Caught Being Good

It is "Bug Week" at preschool. The theme does seem to be taking second place to dinosaur week for KK; nonetheless she still seems pretty excited about it. One of the neat things they are doing is giving the kids little certificates if they are "caught being good". They have a hershey kiss attached and describe what good thing the kiddo was caught doing.

KK has earned two of these little certificates and she is over the moon about it. I know she loves the chocolate aspect of course, but I think it is really the recognition and the little certificate that excite her the most. She asks me to read them over and over to her. She has been rewarded for being a good friend and also for helping Ms. Eileen clean up the craft supplies.

Projects, Projects, Projects

The title pretty much defines Katelynn these days. She lives for a good project. Reminds me of a certain someone back in the day.... I remember researching kangaroos in the 3rd grade in my Encyclopedia Brittanica and putting together all sorts of crafts related to my findings to take back to school the next day. And this was not assigned work! (And yes I was/am a major nerd...) So, given my history I do try to have a great attitude about her many requests and accomodate her when possible.

The other day she found a recipe for cupcakes in her coloring book. Yes, in the coloring book. And of course we could not make any other recipe. These days I usually don't make anything without a recipe website and a corresponding list of reviews so I can ensure near-perfection. So this was going out on a limb for me. And it has shortening in the ingredients... I was shocked I even had any in the pantry. Not a very common ingredient "these days".

Nonetheless I did accommodate KK; the cupcakes were not the best in the world but definitely edible and she had a great time. We made hearts, eggs, and regular cupcakes. Her favorite part was adorning them with sprinkles.

Labor of Love

We are lucky to have a very talented Nanna. She quilts, sews, knits and can teach herself just about any new skill within those genres. Her baby items are works of art (she is a perfectionist); both Katelynn and Tyler have their own Nanna-made taggies, baby balls, blankets, quilts, curtains, bedding and burp rags. Cousin Izzy received and wore beautiful itsy-bitsy preemie outfits made by Nanna. One of Nanna's latest projects is pillowcases. She makes them by the stacks for the local children's hospital; they give one to each child when they check in to the hospital for a stay. She also makes them for her grandkids and Katelynn loves her many pillowcase choices. Lately she has been allowed to go with Nanna to pick her own fabrics (the two on top) and also received a special dinosaur pillowcase to go along with her favorite preschool study to date.

What a Nanna! She is building quite a special legacy with her beautiful creations.

Spring Break

Now that Katelynn is in preschool three days per week, Spring Break seems to matter a little more. I found myself wanting to plan some fun things together. Also, Tyler is a stellar napper but only in his crib. So we aren't getting out these days nearly as much as we used to. We might squeeze in a 45 minute trip to the park, but gone are the days when KK and I would wander around town doing whatever I/she wanted for hours on end. So, since we didn't have the constraints of school, here is what we did:

Friday Before- Spring Break Kickoff! - We went to our wonderful local park, Kid Country. I sent an email a few days prior to a bunch of local friends and we had about 6 moms and their kiddos show up. What fun! We took a picnic and the weather was glorious. I kept Tyler out a little longer than usual so we had plenty of time to play. KK still did not want to leave even after over 2 hours.

Monday - Mommy and Katelynn movie day. Our wonderful babysitter AJ came over and watched Tyler so that we could have some mommy/ daughter time. This was only Katelynn's second movie outing and it was the same flick, Tangled. She saw it the first time with PopPop and now with me. She is going to think it is the only movie that exists. This child did not make a peep the entire movie, but she did turn around multiple times to give the kids behind us indignant stares for their obnoxious laughing. Heehee.

Wednesday - I worked but KK spent the day with Nanna and PopPop. They went to "Robot Park" (where yours truly grew up going!) and KK went to Nanna's eye doctor appointment with her.

Thursday - Another KK and Mommy day. We met friends at "Dino World" in Glenrose, followed by a picnic at Dinosaur Valley State Park. Tyler stayed with Nanna all day. We had a wonderful day and I got my first sunburn of the year. Katelynn's prized possession of the day was the 3 fossils she got to dig up at Dino World. That and the little tiny plastic bag she got to put them in. It's the little things! My mom packed our entire picnic lunch and that was quite a luxury for this mommy.

Friday - Grill Night with our best buds the Clarks. It was such a great night for grilling and relaxing and they have a fabulous back yard. It had been way too long since we did this...and a wonderful end to Spring Break. (Note - picture from Hawaii... that would be even better!)

