I'm making progress on my massive catch-up blog-post list.  Slowly but surely, I'll get there.  I hope.  With the hustle of the holidays over, I'm feeling a bit more settled and working to find a routine again (again, meaning, like I had 2-3 years ago) but while I'm super antsy to get some of my in-progress projects completed (including this here blog), there are so many in-progress projects that I have moments of feeling overwhelmed, and then I just kinda shut down.  So that's productive.  (With this also comes some clarity on what matters and what doesn't and what I want to keep working on and what I just need to let go.  This blog - at the top of the what I want to keep working on list.)

With that in mind...and the idea that I sometimes need to start over to make something work again... I've moved the blog to a new site.  Again.  I apologize for doing this to you all again (which, by the way, huge thanks for sticking around all these years!) but for various reasons, Tumblr just isn't working well for me.  So with the influence of and help from my IT guy (thanks, Justin!) I've purchased my own domain, so no matter how many different blog hosts I decide to switch to, no matter what, you can always find us here:

www.thevanderwaals.com

Easy peasy.

With that clean slate, I have huge and ambitious plans to stay up to date.  When there is something to write, I plan to sit and write.  While I catch up here, I'll stay caught up there.  (That sounds like a great resolution, no?)  I'll redirect as necessary so you won't miss anything, but for now, please change your readers or bookmark tab or however else you find us, to our new domain above.

On that note, I have completed a few old posts here, and there are a couple new posts up on the new site.  Happy reading!

Here you'll find (click each link to be redirected):

The Many Faces of Ruby

Losing Luci (I began this post three or four weeks after Luci died, and found myself working on it sporadically over the next six or seven months.  It was tough trying to focus on the story and wanting to remember and capture some of the details.  If you typically ride an emotional roller coaster or are a dog-lover, have some tissues handy.)

Daddy's Little Girl (a little love story)

Dear Reed (before he goes to Kindergarten)

The First Day of School 2014

What they say is true - documenting and remembering and record-keeping for second, third and subsequent children just gets less and less.  Certainly not for lack of desire, but rather because this old brain and body of mine goes in a million different directions with three kiddos to keep track of!  When it was just Drew, he was all I had to think about.  Tack on Reed, and now Ruby...well, it's lucky I've been recording her monthly progress here because I have made zero entires in her baby book!

Obviously, as a memory keeper, this is distressing to me.  I wish my memory was as sharp as it used to be so that at least as time passes, I could write things down later.  Well that's a joke.  I retain nothing these days.  It's rough to keep track of it all, especially all the when-she-did-what but seeing as I'm trying to keep somewhat decent details of the boys' days too... you can imagine.

So I have an idea.  Well, it's not my idea, but an idea I saw on one of my favorite I-read-it-everyday blogs (again, I shall praise the wonder of internets!).  After seeing the idea on yet a different blog, Elise is documenting her daughter's second year of life by sharing and comparing some of her daughter's and her own favorites each month.  So fun.  So I'm hopping on that bandwagon and decided to document Ruby's favorites for the next several months.  By using prompts similar to what I've used for the boys' Currently posts, I'll have a running record of what Ruby is reading, watching, learning, eating, making, etc from month to month.  I'll likely tag on a bit of commentary (because I'm long-winded like that) regarding certain milestones or mannerisms, but I found this to be a fun and unique way to remember Ruby's second year. 

So this is Ruby, at 13 months old.

Reading The Hungry Caterpillar

Eating Cheerios

Playing "Let's have a picnic!"

Wearing size 2 shoes

Listening toTaylor Swift's "Shake it Off"

In addition: Weening off the bottle and formula was no problem for this little one!  This was an easy transition for all of my kids...let's hope she gives up the pacifier this easy, too!  The first night we went bottle-free, I gave her a snack just before bed, hoping to satisfy her like her bottle did so there wouldn't be any midnight hunger pangs.  She slept great.  The next night I did the same.  By the third night, it kind of went by the wayside and it didn't make a lick of difference.  From about 7:30/8:00pm until somewhere between 6:30 and 7:30am, this girl sleeps, bedtime snack or not.  Double thumbs up, my people.

Ruby and I headed in to the pediatrician's office this morning for her one-year well-baby check.  And we had a wee bit of fun while we waited...

She weighs in at 19 pounds, 10 ounces, and measures 29 inches long, both in the 50th percentile, where she's been nestled quite comfortably for the last several months.  Her head, however, is near off the charts, still measuring in the 98th.  Big brains, this one.  Big brains.

She checked out well, and is all up-to-date with her vaccinations.  Yay!

At 12 months, this little lady is *this close* to walking on her own.  I finally unearthed the push toy from the basement (not sure why it took me so long --- likely because I forgot all about it) and she zooms behind that thing like nobody's business.  I have recorded that she has taken her first steps, just two or three, but I have no doubt that it won't be much longer before she's taking many, many more.  

We've widdled down the bottles to just one at bedtime.  We still have half of a container of formula left, so we'll finish that up in the next couple weeks before we call it quits for good.  She has adjusted really well to having a "real" breakfast in the morning.  Brad is the one that is up with her on school days, so they've taken to grabbing Cheerios and a sippy cup and making themselves comfortable on the living room floor as they eat and watch ESPN.  By the time I'm home from dropping off the boys, she's ready for "second breakfast" in her highchair - something a bit more substantial and sustaining than Cheerios!

