5 years ago today...

5 years ago today...

... I married Jeremy. My best friend.

I am glad I did :)

Love you Jeremy! Happy Anniversary!

Packin' up and movin' out...

Alright, so I'm moving everything to Vicarious Chelsea for now! I may post something here from time to time, but for the most part... it's all over there!

Please please please continue reading, update your blogroll or bookmarks or Google reader!

How many Cheerios are in a box?!?

Hi all!

I just wrote {what I believe is} a great post on Zac! I really, really like the way it turned on on VicariousChelsea.com, and yet the format isn't looking the same here.

If it's alright with you, I'm gonna just direct you on over there, but here is a sneak peak:

You'll also solve the mystery of how many Cheerios there are in a 15 oz box. What more could you ask for? So, quick! Click HERE!

All Scraped Up!

Scrapes happen. Just ask Lilly... she knows.

When scrapes happen, my heart sinks. The world stops as I wait... wait to see if she laughs or cries. Please, please, please laugh.

The world stops while I check her out... please not her head, or face, or teeth. Please no blood.

The world slowly starts to resume while I hold her, and she replays the catastrophy for me, as if I weren't right there.

She doesn't let me kiss it, or wipe her tears. NEVER wipe her tears or kiss her boo-boo. She hates it. There is no worse insult for her. Have you ever tried to NOT wipe a child's tears or kiss their boo-boo's? It's impossibly difficult.

Her independence and courage startles me. Scares me. Amazes me. Inspires me.

I know scrapes and bumps and bruises happen. It's a right of passage. It means she plays, and plays hard. And isn't afraid. And will learn caution. And will know that it won't hurt for long. Still, my heart sinks when she's hurt. I cry on the inside. Every. Time.

That's our Lilly. And, yes, she wears that dress A LOT.

(Don't you worry... Zac's post coming up soon!)

Head on over to VicariousChelsea.com to post a comment!
Psssst! Have you entered my Sunglass Warehouse Giveaway yet? Click HERE!

Thankful Through Thursday!

On Thursdays, I post about the things I am Thankful for.

This week, I've had some "Oh my gosh SERIOUSLY?!? moments." Just random things that have been stressful for tiring. Still, I'm Thankful Through Thursday!

I'm thankful for friends (old and new), and readers of my blog (old and new).

When my students sarcastically state "Oh. Yea. Another assignment. Yippie," I am thankful that I have a job. A good job. A job I love.

When my son continually tries to eat markers, I am thankful for an exploring, thriving, growing boy whose not scared of the unknown and rather, just wants to taste it all!



When I'm struggling for daycare expenses, I am thankful that I have help and support in the shape of loving, non-judgemental parents.

When my daughter resists bedtime, I am thankful that she is happy and healthy and enjoys life so much that she doesn't want to take the time to rest.




When my car makes that obnoxious clicking noice every time I start it, I am thankful that I have nice things, even if they're not brand spankin' new.

When my kids fight over something, I am thankful that they are close in age and will grow up together, learning respect and caring and patience along the way.


When Jeremy works late, I am thankful that he has a job and that we are working towards bigger and better things. When he doesn't work late, I'm thankful for gourmet food on the table!

.

When I stub my tow SO bad that the nail bends back (ewww), I am thankful that... um, that I have toes? Ok, that's a tough one...

.

When things don't go as planned, I am thankful. Because how boring would that be, anyway?

.

What are you thankful for this fine Thursday? Serious or comical... share with me! Head on over to VicarousChelsea.com to comment or link up!

Sunglasses! Get your sunglasses! GIVEAWAY!

So, the BEST thing happened.

My sunglasses broke. (Actually, they got scratched, so I bought new ones, which broke, so I wore my scratched ones, which I lost...)

Sounds like a bad thing, right? Well, it actually turned into the BEST thing because I stumbled onto Sunglass Warehouse and, frankly, I don't know that I'll ever be the same.

