Sunday, August 28, 2011

Firsts.

This week was full of firsts for us. I visited Regan's new school for Parent Orientation. It was amazing. I had tears in my eyes when the pastor of the church showed up to pray for our kids. He said he knew it was hard to trust others with the kids, and that the teachers at the school made it their JOB to LOVE kids. Can't ask for much more, I guess. The school she attended last year was AHHHH-MAZING, and this school was right up there as well. I feel very blessed to have so many opportunities for the kids in our area to get involved and educated with the very best resources. Luckies. On Thursday, we all loaded up and went to Regan's Meet the Teacher Day.







She got to see her classroom, the playground, the gym, and of course, meet her teachers. Her teachers seem SO great, are super organized, and have some great things planned for the kids. They are keeping journals, cooking, and are learning outside the box this year for Transitional Kindergarten. (Doesn't that just sound cool?) ;) She was a little out of sorts that day and was super shy, but I do think she's excited for school to begin on Monday. It's hard to believe this is her last year of preschool. Next year she will go to kindergarten, and she is already telling me she wants to ride the bus! (We will have to see about that one.) I can't wait to see how much she will learn and grow this year. I swear this kid is scary smart. Her attention span can outlast my own any day of the week, she recognizes landmarks such as Machu Picchu and the Sydney Opera House, knows all about letters, sounds and how reading works (I'm holding out on teaching her for fear that she will do nothing else!), and really gets intra and inter personal relationships. She longs to know how the world really operates day to day with questions about remote controls, nature, and Jesmin, our Compassion child we adopted from Bangladesh. She is progressing at swimming class like a fish earning ribbons and graduating from her original class, and also is learning the game of tennis. She's also funny. I mean, her favorite shows are The Office and Modern Family. I know those aren't technically appropriate for kids, but personally I think they're way better than any silly episode of the Bubbleguppies. I mean, come on. Okay, enough annoying Bragmom. I'm a proud lady.

Little lady also got to go to her very first Colts game with her Daddy. She was so excited! They went to Steak N Shake beforehand, got her face painted with sparkles and a horseshoe, met up with Uncle Matt and Aunt BB for a few minutes at the game, and walked all around the stadium a lot. She is so blessed to have a Daddy that thinks to take her on special dates and remind her that she's the most wonderful, special little lady in our universe. She feels important and valued because of her Daddy. And, this will one day translate into finding a man that takes time and plans important nights for her, values her, and reminds her that she is wonderful. Whatever boy she chooses sure does have big shoes to fill, but that's exactly the way it's supposed to work. This little lady will accept nothing but the best because her Daddy reminds her every day that this is what she deserves. So, they went to her first Colts game and shared a dinner. She came home asleep in his arms, and woke up with memories and a ticket stub that will remind her of this night.





Another first in our family is all about batman undies, potties, and pee pee.

This week, my buddy picked out his own pack of Batman undies, and actually wanted to wear them. Yes, he peed in all three pairs within two hours, and peed in the potty zero times. But hey, normally when I even SAY potty, he cries. I think he's not yet ready to tackle this quite yet, but when he turns 2 1/2, we will try again. For now, he's loving the idea of wearing undies. And peeing IN them. Bless his heart. My man is also loving his new squinky toys, loves the color green so much her hugged his green crayon while coloring at the Sweet Life cupcake shop on Thursday, and repeats EVERYTHING we say. Because of this, Tyler also celebrated another first. He "read" a book all by himself from beginning to end this week. He can recite Brown Bear, Brown Bear in it's entirety, and I die of cuteness attacks every. single. time.

In a week full of firsts, many things remained constant and true. We took "jammy walks", we visited parks, we planted flowers, we played with our baby Evan, we broke up fights between sister and brother, we celebrated Uncle Matt and Uncle Sam's birthdays, and we swam. Weeks are like that. Somethings are new and exciting, and some are comfortable and routine. Life is a good balance that way. Life is good. Period.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Eating good in the neighborhood.

