The Garden

This is our third (maybe fouth?) year for a garden. However, this is the first year we did not grow our plants from seed. We just bought the plants. We have three raised beds, two larger ones and one small one that is designated for my herbs. This year we planted a new variety of tomato plants (celebrity) and Brandon always has to have his yellow boys! We have romas (fingers crossed for no blossom rot) and cherry. Our cucumber plant has already failed so miserably that we can't even tell where we planted it! Surviving from last year are some onions that we replanted and my cilantro came back...no it isn't suppose to! It is huge and appears really hardy. I just have to stay on top of it flowering. It requires almost daily pruning, but I use it almost everyday so it's pretty easy. Our neighbor was kind enough to share her jalapeño four pack, so we have two jalapeño plants and a banana pepper, which I'm really excited about! I have basil too, but it's looking a little rough. We did plant green bean seeds. The package said to plant a few every two weeks. I planted five on mothers day and only one sprouted. Brandon planted about ten more tonight. We will see if we ever have enough beans for a meal! Hopefully, we will have a picture of a bountiful harvest to share later in the summer.

Birthday Chair Covers

The night before Elizabeth turned one I created the "birthday chair cover". When I was growing up my Mom always made us our favorite dinner and served it on the "You Are Special" red plate. Some of you may remember these special plates. There was a special pen you would use to write on the back when it was used. Well E was too little to eat off of a special ceramic plate so the birthday chair idea was born. It is basically a slip cover for the chair that the birthday boy/girl sits in. As G's first birthday is approaching I starting working on his yesterday.

This might be one of the easiest projects I have ever done.

Materials Needed:
Pillow Case
Fabric Glue
Ribbon
Iron On Transfers
(scissors and an iron)

I will say it was a little more challenging finding items for a boy. I even found the ribbon selection to be slim. In the end I found a green "Birthday Boy" iron transfer at Hobby Lobby. I found green ribbon with what I will call circle (not polka-dots!) and of course orange letters for his name.

At this point my children's names will be revealed (because I want to share the pictures!). My husband and brother thought it was silly to use initials anyway. So my attempt to try to keep this public blog a bit more secure has failed!


Elizabeth's Special Chair

Grant's Special Chair

Stella comes to play

Aunt Amber Paybacks are Fun!!!
(check out the link to fully appreciate this)

Tummy Talk

E was brushing her teeth the other night and her stomach growled. She said "oh my tummy is talking!" So I asked her what it was saying and in a high squeaky (very stomach sounding) voice she said "I think I want pancakes for breakfast!"

We gave G some pancakes too!


We were in her playroom today and she had a purse thrown over each shoulder and said she wagetting ready to go shopping. She then stopped and began looking for something.
E: "I need a card"
Me: "What kind of card"
E: "The kind to buy stuff"
Me: "A credit card?"
E: "Yeah, a credit card mommy!"

Oh my! I even paid cash at the Target snack bar today! We had been tossing around the idea of starting some sort of allowance for her. This idea came after we bought the Cookie Doodle and Cake Doodle app for the iPad. We were in the menu to adjust the volume and she saw the Candy Doodle app and she said "let's buy it" and I tried to explain we don't just go and buy things. She was struggling to understand why we couldn't just click and buy it. So perhaps time to start learning the value of a dollar.

Everybody Loves Jack

Jack our beloved Springer Spaniel, who is almost seven years old, but still gets mistaken for a puppy is a favorite playmate at our house. I thought these pictures tell the story best!

Helmet Buddies

These two boys might be brothers in another life. Although they don't look alike, they were born 11 days apart and their developmental paths are almost identical. They both had helmets to correct flat spots on their heads and have hit their "milestones" within days of each other. B is actually the son of one of my good friends and will hopefully grow up to be great playmates.

