Happy Birthday Gramma! I love you and I hope your day is perfect!

Shhhh

The oppressive heat has given us a small reprieve. Last night, before bed, I turned off the air and opened the windows. My mom has always sworn that fresh air does a body good ~ she must be right. I woke up this morning downright refreshed and my little Bean hasn't stirred yet.

After delivering Andy a fresh brewed cup of coffee, I peeked into Addie's room. She was stretched long along the rails of the crib, blue monkey, giraffe and Orson were tangled in a heap my her head. Her room was bathed in soft orange light and dolls and stuffed animals were strewn across the floor, a reminder of yesterday's forgotten fun. I wanted to take a picture, to capture this moment, but was terrified of waking her up sacrificing my alone time with my caffeine.

I could watch her sleep for hours. There is a sweetness and calmness that I can barely expain. I remember watching her sleep in my arms as an infant - her mouth would be sucking at an imaginary pacifier, her eyes would flutter and twitch, her lips would curl into tiny smiles, her big toe tapping to an imaginary tune. Now she wakes up and tells me of her dreams, which almost always involve a gorilla, a lion and a choo choo. Now she wakes up calling Momeeee, Daadeee, Kitteeee.

In fact, I hear those words over the monitor right now. What a wonderful first 45 minutes of my day I just had.

An earlier picture of her room with an orange glow

A well rested, happy baby with Orson, Blue Monkey and Giraffe

Sweet and Sticky

I am often in awe of the endless energy that kids have - specifically my kid.

She bounces, gallops, runs, twirls, chats, sings, swings, jumps and wriggles pretty much all day long. This was never so obvious as this past Saturday at a multifamily picnic we attended. We arrived around 2:00 p.m. and, with the exception of sitting to eat 14 tons of watermelon, Addie was on the go.

Go, GO, Go!

She swung, she slid, she teeter-tottered, she tossed water balloons, she drew with chalk, she blew bubbles, she hit balls off a t, she balanced on beams. She munched on watermelon and pineapple, she nibbled on a sausage, she begged for treats.

By the time we got home, an hour past her bedtime, she was head-to-toe sticky with sweat, marshmallow and lollipop. In my own"bad mommy moment" I looked at her black feet, her sugar coated fingers, her marshmallowed cheeks and I washed her down with six or seven wipes. A bath would have been best, but I was exhausted and sticky too, and just didn't have the energy.

Sunday morning, Addie's hair was up on end, she smelled of picnic, sugar, fun and sweat. I threw her in the shower and gave her a good scrub down and she reemerged as my sweet smelling Bean.

Now I just need to remember to change her sheets, because I am pretty sure she could get stuck to them.

Treat

I sip her fake tea.
I munch on her turkey pot pie. I gladly eat the cookies she bakes. I taste nibbles off of spoons and forks.
I appropriately say "Oooh, that's yummy" or "What great tea you've made".
She comes up to me and offers me tiny, nonexistent morsels of food, pinched between her forefinger and thumb, and I gobble them down.

When she ran across the basement today with her hand out in front of her I was prepared to thank her for yet another wonderful treat. I reached out my hand and she smeared a very large, very sticky, very nasty booger on my finger.

And then she sat there waiting for my compliments to the chef. And she giggled uncontrollable

And I vomited in my mouth a bit.

Contentment

Sometimes, right as Andy and I are falling asleep, I like to wrap my index finger right around the end of his nose and then inform him it's the most comfortable I've ever been. He does not particularly care about my comfort and shoos my finger away, usually while grunting something in a grouchy tone.

Last night, and again tonight, while I Addie and I sat huddled on the couch reading bedtime stories, she leaned into me, reached up her left hand and held my chin between her thumb and index finger as I read. I shooed her away once last night, and right after she turned to me and said: "Cudd, Mommmmeeee, cudd" and then she sighed.

Tonight, when she reached up to hold my chin again, I asked her if we were cuddling...she said yes and sighed oh-so deeply and contentedly. I kept reading. She kept a firm grasp on my chin.
I realized, she might be feeling the most comfortable she has ever felt.

And I didn't shoo her hand away.

Five Hours

At 5:45 a.m. she shouted out "DaaaaaDeeeee". I woke up.
At 5:46 a.m. she fell back asleep. I did not.

At 6:40 a.m. we headed downstairs for milk and the morning news.
At 7:26 a.m. I received a text message from Genna offering to take Addison. For. The. Day.

At 9:10 a.m. I kissed my kiddo buh-bye.
At 11:00 a.m. I was sitting at the salon getting my hair highlighted and cut.

I read my book.
I window shopped.
I tidied the kitchen.