I mean... look at me!

Pretty cute right? I paid a grand total of $14.66 for these bad boys, AFTER shipping. Plus, they fit perfectly and feel totally sturdy. Uh... can you say, "Win, Win"? The rest of this post has been removed...

The 20th!

The 20th is here, yet again!
Lilly is {exactly} 3 years and 2 months old.
Zackary is {exactly} 16 months old.
Shyla is {exactly} 11 months old... one year next month!
Happy 20th to all the babies in the fam!

These pictures make me think of SUMMER!

Why, you ask? Because they have brand SPANKIN' new clothes for summer.

Thanks mom, for the shopping spree this past weekend!

On another note, I've been thinking a lot about maintaining BALANCE in a hectic life.

I had gotten into a habit of cooking "quick foods" when Jeremy would work late. Not fast food, by any means, but "freezer foods."

A goal lately is to move away from that. Tonight, for example, I made Shephard's Pie. It was fast, because I had done much of the prep work yesterday, but nutritious because I "snuck" in tons of veggies... peas and carrots, etc.

I don't really have to sneak veggies in though, so I guess I could just say that I stuck them in there.

Do you have any tricks for maintaining BALANCE in your life... in the kitchen or otherwise?

Don't forget - My FIRST GIVEAWAY starts tomorrow at vicariouschelsea.com

Happy 20th to all!

Big Bloggy News!

Ok, it is time. Time for a teeeeny tiny change...

A big part of my life is trying to find balance.

Balance between work and home.

Work and play.

"Mommy" and "Chelsea."

Additionally, I have been wanting to write more... and to write a variety of things. 

So... I am starting a brand. new. blog.

This new blog will still be largely about the family. Well, about the kids, really. 

But, there will also be more. 

Thoughts, ramblings, musings. A variety of things, focused on finding that balance. 

Yes, I will still do 20th posts. My life would be incomplete without them.

Thankful Through Thursday? Yep!

Random stories about Lilly and Zac? Absolutely!

Also... giveaways!!! In fact, I am doing my very first giveaway on Wednesday. 

So, give my new blog a chance, would ya? For now, I will be keeping this one too... probably a lot of similar posts, and some different ones. 

The giveaway will be on my new blog. Please, please, please enter!

Ok... here is the new address...

drumroll please.....

vicariouschelsea.com

Living Vicariously Through Myself...

Go visit it! Go now! 

A HUGE thanks to Kendra for helping with the name.

And A HUGE thanks to Becca for, well, creating the blog for me. Designing, creating, and hosting a fancy blog is really very difficult. Becca took my ideas and ran with them. I am SO excited... thank you!

My apologies

It has been brought to my attention that Jeremy took the last bath pictures, rather than me. I wrote that I didn't get a good splashing picture, when in fact I should have given him credit for photography.
My sincere apologies.
Along those same lines, here is a good splashing picture from tonight.
Jeremy posed with both kids after bath as well.

It is never my intention to leave out any of the "big people" ... the camera just seems to focus better on the kids!

On another note, I have some really exciting "bloggy news" coming up very soon. I'm not gonna share yet, but I will give you 2 hints.

1. Things will change and also not change.

2. There may be treats involved.

Stay tuned!

Heating up

It is heating up here is sunny Arizona, so we decided to go out for ice cream after dinner tonight!

Zac is just now to the point where he can sit at a little table at eat a little dish of his very own ice cream. He. Loved. It.

Can you tell?

Lilly is still working on teaching him all kids of things... like making funny faces.

Ahhh good times!

I love summer! What is your favorite (or least favorite?) part of SUMMER?!?

Thankful Through Thursday!

One of the {many} things I'm thankful for this week, is watching my children teach each other. Lilly teaches Zackary a lot. He is always watching her and imitating what he sees. This week, I asked if they wanted to take a bath together. At first, she didn't want to because she hates {HATES} getting splashed. At all. Always has. Zac, however, loves {LOVES} splashing. But, I told her that I thought he would be good and not splash her. Really not sure what gave me that crazy idea, but she went for it, so in we went... and she taught him to splash himself, but not her!

