The New Nursery

With 8 weeks left to go, Kase and I decided to start tackling the nursery a couple of weeks ago. Which is good, since I can no longer get myself up from a sitting position without assistance.

First, we had to decide whether we would kick the despot out of his crib or not. He’s a bit attached to his crib. This makes us happy because we feel like we got our money’s worth. Even though he was gifted a big boy bed (a toddler bed shaped like a boat) for his second birthday, he was having a hard enough time adjusting to his new room in the new house, so I think he is hesitant to move from his crib to a new bed as well. Maybe we messed up on the whole transition opportunity, but we’re just trying to keep things as normal as possible during this time for him. We figure we’ll follow his lead. That’s also our story when it comes to potty training, too. But maybe we’re just lazy parents. I dunno.

So basically that was a long way of explaining why we ended up at, where else, IKEA! a couple of weekends ago. We decided to go ahead and just purchase a new crib for the baby: The Gulliver crib in white. You can’t beat the price and I love it’s simple lines. Let the old baby keep his crib until he was ready to give it up for good. Then, if he does decide before the baby is born to make the switch, we can just convert the Stokke crib back to a bassinet for the first few weeks and use it in addition to the Gulliver crib we purchased. Besides it’s never too early to start with the sibling rivalry: “Yup, you got Colin’s hand me downs and an IKEA crib. Welcome to second child status.”

Other than that, we also picked up this amazing plush rug from IKEA (5×7, off white) that has tones of white, taupe and gray, or as I like to call it, the Holy Trinity. The rug is so soft. As in, fall asleep on it soft. Ask Kase. The paint color on the walls is Benjamin Moore’s Ice Formations, which I just love- especially in a small room like a nursery, it really warms up the space without darkening it. It’s basically perfect in my eyes. And since IKEA was having a 50% off plush toys sale, we came home with the first of I am sure many stuffed animals for the baby.

The rest? A mix of stuff from Colin’s old nursery- his Sharon Montrose prints, which we love and are more than happy to use again; the glider, from Crate and Barrel, and of course, his Bla Bla mobile. The two IKEA Malm dressers we were using in our old bedroom we pushed together to form a changing station. PS: Those dressers? Already chock full of (previously loved by Colin) clothes. Anyone thinking of generously gifting this new baby with clothes? Please. Don’t. (We already discussed my shopping problem. No need to elaborate.)

I had seen this decal on Etsy and it made me laugh.  When it came, it was smaller than I anticipated (only because I never look at measurements) but as I sat in the glider on Saturday being lazy staring at my blank bookshelves which are too shallow and short for actual books, I remembered the decal. So we placed it in one of the shelves. It may be my favorite detail in the nursery. You know, until the actual baby is in there. Then the baby should probably be my favorite detail.

Other than that, it’s neutral. Soothing. Simple. We like a simple nursery. Babies come with a lot of crap (which we unearthed this weekend and which almost gave me a panic attack). Plus, they are complicated, to boot. Best to keep the rest as simple as possible.

Thankful Thursday

We have a week to go until Thanksgiving, which has put me in the mindset of being grateful for all I have.

Thankful for cozy nights, lying in bed, reading my Kindle with this on in the background:

(Sure, our bed is still on the floor while we sort out what kind of frame we want, we have cable wires strung along the floor and my clothes are still in a duffel bag, but even with all that, I have so much to be thankful for.)

I am thankful for a beautiful new home.

I am thankful for a husband who changes out toilet seats and rakes leaves with me at 9pm on Sunday nights because “it was depressing me.”;  who wakes up at 5am to take a train to work, comes home at midnight, and who spends the better part of his weekend building a toddler bed that resembles a boat. And procures 9 pumpkins over 5 weekends. Just because.

I am thankful for a sweet dog who is always up for a cuddle, even when I’m not quite up for it.

I am thankful (most of the time) for a toddler who gives me hugs and kisses, on demand and not. But mostly on demand.  I am thankful he is healthy and happy, and even that he is wild and crazy.

And I am thankful for a healthy baby, no matter how much he kicks me or indigestion he creates. And I will be really thankful if he is a little more relaxed than his brother. But I’m thinking not. Which is okay.

