Shoes, Shoes, and more Shoes!

I feel like I am buying the kids shoes every month. This summer alone, Larkin has gone from a size 6.5-7 in April to an 8.5 by mid July. Considering you pretty much have to buy the shoes in half sizes, that's 4 sets of shoes! That's one reason why I love the crocs- they come in a size range. Granted, sometime they seem way too big or way too small, especially if they are in that awkward in between size (they wear a 7.5 and crocs come in a 6-7 or 8-9). For the most part though, I feel like these are the only shoes with a little longevity! That said, I feel like they can run/jump/walk/etc... better in shoes with a bettere soul and support. Larkin is into her "Fancy Nancy" shoes (Fancy Nancy is her favorite book these day which is about a girl who love to be fancy and gets frustrated because her family isn't fancy at all). She only wants to wear shoes that are bright with some sort of sparkle. Her opinions on her shoes are really pretty funny. Today, she wore hud's old bumble bee galoshes everywhere (in my opinion a poor shoe choice for a day in the mid 90's!). Hudson had been a little easier. In the last year, he's only grown from a size 11 to a 12, so I feel a little better about getting him shoes. He picked out a pair of Nike shoes today because he thought they would make him run faster and jump higher than his friends. He's got this inner competitiveness that I just don't know what to do with. Regardless, I think it was a good choice for him. Shoes are also one of those things that I feel guilty going cheap on. I want to protect their arches and give their feet support... you know, all those things they convince you of when you are in Stride Rite. I don't want to be that parent who ruins their kid's feet! So we usually end up going for the sale shoes in the good stores. Luckily, Brooke is still going around barefoot everywhere.
On another note, Brooke was diagnosed with hand foot and mouth disease... poor little BrookeBrooke has 3 little sores on her throat... sad. I'm glad to know that her lack of sleeping for the last three nights was for a reason though and not a phase she is going through. She has literally been waking up every hour crying. I'm so so so very tired!! Hand foot and mouth sounds so disgusting, probably because it sounds like that deadly hoof and mouth disease that cows got... wasn't that a bad thing there for awhile? I can't really remember, but alas I think it just sounds gross. On top of all that today I woke up with one eye swollen shut. It's freaking poison ivy on my eyelid and right under my eye.. yeah that's right... a nice addition to the dark bags of no sleep under my eyes... an itchy, red, swollen shut right eye. Sadly, that's my good eye, so I can't see very well either! Good times. I vow to never weed the back yard again, and I curse my hubby for not telling me I was weeding poison ivy while we were in the backyard together. I just hope the kids don't get it. It could be worse though I guess... it could be pink eye.

Another Pottery Barn Kids Coincidence

So... in one of my earlier posts I talked about my kids' names and the coincidence of them showing up in the Pottery Barn Kids catalog... so here is another one. We changed Miller's name to Brooke right... I just got the catalog in the mail yesterday, and guess what the name of the new bedding collections is.... you got it... the Brooke collection!! Really! I also turned the page and guess what name is monogrammed on every towel, pillow, and lunchbox.... BROOKE! Seriously... I know Brooke is a common name, but this is really the fourth time this has happened. I'm thinking of writing a letter just to tell them how funny it all is.

Favorite Thing #10

Baby Legs!

These fun leg warmers are great! They offer light weight sun protection, make diaper changes easier, are good for moving from air conditioning to the hot outdoors, are great knee protection for tummy time, and really are just too cute! They come in all sorts of colors are go from newborn up to 10 years old (so it says) all with one size. I got mine from Target in Hilton Head. I haven't seen them at out Target here in VA, but I did find them at a couple of boutiques.

I just saw these on little Zahara Jolie-Pitt in one of my trash gossip mags (another of my personal favorite things) ... they must be cool! She had these stripe ones too...

Good Times at the Beach

We had a great time in Ocean City, MD this past weekend. It was one of those spontaneous decide on Thursday night leave Friday trips that actually went well. It was over 100 degrees here in C'ville so we just decided to get out of town. The beach had a great breeze, Brooke had her first real beach experience sitting in the sand, Hudson had a few good "wipe outs" (his new favorite words), and Larkin set her self up with snacks, water and her very own little chair. Here are a few pictures of the weekend. Gregor's mom and I went to see Mama Mia. I have to say, I loved it! Although for the next couple of days (even now really) I just want to sell everything and move to Greece or some place like it and run a Bed and Breakfast. I want to wear my bathing suit everyday in 70 degree weather and rent scooters for the dirt roads. I want my kids to run around an island jumping off rocks and taking boats out and about. It just looked so fantastic. Maybe I should even use my degree and just study the coast somewhere fun with the family. That's always how I pictured my life... it makes me wonder how I ended up in the middle of Virginia. Today I want to move. Tomorrow I will probably love it here again because Charlottesville and Crozet really are great places to raise kids and settle, but as for today, I'm thinking Greece.

