Conor-isms

I did this once before but I think it bears repeating...

I love how Conor loves his little sister.  She has stolen so much attention from him yet he always wants to kiss and hug her and always (mostly) so sweet and gentle with her.

I love how he still calls raisin jzu-jzu's.  I actually don't know how to spell it so I so hope I will remember just the way he says it.

I love the way he watches Monster Jam on tv and then makes his monster trucks perform the same moves on the couch.

I love that he sings!  Everything from the Wheels on the Bus to the Black Eyed Peas Boom Boom Pow.  I got that boom boom pow, them chickens jackin' my sty-ulh.

I love how he is mostly fearless but still will hide behind my legs if he needs a little more time. I love how he still NEEDS me.  I love that Daddy is here for fun but I'm here for love and comfort.

I love how I can get him to say anything.  Anytime!  From "I love you, mama" to "Say, HISTRIONICS, Sweetie", he'll say it.  I have Michelle to thank for this fun game.

I LOVE how he gets so excited about BIIIIIIIIIIG TRUUUUUUUUCKS!  Still!

I love how he has memorized all his favorite stories.  He hardly needs me around to read stories anymore.  This also makes me a little sad.

I love how everyone loves him.  He's such a sweet, kind, friendly little boy.

I love his enthusiasm for sports. Soccer, golf, baseball, he wants to play. I love his enthusiasm for his friends.  Zack, Wyatt, Gwenie, Taylor...he loves them all.

I love how SMART he is.  Letters, numbers, shapes, colors.  So, so, so smart.

I love him!

A Cloudy Morning

We went on a walk this morning and I had somuch fun with my little boy. We walked over to the church that is near our house and

we looked for blackberries, we compared blue berries and red berries (don't eat the red ones!), we looked for dreys (squirrel nests in trees - we are talking a lot about squirrels as they begin to collect nuts for winter - we're seeing a TON of them outside our front window), we saw a kitty but didn't pet it because you just never know, we jumped over leaves, we walked parking lot lines, we jumped over parking lot lines,

we hunted for dandelions, walked AROUND mud puddles, went up hill and down hill, we sat on a bench, we looked at big trucks (that's a container truck, Mommy), we (I) wished we had brought money because we (I) didn't realize just how close the Dutch Bros. is when you cut through the church,

we raced Trocipal Funder (misspelling completely intended) and War Wizard off curbs, into walls, down a ramp and through the grass, we found a stick which started off as a microphone but quickly morphed into a sword, we (Conor) ran down the (Mommy want to run too?) and finally we came home and ate chicken nuggets and french fries with fresh green beans and frozen peas.

Today was a good day.

Man,I love that kid.

Two months old!

Finley was two months old last week.  It seems like she was just born yesterday and also that she's been part of our family forever.  She's a fiesty little girl and never afraid to let us all know exactly what she wants.  But she's also not at all afraid to dole out the smiles, grins and (almost) giggles.  Morning is her happiest time of day and its a good thing too with the way she keeps us up all night.  She's obviously trying to redeem herself.

She saw Dr. Gillespie last week and weighs in at a solid 10 pounds, 9 ounces and 23 inches long.  Her weight is in the 50th percentile and her height is in the 75th percentile.  She's just a perfectly normal little pumpkin and we couldn't be happier with her.

She already sounds like a girl when she cries.  While Conor's cry was high pitched and shrill, Finley's cry, even in the throws of an all out fit, still sounds like there is a giggle hidden behind it.  One day she's going to stop crying, look at us and go "Come on, guys!  I was just JOKING!"

She loves bathtime, her fists, and her Baby Vegas mat.  She loves to sleep in my arms, or Daddy's arms and thinks Conor's face is just FASCINATING.  She's got a gassy little tummy and the stinkiest farts you could imagine.  She'll clear a room with those bad boys.

She's just our perfect little princess.

Seriously, Mom?

Breathless

The love I feel for Conor is so strong I'm often surprised and frightened by it. I'm sure every mother feels this way about her child so this, in itself, is not news.   What is news is that today, for the first time really, I felt that same all consuming passion for Finley. 

What new mothers are not often told is that you may not immediately fall madly in love with your child.  In fact, you may feel a sort of vague apathy toward this little creature you have grown and birthed.

With Conor this feeling terrified the life right out of me.  Here was my helpless infant child and I didn't feel passionately in love with him.  Surely there must be something wrong with me?  I loved him, of course, and I would have thrown myself in front of a bus for him, but in looking at him I didn't find it hard to breathe at the sight of his face or the smell of his little head.  It was a scary time for me.

Eventually, of course, I fell for him.   And so, when I discovered that I wasn't yet passionate about little Miss Finley I was content knowing that in time I would be consumed by love for her.  And today, as I was sitting on the couch with Finley in my arms,waiting for her to fall asleep, I leaned down to kiss her little button nose and I thought, "Have I ever loved someone as much as I love you?"  And there it was.  All of a sudden that same love I feel for Conor came crashing down on my head for Finley and she took my breath away.

So tall!

At Conor's two year checkup he was 38 inches tall.  In May of this year  he was 38 and a half inches tall.  As of August 10th, Conor is 41.5 inches tall.  That's three inches of growth in just over 3 months!  No wonder he's been a bit of pill this summer.  He's probably been in pain as his little bones stretch and grow.

Dinner Calendar

Thanks to everyone who suggested frozen dinner ideas. I took lots of ideas and compiled them into this Dinner Calendar.

I'll be cooking away this weekend! Wish me luck. :)

Michelle - can you send me your recipe for baked ziti?
Kristen - can you send me your recipe for french onion soup?

thanks!

Dinner's In The Freezer

I've found that the hardest part of having two kids is getting dinner on the table by the time Morgan gets home from work. Now, let me be clear, I'm no June Cleaver and Morgan no more expects me to have dinner waiting for him than I expect him to rub my feet every night (oh, wait...). But, as Morgan generally gets home from work after 6pm it would be nice to at least have dinner on its way. I mean, most nights I haven't even figured out what I'm going to make.

Its made for some very late dinners and, consequently, some very late bedtimes. All around it throws off our schedule and its just not working for us. We've gone out to dinner SO many times recently because I've got my hands full with kids and just can't get to dinner by dinner time.

I figured a good solution to this little dilemma would be to have a stock pile of meals in the freezer for those (very frequent) nights when I"m too busy to get dinner going. I looked at going to one of those make-your-dinner places but at $300 for 12 meals, my frugal heart threatened to explode. I just can't do it.

So then I Googled "freezer dinners" and came up with a bunch of websites that either want you to subscribe for monthly recipes or go out and buy a book. Seriously, I just want a bunch of recipes for casseroles and such that I can make on a Saturday and freeze to eat. Why is the internet failing me???

Perhaps you, my bloggy friends, can pick up where the internet has left off. What recipes do you and your family love? What is easy to prepare and freeze?

Please help.

Sincerely,

Tired of Chicken Nuggets