Insomnia

I hate nights when I can't sleep. This happens to be one of them. I blame the Coke I drank a sip of this afternoon. Why can't I learn?

Moving is coming right along. We still have tons to do, but we've got a good start. I'm so thankful for sweet friends! They have been so much help.

I am starting to remember why I said after our last move that I never wanted to move again. It is hard and so exhausting! I guess it's like childbirth. You forget how horrific it is, which is probably a very good thing!

Well, my plan of writing until I got sleepy has worked and I'm hoping I can get in three more hours of snooze time before my sweet girlies get up.

Hope your weekend has started off wonderfully (and you aren't lying in your bed typing on your phone at four in the morning).

And it Begins!

So, I got the text from our realtor, Nancy, this morning that we were fine to start moving our things into the house!  I was so excited and overwhelmed, all at the same time.  I quickly started throwing things in boxes and carrying random pieces of furniture out to the van.  As you can see below, my first load was pretty hodge podge.  

Pulling up to the new house felt a little strange.  I still don't think it's all sunk in.  My mind is still wrapping itself around the idea that we are actually moving.  

Home Sweet home

Believe it or not, Rosie has been very concerned about this move.  I know, surprising, huh?!  I get about 200 move related questions per day.  I figured actually going in the new house would be a good first step to her getting used to the idea of moving.  The girls had never been in before, so they were both really pumped to see their new room.  They seemed to love the place!

These are their closets.  They are all connected and the girls thought that was fabulous.  They ran through them over and over.  

Having a blast in their new room! 

We've made three trips today and, although that doesn't sound like much, I'm pretty tired.  Probably going to Zumba for the first time in forever tonight, didn't help.  I better get some rest!  I'm praising God tonight, because I'm so thankful that we're able to move our stuff in early!  I really don't know how we would have pulled it off otherwise.  I'm also thankful for sweet friends that are willing to help us in the process!

Dads are Great

We've been hit with another plague over here.  I'll tell you why, too.  I got cocky.  I was feeling pretty great that we hadn't been sick in so long, and wham...it hit, and it hit hard.  Both Rosie and Daddy have had a rough few days.  Poor Mark was sick all of Father's Day.  He didn't move from his bed ALL DAY!  Well, other than back and forth to the toilet, but that's probably something you don't want to know about.  Rosie has had a stomach ache and a fever.  I took her to the doctor on Monday, and we are still trying to figure out what's wrong.  They think it's just a random stomach bug, but we're waiting on a culture to come back to make sure.  

It's been hard tending to the sick and keeping the well entertained.  I've been beyond drained.  I'll be real honest with you, I realized this morning, that I hadn't showered since Saturday!  I didn't have a moment to relax and when I did, I fell asleep, so showering was the last of my worries.  I need to be honest with you, again.  Kiki, may or may not have worn the same pair of pajamas for two days straight. Please don't judge!  Life's been hectic around here.  

This was me on Sunday evening.  I was pretty exhausted at this point.  If you think I looked bad then, imagine another day without showering.  It wasn't a pretty sight/smell, people.  

We seem to be on the mend, I've showered, and Kiki's wearing a fresh pair of pajamas, so things are looking up.  I still don't want to get the girls out around people, so we'll probably have another day in tomorrow, but I'm not too upset.  The weather hasn't been amazing, so I don't feel like I'm missing out on pool time.  I'm trying to get in as much time at the pool that I can before we move.  On Friday, we were invited to the pool by some new friends.  Mark has a few guys that he plays tennis with and their wives asked us to come along. They seem like such sweet girls.  One of the girls lives in the neighborhood, and the other just moved back to the area from Charleston.  I'm always a nervous wreck hanging out with people I don't know very well, but it was still fun.

On Friday evening we went over to Riley and Zach's house for dinner. They have the best back yard!  It was just beautiful.  I forgot to get any pictures, but we had a great time eating and laughing!  On Saturday, we went to Church and then came home for naps.  Rosie wasn't herself at church and ended up sleeping for four hours.  She woke up feeling better, so we packed up and headed with the Nudd's to Sliding Rock and then did a little grilling.  It was a nice full weekend.  I was so sad that our Father's Day plans didn't work out due to sickness.  We were planning on doing a surprise picnic for the dad's on the parkway with David and Elizabeth, but it was a no go.  Maybe, we'll have to plan it for another time.  