I am still thankful.

Project Naptime: [Chalkboard Train Table Top]

Guys, we’re still kicking here. And how. Our weekends have been consumed with unpacking boxes, getting rooms set up and safe for Colin, and cleaning up dust, dust and more dust. Our painter, who we will refer to as Eldin (from Murphy Brown), only finished last Thursday. I’ll just say I am glad I chose neutral colors, because we are never having the whole house painted again. EVER.

But anyway, sometimes when you just can’t scrub any more toilets or unpack any more boxes, you like to take on a simple project while your husband builds a toddler bed and said toddler is napping. Tackling a quick project is referred to around here as “Project Naptime”. I usually get about an hour and a half to two hours to myself per day. Well, every other day. Colin doesn’t like to nap on school days; too excited I guess. So these kinds of tasks stroke your ego and make you feel useful in those times you can’t remember your own phone number. You know what doesn’t? Your toddler napping for THREE AND A HALF HOURS when your husband is home. And then him joking around that if he had three hours a day to himself, he’d be really happy. Yeah, so would I. SO WOULD I.

Anyway, back to Project Naptime. Colin has a train table. He likes it. I hate it. It’s big and bulky and well, quite colorful. And with about 800 train pieces on it, it can be what I like to call, a hot mess. One side of the table top is a little scene of roads and landscape, etc. The other side? Is electric blue. I guess it’s the ocean? I don’t know. It’s very ugly. We don’t use that side. It’s pretty useless.

So I was thinking about how to neutralize the blue side of the train table top a little tiny bit while also making it something Colin wants to play with. we would still have use of the landscape side, but make the blue side a little more fun. I didn’t want to alter it permanently. I’m not that crazy. I don’t go around spray painting my kid’s toys so they match my decor. When you have a kid, you need to embrace the primary color wheel. It’s happening. Deal with it.

And then I discovered Chalkboard Contact Paper. And for $15 (two packages), I updated and improved the train table. It only took me about 30 minutes, which meant I had approximately 800 hours until Colin woke up. According to Kase, anyway. 😉

It’s a pretty straightforward project. I’ll let the Pics school you:

Before.

Chalkboard Contact Paper

Go slowly. Then use your husband’s work ID to work out the bubbles. I found going in a diagonal direction to work best.

Before and During (Kinda). This is obviously not the blue side. But that would have blinded you. You’re welcome.

And “season”. I don’t know if you need to season contact paper, but I did it just in case. Which is all to say, rub a bunch of chalk all over that bad boy.

Done. Let’s Play. You know, when you decide to wake up. In four hours.

So, tell me. Have you taken on any “Project Naptimes” lately? We are making excellent progress on the house, but it’s nice to tackle something quick and painless every now and then.

Scenes from Setting Up a House….

One  thing I’ve managed to learn after moving ten times is that sometimes it’s best to focus on the small stuff, and not the big picture.

Small Stuff= Toddler.

Small Stuff = Doggie.

Small Stuff = Hurricane preparedness.

Because for every small detail, there is a very large disaster looming around an unpainted corner:

Hope you have a great weekend!

She’s a Brick House

Okay, well she’s a clapboard house, to be fair, but man, is she sturdy!  We survived the storm with absolutely no problems at all. Power remained on and we could barely hear the wind and rain. A far cry from our rental, where the windows shook whenever the UPS truck drove down the street. Guess those tradesmen knew what was what 200 years ago. Of course, I am happy we managed to get those trees down last week. That could have been bad….

We are slowly but surely getting unpacked. We tackled the most important rooms first, of course. That would mean that the kitchen, family room, playroom and office are all set up. They are in working order, and with some more finishing touches, will be ready for their close ups sooner rather than later. As for the rest of the house? It’s a box graveyard.  In fact, we managed to fill our garage with so many boxes we couldn’t pull our cars in, which could have been problematic with the storm. So I got on the horn on Sunday morning and a junk removal company was here by noon, tackling our used boxes and old paint cans and drapes and trashed wallpaper. We pulled the cars in and everyone tucked in for the storm. When you’ve got a playroom and a working AppleTV, turns out, you’re set. Colin even napped for 3.5 hours. Sandy? You’re nothing.

