Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Red Airplane







Seriously, Mom...
 Are you really going to take more pictures of me?

Friday, May 24, 2013

Washington, D.C.



We returned home this past Sunday from a long weekend in D.C. for Leigh's graduation. While we were there we got to do a full day's worth of sightseeing. On the way to the city in the car the kids could not stop asking to visit Abraham Lincoln Monument. They've been learning about this President in their class. The best decision was to take the Metro, leaving our car at the hotel, which meant A LOT of walking... very interesting with two little ones. After visiting the AL Monument we walked to the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History. On the way to the museum I saw our state name and of course I had to take a picture.
The morning we left to go back home we met with some of my childhood friends, Michelle, Kristi Ann and Lauren. My friend Lauren graciously let ALL of us go to her hotel lobby. This was especially nice of her considering the fact that we had four little kids between the three families. I had so much fun catching up with everyone.
On the way home we had to make lots of stops to get their wiggles out. At each stop, I had Summer and Forrest run up and down the sidewalk, sing me some songs, and wiggle to their hearts content. I'd say we had a fabulous weekend, for sure. I know it's cliche' but it really is just fun to be together. I miss everyone already. A great end to an amazing weekend! Love you guys! XO

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Leigh

Leigh with her parents and our family. Photo credit: Nick Crane
My children's beautiful Godmother, Leigh, graduated from Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. with her Masters this past weekend. I'm finally going through the pictures. We were lucky to able to meet Leigh's family. It felt like a family reunion, as if we've known them forever. Summer and Forrest had the time of their lives. They loved seeing people signing on campus. They also loved getting to dance to a band, eating cupcakes, drinking Coke (which only happens once or twice a year), staying up way past their bedtime and swimming at the hotel pool - so simple but so fun for them. Leigh and Nick took the kids to Gallaudet for their first ever visit. I told David one night that I missed the kids because I rarely saw them. They were always running around with Leigh's family. A perfect weekend, if I do say so myself.
Leigh's off working as a preschool teacher at the Lexington School for the Deaf in New York now and we miss her like crazy. When I first taught her 5 years ago, we knew we had to have her be the kids' nanny. So much fun. Then overnight it seemed she finished college and graduate school.
We were trying to remember the posts I wrote about Leigh. I linked all of the posts that I had on this blog. It was so much fun to look back at old pictures. Even though she's far away right now, when we drive to school every morning the kids spot a street sign that says LEIGH, they scream "Lee!!!" 
We love her. A lot.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Motherhood

I know this is going to be a novel here but on Mother's Day, I kept thinking about how far I've come in the last (almost) 8 years as a mom. I'm just at the very beginning of this journey but still can't believe how much I've learned so far. When I was little, I dreamed of someday being a mom. I know I've written this before but it's true... that was what I would dream about. I didn't get pregnant with my sweet Summer until I was 28. So by the time I had her, I was really ready and really excited. And let me just say, it was waaaaaaay harder than I ever anticipated. It was extremely difficult to breastfeed. For weeks I wondered why in the world mothers talked about how "wonderful" it was to breastfeed their infants. I was losing my mind and in extreme pain. I screamed for 6 weeks, all day, each time Summer latched on. I am not exaggerating. Right up until having her I just finished my Masters degree and working full time. I went straight from all that craziness into being home all day, alone with a baby. When David would come home from work I would be crying and I would just hand her to him. All I can remember him saying was, "I thought you were going to like this". Time passed and it got much easier to breastfeed Summer and ended up being a very wonderful experience from 3 months on. Turned out that I had an infection that was left untreated after the delivery. But that's not the point here. It was what David said to me that one night that I have never forgotten - "I thought you were going to like this...". There are lots of parts of motherhood that just aren't fun. What is amazing though about this job is that even on my worst days when it's so hard and I don't "like" it, I still have a sense of the magnitude of what I am doing. I have been entrusted with these little kids. That responsibility weighs heavy on me but at the same time gives me purpose and meaning even beyond the most seemingly menial parts of my day. There is a sense of fulfillment in being a mom for me and in trying my very best to be a good mother to my kids.

