Checking In

Every year about this time my blog goes down the drain. A huge part of me doesn't want to do that again but I can feel it tugging at me. It's like blog spring fever.

I just don't know what to write about. Nothing particularly interesting is happening. I don't have cute Easter decorations to show you. We didn't even take Easter pictures. Our days are largely the same. Learning and playtime (or school) in the morning. Lunch. Rest. Outside until Dad comes home.

She loves the Cozy Coupe. She can only go backwards currently but she loves it.

This week the days have all run together in my head. Apparently it is Thursday. I got C to school and all. I have book club tonight. We were supposed to read The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. I read it when I was little and didn't like it then. I just don't love those books. Which is like a C.S. Lewis sin I guess because apparently we are all supposed to love him. But blah. I remember the gist of the book and have perfected the art of the B.S. book club meeting.

We're looking into a different option since this climber isn't big enough for either of them.

After an email exchange with the school I now know that C is officially going to the Parish school for preschool. A huge relief. The morning class was full of kids of siblings at the school already so he's in the afternoon class. I totally get priority enrollment but it really is kind of unfair to oldest kid of a family. M will almost certainly get to be in the morning class when it's her turn. I guess that's the price you pay.

M has started singing. She says random letter sounds and then "EFG" She is very proud of this song and likes when other people join in with her. She can also sing the "Ah Ah Ahs" of If All the Raindrops song. I melt a little every time it's the cutest.

Both are LOVING playing backyard soccer.

So life keeps chugging away and we are just doing our thing. It's not terribly exciting but that's the reality of life isn't it?

The Best

Hello Everybody! Happy Easter!

We are back from our whirlwind trip to Minnesota to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and some other fun activities. It was just the best weekend. Not only was it full of family and love and all the good stuff, but we did two especially FUN things as well. 

Late Friday, Husband, Brother and I went to see My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 in the theater with the nice leather reclining seats. It was delightful. I love the first one so much! The sequal was a bit more ridiculous than the first, some gag bits that didn't quite read as true but overall the heart was the same. I totally cried. Just as in the first movie, at the core was a family that loved each other but a daughter who fell in love with the "wrong" person and how they coped. At the core of this was that same family that loved each other but examined how relationships ebb and flow. 

Then the real reason we went to Minnesota in the first place was because my mom got us tickets to see Alan Cumming Sing Sappy Songs at Orchestra Hall. (Not that Easter wasn't a bonus, it was, but we usually do Easter at home.) 

It was phenomenal. Everything about the night was great. Getting dressed up and going out in the city was exactly what I needed. Then we were exactly the target audience  for Alan. We understood all the theater references, which were vast. (Threepenny Opera, Brecht, Cabaret, last year's Tony Awards, Liza, Kristin Chenowith, etc.) We appreciated The Good Wife discussion because seriously Eli is my favorite. (He did the Eli face!) And I have a deep heartfelt relationship with sappy pop songs so I enjoyed those immensely. I would tell you to watch some of it on YouTube, but I've seen it and he was so much better live. (PG-13 content but maybe pushed over to R because he's Scottish and swears a lot.) 

He really fed off the audience and was so good. Really really hilarious. Well we thought so. Some of the people we were sitting by bristled a little, and the people next to us couldn't understand his accent. (I'm not sure why, I don't think I missed anything he said. He is a well trained actor with good diction. We were in the 4th row and also it was Orchestra Hall so the acoustics were phenomenal.) 

Lance piano guy, Alan, Eleanor cellist, and percussionist guy

It was so great. I loved it. I love loved it! His cellist played beautifully. I kinda secretly hope one of my kids wants to play the cello but I'm not going to push. I was definitely trying to be in the moment and not taking pictures, but I had to take at least one during the final bows. 

Then we had a great Easter Sunday and good drive back home. 

Awesome. 

Imagination Station

Saturday morning we were up bright and early for the Imagination Station. The local PBS station set up this totally free event and it turned out to be a really fun family outing. We decided to park down the way and take the school bus shuttle. It probably wouldn't have been necessary as there seemed to be a lot of parking but it was fun to ride the bus with the kids and they seemed to really enjoy that.

The doors didn't open until 9 promptly. We were definitely near the front of the line but my kids were not happy to stand around that long. When we could get in we headed straight for Daniel Tiger, as that was the character C said he wanted to see the most. He was of course as far away as possible. And in a tiny little room.