Otherwise, it turns out that moving while pregnant and with a two year old in tow is a lot different than moving with a one year old who’s happy to play in packing paper in his pack n play. It just so happens I am an ungainly mass with no stamina. Colin on the other hand is a terror on wheels. There is no stopping him. Literally. We’ve just accepted the fact that our child can now run away from us, up one flight of stairs, and through the upstairs and down another staircase, well before we even realize he has left the room. I just wish we could teach him how to unpack things and break down boxes. He could be so….useful.

And in the end, I was able to make my family a nice home cooked meal last night- it was great. We are really going to love it here.

Hope everyone made it through the storm okay!

Fall is here!

Fall is here! I know this because I got to wear jeans with boots and I bought some bales of hay. And I crossed off some items on my Fall Fun List. Fall is upon us. It’s official!

Fall Fun

One of the things I love the most about living in New England is the Fall.  As a season, I like it a lot. Personally speaking, I think I look cuter in sweaters and jeans than I look in a bathing suit or shorts. Mostly because I am so pale. And fall welcomes a certain pallor. So fall is awesome, in my book. But in New England, it’s just *better*. That’s a fact. You can google it.

So like some other bloggers out there, I’ve decided to come up with a “Fall Fun List”  I love me a list. And I love me some fall, as noted already. So combine the two and you have nothing but sheer amazingness.

1. Visit a bonafide pumpkin patch. Pick out pumpkins (Kate, Kase and Colin). Take a tractor or hay ride (Colin).  Partake in cider & donuts (Kate).

2. Decorate with Hay Bales and Mums.

3. Wear puffer vests.

4. Visit a farm. Apple picking?

5. Jump in leaves!

6. Trick or Treat & Carve a pumpkin.

7. Donate Thanksgiving Fixings to Food Bank.

8. Housewarming! Serve cider & donuts.

9. Find Corn Maze. Find way out of Corn Maze.

10. Fall Bonfire (buy fire pit). Drink cider and eat donuts.

11. Watch Charlie Brown Movies

12. Drink cider & eat donuts. Did I mention those already?

So what do you have on your fall bucket list?  Will you be eating donuts and drinking cider? Cuz, I don’t know if you know this, but I will. In my puffer vest.

Lucky.

Thank you for all your comments about our new house!  We are excited of course, but most of all, we feel really fortunate.

We spent the night “camping out” on Friday at the new place- we did that when we bought our condo in Virginia, so we felt that it was a good tradition to keep alive, regardless if we added a pack and play to the list of things to bring with us.  We blew up the air mattress, got cozy and settled in.  It was such a nice feeling to wake up in “our house.” Colin is already a big fan, yelling “House!” whenever we pull into the driveway. I guess toddlers can appreciate a raw space with bare wood floors as far as the eye can see, and no furniture to speak of, or to bump into, so long as they have their matchbox cars with them. And of course, we never leave home without those. 😉

Yesterday, we were able to meet our new neighbors.  They were incredibly kind and even sent along some great photos of the house for us (the side of the garage), taken from their deck. And I fell in love all over again.

Overall, it was a wonderful weekend- between the house closing and my mom’s birthday party down in NJ, I’m feeling very lucky this morning- a wonderful visit catching up and reminiscing with supportive, funny, and loving family, and now a house in which to grow my own little family and create our own traditions and memories. Just lucky.

Happy Anniversary. I got you a house.

So last Saturday, Kase and I celebrated our 5th anniversary. And maybe you don’t know, but the traditional 5th wedding anniversary present is wood. No joke.

What else could we get each other?

In an update that should surprise absolutely no one who knows us, nor anyone else who happens to have read this blog for more than two weeks, we are moving!  Yes, again. Yes, we did just move 10 months ago. And 3 months before that. And 7 months before that. BUT! This time it’s different. Really.

People: We bought a real live house! I know. Who woulda thunk? As you read this, we are closing on our new house. Signing away our lives as we know them. I guess it’s not that big a deal. It’s just like a 30 year lease. Hmm, that’s weird. I just broke into a cold sweat.

