Sunday, October 31, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
Happenings...
It has been way too long since I posted, but so much has been going on. Here's the text-based recap. Pictures to follow...
1. Homecoming Week: which means CRAZINESS!! SGA was responsible for all activities, including a major prep rally, sweethearts, the dance, and games almost every day at school. The week was a blast, but I am exhausted. The highlight was probably school-wide musical chairs. It was so cool to see the students get so excited about playing and watch as the circle of 100 chairs was whittled down to one. Plus, it was my idea! :)
2. Second Thesis Submission: I turned in a beast of a story (well for me, anyways) on Monday. 43 pages. I had so much fun writing this one. I was playing around with voice and content, so we'll see how it goes. What's it about? Dinosaurs and breast milk...
3. Pre-Halloween: With Riley 2.5 now, holidays are so much fun to plan for and celebrate. This year, I decided to do something Halloweeny each weekend with her (and Adrian, too!). We painted a pumpkin and bought a costume together; we went to a farm for a hayride, pumpkin patch, and petting zoo with the King family; we made these spider cookies that were way too hard for her to make and almost way too hard for me to make, but fun and cute; we went to a trunk or treat and hayride at a local church (also with the King family!); and, of course, this coming weekend we are going trick-or-treating. I love having a reason to get all of my decorations out, too. I am hoping to get some good pictures of the kids in costumes this weekend, so I will be sure to post them!
4. Adrian has discovered his toes, and he is starting to sit-up a little bit more now. Hard to believe he is going to be five months old tomorrow. We think he is starting to teethe, but otherwise, he is still our super-smiley little guy! I love how he will look up at me and his whole face just lights up! Melts my heart every time. Riley wants to play with him more and more, and today she picked out his outfit. When he wakes up crying, she runs into his room to go talk to him. Cutest thing ever!
5. Or, the cutest thing ever might be cuddling with Riley before she goes to sleep at night. The other night, she spontaneously turned to me, gave me a kiss, and said, "I love you, Mommy." Of course, the next night, she brought her balloon sword into bed and started singing, "I poke Mommy in the face." Not sure about that one! Oh, and she told Shawn the other night to "Keep your hands to yourself." That was awesome!
Here's a list of her current likes and dislikes:
Likes: Cheese-its, the marshmallows from Lucky Charms, chicken nuggets, wearing socks, braids, rhyming , wearing her baby dino costume, sleeping in our bed, the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear.
Dislikes: Haunted houses (they had a little one at gymnastics that she was not a fan of), open doors in the house, going to bed/waking up.
I also just wanted to include a big shout-out to my brother Brendan. He's getting settled in the Big Apple with a sweet job and a cool Ikea-ized apartment with Libby. I am so proud of him! In my mind, he is always nine years old, and it is hard to believe he is on his own now, working and living in New York. I couldn't be happier for him. Libby is an awesome girl, and I am glad they found each other. I miss you, Brendino!!
1. Homecoming Week: which means CRAZINESS!! SGA was responsible for all activities, including a major prep rally, sweethearts, the dance, and games almost every day at school. The week was a blast, but I am exhausted. The highlight was probably school-wide musical chairs. It was so cool to see the students get so excited about playing and watch as the circle of 100 chairs was whittled down to one. Plus, it was my idea! :)
2. Second Thesis Submission: I turned in a beast of a story (well for me, anyways) on Monday. 43 pages. I had so much fun writing this one. I was playing around with voice and content, so we'll see how it goes. What's it about? Dinosaurs and breast milk...
3. Pre-Halloween: With Riley 2.5 now, holidays are so much fun to plan for and celebrate. This year, I decided to do something Halloweeny each weekend with her (and Adrian, too!). We painted a pumpkin and bought a costume together; we went to a farm for a hayride, pumpkin patch, and petting zoo with the King family; we made these spider cookies that were way too hard for her to make and almost way too hard for me to make, but fun and cute; we went to a trunk or treat and hayride at a local church (also with the King family!); and, of course, this coming weekend we are going trick-or-treating. I love having a reason to get all of my decorations out, too. I am hoping to get some good pictures of the kids in costumes this weekend, so I will be sure to post them!
