Day 1020 | Spring Break

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While some of our family + friends venture off on tropical + warm vacations, this is what spring break looks like for our family. Wearing Sherpa sweatshirts while drinking lattes in central Wisconsin. At least we busted out of the house! Thank goodness Chris's parents were up for visitors because we all needed a change of scenery. Warmer scenery would have been nice, but you take what you can get.  

Day 1019 | Mass Chaos

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You can't really tell from this photo but the Children's Museum was packed today. Ninety+ kids from one field trip and all the normal attendees made for a chaotic and stressful visit...for me. The boys? They totally float above it. 

I think I've lost my ability to manage the chaos now that we live in Wisconsin. In DC, we had to deal with crowds everywhere we went. Here? I've gotten used to letting the boys have a bit more freedom in these types of places because there are so few people. For the museum's sake, I'm glad they get these groups of people through the doors. For our sake? I'll take the quite mornings, any day.

**For the record: the boys are wearing matching sweatshirts and also belts. No big deal.

Day 1017 | You Might Not Know This...

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Depending on how long we've known each other, you *might* think you've learned everything there is to know about me. Call them quirks, call them pet peeves, call them annoyances, call me compulsive. However you label it, enjoy learning a bit more about me.

top nine things that drive me crazy

  1. Buying in bulk: I know it doesn’t make any sense, but it’s true. I find great satisfaction in finishing something and throwing it away so the idea of buying in bulk only diminishes that sense of accomplishment…especially if there’s another *giant* box just waiting in the cupboard to spring into action.
  2. Ticking clocks: Maybe it’s a reminder that my life is ticking away from me and I have no control over it. Or maybe, it’s just a super annoying sound. Hard to tell.
  3. Warm chairs: You know that feeling when you sit down and the chair is still filled with the warmth of someone else’s behind? That’s the feeling. I cannot handle it. I’ve been known to switch chairs to avoid it.
  4. Clean, but unfolded laundry: I have no problem leaving a folded laundry basket of clothes in my bedroom for a week waiting to be put away (I mean, it’s not my favorite, but I can handle it). Clean, unfolded laundry is another thing. If I had to guess, I’d say that it makes all the work of collecting, sorting, washing, and drying seem in vain if all those clothes just stay in a heap getting wrinklier and wrinklier.
  5. Patronizing empty stores: At all cost, I will avoid walking into an empty store-any type of empty store. It doesn’t make any sense, especially if there’s something in there I really want/need, but I’ll do it. Something creepy about empty stores, you know? 
  6. Fleece: Bleh. Long hair + fleece = crazy static and I cannot handle it. Maybe it is super cozy. Maybe it is one of the warmest fabrics ever (and for someone who is often cold, that’s a big deal). But you won’t catch me wearing it. Like, ever.
  7. Picking up toys: I don’t think I come off as compulsive with most of this list. This item is where that changes. I cannot be in a room covered with unattended toys and not pick them up. I do it at my house constantly, which I think is probably understandable, but I do it everywhere else to. Anywhere there are unattended toys…at a friend’s house, the children’s museum, the library play area, you get the picture. I have no extreme desire for these places to be tidy, mind you, I might just be that I find it impossible not to busy my time with something every second.
  8. Wind pants: I’m not sure what it is about wind pants (or comfy pants as we call them at our house), but I rarely let the boys select these types of pants to wear on a daily basis. After all, are their elastic waist jeans + pants any less comfortable, really? I have no aversion to other children wearing them, only my own. Maybe it’s the incessant “whish, whish, whish” that has turned me against them. Hard to say for sure.
  9. Dry hands: This first Wisconsin winter has done a number on my hands even with constant lotion application.  It's quite possible that I’ve become addicted to lotion, but I cannot handle cracking hands. And, trust me, don’t look at Chris’s hands.

Day 1015 | Wall Art

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We've been waiting for months to hang this puppy on the wall and it was finally delivered + installed today.  

Remember the built-in storage shelf I unveiled earlier this year? Our new piece of wall art was made by the same talented folks (in their spare time, I might add). Oh...and it's big. Like, really big. I  think it ended up being over 3.5 feet wide + tall. It's definitely a statement piece and one we're crazy excited about.

I'm not sure it will always display Chase's collection of Alpha-Bots (letters that transform into robots, obviously), but for now they compliment it really well.

Day 1010 | Buy This Book

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We went to a book signing celebration last night (during the craziest thunderstorm ever, by the way) for my favorite author and a really good guy. Here's an article from our local paper that does a much better job setting the scene for the book than I ever could.

If you're in need of a new book or like to have a back up handy, here's the link:

The Hearts of Men: A Novel by Nickolas Butler

I can't vouch for it myself quite yet (it just came out today!), but I'm fairly certain we won't be disappointed.

Day 1009 | Managing My Back Pain

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I think I can finally say my back pain is getting better. For good this time. I can feel it. This Momma Strong program is working wonders for me and I highly *highly* recommend it for any moms with aches and pains related to childbearing and child rearing. 

