Behind

I just can't seem to find the time to post on here! Things are just insane. I know I say that every post, but it is really true! This week, Michael had class Tuesday night, I had Open House Wednesday night, Michael and a dinner meeting on Thursday and a football game last night. That leaves little time for me to be on here! By the time Patrick goes to sleep at 8:00, I am exhausted and ready for bed myself. I briefly scroll through some other blogs, but not enough energy to type one myself. Ahh, the life of a teacher, wife and mom!

We did have some exciting news this week - Michael interviewed for and got the job as counselor at my old elementary school! He finished his degree this past May and has interviewed for a few jobs, one was at my NEW school, but nothing panned out. Needless to say, we are very excited. It is nice because he already knows much of the staff and the building since I was there. That will make the transition a little easier.

Our house is also coming along! We did run into some problems though. They dug the basement this week, and because of the amount of water they saw we had to raise the basement and add special dirt, resulting in about $2700 in additions. Of course. I want to know when we find something that will GIVE us money! Ahhh. I know things will pop up, but I really hope we don't have that much more. I can stomach spending money on a kitchen or nicer flooring, but not basement block, geez! I know it will be good in the long run, just annoying now! Anyway, they will be pouring the basement walls next week, and I am hoping, finishing it up next week too. Then we move on to framing! YAY!

There are a lot of exciting things in our life right now, and I hope I have more time to write about them on here. I love being able to look back and see what was going on in our lives one or two years ago. Now I just have to find the time!

Fall!

I woke up yesterday to crisp morning air....and I did a little dance. I love Fall: the pumpkins, the colors, the smells, the temperature. Love. It. Fall also means that Christmas is right around the corner, which is absolutely my favorite time of year (Not going to lie here, I listened to Christmas music at school yesterday morning!)

I also love wearing jeans and long sleeve shirts. Especially post baby. HA. I have been proud of myself, I have lost of the weight, plus some, and I have been running, but things have, umm, shifted, shall we say? I was very impressed that I could fit into my shorts again, (Not the tops but that's a different story!) but I am over it. Bring on the jeans!

Patrick also gets to dress warm too. We got out some of his clothes this morning and I bought this cute little hat a few weeks ago. I had to!One weekend soon we plan on heading out to the pumpkin patch! I cannot WAIT for that! For now, I am going to enjoy this morning with a cup of hot chocolate!

10 Years

May we always remember this day 10 years ago. Our lives changed forever.


Saying a prayer today for those we lost on that date, those families who have been left behind, and for the military families who are still fighting for our freedom.

House Update!

Well, we finally closed on our construction loan on Thursday! Things can finally officially get moving. I am so excited. I always said I was not going to get my hopes up until we signed papers. With banks being very reluctant to give out loans, especially construction loans, I was very nervous! Things seemed to go so fast, and it almost seemed way to easy. This was why I was not going to celebrate until it was official!

And now it is! The construction company has been clearing our lot now for about a week and a half and has done a lot actually. Now we are waiting on the septic permit, which should come in the next week, finish clearing, which should also happen this next week and then they can start digging for the basement. How exciting!! I just can't believe we are finally going to be able to build our house. I can't wait to see how it turns out (and pick out everything!)

Below are some pictures of what has taken place so far. I feel like a stalker driving out there almost everyday just to see what has happened! Oh well!Our driveway (Or beginning of it anyway!)This area was filled with trees and underbrush...it is slowly disappearing! Our builder said he would walk us through and see what we wanted to keep. Both Michael and I agree, NOTHING. We hate raking leaves.Here I am standing in front of a HUGE tree - it would take two people to fit their arms around it, at least. I actually love this tree but since it is standing where our garage will be, it has to go. Plus, it is a Poplar tree which will die, and I don't want to have to worry about it falling on our new house. Thanks.

I will keep everyone updates as we move along!

Wrap it Up

When I was pregnant with Patrick, we registered for EVERYTHING! We didn't know much about raising a baby, but figured we should own everything in Babies-R-Us. With that being said, of course I registered for a carrier. Some wonderful family member did purchase it for us, and we used it a handful of times. And let me tell you, my back screamed in agony. It was horrible. He only weighed around 8 pounds and it still killed my back!

A few weeks ago, I was looking through my bookmarks that I had saved as 'favorites' and saw "Baby Wrap." I clicked on the link and it took me here. I guess I had found this website forever ago and saved it for future reference. I immediately fell in love with some of the patterns and remembered why I bookmarked it in the first place. I just HAD to order one. I convinced Michael it was part of my Christmas present, HA.

I ordered the black wrap with the panel in Brooklyn Blue. I. Love. It. I wanted to pick a pattern that I could use with future babies, even if they were of the opposite gender! I cannot state enough how comfortable this wrap is. My back thanks me. Seriously. So does Patrick. He loves it! We went out yesterday to the mall and a few other places and he fell asleep! I can face him facing me, or out so he can see what is going on. I had so many compliments and questions about it. I forgot to get a picture of him in it, but when I do I will post it!

