Home Tour Tuesday

I would normally do a Tell All Tuesday post but I guess there isn't much to talk about today. I'll say when it rains, it pours (or since its winter in Ohio, when it snows, it blizzards). Of course, everything seems to happen at once and in the most non-opportune times. That's ok though- we get through!

My new friends Shannon  and  Daphne host a Home Tour Tuesday each week and I finally can participate! I did a post on what she is covering, last week, so a re-cap if you will! It didnt make sense to retype it out so just click on the link below if you're visiting from her site. My tree and favorite ornaments are listed- in addition to a few stories.



Home Tour Tuesday

I will include a few pix just in case the link doesnt work.

Thanks for visiting!

Dear Quinlin- 11 Months Old!

I say this every month but oh my goodness- 11 months already? This was a huge month for you!

• You had a healthy month so I dont know how much you weigh but my guess is 22 or 23 pounds. You are still a hefty little thing. Your thighs alone are quite edible. Everyone tells me that I shouldnt worry because as soon as you start walking, you will slim down.
• You are finishing your last pack of size 3 diapers and moving into size 4's (which is the same size Owen wears).
• You wear 12 month clothing. I struggled last week to find some clothes for you so had to dig into your Hanukkah and Christmas gifts early to find some new outfits. Thank goodness for grandma and poppy too who brought you a ton of clothes this weekend!
• You are still eating 3 bottles a day (5 oz each) and are on all table food. I still try to give you a little bit of the purees but you don't really want them anymore. You like to eat what we are eating.
• You are loving books. You sit there and turn the pages very contently. You are so calm. Much like Hunter, not so much like Owen.
• You love Owen's toys and love playing with your brothers. You love when Owen tries to wrestle with you. I think you're going to get hurt or scared but instead find you laughing. You love lamby (Owen's stuffed animal lamb). He will even give it to you to comfort you if you are crying. Little does Owen know that lamby was supposed to be yours. I won it as part of a prize from thebump.com and Owen discovered it one day in your room before you were born.
• You can stand on your own- in the middle of the room- for as much as 30 seconds. You are starting to get more confident in yourself. You furniture walk like a champ and love walking behind your walking toy in the basement. So far, you have done everything about 2 months ahead of schedule compared to what Owen did. So- I expect you to be walking around 12/13 months. Hunter didn't walk until he was 18 months, and Owen started walking at about 14 1/2 months. Your time is coming soon.
• You love being mobile so much that diaper changes are an adventure. You twist and turn and scream in torture because you want to be on the move.
• Bedtime is now definitely no later than 7:30pm. weekends we can keep you up a bit later since you can sleep longer in the mornings, but my weeknights are definitely cut short.
• You wave hi and bye, say mama and dada and owen and uh-oh. I think this morning you said more. I'll keep working on that one.

I'm typing this realizing that there are so many milestones in the first year yet still so many after that. Owen will need to have a Dear Owen post written soon. His language and cute sayings have definitely exploded as of late!

Here is Quinlin this morning as I was getting ready for work. Such a big girl!

Quinlin- one more month until you are one!!! I want to cherish every moment... don't grow too quickly baby girl!


Weekend Recap
I would do a normal weekend recap post but this weekend blew chunks... literally. Owen was sick on Thursday night/Friday morning so my parents came and bailed us out and watched him for the day. Sean got home from work and then he was sick Friday night into Saturday. he woke up Saturday and all was fine so we went on with our 6th annual holiday party. It was a great time- had about 30 people over. The usual suspects which make for a fun time. We missed seeing our friends Jason and Stacy who came in from Columbus. They went to Jason's parents house during the day and while there, Jason's dad had a major heart attack. Stacy, a nurse, had to give him CPR as they waited for the ambulance. He's in critical condition- thank god she was in town...not sure what would have happened if she wasn't. Towards the end of the party, I started not feeling well and went to bed around midnight. I was up all night- sick as a dog- and spent the entire Sunday in bed. Luckily today, I feel fine. Gatorade next to me, I'll go on with my day and pray that Hunter and Quinlin can stay healthy!

Weekend and a Sicky

Well I would normally be excited for the upcoming weekend, except that we were up all night with a pukey Owen. Three times in the middle of the night and once this morning. And- we all know how I feel about puke. I sat next to him this morning, hovering, with a large cup (you know those big 32 oz they give you at the hospital when you give birth) waiting for him to start so I could catch it (gross). I am now waiting for my parents to come over to relieve me (thank you Mom and Dad) so I can go to work. My boss told me if easier to just stay home, but I have so much to do there and I dont want to jeopardize my time off scheduled at the end of the year. So- better to come in and work. My day will consist of wrapping more presents, working on his address labels for holiday cards and of course, the ever present art project. We talked about the project yesterday and I feel very good about it. He reitterated that there wasn't a deadline so to not stress about it and that he knows I have so much on my plate in addition to it. It was nice for piece of mind, but makes me more motivated to stay on top of it.

