Cream of Potato Soup

I haven't been updating because I haven't had time. Between the garage sale, having weekend guests, and packing to move, I've just been going in twenty different directions. We close on the new house this afternoon, so today starts the 10 day painting/cleaning/packing blitz before we settle in to our new place. Don't be alarmed if you don't hear from me (other than the big 1 year post for Grady next Tuesday--don't even get me started on how he's a year old already).

Thankfully, we've had and will continue to have lots of help. My parents are planning to come get the new house ready this weekend, and Mike's parents (especially his mom) have been great about watching the boys so I can get stuff done around here. And it looks like we're going to have a hell of a moving crew, so I'm pretty excited about that. This is the first in-town move Mike and I have ever made together, so it's going to be a new kind of adventure (one without the hour(s) of driving between packing the truck and unloading it!).

In between all these crazy things, the boys are doing well. Evan continues to love t-ball and being outside, and his language skills are still improving steadily. He's also become so much more social, especially out in public. It's wonderful to see him blossoming this way. Grady is just great--his third tooth is almost fully in, and he continues to stand on his own but won't take any steps. He's become quite the little imitator, pretending to talk on the phone or help with laundry or eat with a fork. He's willing to try almost anything, and the results are usually quite amusing.

That's all for now--Ev's about to get off the bus and I'm sure there's something else I should be doing. Wish us luck the next two weeks, because we're going to need it!

Posted by jenny at 9:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Today is Mike's birthday, and he's 31. This past year has really flown--it seems like just yesterday we were having Mike's big movie party and waiting for Grady to arrive. I don't think Mike is especially thrilled about this birthday. I mean, 30 was fun and a milestone and all that, but 31 is just 31.

But I think it will be a good year for him, and we're planning a great big celebration this evening. Actually, Evan is planning it, so it will include mostly things that Evan likes and presents that Evan has picked out. But I'm sure Daddy will love it too, if only to humor his firstborn.

Happy Birthday Daddy/Michael J! Here's to another wonderful year!

Posted by jenny at 8:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Here's how lame I am. I actually teared up this morning at Evan's t-ball game, when the kids lined up at the end of the game to shake hands.

Posted by jenny at 2:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

My friend Grady has sprouted another tooth this week. It's on the top right, and barely visible, but it has definitely caused some restless nights at our house. Other than that small thing, he's doing great. He's happy and smiling and spends his time trying to do anything Evan is doing. He's able to stand without holding on to anything only if he's not paying attention. Once he realizes he's doing it, he falls on his rear. Of course, that hasn't kept him from cruising all over and getting into everything--I feel like I'm constantly telling him "no" or fishing foreign objects out of his mouth.

Evan has been keeping busy too. He's really settled into his daily routine, and has been enjoying his time with the TSS more lately. He gets to go fun places like the Y or the park, so I'm sure this is why he likes it so much. He comes home every afternoon full of stories about the kids he met or the games he played, and I'm glad he's getting this social time. He's even started talking to me about his friends at school, which is something he never did before. It's just in the last two weeks or so that I'm getting stories about how one kid wanted the phone he was playing with, or another boy had a birthday this week. He's getting into detail, and using the names of his classmates in his stories, which is totally new territory for him. It's fun for me to hear more about his day, and get to know what is important to him.

And as of yesterday, Evan is fully registered for kindergarten. He'll start at his new school August 29th, and he couldn't be happier. He actually went with me yesterday to turn in the paperwork, and I think he wanted to stay. He yelled "hi" to all the kids he saw, and told me he wanted to go to his classroom and meet his teacher. He will get a chance to do that in the weeks before school starts, but it's nice for me to see him so excited about it right now.

As for me, I'm trying my best to get the house in order. I really put everything off until after the wedding, and now I find myself at a loss. I can't figure out where to begin. The first order of business is the garage sale next Saturday, and I think I'll start a room-by-room plan this weekend to get everything cleaned up and ready to go. Of course, some rooms will be a bigger job than others, so I'm sure I'll be working pretty steadily for the next week. I'm excited though--things are really starting to happen, and before long we'll be loading up that moving van.

Posted by jenny at 3:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

We've returned from our long and crazy trip to New York City for Jerry and Tammy's wedding. Mike and I had a really great time, and the boys had a wonderful time themselves staying with Grandma and Papa in Cleveland. The four of us finally got back to Meadville late Monday afternoon (we left Wednesday), and we're all worn out and glad to be back home again.

Jerry and Tammy were excellent hosts, and they made the trip very easy for us. Tammy's family was great as well--whether it was driving us around or inviting us into their home or just being so sweet and welcoming, we really felt comfortable during our stay. I'm pleased that we finally got to meet everyone that Jerry has been telling us about for so long.

We were able to see a lot of the sights of New York City on Friday, and that was so much fun. The city was pretty much what I thought it would be, but nothing prepared me for just how crowded everything felt. From the trains to the sidewalks to the buildings, it constantly felt like you were being crowded and rushed. Visiting was a lot of fun, but I know I would never be able to live there. I'm definitely a small town girl!

