Day 865 | Sushi Mondays

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The boys and I have been treating ourselves to sushi on most Mondays since Chris went back to work. It's been lovely not having to think about what to serve for one meal during the week days and the boys gobble it up with no fights or complaints. Woohoo! 

**Special note: they're actually eating avocado/cucumber/carrot rolls, so nothing terribly crazy. Maybe I'll introduce eel at some point, though. :)

Day 864 | Top Ten Surprises about Living in WI

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The days seem to fly by around here. I realized that the blog was in need of an update on our life in Wisconsin. No, not another adorable photo of what’s been happening with the boys (they are adorable, though, right?), but real, substantive details about our life here. I’m sure you’re all dying to dig right in to this incredibly long post. 

The top ten things that have surprised us about living in Wisconsin: 

  1. THE WEATHER: I mean, I think Wisconsin is tricking us into believing that this is what every late summer / early fall will be like. Watching the slow and perfect transition into my favorite season of the year (yay, fall!), has been so glorious.
     
  2. BRIDGES + WATER: Being close to the water and all these bridges has definitely brought more joy to our lives than we would have expected. Somehow walking without a purpose seems totally ok if you’re able to look at how pretty everything is.
     
  3. THE EXPENSE: When we moved from DC, a lot of folks talked about how much cheaper the cost of living is here. Newsflash: it’s actually not. Not everything, anyway. Goods at Target cost the same. All of my Amazon purchases cost more (thanks, sales tax). And most of the indoor activities I’ve scoped out for the winter months cost money. I can think of many weeks in DC where I spent very little money being a stay at home mom. We would go to one of the ten libraries to break up the monotony, or one of the three rec centers, or one of the ten museums. We splurged every once in awhile, of course, but it seems like we’re going to have to budget a *bit* more for stay at home mom activities. Surprise!
     
  4. PERFECT BALANCE OF FAMILY TIME: It shouldn’t be a new announcement that Chris and I were a tad worried about how to balance having lots of family around and our need for some independence (after surviving for ten years in total isolation). This concern has been totally unfounded. We feel like we have stumbled upon the perfect balance of activities and distractions with the extended family and quiet, down time with our immediate family. Our goal, upon moving back, was to try to be engrained in the day-to-day of our families and it feels like we're actually doing it.
     
  5. SMALL TOWN IN A BIG CITY: We do not live in the same small town (~1,000 people) I grew up in. The city of Eau Claire is about 25 minutes away. However, the small town nature of our new city is very much present. We have been surprised how quickly word about this or that gets around and back to us from someone totally unrelated. It’s very welcoming (such a close-knit community!) and a little terrifying (be on your game, team!).
     
  6. THE DARK: It’s crazy dark here. When the sun goes down, there are just no lights. After living in a big city for so long, you kind of forget what the dark is like. No street lights when driving on country roads and dark sidewalks on quiet side streets. It’s something to get used to again.
     
  7. FURRY FRIENDS: DC had it’s share of squirrels, but nothing like here. Our yard is a flurry of activity from sun up to sun down with squirrels + chipmunks burying food for the winter (but they don’t seem to be very methodical about it, silly guys). And we have so many bunnies roaming our neighborhood. It’s as adorable as it sounds. I didn’t know I was missing the presence of such friendly yard critters but it definitely brings some joy to the days.
     
  8. SMOKERS: I haven’t done any sort of scientific sampling, but it seems like a lot more folks smoke here. I’m not sure why that is, but Chris and I both came to this conclusion independently so it must be true. Hopefully we don’t catch it. ;)
     
  9. HALF DAY PRESCHOOL: For any of my friends with kids, you know how much I agonized over the fact that Chase would be in a half day preschool this year (after his full day program last year). It seemed like a step back for him (he did SO well last year) and a step back for my life as a stay at home mom (I’m back to being responsible for two kids for the majority of the day again). I’m happy to report that the half day school has been just about perfect for me and Chase. He’s loving having the extra time with mom and brother (although he likes school so much he “could go full day”) and it’s been easier than expected to have both kids at home in the morning again. They’re definitely at an easier age where playing together is much more common than fighting against one another. It’s a lovely stage. And, can I tell you, it’s been beyond wonderful to have our mornings back and not have to rush off to school right away (Chase goes in the afternoon). Such a calmer + more enjoyable way to start off your day.
     