I have a love/hate relationship with that show. Some of the little songs have been super helpful for C but some have caused some negative behaviors as well. Which stinks. But we went to his room. We did the tic tac toe bean bag game. Made the tiger mask and played play-doh. It was good. Even in a tiny little room. I think the station underestimated how popular that tiger is! Then M started to get restless and so Husband took her for a walk while C and I got in line.

C was not happy to be in a line again. And he was really not happy that his dad wasn't there. So he definitely cried all through meeting Daniel. I don't even think it was Daniel he was scared of but maybe.

We went to find Husband and he and M were in line to meet Curious George. I got chewed out from a lady who wasn't even in the room yet but whatever. We were those people and C joined his dad. He cried all through meeting George too. M liked it though!

After we calmed my guy down we set off to find Peg from Peg + Cat. This section of the event was definitely less crowded and I really appreciated that. There was also Mona Lisa, a horse and Batman on the wall and C thought that was awesome. Each kid got a free book from the book room. Such a fun thing! We actually wound up going to the Cat room first. The kids did all the activities in the room and we were second in line to meet Cat. It was awesome.

Then right across the hall was Peg's room and we went in there, did those activities and were second in line to meet Peg. Peg + Cat is my new favorite show. I was resistant at first because it's about math and I kinda sorta don't like math. But those rooms were so chill and had such fun activities that I am sold. The songs and the actual educational value don't hurt either. I am probably going to make M be Peg for Halloween, ukulele and all.

Because we didn't have to wait to see Peg we made it in time to meet Wyatt from Super Why. He had a GIANT room. He should have traded with Daniel! Then we got on the bus and headed back to our car.

While I think the event could have been laid out better (having people go all over multiple building on a college campus was maybe not the most convenient.) it was a lot of fun. Especially for free!

A mom right away at the beginning was overheard saying "Giving birth to my children was easier than this day." and she was not lying. The standing around in line for a half hour to get in put everyone on edge. Then it was very much a "go go go" for people to compete. There was a big open commons area that they should have sent us too. Played some music and let people run around so it wouldn't have been so intense. But it did calm down and get so much better as everyone relaxed.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Let me put this out here right now: I am not Irish. 

Which is a shame, I wish I could claim them as my own but alas, I'm over here all Polish* and whatever. *I am VERY proud to be Polish* But the Poles don't have near the same amount of exciting art that the Irish do. 

I mean really. Is there any art area that isn't touched by the Irish? I love it all. The music, the plays, just good good stuff! 

I don't like to bastardize St. Patrick's Day as one of the teachers I had when we were there for our Theatre in Ireland class instructed us on the subject. But we did wear green today and learned about Ireland. 

I was trying to stay away from sugary treats today because my kids got a bag of Skittles to share in their Leprechaun trap this morning and then we had Lucky Charms for breakfast because obviously. So we had "Pot of Gold" Peaches and fish and chips. (A peaches fruit cup, goldfish crackers and potato chips.) I know that fish and chips started in England but I ate it in several different areas of Ireland so it still counts. 

So I hope you have a wonderful St. Patrick's Day! I'll just be over here watching Riverdance, reading Friel and listening to all the wonderful music I can. 

Beware the Ides of March

Yesterday was a day.

School was at our house, our theme for the week is 'Teen Numbers" and I made it into an entire St. Patrick's Day unit. Only because of our two week break, and then a tummy bug at the host's house last week, they haven't done any school since February 18 and it showed.

We quickly transitioned from "learning a lot" to "remembering our schedule and how to listen." Which is just fine. I anticipated that after such a long break so I am not bothered by it. But it definitely took all my energy and I had very little patience with myself or my kids afterwards.

For lunch I made this rice/vegetable steamer thing. I figured it was a good way to get a serving of vegetables and also maybe help me not be hangry. But since I really don't like peas I also used it as a penance to remind myself that my kids deserve patience and understanding. I ate every last pea. 

During rest time I took a shower and a rest so that I could do a little better in the afternoon. And the afternoon went much better. I made fajitas for dinner and things were going pretty swimmingly. Until we sat down to turn on Wheel of Fortune afterwards. (We watch "the letter show" nightly.) 

It was all severe weather this and that. Then the sirens went off. So we went down to the basement. The kids love playing down there because they don't get to often and so they didn't mind one bit. But every time we thought it was getting close to the end it wasn't. 