The wedding was just beautiful--Tammy was a gorgeous bride. They had a Catholic ceremony and a Chinese banquet reception. The meal was ten courses, and it was like nothing I've ever seen before. There were lots of different things, like jellyfish and shark fin soup, and more traditional things like chicken or beef or noodles. I'm not a very adventurous person when it comes to food, but I tried a little of everything, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much of it I liked!

One of the best things about the wedding was something my brother Steven touched on. He said to me at the reception that he felt like at the end of the trip, we should be taking Jerry home with us. I agreed--it had been such a treat for all of us siblings to be together for an entire weekend, and I can't remember the last time that happened. It felt almost wrong to leave him behind, even though he hasn't lived near us for the last four years. No matter how old I get, I always love spending time with my brothers, and it saddens me that it happens so rarely now.

Mike and I enjoyed having some time to ourselves, but when Sunday came we were definitely ready to see the boys again. The best Mother's Day gift of all was seeing Evan come running toward me at the airport, screaming "Mommy Mommy!" And in that moment, our trip was really over, and I happily got right back to work.

Posted by jenny at 8:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

On Saturday, Grady turned 11 months old. He celebrated by going to Aunt Beth's surprise birthday party and getting his hands on some tortilla chips and chocolate cake. It was a good day for him. He's getting dangerously close to walking--his balance is improving and he tried to take a step alone last night. He fell flat on his face, but that's okay. Mike also noticed over the weekend that Grady's top front teeth are about to make an entrance, so stay tuned for that little development.

Evan has been having some issues the last two weeks or so, and it's causing some trouble in the family. Ev has suddenly become very attached to me--not in a bad way, but in that he wants me to put him to bed, he wants me to go out with him, he whines for me and wants hugs and kisses if we've been separated. This in itself wouldn't be a bad thing--it's cute, and it doesn't stop him from going to school or anything like that. But it has caused some trouble with Mike.

Along with the wanting me, Evan has started rejecting Mike. And he's been saying hurtful things, and telling Mike that he can't go places with him, and just generally being unbearable. Mike has handled it pretty well on his end--he's not buying into Evan's little rants, and will usually just leave him be when he gets like that. But it hurts me to watch, and I think Evan needs to learn he can't treat people that way. I keep telling Mike it's just a phase (which I'm sure it is), and they do still have some good times together through the day, but I guess I'd like to see this end sooner rather than later.

It's so funny too, because it just makes no sense. Like yesterday, he was adamant that Mike not come to Erie with us. Which was fine, Mike had planned to stay home anyway, but Evan still made a huge stink about Mike staying behind. But once we were in Erie, Evan couldn't stop talking about Mike. He kept wanting to call Daddy on the phone, or go home and play with Daddy. Then when we get home, Daddy tries to do stuff with Evan, and the rejection starts all over again.

I guess I'm not sure how to make it better. It's probably just one of those things we have to wait out, and before we know it the behavior will have disappeared. But until then, there's going to be struggles and a lot of hurt feelings. Sometimes these phases really do a number on us.

Posted by jenny at 8:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Too many things are going on right now at our place, too much is up in the air. I think Mike and I are both feeling overwhelmed.

We're in the process of buying a house, and there's a lot of waiting on other people, working out details and meeting of deadlines going on. I'm starting to try to clean the house out, clear the clutter, pack what's left and plan for a garage sale. There seems to be so much to do and not enough time--we're moving in June and that's right around the corner.

Mike and I just got the results from our mole biopsies--mine was clear, but Mike's was not. Frankly, they aren't sure yet what it is. It could be nothing, or it could be something not so great, but we have to wait another week to hear from a specialist in Boston. I hate the waiting, and the worry. I'm trying not to think about it too much, but it's hard not to imagine the worst, and I think we're both feeling the stress of this big question mark.

Evan just started with his TSS, and with that, therapy, school, and t-ball, he's getting to be very overscheduled (and he's letting us know that he doesn't like it). I'm stressed just from trying to get him to all his various appointments, so I can only imagine what all this work feels like to him. I'm giving it another week, and if things haven't improved, we're going to have to cut back. It's just too much.

And the time for our trip to New York for Jerry and Tammy's wedding is almost here. I feel very unprepared for it--I don't have a dress, I'm not sure what we're taking, and I surely don't have enough milk to leave for Grady. I'm upset about leaving the boys (even though they will be in capable hands), and I'm worried about being so far away from them for three nights. I'm actually starting to tell myself already that this is going to be fun, because I'm afraid that I'll be too neurotic to enjoy it!

So that's life in our family this week. Grady is the only one in our bunch who seems to be fine, because he doesn't know half of the stuff that's going on. He's happy just to toddle along behind his toy shopping cart, play with his stuffed bear and eat mashed bananas. Maybe I need to take a lesson from him.

Posted by jenny at 4:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)