Here comes the great part... ready for it...

After a little bit of washing and playing, he spashed her a little, and she grinned... next thing I knew they were both {yes, BOTH} splashing like crazy. Laughing and splashing and laughing some more.

He taught her to enjoy a little water play!

I didn't get a good picture of the splashing because there was so much water... plus, I was enjoying the moment.

Another funny story - Zac has had to have eye drops this week. A kid in his class had pink eye, and Zac's eye started getting a little goopy {yes, that's the technical term}, so we got drops mostly as a precaution.

Lilly used to get some eye infections. We would get the drops, take a deep breath, and hold her down, squeeze as much as we could into her thrashing face and hope a drop or so made it to her eye. Needless to say, I was thrilled at the prospect of doing this with Zac.

So, I took a deep breath, laid him down, and got one drop in eye one before he could react. YES!

He blinked.

And looked up at me.

So, I tried for eye two.

You know that thing you do when you know you have to have an eye drop? Where your reflexes are trying to close your eye but you know it should stay open, so it's mostly open and you're really, really trying? Yep, that's what my 15 month old did! 3 days of drops, and he kept his darned eyes open every time. A couple times he even giggled right after the drop went in, then opened for more. Who does that?

Zac does.
He also brings his sister all her toys. And other people too - if he sees something that he thinks is yours, he'll bring it to you, even if he really wants to play with it. Then, he'll probably ask me for more eye drops or something equally uncomfortable and invasive.

And not to leave Lilly out... she has been doing so well with bedtime, but she still usually comes out once or twice and asks for something. Water, bathroom, maybe a book or toy. I accommodate her and then get her back to bed. Everytime she starts with "I need help with something," which is code for "I need an excuse to get up." No worries, I play along a time or two and then she is out.

Tonight, on "take 2" she came out and said {and I quote}, "Mommy. I need something with help."

I asked her to repeat herself and got the same "I need something with help." I asked if she meant that she needed help with something, and I got the cutest little sheepish grin and "yeah... that were silly!"

Ahhh kids say {and do} the darndest things! And I'm thankful for every last one of them.

One more sidenote... happy Tax Day! Are you done with your taxes? I am! Mailed them in quite a while ago in fact. Have I gotten my {sizeable} refund yet, you ask? NO! Why, you ask? Because I'm a moron who didn't notice that my account number for direct deposit was missing one digit. Our tax guy says they'll figure it out and mail me a check. I'm pretty sure that the money has been deposited into some stranger's account and they have already spent the money on something stupid. Or, something not stupid that I want. Like shoes. Beautiful, high heeled, pointy shoes that are on someone elses feet. argh!

At least Starbucks is giving free coffee today if you bring in a refillable mug. Did you know that? If not... GO! Go now! I'll be there, for sure! Good thing it's free, too, since some stranger with a funny short account number has all my money!

Race For The Cure

Had a great time at the Race For The Cure this weekend!

I'm not running as much as I was for a while - just no time/opportunity. So, it was so nice to get out and run! I guess once a week isn't soooo bad.

A huge thanks to mom for going and walking with the kids so I could run. It is really... REALLY... appreciated!

Stepping back.

Boy oh boy this is a crazy time! Spring in general, plus Spring as a teacher... two young children... poor economy and scary outlook for education... plus countless other stresses. Hectic doesn't begin to describe it.
I have a pile of books on my bedside. Good books. Books that will make me think. And wonder. And contemplate. And, think some more.
I just can't get into a single one of them! ha! So, I'm trading them in! Stashing them aside for later. I went "shopping" at my parents house today (tried to get to the library, but it wasn't happening), and came home with a pile of books that, shallwesay, will not make me feel smart.
I'm so ok with that.
(I must say, I don't know anything about any of these books. If I am wrong and one of them makes me think too much... grrrr!)
Just in case I have a momentary twinge of guilt over shoving really good books under my bed, I have one of these at the ready!
(It's a Cosmo. Not strong. But in a super cute glass that Natalie gave me for my birthday!)

