Hallelujah! We made it through this crazy summer internship and I am happy to report Nicholas will be glued to Leo and me for the next two whole weeks before school starts. To be honest this summer wasn't as bad as I was anticipating, however I am really glad to not have to sleep in a different bed every couple of nights...comfy as they were :)
Friday, August 10, 2012
Monday, July 30, 2012
Can I just say that I absolutely LOVE when I do something cute or crafty or whatnot that I haven't seen on Pinterest? And even if I have, there is something so good about taking part in something creative...it is good for my little soul :) Not to mention it breaks up the monotony that is the mother's life! I've discovered that, as much as I love Leo, stay-at-home-motherhood means being busy and bored at the same time a lot.
Some day perhaps I will document some of my latest creative ventures...but even if I never get around to it it has been good for me :)
Some day perhaps I will document some of my latest creative ventures...but even if I never get around to it it has been good for me :)
Monday, July 23, 2012
Just a few pics...
Leo will be 18 whole months in just a couple of days and I am planning to write about him then, however I just can't resist sharing a few of these pics now...especially since I have a free moment at home (which is rare these days) and the pics are easy to work with thanks to my new camera and update for my mac- happy birthday to me!
This is what happens when you tell Leo to "smile"...
And here he is "helping" with the laundry...
...however this is what "helping" really looks like...
Please excuse my big face in this one but I love how Leo is looking at me! He really wanted to take pictures of himself but insisted that he sit on my lap, hence this bad picture.
Nick had a birthday- here he is with his loot, taking "happy birthday" calls...
...and Leo kept himself busy with a wooden spoon...
Leo got a new table and chairs, just his size... and someday I will find the picture of him assembling it because it is too cute! He loves to eat at his new table.
And we are very into blocks lately (and stickers if you are keeping track)...here is one creation...
...and him hard at work on another...
We are surviving the summer around here although it has been very busy and even though I know there will be a lot to do in 16 weeks of fall semester (you know, get/accept a job and a find a place to live and actually move there and finish school and have multiple holidays and a girl's trip and run a half marathon and things like that) I am still getting really excited for that time to come when we are all actually in our own little apartment for more than 2 days at a time. I thrive on schedules and routines and it has been a real lesson in flexibility for me this summer but I think we are all doing quite well.
As I mentioned, Leo will be 18 months old soon and has his well-check next week so I will plan to write a more comprehensive post about him later but I will just say that he is so fun right now. He has lots of teeth all of the sudden and has absolutely gone crazy in the talking department- he knows so many words and identifies so many things all day long. It is remarkable how quickly they learn! :)
Saturday, July 7, 2012
JULY 4th CELEBRATION (videos...pictures to come)
Just needed to share these videos quickly of Leo's first real parade experience...there was kind of one last year but it doesn't really count if you just sit in the stroller the whole time. Needless to say he LOVED the music and LOVED the trucks!
(This is his default dance, usually done while spinning counter clockwise- aka "line of dance"...his mommy is so proud already!)
(Can you tell he is crazy about wheels? He is a boy through and through and waved and clapped at each truck or car going by. He got very excited at the ones with big wheels, obviously!)
He enjoyed jumping on the trampoline at the Cosby's house afterward where we enjoyed a yummy red, white and blue lunch; he ate too many noodles to count and loved the jello and homemade ice cream. He liked getting wet in the sprinkler and at the water table and trying to keep up with his cousins, however he wasn't that keen on water balloons...yet. We were happy to have some family close enough to celebrate with!
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Mom guilt
Does anyone else have a ton of it? Sometimes it is so hard to love Leo during the day when he is whiney and yelling "no!" at me and throwing things at me and biting me...yes, sadly this has been regular behavior as of late. Sigh. So it makes for long days, especially when we don't see Nick for a few days...and I find myself counting down til bedtime when I get more than thirty seconds to do what I want/need.
And then when the day is done and it is all quiet on the Vernon front, I sneak into Leo's room and he is sleeping so sweetly...cuddled up with his "puppy" (blanket) and looking so adorable. It is then that I realize how big he is- my baby is gone- and also how small he is- just a little boy trying to figure the world out. Yes it is then that I feel majorly guilty for how I act in the day...because when you see him sleeping like that you know that he really can not be trying to be that much of a rat...it is just part of his learning process, ugly as it is.