In all seriousness, we are very excited. This house came out of nowhere, and much like everything we do, was kind of an impulse decision, in as much as a two and a half month process where everything but your first born is requested from the mortgage broker, can be considered impulsive. What I mean is, we weren’t *really* in the market for a house as we are currently leasing (anyone looking to rent a 3 bedroom house in Needham, MA? Let me know!) However, the thought of trying to renew a lease or house hunt with a toddler and newborn in tow made us start looking around at neighboring towns and doing some exploring. On free weekends, we’d pack Colin in the car, find some listings online, plug the addresses into the GPS and set out. The internet is so good like that. We’d search for the local playgrounds, schools, check out the town centers, time the driving distance to the nearest Friendly’s (you think I’m joking) and try to imagine ourselves living in that particular area. And each time, we’d say “That was a nice day. I wouldn’t want to move there, though.” And so we put some miles on the car, but we were learning more about what we wanted in our forever home.

One day Kase called me up and told me to research a new town. (If you are also in the market or are researching moving to a new area you are unfamiliar with, I recommend a Google search using “[the town name], city-data] as City-Data.com has very comprehensive forums that are extremely helpful. I know a little something about moving to brand new places sight unseen after all.)  After doing some initial research, I discovered that people love the town, the schools rate among the top 50 in all of the state and it’s generally a great place to find a nice house with a big yard for less than 5 billion dollars. Which was good, since our budget was considerably smaller. I happened to find this house online and told Kase on the phone, “I would make an offer on this house today. You need to take a look.”  We decided to contact our old realtor to see if she might recommend a local realtor for the area we were interested in. Turns out, her sister represented the area so the next day we hopped back in the car to explore again.

The house was built around 1820, so we’re talking nearly 200 years of major character (think four fireplaces, original claw foot tubs, porcelain fixtures, and wide plank floors) with the bonus of modern updates- like a relatively recent renovation above the “barn,” a new roof with slate tiles, and a newer kitchen addition off the back with subway tile and granite. We have more than enough room to grow our family, and Colin and his new brother will have an expansive yard to play in, not to mention a pool to enjoy in the summertime.  I”m already researching “toddler winter swim classes,” naturally.  Kase and I? We’ve got a nice deck with a built in hot tub. You know, for all those adult dinner parties we get to throw. 😉 Maybe we can just keep it cold and call it a kiddie pool?  With over an acre of land, we’ve got enough privacy, but being on a main road within town gives me the sense of neighbors I crave. But most importantly,  there’s a Friendly’s within a 10 minute drive.

Our new town is within commuting distance to Boston, so Kase will continue to take the train while the kids and I explore the state parks and beautiful lakes where locals hike, kayak and swim. It’s a truly beautiful spot, and we hope we love it in the years to come as much as we like it now.

If Kase and I could have created a home for our family, we still couldn’t have imagined this one. An antique? In a town we’d never considered, let alone heard of before this year? But it is exactly the right home for us, and we are so excited to make it ours.

Obviously, there will be a slew of house projects to discuss, but that should help offset all the baby crap I’ve been posting. Except for the brand new nursery, of course.  I’ll be beating that to death. Sorry I’m not sorry. 😉

(I posterized the photos so that defining details weren’t as obvious. Stalkers.)

Double Happiness and Menu Cards

This weekend, we are heading back to the Dirty Jerz to celebrate my mom’s birthday. Her birthday is in July, but she celebrated a milestone birthday this year, so she gets a “do”. My siblings and I went back and forth with her as to whether she wanted a big party at my brother’s rooftop deck in midtown Manhattan or something more low key, and my mom, a woman clearly after my own heart, or maybe she created my heart?, anyway, she said she wanted to celebrate with only family at our local Chinese restaurant. And I died of happiness. Double happiness. Get it?!?

Since we are celebrating at a Chinese restaurant, and the food will be family style, I told my parents I would make up a menu card. That way, there wouldn’t be twenty Hannans all yelling over each other, “What’s this?” We can be a loud group. You may not know me personally, but I am loud. It’s genetic. I was born this way. Anyway, hopefully with this little card, we won’t get kicked out. Maybe.

