Our normal life

Life is getting back to usual, and it has slowed down the last few weeks.  By slowed down, I really mean there's still a lot going on, but I'm not as crazy with unpacking, decorating, re-organizing things every spare minute.  Now, I'm mostly back to our normal, day-to-day stuff. So, if you're sick of my blogs about our move, I've decided to just focus on some typical things that have happened lately since I have kind of let everything else slip into the background since the move.

Charlie is 19months...almost 20 at this point!  He is on the move, and he's uncontrollable!  He is Mr. Independent, and in many ways he reminds me so much of Kenley at this age.  Everything is, "I try" and "Me too!" and let me tell you he is not happy if he doesn't get it.  He is talking so much, and it is pretty funny to hear all the new words he is learning and the sentences he is forming.  Today he said, "I see a bunny right there!"  (Although, I don't believe there was a bunny in sight) He loves to try to keep up with his older sister, and any older kids, and he's doing a pretty good job at it.  He's obsessed with Bubble Guppies, and he is starting to learn many animal names.  He also likes to be funny, and when you ask him what his name is, he will usually say, "cow".

 I remember 18 months-2 was probably the most challenging time with Kenley in terms of going out, and it seems to be happening again.  We haven't stopped going out because of it, but I am totally "that mom" at the grocery store, restaurants, or pretty much in any public place that gets "the look."  Sometimes it's a sympathetic look of people that understand what it's like, or they feel sorry for me being out with a kid that's having a public meltdown, or sometimes it's the evil eye, like "why did you bring your kid here."  It can be frustrating, but I know it will get easier, and I can't just hole up inside because my kid gets a little crazy every now and then. ( and by that I mean often) 

Kenley is doing great, and she had her Spring Musical at school this week.  It was really cute, and they sang and danced to some Easter songs.  She is very into everything girly, and she loves to dress up, put on make-up, and do "make-overs.'  I have to hide my make-up from her because I have seen some very scary makeovers in the past few weeks. She especially loves to dress up with her cousin, Kayla.  I love that they are girly-girls!  But, of course, they are tough too!

 The past few weeks, my sister I have started switching off weeks, so one week I watch her kids for a few hours, and the next week she watches my kids for a few hours. We always help each other out if needed, but we designated this weekly switch off for us each to have a little "me" time.  So, we each get 2-3 hours every other week to do whatever we want kid-free!  It has been really nice.  And, the key to having all 4 kids by yourself is to keep lots of snacks, cartoons, and toys available.  That, and we usually get lucky and either Charlie or Autumn will nap, sometimes both!

This month, I also put in my official resignation to Morton.  I don't think it is much of a surprise to anyone, and I am happy that it is "official."  I am happy that I still keep in contact with the co-workers that I was close with, and I will be seeing them next week. Teaching at the community college is going great, and I am happy that I will be back to teaching 2 classes again in the fall.  I am truly so very grateful to be home with the kids, and work just a few hours a week. Ray works long days, with a long commute, so I am truly grateful for him.  I am also going to try to help out with the company I worked for last summer with home clean-outs/preparing for estate sales.  I really liked working with them, and it was so flexible.

I also decided to torture myself once again, and I signed up for the half-marathon again in May.  I had it in my mind that I wanted to do it, but now I'm really committed.  Now, I need to actually start running outside!  I am planning my first outdoor long-run of 8-9 miles on Monday.  I figured this will help me get in better shape for the summer!  I am proud of myself though because it has been a year and half since I started working out after Charlie was born, and I have stuck with it!  I go to the gym 4-5 days a week, and now it is just part of our regular routine.  The kids really like the play area/daycare and it helped get us out of the house throughout the winter.

That's about it for a catch-up of what we've been up to (other than the move!)  Toodles!!

Spring is in the Air!

Yay!  It's finally not totally frigid weather here!  We've actually gotten a few days where we have been able to be outside.  To be honest, this winter didn't feel that terrible to me. I know we had a few days of a lot of snow, and many days of cold, but it didn't seem as bad as last year.  I think a lot of that had to do with the fact that the kids stayed relatively healthy this winter!  Last winter, I swear, we were at the doctor every other week.  Also, I think it seemed to go by faster since the time from right after the holidays until now we have been so busy with the move.  Anyway, we are welcoming Spring!!  (although, there is a slight chance of snow on Monday...) St. Patrick's Day was last week, and Kenley had a little party at school.  Charlie was not happy that he was stuck in his stroller, but when I let him out he was running around like a wild animal, and he almost destroyed the organized neat stations of Kenley's classroom in 30 seconds!

