Tag Archives: mommyhood

food, home, mommyhood, random thoughts

Currently

4 Comments

I’m a little late on my Currently this week, but here it is! I’m linking up as usual with Becky over at Choose Happy! Join us and let us know what you’re up to currently!

currently button

Enjoying || a day at the lake! Hubby’s parents have a place on Lake Norman, which is about an hour from us. So last Thursday, we packed up and went down for the day to enjoy the sunshine! We are super excited to be going back this Thursday, also! 

          Writing || about pregnancy, delivery, and newborns. Some of these posts have already gone up (like this one on delivery), and some are coming soon! It’s been on my mind a lot, for obvious reasons, and writing about it for y’all helps me prepare myself, too! Since it’s my third time doing this, I’m not terrified or anything, but the more comfortable I am with the process of having, bringing home, and nurturing a newborn, the easier it will be in addition to keeping my older kiddos happy. It’s going to be a huge life shift (as it always is) to add another person to our family, so I’m preparing myself mentally and emotionally to make it happen!

Eating || the three meals from our free week of Blue Apron! My friend Lauren and her husband have been subscribing to the service for a few weeks, and had a free week to give away, so Hubby and I just finished our first round! For $59, you are sent every single thing you need to prepare three separate meals for two people each (or two meals for four people) and directions, etc to make it happen. They’re fairly quick (20-40 minutes prep and cooking time) and all three have been totally delicious! Our favorite thing about them was that we’d never have fixed those dishes or used some of those ingredients (I’m looking at you, ramps. What even are you, anyway?) except that they were given to us. We totally recommend it! 

    Thankful for || beautiful weather and kids who love to play outside! J runs toward the door every time it opens, hoping to catch a few minutes in the grass. When we pull in the driveway, he doesn’t want to go in the house… he just wants to stay outside! It’s great because they usually wear themselves out and nap really well – and who doesn’t love that?! 

      Well, that’s what we’re doing Currently in our family! What have you been up to?

mommyhood, things toddlers say

Things Toddlers Say

Leave a comment

Happy Tuesday, everyone! I hope you all had a great Memorial Day yesterday! Ours was very low-key, but still lovely. I have several hilarious treats for you today in this post… Enjoy!



Hubby and I have a Asian meal we love to eat when the weather’s warm, and he just calls it cold noodles. Basically, it’s chilled noodles in several Asian sauces/oils, with egg, ham, cucumber and bean sprouts. We gave EK her first bowl of the summer (she had eaten it before), and she took one bite, then whined: Mommy, warm up my food! (Face palm.)26

While cutting fingernails and toenails…
EK: Look, Mom!
Me, looking at a crescent-shaped fingernail clipping: What about it?
EK: It’s like a little crown! For Elsa!
Me: Hmm…
EK, pointing at a hang nail: Can you get this out?
Me: Sure! (Clipping it.)
EK: (gasps) You saved me!! (throws her arms around my neck) Could you also take my toenails off?
(This is code for toenail polish. When she wants it off her fingernails or toenails, she asks me to take the nails off. Yikes.)

When preparing one night to watch a little TV, EK: I wanna watch Docka Duffus!


She was trying to say Doc McStuffins, and she pronounced it duh-fuss instead of doo-fuss but it still literally made me cackle out loud, so she kept saying it and giggling, even though I don’t think she knew why it was making me laugh.

What happens when your threenager hears that your car’s in the shop…
EK: Yor car’s broken, Mom?
Me: Yeah. It’s broken right now. (Aka a currently unidentifiable reason.)
EK: You gotta get a fresh one!
Hilarious on so many levels.

After picking EK up from preschool, she taught me about a new cough remedy…
Me: You’ve got some snack left on your face! What did you have?
EK: Just yogurt. It made my cough go away!
(She didn’t have a cough, and I’m not sure why yogurt would’ve helped.)

What’s your toddler/preschooler/threenager been jabbering about this week?!

faith, mommyhood, My Big Jesus

My Kids Are Basically My Best Friends

7 Comments

This post also appeared on My Big Jesus!

I came to the realization the other day that my relationship with my kids is similar to that of best friends. Our level of closeness rivals that of Bert and Ernie or Thelma and Louise. I’ll tell you why. 

  
I talk to them more often than anyone else. When I’m constantly answering, “What’s that, mama?” and asking, “Are you ready for lunch?” I easily exceed one million words a day that’s we’ve exchanged. We literally talk about everything: foods we dislike, places we’ve left things, how bad our poops smell, and why we have to wear shoes to go to the playground.
I hold their hands a lot. We just love physical contact. Every time we’re in a parking lot, on a sidewalk, in a store, or crossing a street, we hold hands. We just can’t keep our hands apart.

