When G was a precious baby, everyone was all "oh, just wait for the terrible twos". (why do people insist on ruining a new mother's joy??). And, I have to say...it never happened. Garrett was delightful....sleeping on a regular schedule...cheerful...obedient. A trifecta of positive behavior, if you will. I'm not sure if it's accurate historian-ism on my part, or if it was just the fog of sadness that clouded my memories. But he really was a great 2 year old (and 1 year-old, and baby, actually). I'm sure it was the good Lord watching out for me...knowing I needed to be spared the behaviors of a typical two-year-old, lest I jump from a cliff--seeing as how I was too busy hooking up heart monitors and drawing up medicines for Lilah to discipline Garrett.

But, oh. my. Why did no one warn me about 3? As we are rounding the corner to 4, I feel like I can say with an honest, non-over-re-acting opinion, that the 3-year-old-boy (or at least mine) is a creature for which I was unprepared. I have loved children forever, so mine were not my first. I was prepared for the fits over not getting his way, difficulties with change, and trouble sharing. What I was not prepared for was the intensity and duration. (I am thinking now that this applies to life in general, huh?) Or the disobedience. Or the sassiness. Or the unpredictable emotions.

Or the love. Sweet boy. It's a good thing he's so cute:).

I am too tired and hot to go into great detail, but I will leave you with a laugh:

We took the kids to Bonefish for Fathers Day and it was mostly a smashing success. Successful meals 'out' depend upon lots of "something new"s (i.e. random chewies and happy meal toys that the kids look at for 1.2 seconds before declaring they need something new) and a last ditch effort of some iPhone Elmo. Love that iPhone! Anyway, it's a great meal, involving somewhat better behaved than normal children. I was staring lovingly into Paul's eyes, telling him what a fantastic dad he is, and we catch Garrett, out of the corner of our eyes, with his entire left foot in his mouth. On top of the table. His shoe off. His toes in his mouth.

I am raising an animal.

these pics are microscopic...i know, i'm a blogging wizzard. i can't figure out how to get them any bigger.

My weekend getaway was a total success, we had so much fun together because it was just like old times. No warm-ups, intros, or ease-ins needed--just right to the good stuff. I'm wondering if my cheeks will ever quit hurting from all the laughs. These girls were my family for almost 4 years and they still feel like it. Living together, sharing meals, clothes, classes, and tight quarters teaches you a lot about people. These girls were the best friends anyone could ask for in college and they have all turned into incredible women, mothers, and wives. I am so thankful to have shared in the treasure that was college with them and even more blessed that they continue to reach out and love me from so far.

We did a lot of fun stuff on our trip to IU, some of it a walk down memory lane and some things different (like asleep by midnight:). The 'sneaking off to call boys' has morphed into 'sneaking off to call babies', but was met just the same: with giggles, and questions, and sometimes tears.

My 3 babies survived the weekend....P said 'survived' was fitting, but it looked like they did great.:) so I'm going on a girls weekend every weekend.:) haha. it was a joke (as Garrett would say).

Just because I want to share my excitement with the world..... I wanted to tell you that I am pulling on my black party pants and heading to the land of light beer, late nights, and sistas. That's right people, I am Bloomington bound--for a girls weekend with my sorority sisters!!

And I am just a wee pumped up about it.:)

Some recents...

look at this!! weight bearing on legs and not crying:)

this is garrett demo-ing what he's learning in swim lessons.:)
this crazy suit my mom found in a yard sale and G wears it constantly....but so would i, if i looked that cute in it:)

it's hot! Our princess gets hotter than most thanks to a super hard working heart, so here she's cooling off....drapes of cold washcloths and being fanned her servants.

sweet Lilah loves her granna and this is her favorite position. If she could talk, she would say "hold me like this forever".

Garrett is the swinging king, taking it to new heights.
we are so thankful that lilah is able to participate in things so much more than we expected. Look at that smile...pure joy. She is full of the purest, most simple, true happiness around. What a gift!

