Here we are

Hello from your long lost blogging mom.  I know it has been forever.  Every time I get my computer out it is either to work on Jazzercise or to remote in to the Nursery to work.  I swore I would not make Carter’s 2 year post more than a month past his birthday, so I am down to the wire now. 

I do have a good excuse… jazzercise, mommy, accountant for the nursery and now I added another job to the mix.  We have been pretty slow at the nursery and to be honest I was just getting board with it.  I love the flexibility of being about to stay home with the kids, but I also really enjoy working.  I like to work my mind.  Anyhow with winter around the corner I decided to look around for a part time job.  I sent a few resumes and did not really hear back for a few weeks – I just figured the job market was really as bad as they say.  Then all the sudden EVERYONE called.  I went on 5 interviews, but only two were really what I wanted to do.  I felt very fortunate to get offers from multiple places – I really hard a hard time deciding between the two.  I went for a company here very close to home called JC Moag.  They manufacture store fixtures and glass.  Their big customer is JC Penneys.  I am doing all the accounting, HR and IT because I am the only one that really knows the accounting software.  The position is just what I was looking for.  I can pretty much work when and how much I want as long as the job get done.  I am really enjoying it!  Adam has been staying home with the kids on what used to be my days home.  He told me the other day that going to work 40 hours a week is way easier than staying home – ha!!!!  He has been doing a great job.  He did all the cleaning last week and he has had dinner ready most nights.  Thanks daddy, for all your help – you are the best!!!!    

Homework

Since kindergarten is just around the corner we decided we better step it up with the ‘homework’.  For the past couple week we have been working on flash cards at bed instead of reading some nights.  I CANNOT believe the improvement.  Honestly, Adam will work with them one night and the next night it amazes me at how much they picked up.  They can now identify all upper and lowercase letters and they are staring to put letters together to spell words.  Aidan spelled CAT today.  Aaron was a little behind, but they are both right on the letter identification.  Aidan can write his name and copy other words.  Aaron writes his name backwards.  It is really cute, and I am not stressed that he is a little behind.  Everyone learns at their own speed and I have to refrain for comparing them. 

Now that we have the letters down I bought number flash cards last week.  They picked these up quickly… they are my children (smile).  That is with one exception….  the number 15.  We must have counted 1-20 about 50 times the other night and both of them go 13, 14, 16, 17… EVERY single time.  We worked on it with flash cards and actually counting things and it just is not clicking.  It truly makes me appreciate teachers, because it is enough to make me go crazy. 

Aidan and Aaron still both ask LOTS of question, they always have.  It is really hard to tell yet how book smart they will be.  Adam and I are so different it will be interesting.  I am the analytical one – science and math all the way.  Adam is a big reader and he loves history and he retains information like I cannot believe.  Aidan is very ‘street smart’ and they way he builds you can see he is analytical.  And oh my Aaron, he sweetest thing ever but he is definitely the light hair child of the family.  Seriously he walks in to walls and falls for no reason at all.  And he always gets up with a big goofy smile on his face.  Aaron will cruise through life with his sweetness and charm.  

Belt testing

The boys were eligible for belt testing at karate to move up to an orange belt.  In order to pass they have to be able to say their tiny tiger pledge, which they have been able to do for a while and they have to follow a black belt for a series of moves.  I spoke with the instructor after class one day and asked him is they were both totally ready.  He said Aidan was, but he was a little hesitant about Aaron.  Now I know they are never going to be the same, but I still think they are a little too young to understand if one of them passed and the other did not.  It was like when Aaron was not tall enough to ride the rides and Aidan was – it broke my heart.  Anyhow, we decided to wait until next belt testing so they would both be totally ready. I am sure we will be faced with a lot of these type situations as they grow up and we will deal with each as they come.  

Happy 30th mommy

I am officially 30.  The day seemed to come and go.  Adam and I had big plans to have a weekend getaway, but the logistics get a little too complicated.  Plus, we have yet to both be away from the boys and we are both not totally ready for that yet.  It always sounds goo, but when we start planning we always go to plan B.  So plan B was just to go to Brown County for the day.  We dropped the kids off at school and headed to Brown County for a day of shopping.  Adam was such a trooper and went in almost every store with me.  We got lots of Christmas shopping done and got some new decorations.  We had a nice lunch, finished up shopping and headed to the outlets.  We did not find much at the outlets, so we decided to head home to finish up the day with a nice dinner out.  Well… so we thought.  Our one-hour drive ended up taking three hours because a semi flipped and they closed the freeway.  A parking lot of traffic, no cell service, and no dinner – I was a little disappointed.  But when we got home they were still up and I got to kiss the loves of my life goodnight. 

My night ended with lots of tears.  Uncle Gary put together a slide show of about 50 photos of the boys since they were babies.  I have pictures on the walls, but when you see those candid photos – where did my babies go????  Carter is still my little guy, but I don’t have to reach down anymore to hold the boys hand, and they are going to kindergarten next year.  I really have to work on letting go.

Anyhow, we celebrated my birthday with cake and ice cream the next day.  The boys were very concerned that we did not have cake, so Adam went out the next day to get one.  Thanks to all my boys for making my day so special!!!  

