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Staycation Wrap-Up

 

Well the staycation was a decided success. We had lots of time to do those little things that we keep meaning to do and yet never get time to do. We did lots of kid-centric things, but Matt and I certainly got some of our wishes fulfilled as well.

 

Tabby had a great time. She was accompanied on 4/5 days by a friend. Our neighbors and their darling granddaughter, Paige, with us to the zoo on Monday and our friends’ little guy, Liam, joined us on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. She loved our activities, but having her buddies with her was the highlight for sure.

As for me, I probably (aside from the company), enjoyed The Shoppe the most. It was everything I thought/hoped it could be and I have a new favorite cupcake place in Denver. Yay! I’m excited to go back before too long.

We really got an impressive amount of things checked off our list, but of course, we didn’t get to do EVERYTHING. Guess we’ll just have to do it again.

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The Benj … 4 Months Old

Will you look at this, folks? I am posting a baby update on the proper day. Miraculous! Yes, Ben (“The Benj”,”Benji”) is 4 months old today. Obviously, the time has flown by. I cannot believe we were just meeting him four months ago.

In that amount of time he has gained over 10 lbs and who knows how many inches. He is above the 80th percentile from our calculations and will not be in the infant carrier much longer. He is getting darn hard to carry around and beyond that he won’t fit much longer. He is wearing 6-12 month sizes in clothes and size 3 diapers. He holds his head up just about perfectly and can sit easily in his bumbo or a reclining chair (stroller, swing). He makes swats at his bottle if he’s not hungry and grasps this and that, though with not a ton of purpose yet.

He has a very cheerful disposition. He is very smiley baby. Perhaps he’s even more smiley than his older sister was. He delights in attention … singing, smiles, patty-cake … and responds with big grins and funny happy growls. You rarely hear grumbling from him unless he’s hungry, though lately he’s sometimes lobbied for extra cuddles and attention with a form of vocalization we refer to as “baby bitching.” He eats … a lot. Recently, he has gone to more formula than breastmilk and I know this trend will continue when I go back to work in just two weeks (*gulp*). And we will be starting him on solids soon.

We are so very in love with our little guy and really enjoying seeing him turn into such a little personality. It is such an incredible privilege to have him in our family. Now I am off to get a few more baby cuddles in before I blink and he’s all grown up.

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Staycation

We are planning a staycation. I really dislike that word, but that's what it is. We don't really want to spend the $$ or go through the hassle of actual travel, so next week, I am locking up Matt's (work) computer and we are going to play! I am so excited.

Here are some of the thing on our agenda:

• visit Little Monkey Business
• go berry picking at Berry Parch Farms
• train for our 10k
• visit Tiny Town
• go to the aquarium
• eat at The Shoppe
• check out Hmart
• visit the zoo
• take a hike
• get a couple of things done around the house

I doubt we'll get around to ALL of it, but I hope to take a good chunk out of that list. More than anything, I'm looking forward to spending time with Matt and the kids as a family.

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Twice in One Week!

It is still pretty early in our house. Tabby has had quite a few late nights in a row – amazing how our “Blissfully Slow” week turned crazy – and I am hoping she'll sleep at least a bit longer. I have been up for almost an hour and a half. Ben woke up and we got him back to sleep and I stayed up for the sheer peace and quiet. Scratch that. Tabby just woke up. Alright. Back to bed. It is amazing how much I can get accomplished in just a short amount of time when I have no distractions. Amazing!

I only have a few weeks until I go back to work full time. Next week should be pretty routine but the week after that, I have convinced my over-worked husband to actually take some time off work … a whole week in fact. I may have to lock up his laptop and throw away the key, but I want some time to enjoy with him and the kids before it's back to the grind.

We have no set plans to go out of town or anything like that. I want to check out a few places in the area that I've heard of and haven't managed to get to yet. I want to spend an hour or more at the gym each day (we are training for a 10K). I want to hit the zoo again. Maybe go berry picking. Maybe do a thing or two around the house.

The last week off, I am planning on sending the kids – maybe sometimes just Tabby, sometimes both of them – to our sitter and getting things a bit more organized. I want to have all more of my ducks in a row so that transition will not be quite as manic as it otherwise might be.

And now I must head back to reality. Ben has been making quite the ruckus while I've been typing this and I need to get over there and change his diaper before it's an even bigger mess!

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Life in Progress

*Written a couple of days ago.*

I am sitting on the floor of our family room as I write this. Ben is sitting in front of me in his swing, cooing and kicking and smiling. He loves his swing. He is such a big boy these days … but still my baby. I can hear Miss Tabby playing in the other room, singing and talking to herself. She is stacking blocks. This is a favorite past time lately.

I just got finished doing some cooking. We have been busy and cooking (real cooking, not just heating stuff up or making sandwiches) has been neglected. I just finished some Sweet Potato Hummus. My lord is that stuff good! I could eat it spoonful after spoonful. It was a bit too spicy for Tabby. She will not like dinner either … Tyler's Ultimate Fajitas … but they are daddy's favorite and he does get to pick every once in a while.

Lately, Monday has been library night. Tabby is loving her library books, though tonight, she must go in and explain that a page got torn in an especial favorite. This is a first … she is usually so careful with them. But she brought this one to bed with her and somehow, a page got torn. I know she feels awful about it. I get to pickup some miscellaneous books for myself. I am trying to read more, though it is a battle at this point.

It is a blissfully slow week. We don't have a lot planned … just my b'day dinner on Wednesday … take 2. It was supposed to happen Saturday, but I was sick. We are also likely going to join a new gym. I am excited about that. Our current one doesn't take babies in their nursery (1 and up only), so it is rather useless at the moment. This one is much nicer and Tabby actually flipped out when we tried to take her home from the nursery on our trial visit. That would never happen at our current gym … they don't have a bouncy castle.

Now I must scurry … Matt is done with work for the day and our evening can commence. Yay.

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On My 29th Birthday

On My 29th Birthday, I …
… put pigtails in my daughter's hair
… ate a pineapple upside-down cupcake
… had a lovely lunch out with my mommy (who made this day possible)
… got birthday wishes from friends and family near and far (thanks!)
… had a snuggly nap with my son
… went to Target (cuz it's a day ending in 'y' )
… went for a 50 minute run
… watched my new favorite show with my darling husband
… had the sweetest little voice sing Happy Birthday “to my mommy”
… watched our dog lick cupcake off my daughter's hands (for like 3 minutes straight)
… visited the library with my family
… watched my son smile and coo
… had a wonderful birthday!