You guys are dying to know what we eat for dinner right? Okay, great. Well, here's the general master list. I typed it up so I no longer had to walk through Trader Joe's and the grocery store wondering what the heck to buy. Usually our shopping trips are  like an old-school episode of Supermarket Sweep. I just try to keep the kids from hurting anyone, getting lost, and not embarrassing me too badly while throwing some crap in the cart running 100 miles an hour with sweat on my brow. Moving cart= no kids jumping out and touching stuff. Or grabbing boxes of adult diapers and asking if we need these in front of other surprised patrons. Oopsies.  But now, I've got a list.  Here's what we're shoving in our pie holes for dinner each night. And, shout out to Mike before I post, he cooks A LOT! Yet another reason to be jealous ladies. :)

Also, if you are into this kind of stuff, we eat about 25-30% organic, rarely eat dinners out of bags or boxes, and dinner is generally my most healthy meal. Breakfast and lunch is when I get down with my bad self. We also go out for dinner about once a week. So, there's the low down. Are you still awake?

Pioneer Woman’s spicy beans and cornbread
Pioneer Woman’s pork sandwiches with cilantro-jalapeno slaw
Pioneer Woman’s make ahead melt muffins, biscuits and gravy, breakfast for dinner
Shrimp with angel hair pasta
Chicken tortilla soup
Chicken and noodles
BLT sandwiches
Dirty rice
Vegetable beef soup
Pot roast
Chicken mushrooms rice
Meatloaf
Chicken stir-fry
Chili
Cajun fish sandwiches
Barbq salmon
Jambalaya
Hamburgers & homemade steak fries
Chinese food /egg rolls
Stuffed shells
Spaghetti & bread
Chicken apple sausages
Hot and sweet chicken drumsticks
Lasagna
Ravioli
Pork loin
Porch chops
Barbq chicken
Steak salads
Buffalo chicken sandwiches
Grilled cheese / tomato soup
Quinoa with chicken and peppers
Tacos
Enchiladas
Quesadillas
Chicken rotel casserole
Caesar chicken salad sandwiches
Mexican pizzas
Homemade pizza

Friday, August 19, 2011

10 Things you may not know.

I am a very mysterious person.... I will now reveal my deepest and darkest secrets:

10. If I had to guess, I would say I've watched about 5 combined hours of television in the past two months. I recall one hour was a special from Shark Week, two hours were episodes of Jersey Shore, one hour was  Dance Moms, and the last hour was combined snippets from the news. Watching television is not on my to-do list.

9. I am not an animal lover. I know that most people who don't like animals are mean so I try not to admit this a lot, especially around new people. But, animals are either annoying or gross to me. Sorry friends, I do realize this is not a popular thing to say. And, yes, we do have a 100 pound dog. I only kick him a few times a day. KIDDING!!! But seriously, horses, small dogs, snakes, ferrets, turtles, cows, and birds top my most hated animal list. Once again, I'm sorry about this.

8. I was a really ugly kid. Like, straight up busted.

7. I am really annoyed by noises and movements that are repetitive. Snoring, chewing gum, breathing loudly, scratching, rubbing, clicking, tapping, or anything of the sort will make me bonkers. They kind of make me want to punch your eye.

6. I have a really, really bad memory. Tell me your name, I've already forgotten it two minutes later. I don't remember entire conversations, birthdays, MY anniversary, dates, places. It's pathetic.

5. There are 14 pillows on my bed.

4. I drink coffee, a Coke, and water every single day.

3. When I was 15, I was riding in a friend's car, and it was totally immersed in water due to flash floods in Arizona. we Were in a "wash" which is like an alley, with water completly over the top of the roof rushing very quickly. We managed to escape from the car, to hold on to poles, and to get to saftey, but it was the scariest night of my life. The next day, our father's told us lives were lost that night, in that alley. Very thankful.

2. I have never in my life run a mile. I even walked the mile in gym class for PE in high school. My body does not move that way.

1. I was in a sorority at IU, and we had a weekend that our mothers all came to visit. It was called Mom's Weekend. Imagine that!! So, we all rendezvoused out and about, and then decided to head back to the sorority house to call it a night. My mom found my room, went to bed, after she LOCKED THE DOOR, so I spent the night in random places throughout the house that night including friend's beds, the hallway, the laundry room, and the formal living room. So, that was neat.

I also have to have the blankets cover my entire shoulder when I sleep (on my side), I love doughnuts, cupcakes with no icing, and ice cream more than any person in this world, I sit in my sink to apply my make up, I am very picky about socks, I pee more than anyone I know, I take a prescription medicine every single day for headaches, and I am very scared of the dentist.