Last weekend, my sister and I went to Gurnee for the day/night.  I am so happy we were able to go, and even though it was only a little over 24 hours, it was like a vacation to us  Even though I get to see my sister a lot, it was so nice to spend time with her one-on-one. We actually got to shop, talk and relax without being interrupted by crying, toddler demands, diaper changes, or the usual craziness that happens when were together with all 4 kids. We got to take our time looking at anything and everything we wanted, tried on clothes, and had dinner and drinks.  The next morning, we both got massages, manicures, and pedicures, and we headed back to the mall for a few more hours.  We bought a lot of stuff, and somehow more than half of the stuff we bought was for the kids. We both got a much needed little break!

I have a pretty fun weekend ahead because Ray surprised me this week, and he got me tickets to the Eric Church concert with my friend Melissa!  It's tomorrow night, and I'm pretty excited because again, I will get some time with one of my mama friends without our kids! Melissa probably needs it even more than me since she has 3 kids! I think Ray knew I had been a little stressed out with the move, and he really wanted to give me some "grown up" time since he went on his golf trip.  Then, on Saturday night he and I are having a date night.  We are planning on just doing something simple like dinner and a movie, but we are excited because our last date night, which was over a month ago consisted of errands to Home Depot, Lowes, etc....

Other than that, we've still been pretty consumed with little things around the house.  We didn't have to do much work, unlike last time when we basically had the entire house remodeled the first few months after we moved.  But, little things here and there like replacing a few light fixtures, paint touch-ups, and just making this house "ours."  Ray has been in charge of all of the labor/maintenance, and I happily took over the job as decorator! I have had so much fun decorating, and searching for the perfect little trinkets to complete each room.  I think I'm mostly "done," but every time I say that I find something else I like, or think of something else I want.  I have used a lot of the decorations from the old house, and have made too many trips  Hobby Lobby and Michaels, but I have also found a lot of cute things at several of the local re-sale shops.  I'll admit I'm kind of picky and particular about decorating, and I've bought and returned so many things over the past few weeks until I found things that I felt looked good and made it feel like "home." 

Here are two of my favorite little decorating projects from the last few weeks!

Settling in

It has been exactly 3 weeks since our move.  Things are finally settling down a little bit, and for the first time since we moved I was actually able to relax a little bit this week. I was kind of a mad woman that first week, and besides sleeping, I don't think I was still for more than 5 minutes, and usually then it was just to eat or drink something to stay energized!  We have gotten so much done in these few weeks and I am so happy with the way things are coming along. We were able to get the few rooms we needed painted within the few days between the time we closed and the time we moved.We have gotten most of our furniture, and we are just waiting on a few small pieces.  The next thing I can't wait to do is hang stuff on the walls.  We have put a few little things up, but I can't wait to get all of our family pictures, wall decorations, etc. up.  I know then it will really start to feel like home for me.

It was very cold on the day we moved, but I guess that's to be expected in February.  We had excellent movers, and a lot of help from our whole family throughout the weekend.  The grandparents took care of Kenley and Charlie the day we moved and the day after, which was a huge help.  The morning we moved, my sister and brother-in-law were at our house. Ray and Greg took control of packing the garage, which was really full.  My sister and I cleaned each room and finished packing breakables.  Then, my mom and sister met us at the new house and helped unpack and organize our kitchen and closets.  Sunday, Ray's family came over and his brother-in-law helped him move a few pieces of furniture and  his mom and sister helped me organize our clothes and dressers.  We are very grateful for all the help of our family.  We couldn't have done it without them.


I also did really well on moving day, and I didn't cry at all! I think that is mostly because I know we will be going back there over the next few weeks to finish a few little things before it is officially sold. (Also, of course I was super anxious to get over to the new house so I didn't have much time to really think about it!) The only things we really need to do are close on our old house, which should be taking place at the end of March, and get our swing-set moved.  I know it's going to be a pain, but I just know it will be so worth it to have it.  Especially now that Charlie is older, I know the kids will have so much fun on it once it warms up.  We're all looking forward to Spring, and to making this house a home.  I'm ready to accomplish a lot this weekend, since I was really sick this week and basically did nothing for four days!

This was probably my favorite moment over the past few weeks.  It was the first morning the kids woke up in the new house.  The kids came in to snuggle with us, and we took a family selfie!  It was nice to have us all together that morning after a very hectic few weeks!