Swim Lessons

E just completed 12 weeks of swim lessons. She took them at our local community center and the coach was great. He related so well to the girls and E had a lot of fun with him. The first lesson started a bit rough. I actually heard stitches ripping on my shirt as she was pried off of me, but we went back. The second lesson she cried through the entire lesson, but we went back. The third lesson Ima (grandma) went with us and E did really well. We didn't want to mess with a good thing, so she went every week and we treated ourselves to lunch out afterwards. Usually a #6 from the Mexican restaurant!

The lessons that followed were good. She began jumping in and going under and it was a lot of fun to watch her progress. Somewhere in the middle she started having a hard time blowing bubbles. So my mom and I decided it would be a good idea to take her to the pool and practice. The thing is is that my mom and I don't really care to put our heads in the water and certainly didn't want to blow bubbles, but for E, we'd do anything! We went to the pool on a Sunday and learned that the price of "open swim" vs. "fun splash" was substantially different. Within two minutes of being in the pool E complained of a tummy ache, but I dismissed it as her being hungry. The second time I said "oh your are fine!" The third time when I felt her stomach do a little flip flop I knew we were in trouble, but couldn't move fast enough. My first thought "we are those people," you know the people who have the kid that puked in the pool! We quickly exited (as did everyone else, as they "shocked the pool") and made a stop at the DQ for sundaes! Do you think we are comfort eaters? (yes, definitely).

Needless to say the last few lessons she was not keen on the bubble blowing and we will work on it this summer. She does a great job floating on her back and can dog paddle. She also likes to try the back stoke and "frog kicks". Overall I was very pleased with the lessons and hope to pick them back up later this summer or in the fall.

G also got to get in the water and took really well to it. I am guessing we will have another water baby on our hands. Good thing we have Mimi and Pops close by with a pool!

Car Conversations

One of the reasons for starting this blog was to capture the little moments that can too easily be forgotten. So the following is a few conversations between E and I in the car today.

E says to G "hey baby blues...mommy what color are G's eyes?"
Me: "Blue"
E: "What color are my eyes?"
Me: "Brown"
E: "What color are your eyes?"
Me: "Blue"
E: "What color are daddy's eyes?"
Me: "Brown"
E: "What color are her eyes?" (the car next to us)
Me: "I'm not sure, I can't see them"
E: "I think they are pink!"

E: "Mommy I see a field!"
Me: "Yep, what do you think is growing in there?"
E: "Popcorn"

E: "I see a concrete truck. I know my trucks really well"
Me: "That's good E, that is a concrete truck. What do you think is in there?"
E: "Popcorn"

Well, I have no idea where all of this popcorn talk is coming from, but obviously we have a little work to do on what grows in fields and what concrete trucks haul! It's just the way she says it, she is so adamant that she has the right answer.

Fun in the Sun = Nap Time

What a beautiful day. The breeze is like an ocean breeze. I actually stood on the deck and closed my eyes and tried to smell salty air. The air did not smell salty, but the sun was shining and the kids were ready to play. Well, E was. G just goes with the flow!

We went over to the neighbors to play. They had the kiddie pool out and E had been begging to play with L all weekend. E&L are just ten weeks apart and are very good playmates. They chased each other around, splashed in the pool and had a picnic lunch. Much fun in the sun! There is nothing like the giggles (and ok sometimes screams) of two and a half year old girls!

At about noon E said she wanted to go home and take a nap. Seriously?! I fight this girl for naps almost everyday and she was asking for a nap? Who am I to say no! She was asleep within 2 minutes of being in her room! It's been two hours and still snoozing! I guess she really played hard. G is the king of cat naps. I am the first to admit I have screwed up with my kids sleep habits. G started off ok, but when his flat spot on his head began developing I started holding him to sleep so he wouldn't be on his back. Well needless to say that snowballed on me! So five months and a helmet later....guess who doesn't like to nap in his crib? I know what you are thinking...."what did you think was going to happen?!" In my defense, he has always slept in his crib at night with no problems, so just doing it at nap time was an easy crutch. So I've slowly been trying to work on crib naps. Somedays are more successful than others. He usually lasts about 30 minutes, but then wakes up. But if you hold him he goes back to sleep. Anyone who knows my little man knows he is a cuddler and I just can't tell my baby no and let him cry in his crib when he could be nestled in my arms! A mother's logic! Today he slept for an hour and now his sweaty head is laying on my chest. I will keep trying, but I wouldn't give these moments up for anything. It's even better when E curls up with us. I can't move and usually get a kink somewhere, but having my two sleeping babies in my arms makes me a happy mama!