At 2:00 p.m. Rylan came over to visit for a bit.

That's right, people, five hours of quiet childless freedom.
Go ahead, be jealous.

Planting, Mowing and Sweating

I skipped working out today. I was tired. I had a headache. I was grouchy.

I felt guilty. My penance was to mow the side and front lawns while Little Bean slept...at noon, during a stupidly humid Ohio day.

As I went back and forth, back and forth, back and forth I was reminded that home ownership is a lot of work, and yard work is even more. However, in the same breath I thought about how much I love my flowers and hostas and flowering trees. I thought about how great it is for Addison to spill out the backdoor each day and snack on mint, play ball and swing like a monkey.

When I came inside I looked out the kitchen window and saw the Stella d'Oro lillies in full bloom, the St. John's Wort starting to explode in cloud of yellow, and the spirea waving pink in the (minimal) breeze. I looked to the back of the yard and took in our latest additions: three Quick Fire Hydrangea and an Eastern Redbud tree, and I realized all this yard work is worth it. Our home and our yard is becoming more and more ours.

The hydrangea will give us beautiful color from June through Fall, white to pink to red.

Quick Fire Hydrangea...should grow 6ft tall and 4ft wide. Purty.

The Redbud will light up the corner of our yard in early spring, a brilliance of purple, and provide shade in the summer and fall...and a reminder of a beautiful man.

Our new Redbud. Purple in early Spring, beautiful green leaves in Summer

So while the humidity and the sweating and the grass cutting and the mulching and the weed whacking might be a pain, the results are worth it...particularly while we enjoy the fruits of our labor, in the evening, out on the patio, with a glass of wine for me and a cold beer for him.

Fresh Mint...mmmm ..................Spirea

St. John's Wort ..........................Stella d'Oro Lilly

Sometimes

Sometimes, when I watch them, I think they are plotting to knock me off my throne.

Sometimes, I think they are in on a secret that I am not.

Sometimes, when I watch them, they talk with their eyes and completely understand each other.

Sometimes, when I watch them, they cuddle, and I marvel at how perfectly they fit together.

Sometimes, they kick around a ball in the backyard and I think they make a great team.

Sometimes, when I eavesdrop on them through the monitor, I wonder what they are whispering about.

Sometimes, when I watch them, they *cheers* juice cup to beer mug, and I can't help but giggle.

Sometimes, when she cries, it's only his arms and his voice that can comfort and calm her.

Sometimes, when I catch her holding his hand, I can't help but feel a bit mushy.

And sometimes, I sit back and am in awe of my little person and my amazing husband. He is raising a beautiful, confident daughter. She is molding a compassion and loving father.

And I marvel and I sit in awe and I remember...

My dad comforted me, and his dad comforted him.

My dad played ball with me, and his dad played ball with him.

My dad celebrated my accomplishments, and his dad celebrated his.

My dad taught me a lot about parenting, and his dad taught him a lot about fatherhood.

And I am thankful, not just for her.

Not just for him.

But for our fathers, who taught us, held us, loved us and watched us turn into the parents we are.

So, because of her. And to him. And to the them...

Happy Father's Day.

Zoo Zoo ca Choo

Pretty much every morning, and after just about every nap, Addison will tell you that she dreamed of the zoo. She'll tell you about elephants, giraffes, gibbons, lions, choo choo trains and of course gorillas.

The girl LOVES gorillas. She pounds her chest, my chest, Andy's chest imitating gorillas. Heck, she's pounded the cat's chest and will pound yours if you stop by to visit. She LOVES gorillas - and the baby gorilla? AWESOME.

Today I indulged her and we went to the zoo. We haven't been there in a few weeks, and today was the perfect overcast day to go. All the animals were awake and active. We saw the lions stretch, the rhino walk around it's habitat. We watched the manatees have lunch and saw a crocodile sun itself. But, as always, it was the gorillas she loved the most.

Looking across the moat at them chewing on leaves was probably the highlight of her day. But, like dogs, she loves them from the distance. When we tried to ride the gorilla on the merry-go-round she all but melted down. When we visited the bronze statue she wrapped herself around Genna's leg and said NO.

With a bit of coaxing, she sat with Elise on the statue - as long as Genna didn't walk away. With a bit more coaxing she touched the nose of the statue, and then oh-so quickly ran toward me.

Gorillas from afar = awesome. Gorillas up close = scary.

Yet, when Andy asked her what she did today, the first thing she did was pound her chest.

Gorilla love, it's hard to understand.

I think this neatly sums it all up.

*Sorry she's so camera shy and unwilling to perform.

** Her "What Mommy Says" shtick is compliments of an afternoon with Aunts Kimmie and Nikki. Remind me to find new babysitters.