Sleep is status quo...although we need to work on getting Ruby to fall asleep on her own.  I remember very distinctly how we sleep trained the boys (oh, the crying!) and I'm certain it's been a combination of Ruby being Ruby and Ruby being our last baby that has made me not so anxious to let go of the let-her-fall-asleep-in-my-arms phase.  I'm a little nervous about how bedtime will go without that bottle to woo her to sleep.  We'll cross that bridge when we get there, I guess.

The boys really wanted Ruby to have a birthday party.  Obviously, I was going to put something together for her big day, but the boys were convinced that all of her little baby friends needed to be invited.

So cute.

We passed on a big soiree, but instead celebrated our little girl with a lot of PINK and GLITTER and CAKE and with Grandma and Grandpa, too.

Everything with a girl is so new and fun.  I admit it.  I had a heck of a good time scouring Pinterest for a few fun ideas.  I knew I wanted PINK and as I "researched" I found that the pink/gold combination is trendy right now.  Pink and glitter?!  Sold! 

I love a good tablescape, so that was the centerpiece of the party.

I found a how-to for the poms online and they were easy and fun to put together.  A few got wet so into the trash they went, but I'm going to save a few and see if I can use them in another year for bedroom decor when Ruby graduates to a big girl bed.

The snacks included pink wafer cookies, heart-shaped rice krispie treats, popcorn, strawberries, almond-bark covered pretzels (and plain ones, too), and almond-barked dipped marshmallows.

Pink punch (frozen pink lemonade concentrate mixed with Sprite) and birthday cake topped it off.

I made her birthday banner with two shades of pink and gold glitter paper, and then covered our Halloween themed photos with coordinating scrapbook paper (taped on top of the glass with glitter washi tape).

Ruby's smash cake was white with the best that I could do with my pastry bag and medium star tip to make something that resembles flowers.  Maybe??

And our cake was an pink ombre layer cake.  Or at least I tried to make it one.  I was waaaaayyyy off on my pink gel coloring ratios.  Ah well.  It tasted delicious. 

We began with snacks...but first a quick photo shoot with the birthday girl!

Then presents!  It took a bit for Ruby to get into it, not knowing what the heck she was supposed to be doing or how she was supposed to be doing it.  The boys were *very* helpful (goodness, it's a good thing she has those brothers!) and eventually, she got it done!

Clothes, dolls, toys - what more could a girl ask for???

Then, it was cake time!  Always a favorite!

The frosting I use is a buttercream recipe, so when it's exposed for a while, it hardens up a bit on the outside.  She wasn't sure what that was about, and she wasn't thrilled about digging into something that was poking her, so eventually I cut out a piece so she could really reach into the soft, sweet cake on the inside. 

It worked!  She grabbed and stuffed!

She was going to town, so I put the breaks on shortly after she finished her piece.  A baby with a bellyache on her first birthday is not my idea of a good time!

I can't help but say it: where has the time gone?!?!  I have soaked up every single second with this little wonder.  I have taken nothing for granted and haven't wished the time away.  I've lived in the moment and haven't mourned time as it passed but have embraced each new stage as it happened upon us.

But this.  

Wasn't this just yesterday?!?

In the dailyness of life, sometimes I would forget exactly how far a little baby comes in her first year of life.  Just think of all she has done!  How we've gone from the newborn days to darn near walking in 12 months surprises me every time!  And although my heart is just the *tiniest* bit sad to say goodbye, for good, to the baby years, my heart is overjoyed for the year ahead, as we watch this girl

take on year #2.

Oh, the adventures that await you, little Ruby.

The load of activities we embarked on on Halloween Day legitimately made it feel like an "event".  There was a lot happening, or so it seemed --- or perhaps that was just for me, as I was helping out with both classroom parties, which involved both preparations and an afternoon spent at school.  So yeah, that was probably it. :)

Nonetheless, it was a full day, and it was fun!

I always try to help out when I can in the boys' classrooms.  I love being able to get a sneak peek into the boys' lives at school, and they're both excited for me to be there, so until they change their minds and prefer that I not be there, I'm gonna be there!  I was unsure of how to coordinate my whereabouts, however, as I was assuming that the entire school was having their parties at the same time.  My plan was to contribute items for the parties (goody bags for Reed's class and cupcakes for Drew's class) but to not volunteer to lead an activity so that I could be free to float from one classroom to the other.  As it turned out, Reed's class began their party shortly after lunch, and Drew's class party began after the school costume parade, which was at 2:00.  That worked out well for me as I was able to be with both boys for a good portion of their parties.

Reed's class started with centers, rotating through Halloween activities throughout their classroom, before changing into their costumes for the parade.

The parade consists of the classes walking through the hallways so that everyone can see everyone else's costumes.  I don't believe I saw any other Mickeys.

{I hear little snippets from the boys about how and when they see each other throughout the day.  I was tickled as I saw Drew wave at Reed as he passed him during the parade.}

After the parade, Reed's class settled in with snacks and a Halloween movie, and I made my way down the hall to Drew's class, where their party was beginning with a puppet show, presented by a classmate and his mom.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to snap as many pictures during Drew's party.  As the day approached, I noticed that no one has signed up to bring a craft for his party, so I volunteered and spent the party hosting and helping at the craft station.  I observed Drew as much as I could...noticing enough to see that he ate at least two cupcakes, if not three. :)

The parties lasted until the close of the school day, so after resting up at home and grabbing a light supper, it was time to head out to trick-or-treat.

We had already decided, several days earlier, that we wanted to walk our neighborhood this year.  The last two years we've taken the boys to Trunk-or-Treats, capitalizing on the one-stop-shop candy collecting technique.  We stuck to the plan despite what the weatherman was telling us. Man oh man was it cold!  The temperature likely would have been tolerable if it hadn't been for the 30-45mph winds we experienced all night!  Drew has a buddy that lives just up the street, so at the last minute, we decided to go out together (Brad stayed home with Ruby).  