Happy Halloween

Halloween this year turned out to be almost a weeklong event.  It started Thursday night with the Halloween party at Karate.  Aidan and Aaron had Power Ranger costumes (surprise, surprise) and Carter had three cute little costumes to chose from, a lion, dinosaur or a giraffe.  But those were a big fat no.  Instead Adam had to cut the arms and legs on the boys White Ranger dress up costume to fit Carter.  He was so excited and ran around doing his ranger moves and making karate sounds like the boys do in class. 

The next day was Aidan and Aaron’s preschool Halloween party.  Adam got them all off to school and called to tell me that Carter was so upset that he could not wear his costume that he ended up letting him wear it to the sitters.

On Halloween we had tickets to the Derby Dinner Playhouse to see Winnie the Pooh.  The kids got to wear their costumes.  The play was great and it was so nice for us all to have a day together without running to the next thing to do.  It seems like if we ever have a relaxing day the days around it are just completely crazy busy.  After derby dinner we went home for nap, rested up and headed out for trick-or-treat.  Carter rode along in the wagon.  He would get out every few houses to refill his bag, then he would get in the wagon to resume eating – it was too funny.  Aidan and Aaron were so independent.  They just went house-to-house… well they ran house to house and got entirely too much candy.

Happy belated birthday to my baby boy

Ok Carter I am going to freeze you in time because you are my baby and I need you to stay that way forever.  I think we have pretty much decided against no more kids so I really hanging on to my baby Carter.  He is so rotten and he knows he can get away with murder with me.  All he has to do is look at me and he melts my heart.  He still has a passie at night and he walks around with his stuffed giraffe and I think it is the cutest thing ever!!!  He is such a little peanut.  Only in the 10%, no complaints here.   

However he has the attitude of a 13 year old.  He sees his big brothers do all this stuff and he thinks he should be able to do the same.  He wants to drink out of a big cup, pick out his own food, pick out his clothes and shoes, pick out his own books, and pick out the movie he wants to watch.  Carter only cuddles on his clock.  At night the most rocking you can get in one book and one song, after that he hops down and takes the book and walks to bed.  Speaking of bed we are through the transition to the toddler bed.  We ended up putting the gate up at his door.  We had a few ‘cry it out’ nights, but it only took a few and our good sleeper is back.  We are older and wiser with this one.  He has started saying ‘hold me’, but usually only when he needs to be lifted up to get something – like a snack out of the cabinet.

He has started talking a lot now.  He even tells on his big brothers.  I cannot even think how to write what he calls him but it is the cutest thing ever.  He puts both of their names together and it is always garbled with a lot of other words.  When he wakes in the morning he stands at the gate and calls Mom, Dad and if we don’t answer quickly enough he starts to call for Aidan and Aaron.  For the most part we can understand what he is saying.  Last week he started answering “yes, no” to questions, instead of just yes or no.  You would say, Carter do you want some milk and he says, “yes, no”.  Not sure where he got this from, but it is pretty funny. 

I have to admit, we might be in trouble if we had two Carters.  He does things that the boy would never have known to do, but he just soaks in everything they do.  He moves the stool to the counter to get a snack.  He will move the laundry basket, turn it over and use it as a stool to get things that we try to keep out of his reach.  I have seen him hit, kick and push the boys.  He ALREDY says ‘no’ with an attitude.  Half the time he refuses to sit in the cart at the grocery because he wants to walk with Aidan and Aaron.  We do not go out to dinner much with all of them, because when Carter is done eating, that means it is time to go. I have to admit peaceful meals out are the one thing I miss.  I used to not think twice about taking Aidan and Aaron to a nice meal.  They would color, read, play with their toys and let us finish our meal.  Not Carter, he has to have food in front of him the second we sit down and when he is done he clears the table with his arm.  And a few meals he decided to scream, not cries, just very loud screams.  I think with the boys they just had all of our attention, so it worked out.   We went to Cracker Barrel the other night and all the kids got pancakes.  Our food came we had to cut all the pancakes up – two of us and three plates of pancakes – someone is always waiting.  So by the time we got everyone settled and started eating they were almost done.  You see we are outnumbered now – the logistics don’t work so smoothly now.  Long story short, we eat at home a lot more now – ha!!!

Happy Birthday baby boy – my little man – I love you so very, very much.  

Happy Birthday Carter

Carter’s party was such a hit this year. I decided I was done with the at home birthday parties and we booked a party at Gymboree Play and Music. I have to say it was our best party yet. They had 45 min in the play area and 45 min for cake, ice cream and presents. Carter got lot of “man, man, man” (Spiderman stuff) and he was one happy camper. Nan, papa, Alana and the kids came to town for the party. After the party Nan ad Papa treated us all to dinner at Red Robin for more celebrating.

Here are photos from the party. Our guests were, Nan, Papa, Nonnie, Michelle, Lindsey, Papa, Carol, Gaga, Rita, Michael (cousin), Alana, Luke, Logan, Dane, Max and Cooper (our Jazzercise friends), Lydia, Maddie, and your bubs.