So when Shannon was here last week, we left the boys with the boys and headed to a craft bloggers mecca- The Paper Source. Shannon bought some stuff, and I bought some stuff for the menus, because Shannon has great style and I can’t even pick out menu stuff without her input. If you had a professional party planner staying with you, you’d work it too.  Bottom line: we left poor. And then we went to Anthropologie where I decided to become poorer. You know how it is.

So on Saturday, Kase and I head to New Jersey, which means tonight, I make menu cards. As it happens, the next week happens to also include my dad’s birthday, my sister’s birthday, and a nephew’s birthday party. So there will be lots of celebrating. Lots of birthdays.  SO glad I’m off booze for the next 5 months. Super terrific. But I am super excited to spend time with family and see the little boys go nuts again. Hopefully, not in the restaurant. Can’t make any promises, though. Colin really loves his cousins, despite how the headlocks and general animosity may look. Appearances can be deceiving and all that.

First though, Kase and I have a pretty important appointment tomorrow here in Boston. Then after that is done, we can make our way down to New Jersey. With big smiles on our faces. Perhaps a crick in our necks. A little less money in our bank account, but double happiness splayed across our faces.

More on that later…..

Momjury (n.)

If only I could Instagram my immune system. Instagram makes everything better.

Momjury (n.) meaning:

1. Stepping on a matchbox car resulting in a deep cut on the arch of your foot. Treating said injury with a Curious George band-aid. Because you no longer own plain jane band-aids. What fun would that be?

2. Becoming a human Kleenex as your child wipes his snotty nose all over your person. Or wet coughs on you from the backseat. And you can feel the back of your head is wet with contagious spittle. Result: coming down with said cold yourself.

3. Gray Hair. Well really, this is merely insult to momjury.

So yeah, we’re sick here. Which is a shame- we had such a nice time visiting with Shannon and Gabe and John. In fact, I think I blame our awesome trip to the beach. In Maine. At sundown. In 50 degree weather. Sorry ’bout that.

I actually had to call Colin in sick to school yesterday. Which is cool. It’s only about $432 per day. And since Wednesday is Yom Kippur, school doesn’t resume until Friday. Plenty of time to get rid of the green stuff coming out his nose. I hope. And maybe enough time to teach him to cover his mouth when he coughs on me? Yesterday, we spent the day wiping each other’s noses, watching Pixar movies and generally being gross. It’s really amazing how much time there is in the day when you forgo a shower and any and all responsibilities. Like buying groceries. And, like, showering. But when you’re sick, it’s all the excuse you need to eat ice cream and sit in your own filth all day long, right? Or am I not supposed to do that now that I have a kid? Whatever. I’m sick. Leave me alone. 😉

Survival of the Fittest: Suburbutopia [Guest Post from my Awesome Sister-in-Law]

So, I’m not the only amateur blogger in the family. My brother and sister write a little blog of their own. Well, my sister in law really does, because like me, she is a work widow. We slave away all day with the chilruns and live to tell our tales. And she is funny. Like, funnier than I am. And I don’t say that lightly. I take pride in being the court jester of my family. (“Dance, Monkey! Dance!)

Now my brother and sister in law just moved to the burbs. Well, they are in the process, anyway. They bought a house. Then they gutted it. And now it is completely under construction. While doing this, they realized that commuting to the city for preschool wouldn’t work out quite as they hoped, so that was another wrench in their suburbutopia plan. Basically, like any move, they are hitting some speed bumps. And my sister in law is living to tell about it. And guys? She nailed it.

How to survive the burbs if you used to live in “the city”

1. Don’t eat out. Your restaurant days are over, unless you go into “the city” for a special occasion. Everything else will be an expensive and depressing endeavor. Instead, go to the grocery store and allow yourself to get giddy over the cheap prices (organic milk for under $7!). And forget about farmer’s markets because suburban ones are sad sad sad.

 2. Resign yourself to your vehicle. Yes, you may have imagined yourself biking everywhere because the streets are so much less crowded and the ride to the grocery store (the only place you now go) would be so pleasant. You may have even purchased a bike trailer for the kids to make preschool drop off more fun. It will stand unattached from bike that is buried deep somewhere in the garage. However, the car will be right there, in front of your door. As you will be usually in a hurry, despite the theoretical “slow down” of suburban life, you will only use the car.