  10. HOW MUCH WE LOVE IT: Chris and I were both really excited to be moving back to Wisconsin. After talking about it for seven years, it was time and we were thrilled to finally be settling into our long-term home. Having said that, we’ve been blown away by how living here is even better than we had imagined. The boys are constantly playing outside, we love our house and our neighborhood (and it’s so much more walkable than we expected), there’s no traffic so Chris’s commute takes exactly eight  minutes, errands and “quick trips” are actually fast and manageable, we’re never searching for something fun to do (there’s always something going on), and more. 

So there it is. Has the entire move + transition to life in Wisconsin been totally perfect with no bumps along the way? No, I wouldn’t go that far, but all in all it has been hands-down the right choice for us and there are no regrets. My heart continues to ache for my dear friends I moved away from and Chris will forever look back at the SEC as one of his best jobs ever, but luckily we can stay connected to these folks in DC and we’ll be back to visit…soon I hope!

Day 853 | A Midwest Thunderstorm

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Thunderstorms are not a new thing, you know? DC has thunderstorms just like everywhere else. In the Midwest, though, these storms are no joke. I had kind of forgotten that. There have been a few other days of big storms since we moved but nothing like today.

It's been torrentially raining with crashing claps of thunder most of the afternoon. If you're safe inside with no where to be, man there's nothing better. I was sitting doing some design work while Chase was at school (and safely in an interior bathroom, it turned out) and Robbe was napping, while listening to the rain and enjoying the storm more than I probably should have been. That is, until the sirens started blaring. I thought, "a tornado?!?" and immediately checked the radar to see what was happening. No tornado warning. That's weird, I thought. I kept monitoring things until the sirens stopped and then went back to enjoying the pitter patter of the rain.

When I picked Chase up, his teachers informed me that the sirens blare for thunderstorm warnings here. Got it. Good to know. In fact, they're going off again as I type this. I kept my cool much better this time around.

With two happy and entertained children cutting teeny pieces of paper in front of me (they're really into scissors these days), I'll continue to enjoy the storm...and get off my computer.

 

Day 852 | Storytime in EC

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Today's storytime at our new library (L.E. Phillips Memorial Library) may have been one of the best I've attended. 

I don't think any will trump storytime at the Library of Congress (that was pre-blog), at least from an adult's perspective, but today's session was spot on with what my kiddos desire. 

What made it great, you might ask? Let me tell you:

  • The kids could each pick their own [awesome] puppet to fiddle with throughout the program (it did wonders to keep the little ones seated throughout).
  • It was the perfect combination of songs + action rhymes + read aloud time. 
  • The books were actually age-appropriate. It's a big pet peeve of mine when librarians choose super long books to wee ones and expect to keep their attention.
  • The words to the songs were printed out on large posters hanging behind the librarian...genius! I felt like I could actually participate and encourage the same from the boys even though it was our first time. 

After declaring that, in general, storytimes "weren't his favorite" on the way to the library, Chase changed his tune on our walk home. It's unanimous: we all had a great time.

For those interested, a couple of storytimes + library posts from the past (I guess we really like the library):

Day 43
Day 62
Day 221
Day 250
Day 295
Day 318
Day 323
Day 396
Day 410
Day 418

Day 851 | Posing Cousins

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Today's full morning + afternoon of errands didn't inspire me to take a photo...sorry about that.  

Instead, I'll share this super cute one of four cousins posing on some rocks. Pretty impressive, right? The boys have absolutely loved all the time they've gotten to spend with these girls (plus all the other cousins!) since moving back. And, in case it's not obvious, so have I. 