Keeping it Real

My friend Rebecca is on this "Keep it Real" kick. Here is an excerpt from her blog: I also have a new aim to keep it real. No, I don't want to confess all my weaknesses to you, but I don't want to be plastic either. Plastic? You know what I mean . . those plastic images we all hold up for each other to see . . . I am perfect, I have a perfect life, My kids are perfect, I can handle anything without a nervous breakdown, therapy or antidepressants, blah blah blah. Why are we thinking that we are actually expected to do everything perfectly, on-time and with a grosgrain ribbon and a hand made custom stamped card attached? Sometimes I have experienced reading a friends blog vowing to NEVER go back. I leave feeling bummed out because they just said how fabulous and wonderful their entire life is and maybe I have just had one of those mornings where I feel that had there been a nanny camera in my house with Social Services on the other end I may have just been declared an unfit mother and my living room may have been classified as a national disaster zone. I do not want to be that blog. Please tell me if I am not being real. I don't want to be negative or crude but I don't want to be plastic either. Feel free to join me on my 'Keeping it Real' campaign.

This is my favorite video of Hudson just for that reason. Most videos show the kids in all their adorableness... their milestones or just cute times. This moment is of Hudson when he was about 2 and a half. He would only nap in the car at the time, and everyday he woke up in the worst mood. This day I captured the tantrum on video to show him how silly he was being (he loves watching movies of himself). We still watch it and laugh to this day.

Favorite Thing #9

I was just giving Brooke a bath tonight and I was thinking how much I loved the smell of her shampoo and conditioner. It's made by Rainbow. They have this cherry vanilla scent that is amazing, and their original scent is great too. The detangling conditioner actually works (unlike most I've tried) even on Hud's crazy dread head. They sell a fantastic body wash , hand soap, and bubble bath as well. Most if not all of their products are organic and they don't test on animals. LOVE IT!

Existential Angst

Hudson had his first taste of existential angst today. We drove past a huge cemetery on the way to the park. Hudson asked me what it was. I told him that it was a cemetery where people are buried when they die. A few moments go by and Hudson started to cry in the back. I didn't understand why until he settled down and asked me if he was going to die. I told him that everyone has to die sometime. This only upset him more. He started begging me to tell him what he could do to live forever and forever... it was so sad! Then he told me that when he dies he doesn't want anyone to bury him. He wants to live in our house forever and go with us everywhere, but that he doesn't have to buckle up in the car because he would be dead already. This just about broke my heart. He's Four! This must be a milestone of some kind... understanding existence. I think I need to do a little reading to figure out how to deal with his questions in an age appropriate way. It really got to him though. At lunch he told me that he thought eating would make him die so he wasn't going to eat. I tried to explain to him that eating his fruits and veggies would help him live longer, but eating in general was necessary. Then we had to talk about how long we live... how we age. Hud decided he didn't want to get older anymore. A little later he decided that he needed to call Dad to get his take on it. Talking life and death with a four-year-old is really tough. Luckily, Larkin didn't chime in with her 25 "why" questions in a row. Does anyone have any advise for dealing with this?

Brooke's Big Day

Brooke had a big day today. She can finally sit up. I don't know what happened... this morning she couldn't stay sitting for more than 3 seconds. When she woke up from her nap this afternoon she could sit for 15 plus minutes by herself! She also ate an entire jar of sweet potatoes (another first). Brooke had her six month checkup today and she's weighing in at 15 lbs 4 oz and 26.5 inches.... she's a petite little thing which is funny considering her parents. Finally, and most importantly, Brooke got her first Pebbles ponytail today.

Last night Brooke slept through the night for the first time!! 6:45 pm until 6:00 AM... can't beat that. I think that was my first 6 hours of consecutive sleep in over a year! My boobs were crazy this morning though. At the first sign of a cry they were spraying all over the place.