And, let's not forget those who help me keep it all together! No amount of stress can take away my smile when I see these two!

Well, goodnight all... some silly non-thought provoking book is calling my name!

Thankful Through Thursday!

Do we eat too much pizza? This was tonight, and it looks remarkably similar to our last pizza picture. Still, I'd like to point out that 1. I served it will tomatoes and cucumbers. These kids LOVE tomatoes and cucumbers.2. It was English muffin pizza - whole grain english muffins with sauce, cheese, and olives. Not too bad right?Don't judge!

Zac loves Peek-A-Boo! He loves that he has the control now to put a blanket over his eyes, giggle while I "look for him," and then reveal his face. I love that I can see his smile in this picture - he gets SO excited!
Lilly just HAD to try on this too-small jacket tonight. Shyla, this one is coming your way next winter!
This was from a couple days ago. Zac loves this book!
And Lilly loves cupcakes!
(Don't forget... tomatoes and cucumbers tonight. Good, wholesome veggies. Just sayin')
Naked (or, almost naked) Zac loves to beat on his own belly.

Thankful.

Easter 2010!

Ok, yes this post is about Easter. But... it is now Monday, and I have just had a wonderful evening with my kids, and have to share this:
Lilly watches cartoons while I give Zac a bath. It's just the best and easiest way - she refuses to bathe with him since he splashes like crazy, so it works for us.
After his bath, I get him all "buttered up" with oil and lotion and butt cream, and into nice warm pj's. At this point I usually pick him up, turn off the light, tell him (oh, maybe 100 times or so) how much I adore him, and plop him into bed. Tonight though, I picked him up and had barely started declaring my love when he wiggled right out of my arms. I let him down and watched him hightail it out of his room. Curious, I followed him. Without hesitation, he walked right up to Lilly and waved at her (usually, she says goodnight and that she loves him before bath. Thinking back, I had forgotten that step tonight). She, without hesitation, said goodnight and then put her hand up and said "high five!" He completed the high five, they hugged, and she went back to her show while he walked right past me and back into his bedroom.
It. Was. Classic.
No matter how hectic or long or tiring my day is... I know I am so lucky with these two kids!

Ok, on to Easter!
This year, I got to go to sunrise mass with my parents. It was so lovely. Maybe next year I'll think about taking the kids, but this year it was just us and I loved it.
A bonus was that my parents had picked me up and so after mass I got to jog home. An early morning jog offered a perfect continuation of prayer and reflection, and I appreciated every minute of it.

Then, it was time for Easter to begin! I made a pull-a-part breakfast pastry, and we discovered that the Easter bunny had paid us a visit!
Lilly and Zac each got a little basket with some toys and plastic eggs. Lilly had jelly beans...

... and Zac had animal crackers...

Next, it was time for the egg hunt!

We played and hung out for a while, then it was off to grandma and grandpa's house! More baskets!

This is the ONLY picture of my mom I have from the night :(

Shyla loved her basket too!

Aren't they just the cutest family?And I like this pic of my sis, dad and I too!

Finally, it was time for another egg hunt!

Isn't Lilly's dress adorable? Grandma and Grandpa Yager sent it for her birthday, and I hid it so that she wouldn't wear it until Easter! ha!

My sweet kids...

And our attempt at getting a picture of all 3!
So... there actually were other people there, but I did not take pictures of anything except the basket opening and egg hunting. It was SO good to see my grandparents and their friends, my aunt Nannette and uncle Pete, aunt Sherry and cousin Megan, and good friends Jeannette and Aaron. We had such fun, yummy food, and lots of laughs.