The chest freezer is in the basement though. And it houses the ice cream so that was a nice bonus. Because bedtime had passed for one kid and was fast approaching for the other but tornado warnings are not to be bargained with so... ice cream it was. 

As it happens, the basement is also our diaper and wipes storage and I just done a kid load of laundry so we were able to diaper/Pull-Up and pajama our kids so that when we could go upstairs it was straight to bed with them. Which was great because I had this pile to tackle: 

My friend had a Scentsy party for her birthday and the order came in. So I got to sort through it all and package it up for each person. Which was kind of fun to do. Overwhelming at first but once I figured out a rhythm it was no problem. The first time you do anything it's a learning curve right? I am going to deliver them today to my friend's house. It was also a great distraction for the Ides of March politics. (Ay Caramba!) 

Also today the sun is shining and I have another day of school to plan for. So it should be a good one! Happy Wednesday!

All the Good Things

So M has had a word explosion and though every word she says makes me smile and I love it, my new favorite of hers is..

She can say YES! Which is a game changer my friends. Up until Friday she used her favorite word "no" interchangeably to respond to any question. So now when I ask her a question and she says "yes" we are finally moving forward on figuring out what this spunky little gal wants from life. 

She has also figured out how to say "milk" so that's another awesome addition to the vocabulary. Girls really do learn to talk faster and easier than boys. I'll take it! 

We had a really super low key weekend and I am feeling quite energized by it. We did some spring cleaning on our porch, which was excellent. I did not move the boots and snow pants to the basement yet because I don't want to jinx us but since my daffodils are getting taller and the trees have buds on them I am pretty hopeful that this is actually Spring and we had possibly the best winter ever. 

I am just all around pretty excited about this week. It is our week for hosting school and it's all St. Patrick's Day themed which should be fun. 

Today is also Pi Day AND National Napping Day! 

Happy Monday!

7QT: Giraffes and Snacks

one. I just don't understand Daylight Saving Time. Why does it still exist? I am not super big on the whole shifting thing. I mean, sure it is annoying for schedules to change and all but mostly I just don't get it or the presumed benefit. It stays lighter longer? But it will also stay darker longer in the morning so... seems like a moot point.

two. We went to Zoo Tots for a school field trip. It was way way better than the Zoo Tots we went to in January. It was G for Giraffe and my dude loved it!

We even got to go to into the behind the scenes area and see them at eye level. We weren't allowed to take pictures of that but it was pretty cool for the preschooler set. 

three. After our zoo class we went to the park and it was so good to get out and enjoy. Husband has been taking the kids to the same park on the weekend for the past few weekends. Apparently my kids have different playground sensibilities depending on which parent they're with. I get the more cautious kids. The thing is I don't know that I exude nervousness or anything. I sure try hard to not be helicoptery. Weird phenomenon. 

four. C has been doing a good job eating this past week. I have discovered that if I call everything "snack" somehow that's less offensive than "lunch" or "dinner" and he eats all his food. So "snack" it is. Kids are weird. 

five. My father-in-law's wife won a trip to Orlando for work. They got FREE rooms at the Grand Floridian. But in their free days they aren't going to any of the parks because "they aren't really for adults." I don't even understand that. Especially if the room is free shell out the money for the park ticket! I can't believe my Disney loving Husband came from such a family. It defies logic. 

I mean if you can SEE Magic Kingdom you should probably go.

six. I feel like this Lent has gone really fast. Which sounds weird maybe but I can't believe Easter is coming up so quick! Lent has been good for me. Spiritual and personal growth, what more could I ask for?

seven. Do you ever let your kitchen sneak up on you? Mine has and I am really looking forward to rest time today so I can turn on some tunes and clean. The windows are open, the sun is shining and soon my kitchen will be clean! That's about as good as it gets some time. 

Have a great weekend! Linking with Kelly.

Still Waiting

18 Days without internet.

On February 20 the internet went out. We live "down the line" and we've had intermittent problems before so I didn't think much of it. A few days later I called. 

We had an appointment on Wednesday, March 2. They of course missed the window and showed up about 4:00. He was nice enough but he didn't actually do anything and told me he'd see me "first thing tomorrow." 

Thursday came. We have very different definitions of "first thing" because he didn't show up until 1:00. I was getting the kids ready for rest time and for the first time in her life put M to bed with a bottle because I didn't want to miss the guy. Only he just sat in our parking area and then drove off about 15 minutes later. The internet was still not working. 