So if you are pregnant, go get one. If you think you are going to be pregnant, go get one. Seriously. You will thank me, and so will your baby.

5 Months

I cannot believe that my little man is 5 months old today. I know I say that every month, but time is just flying by! I feel like I was just pregnant yesterday, and I actually really miss it. It amazes me that he went from this tiny little human who slept most of the day, to one who is rolling all over the place and bouncing like crazy. His smile is contagious and he is just so happy. I love him so very much!Eating solids for the first time!

Baptismal outfit!

Dear Patrick,

You are getting to be such a big man! You can roll from you tummy to your back and from your back to you tummy without any problems. Sometimes you even roll all the way across the room! You also think it is hilarious and crack yourself up. You have discovered your feet and toes and are always grabbing onto them when you are laying on your back. Standing up is your new thing, and you can stand for quite a few minutes while hanging on to our fingers. If you are laying on your back you can even pull yourself up if you are hanging on to us! You haven't quite gotten the hang of sitting up yet, but can do it for about 5 seconds before you fall over, which you think is pretty funny. I am sure you will be sitting up in a matter of weeks! When you are on your tummy you also scrunch up your knees so they are under your butt, but can't figure out how to get up on your hands at the same time. I am sure it won't be long before you are crawling too!

You are also starting to pack on the pounds! We don't have an official weight, but our guess is around 16 pounds and about 25 1/2 inches long. You are wearing 6 month clothes and size 2 shoes (We love those shoes!). You are also in size 2 diapers, but won't be for much longer! I think you are about to go through a growth spurt because your cheeks are getting so chubby!

You are still breastfed (Go Momma!) and we started you on solids when you were about 4 1/2 months. You HATED rice cereal, but LOVE butternut squash. We have been making your food at home and it is pretty easy. You also tried pears this month and loved those as well! We had a stretch of about 4 days where you slept through the night and it was AMAZING! Just when I was getting used to it, you went back to being up every two hours, like you were a week old again! Right now you get up anywhere from 1 to 2 times a night. You also like sleeping on your tummy. I always lay you on your back, but you flip right over. It makes me nervous, but you sleep so much better!

Bath time is still one of your favorite times, and you love story time. We read 'Guess How Much I Love You,' and 'On the Night You Were Born.' You even help turn the pages. Your playmat is still fun, but you are outgrowing it. Now we just lay you on a very large blanket so you can roll everywhere. Your jumper is a great invention and it can entertain you for quite a while.

You started daycare with Ms. Margaret this month when I had to go back to work. I was so sad, but you are having a great time with the other children. You smile and laugh at them and Ms. Margaret talks about how good and cute you are. It makes me so proud!

You were baptized at church in August, along with your Daddy. You also took your first trip to the zoo and went on many trips to Target and the mall, you even went to a different state for the first time!

Patrick, you are such a happy boy and we love you so very much. We can't wait to see what this next month brings.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Just Keep Swimming

I always forget how overwhelming the first week of school is. Between getting used to a new school (where EVERYONE is new, and routines are in place yet), to rushing home to be with my son, and getting up 2 to 3 times a night for my growing boy, I am completely exhausted!

Luckily we only had two days with students this week, and we now have a 4 day weekend for Labor Day. I will take it! I do have a very good class this year. Of course, they are always good the first week! Ask me in three weeks and I may change my mind! They seem like a lot of fun, and very smart so it should be a good school year.

Because it is a new school year, none of our routines are in place. Simple things like how to take students to the bus isn't really worked out yet, so it has been very interesting. I think it will take a good two to three weeks to get everything worked out and running smoother.

Planning lessons hasn't been that bad, just getting into a new routine has. Normally, we had an hour after school so I would do planning, grading and copying then. Now, we can leave right after the students get on the bus, and I REFUSE to stay any longer than my contract says (Judge me if you must). Instead, I have been getting to school an hour EARLY to do everything. That way I can rush home to be with Patrick! Hopefully this new routine works as well as what I did last year. I also refuse to bring home work, so I hope I can get it all completed in the morning.

One thing that is completely overwhelming is the amount of secretarial CRAP we have to do. We have to have so much DATA posted in our room it is ridiculous. I seriously don't know when I am going to have the time to do it. It sounds like a great idea to include kids in goal setting, and setting plans and studying data, but in all honesty, it doesn't help them learn. I don't care what research says, I see the faces of my 23 students and they don't care. They would much rather have engaging lessons then keep a folder full of charts and data. Oh well. I will always do what is asked of me, but at some point I wish I could just do what my degree is for, instead of all of this other BS!

I know it will all work itself out soon, I just have to keep going until then!