Weather aside, we did find the house that gives out the full-sized candy bars (score!) and we ended our neighborhood tour with the house that asks who the oldest in the group is and then proceeds to give the children that many pieces of candy.

When we got home, Brad was still wanting to take the boys to our neighbor's church, which was doing Trunk-or-Treat, so Ruby and I stayed home while they ventured out again.

Upon their return, the great candy sort of 2014 was on!

Because it was so cold and cloudy (and it even snowed a bit in the afternoon!) on Halloween day, I saved the obligatory holiday photo session for Sunday, when temps reached the low 50s and the sun was shining!

All three costumes were DIY (what was I thinking?!) with a lot of help from everyday clothes and felt.  Yay for felt!

Here's the lowdown...

Reed's Mickey: 

long-sleeved black shirt - already in the closet

red shorts - borrowed from a friend

black leggings - $5 in the girls (shhhh don't tell Reed!) department at Walmart.  It'll be a few years, but those will be Ruby's someday.

ears, gloves, shoe covers, buttons - felt, hot glue, a little bit of sewing, and an online pattern for the gloves

{nice tail!}

Drew's Leonardo: the most time-consuming and complicated of the three, for sure.  I used inspiration from HERE and HERE to try to come up with something.

green long-sleeved shirt & camo pants - Both purchased at Walmart.  I was on the hunt for matching greens for both the top and bottom, but came up short, so opted for a size small mens long sleeved shirt as it was the shade of green I was looking for (as opposed to the *bright* green the boys department offered me).  I trimmed the length and the sleeves so it would fit Drew more appropriately for his size.  There was a pair of matching sweat pants in the mens department, but there was no way I would've been able to alter those to Drew's size.  The camo pants matched the green of the shirt, he could wear them after Halloween, and I sold them as being more in line with the "rougher" image those Turtles have these days.  Drew bought it.  Win.  Then, using some quilt batting and old fabric I had in my stash, I fashioned a shell-like chest.  Not too shabby, I gotta say.

shell - Drew had been given a store-bought Raphael costume from a friend (because his friend had been cleaning out some of his old stuff and knew Drew loved the Turtles - so sweet, right?!) but the costume was two sizes too small for Drew to wear this year.  But we could use the shell, as it was a separate piece.  It was a bit floppy, so I gave it some body and poof by attaching a felt piece to the back and stuffing it (felt and fiberfill already on hand).  Then I added the belt and sashes with old fabric and velcro, a la Leo.

mask - blue felt, also in my stash.

Ruby's owl:

It wasn't long after Ruby was born that I had THIS pinned on Pinterest (followed quite quickly by finding and pinning her Halloween costume idea for next year!).  So I guess you could say I've been planning for a while for her to be an owl for her first Halloween!

pink long-sleeved shirt & pants - purchased at Kohls and wearable for the rest of the season

boots - garage sale find for $4

hat - Target; will be used all winter

cape - felt and more felt.  I made my own cape and feather patterns and after spending a few evenings watching TV  while cutting feathers from four different colors of felt, it took about and hour of pinning and sewing to get them attached to the cape.

It convinced her.  She thought she could fly!

But first....

The other night  as we're just finishing up our dinner, Reed says to me "Mom, guess what I'm drawing."

He holds his hand up in the air and motions some kind of "drawing" with his finger.  To me, it looks like a circle with a line through it.

Me: "Ummm, a number 8?"

Reed (with a goofy grin on his face): "Nope."  He "draws" it again.

Me: "A racetrack?"

Reed: "Nope!"  (starts to giggle)

Me: "A 'Do Not Enter' sign?  I give up.  What is it?"

Reed: "It's a butt!"

"And the line down the middle - that's the crack!"

And any and all effort I had previously made to make sure my boys were raised to be not rude or crude or have such boy-ish charms immediately flew out the window as I sat there howling with laughter.

{I later asked him to draw it on a piece of paper.  He included hearts in the corners because he loves it.  Aaaannnddd that's a picture of my butt.  He loves my butt.  Awwwwwwwesooooommme.}

All of this reminds of that time I inadvertently introduced the boys to the word "fart."  

This was many, many months ago (maybe last summer), and as I walked into the boys' room to begin getting them ready for the day, there was a certain aroma wafting through the air.

I exclaimed, "Good golly, who farted?!"

To which the boys immediately started laughing.

And then Drew asked "What's fart?"

They didn't even know what the word meant and they found it hilarious.

As the week progresses, I find that I take less and less photos.  The same happened last year.  Truthfully, I just forget.  Perhaps our routine is so routine, or the fact that I've just fallen out of the picture-taking practice - most likely, a combination of the two.  I just don't think about it a whole lot, and as the week nears to a close, it isn't as fresh on my mind as it was at the beginning of the week.

So, there aren't as many photos to share, but I suppose the story is as much in the pictures that I didn't take, as in the pictures that I did.

This was our first Saturday in the last nine that we haven't had soccer.  Both boys played fall soccer this year, and for eight weeks we've spent our Saturdays at the soccer complex.  While I soaked up those soccer moments while they were here (blog post titled "Soccer Mom" is in the works!) I am certainly ready to restore our Saturdays to ones of ease and relaxation.  Welp, we'll try that for next Saturday as this weekend was anything but relaxed!

The story of Saturday is all about birthday parties.

