a wave and a fit

Trying to make a meal while your baby is asleep is like playing a game of "Operation" but much more intense. "Shoot, I need the largest pot to boil the chicken, but it's under the other 2 pots." Ever so quietly I slide the stack of 3 off the shelf, firmly grab the handle of the top two and lift, slide the large one out and carefully put the others back on the shelf. Opening up a nutrigrain wrapper? I head on back to our closet and rip that baby open.

Evelyn has been so incredibly loving toward us this week. Not by giving kisses or hugs, heavens no. She's not a cuddler. But I think she realized that we were soo tuckered out from sleeping training for 6 months {yes, 6 months!} that the past week she has given us 12 hours of sleep a night! 7pm-7am. Hallelujah! I hope it's here to stay. Here's what this big girl has been up to. 

She is so sweet in the first video. Second, eh, not so much. She definitely is capable of forming her own opinions on things. We've started signing with her this week in an attempt to limit this frustration on both ends. I feel kind of silly doing it for some reason.

leaves

Last year Jared and I were so far removed from color changing trees that we made our own. It's hard to find "fall" when you're living 20 blocks away from the beach. This year I have been so content watching the trees change colors and slowly shed themselves. It makes me so joyous that Ev and I have been collecting pretty leaves on our walks every day and bringing them home like a kindergartener. Here's what I've done with them.

You would have thought she woke up to Christmas morning when she got up. She has been captivated by them all day.

Last night when I was laying in bed I got some stomach twitches that kinda felt like baby kicks in my tummy. For a second I missed that feeling of life moving inside - the wonder, the excitement. But then I thought about how I'm really grateful I can sleep sprawled out on my front and don't have to find a restroom every 2.5 minutes. 

Vienna

I can't believe it is mid-October already. I definitely haven't eaten as many mellowcreme pumpkins as I should have by now for being so far in to the season.


Today was a good day. I felt super productive and organized. It's funny how now my idea of productive is as follows: Call insurance company, call again half hour later when they actually open, feed Ev solids, load laundry, vacuum, call mother-in-law, mall hunt for some solid knit tights for Ev, Target, fold laundry, pick Jared up from Metro, collect leaves from outside, read scriptures, make dinner, give baby bath and soak poopy clothes, put Ev to bed. Yeah, it takes 12 hours for me to do all that. And it's amazing how good I feel at night. The other week I posted on FB that I was a beast of a woman for carrying 5 bags of groceries up 3 flights of stairs with a 17 lb baby strapped to my front. I feel unsinkable at times like that too. Aaannnddd when Jared thanks me for all I do when he's the one working a job and going to school. 


Sometimes I get caught up in thinking that what I'm doing day to day isn't significant. And I find myself wondering if we'll ever get that house, when we'll have 5 kids already and if I'll make it back to London. To all that fretful wondering, Billy Joel says this: "Vienna waits for you." The house will be ours soon enough, filled with bustling children that will most likely drive me crazy and we'll be booking our European vacation in no time. All those things can wait. The trick is "to enjoy the journey now." 


So can I really count those things above as accomplishments? You betcha. And there are no two people I would rather spend my time with than my smiley two teeth girl and her dashing daddy. We make a great trio.

Fall.

It has arrived.

Favorite Evelyn Moments

She redeemed herself over the weekend. We're back to loving each other again. We mostly owe a big thank you to Jared for watching her for me many times Saturday and Sunday. And sorry about all the video postings. Sometimes it's better to watch life than read about it :) I'm in love with her face after she touches ice.

25 year storyboard

Yes Siree. I'm a quarter of a century today. As I thought about how I'm midway to 30 now, that creeped me out and made me feel really old. So I decided to think of myself as 25 years young and reflect on all that I've accomplished in my short life span thus far. It's quite remarkable actually. I'm not saying that I myself am remarkable, but that life is remarkable and time truly is a great gift. I am so humbled by the family I was raised in, the people I have met, the things I have learned, the places I have seen. This storyboard just illustrates the major chapters in my life, but it's in the nooks and crannies {all the stuff that "lives in my heart" you could say} where the good gems lie. Like playing Taco Bell in our backyard, family vacations, Dad making me special drink when I was sick, encouraging letters from a best friend, having a food fight in the parking lot in college, jogging in Hyde Park and having Jared come home late one night to open Ev's door and watch her sleep because he missed her. That's the good stuff.