Hopefully Owen starts feeling better. Tonight Sean's sister is coming over to babysit. We are hoping to do some shopping and cleaning. We have our 6th annual holiday party scheduled for tomorrow night. Should be a good time- they always are- so here's hoping the snow doesnt keep our guests away. We are expecting about 35 people. Smaller than previous years, but I'm ok with that. Too bad our bar wont be ready. We havent heard from the granite place yet so I need to make a note to have Sean follow up with them to see when they will be ready to install. My luck is that it will be one day when Sean is in Wisconsin. Yes- he is able to go after all. He had to adjust his plans and now needs to be at work Monday and Tuesday, so his partner will still drive the 12 hours to the tournament with all their gear on Sunday and Sean will fly to meet him there Tuesday night. We did get a decent flight for him, but had to get a rental car to drive from here to Pittsburgh as the flights from Pittsburgh were much cheaper. I'm glad he gets to go, he was bumming pretty hard about it, just hoping the kids all are healthy!

Sunday will be just a day to stay at home and relax and watch football. And because posts are always better with pictures...

prior to getting sick... in my heeled boots...

Let It Snow

So- where we live, you expect to get snow on the East Side...I moved from the East side to the south side of town thinking I was getting away from the snow... um no. I moved to the secondary snow belt. Little did I know, downtown would sometimes get hit as well. Major snowstorm yesterday afternoon/evening.

Getting out of downtown was a nightmare... luckily, I dont work downtown, but Sean does. And from what he experienced getting home from work, I'm glad I wasn't a part of it. The only bad part was that we missed this:

We had floor seats (yes Floor Seats) to the Cavs game and we didn't go. I was so disappointed... but, the weather wasn't worth the attempt. So, instead of cancelling our babysitter, we decided to stay local and venture a little further south to do some Christmas shopping.

We spent an eternity at Dick's Sporting Goods but walked out with a new winter coat for Hunter. We bought it big (an adult M) so here's hoping this kid doesnt have a huge growth spurt. Those North Face coats are EXPENSIVE. We then went to Toys R Us...guess who we ran into?

I wonder how many people take pictures with him like us losers did last night? Oh TRU- the trickery! We got a few items for Owen and Quinlin and some PS3 games for Hunter. The Holiday shopping is now done for our three kids, my niece and future nephew... we're getting there!

After TRU, we went to a little local bar and grille we have been wanting to try. Total dive looking place on the outside but we had heard good things about it (Muskateers for you locals). It was really good. It was late so we didnt order much, but we had an order of wings and a gyro and watched the end of the Cavs game (they lost). Got home about 10pm and that was our night. Nice to have a date night every once in a while... a shame the weather affected it a little bit. 



Because they're cute (part II)

Tell All Tuesday

• I am currently getting paid to wrap gifts at work.... I love my job.
• Though- wrapping the gifts is putting off my big project- not so good. No deadline but obviously something I want to get done.
• Wrapping them here is causing me to not wrap at home. Luckily I still have time. One of my favorite things to do, since I didn't grow up celebrating Christmas, is to sit on the living room floor, next to the tree with the fireplace on wrapping gifts. Though- with Quinlin and Owen- I dont know if I will even use my fireplace this year...and will most likely need to wrap when they are in bed.
• Sean's work may prevent him from going to Wisconsin for an ice fishing tournament... I'm trying to sound sad for him, but dont think I'm very convincing. Though- if he doesn't go, we lose out on the money he has already spent- entry fee, rental house, not to mention his partner than gets screwed.
• Owen has been very funny lately with naptime. The good thing is- we have gotten him to take naps again. The bad thing is, he likes to sleep without his pants on. So far no accidents though while like that...knock on wood.
• I felt the guilt of being a working mom the other day when I was signing the babies into daycare and the lady at the front desk said "I love how Quinlin says uh-oh. It's the cutest thing." I looked at her in amazement..."she says uh-oh????" Yes- she does...and it is very cute.
• I need someone to watch the kids so I can go shopping with Sean... Hunter has some clothes but we still want to buy him a cool winter coat and maybe some games for his PS3. We picked up a cool tool bench for Owen...but need much much more from Santa.
• It has been snowing pretty hard the past few days here... I find the snow absolutely beautiful and love my drive to work. I drive though like a little old lady- especially with the babies in the car. Owen chimes in in the backseat "be very careful mommy". I love it- I'm sure the people behind me wonder what is taking me so long- especially since I drive an SUV.
• I have been stalking my phone like crazy since my friend Gia is in the hospital being induced. I was in the shower last night and I got a text so I asked Sean to look at my phone. He didnt know I spent the day stalking it and said "7 lbs, 13 oz. Raymond James" It was the funniest thing- and no- she is still in labor and Raymond, I dont think, is even on her name list. I had texted back and forth with her prior (maybe about 30 minutes before) so I knew he was kidding. I find it adorable how connected he is to my life and my friends. I am a lucky girl.