So I chatted with the internet help line. They were still working on it. 

And sure enough a little while later he came back. And I waited. 

Then I went to get the kids from nap. And you can try to rush grumpy 3 year olds through the bathroom but they only go the speed they go. I got back downstairs and he was gone. 

So I got back online with the online chat. They were still working on it. 

Then I got an email. Telling me that because I wasn't home, they couldn't complete my repair and I'd have to reschedule. 

Now, it is possible that he did come knock on my back door while I was getting everyone up and about. But he did not ring my doorbell on my front door. And I was home. And seriously, I was going to take the kids out on Thursday but couldn't because I was waiting for the tech, now apparently I can't even go upstairs for 10 minutes?

So I got back on the chat and they were all booked up for Friday so they could come Monday. 

Well there wasn't anything I could do about that so FINE. I was grumpy but I settled down quickly.

Yesterday I woke up ready to finally have internet. I even wrote a (not snarky!) note and taped it on the back door, informing the tech that I WAS home but since there was no doorbell on this door I may not hear a knock. Just in case you know.

I watched the "Where's My Tech" page like a hawk. The time kept getting pushed further back into the day. Until about 4:00 when it magically jumped backwards in time and said that they should have completed the service about two hours prior. 

So I got back on the chat. And the went through the dispatch to page the technician and that they would call me soon. 

Well a half hour later, no phone call and FAST approaching 5:00 I got on the phone and called. I talked to Jake who did the whole page them again thing. 

No phone call. Then I got back on the chat. Evan in Boise who, to his credit was very sympathetic, took a long time to figure out what went wrong and no one could give him a reason why this kept happening. But he rescheduled me for today and made it absolutely clear to the dispatch that they could not push me back again. 

So now I wait. The (still not snarky) note is on the back door. And *luckily* (maybe? I don't know, anyway) school got cancelled so I actually can sit around all day and not worry that I am missing the technician. 

If they do show up, and they do fix it, I will still get to call back again to finally get a proration on my bill for the time that I did not have service. They won't do that until they fix it you see. 

A lot of sanctifying going on over here. In defense of the company for a minute, only one customer service person I have chatted with or talked to has been unhelpful. 

The part that is so frustrating, is that I know I don't have the greatest connection possible at my house. (Previous techs have told me that.) But it doesn't change the fact that I am a customer and have had a relatively non-eventful 3 years of service to this address and then it just went kaput and no one can figure out why. 

Wish me luck. 

**Update: A very nice gentleman spent about an hour and half restoring my internet. I then talked to 3 different people before someone was authorized to give me a credit. It may not show up for 1-2 bill cycles but it should there.**

7QT: Century Link Sucks and Things That Keep Me Up At Night

one. I am trying to be a bigger person so I will not rehash the saga of my CenturyLink internet issues but I will say that today is 14 days without internet. They aren't coming back until Monday. I'm living in 1992 (Except for running the data way too high on my phone and the fact Husband's work computer has an air card.) It's super annoying.

two. I am very very very much looking forward to breaking up with them. Our neighborhood won a contest to be the second in the area to get the high speed fiber internet. They started putting in the fiber cables or whatever and they are up the alley about 4 blocks. It is approaching! Oh hey, when I started writing this post we hadn't gone to art class yet, but we just got back and they have spray painted and put up flags for them to dig and lay fiber! It really IS approaching!

three. A little boy at our parish who we didn't know was hit by a car and died on Sunday afternoon. It is hitting me very hard because he is exactly one day younger than C. We were almost certainly in the hospital at the same time. Maybe even preschool roundup earlier this month. Please pray for the family as they lay their son to rest today, and the driver of the car as it was completely an accident and I am sure very hard for her.

four. So we have no internet but magically we just started getting PBS! We only have over the air TV and in our three years in this house we have never ever gotten PBS. But last night there it was! C was very excited to watch PBS Kids this morning.

five. Do you have young kids? Do you have an Imagination Station near you? Our PBS station is having a big event in a few weeks and we got tickets. They're free but we had to register. The kids can meet PBS characters and do different learning activities, crafts and games. Totally worth a look if there's something near you! We are excited to meet Wyatt/Super Why!

six. I had the worst nights sleep Wednesday into Thursday. I honestly don't think I've ever slept so poorly. I was never able to get to deep sleep, just short bursts. You know the kind of sleep where you never feel asleep and are always listening for the crying baby? I kept having the same dream about selling kinetic sand that I couldn't bag properly and Donald Trump blocking the sale of it. It was a miserable night. And super weird since I quit the caffeine. Hopefully it was a one time thing. I did manage to count to 150 and say an entire rosary so that's fun.

seven. I had a really stellar two week break from normalcy and I almost kind of don't want to start back up with school. BUT there's only six weeks of school until another two week break so I think I can handle it! And we've got good stuff coming up! My St. Patrick's Day week is going to be super fun.