So right now while he is asleep I just want to get him out of his crib and cuddle him, yet tomorrow I won't be able to wait until he is asleep again. Oh how the grass is always greener...let me just say that I am not looking forward to the "terrible twos" if this is what "one" is like, but oh how I love him anyway!
(enjoying a mini ice cream sandwich tonight since he ate both a fruit and a vegetable for dinner, which has been quite a feat lately!)
And then when the day is done and it is all quiet on the Vernon front, I sneak into Leo's room and he is sleeping so sweetly...cuddled up with his "puppy" (blanket) and looking so adorable. It is then that I realize how big he is- my baby is gone- and also how small he is- just a little boy trying to figure the world out. Yes it is then that I feel majorly guilty for how I act in the day...because when you see him sleeping like that you know that he really can not be trying to be that much of a rat...it is just part of his learning process, ugly as it is.
So right now while he is asleep I just want to get him out of his crib and cuddle him, yet tomorrow I won't be able to wait until he is asleep again. Oh how the grass is always greener...let me just say that I am not looking forward to the "terrible twos" if this is what "one" is like, but oh how I love him anyway!
Monday, June 18, 2012
We are surviving...but tired!
Um, yeah...we have been busy. Join the ranks eh? Seriously- this commuting thing is fine and we are definitely happy that we are doing it to spend more time with Nick, but we are tired and lots of things just aren't getting done. And I thought the first few days of this internship were busy...ha! There aren't as many things on my calendar though for the next few weeks so hopefully I can catch up a bit.
We have made 6 round trips to Houston and back in the last 5 weeks...staying between a few hours and a few days each time. I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but it seems to keep me in a constant whirlwind. You know...try to make the trip while Leo is happy and not sleepy so he will actually nap or go to bed once we get there, then once we arrive we restock food and supplies, do a load or two of laundry, keep up with the dishes and the dust and the cat hair- not to mention all the while trying to entertain/contain Leo and get him to eat something other than a cracker. (A whole other post folks...a whole other post.) Then pack up all I can hold in one load, get in the car, start Baby Einstein, and repeat. Add in speaking in church, sending out 2 papers for work, lots of playgroups, babysitting for friends and consequently getting a night out for ourselves, having our a/c broken and repaired, celebrating Mother's and Father's day, an obsession to watch all 5 seasons of Friday Night Lights on Netflix as quick as possible, chauffeuring to and from the airport, a dead car battery (thank you Leo for leaving lots of switches on!), hosting people for dinner twice, and Leo cutting 3 new teeth with 3 more coming and I am exhausted for sure. I'm pretty sure I wasn't meant to be a nomad.
On the good side though, we have been able to see my sister Tara multiple times, let Leo enjoy some cousin time with Belle and Livi (and he LOVES Belle...we are talking about a full-on obsession), help my mom with seminary graduation, celebrate my birthday and my mom's birthday with family, go to the doctor without taking Leo, and even enjoy the temple once since we have babysitters aplenty! I'm not trying to complain or even excuse myself from not updating this old blog...just sharing what we are doing this summer!
I'm really hoping to get some pictures up soon...I did in fact get a new camera for my birthday (thanks Nicholas!) however it is incompatible with the computer I use 99% of the time right now so I am working on that...it has always got to be something!
In other news, Nick and I are training for a half-marathon in October...Day 1 of training was today! Hopefully I will be ready in 15 weeks and 5 days; I am in such worse shape than when we did our last one in 2009, however I am running most days each week so it isn't like I'm completely starting from scratch. I am excited for the big goal- not sure how it will all work with Leo yet, but I will worry about that when the runs get longer...he is good to last 3-4 miles in the stroller (not to mention that is about as long as I can stand to push him too) so we are good for now. Wish us luck! :)
We have made 6 round trips to Houston and back in the last 5 weeks...staying between a few hours and a few days each time. I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but it seems to keep me in a constant whirlwind. You know...try to make the trip while Leo is happy and not sleepy so he will actually nap or go to bed once we get there, then once we arrive we restock food and supplies, do a load or two of laundry, keep up with the dishes and the dust and the cat hair- not to mention all the while trying to entertain/contain Leo and get him to eat something other than a cracker. (A whole other post folks...a whole other post.) Then pack up all I can hold in one load, get in the car, start Baby Einstein, and repeat. Add in speaking in church, sending out 2 papers for work, lots of playgroups, babysitting for friends and consequently getting a night out for ourselves, having our a/c broken and repaired, celebrating Mother's and Father's day, an obsession to watch all 5 seasons of Friday Night Lights on Netflix as quick as possible, chauffeuring to and from the airport, a dead car battery (thank you Leo for leaving lots of switches on!), hosting people for dinner twice, and Leo cutting 3 new teeth with 3 more coming and I am exhausted for sure. I'm pretty sure I wasn't meant to be a nomad.
