TODAY
Out my window: Dark, thunder rumbles and a bit of rain as I begin typing this. Still pretty warm 10-day forecast though for mid-September, but it is definitely starting to a feel a little more Autumn-like. The light is slantier, the heat is less intense. We've been spending lots of time outdoors recently.
Clothing myself in: I am SOOOO ready for jeans and sweats weather. I know I will be griping as soon as it gets cold, but I am soooo ready for a change!
Around the house: Let's see...I have been selling a few items via a local Facebook page and had pretty good success with that. Great/easy way to make a little extra cash as you clean out your house, and much easier than a garage sale (which I refuse to do). What else... We took the middle seat out of our van and moved Gemma to the back. I am a little sad not to have all my babies together in the middle, but it was probably time. It seems so much roomier in there now, and will be easier if we want other people to ride somewhere with us. Oh, and Aaron killed a black widow by the front porch. This is the 4th one we've had on our property in the past couple years. Shudder shudder shudder.
The baby: Oh he is so cute. I just love watching him explore the world around him. He walks more than he crawls now. He signs "milk" when he is thirsty or wants to nurse. After about 5pm he just wants to be held. This has made dinner prep very interesting. I should put him on my back more. He has been going to bed really early(before 7 most nights, gets up around 6:30 (sometimes earlier, he gets really restless around 5:30 and it's always iffy whether I can settle him back to sleep). He only naps an hour or give-or-take most days, he just gets disturbed so easily. Sigh, it works. I knew this would be troubling when we started kdg. We're rolling with it. I also packed away his 12 month stuff (I looked at him one day and realized how small his clothes looked!!) and got some 18 month stuff out. I really appreciated being able to go "shop" in my basement. This is the first time we've really used a lot of hand-me-downs and it is FANtastic!! Oh oh oh, and he has pooped on the potty-chair two days in a row now! I just caught him starting to poop one day and took him back there, and he did great! Hopefully I can watch him and we can start making this a regular occurrence. I would much rather wash poop out of the little potty than a diaper!
The kiddos:
KOLBE loves bugs and other critters. He loves catching butterflies, moths, grasshoppers, caterpillars, frogs... you name it and putting them in a little jar or bucket. He will spend 30-45 minutes+ doing this. He can make the final |p| sound consistently now when we work on his listen words and flashcards from his speech teacher.
GEMMA has been struggling lately with being a bit aggressive and angry and just generally very emotional. I want to help her but she just gets angry when I try to help and lashes out worse. I am a work in progress though with my patience as well, so hopefully the more I can model more self-control and healthily dealing with my anger the easier it will be for her to learn appropriate ways to deal with her big emotions. I know she has yet to reach the age of reason, but even so it is very frustrating to me when she gets so angry that there is just no rationalizing with her. Now I'm ranting. Last week was "going buggy" week in kindergarten, so she brought a cicada (that flew into our garage and daddy caught), a grasshopper and a picture of the monarch she caught (and released) at a local nature park recently. This week she gets to bring a special item in the "very special item bag". I think she has decided on her blankie.
This weekend the neighbors were puppy-sitting for some expensive little lap-dog that bounced when it barked and all three kids had a BLAST playing with "Samba" in the yard several times. It was cute, and I was really glad no one sat on, kicked, smooshed or otherwise broke the $2000 (yes, for real) designer-dog.
In the kitchen: We had friends over and grilled some KC strip steaks we'd been aging in the fridge this weekend and they were ahhhhhhhhmazing! We're a little beefed out though now, so this week is Sesame Chicken with Fried Rice and broccoli; breakfast casserole; pizza (probably chicken); and some sort of seafood. We've been having some tasty fresh honey-dews lately too, plus whatever other fresh fruits and veggies happen to make their way thru the fridge.
Crafting: Hmm...nope. Nada.
Learning: Getting ready for Dd week. Preschooling Kolbe is definitely different than it was with Gemma but we are having a lot of fun. He has been really enjoying being read to lately. He found a book about a robot at the library (he is currently obsessed with "o-bots") and we have read it many, many times. Gemma usually has a math WS for homework, and she is not a huge fan of homework some days so I have not been doing a lot extra with her, although I have been trying to squeeze some handwriting in (on the 3-lined paper) when she is amenable.
Reading: Still working on The New Evangelization and You: Be Not Afraid. I like it.
Watching: Not much.
Bringing me joy: Our neighbors. We have the greatest neighbors, I just can't get over it. I have no idea how we got so lucky. For real. Watching Clem, he is sooooooo cute. Working out (!!!!!!!!!) for the first time in mumble, mumble, mumble, years. Aaron got me a 20lb weight vest and I wore it for some lunges and brisk walking and even a little jogging. Hoping to do this twice weekly. Hummingbirds at the feeder and how excited the kids get to see them. Gemma's songs she makes up. The kids playing and having fun together (it does happen sometimes!). Enjoying the outdoors with my family on a lazy Sunday with not much to do.
Thinking about: Finding a regular time to work out. Being more disciplined. Balance. Stewardship. Parenting. The usuals.
Pictures to share:
Gemma with her butterfly.
Kolbe, the bug-catching extraordinaire.
Clem's new ride.
