday weekend to relax and spend time with family.  I love when we can slow down a bit and just spend some quality time together.

Ten on whenever...

1.  On Saturday, I finally redeemed my birthday massage gift certificate.  As I left the building feeling so relaxed I decided that it should be mandatory for all mothers to get monthly massages.

2.  I put Ashton in his crib the other night, covered him with his blankie, gave him a kiss and said I love you and he casually said "Luv you."  My heart just melted at the sound of those words.

3. Grant is OBSESSED with dinosaurs right now.  They have overtaken our house and even Ashton has climbed on board insisting that he carry around Grant's "long neck" all the time.  Grant has of course declared that he wants a dinosaur birthday party and actually made me go on pinterest the other day so he could look for a birthday cake.  I love that he is a pre-planner like his momma, but listening to him ask me about his cake for the next 5 months does not sound like fun at all.

4.  Broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers, onions, squash, pumpkins, peas, beans and cucumbers were all planted in my garden this weekend.  Now I just need to pray that my fence keeps those darn bunnies out.

5. After this weekend, I wonder if I can just bathe Ashton in Neosporin.  His little legs look like he was dragged along the cement.  I swear he is just really clumsy and even mentioned it at his dr appt but he wasn't concerned. I just hope CPS doesn't get a look at his legs cause they might show up at my door!  Must find him some protective knee pads.

6. Grant was devastated this week when he learned that dinosaurs actually don't exist anymore and would not be at our annual cottage trip in August.  LOL.

7. Rambling of the week:  Sometimes the words  "God blesses those that ask for prayer" can be really painful.  I believe that God hears our prayers and I believe that prayer can be very positive in many situations. However, I am not totally sold on the thought that God changes the plans he has for you depending on prayers being lifted up on your behalf.  A situation this week where this idea has been brought up made me feel very frustrated and upset at the thought that five years ago, God heard our prayers and didn't care and decided to let our girls die anyways. We are thrilled when the outcome is positive, but please, please, please think before you speak these words to someone who didn't have such a positive outcome.

8.  Ashton seems to be a little possessive right now.  He was sitting on my lap for morning cuddles and ,J a girl I babysit, crawled up into my lap and Ashton pushed her away and said,"my cuddle."  It was hard to get mad at him because it was just so darn cute.  I just love this stage that he is in right now.

9. Looking forward to a date day this weekend going through the Parade of Homes to get some ideas for our house.  It has been a long time since we have alone time together- can't wait!

10. Blessing of the week:   Jason competed in a game/race this weekend and won a week stay at a local campground in a luxury RV.  We feel so blessed and can't wait for our first ever camping adventure this summer!

Ten on Tuesday

1.  I made my first loaf of homemade bread last week.  I have made beer bread but never attempted dealing with yeast before.  I am so excited that I finally took the challenge.  It was delicious and the boys just loved watching it bake!  Next attempt is homemade cinnamon rolls.

2.  Ashton's new favorite phrase is "Oh my goodness".  It is so darn cute to hear him say it!

3.  It was Tulip Time in our town so once again I dressed my two little dutch boys up and made them parade around town while I took pictures of their adorable little selves!  This year they were asked to be in a number of Indian tourist pictures.  It was kinda weird, but I embraced it and just prayed their pictures don't show up on some billboard in India!

4.  Ashton pretty much always has this guilty look on his face.  There is a fee for picking the tulips little boy!

5.  I thought this picture captured Grant perfectly- hiding his naughtiness behind his handsome smile and those gorgeous blue eyes!

6. It is hard to believe that 5 years ago on Mother's Day, I sat at a Cubs game freezing my buns off.  I was so excited to finally be able to celebrate on Mother's Day.  I had found the cutest shirt at Old Navy for $2 that said Double Trouble and thought it would be perfect to wear to the game since I was expecting twins.  Of course, it ended up being about 36 degrees so no one saw the shirt.  I still have the shirt and I will never forget that feeling of being a proud twin momma to be. 

7. This Mothers Day I had a different kind of double trouble in my arms. They say a few years makes a difference and it is hard to believe in the thick of it, but it really is true.  I used to hate this day and now I cherish it.  I still miss my girls like crazy and I still lift up all those who are yearning to become a mommy and I never will forget that horrible feeling of everyone in the world celebrating mothers when all I wanted to do was become one.  But with all that being said, I really had a great day celebrating the mother's in our lives and I got to cook a nice big yummy meal which I love to do!
 
8.   I love the new Target baby commercial.  So cute and every time they start singing If you're happy and you know it, Ashton starts clapping!

9.  Ahh... first Downtown Abbey, then Revenge and now Castle.  I don't know how I am going to wait until next fall/winter to see the next episode of these shows!

10.  Blessing of the week: being called mommy, mama, mom, etc....  There were so many days I longed to hear those words.  Now when I hear them, I just soak them up.  I love these little boys so much - I am so grateful for them to call me mom!