We’re inseparable. I literally have one of my two best friends by my side all day long. We don’t even go to the bathroom alone! The only time they can bear to be separated from me is when they’re sleeping, and that’s only sometimes.

We know everything about each other. We’ve been in some seriously close situations together. Potty breaks, showers, laughing, crying and sleeping: we’ve done it all together.  There are very few things about each other we don’t know. For instance, we can read each others’ moods, get on each others’ nerves, and do the sweetest things for each other, all on purpose.

We love each other a lot, but bicker like an old married couple. We don’t agree on everything, and we’re completely honest about it. I don’t agree when they poop at inconvenient times or refuse to eat their vegetables. They don’t agree when I make them go to bed on time or share their toys. We aren’t afraid to speak our minds. Our family is a safe place, after all.

Having little stooges to share my life with is basically one of the best things I’ve ever decided to do. Now, if they’d just get old enough to swap off driving on our road trips, or pick up the groceries on their way home, we’d be all set.

mommyhood, things toddlers say

Things Toddlers Say

Leave a comment

It’s Tuesday, and time for some more hilarious things you might hear at our house! We’ve just caught back up with life after being out of town last week, and then attending several parties and events right when we got home. It’s been a blur!

  
Upon seeing my parents’ yard worker…
EK: Necie, look! A man!
A few minutes later…
EK: I wanna go watch the man!

EK: Mama! I have something I want to give to my Caroline! (She refers to this friend as “her” Caroline. Sweeties.)

EK: I’m sharing with my brother!
Me: Nothing makes me happier than when y’all share!
EK: Watch me share, mama! (She takes some apple off his plate.)
Me: Oh look, he’s sharing with you, too. (Eye roll.)

New song EK learned at the Y:
Ring around the rosey, pocketful of posies. Achoo! Achoo! We all fall down!

Me: Holy moly!
EK: Mama! Don’t say that word!
Me: Why not? I think “holy moly” is okay to say.
EK: No. It’s a bad one.

Last story… We had a babysitter spend the night with us this week, because she is in high school and we needed her kinda late on a school night. So I offered to take her to school in the morning. After we had dropped her off, EK asked every 30 minutes when we were picking her up from school, the last time being at 7:30pm. Apparently she thinks Lucy should live with us. 

What are the darnedest things your kids say?

faith, mommyhood, My Big Jesus

Potty Training Is Hard.

2 Comments

This post also appeared on My Big Jesus!

I guess the title sorta gives this one away, huh?

I’m not saying anything that tons of parents haven’t said before. The idea that potty training is hard is not new. But for some reason, it really hit home how hard it was when I had my first poop-in-big-girl-panties experience. And then the second.

  
Gross, am I right? Bleaching the underwear, making sure nothing ended up on the floor, trying to firmly scold without shaming said potty trainer… those things are all important. That last one most of all. I feel like I’m stuck in a lame cycle of “Mommy’s so proud you used the potty!” and “We’ll try harder next time.” when what I really want to do is shout, at the top of my lungs, “YOU JUST WENT – WHY DIDN’T YOU POOP THEN?!”

Okay fine. I’ve shouted it. This morning at 8:00am, I shouted it.

I don’t want to shame my daughter. I don’t want to scare her into using the potty. I’d like to her use it for a good reason, like it’s less messy, or it’s more fun (no, that isn’t a stretch). I want to help her do the right thing, whether it’s use that porcelain throne or not bite her brother (I mean, does he taste good or something!?), because she knows to make the right choice, not because she’s scared of what I’ll say or do.

We’re in a season of pushing limits, repeating what I say (THAT is scary, if you’re not a parenting of a talking child yet.) and coming into her own. I’ve learned I have to clean up my mouth, watch my actions, and not project bad feelings onto my kids. She asks if I’m sad or mad when she can tell I’m not happy. And sometimes, I don’t want her to have that feeling put onto her. Sometimes, I don’t really need her to know I’m totally fed up at cleaning her messes when I know good and well she’s able to tell me when she needs to go (she told me once on a farm and used a Port-A-John, for goodness sake). I don’t want her to think I’m disappointed in her.