Drew was invited to three parties, two of which Reed was invited to as well.  It wasn't feasible to attend all three, primarily due to the party times but also because of my sanity, so we had to decline the invitation to a party for one of Drew's classmates, but we did make it to the other two.

But before all of that, the story of Saturday includes Halloween hangover.

The boys worked their "can I have a piece of candy?" charm throughout the day, but handled our "not right now" response very well.  When we reminded them they'd be having two-times the birthday cake, they seemed okay with our negative reply.  Before and after breakfast they worked together on some of the crafts Reed brought home from his class party the day before.  And you can see just that corner there of our kitchen table, completely covered in stuff.  That would be a very fair representation of the rest of our house.  I ignored a lot of house work this week and it all just kinda exploded on us over the weekend.

The story of Saturday includes a lot of playing together and getting along (whew!) and discovering that you're never too old for Little People.

The story of Saturday includes running to Target (is this the second or third time this week?) to pick up gifts for the birthday parties.  Both boys went with me and Ruby stayed home with Brad.  I anticipated it being a very "easy" trip to the store without Ruby - she can get a little impatient and finicky if she isn't in the right mood.  But with the boys, they can walk and handle themselves and we were on a mission and in and out and lets do this.  Yeah, I kinda forgot how "handsy" they are, needing to *touch* everything and soooooo many times I heard "I want... I want... I want..."  I think I'll go by myself next time.

The story of Saturday includes THIS.

You smiled, didn't ya?

After lunch the boys asked if they could watch a movie.  Sure thing!  They easily agreed what they'd like to watch (The Lego Movie) and snuggled up on the couch together.

Not two seconds later, Reed asked if I could bring them some goldfish and a drink.  Stinker.  How awesome is that picture?!?!

The first of the two parties started at 3:00 and was being held at one of our bowling alleys.  

The party was for Drew's classmate, but Reed had been invited too.  The birthday boy's mom had told me that her son wanted to invite Reed because he was his friend, too.  {I have had some worries about Reed growing up in the shadow of his older brother, but then there are moments like these where he is so well taken care of by Drew's friends that my heart just bursts with gratitude.} 

The story of Saturday is about brothers.  And friends.  And brothers being friends.

What I didn't capture with the camera today was the second party (which was for two boys from church), the mounds of laundry I worked on because I didn't do any all week (is it possible I will be doing laundry every day for the rest of my life???), and the major house pick-up that was required before that afternoon movie could be watched.

Saturday ended with Daddy/daughter selfies...

and photobombing.

Sundays are pretty predictable around here.  Usually Brad is up and out the door to church about an hour and 15 minutes before the kids and I need to be, but because the class he had been teaching finished, he'll have a few weeks now where he won't need to leave until about a half hour before we need to.  

You wouldn't believe the difference it made this morning.

The story of our Sunday morning included playing in the boys' room... 

...all three of them.

Church begins at 10:00.  I round up the kids and we're out the door by 10 til (church is less than two miles away so it doesn't take long to get there), but we were even earlier this week (SuperMom moment).  I wish I could take photos of our family as we worship together, especially Reed and me.  For many many months (since before I was pregnant with Ruby) he has wanted me to hold him while we sing.  So, the music starts, he puts up his arms for me to lift him, and we sing together.  We have "our song" (10,000 Reasons by Matt Redman) which he belts at the top of his lungs, but there are only portions of other songs he'll sing out loud.  This morning, somehow, and I'm not sure how, he knew all the words to That's Why We Praise Him and he just sang and sang and sang as he cuddled into my shoulder.  That sweet kid.  He's getting to be too heavy for me to hold him the entire time, but man do I wish I could hold him like that, singing, forever.

There is an open invitation to every one in the church to gather together at the mall food court for lunch after the service is over.  Every week it is a different conglomeration of folks who eat and chat and then those with littles head over to the play area for a bit.

The was the first Sunday in quite a while we've joined in, and a nice size group gathered.  It's always a good time.

The weather on Sunday cooperated (thankfully) and shortly after getting home from the mall, the kiddos willingly donned their costumes so we could fake a Halloween night photo shoot. 

They cooperated really well, and I was able to get several photos worthy of the blog and scrapbooks (post coming soon!)

I didn't capture on camera our usual Sunday Skype date with Grammy and Papa.  And we also Skype'd with Grandma and Grandpa.  Nor did I capture any photos of our small group, which gathers for discussion and supper on Sunday evenings. 

Thoughts on Week in the Life...

This is a fun project to work on, and, for me, so worth the time it takes to think about, photograph, and blog.  Comparing this year with last year is fun, too, and I can't help but wonder what things will begin to look like when it comes time to take on this project again.

In comparing this year with last, the most obvious difference is the addition of Ruby.  And the loss of Luci.

Overall, I didn't capture as many of the nitty gritty details as I would've liked - the state of the floor after Ruby's been playing, the boys setting the table, Brad's office at church, the pile of books Drew totes back and forth between his bedroom and living room, folding laundry, happy mail, etc etc etc.  These things are likely perceived as boring (by you and me!) but as I was looking back at last year, the boring photos tell a good part of the story, as well - immediately triggering in me a specific story and the reason as to why I took the picture in the first place.  I'd like to find a way to capture more of life outside of just my perspective, too...somehow get the kids involved in documenting from their viewpoint.  I'll need to do a little brainstorming to figure that out. 

The story of today is all about children's excitement and costumes and parties and classmates and candy and Halloween.

And a little bit of last minute party prep.

I was able to be in the boys' classrooms throughout the afternoon for their class parties, and had volunteered to bring a craft and cupcakes to Drew's class.