Pearls

A few months before Addison was born I bought a saying to hang on her wall. When I spotted it I fell in love with it. When my friend Christie saw it she insisted I buy it. So I did, and it has been in Addison room since before Addison was. Each day as I pass it, it reminds me of all the wonderful things about my daughter. All she is now and all she will grow to be.

Sugar and Spice and everything fun and playful and vibrant and athletic and wonderful and caring and strong and tender and intelligent and creative and spontaneous and natural and magical and real...that's what little girls are made of.

That says it all.

She has skinned knees and bruised shins. She loves to run, throw balls, stomp in mud puddles. She plays with blocks and trucks and in dirt. She likes to use her tools to help daddy fix and build things. She is rough and tumble.

She wears dresses and hairbows. She loves to cuddle, hug the kitty, tuck in her baby dolls. She colors with pink and purple and likes sparkly things. She likes to push her grocery cart around the kitchen and help mommy make dinner. She is sweet and soft.

Some days I think she is going to climb trees and fall off bikes and head soccer balls like a champ. Other days, I think she is going to pick flowers and jump rope and pirouette her way through The Nutcracker.

She's fancy. She's tough. She's all girl.

Curls

The humidity of summer is beginning to arrive in Cincinnati. This means several things:

1. If there's any hope of me sleeping the ceiling fan must be on, even if the air conditioner is on.
   
2. Grilling is the only viable option for cooking. a. The grill is outside and doesn't make the house even more uncomfortable. b. I don't grill, that's Andy's job.
   
3. During our morning workouts I turn a lovely shade of magenta and my shirt gets bombarded with inappropriate sweat marks.
   
4. Yard work is totally unappealing. Mowing, mulching, weed whacking, planting = ick.


5. Having short hair makes the weather a bit more bearable.

But most importantly, the arrival of this humidity has introduced me to something wonderful: Addison's curls.

She has these whimsical little curls that make her devilish smile that much more adorable.

I never had those cute curls growing up, but I remember seeing pictures of my brother as a toddler with ringlets framing his face, looking like an angel. And I remember being jealous...not just of his toddler hair, but of any head of bouncy curls that crossed my path. I had several disastrous perms over the years in my quest for curls - it was not to be. Eventually I convinced myself that all the cowlicks on my head were curls. A bleak substitute for the real thing.

So, while the humidity is here, I am going to live vicariously through Addison's curls. And I'm not going to jealous of her.

Nope. Not jealous at all.

Okay, maybe a wee bit jealous.

Okay. Wicked jealous.

Garbage Day

As I predicted....bringing out the recycling was indeed HORRIFYING.

I wanted to post a sign on my curb that said "Don't Judge Me".

We are welcoming people into our neighborhood with an overflowing garbage can and two solid rows of empty pizza boxes, beer cans, beer bottles, wine and champagne bottles, and, for good measure, a few empty Gatorade bottles and diet 7up cans. CLASSY.

PS. I love the stop sign in the second picture...I think it's directly speaking to my liver. As in "If you keep this up, Jessica's liver, you are going to stop working".

Summer Afternoons

The energy is endless, but the yard is big.

I find myself shoving Addie and I out the door in the late afternoon.

I need her to swing, dig, run and slide. I need it so that just enough energy is used that dinner isn't a battle ground, that bath time isn't an ordeal, and that bedtime is peaceful, punctuated with kisses and hugs.

Ahhhh, summer afternoons, my salvation.

Summer afternoons and of course wine, sweet wine.

Alone time with a book

I am still trying to figure out how to use this fancy schmacy camera. I would probably have a better handle on it if I could actually sit down and read my For Dummies book for more than 73 seconds at a time.

I can't read it during the day because my daughter has two new endless attributes: Imagination and Energy. These two new attributes have me endlessly playing with bubbles, sipping *tea*, changing babydoll diapers, making puzzles work, pushing swings, building sand castles, blah blah blah.

Don't get me wrong, I love it.

She has so many ideas and is so excited for so many little things. She wants her baby dolls tucked in a certain way, her tea is sipped out of only particular vessels, she knows her front porch bubbles don't smell as good as her back patio bubbles. She plays in her kitchen, slaving away over turkey potpies and margaritas. She wants to spin in circles, swing higher, run at mach speed through the yard. She pulls her stool over to the sink to *help* with dinner, with dishes, with washing the counter. She wants to help me make the bed and to buckle herself into her car seat. She waters our flowers and picks me clovers. She endlessly asks for Maggie, Elise, Jackson and Rylan. She NEVER stops. Ever.

(As I attempt to write this, she is rolling herself off the couch, shrieking uncontrollably and terrorizing the cat. Endlessly and loudly.)

