Unedited Ramblings

March 05, 2013

Unedited Ramblings

I think my cabin fever from my maternity leave has finally broke. I have been back to work for over a month. I miss my sweet baboo and 3 little princesses during the day. But life has adjusted. Matt is a pro at taking 4 kids to the grocery store and I have mastered my breast pump once again. With a grip on life our busy schedule has returned...

Bowling: On Saturday we headed to our local bowling alley in support of Big Brothers Big Sisters. Oh yeah, did I mention our team was super heroes?! We raised 500 dollars and had a lot of fun doing it.

Apparently, Brett Favre is considered a super hero in some parts of the country.

Alison and Grady: The next afternoon I was able to meet Alison and Grady for lunch. Alison was finally able to meet our little guy! I was so glad that she braved restaurant dining with a 7 month old so I could see Grady again. He flashed me smiles from across the table. I can not believe a mere 4 and a half months separates these 2 boys. I am sure Benedict will be that big in no time. Please slow down and stop growing so much (both of you boys, your mamas can't handle it.)

Stephanie and Jason came over for dinner.

I made my first vegan dish! It involved squash, hominy, peppers, and some SPICY adobe sauce. The Vegans and I enjoyed it. Matt however ate two bites and grilled up 2 steaks later that night to compensate. I asked for one little bite of his steak which I guess translated into "yes honey make 2 steaks!" For two people who do not plan on having kids they sure do awesome with ours! The girls were on show... running around our clean living room like they had never seen open floors before... screaming like wild monkeys. We swapped vacation stories and pictures. After a month in Hawaii, they had quite the tan for being red heads.

Book Fair: We were able to swing by the book fair to support Riverside Elementary and get some good reads for the kids. As it happened to be "Mustache day" we gladly sported a 'stache for the picture. Maddy has been reading a bunch lately. I am so proud to see her skill and interest in books developing. Thanks Erni for the books and showing us around.

Shalimar and Adam: More dinner plans... We were able to meet Shalimar's new boyfriend, Adam. This night it was Matt, not the kids, who were on show. Shalimar, Matt, and I share a very similar sense on humor so I was so excited to see that Adam does as well. We told stories and laughed all night. Adam is a second grade teacher, and as you can see from the picture, is a natural with kiddos. We can not wait for many more fun nights with these two!

Our new Friday night ritual includes going to adoration for one hour before bed to spend some time in front of the Blessed Sacrament. It is also known as "Holy Hour" but we have been calling it our 'Happy Hour."

We added this to our Lenten goals. The kids were excellent this time and Benedict slept so Matt and I were able to get in some quality prayer time.

Here are some of our Lenten traditions this year... We have been limiting our internet and t.v. time, giving up swearing (at a dollar a word), and I have not been listening to the radio in the car. We added our happy hour and Holy Heroes Lenten adventure.

Ah tiddlywinks, I am ahead owing 8 dollars. For the record, and so you don't think I am a sailor, I stepped in dog vomit at 2:30 in the morning as I got up with the baby. I also, dropped a tray of water (gallons) all over my pants and shoes. Today, I dropped equal amounts of water on myself and restraint from yelling any obscenities. That is progress.

I decided to give up the radio after reading a blog post from friend of mine Daniel, who is a seminarian, about attending a silent retreat. He made the comment that people thought he was crazy for attending such a thing. I, however, thought that is awesome! My life is full of kid laughing, playing, and Benedict's loud sucking (ha ha he was doing this at adoration the other night quite distracting and hilarious) that there is no way for anything to be silent in my life. Then it occurred to me I spend about 30 minutes in the car by myself now that can be silent. I decided to turn the radio off and pray more during my commute. What are you doing to prepare for Easter?

Movie Night: The kids and I had a fun movie night with Brett and Francesca. Brett makes amazing pizza. We dined on pizzas made of fig and goat cheese and pesto pistachio. I am hungry just thinking about it. We sat in our pajamas and watched the Lorax on their big screen projector. Francesca might as well come live with us. She just plays so nicely with our girls I probably would not even notice. I am ~~jealous~~ inspired by Brett who took some time away from work to focus on doing things that truly make her happy. I love hearing about the garden she is going to plant, the trips she has been taking, and all of the deep cleaning she has been able to do.

Doctor's Appointment: Benedict had his 2 month check up. He weighed in at a whopping 12 lbs 10 oz, measured 24.5 inches long and his head measured in at 40.8 (not sure what unit of measurement they use.) He was in the 50% for everything. Yay! The doctor commented that their is no shortage of love in our house as the girls were all quick to console him after his shots.