I had yet to put an example together of the craft so when Ruby took her morning nap, I set up shop at the kitchen table to do so...

as well as put the finishing touches on the cupcakes.

We played a little game of "Who's that baby?" where I put my camera phone on "selfie" mode and let Ruby see herself.

Brad came home for lunch, as usual, and was able to stay home for the afternoon so that I could go to school.

First to Reed's classroom

then the school parade of costumes.

Blurry, but if you look closely, you can see Drew waving at Reed as he parades by.  *love*

Then to Drew's classroom.

The story of today also includes snow and rain and 30 degrees and 30-45mph wind gusts.

At 6:00, the boys and I met up with a good friend of Drew's and his parents (who live just down the street) to walk together as we trick-or-treated throughout our neighborhood.  

The story of today includes finding the house that gives out full-sized candy bars and the house that gives out adult treats, as well.

We lasted just over an hour.  

Because today's story also includes frozen fingers and toes.  Mine. 

Brad then took the boys to a trunk-or-treat at our neighbor's church.

The story of today includes 90+ pieces of candy.  Each.

And a bottle for bed.

Thoughts on Friday...

The routines that we have work really, really well.  We know what has to happen and when it has to happen and when everyone cooperates and does their job, things come together well.  Even though mornings can often be rough (in terms of listening and cooperating) our routine always brings us back to helping us make it all happen.  Same goes for our after school routine.  Routine, although predictable and helpful, can sometimes get boring.  Thankful for days like today when the regular school day routine is thrown out the window for something super fun and exciting.

So very glad, once again, to be able to be in school with the boys this afternoon.  It was a coincidence that the boys' classroom parties happened to be staggered so that I could be with both of them for part of the afternoon.  Love seeing them in their environment, with their friends, doing their thing.  

We had miserable weather today, which was not conducive to getting the costume photos I wanted to take.  Looks like Sunday's forecast will be great for a little photo shoot.

Friday's favorite moment... 

The story of today is real.

The theme of today's story is frustration and irritability and nonsensical "woe is me".  And it was all mine.  Because I was tired and fatigued and my body was sore.  Because I chose to let a million little things cause me to mumble and grumble.  I woke up on the wrong side of the bed, if you will, and let it ruin this day, for me, and likely for those that I snapped at (Brad) as a result.  

It was an off day.  I think we all have them, and I include those thoughts here only to be real and admit, hey, it sometimes take a little bit a whole lot of effort to just snap out of it already (remember that whole "restart" button I used on Wednesday???  Should've remembered that today.).

But also, the story of today was routine, with a few unusual odds and ends throw in as I continued the final prep for Halloween.

6:00am - 2.16 miles and Dish Anywhere and not hydrating enough.

8:33am - School bell rings.  I say "I love you Bubba, have a great day!" to my oldest, and chase after my middle as he races down the hall to get to his classroom, where he steps right in and begins to do his thing.

8:45am - Back home and Mickey and Minion meet me at the door.

8:48am - Ruby sleeps and Brad looks like he's scowling but really it's just his resting/concentrating face, exhausted and disappointed from the Royals loss the night before.

9:55am - The story of her day includes play, lounge, suck, smile, repeat.

10:09am - Diaper changes.  So many.  All day.

10:11am - The story of every day is seeing this and having it make me so very happy.  It really is the little things.

11:01am - The story of today includes technology and a big brother and text messages that brighten my day; messages that both warm my heart and make me laugh out loud.

12:24pm - The story of today includes listening to my body and giving myself permission and closing my eyes if for only a little bit.

2:16pm - The story of today includes the grocery store.  Twice.  I stopped after dropping off the boys at school just to pick up a couple cake mixes so that I could get cupcakes baked in the morning.  I knew making the "big" trip to the store wouldn't happen until after lunch, and I also knew that if I waited that long to bake that it would end up being way too late and my sleep, once again, would suffer.  My plan didn't quite work out as I was hoping (my sweet, sweet girl strayed from her usual nap schedule) which, if you've been following along, was one of those stupid things I let unnecessarily get under my skin.  Obviously this was no fault of hers, but the fact that I let it bother me gives you a bit better sense of where I was at mentally and emotionally.

3:26pm - The story of today includes arriving early to school and catching him on the playground, saying "hello!!" and seeing his smiling face as he runs to give his baby sister a kiss.

5:09pm - The story of today includes playing referee for her new favorite thing to do.

5:20pm - Halloween prep and helping hands.

5:38pm - The story of today includes a text to Brad "Can you just pick something up for dinner on your way home?" because, you know, my mood, combined with the fatigue and the pressure I put on myself and, you know...

6:08pm - Final stage of classroom party prep

and teaching my apprentice a baking tip or two.

7:53pm - The story of today concludes with the awesomeness that is hearing this guy read combined with a few chuckles caused by the book he's reading.

Thoughts about Thursday...

I have read and heard and know that the mom of the house sets the tone for everyone else.  I know this.  And believe this 100% for our home.  Does this mean I can't have a bad day?  I don't think so.  But I do think it means that I need to be extremely careful that my bad day doesn't turn everyone else's that way too.  As I've had a couple days now to think back on Thursday --- it is clear that I need take better care of myself.  I was moody because I was tired.  I was letting things bother me that shouldn't because I was feeling ungrateful and selfish.  I was in a funk and overwhelmed and expecting too much of myself and all the negative was pushing in and winning.  I get up early in the morning to exercise.  It feels great when it's over and it's worth it, but that also means I need to compensate on the other side and make sure I'm going to bed early enough.  I need to drink more water.  Eat more fruit.  Overall take better care of myself in order to take better care of my family.