On the good side though, we have been able to see my sister Tara multiple times, let Leo enjoy some cousin time with Belle and Livi (and he LOVES Belle...we are talking about a full-on obsession), help my mom with seminary graduation, celebrate my birthday and my mom's birthday with family, go to the doctor without taking Leo, and even enjoy the temple once since we have babysitters aplenty! I'm not trying to complain or even excuse myself from not updating this old blog...just sharing what we are doing this summer!
I'm really hoping to get some pictures up soon...I did in fact get a new camera for my birthday (thanks Nicholas!) however it is incompatible with the computer I use 99% of the time right now so I am working on that...it has always got to be something!
In other news, Nick and I are training for a half-marathon in October...Day 1 of training was today! Hopefully I will be ready in 15 weeks and 5 days; I am in such worse shape than when we did our last one in 2009, however I am running most days each week so it isn't like I'm completely starting from scratch. I am excited for the big goal- not sure how it will all work with Leo yet, but I will worry about that when the runs get longer...he is good to last 3-4 miles in the stroller (not to mention that is about as long as I can stand to push him too) so we are good for now. Wish us luck! :)
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Crazy Week
This has been a busy week...and it isn't over yet! While I have a free minute (finally!) let us recap:
Sunday - Mother's Day...Nick speaks in church, teaches Sunday School, gets set apart as Ward Mission Leader while I wrangle Leo and sub in primary. We try to celebrate the holiday while we pack and get things together for...
Monday - Nick leaves before 6am to drive to his first day of the internship with ExxonMobil in Houston. Leo and I follow with a car load of stuff a couple hours later and try to make the upstairs of my parents' house our home away from home for the summer- go grocery shopping, fill up a shelf in the pantry of Leo and Nick approved items, stock the bathroom, assemble a crib we are borrowing for the summer, etc. Our plan is that Nick will stay there most weekdays and come home for the weekend while Leo and I will be bouncing back and forth every few days to feed Koshka, do work, etc. I think the plan sounded better a few weeks ago...now I see that I pretty much am never going to be able to keep 2 households like I want! There is always laundry and cleaning and grocery shopping waiting for me somewhere!
Tuesday - I join my mom's running group...good news is that they were slow enough for me to make it the whole 5 miles...bad news is that they go at 5:15am. Leo actually takes a nap in his new crib, which he did not the day before, and then we head to celebrate my mom's birthday with her friends at Gringos. I was disappointed with what I ordered- far too cheesy- and Leo only had french fries, but it was fun.
Wednesday - Work is piling up in my inbox so after Leo's nap we turn on Baby Einstein and drive the hour back home. Koshka is thrilled to see us, even letting me pet her without biting me! Woohoo! Leo's newest cousin Clara is born and we ooh and ahh over pictures while he points to the computer and says "buh-bee" all day! So cute! I try to focus on letting Leo play for a few hours before bed, walking over to the park even though it is too hot already, so I don't feel guilty ignoring him completely once I get him in bed. Start working as soon as he is asleep and don't look up from my computer until after midnight.
Thursday - Leo is up before 6am for some reason so I get an early start on work. I hit it hard for a few hours while Leo has breakfast, watches far too many cartoons, and plays with all his cars and am done by 9am. Manage a quick shower and play with Leo until nap time, then we both nap. After lunch we hit the park again (this time we go to one that has more shade and take advantage of Sonic happy hour on the way) and one of our friends meets us there for a bit. I manage to get our evening routine done early with a few minutes to spare before Nick makes an appearance- he had a missionary meeting tonight so he drove all the way home. The boys play for about 20 minutes before Nick is off and Leo and I start the bedtime routine. Once he is in bed I contemplate just going to bed myself, however instead opt for a bath and half of a pedicure (I got my toes all ready but then remembered we just ran out of nail polish remover! At least the hard work is done and I just have to remove and repaint now.) Nick still wasn't home so I thought I'd blog...someday we are going to want to remember this time right?