3. Good-bye Equinox. Hello YMCA.

 4. Dress in work out clothes. Because you never know when the urge to drive over to the Y (which may actually be within walking or biking distance) will come upon you. Also, this gives the impression to the other mothers at preschool or the grocery store (the only place you now go) that you are about to work out or, even better, have just worked out (and still look so attractive!). This helps to negate some of the seemingly lazy car driving.

 5. Tory Burch. If you decide to dress in something other than work out clothes for some reason, go with Tory. No need to be creative. But if you can make it into “the city” flagship store on Madison Avenue, items unavailable at the local mall distributer will be spotted and commented on immediately. Worth the drive to “the city.”

 6. Commuting. Realize you will never, ever see your husband. While it may have seemed that your husband worked annoyingly long hours when you were living in “the city,” his commute will now be brutal. He will leave early in the AM to beat the traffic and come in late for the same reason. You, however, will probably cut down on your commute now that you no long need to work to support the expensive “city” life style. Just the grocery store.

 7. Make playdates. You and your kids will never, ever, ever, see another child on a playground, on the street, on their bike, on a scooter, at ice cream, etc. unless intentionally premeditated and coordinated by parental figures. While in “the city,” sidewalks are packed with strollers and playgrounds full of frolicking children, this is not how it works in the burbs. Playdates are the only way to ensure your kids do not become antisocial misfits AKA total losers. This may put some strain on you to make friends and remember names of preschool parents who do not seem at all interested in returning the attention, but it must be done. It might help to wear work out clothes and try to get invited to the mommy triatholon training groups.

 8. House Ownership. It’s likely you rented in “the city” with the cost of housing and all. Even if your apartment was fancy by “city” standards, it was probably disgusting to the majority of the developed world. Once you purchase your new home, you may find that whatever shape it’s in, it seems fine to you. And huge. And you will be confused as to why people keep calling it a “small house” that “needs work.” You will soon adjust to the new standard of living and decide to get a construction loan. Because a few thousand (or hundred thousand) here and there, really, what does it matter when you know you’re making an INVESTMENT.

9. Get past your hang-ups on schools. If you were lucky enough to move into a town with a great school system, you may soon be surprised to find out it’s actually not that good. It’s definitely not good if you compare it to schools in “the city” you’ve been salivating over but that charge 40K+/yr tuition and forced you to leave the city. It will be a little sad when you realize it’s probably not even as good as P.S. Whatever you scoffed at while living in “the city.” It’s OK to grieve a little, but you will soon get used to the idea that while the schools may not be great, no one seems to know this, and you will also forget.

 10. Your minivan may have been cool in “the city” but it’s not in the burbs. While it’s hard to say a minivan can be truly cool anywhere, a brand new, shiny, enormous minivan with its own parking space in a covered garage is a unique and useful enough thing in the city to qualify as cool. As it can seat 8 plus all their strollers, baggage, etc. it’s close enough to a bus to be considered public transportation, which is cool. Anything that facilitates daytrips to “upstate” or the Hamptons or in general implies that you have a weekend home is cool. In the burbs, there is nothing cool about a minivan. Especially one that has bumper dents and scratches from “city” traffic. You will need an SUV soon to match your “working out” look. Work on convincing your husband of this starting day 1 because it will make no financial sense. Look into bundling it into the construction loan. 

 

I love so many things about this list, but especially the minivan part, only because when we saw them recently, my brother was extolling the virtues of the minivan and how we had to get one. And I was convinced!  But reading this, I am wondering if that conversation wasn’t like those conversations we have had before. You know the ones: “Having kids is awesome!  You should have kids, too!” So, I guess no minivan for me. Although, here? A Volvo SUV would be more cliche. And of course, I want one.

The Big C at the Big E

It’s been seven years in the avoiding, but my Western Massachusetts born and bred husband finally managed to drag me and our two year old son to The Big E- or the Eastern States Exposition. For those of you not in New England (because let me tell you, in NJ, we have our own fair and have never heard of the Big E), the Eastern States Exposition or The Big E, as it is called, is basically a state fair. We’re talking fried food, carnival games, amusement rides, livestock,  and tons of stuff being sold, like Sham Wows.