But all this independence and imagination and energy, mean that I can't sit quietly under the patio umbrella reading and sipping suntea (hey, a girl can dream) and by the time I make it to bed, I pretty much pass out.

So, I still don't have this camera figured out ~ not that that stops me from playing with it. And now when Addie sees it pointed at her she practices her smiles...these are some of her best.

Our livers are going to pay one day

One tired me reporting in...

All the babies are still alive and perfect.

A few livers may be damaged.

The Cubs lost.

I am impressed with the efficiency of my dishwasher and the flushing power of my toilets.

I am horrified to take out my recycling this week (add 8 pizza boxes and a full recycling bin to the visual):

It was a SUPER weekend - will there ever be a day when we decide we're just too old for such debauchery?

Probably not.

Hey Chicago, whaddaya say?

The floors are mopped.

The basement is picked up.


The laundry is almost put away.


The husband and the babe are asleep.


The mommy is finishing her book and enjoying her wine.





The mud room looks like this:

a case of wine, a case of 'pagne, and shittons of beer.

And I say: BRING IT ON CHICAGO CREW!

And then I say: Go, Cubs, Go!

To a weekend full of foolishness, laughter and fun...oh, yeah, and endless friendship.
Lucky us.

UP and OUT

Today we worked out and then headed home.

As usual, Addie dozed off in the car. Only, not as usual, she decided that the 15 minute drive home was her nap for the day.

After a two hour battle of the wills (Addison 1, Mommy 0) I gave up on her getting a real nap. Instead we headed off to see the move UP with Genna, Elise and Aunt Sue.

I give it a thumbs up - super cute and creative and silly and sweet. I also give Addie a thumbs up. She sat on my lap the entire time and paid pretty good attention. We had to leave the theater when the villain was headed toward his inevitable demise...she got too nervous and scared and a few tears escaped. We returned to catch the end and clap. Overall, it was fabulous outing.

We topped off our movie date with a few bites of Mexican food as an early dinner and then headed home. About 500 yards down the road from the restaurant Addie was snoring.

I have brought her in, she is asleep in the living room in her toy corner and has not at all noticed the TV on, the phone ringing, the dishwasher being loaded.

I woke up worried this would be a long day, and it was. Now I am a bit nervous that it may be a long night as well. Uh oh.

Sweet Tweats

Yesterday after a long fight against the nap, followed by a long nap, Addison woke up a little hungry. Lately, however, she has been uninterested with any of the food that I offer her.

Addie, do you want yogurt? No.

Would you like pb&j? No.

How about mac-n-cheese? Nooo.

Addison, do you want some cheese and lunch meat? No.

Would you like some berries or a banana? No.

How about a hot dog? Nooo.

It's getting very frustrating. This little girl used to eat anything I gave her, with, perhaps, the exception of green beans. Now, and this is mostly mine (and a little Aunt Nikki's) fault. I (and Aunt Nikki) accidentally introduced Addison to sweet treats (translate UDF milkshakes and SnoBug) and now all she wants is a tweat.

During vacation I reprogrammed her a little to think that strawberries, blueberries and watermelon are all treats. I also convinced her that raisins are treats, and pretzels, and juice.

I might have had a relapse when I shared my mint chocolate chip ice cream with her last night. And she might have whined endlessly today for a popsicle...BUT -

When she woke up from her nap today I gave her the choice between an orange and a few mini Nilla wafers. She chose the Nilla wafers, which she calls cooks.

So I put a few on her plate.

She climbed up on the bench, looked at me and said orrrangge?

So I sliced her an orange.

I put half on her plate and the rest in the fridge.

Within minutes, her orange was gone and her cooks remained.

She looked at me, smiled and said more orrangge?

Hmmm, maybe my reprogramming has work a tiny bit...at least until she sees the ice cream in the freezer.

Sounds of the Beach

In addition to the crashing of the surf and the squawking of the seagulls, the other constant sound on our beach vacation was an adorable little voice murmuring, squealing, shouting and saying: Aaaaa Deeee.

Jackson was so excited to have a playmate that he could hardly contain himself. He woke up in the morning asking for AaaaDeee. He got up from naps looking for AaaaDeee. We went to dinner, he wanted to sit next to AaaaDeee. We walked on the beach, he wanted to walk with AaaaDeee. He hugged. He squealed. He kissed.

Jackson would hug Addie and say oh-so sweetly: AaaaDeee. Jackson LOVE. AaaaDeee YUMMY. AAAADEEE.

Since arriving home Addie has turned me at least two dozen times, put her hands on her cheeks, widened her eyes and asked: Jack?