I know that my ability to focus and complete tasks has been lacking for the past several months (likely also due to, at least in part, being tired).  Making lists (with pen and paper) seems to be the best way for me to accomplish tasks.  I shared on Wednesday a photo of my meal planning calendar/grocery list and ad/family calendar system that works so well for me.  I need to create a similar system for all of my other tasks.  My goal is to do as much as I can while the boys are at school so that once they return home, they - and not the laundry -  have my full attention.

Alongside that, I also need to cut myself some slack.  And give myself permission to take a break.

And also, if anyone would like to step in and take the grocery shopping off my to-do list, by all means...

Thursday's favorite moment...

The story of Wednesday begins a lot - a lot - earlier than I had thought.

It began about 11:00 the night before, when just as I had fallen into a nice slumber, Ruby's tears wake me up.  And keep me up until 1:30 Wednesday morning.  This was new for her - very unsettled and uncomfortable but quiet so long as I was in her room with her.  We rocked, we walked the floor, I eventually laid her back in bed to try to do it on her own, and she was just all over the place.  Eventually, I took us into the living room to try to snuggle on the couch, to no avail.  I finally grabbed a bottle for her, and after about three ounces, she was out.  That put me back into bed about 1:30, where I promptly reset my alarm to 6:30.  Bummed to be missing my treadmill time, but realistic in my need to get as much sleep as possible, even if it's only five hours.

At least it was a quiet five hours.

The story continues at 6:30.  When I hit the snooze.  Twice. 

The story of today, and almost every other morning, includes books and his favorite friends.

The story of their mornings includes a bottle for breakfast and ESPN on the television.

As they wait for time to pass, they play.  Wherever.

At least someone is sleeping in.

The story of today includes my favorite warm beverage - caramel cappuccino.  Please and thank you.

And breakfast for them.

The story of this school day means barreling into the far back seat and chatting all the way there (just over a mile) 

and arriving with such excitement they run to the door.  Or, what I later found out --- it's a race. ;)

The story of today involves fighting sleep {when Ruby is obviously sleepy but for some reason isn't ready to cuddle and rock to sleep, I'll put her back on the floor to "play" until she comes back to me, then we try again}

but finally succumbing.

Then, more, please.  Because five.hours. 

The story of today includes planning and lists and looking ahead and remembering that Brad will be gone the latter part of next week.  Ugh.

The story of today includes a little sweet indulgence.  Because five.hours.  And Brad will be gone next week. 

The story of today includes menial tasks that are kind of a drag.

And finding that my most used casserole dish has bit the dust.  Bummer.

The story of today involves pumpkins.  Keep reading!

The story of today includes purple polka dot pajamas

and naked selfies

and welcoming Dad home for lunch

while she squeals with delight at the sight of him while she takes a mid-day bath.

The story of today includes quick and easy and really rather tasty.

The story of today includes love from Dad

and THIS.

The story still includes fighting sleep (there seems to be a theme here)

until finally taking care of it all on her own.

The story of today saw the return of video games (yay!).

The story of today included joining him at work

alongside our church family, to celebrate our families and our community and fall and Halloween and to enjoy and to laugh and to have a really great time. 

The story includes cleaning out the guts (it's always my job, because I'm the only one that can handle the gross, apparently?)

and giving it a shot on their own this time.

The story of today ends with the boys snug as a bug, Ruby {fingers crossed!} asleep, and me crawling into bed at 9:30 while Brad settles in to watch game 7 of the World Series.

Thoughts about Wednesday...

Brad usually has to leave for work earlier than normal on Wednesday mornings because of a meeting.  So instead of not leaving for work until about 9:30, he needs to leave just shortly after 8, which is about 15 minutes before I need to head out the door with the boys.  So while he is home long enough to perform his normal duties (feed Ruby and keep her occupied while I take care of myself and the boys), it can be a little chaotic as there is at least one, if not sometimes two, extra people to get ready for the day (although today Ruby went to school in her PJs).  There is usually a lot of reminding and repeating and a "come on, we have to get moving."  Even so, there is a real sense of working together, and on mornings like this, after we're all settled in the van, we give out a shout  - "Way to go, Team Vander Waal!"

I should've just taken a nap.  Seriously.

Wednesday's favorite moment...

The story of Tuesday begins at 5:45am with the singing of my alarm.  I've been establishing this earlier-than-I-care-to-wake-up routine over the past several weeks in order to get in some time on the treadmill.  The story of today begins with making the right decision (getting up instead of hitting snooze) and knocking out another day on the Couch to 5K program.

The story continues upstairs, where I find both boys up and chatting on the couch.  I encouraged them to play downstairs so they wouldn't wake Ruby or Brad.  They obliged.

The story of today moves along at just the right pace, with the morning routine coming together at just the exact moments they're supposed to.

And then intermission.  And Scene 2 takes a unfortunate turn.

The story of today includes two boys who let the sillies go too far, who forget the importance of listening, and end up getting scolded.  The story of today includes consequences.  Today's story does not include video games.

Today's story includes sorting and putting their own laundry (socks and undies) away, not as a form of punishment, but because it's their job.

The story of today includes putting on the finishing touches

and crossing that project off the list.

Our daily story includes all the things that we hear  - her post-nap babbles are at the top of the list (my camera was focusing on the door instead of on her, which was not what I wanted...but I kind of like the way this turned out).

The story of today involves strawberries and bananas, a lovely combination.  And more Cheerios.

The story of my everyday is her and me and getting to spend this time together, just us.

The theme song to our story is provided by the farm.

The story of today includes a wardrobe change, books,

and lounging together to read.