His Power is Made Perfect

Well, I'm only about a month late... but here goes a post on my first half-marathon, the Fort Worth Cowtown.

I figured out that I might like running about a year ago, and then I found out I was pregnant with little boy. When he was six weeks old I was ready to try it again! By the time he was 8 or 10 weeks old I was running 3 times a week and on the path to training for something. I settled on Cowtown on 2/27/11 since I do not perform well in the heat, and this would be a race run in the bitter cold for sure, right?! Not to mention all my long run training would be in the cold as well.

I trained my little rear off and was very diligent to my schedule. I could run 10 minute miles with ease and this seemed to be my long run "pace." I had a bad experience running a 15K due to a tormenting side stitch, but I brushed it off as my long runs went back to normal after this blip.

Fast forward to 2/27/11 and we have 65-75 degree weather, 80% humidity, 25 mph winds. Ugh. This was not my plan! Sure enough, the heat was a tail kicker for me. By mile 2 or 3 I was already way too hot and fighting a mild side stitch again. My running buddy Amy was feeling fine and we lost each other at a water station which was probably for the best; I was holding her back.

13.1 miles of pure misery... that is pretty much how I would have to describe my first half marathon. Internal mental battles, external physical battles. Around mile 4 I began run/walking quite a bit which I found discouraging since I had wanted to run the whole way through. I dumped two cups of cold water on my head at every water station. I turned off my fancy borrowed Garmin running watch at mile 9. It was no longer about hitting a certain pace... it was just about finishing. I felt so weak... hot...defeated during the entire race. Check out my miserable pictures!

Twice I saw a girl with a sign: "His power is made perfect in my weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9" I can't tell you how much seeing this sign lifted me up and kept me going. It really felt like my race theme. I did cross the finish at 2:23 and was actually shocked by the overall time - with all the walking I had done I did not think there was any way I would beat 2:30.

So what to do after all that misery? Next half-marathon: 5/1/11.

6 Months?!

I truly cannot believe my little guy has passed the 6 month mark already. While caring for two kids has made my life truly crazy, he and his sister certainly bring joy to my heart every day.

TyTy is a champion napper... sing a quick song, put him down awake, and leave! He takes 3 naps a day which makes it hard to get out and about so sometimes I feel like Katelynn is really getting the shaft these days on outings and fun events with mommy. Sometimes I can get away with doing one of the naps in the car, but he will only fall asleep if it is a long car trip - so it doesn't work for errands around town. I just end up with a crabby baby that way.

It is amazing how much can change with a baby in two weeks. A little over two weeks ago he was still being swaddled and seemed to need it to settle at night. I had tried to stop previously - maybe around 5 months - and the result was 4 brutal nights with no signs of improvement each night. So we went back to the swaddle, then suddenly he decided he was over it and rolled himself onto his face one night. A little scary - poor little guy laying on his face like a little bound-up sausage crying - but a clear sign that the swaddling was done which was somewhat of a relief. Then he adjusted quickly to his new freedom and it wasn't nearly the trauma it was the first time I tried to stop. Within a week he was rolling all around his crib, playing with toys when he woke up, etc. And he started putting himself on his tummy to sleep - a big surprise since he has always cried his way through tummy time! He is doing a lot better at nights now too - generally making it to at least 6:30 am without night crying.

Same thing with solids. He rejected the first three foods I tried - lots of crying and spitting out of food. Then I finally found something he would tolerate but it took 4 days to get through one jar of food. Then suddenly things clicked and within a few days he was eating 2 to 3 jars of food per day - a major relief since he unfortunately got billed as UNDERWEIGHT at his 6 month well check.

Tyler is generally just a happy little guy. He does like to be held and carried but he doesn't get nearly as upset about things as another baby I raised - who shall remain nameless - once did. He loves to be entertained by his sister. He studies new people and gets a bit of a concerned look, especially if said new person is holding him. (So we will see how the first trip to the church nursery goes next week!) He loves to be tickled and then I get to revel in the sound of that wonderful baby laugh.

I am one blessed mommy to have my wonderful little girl, and now a sweet little guy to raise too. I try to take some time each day to just take it all in because I know this time will be gone in the blink of an eye. I have been married nearly 13 years and it has gone so fast... now it's going faster and in another 13 years I will have two teenagers who are well on their way out of the house. Sniff, sniff!