4. Adrian has discovered his toes, and he is starting to sit-up a little bit more now. Hard to believe he is going to be five months old tomorrow. We think he is starting to teethe, but otherwise, he is still our super-smiley little guy! I love how he will look up at me and his whole face just lights up! Melts my heart every time. Riley wants to play with him more and more, and today she picked out his outfit. When he wakes up crying, she runs into his room to go talk to him. Cutest thing ever!
5. Or, the cutest thing ever might be cuddling with Riley before she goes to sleep at night. The other night, she spontaneously turned to me, gave me a kiss, and said, "I love you, Mommy." Of course, the next night, she brought her balloon sword into bed and started singing, "I poke Mommy in the face." Not sure about that one! Oh, and she told Shawn the other night to "Keep your hands to yourself." That was awesome!
Here's a list of her current likes and dislikes:
Likes: Cheese-its, the marshmallows from Lucky Charms, chicken nuggets, wearing socks, braids, rhyming , wearing her baby dino costume, sleeping in our bed, the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear.
Dislikes: Haunted houses (they had a little one at gymnastics that she was not a fan of), open doors in the house, going to bed/waking up.
I also just wanted to include a big shout-out to my brother Brendan. He's getting settled in the Big Apple with a sweet job and a cool Ikea-ized apartment with Libby. I am so proud of him! In my mind, he is always nine years old, and it is hard to believe he is on his own now, working and living in New York. I couldn't be happier for him. Libby is an awesome girl, and I am glad they found each other. I miss you, Brendino!!
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Busy Weekend...
In no particular order...
1. Adrian started rolling over every time he is put down for a nap/bedtime.
2. Riley picked out her Halloween costume. She's going to be a baby dino this year! And we completed a fall craft: pumpkin painting. Love the excitement kids add to holidays.
3. Our new oven and dishwasher came in. What an awesome face-lift for our kitchen. So exciting!
4. I wrote for 6 hours at Panera (and drank 5 cups of coffee!).
5. Riley convinced me to have a "sleepover" with her by saying in the most adorable voice ever: "Stay with me." At the same time, she wrapped her arms and legs around me. How could I say no?
Enjoy the picture recap!
1. Adrian started rolling over every time he is put down for a nap/bedtime.
2. Riley picked out her Halloween costume. She's going to be a baby dino this year! And we completed a fall craft: pumpkin painting. Love the excitement kids add to holidays.
3. Our new oven and dishwasher came in. What an awesome face-lift for our kitchen. So exciting!
4. I wrote for 6 hours at Panera (and drank 5 cups of coffee!).
5. Riley convinced me to have a "sleepover" with her by saying in the most adorable voice ever: "Stay with me." At the same time, she wrapped her arms and legs around me. How could I say no?
Enjoy the picture recap!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
An Update (that gets progressively sappy)...
Well, here we go...
Adrian: Our little man just turned four months old this past week. His check-up is next Tuesday, so we can get his updated stats. So far, he has been an all-star baby. I really cannot remember a time when he didn't smile, and it warms my heart every time I see his eyes start to glow and the corners of his lips turn up. So adorable. Too bad I cannot make more people happy just by smiling at them. He is staying healthy so far, and the women at daycare think he is awesome. Of course, I cannot disagree there!
Riley: She is loving school now! Some days, we even have to ask for hugs before she heads off to play. Here's what she has learned so far: her ABC's, counting, all things farm related, and a bunch of new songs. My favorite is her extremely militant version of the Itsy Bitsy Spider. It gets aggressive! Seriously cracks me up. I practically beg her to sing it!! Right now, she's in a mama-mood big time. Last night, we had a sleepover in her bed and I am pretty sure I beat her falling asleep. When I come to pick her up from school, she shouts, "Mommy's here! My Mommy's here." Coolest thing ever.
Shawn: Teaching, coaching, and starting to work on a haunted house. Yup, he's the boring one in our family. Love you, babe!
Linz: I am four weeks into school, and finally starting to get into a pattern. Well, my school pattern is easy: teach, pump, teach, pump, teach, pump. The day goes by so fast! After school, I sneak in an hour of writing and then it is off to get the kids and then back to the school to get Shawn. Recently, I've had to settle for 25 push-ups and cleaning as my workouts in addition to pumping because I am too damn tired at the end of the day to even think about moving any more than I have to. And I try to steal another hour or two of writing before falling asleep at my computer, waking up to pump one more time, and finally going to bed. On the weekends, I try to nap, write in three-hour blocks at Panera (while drinking lots of coffee!), and do one extra thing around the house. The rest of the time is kid time!