The story of today includes leaving the regular home routine behind and spending a bit of time at school.  I starting volunteering in Drew's classroom this afternoon and realized how much I've missed it (I was in Drew's kindergarten class weekly but didn't volunteer last year (aside from holiday parties) because of having had a baby).  The story of today includes being involved and getting connected and sharing in the school experience with my kids.

The story of today includes this scene, one I see every school day around 3:20.

She adds her fair amount of personality and charm to our every day story!

The story of today encourages us to enjoy this time - to be free and relax and play and not let the clock have so much authority.

The story of today is the story of the last little bit of beautiful fall weather we're forecasted to have for the foreseeable future.  The story of today says "look up" and see the beauty in all that God has done.

He sees the beauty.  And collects it.

The story of today is one of expressing interest and wanting to help and being patient and willing and teaching and learning.

And broccoli.  Because that's what the Chef-in-training requested and prepared.

The story of today includes practicing math skills - problem solving and trying hard and thinking harder and being challenged and wanting to do more.

And play.  I hope there is always time to play.

The story of today ends together, comfy in bed, reading, praying, and saying "I love you."

Thoughts about Tuesday...

I'm feeling pretty pumped about the progress I'm making on the Couch to 5K program.  Every morning when that alarm goes off, it's a mental battle to convince myself to get out of bed and get it done.  It gets easier with each passing day, but I can't say I ever look forward to it.  But - in the end, I always feel good (and sweaty and gross) and am so glad I did it.

Our mornings can be some of the toughest moments of the day.  After the blow-up this morning, I took a deep breath and encouraged all of us to press the restart button.  A bad morning doesn't have to turn into a bad day.  And it worked.  Moods almost immediately began to change for the better and indeed, our day progressed much much better from then on.  I need to be more conscientious about "restarting" all of us when things begin a little rough.

I know how fortunate I am to have a husband with a fairly flexible and fluid schedule so that I'm able to volunteer at school.  Super grateful for this.

Tuesday's favorite moment...

Once again I am taking on Week in the Life, a memory keeping and story-telling project by Ali Edwards.  I tackled this project last fall for the first time, so I'll encourage you to see what I wrote then if you're interested in learning more.  In short, for the next seven days, I'll be focusing on our days and our stories through photos and words.  I'm looking forward to seeing how this year differs from last year, and exploring the changes that need to be made in order to function more effectively and playfully and just better as both an individual and a family.  While the project is focused on our family and our days, it almost entirely comes from my perspective (Brad will take pictures here and there as instructed). :)  

Last year, I wasn't sure what the end result of this project would be.  Ideally, I would have been able to create an album that best represents the week, but that never happened.  And I'm okay with that.  But in reviewing my posts from last year, I didn't include a whole lot of words simply because I thought that portion would be saved for the album that I wanted to make.  Going into this year, I know that this blog is where the documentation of this project ends.  {I need to be a lot more realistic as to what I can and cannot do, simply based on time.}  So with that, I'll be sharing a lot of thoughts as well as photos.  (I will post each day the day after - so Monday's photos shared today, today's photos shared tomorrow, etc.)

A few observations before I begin with our yesterday...

Our house is horrible for taking pictures.  Very little natural light and on cloudy days, it is very, very dark indoors.  

I've already noticed that I'm less concerned with the photos I'm taking (I've been so out of practice in picking up my camera every day like I used to) and more thoughtful about what I'm hearing/observing/feeling/thinking as the day progresses.

Because I'm authoring this project, and the timeframe for which I'm completing it includes a full week of school, it largely focuses on me and my routine.  A lot of my stuff will be recorded here.

So let's get on with it.

Here is the story of our Monday.

The story of today begins with both boys up by 7:00, Drew reading quietly on the couch and Reed picking up his game of TMNT that he's been playing independently for the last two days.

The story of today includes fun discoveries!  Drew finally pulled the tooth that has been dangling for months and the tooth fairy generously rewarded.

The story of today includes sack lunches - cold pizza, goldfish, yogurt, raisins, string cheese, apples and peaches and chocolate chocolate chip cookies.

The story of today is made up of routine - get dressed, make beds, brush teeth, wash face.

The story of today includes these two.  They have their own morning routine (I'll try to capture it at some point this week).

The story of today includes independence and school and learning and looking forward to a new week.

The story of today includes cheerios, and a lot of them,

and a TV in the kitchen to catch up on the DVR.

The story of today, and several other days, includes Target and getting distracted every.single.time by the cutest clothes ever.

The story of today is finding this girl underfoot in the kitchen.

The story of today includes a rock star nap for her and productivity for me - finally assembling Ruby's Halloween costume.

The story of today includes snuggles and a post-nap Mama/daughter selfie.

The story of today is in that smile.

The story of today is about more than just Ruby's costume - but Reed's, too.

The story of today includes volunteering.  On Mondays, Brad arrives at school about 15 minutes before the bell rings to be a Hallway Hero, a strong male role-model present in the school to help direct and keep kids safe after school.  He picks up the boys, then, and brings them home before returning to his office. 

The story of today demonstrates Reed's compassion for younger kids.  This is the little brother of one of Drew's friends, and while the boys play for a bit on the playground after school, Reed has taken to this little guy, keeping watch and helping him make his way through the perils of the play equipment.

The story of today includes greeting them at the door and hearing them spill their words all over each other as they try to tell me all about their day.

The story of today includes friendship and awesome mail!

And oh my goodness, I dislike this part of the story - the sand and the dirt and the stinky, smelly shoes and the daily feet baths because of the playground at school.