Birthdays take on a whole new meaning now that I have actually given birth.

I am grateful for my parents today and for the life they gave me.

And to think my storyboard is just getting started! I hopefully have another 70 years left in me :)

Yay for 25 years!

the culprit.

Me and Ev's relationship is on the rocks right now. If you asked her, she would say that it's because I don't hold her enough, I make her take tylenol, and apparently the 3 collective hours I spend rocking her between 11pm and 5 am isn't cutting it. If you asked me, I would say it's because she's driving me insane. No matter how much love I give this girl, she puts on a whiny drama show. I'm worn out. Luckily she has an alibi in the case.  See those two shiny pearls sticking out of her gums?  That would be the culprit behind all this madness. They're barely there in the bottom photo, but boy are they real and coming in with a vengence. I'd say 70% of our days this week have been spent in tears and whining. No one warned me how bad this teething thing is. It makes you want to jump off a cliff. Oh, and crawling. Curse crawling! I hold her more now than I ever have before because she is constantly at my feet and I can't do a thing without her barking up my leg. Sheesh. Months 7 & 8 have been doozies. Thankfully we both find our happy place during bath time.

{oh, and I still VERY MUCH love her. we're just going through a rough patch.}

rainy day news

Is anyone else as ecstatic as we are that all these lovely people are coming back for one more season? So stoked! The Bluths have shaped us in so many ways. Some of our favorites are here, here, here, here, here and here.

Today was very very dreary. I heard on the news that 21 of the past 31 days have been rainy. Did we move to the northwest?! What's the deal. So naturally we did what any awesome family would do when cooped up inside and we ventured out to Costco. I was astounded that they already had the Christmas stuff up! I got giddy as I took Ev down the decoration aisle. You should have seen her - she was stroking the sparkly ornaments! I'm so excited for our first little family Christmas. Jared scoped out the kid toy scene. The little tikes these days have the most insane and expensive toys. Seeing that Evelyn is overjoyed when we hand her a plastic cup to play with, our kids will be getting Dollar Tree plastic dolls and figurines for the first couple of Christmases.

And what trip to Costco is complete without a little something sweet? We usually get the chocolate ice cream bar rolled in almonds, but with the weather being so cold we went for the warmest baked item - a churro. Costco should vend Hot Chocolate or Cider during the winter months. I bet it would be super delicioso.

Lovelies

Today I am swooning over ::

1. Chocolate Chip Cookies. I posted a couple of months ago that I couldn't bake Chocolate Chip Cookies for the life of me! I thought I was a failure. Turns out, it was my oven that was to blame and not my domesticity because our oven in our new place always bequeaths us with nice gooey and crisp morsels. I always feel fat after eating 5 but the next day I could eat double that after having put them in the freezer. Mentally, I feel like they're not as bad for you if they're cold. I tell myself that frozen fat isn't half as bad as rich warm fat.
2. That Pillow. Can you read it? "CRAP. I'm awesome." I need that.
3. How adorable is that foxy? I saw it on pinterest today and I just about died. That little critter would look so cuddly in Ev's arms. Ordering that pattern right away.
4. Our bed. Last night I told Jared that I like making our bed in the morning. It reminds me that someone shares the other half with me. And that's very special to be able to hold hands with someone while falling asleep.

***for the record, Voldemort has not been seen in 2 days. Ahhhh!

she could take the easy route...

but nah, she likes a challenge. It doesn't matter where she wants to go or what she wants to get, she will always ALWAYS climb OVER me to get to it. Props to her. She could go around or in most cases take a direct shot, but mama didn't raise a fool - Ev works hard for her money {or toys}, so hard for it honey, so I better treat her right.

Um...husband was on the computer doing school stuff all day, so that left me with only one thing to do. Snap a gabillion photos of Evy Rae. So be prepared for picture overload. I know, how much more loaded can this blog get of the babe but trust me, I have to stop myself from posting 5 times a day. She turned 8 months yesterday. Now that she's mobile her personality is really coming to life. That girl is a crack up. Me and her daddy don't know how we got along without her.