Weekend Recap/ Menu Planning Monday

We had a very good, low-key weekend. On Friday, we did nothing. Hunter had his friend Evan spend the night and we thought it would be fun for them to go to the high school basketball game (so movie night in the basement went out the window). Sean dropped the boys off at the game and when he picked them up afterwards, they brought their friend Michael with. So- no decorating of the tree as I now had 3 eighth grade boys in my basement. And- note to self- next time boys spend the night, they need pillows and blankets on the couch... anybody know how to remove drool marks from furniture? (shudder)

Saturday after the boys left, we began decorating. We decided to chance it by putting the tree in our living room and just not using any of the glass bulb ornaments. Luckily, the babies like the way it looks, but do not have an interest in touching it (for the most part). owen likes to pull off the ornaments and look at them, but they are pretty good. I was nervous mostly for Quinlin, but she really hasnt shown an interest.

our finished product:

Some of my favorite ornaments...

It's so fun to pull the ornaments out every year and hang them on the tree. My mom got the last one for us this year- the first ornament to have our complete family on it.

The hand print was from 2001 of Hunter's. We had given this to my ex-boyfriend's family for Christmas that year (we dated for almost 6 years). I maintained a friendship with my ex's sister-in-law who told me one day that my ex's mom mentioned that she had the ornament in storage but knew she couldnt hang it anymore on their tree. She didnt want me to be offended that she didnt want it- and it wasnt that she didnt want it- it was more of a feeling of knowing my ex's wife would wonder why it was on the tree.... I was nowhere near offended, I was so happy that she was thoughtful enough to want me to have it back. It probably is one of my favorite things hanging.

After we decorated, I made a nice dinner (french onion chicken and roaster parmesan cauliflower) and Sean and Owen rushed off to meet Sean's buddy and daughter at Jumpyard (a local inflatable jumping zone).
Owen had a blast! I wish I could have seen him in person. Quinlin was fussy so in bed by 6:30- I knew she would never make it at one of those places.

On Sunday- our friends Sawsan and Mike came over and we watched the Browns beat the Dolphins (Go Browns!!!) and that was it. I made another good dinner (smothered chicken and baked potatoes) and cleaned the kitchen, did laundry, etc.

For our menu this week:
Sunday- smothered chicken (pan seered and then baked with onions, mushrooms and muenster cheese)
Monday- Cheeseburgers and French Fries
Tuesday- cashew chicken and rice
Wednesday- frozen pizza I think (kids on own with sitter- Sean and I to the Cavs game)
Thursday- chicken marsala and angel hair pasta
Friday- probably something on the go
Saturday- our 6th annual holiday party at our house

Who does this remind you of?

Owen had fun playing with my purse yesterday. Gloves and hat were another story.

he reminded me of the Golden Girls...

a little version of Sophia...

I do not have a good image of Quinlin- but she reminds me of

and

I guess it would be inappropriate of me to post a pic of her thighs and butt- but J-lo and Kim K watch out- she will give you a run for your money!

Maybe I can get some good pictures of her this weekend! We will be pulling out all of our Christmas decor this weekend to decorate the house and otherwise, laying low. I dont think we really have any plans. Maybe we'll watch a movie- we've been sitting on Avatar and Clash of the Titans for weeks. Our big Christmas party is next week so I hope to get some more cleaning and organizing done prior to having a house full of people. i'd like to get some shopping in too- but dont want to go anywhere near the mall, I dont think, and all the crazies out there!

funny things said

So- we are in an interfaith home. As I was laying Owen down to sleep, I said to him "happy hanukkah, Owen" to which he responded "happy canada".  I think Christmas may be easier for him...

How cute is she?

I think aside from Mama and Dada, Owen has now entered her vocabulary!

(pardon the shakiness- this is from Sean's cell phone)