As for right now, stuck in potty training hell and knowing I’ve got two more rounds to go, I’m trying to set a good example. Not just for the practical side, but also the emotional side. I want to respond to unfavorable situations positively. I want to be an example of grace as I help her correct her mistakes. I want to (figuratively and literally) clean up the mess, and try harder next time. We both need a little grace to be the best we can be.

mommyhood, parenting fails

Parenting Fail #9337: Peeing Outside

5 Comments

This week, we’ve been visiting my parents in Georgia. They have a pool in the backyard, so my kids have been in and out of it since the moment we pulled in the driveway – literally. We got out of the car, and my parents were chilling on the porch, so of course my kids walked over, saw the pool, and flipped out. It was about 8:00pm, but still light out (summer!) so we just stripped them down, put on their Puddle Jumpers (If y’all don’t know about those, they are lifesavers. No pun intended.) and let them jump in. It was a nice stress release after a looooooong drive. Anyway…

So my kids have been spending lots of time out on the porch, or in the driveway, or walking laps around the house, checking out the nature scene. They’ve also been doing a lot of not really wearing clothes (once again, summer!). I mean, J in a diaper and a shirt, or EK in just her undies, it’s been hot, who cares?

So yesterday afternoon, we were all out on the porch, and EK had gotten out of the pool and gotten back into just her undies. She was playing with some magnetic letters, and all the sudden I look over and this is happening:

 She’s squatting, watching herself pee, right through the undies, right onto the deck. I just started laughing so hard I couldn’t even tell her to stop! My friend Lauren looked over, and started laughing too, and when Hubby came back outside, I was still laughing so hard I could barely speak. I had literally asked her if she needed to go potty less than five minutes before that. I was a little disappointed, but it was too hilarious for me to care much. Especially because she was proud she’d watched herself go…

 This whole potty training thing has been one of the most entertaining things I’ve ever done with EK. And she’s communicating more and more, so her bathroom commentary is hilarious.

Have you ever had a hilarious potty training fail? Tell me about it!

mommyhood, things toddlers say

Things Toddlers Say

2 Comments


Happy Tuesday! A little life update for ya… on Sunday, we took the road trip from hell to get to Georgia to see my family for a few days. A six hour trip turned into a nine hour trip… needless to say, Monday was a day of recuperation. Or should’ve been. Or whatever. Anyway, we’re here and having a great time! We’ll post some pictures soon.

We went last week for EK’s 3-year check up at the doctor, and came away with a couple of gems, and they’ve been repeated several times since then:

EK: Dr. Rainey says big girls poop in the potty! Like mommy!

EK (with her doctor’s kit in hand): Can I give you a check up? You’re going to be just fine.

One day, getting in the car, Hubby was strapping EK in, and must have pinched her leg a bit: Daddy! You pinched my leg! This is your last chance!

EK, to our babysitter: mommy and daddy are going on a gate.
Babysitter: what do they do on their date?
EK: eat dessert!

EK: My eyes are blue!
Me: actually, your eyes are hazel, just like daddy’s.
(A little while later) EK: my eyes are basil, just like daddy!

J, putting on a tiara: Hat! (He knows boys don’t typically wear tiaras!)

EK, mid road trip to GA: mom! I’m NOT gonna pee in my pull-up!
Me: Great choice, sweetie! I’m so proud!
EK: I have to potty NOW!
Me: Ryan, find a Starbucks! NOW!! (They typically have clean bathrooms.)

Me: Can you tell Necie (my mom) Happy Mother’s Day?
EK: Necie! It’s happy Mother’s Day!

Picking strawberries with my aunt Jan and my mom…
EK: Can I have some ice cream? (They were selling fresh strawberry ice cream)
Me: It’s almost time for lunch. Maybe after lunch!
(A little later, Jan is eating her ice cream.)
EK: Can I have some ice cream?
Jan: Sure, you can have a bite of mine!
EK: No! I want my own!
Jan: I think yours is inside and you can have it later.
EK, coming inside with Jan: Can I have a bite of your ice cream?
Jan: I just finished it….

Hope everyone has a great week!

faith, mommyhood, My Big Jesus, pregnancy, siblings

I’ll Miss Just Having Two.

8 Comments

This post also appeared on My Big Jesus! 

I AM SO EXCITED about this third child we’re going to welcome into our family. We prayed for him (a lot… that story is here.) and have been waiting and waiting for him to arrive. We knew we wanted him from the get-go. We’ve always said we wanted three or four kids, so we knew he was in our plan. We were not (all that) surprised when I found out I was pregnant, and we have not been a bit disappointed since finding out. Now. That being said…

I’m going to miss just having two kiddos.


Today, the three of us were on a walk. We were, as always, in my double jogger (Love it. Gotta have it. Couldn’t have lived my life this far without it.) just cruising the neighborhood with snacks and water bottles, talking about the color of the car that just drove by, the kinds of foliage we passed, and enjoying the not-too-hot-yet sunshine. I had a thought as we rounded the corner towards home: Our days doing this are numbered. Not necessarily because we won’t be able to stroll around the neighborhood any more. But because I’ll either be carrying one on my back/front, or letting EK walk beside the stroller (ie: freaking out that she’ll be running into the street at any moment) or having someone else to come with us to push another single stroller or push mine while I wear the baby. Hubby goes on walks with us fairly often, but usually it’s special time for the three of us. Soon, for a little while at least, our walks will be cut short because baby D will need to nurse, or he’ll have a blowout, or I will just plain be too tired for an hour-long walk like today’s.