Let me stop right here and do a quick shout out to all the dads out there.  I have an amazing Dad!  He has always made me feel so good about who I am and what I'm capable of.  He was a wonderful leader in our home growing up and he, along with my mom, showed me what having a close relationship with God looked like.  He's the most generous, kind, and funny guy I know.  He has always treated my mom so sweetly and that helped me know what qualities I should look for in a hubby.   Thankfully, I caught me a good one in Mark.  I truly couldn't ask for a better daddy for my girls.  You should see their eyes light up when he gets home!  He listens, and plays, and laughs and teaches.  The best part is you can tell he enjoys doing it!  He's completely in love with his girls.  And can you guess where he learned all that from?  Yup, from his dad!   Mark's dad is a wise man with such a gentle spirit.  He's great!  I've been blessed with some amazing dads!   So, thank you guys for all you do.  It's much appreciated.  

My Dad and Me at his Dental School Graduation!

Kiki is Papa's biggest fan! 

Mark and Rosie hit it off really quickly.  

Kiki and Daddy didn't waste any time either:)  

Papa is the "baby whisperer"!  He can soothe a crying baby in no time!  They love him!  Here he is with Rosie way back when. 

So, we're supposed to close on our house next week!  Would you like to know how much packing I've done?  One box.  I've packed one box and it's not even full.  I really need to start taking this whole move more seriously!  There's a chance we might be able to start moving things in this week and that would be WONDERFUL.  I'm really praying that all goes through, so I can start moving things over in small batches.  

I just thought of a funny story I wanted to share with you.  On Saturday, I was laying on one couch with Kiki and Mark was sitting on the other couch with Rosie.  Mark started trying to throw grapes in my mouth.  This has been a game we have enjoyed for years, but this was the first time the girls had witnessed it.  They thought it was wonderful and we were all laughing.  He made quite a few into my mouth, but one hit my head and I couldn't find where it bounced.  Kiki and I looked and looked, but we couldn't find it, so we continued on with the game.  A little later, I touched my bangs, that I had up in a poof, and felt something hard.  The grape had landed right in my hair poof and had gotten lost.  I pulled it out and you should have seen Kiki's face.  She was mesmerized.   She kept looking in my hair for more food the rest of the day.  After typing this, I realize it wasn't that funny of a story, but it was rather amusing at the time.

It's well past my bedtime, but I can't go to sleep until I know if the Heat or Spurs win this game.  I'm pulling for San Antonio, as that was my birthplace, and I don't care for Lebron.  Let's go SPURS!!!!

Hey, Girl

I'm a woman.  Hopefully, that's obvious, although sometimes I wonder.  Every time Kiki sees this picture on the ads on Facebook, she points at it, and says, "MAMA!"  It's a small picture, but I'm pretty sure it's a man and I'm starting to wonder if I need to work on changing up my look a little.  Maybe something a little more feminine.

Picture taken from Facebook Ad 

Now, being a woman is usually something I'm proud of.  We really are quite amazing creatures.  I'm not trying to toot our own horn or anything, but really, we are.  We have the ability to grow little people in our bellies and keep them alive with food that our body makes.  We have an inner strength that can get us through the toughest of situations.  Most of us were born with a level of nurturing that can't be rivaled.  And what about that woman's intuition?  It's usually pretty spot on!  We are multi-taskers to boot.  I don't know a man that can make a sandwich, talk on the phone, and play Candyland, all at the same time.  But that's child's play for a woman.  We are beautiful and complicated beings.  I read somewhere, that to understand a women's mind, just imagine an internet browser with 3,000 tabs open all at the same time, all the time.  I couldn't put it better myself.

On the flip side, I can't get over how hard we can be on ourselves and each other.  No one has ever been meaner to me, than me.  I'm the first to contradict a compliment I might have been given.  In my mind, I'm never good enough and I have to really work not to compare myself to anyone and everyone.  I don't think I'm in the minority here, either.  I feel like women, in general, can't seem to just accept themselves, their bodies, their places in life, etc.