A Mom's Reflex

Some mom instincts and reflexes are amazing. The way a mom can wake up literally 2 seconds before her baby starts to cry during the night, how you can catch a child the second before they hit the ground from a trip or a falling chair, catching a sippy cup, or anything for that matter, as it's about to tumble off the highchair are examples of the superpowers that you get when you become a mother. The one I don't understand is the instinct to catch vomit as it is coming out of your child's mouth. Take today for example. I'm sitting in our local ice cream shop and everyone is happily eating their vanilla cups with brownies and sprinkles (we banned cones last week as they were putting me beyond the edge of sanity). All the sudden Larkin turns to me and says ugggg.... what do I do you ask?? I'm nursing Brooke with one hand as my other hand flies out to catch the barf that spews out of Larkin's mouth. How did I know she was going to barf... and why... oh why... did I feel the urge to catch it. It must be genetic, because I have vivid memories of my mom catching more than her fair share of vomit (once, in my most humiliating moment, my mom caught my barf in her jacket at a restaurant only to have it ricochet around the entire restaurant... and when I say entire... I mean Everywhere! There was not a server around as no one wanted to be tasked with cleaning it up. I think the restaurant had to comp every one's meal after that!). The think is, you can't catch a full tummy's worth of vomit in your hands so why do we try? I'm going to work on curbing this reflex. This is not the first time I've caught it in my hands, but it was definitely the most complicated cleanup.

More photoshop attempts

Here are a couple more of my attempts after Rebecca's lessons... I think I like it! As a side note.. I have to wonder why Hud has a major aversion to clothes. Every time I turn around he's naked. He thinks wearing his shirt in his car seat will hurt. Today, he decided that he didn't want his shorts either. This is making drives extremely frustrating because whenever we get out of the car, he basically has to get dressed... grrr... shirt shoes box of star wars men. It's driving me bananas. But, it's either let him take his freaking shirt off or listen to him screaming for the entire drive. Good times.

Cool Photoshop Tricks

My friend Rebecca was teaching me a few tricks with photoshop yesterday to enhance my photos and to do the cool black and white/color combo photos like that one from the wedding (I didn't do that one... our friend Jake did... I'm learning though. I'll try to post my next effort). I was just messing around with this photo this afternoon... I think it's really fun! Just another procrastination tool for me.

Happy 6 months Brooke!

Happy Half-Year Birthday Brooke!

BMP is 6 months old today and is cuter than ever. She is so active already. She can scoot and roll with the best of them. She loves to eat paper and her Baby Mum-Mums (thanks auntie Cat...we can't get enough of these). We are trying solids (after the doctor told us that she needs to pick up a few ounces), but the only thing she really likes are those mum-mums (which I don't think really count as a solid) and plain yogurt. She really doesn't like the cereals and will only have one or two bites of the jar food. I was sad to see that my favorite baby food (Healthy Times Organic Jars) are no longer sold at whole foods. Anyhow, Brooke is really developing her personality. Gregor and I think she is the most smiley of all the kids... which is crazy considering how fussy she was for the first three or four months! She is so laid back these days. I am glad we decided to change her name. I feel really good and content with that decision. It seems so natural now. I see Miller and I really have no attachment to it anymore. Brooke is so fitting. We call her babbling Brooke these days because she loves exploring her voice. She has a thing for pulling hair and will go after it any chance she gets! Her hair is getting so long! We are going to have to decide bangs or no bangs for her pretty soon. What do you think? Looks to me she might have inherited mom's large forehead and may be a candidate for bangs. For now we are just putting barrettes in it. She is taking her third nap in a row in her crib!! Oh Yeah! knock on wood... knock on wood. She has literally not had a nap in her crib Ever so this is really a breakthrough. I don't know what happened. I put her in there yesterday and boom she slept for an hour and half. I tried it again this morning and this afternoon... and what do you know... naps!! That said, everyone is waking up now. Happy birthday Baby Brooke. We love you.

NY Wedding

We got back last night from Gregor's brother's wedding. Lucas and Cassandra got married on July 5th at the Emerson Lodge in Woodstock NY. It was a beautiful nature themed ceremony. Cassandra looked beautiful with herbs in her hair and no shoes while Lucas looked handsome and relaxed. Gregor was the best man and Hudson and Larkin carried the rings. They did such a good job, although they walked with aisle with very serious looks on their faces. All in all, I think it was successful. Late weddings and kids just don't really mix though. I spend most of the Friday night and Saturday night in the bathroom with my book and computer. We were in a hotel so that was the only way I could keep the light on while the kids slept. I hear everyone had a blast though both nights. Sadly, I couldn't see any fireworks from the bathroom window on the 4th and I missed the tequila shots and swimming at 2 AM on Saturday... the pictures look fun though. Brooke was a trooper. She smiled at everyone and ultimately passed out on my shoulder. I think it was a beautiful wedding. Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Patsch! Yea I have a new sister. We all had fun with Oma and Opa as well. The kids especially enjoyed the Bear Mountain Zoo. I'll have to put pictures of that up later. It's the perfect size zoo for the kids. Not too crowded and you can pretty much walk the entire thing in an hour. Good times. So, that's about it. We are trying to regroup and reorganize at home. I think we are pretty much home for the rest of the summer.