Of course, video games.  Always a part of the story.  Except when they're not because of misbehavior.  But they were definitely a part of today's narrative.

The story of today includes five at the table and full bellies and fun & real conversation.

Thoughts about Monday...

When the boys play well together, they play really really well.

I have a love/hate relationship with the boys' video games.  It is the only screen time they get (up to 45 minutes) on school days which is well and good, but so much of their conversation when they aren't playing involves some word on said video games.  I just wish they didn't think quite so much about them when they aren't playing them.  But tonight, Reed asked Brad if he would play a bit on one of his games so that he could advance a little farther than he currently was.  And when the boys went to bed, Brad did just that.  I love that the boys have this shared joy (even if it is video games) with their dad.

With every nap Ruby takes comes a struggle for me to decide how I'm going to spend that time - be productive or rest.  Productivity almost always wins, and it feels great to cross things off my list, but it can also end up making me even more tired.  I need to work on taking a legitimate break every now and then (guilt free!) that will energize and help me get through the rest of the day.

I could listen to Ruby babble all day.

Monday's favorite moment...

She's just so beautiful.

At 11 months old, it seems we are beginning to work our way into the next stage of babyhood - not quite a toddler but certainly not an infant anymore.  Ruby makes her way around the house on all fours, pulls to stand, cruises as she hangs on to the couch or the ottoman or the wall, and she has even been caught letting go to stand on her own if for only a few brief seconds.  She leans now - turns herself around to stand with her back to the couch, lets go with her hands, and just chills.

She's just so cool.

Ruby is vocal.  Her new favorite word is "yah" which sounds a whole heck of a lot like "yeah".  {Today I even heard a faint "s" sound on the end making it sound a bit like "yes".  Is that possible?}  She keeps on shrieking and shrilling as she plays and explores and expresses herself.  While she has been saying "dada" a lot - to everyone and everything - she had yet to use "mama" in reference to me.  It typically comes out as a blubbering "mamamamama" when she's crying.  Earlier this month, she called for me in the morning.  She had woken up and saw me in the kitchen through the crack in her bedroom door.  Clear as day I heard "Mama".  Sweetest sound ever.

Her personality continues to show.  She is happy and silly and sweet.  She loves the remotes and when she sees one in her reach, she tries to be sneaky about it.  She'll reach for it, then turn around and look at me with a silly little grin on her face.  Then she'll giggle.  :)  She stops mid-crawl to lay herself down on the floor, make silly noises, and kick her feet.  She especially loves to lay down on pillows and the rug on the boys' bedroom floor.  She pulls books off of shelves, papers off tables, and magnets off the refrigerator.

She's just so spunky.

Her fourth tooth popped through last week, and I also switched out her infant car seat for the next-stage car seat.  The boys grew out of the infant seat around six months!  

She's just a little peanut.

We are working into another new sleep routine at bedtime.  Previously we were able to give Ruby her last bottle (on the couch in the living room, around 8pm) and she would sit quietly on our laps until she fell asleep.  She wasn't relaxing like usual for a few nights, so I began taking her into the dark of her room to rock her to sleep.  She took to it right away and now falls asleep almost as soon as we begin rocking.  She'll usually sleep until sometime between 6:30 and 7:30 in the morning.  Naps are becoming more consistent, too.  Our quiet days at home while Drew and Reed are at school must be the reason why!  Ruby will give me two decent naps - the last couple days she has napped for two hours in the morning and one hour or so in the afternoon.

She's just so sweet.

Ruby has successfully weened off the afternoon bottle...and all pureed baby foods!  She is down to two 6oz bottles (upon waking in the morning and going to sleep at night) and three meals in her high chair.  She much prefers to feed herself with her hands than to be spoon fed, and she's very vocal if you're taking too long to get her her food.  Girl likes to eat.  As a matter of fact, I can no longer eat in front of her and expect not to share.  In the next couple weeks, we'll replace that morning bottle with a real breakfast, and then sometime around her first birthday we'll be bottle-free!

So I like to do this thing where we go to the pumpkin patch every fall - see the animals, go on a hay ride, and maybe pick a pumpkin or two.  And, of course, snap a few pictures in the patch.

This was Ruby's first time.

She didn't like it.

Hmm.

Here Reed, you hold her.

I'm slowly but surely attacking my long list of catch-up posts, beginning with a recap of our summer vacation to Cincinnati.  So, go grab a cup of whatever it is you enjoy drinking, and a small snack, and enjoy. :)

{Click on each link below to be taken directly to each post}

Cincinnati: Great Wolf Lodge

Cincinnati: the Cincinnati Zoo

Cincinnati: Reds Baseball

Cincinnati: Cincinnati Museum Center

Cincinnati: the Newport Aquarium

Coming home from Cincinnati

loving kindergarten

enjoying school every single day

crushing on his teacher (noticing a theme??) :) but

declaring his girlfriends to be Isabel (from kindergarten) and Sera (from preschool)

learning how to read {!!!}

eating cinnamon life for breakfast almost every morning

creating his own sticker book, with scratch paper and our big yellow box full of stickers

entertaining his baby sister in a variety of ways

sleeping like a rock

maturing in his speech & language (he's really growing up in how he talks, what he talks about, the sentences he forms, etc - I just want him to talk so I can hear what he has to say)

finding it difficult to control his emotions when he's upset

establishing a Cars/dinosaur/VeggieTales/Lego Mixels colony in the basement

circling everything in every catalog we receive in the mail that's even remotely related to Christmas

singing in his bedroom, in the bathroom, everywhere, usually without an audience

playing soccer

growing up so stinkin' fast