These past four weeks have reaffirmed for me the three things I love: my family (and close friends), writing, and teaching. Seriously, I was giddy last Sunday at Panera with my laptop open and my mind in story-world. One thesis submission down, five to go. So exciting!
And I love my students, love making connections with them, love sharing my passion for reading and writing with them. Ninth and tenth graders are at such a cool point in their lives - and, I am thrilled to have the chance to be part of that and hopefully make the experience better.
And then there is my family. While I miss my parents and siblings and twin sister like crazy, I am so thankful for my husband and children who fill my everyday life with laughs and smiles and tickles and silly faces and bath time and story time and bubbles and bed-bouncing and hugs and nursery rhymes and little outfits and teamwork and love. I know there will come a day when I won't have to change the animal print sheets on the crib or soak a stained onesie or fill a sippy cup with water, and yet I hope that somehow this lasts - that the childhood my children know and experience will endure forever. And the reasons for this impossible hope are simple: Because it's not enough - these smiles and hugs and cuddly nights. Because I can't imagine a time when my babies will not fit in my arms as I rock them to sleep. Because when Adrian holds onto one of my fingers and Riley wraps her arms around me, I don't want them to let go.
Adrian: Our little man just turned four months old this past week. His check-up is next Tuesday, so we can get his updated stats. So far, he has been an all-star baby. I really cannot remember a time when he didn't smile, and it warms my heart every time I see his eyes start to glow and the corners of his lips turn up. So adorable. Too bad I cannot make more people happy just by smiling at them. He is staying healthy so far, and the women at daycare think he is awesome. Of course, I cannot disagree there!
Riley: She is loving school now! Some days, we even have to ask for hugs before she heads off to play. Here's what she has learned so far: her ABC's, counting, all things farm related, and a bunch of new songs. My favorite is her extremely militant version of the Itsy Bitsy Spider. It gets aggressive! Seriously cracks me up. I practically beg her to sing it!! Right now, she's in a mama-mood big time. Last night, we had a sleepover in her bed and I am pretty sure I beat her falling asleep. When I come to pick her up from school, she shouts, "Mommy's here! My Mommy's here." Coolest thing ever.
Shawn: Teaching, coaching, and starting to work on a haunted house. Yup, he's the boring one in our family. Love you, babe!
Linz: I am four weeks into school, and finally starting to get into a pattern. Well, my school pattern is easy: teach, pump, teach, pump, teach, pump. The day goes by so fast! After school, I sneak in an hour of writing and then it is off to get the kids and then back to the school to get Shawn. Recently, I've had to settle for 25 push-ups and cleaning as my workouts in addition to pumping because I am too damn tired at the end of the day to even think about moving any more than I have to. And I try to steal another hour or two of writing before falling asleep at my computer, waking up to pump one more time, and finally going to bed. On the weekends, I try to nap, write in three-hour blocks at Panera (while drinking lots of coffee!), and do one extra thing around the house. The rest of the time is kid time!
These past four weeks have reaffirmed for me the three things I love: my family (and close friends), writing, and teaching. Seriously, I was giddy last Sunday at Panera with my laptop open and my mind in story-world. One thesis submission down, five to go. So exciting!
And I love my students, love making connections with them, love sharing my passion for reading and writing with them. Ninth and tenth graders are at such a cool point in their lives - and, I am thrilled to have the chance to be part of that and hopefully make the experience better.
And then there is my family. While I miss my parents and siblings and twin sister like crazy, I am so thankful for my husband and children who fill my everyday life with laughs and smiles and tickles and silly faces and bath time and story time and bubbles and bed-bouncing and hugs and nursery rhymes and little outfits and teamwork and love. I know there will come a day when I won't have to change the animal print sheets on the crib or soak a stained onesie or fill a sippy cup with water, and yet I hope that somehow this lasts - that the childhood my children know and experience will endure forever. And the reasons for this impossible hope are simple: Because it's not enough - these smiles and hugs and cuddly nights. Because I can't imagine a time when my babies will not fit in my arms as I rock them to sleep. Because when Adrian holds onto one of my fingers and Riley wraps her arms around me, I don't want them to let go.
Monday, September 20, 2010
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