The way women treat each other is often times ridiculous!  Just watch any episode of the Real Housewives of Anywhere to see that.  There's so much bickering and cattiness when you get a group of women together, it's nuts.  Instead of finding and enjoying the things we have in common, we often concentrate on our differences, and consider those differences negative.  Why do differences have to be things that separate us?

There's a group that I belong to on Facebook that's for moms to unite and ask questions.  It's really a great group, but I've never seen so many differing opinions in my life.  It's so interesting to read some of the threads.  Some think you can't immunize and if you do, you are horrible.  Others think those that don't immunize are morons and hippies.  Most think that breastfeeding is the only way to go, and if you don't, they imply that you aren't as good of a mom.   I guess, I wish we could all just get along.  Just be nice to one another; celebrate each other, realizing there's more than one way to skin a cat.

If a girl at the pool looks amazing in a swimsuit, instead of being jealous, I should tell her she looks great!  She might just have lost tons of weight and is proud of her new body.  Or she just might be genetically blessed, and if that's the case, that's good, too.

If a mom seems to have it all together, maybe instead of being snarky and talking about her behind her back, I could acknowledge her and maybe ask for advice.

There's always going to be someone brighter, more beautiful, more talented, richer, with children that behave better, and can seem to keep their house cleaner, so I guess we should just accept that, and move on.  Imagine if we, instead of spending the time we do picking each other apart, tried building each other up--creating a a culture of love and acceptance.  We could be happy for each other's successes and not consider them blows to our own self esteem.  Wouldn't that be amazing?!

You'll have to forgive my me for my rambling.  I struggle with all of these things, so I hope I don't sound like I think I have it all figured out...farthest thing from the truth.  I just yearn for a day when women could unite.  I can't even fathom what we could accomplish.

So anyway, I'm going to strive to be more deliberate at reaching out to women in my community, church, etc.  I will try my best to let other women know how great I think they are and acknowledge their accomplishments.  When I see things about another woman that may give me a twinge of jealousy, I'm going to pray that the Lord turns that jealousy into admiration and joy for them.

Let's all be friends!  Are you in?

It's a bird, it's a plane...

I'm having a hard time believing it's only TUESDAY!   I swear it should be Friday already.  I don't remember a time before this week!!!  On Monday, I took the girls to VBS at an area church.  I don't think it was intended for kiddos as young as Rosie and Kiki (they were supposed to be able to write things like "Intelligent Design" and "photosynthesis" and Rosie's still mastering spelling her name) so I figured I wouldn't take them back.  They did enjoy it, although part of me thinks the plate of snacks had a lot to do with that. 

I made Grandma Murrill's curry recipe last night and, although it didn't come close to her's, it was yummy.  I need to make it more often.  It was a lot easier than I remember it being. 

Curry & rice, poori bread, raita and pineapple/pepper chutney.  

Today was beautiful!  We went to the gym, did a lot of playing, and headed to the pool this afternoon.  I'm going to miss that pool when we move!  

Tonight, we happened upon the movie, Superman Returns on television and I'm starting to understand the comparison Mark gets all the time.  He got his hair cut yesterday, or I think he would look even more like Clark Kent!

20,000 Questions

The girls are both at very fun ages, but I have to say, they ask me A LOT of questions.  I've probably been asked 1,800 questions today.   I try to answer as many as I can, but let me tell you, it's hard!  I'm pretty spent at the end of every day.

Here's a snippet of what I heard as we drove to our outing yesterday.  This was probably a minute of the 20 minute drive.

Rosie:  Mommy, why does that guy have a hat on?
Kiki:  Animal "Cackers"?
Rosie:  Mommy, can I get a hat?
Kiki:  Animal cackers, "Pease"?
Rosie:  Mommy, how many cats are too many cats?
Kiki:  I want animal cackers. Pease!
Rosie:  Mommy, where are we going?
Kiki:  Mommy, animal cackers?
Rosie:  Mommy, will there be cookies there?
Kiki:  Animal Cackers, MOMMY? PEASE!!!!
Rosie:  Mommy, can we go somewhere where they have cookies?
Kiki:  ANIMAL CACKERS!!!