Day 850 | Apple Picking

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One of the things I missed most about Wisconsin (other than the fam, of course), was being able to pick my favorite apple, Cortlands. Today was the day to fill that hole in my life. We headed over to Ferguson's Orchard for some outdoor excitement. Unfortunately, a late freeze damaged a lot of their apple crop but we were able to pick a 1/2 peck and find a few to eat by the trees. There was no disappointment in the outing, even with a general lack of apples, however. Ferguson's has a whole field full of family fun including: 

  • Water pumping duck races
  • Kiddie-size school house and jail 
  • Ride-on tractors
  • A "slightly" scary haunted house (a first for both boys...they loved it and asked to go again!)
  • Some friendly farm animals

I think it's safe to say we'll be back to enjoy more of the fall weather + restock our apple supply.

Side note: Can I tell you how nice it was to drive ten minutes instead of 45 to go apple picking? I'm very excited about this.

 

Day 848 | Impressive Moves

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Check out these sweet moves! Robbe decided he was ready to master this fairly complicated (and high!) playground apparatus solo. Luckily, I just happened to be standing right next to him when he decided to take the leap. If you can believe it, he didn't actually need my assistance at all. And he did it four times. 

Full disclosure: this photo is from when we went to the park earlier this week (but I've had too many other things to post). Today's impressive moves included Robbe carrying a backpack the same size + weight as his body (filled with all his prize possessions) through a Macy's store to pick up Chris's new suits. There's no way I would have put money on him surviving the trek without asking me for help. 

Day 847 | Waiting

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Robbe has been working really hard at using the potty lately. So hard, in fact, that we decided it was time for a potty sticker chart. And he rocked it. As a prize for filling out all the boxes, he could choose a reward. He selected a fork lift (because he's still really into trucks). I did have some foresight...I had him order it two days ago so that it would arrive in time for the final sticker celebration. And it worked. The package was scheduled to arrive today. His last sticker was placed on the chart this morning. Perfect!

The problem, is that a two year old has no sense of time. None. Immediately upon placing the order (two days ago), he asked where the truck was. About every 15 minutes since that order was placed, the same question has arisen. It's hard to wait, isn't it?

Usually our packages are delivered during naptime so imagine my glee when this box (pictured above) was waiting for us after our morning excursion. Finally, the questions were over!  The boys carefully carried this box from the front door to the back door so they could take it inside and unwrap their treasures (Chase got something new, too, of course). Seems perfect (and super adorable), right?!? 

Well, upon opening, the box actually just contained mattress pads and sheets for the new bunk bed. Talk about a let down. There were some tears (mostly mine), but they rallied when I told them the other deliver would be here shortly. We waited all through nap and school pick up before we arrived back home to find a box waiting for us. Whew. We narrowly escaped the total meltdown on this one.

Lesson to be learned: order rewards in secret and surprise them after they arrive. Noted.

Day 846 | A Sad Day

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I woke up to bad news: Miga wasn't doing so well.  

**Side note: because of Chase's cat allergy (that's what we finally discovered after being cat-free for six weeks during the move), Miga has been living with my brother and his family. She's been in Miga Cat paradise over there with access to the outdoors at all hours (yay, dog door!), some of the most loving pet owners you could ever imagine, friendly rodents to chase around, a few new feline friends...to list just a few. 

I promised to meet them at the vet after my chimney sweep arrived (seriously the one morning I have something on the calendar) but by the time he was settled in, the bad news had been delivered and it wasn't fair to Miga to keep her uncomfortable until I could get there. Sniffle, sniffle.

I couldn't even say goodbye to one of my first family members. I wanted to be selfish and make the trip for my benefit. It wasn't until I stepped back and realized it wasn't the best for Miga or for the boys (who would have to witness their mom a total mess). So through tears (yes, while the chimney sweep was here), I agreed to let Brian and Tera take care of my sweet kitty and say my final goodbyes for me. 

She was a crazy cat, but the sweetest, cuddliest, friendliest, non-agile cat you would have ever met. I'm hopeful that she and Moggy are together again and telling some of the same stories we have been.

**I cannot adequately express my gratitude to my brother and sister in law for everything they did today. Not only did they take care of the worst pet owner duty of all time, but also arrived tonight to distract us and add some much needed laughter to our day. So grateful for my family.