Tomorrow morning Nick will make the long drive in to Houston and Leo and I will follow a few hours later again...usually we would stay at home for the weekend but my mom's birthday is on Saturday, seminary graduation that she wants my help with is on Sunday, and my sister Tara is flying over Friday-Monday. We will be busy busy, but I guess that keeps us out of trouble! :)
P.S. My birthday is only a few weeks away and I have asked for a camera (that is a whole other post...someday) so get yourselves excited for hopefully more photos! I know this blog is lame without them but it just isn't worth it right now to go through so much work to get crappy photos up all the time.
Sunday - Mother's Day...Nick speaks in church, teaches Sunday School, gets set apart as Ward Mission Leader while I wrangle Leo and sub in primary. We try to celebrate the holiday while we pack and get things together for...
Monday - Nick leaves before 6am to drive to his first day of the internship with ExxonMobil in Houston. Leo and I follow with a car load of stuff a couple hours later and try to make the upstairs of my parents' house our home away from home for the summer- go grocery shopping, fill up a shelf in the pantry of Leo and Nick approved items, stock the bathroom, assemble a crib we are borrowing for the summer, etc. Our plan is that Nick will stay there most weekdays and come home for the weekend while Leo and I will be bouncing back and forth every few days to feed Koshka, do work, etc. I think the plan sounded better a few weeks ago...now I see that I pretty much am never going to be able to keep 2 households like I want! There is always laundry and cleaning and grocery shopping waiting for me somewhere!
Tuesday - I join my mom's running group...good news is that they were slow enough for me to make it the whole 5 miles...bad news is that they go at 5:15am. Leo actually takes a nap in his new crib, which he did not the day before, and then we head to celebrate my mom's birthday with her friends at Gringos. I was disappointed with what I ordered- far too cheesy- and Leo only had french fries, but it was fun.
Wednesday - Work is piling up in my inbox so after Leo's nap we turn on Baby Einstein and drive the hour back home. Koshka is thrilled to see us, even letting me pet her without biting me! Woohoo! Leo's newest cousin Clara is born and we ooh and ahh over pictures while he points to the computer and says "buh-bee" all day! So cute! I try to focus on letting Leo play for a few hours before bed, walking over to the park even though it is too hot already, so I don't feel guilty ignoring him completely once I get him in bed. Start working as soon as he is asleep and don't look up from my computer until after midnight.
Thursday - Leo is up before 6am for some reason so I get an early start on work. I hit it hard for a few hours while Leo has breakfast, watches far too many cartoons, and plays with all his cars and am done by 9am. Manage a quick shower and play with Leo until nap time, then we both nap. After lunch we hit the park again (this time we go to one that has more shade and take advantage of Sonic happy hour on the way) and one of our friends meets us there for a bit. I manage to get our evening routine done early with a few minutes to spare before Nick makes an appearance- he had a missionary meeting tonight so he drove all the way home. The boys play for about 20 minutes before Nick is off and Leo and I start the bedtime routine. Once he is in bed I contemplate just going to bed myself, however instead opt for a bath and half of a pedicure (I got my toes all ready but then remembered we just ran out of nail polish remover! At least the hard work is done and I just have to remove and repaint now.) Nick still wasn't home so I thought I'd blog...someday we are going to want to remember this time right?
Tomorrow morning Nick will make the long drive in to Houston and Leo and I will follow a few hours later again...usually we would stay at home for the weekend but my mom's birthday is on Saturday, seminary graduation that she wants my help with is on Sunday, and my sister Tara is flying over Friday-Monday. We will be busy busy, but I guess that keeps us out of trouble! :)
P.S. My birthday is only a few weeks away and I have asked for a camera (that is a whole other post...someday) so get yourselves excited for hopefully more photos! I know this blog is lame without them but it just isn't worth it right now to go through so much work to get crappy photos up all the time.
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