The first week I was married, I almost had a nervous breakdown. It was not about the 'lifetime commitment thing', the 'living 5 hours from my family for the rest of my life', or even 'there is no room for my clothes in this single, tiny house so I guess I will keep them in my suitcase'......it was all about the food. Of all of the pressures of newly-weddedness, that to provide meals was the biggest for me. It was self-imposed, of course. My new husband had been surviving for 31 years without a 'little lady' and could have fended for himself.....as long as you count 'fending' as eating out 2x/day, 7 days a week.:) I knew my way around the kitchen fairly well, it was just the meal planning thing that got to me. It seems like that might have been a good use of Home Ec time in high school, instead of making and delivering 13 dozen cookies to friends in other classes.

Anyway, I laid awake at night thinking about what to serve (dumb, I know) and then what to serve with it. Luckily we received 2,749 cookbooks for shower presents, and I devoted myself to their study.....leafing through them franticly, turning down pages, writing out lists. What goes with what? If I make X, then I'll put Y with it, with a side of Z on the side. then I decided casseroles were definitely the way to go because I had heard men love casseroles, and they were 1 dish with everything in it, 1 recipe instead of 3. I went to the grocery every day, because I would forget some random item or change courses. I spent all day buzzing around this tiny kitchen, chopping, prepping, mixing, cleaning. And then we would have a 9x13 casserole for 2 people, and because I knew my new love hated leftovers, I would toss it! (btw, it horrifies me to admit to this...throwing away food....my Grandma Jo is rolling in her grave!)

Anyway, about 3 days and lots of dollars into my quest for domestic goddessness, my new husband told me, very kindly, that all he really cared about was meats. And if I really wanted to cook at home, some hot meat was all he wanted. Oh, and potatoes. And that's when it began.... my charted course through a lifetime of meal preparation. Roasted meats and potatoes in various forms (I know you health nuts out there are gasping. Relax, I serve veggies and fruits too. It's just that P doesn't eat them.) And creative leftovers of said meats (shhh, don't tell him). Now, I love our meal plans because they allow me to be free....free from recipes and random ingredients. Don't get me wrong, I love a good recipe or random ingredient, I just don't have time at this stage of life to be dallying with that stuff most days of the week.

I tell you all this as a foreword to a grip session, be warned. In our rental house, I have an oven that is so archaic, Betty Draper would turn up her nose. No amount of pounding or marinading will save a piece of meat. Basically, the only thing you can cook in my oven is soup. I had grand plans of a summer of crock-pot meals, but after the 3rd, I decided that no one really wants to eat slow-cooked fare in the 95 degree heat. Neither of my boys 'care for' sandwiches. Only 1 burner of the stovetop works, and there is a questionable exhaust. Also, it's directly under a cabinet, so it seems like a fire hazard (although, those cabinets are classy metal, so I guess I'm safe there. if you missed the sarcasm, check again). I am diabolically opposed to frying, so don't suggest a Fry Daddy.

I am wondering how I'm going to feed 'us' for the next 5 months. I could make it many months with pesto, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and ice cream, but this meal plan did not make it past the board. I would love to hear any suggestions that do not involve a rotisserie chicken or tacos. Or at least your well-wishes that we do not get kicked out of Qdoba by summers end.

It's been hard to make myself blog. I think all the time "I'm going to post that", "I need to write about this"....but then the moment passes and life gets busy. The honest truth is that I don't feel super passionate right now. It sounds all depressing, but that's not at all what I mean. Things are great....easy, comfortable, peaceful. If you've never experienced a place of total brokenness, you probably have no idea what I mean, but in the midst of it...life, emotions, words, everything feels revved up. And the calm after the storm feels, well, calm. I'm all 'worried', 'cried', 'talked' out. I'm just "being".

Granted, we are living like gypsies, building a house, and trying to rear two very different and equally challenging children, but it feels like still waters. I could write for days about how thankful I am for a new perspective. A perspective that allows me to enjoy these days as peaceful ones, instead of laying awake wondering what preschool we should send Garrett to, or what counter tops to put in the new house (as I'm pretty sure my old self would have done).

I know full well that life is a marathon, full of up hills and down hills, mountains, and straight stretches. We are really thankful for this straight stretch and the gift of enjoying today. Wishing you the same. Happy Summer.:)