And let me tell you: It  really was awesome. I had my first real corn dog. I had beignets. I got vetoed by the children on securing myself a lobster bisque, but got a taste of Kase’s loaded baked potato. Wait, that sounded grosser than it was supposed to.

Warning: Pregnant Lady with a corn dog. And bags under her eyes.

We got to spend time with good friends and their sweet girls, take the kids on pony rides (Colin: “Yee Haw!” Me: How did he learn that?!”), eat hot dogs larger than our faces, and walk around the grounds until our feet were ready to fall off. And please. Anyplace that combines shopping for crap while I eat cotton candy? Is a winner.

It lasts for 15 more days, so get on it, if you are in the area, or even in Massachusetts or Connecticut or New Hampshire or whatever. Because they have a magical unicorn cow. And you wouldn’t want to miss that.

Magnificent Magnets.

We were on the Cape this weekend with Kase’s mom, and while shopping around Provincetown, we happened upon a children’s store that sold the sweetest clothes. While perusing, we saw this:

We were confused at first. What? How does it close? I don’t see any snaps or a zipper. Do you see any snaps? Nope! Turns out, it is completely held together with magnetic closures! How genius is that?  And really, the magnets just find eachother- there’s no lining them up or anything- it’s like a magic onesie. So for diaper changes in the middle of the night (and in the middle of the middle of the night, and then right at dawn, and then, well, you get it), instead of trying to line up snaps and fumbling around you just do this:

I know. I wish I had thought of it, too. I love the caption, “Not to worry.” If they knew me back when I was brand new to the mothering gig and trying to change Colin with the dimmer light on, then they would have captioned it “Don’t cry. It will all be okay!”

Speaking of snaps, or lack thereof, we snapped it right up. Well, my mother-in-law did. Thanks, Doris! And if you know someone about to have a newborn, I think this would be the most amazing gift to buy. Seriously. Easier= appreciated.

You can find your own at Magnificent Baby.

Another year older.

Dear Colin,

Where to even start? The other day, your dad and I scrolled through pictures from the last year. To say you’ve changed so much is an understatement. You are truly your own person now. You’ve discovered your independence and your personality is evident in ways we never imagined this time last year. I don’t know if babies change more the first or second year of life. It’s really a toss up.

This year alone you mastered walking, running and runningreallyfast. You jump, you dance and you play hard. You talk a lot, too.  You love to practice your vocabulary and show off your intelligence. Your excitement is contagious and your energy can be quite draining for those of us trying to keep up with you. But again, your infectious enthusiasm just make us laugh and your smile never fails to make me happy beyond words.

You are sweet, caring and kind. You love. You emote. You are quick to wave hello to new friends, hand out hugs and ask for kisses. You love your parents and your dog, “Fen.” You bowl us over with your hugs, and you sweetly bestow upon us kisses that melt our hearts. My favorite conversation is this one: “Mommy? Kisses?” which you say with a sly smile on your lips, as if you know you are irresistible. And when you have gotten your kiss, you say to me “Much!” as in, “Colin, I love you soooo much!”

You have become a strong little character- both physically and mentally. You love to show off your physical prowess, and also love to demonstrate your strong will. You are the embodiment of the most challenging aspects of your dad’s and my personalities, so we can only look at each other and shrug because it makes you undeniably ours. And we love you for it.

It seems to me you knew you were about to hit the big 2. You were preparing yourself to become a big boy. You have become both more cooperative and intensely independent. You have opinions and objections and yet, enthusiasm and excitement to spare.

This coming week you start school, and I am so excited for you to begin that journey. After all, it will be a long (and expensive) one.

This coming year, you will become a big brother. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I think you will relish your new role. You, my friend, are a CEO in the making. You are happy to delegate tasks, like making us color for you and telling us which matchbox car to drive in “circles!” I’ll be happy for you to have someone else to boss around. I can only imagine how much you will grow over this next year.

You say “no” more than you say “yes”. You throw fits and you ask for kisses. You hate getting changed, but you love baths. And the biggest head scratcher still: You are blond with hazel eyes.

You are Colin.

Happy Birthday,

“Much!”

Mommy and Daddy

(to read last year’s letter to Colin, click here)