Bye Philadelphia

It's been nice knowing you.

T, Alex and I leave tomorrow morning. I'm nervous about a solo three and a half hour car trip. For Talia we have a DVD player and about $100 worth of new toys (for the 16 hour ride to Madison but also this ride too). I'm not too worried about dealing with her. On the other hand... Alex really hates the car. He's either going to SCREAM or SLEEP the entire way.

I'm trying to look forward to relaxing at my sister's. I'm stressed about taking care of both kids by myself- well, not so much caring for them but sharing a room (a bed) with both of them. Alex will wake up at night and Talia will be in the room too but I think that will be ok because he mostly just eats and sleeps at night. Usually when we sleep somewhere other than home Talia and I share a bed and I go to bed when she does-- but now I have to take care of Alex too and he doesn't go to sleep at the same time so she will have to sleep alone which may be a problem in a strange room. I have to just relax and let it go. It will be what it is and it's only for a few nights. On the other hand, I don't have anywhere else to be, packing will be done and I can't do anything about moving in until I get to Wisconsin so it could be great to be at Jo's.

We move in 7/2 so I might be radio silent for a while. I'll catch you on the flip side.

Almost Smiling

I've had no time to interact with my baby during this packing/ moving situation. He's 8 weeks old and won't smile reliably yet. It take quite a bit of work. Hopefully we can work on it together for the next couple of days at my sister's house.

Father's Day

Of course I told Ron he could sleep in. The kids woke up at 5:30. Thanks.

sister and brother

continued

After three wardrobe changes, every toy in the house taken out, and no actual work done, the day is finally over. I chose to stay home instead of go out because I felt like I had no energy. I'm not sure that was the best solution. Staying home caused me to need a medium level of energy to be sustained throughout the day instead of the bursts of high energy that are needed for going out.

Not even 9 am yet.

It's not even 9 am today and so far we have:

*washed all of the tea set in soapy water (and made a mess in the kitchen)

*given the kitty a doctor check up (and made a mess in the living room)

*played with play-doh (and made a mess in the dining room)

*pollys pollys pollys (and made a mess all over the house)

Oh, and I have another kid to take care of too. And a house to pack.

new pictures

Since I can't find time to write, I may as well post some new pictures.

My Life for a Garage

I'm thrilled to have a new car that comes with a clicker to unlock the door, considering I lost the clicker to my old car three weeks before Alex was born. Those few weeks of no clicker sucked. So I should just be grateful, right? No, I will still complain about how hard it is to put two kids in a car. All I want in life is a garage.

If I had a garage my life would be so much better. How in the world do people in this city manage with two kids? What am I supposed to do if I have groceries to bring in (along with the diaper bag, pool bag, baby bjorn etc.) plus the two kids. Do I leave them in the car, put the groceries in the door, and then go park and take them out? Taking them out involves holding Talia's arm with a death grip so she doesn't get run over and then praying that she stays on the sidewalk so I can go to the other side of the car and take Alex out with that cumbersome and very heavy car seat and then walk half a block or more to get them into the house. I'm lucky in that I usually get a decent spot near the house. If I had a garage, at least I wouldn't worry about their safety and I could leave some stuff in the garage (like the pool bag or the diaper bag or the non-perishable groceries) instead of having to bring it in right away.

The other fantastic aspect of the garage is that I'm hoping it will help me deal with some of the messiest clutter in my house. Who else has to keep their garbage and recycling IN THE KITCHEN for an entire week? We use the shed for the garbage but we have to go through two padlocks to get to it and going outside, at this time of the year anyway, brings in tons of dirt to the kitchen. Other things I hope to keep in the garage that currently are kept in my living or dining rooms: Ron's bike. balls, frisbees, ride-ons and other outdoor toys. beach and pool toys. car toys. beach chairs, lawn chairs, the pool bag and pool towels, strollers! cleaning supplies, water bottles, snow boots etc. I work so hard to hide all of these things in my house behind the couch, in a hidden corner of the dining room, in the foyer for everyone to see. I can't wait to have a designated place for them.

swirl face

Talia's nickname for Alex is "swirl face." I'm not sure why!