ONE!!!

He's 1!!

A big one year old toddler (who isn't quite toddling) today!!

I could go on about how weepy I am that my baby has gotten so big so fast. Or how quickly it's all gone by. Or what a difficult year it's been. I'll refrain.

I'll focus instead on all the cute things he's doing now: pulling up, grabbing things, saying things that almost sound like words. I know the next few months will be a developmental explosion and each stage will be more fun than the last. He now interacts with his brother and sister so much more; watching them together is such a joy.

The big kids decided that we should celebrate at Chuck E Cheese tonight and so we shall. The birthday bash is this weekend (praying for good weather), so we'll spend the rest of the week reveling in our big Mr. Bunch. We love you.

The Notebook

If you've been in my house lately, OK, ever, you probably wouldn't peg me as a freak for organization. That particular gene never really entered my body, and I have all but given up trying to control kid clutter. It's pointless. They can make messes faster than I can clean them up, or yell at them to clean them up. However, there are a few things that I get kind of anal about. OK, very few.

After we closed on the house a couple of weeks ago, I decided that I need a central repository for ideas, information, phone numbers, catalogs, lists, lots of lists, lists of lists, etc. that would accompany the purchase, decorating, moving, and other processes. At the same time, I needed to use the above materials for a design team project at The Untamed Scrapper. So, voila, two birds have been killed with one batch of paint, paper and adhesive.

These days, you'll usually find the notebook not far from wherever I happen to be. I've gotten some funny looks from people (like the cute closet designer at The Container Store who looked like Mike the hunky plumber on Desperate Housewives, but was impressed by the accuracy of my closet measurements) and my darling husband openly makes fun of me. Mock away folks. I don't care.

I like my notebook. It makes feel like I have somewhat of a handle on at least one aspect of my totally chaotic life. I like carrying around something that I made myself, that no one else has. And I love what it represents: that after 8+ years of waiting, the 5 of us are finally creating our own little nest. One that is ours alone (um, along with the bank), that has plenty of room for us to live, play, relax, and grow in. One that we can paint and decorate however we like, where we'll be proud to host family and friends.

As the notebook gets filled, it's becoming a document of our little process. It'll showcase our tastes and desires. The things we spend money on and those we can't. It will be a reference for when I need someone's phone number, or a paint color , or a receipt.

Each day, our lives are becoming more crazy as we get ready to move. But as I enter each photo, each telephone number (and each invoice) into my little notebook, it holds the craziness at bay for just one second. And some days, that one second is about as good as it's going to get.

In a Fog...In the Middle of a Hurricane

Maybe I'm whining, maybe I'm being a baby, but I have SO MUCH going on that it's making my head spin.

The house has been bought and closed on. We are in the middle of getting some stuff done inside which requires meeting contractors, coordinating times, supplies, prices, etc. We need some furniture. We need to figure out what colors to paint. We need to move 10 rooms and a cluttered garage full of stuff and haven't even started the process. All this costs money. Although we're excited about it all, we're not excited about the cost, and less so about the prospect of credit card debt on top of our brand spanking new mortgage.

I got sick. Getting better, got some meds, but it took its toll for a few days.

I've got a baby with a first birthday coming up. A party is required and will be thrown. In the middle of a move. Just because he's the 3rd and we're moving doesn't mean he doesn't get his first birthday party.

I've got 3 kids, with only 1 in school every day. Every single thing that needs to be done is made harder by the logistical challenge of either figuring out where to stash them or dealing with their boredom, whining, tantrums, destructiveness, etc. if we have them with us. Someone who shall remain nameless has made it his business to grab his father's screwdriver and unscrew the plates off the electrical outlets in the new house. Boredom is a dangerous thing.

Not to mention the normal busy-ness that goes along with school, friends, activities. Who has time for all this?

Still, I'm happy, I'm excited....and I'm sleepy.

Homework

It seems that these days, the parents get just about as much homework as the kids. Thankfully, my kid usually doesn't require me to sit there with her while she does her work. But occasionally, we do get our own parents-only assignments. This is how I completed the latest one. We had to decorate a heart for our little angels. This is far from my most imaginative creation. I found out about it kind of last minute...and I was having a rather challenging weekend with my precious little cherub. I stole the idea from this layout I did a while ago:


I did go around the edge with a glitter pen to add a little sparkle. The letters are made using an eons-old template. The heart is, in-fact, intact; the edge got cut off in the scan. I'm sure the other overachiever parents have come up with many more complex and elaborate creations. Hopefully, Julia won't notice how plain this one is and give me a passing grade.

Happy Birthday

Happy Belated Birthday to my husband. Even on the one day in the universe when the stars collided and the Super Bowl happened to fall on his birthday, he still had to do things like attend a family function...for my family. No one was more excited about the day than Julia, who woke him up way too early to tell him that it actually was his birthday. What we lacked in extravagant presents this year, trying to be prudent because of the house and all, we made up for in good wishes from family and friends, two really excited kids and a great feeling of happiness as we celebrated with our kids and looked forward to the year to come. Chocolate cake (not made by me) didn't hurt either. Of course, Ray still did laundry, washed dishes and changed diapers throughout the day. Birthday or no birthday, some things just can't wait.