Linkin' Up with Kelly and the cool kids. 

In Like A Lion

Here me roar. March came in like a Lion sure enough. 

Aside from the weather which is cold again (but only in the short term) our furnace decide to go all wonky and die yesterday. Just right before 5:00 which of course is when the furnace people close. So...about that. 

I guess today is just going to be repair man day since CenturyLink is finally going to get our internet back on. I hope anyway. 

And I'm not even going to talk about what the heck is going on with our country because I cannot grapple with that reality today. 

In positive news: I signed C up for soccer yesterday! (Same league as he was in this fall.) 

And I won a TwelveLittle diaper clutch from Babyguybox! 

Babyguybox is a like a subscription box only one you have to sign up for every month by The Baby Guy and his sister. They put together boxes with themes and send you a box of fun stuff. We got November's Toddler Box and February's Baby and Preschooler Box. I have been pretty happy with the stuff in them and while I am not planing on buying one this month I would consider buying one again. It depends on the theme. My kids are getting older (which is crazy to me) so I don't need the breastfeeding box or the hospital box etc. 

This month they are doing a best of the boxes and prices range from $19.99-$24.99 shipping included. The catch is that this month they are totally surprises. Usually they tell you the theme or the sponsor or some brands. They go on sale tomorrow and they usually sell out FAST. 

This is not paid for by them or solicited by them, I just am a satisfied customer and kind of happy I totally randomly won a bonus prize from them!

Anyway... happy Wednesday people. I hope the lion doesn't eat my hump day camel. 

**UPDATE: Our igniter was cracked. One hour, $213 and a new igniter (plus cleaned flame sensor) later and the house is warming up again just in time for a playdate!**

PSA: Super Tuesday, My Awesome Husband and Spring Scentsy

Good March Morning Everyone!

First off in this little public service announcement is that if you live in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia  or Wyoming I implore you to go out and vote/caucus. (If I have any readers from American Samoa you get out too!) Your vote counts. Seriously. It does. It might even mean more now today in March than it will in November. So please go be heard.

Secondly, Husband rocks. I am not a morning person. At all. I am getting better since I cut caffeine out of my life but still...it's not pretty. This morning one kid who shall remain nameless woke up and was LOUD at 6:00. That is in our realm of unacceptable. Then the other kid woke up not shortly after because someone else was loud. I was thisclose to having a break down and felt legitimate anger because it, in fact, was not 7:20. (Which is when I peel myself out of bed and become a human.)

Husband, who in normal everyday world already gets up with the kids and feed them breakfast so I can grab a few more precious moments of sleep, woke up with the exceptionally loud minions, herded them downstairs, fed them, CLEANED THE KITCHEN and went in a little late to let me sleep extra long. That man loves me and I love him right back.

And then people, it is a wonderful day because it's new Scentsy catalog day. I already put in an order for me with some of the new scents and the Scentsy Fresh which is Febreeze! I am SO excited. I want ALL THE THINGS! I

I love this milk pail warmer and I have a feeling the dairy farmers in my life are going to be gifted with one of their own. 

The mosaic one is just gorgeous. Doesn't match our house at all but I love it. 

This nest. I am telling you that we legitimately do not need another warmer in our house but I love it so much I am probably going to get it anyway. 

C of course, saw this dude in the catalog and has honed in on him. He comes with the kids Bath Smoothie. 

I love these baseball hat warmers. They don't have the Twins (yet) but they have most of the popular teams. (Yankees, Cubs, Phillies, Red Socks, Giants and more) The KC Royals is brand new today! My grad school friends are going to love it! 

Okay. Enough of that. (This will count as my March Scentsy post.) 

Anyway. Happy March. Our weather seems to be doing the "coming in like a lion thing" but I can deal. Please participate in Super Tuesday if you're able.