What's the big deal, you might ask? The trainer who runs this amazing program, Candace, really knows her stuff and does a good job of re-training moms to do exercises in a new way to target the areas that plague most of us. And it's not just the exercises that are helping to control my pain...she has these bits of wisdom that she just casually throws out there and they totally rock my world. For example, let me share a few of her pearls:

Momma strong pearls of wisdom

  1. Walking + standing with parallel feet. I had no idea I was standing and walking with my toes pointed out until Candace called me out on it (via the internet). I guess if you walk/stand like that, it means your hip flexors are doing most of the work (because that stance is more comfortable for them). You don’t want them to be taking over so forcing a more parallel stance will retrain the muscles and force your core and glutes to do the work they're supposed to be doing.
  2. Tilting the pelvis. In another stroke of wisdom, Candace suggested that standing (or walking, exercising, holding babies, etc) with your pelvis tilted back is causing a lot of back pain (and other complications in moms). Why would we tilt our pelvises, you might ask? If you’ve ever taught yourself to stand with a “better” posture to flatten your stomach, you’re probably doing this. I have! The natural curve of the spine forces you to pooch your belly out more than any of us probably want it to, so we try to retrain our pelvis to correct it. When I stated making the pelvis shift (to its natural position), I noticed improvement right away. Whoa!
  3. Rolling on a lacrosse ball. I’ve realized through my weeks of Momma Strong that the bulk of my back problems stems from my troublesome hip flexors, or iliopsoas muscles (mentioned above). Rolling on a lacrosse ball for about 45-60 seconds a day per side makes a world of difference in loosening up this overly-ambitious muscle group. I tried to find a video to share with you, but no luck. The basics, though, are to lay on your side and place a lacrosse ball (or tennis ball) on one side of your hip bone. Roll the ball about two inches below the hip bone and then lay down onto your stomach. Roll the ball back and forth in very small movements. If you feel some pretty intense sensation, you've hit the right spot. Do this for 45-60 seconds and then switch to the other side. I'm telling you...game changer.

Maybe this type of magic will only work for me, but it's worth sharing *just in case* it can help one of my mom friends who might be struggling with the same (or similar) aches and pains. 

Day 1008 | A Berenstain Bear Party

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Here's a longer snapshot of what our Bear Country birthday party looked like. Everyone had a bear-y good time. Get it? Ha!

A few of the details on the party:

  • Our menu was based on the book Too Much Junk Food and consisted of choco chums (chocolate Teddy Grahams), sugar balls (donut holes), carrot sticks, apple rings, and trail mix. We also had honey sticks...we needed to have honey, right?!?
  • The "sewing" project below was based off of this idea. We did the shape of a sun instead of a heart and it was a hit (at least from what I could tell flitting around the party).
  • The "horticulture" project was based off of this seed planting. We've had two cloudy days since the party so no growth is visible...yet. Fingers crossed!
  • The "woodworking" project was to make these cute airplanes out of a clothespin. I simplified the design so the kiddos could make them. I just used one clothespin, two ice cream spoons (for wings), and one small popsicle stick (for the tail feather). And we used Zots to adhere the pieces instead of hot glue.
  • Then we set up a play station for Brother Bear and coloring for Sister Bear.

As you can probably tell, I like the idea of having things for the kiddos to do at parties other than just play. I think this number of quick projects was perfect for the age range of the kiddos (mostly 2-6) and they still had plenty of time to play (and eat!).

Click on the photos below to enlarge. 

Day 1006 | Wall Art

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We need to host more parties. Man, it's just such a good motivator to finally get to some of the things on our to do list around the house. We've even hung up pictures + art on a few of the walls. Woohoo! 

This little collage in our dining room just makes me so happy. I feel like it tells so much of our family story...in just a few images. It's lovely what a little visual comfort can do to boost your spirits and make it feel more like home. 

Day 1005 | He's Three!

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Check out this big three year old. Yeah, that's him posing next to all those photos of himself wearing rain boots. What's the big deal?

We spent the day doing Robbe's favorite things: breakfast with family, library time, lunch with daddy, a long nap, a "choo-choo" movie, breakfast for dinner (french toast), popsicles for dessert (his special treat of choice), a special world-premiere stop-action short-film (painstakingly made by his dad), and presents. That last one *might have* been his true favorite. 

In keeping with blog tradition...

Top 10 things you may [or may not] know about my favorite three year old:

  1. He’s a problem solver. This kid. You never know what he’s going to do next to get what he needs. Good thing he’s real trustworthy as well, otherwise, we’d be in serious trouble! [ Exhibit A: Mr. Independent, Exhibit B: Independence , Exhibit C: Bug Barricade ]
  2. He’s got mad dancing skills. He must have gotten them from his dad.
  3. This kid loves monkeys. Talking like them, acting like them, constantly thinking about them, etc. You might say he’s bananas for monkeys. Hahaha!
  4. He’s a puzzle master. In the last few months, Robbe’s puzzle interest went from 0 to 60. And his mastery of them has been just as impressive. “Me do” is his response whenever you try to help him too much.
  5. He’s empathetic. If Chris and I have done nothing else as parents, I’m happy to report that we’ve raised two very empathetic and caring little guys. Robbie’s empathy (especially towards his brother) is heartwarming and very special to watch.
  6. He’s a tough guy. This kid bumps and falls more than I could have ever imagined. Aside from a few passing tears occasionally, he bounces back super fast and it doesn’t get him down. 
  7. He’s got a crazy long attention span. He can focus on certain tasks, projects, and pretend play longer than I would expect from a fresh three year old. The best evidence? The fact that he can sit through two (2!) Berenstain Bear books in a row (and probably more but we never test that). In case you’re unfamiliar, these books are about 7 minutes long each. 
  8. He loves, loves, loves his big brother. And the feeling is mutual. Robbe’s best friend is Chase and he’s the happiest version of himself when Chase is around. It makes me happier than I’m able to express in words.
  9. This kid has will power…really impressive will power. He stopped sucking his thumb cold-turkey (during the day, that is…night time has been a bit tougher) and now he potty trained himself throughout the day, nap time, and bedtime. These two accomplishments are maybe the most impressive actions I’ve witnessed out of my kiddos.
  10. That smile. 

I have a feeling this next year is going to be a really good one for our sweet babe. He's got the spunk + charisma that are going to lead to great things for this little guy. Chris and I are beyond lucky to have front row seats to the Robbe show.