I know – this seems like a first world problem, along with things like “Do I need to buy a different car to fit all those child seats?” and “It’s going to be tough getting out the door with three jackets and sets of shoes to put on.” I know that these phases are short. The time with these kids being so young and needy will fly, and I may even look back and wish it was still here.

But my walk this afternoon with my two amazing, curious, adorable sweeties shed some light on my feelings and changed how I’ll look at these last 12 weeks before my due date. I won’t try to rush through them. I won’t spend all my time preparing for the next baby – like I would have been able to anyway, right? I’ll be thankful for the time that I can lavish on my eldest two. I’ll cherish the one-on-one time I have with J while EK is at preschool. I’ll enjoy the long walks with just the two of them. I’ll love the girls’ lunch dates I like to have with just EK, or sometimes a girlfriend or two. I’ll love playing on the floor, amidst the giggles and tickles, right before bedtime. I’ll do everything I can with my two before I’ll be splitting my attention with another little sweetie who needs me.

mommyhood, siblings

Emotional, Evolving, Steadfast Motherhood

6 Comments

Mothers.

If you could have told me about the feels you have when you join their ranks, I wouldn’t have believed you.

I’ve always been a sensitive person. I’ve cried at silly things my whole life – and of course that hasn’t changed. Books, movies, heartfelt cards and sappy songs all make me cry a little and always have. But moments… they’re what make me tear up nowadays. Little moments, like when my daughter reaches out to hold my hand while we watch a show before bed. Or last night, when Hubby kissed me goodbye as he was leaving for work, my son turned in my lap to give me a smooch on the lips as well. I couldn’t have made that moment up. I cried right there on the spot.

These moments of motherhood are precious and fleeting. They feel numerous and few all at the same time. They can sometimes be trumped by moments of frustration or hurry or tiredness. They can be a little tiny thing that happens every day, and we don’t realize just how magical it is until it stops. Those moments of a milk-drunk newborn as you lay his limp body in the bassinet. The early giggles of an infant whose chubby cheeks jiggle with every laugh. The first few times your child forms the words “I love you.”

In my three short years of motherhood, I am amazed by what I am constantly learning, and doing, and already missing. I am beside myself with excitement over having a new baby in the house again in three months, but I still have a little sadness mingled with my pride when I think about how big my first two “babies” are now. I am thrilled by my children’s personalities and abilities. I am bursting with happiness when I’m simply watching them be themselves.

I am blessed by these kids. I am blessed by the opportunity to be their mom. I am terrified by the responsibility to raise them to be kind and compassionate, not to mention functioning members of society. I am scared to death for them to grow up and not need me anymore. My identity is wrapped up in them without being solely theirs. I am a mother. I’ve been a mother of babies. I am the mother of toddlers. I will be the mother of three. I will be the mother of teenagers, of college students, of adults. I will be a grandmother. Our situation is constantly changing, yet always steady. I am their mother. The mother of my children. The mother of my amazing, beautiful, silly, growing, changing, sometimes frustrating and always loved children.

427894_829986134153_1659442766_n
Elena Kathleen, at one day old.The little gal who made me a mama.
1421263_10100249647077233_1107151579_o
Joseph Stevens, at one day old, meeting his big sister.

 

mommyhood

I’m not ready yet!

2 Comments

Last night, it happened. Instead of wanting a snuggle and a song tonight, J just wanted to go to bed.

I wasn’t ready for this. He’s my baby! My little tiny boy, who loves snuggles and kisses and resting his head on mama’s chest while she sings!


Granted, he was totally pooped. We had had dinner at our friends’ house, where he also jumped on the trampoline and chased the dog all night. He was more exhausted than normal at bedtime. He even ran amok around the basement right up until the moment I scooped him up and went into his dark bedroom. When I leaned over the crib to get his swaddle, he just sort of lurched forward into the crib – to be honest, I almost lost my hold on him and dropped him in there for real. He just reached down in there, and so I said, “Do you want to just lay down?” and he answered in his little “yes” grunts.

Breaking a mama’s heart.

After I read and sang to EK (at least someone needs it!) I texted my friend Ginna (whose house we had been at), and told her about it. Her response? Yay for another little one on the way, and I will get snuggles for months. That’s a good friend with the perfect reminder! But still… here’s hoping that it was just a fluke, and he’ll still need some snuggles tonight. I’m not ready for my baby to be a big boy.