Do you see why I feel a little insane some days?  I know I need to enjoy these moments and treasure them.  I'm sure there will come a time when they won't talk as freely and won't want to hear my answers to questions.  Better take it, while I can get it, I guess.

I'll leave you with my favorite "exchange" from yesterday's trip:

Rosie:  Mommy, I want to go to the hospital to get a baby for myself.  I'll just put it in my belly.  I really want to be a mommy.  Hey, how do they put babies in bellies anyway?

Me:  Hmmm...ask your father.  Well, actually, when a mommy and daddy love each other so much, there's so much extra love, that they make a baby!

Rosie:  Well, Mommy, I love Kiki a whole lot...so...

Me:  Do you guys want some animal crackers?  

Pants are Optional

It's been a much better day today.  No poop parties yet...knock on wood.  That situation was up there with one of the most overwhelming situations I've dealt with since being a mom.  I didn't know where to start.  Glad it's over and done with.

We knew we needed to get out of the house today, so we joined our Church's mom's group and headed to gem mine.  Both girls really enjoyed it this year.  Kiki has been carrying around her bag of gems like her life depends on it.  I left my phone in the car, so I didn't get any pictures, but I can assure you, it was fun.

I did take a couple random pictures on my phone today.  And when I say random, I mean RANDOM...

I looked over today and realized that none of us were wearing pants.  I hate pants and as soon as I get home, I take them off (if it's appropriate).  I guess my girls are picking up on the habit.  

Believe it or not, Kiki does time-out really well.  I almost forgot about her today, because she was sitting so quietly.   

In food news, Mark just made me a smoothie.  Normally, I love his smoothies.  I'm also pretty adventurous with my smoothies.  I love a good green one, but he tried to sneak some broccoli in there, and I wouldn't recommend it.  It tastes very...earthy...almost like dirt.  

Not my favorite, but I drank it anyway.  That's how I roll:) 

Pooptastic!

Friends, it's been one of those days.  I heard Kiki wake up from her nap, and sent Rosie upstairs to get her.  Rosie quickly came back down and told me I should go upstairs because Kiki had made a big mess.  I told her not to worry about it and we'd clean it later, but she got very adamant and said, "Mommy, you really need to go upstairs."  My curiosity was piqued, so I went upstairs.  I was a tiny bit terrified of what I might find.

Well, nothing could have prepared me for what awaited me.  I have a few pictures, but I assure you, you don't want to see.  She had climbed out of her crib and was sitting in the middle of the room playing with her diaper--her poop-filled diaper that she had removed from her body.  She was completely covered in poop, as was the carpet.

I had to make a decision at that point.  I could shut the door and play like I didn't see it or I could face it head on.  I ended up shutting the door and calling a babysitter, while I spent the afternoon shopping.  I'm completely kidding...relax!!!  I went ahead and faced it, although I have to admit, I was in tears.  Poor Rosie started gagging during it all, which only made the situation worse!  When I think about it now, I can laugh (sort of), but at the time, it was beyond overwhelming.

After a lot of bathing, carpet cleaner, lysol and clorox, we're pretty much back to normal, although I'm a little relieved that I hopefully won't have to walk on that carpet much longer.  So, that's my day in a poopshell...I mean nutshell.  Goodnight!
 

600!!!

So, I just realized that my last post was number 600!  How cool is that?!  I'm kind of proud of myself for sticking with something so long.  For someone who has a hard time finishing anything (that doesn't involve food), this is quite an accomplishment.  I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with you, dear readers, and although I go through times that I post less frequently, you are always in my thoughts.

So, I guess I should update you with what's been going on in our world.

Kiki has now learned to climb out of her crib.  For the most part, she only uses this skill in the morning after she's woken up.  It's actually quite convenient.  Rosie and her usually wake around the same time, and come to greet us together every morning.  I've been crossing my fingers that she won't figure out that her skill can be used during nap-time.  Yesterday, after putting the girls down for nap, I thought I heard Rosie walking around, so I ran upstairs to see what was up.  She was sound asleep, and Kiki's door was still closed, so I figured that I had just dreamed it.  Later in the afternoon, after Rosie woke up, I heard Kiki and went to get her.  When I opened the door, I found her in her crib, but all around her was almost every book from her bookcase.  Apparently, she had gotten out of bed, filled her crib, and then climbed back in.  She cracks me up.