In the Kitchen

We had purchased pork chops to tenderize and grill and make pork chop sandwiches. Well, B started dinner and said "why don't we try to make a tenderloin sandwich and fry them." I think this idea might have occurred to him while he was tenderizing the meat (beating the meat to death!) Anyway we breaded them and fried them and they turned out pretty good. We had gorgeous blackberries to go with it but they were a little bitter so I said "why don't I make a cobbler!" Which also turned out excellent. So leave it to us to turn two healthy items into, well not so healthy, but really tasty dishes!

Today is my Dad's and SIL birthday. Aunt S can't be with us to celebrate and E really wanted to make her a cake. So we made one on the Cake Doodle app and emailed it to her. Good news...calorie free and it last forever! For my Dad, I made my grandma Heller's chiffon bars. It was a dessert that she always made for him and since she is no longer with us I decided to give it a try. I think I did pretty good. We will see what he thinks! I think he will be surprised.

It's Time to Blog

So this is something I have thought about doing for a long time. This stormy day provided the perfect opportunity to sit down and actually DO IT!!

I have kept a journal of funny things that E does, as an extension of her baby book, but let's face it, I usually have an iPad in my hand, not an ink pen! It is also a nice way to preserve all of these memories that go by in a blink of an eye! So this will mainly just be the stories of our life. B helped pick the title. As Illinois Alum we have a lot of Orange & Blue around and how fitting to call our children "chiefs!"

I'm just wondering....

How old do you think I will be when our house doesn't constantly look like a tornado went through it? E just asked for a toy and I told her where it was, but didn't watch her look for it and apparently she misunderstood me and emptied TWO baskets of toys! Meanwhile G is gnawing on one of Barbie's legs! In the mean time I will just keep trying to clean-up and let them have fun! Although I like things to be orderly, I know that the kids are having a good time when the place is a total wreck! Now, if I could only convince Daddy of this!

E and I went to church with my dad this morning. The service was uneventful, which for us is a good thing! It could have gone south real quick because I didn't realize there was Play-doh in her backpack. I knew if I pulled it away from her she would most likely scream, so I choose to cross my fingers that bright pink play-doh would not be left in the pew. Luckily she did really well it and it kept her entertained. We went up for the children's sermon, but I don' know how much soaked in.

Pops then took E to the zoo and for some ice cream. B did yard work and G and I putzed around. I think B and I were hoping we could all nap today, but the "little chiefs" had different ideas. So we will settle for early bed, which is sometimes just as good!

I do have to share that we went to Tower Park in the Heights on Friday. We took the elevator up to the top to see the view. They even had little port hole windows so the little ones could see out. Sounds like a good plan, except E stuck her head in....I mean her head actually got stuck! I I was standing a few feet away with G and I heard a noise that sounded like someone trying to yell/scream, although she couldn't because she couldn't move her chin. I was able to easily pull her head out. I think it scared her more than anything and after a few tears she was ready to swing and have our picnic.

G started crawling two weeks ago. It was literally like watching a turtle move. This was really fascinating for us because E never crawled so to see G go through the motions is really fun. He is pretty fast now and has red knees from crawling outside. He is trying to pull up now too. Of course he thinks it is pretty fun to crawl to his sister and take her toys! Oh it is just beginning!!

Well that was a lot of random thoughts strung together, but I have to start somewhere, right? To be honest, that's probably what most of my posts will be like ;)