I now have two little kids that call me mama and it is still so humbling. At this stage in their lives I am their "everything" quite literally. It's exhausting for sure, but oh so rewarding. This picture is one that Summer took using my iPhone recently of me holding Forrest one morning while getting ready for school. My Forrest was having a rough morning for whatever reason and I just picked him up and held him tight. I rocked him side to side the same way I've done ever since he was a baby. He calmed right down. I have done this with both my kids. It's these moments that are almost never captured that to me, define motherhood. I want so desperately for my children to know how deeply I love them. I want them to know that even though I'm not perfect, and even though I have lots of days that I fall short, I really am trying my very best. They're so little right now and I can't believe that a lot of what I do with them they will never remember.

I want them to remember how I hold their hand and squeeze it really tightly. I've told them that three squeezes means, "I love you". Now all I do is put my hand out and give them three squeezes and they say, "I love you too mama". It's so cute. I want Summer to remember that I love lying in her bed every single night before she goes to sleep and massaging her back. Actually, I don't like the massaging part but I do it because that's when she opens up the most to me about things in her life and her feelings. I want Forrest to know that I think it's so cute how he likes to show me how tall he is getting and that he can "get a glass from the cupboard without tippy toes" and that I love it when he crawls on to me like a little cat to watch his cartoons. I love how I brush the snarls out of Summer's hair she hugs me tight around my waist so that it won't hurt so bad. I hope they know how much I love how their faces light up every single day when they see me in the pick up line for school or walking into the school. I love that when they lay just 2 inches away from me, I always say, "you're too far away" and make them scoot closer. They always roll their eyes but do it anyway. I love that they think I'm an amazing cook even though I'm not. I want them to know when they help me cook and clean it takes 5 times as long and usually ends up worse than when we started, but I do it because I love to see how sweet their little proud faces are when we're done. I love the little notes Summer leaves me around the house and the pictures Forrest draws of me in school. I love that whenever they do something they think is great, they can't wait to show me and I always try my best to make it a big deal. I love sneaking into their beds at night to give them kisses while they sleep. I love all of these little things and I feel panicked as to how fast they are growing up. As a mother, I've come a long way from those days when Summer was an infant and I can honestly say that I do "like this" thing called motherhood. Actually, I love it and that's the truth. More than anything, I just hope that my kids know that their mom loves them. I am constantly telling them but I hope most, is that my actions are letting them FEEL how much those words that I whisper in their ears, are true. I really, really loved, love and will continue to love them... forever.

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Love


I love this picture - grainy and all.
It was a candid moment from my iPhone. We were trying to take a picture of all of us... and then Forrest said something funny and we all lost it. I love my kids so much.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Lego Birthday Party













For his 6th birthday Forrest wanted a Lego party. We had his party this past Saturday. As much as I love to throw little parties for my kids this one completely stressed me out to begin with but as soon as I got my bearings it ended up being a lot of fun. All the stores I went to had NOTHING with the party Lego theme so I knew I had to think out of the box. I put little mason jars filled with crayons so that kids could color their own Lego person and lego blocks for them to play with while the other kids were arriving. I knew from the very beginning that since it was going to be in our backyard I had to set up the party table on the deck. I found these party hats, streamers, napkins and plates of Lego colors at Target. The kids played games: Lego bingo, Lego relay race, tug-of-war, find the Lego man (David hid them all over in the backyard), and guess how many Legos are in the jar. Every one went home with their own personalized Lego shirt. It was so simple, and so fun. Forrest had only one other wish for his party. A green (yes he was very specific) Lego block piƱata. I made it in one evening using whatever we had in the garage. It took the kids at least three rounds to finally break it apart.
These are a few of Forrest's friends. I am so happy he has such a sweet circle of friends to grow up with. He talks about these little friends constantly. I'm hoping no one moves away and that they will be friends for a long, long time. Later that night, Forrest kept saying, "this is the best birthday ever." It was perfect. Man, I love this little boy. He is hilarious and sweet and smart. A total keeper.

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Dear Forrest,


Happy 6th Birthday! I love you, my sweet little boy.
xoxo,
Mama