Crazy Kiki

Rosie has been enjoying taking on the big sister role lately.  She really gets a kick out of being able to help Kiki with things.  Well, most of the time.  This week, Kiki asked Rosie to help her dress her baby doll and Rosie said, "I'm doing this because I'm a good big sister, even though I really don't want to help you right now."  I had to hide my smile.  Another thing she's been doing lately is tell me "secrets".  She will come up to me with a secret and tell me the most random things.  Yesterday, she whispered in my ear, "Mommy, I keep my pants in my closet."  Obviously, she doesn't quite get the concept, but I'm enjoying hearing her take on it.     

We have almost gotten over the final hump of the house buying/selling journey.  They did the appraisal on the house we are buying on Friday, and we are just waiting to hear what it comes back at.  I'm pretty much over this whole process.  I love to feel in control, and in this situation, I have none.   It's really taken a toll on me.  I'm so ready for it to be done!  If all goes well, we are slated to close in a little under three weeks.  Yikes!  I haven't even thought about packing yet.  I don't want to start until I know for sure it's all systems go.

To demonstrate how nuts this whole situation has made me, I would love to show you the shoes I showed up to the pool wearing last week...

Yes, I wore these.

I had to go to the inspection at the new house last week and Maria sweetly agreed to watch the girls for me.  We decided to go the pool in her neighborhood beforehand.  I scrambled around that morning, trying to get myself and the girls ready for the pool, get the lunches packed, and get clothes, blankies, etc. for going over to Maria's after and an outfit for me to wear to the inspection.  I got everyone and everything in the car and drove to the pool.  I was sitting in the van waiting for Maria to arrive, when I looked down at my feet.  That's when I realized I was wearing those slippers above and that they were the only shoes I had brought with me.  I was going to have to wear those (with a sundress) to the inspection!  How NUTS am I?!  Luckily, Maria shared some shoes with me, so I didn't have to look as crazy as I am.  Whew! 

I have let my head start decorating the new house, which probably isn't wise, but I can't seem to help myself.  I've had so much fun figuring out where our furniture and decor will go.  In the new house, there will an area for a playroom/classroom for the girls.  Last year, I found this alphabet print at an antique store in Asheville.  I've wanted to frame it, but it's a weird size and I really didn't have a place for it, so it's been low on the priority list.  I started thinking about it this week, and thought I would try to get it custom framed.  I knew it could be expensive, so before I did it, I stopped by Goodwill, to see if they had anything.  Of course, there wasn't anything that fit it perfectly, but I did find one that I thought could work, if I put fabric behind the print.  I also found two little frames that I thought I could put some prints from a vintage, "Dick and Jane" book I found.

The before frames... 

My vintage "Dick and Jane" book.  Isn't it sweet! 

The Alphabet print 

The finished products.  I'm excited to (hopefully) put them in their new room! 

I just loved the pictures of Jane and Sally together.  I hadn't planned on keeping the matting in the frames, but the colors all coordinated.  

I couldn't find a frame to fit, so I put burlap behind.  I think it'll be just fine.  

This passed weekend we drove over to Lake Junaluska for Campmeeting.  It is BEAUTIFUL there!  I mean, just gorgeous.  After church, we spent the afternoon with Elizabeth, David and family in the cabin they rented.  We had such a good time, and by the time we got home that evening we were exhausted.  I didn't take any pictures and I'm so sad about that.  Actually, I did get a picture with Nancy and I together that I sent to my mom.  They were really good friends in college, so I thought she would enjoy seeing her.

My one picture from the day!

In food news, I made a batch of slowcooker lentils today.  If you are looking for a lentil recipe, I would DEFINITELY recommend this one.  The girls both loved them, and even Mark (someone very weary of any bean) enjoyed them.  I just served them over rice and they were perfect.   

I really can't think of much more to share.  We really haven't been doing anything too exciting over here.  Well, there has been some sister wrestling.  That's always fun! 

It started out as a hug and turned into full on play wrestling with lots of laughter!