August and September Goals

So August's goal was to read religious texts daily, and I've improved, but I haven't been perfect.  The plan was to wake up when I feed Axel at 6:30 and then read scriptures after I put him back in bed (He only wakes up the one time "in the night".  It's morning to us, but it's still his night).  Shots + vacation + cold = Axel's schedule really messed up.  It's getting better, but for a while he was waking up to eat at 5am and I just couldn't start my day at 5!  I tried going back to sleep and then waking up at 6:30 but I swear I've been drugged.

Excuses, excuses.  But it's hard to do something daily when you can't get into a good rhythm.  Still working on this one.

September really snuck up on me in some ways (blogging ways) but it others I've been looking forward to it!  (Last September was the best month of my life, mostly because of the gorgeous weather!)

September is NO SUGAR!!!!  I really really need it this time.  Back in May I decided I was going to lose the baby weight.  Soon I realized that when I lost weight, I lost my milk supply.  And since I wasn't trying to lose weight, I swear I started eating like I was trying to gain.  And I did.  Most of my problem is sweets.  Actually that's pretty much my only problem.  I don't like junk food (chips, or. . . see I can't even think of non-sweet treats!) but I love candy and desserts.  The rest of my meals are like oatmeal, beans, rice, quinoa, salads, whole wheat pasta, veggies, the occasional chicken or turkey. 

Do you want to join in with me on this one??? (Here are the rules.  Feel free to make up your own though!) It's a fun time of year to drop the sugar because soon we'll have Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas thrown at us and getting it out of your system now can help make those holidays a little easier!!

I think I'm going to do a giveaway on Monday, so make sure you check it out!

Yesterday. . . (and twitter)

Love this girl but she almost drives me to drink.

Phew!  Yesterday, man.  What. A. Day. 

I dabbled in candle making, hosted a play date, deconstructed baby jammies (working on a project for Oilo) and cleaned up a mess so disgusting I probably should have called natural disaster clean up.  Or burned the apartment down.  I thought about tweeting that, but then if the apartment really did burn down (remember the candle making?) it would look really bad. 

AND!  I made Indian food.  Seriously, I want to make it every night.  How long do I have to wait before making something again?  Like a month?  Or two?  What is the protocol here? 

In between the natural disaster clean up (Olivia's room may never smell the same again) and dinner making, I went to Target alone.  My happy place.  I regrouped, ate some candy, and saw a grown daughter waiting for her mom (her mom was my cashier and so that's how I know it was her daughter).  Seriously, I almost burst out in tears.  Such a pretty girl, I wonder if she ever removed her diaper during a "nap" and smeared the contents.  Well, someday Olivia will be that girl and yesterday I looked forward to that time.  Not every day, but yesterday?  Oh yes.

And one last thing.  I need a new twitter to go with my new blog/etsy shop name (Olive the Things).  So. . .
olivethethings is taken. 
kt_olivethethings is too long. 
kt_oliveblog is weird, but so is my current handle. 
kt_oliveshop is also available, but not my favorite.
kt_ott is too many initials, and people will be thinking "what is ott????"
kimtom_olive is available, but WHAT? 
_olivethethings is actually available!  Should I go with that?! Is having an underscore at the beginning going to be super annoying?

sooooo I need help.  Suggestions?  Any of those not as horrible as I think they are? 

To the parents of the screaming child

Dear Parents of the screaming child,

I'm not saying your bad parents.  You're probably great parents, adequate at the very least.  Of course I have heard some seriously intense "conversations" coming from upstairs, but maybe that's just the tone of the language that you speak.  I don't know what language it is that you're speaking and maybe it's just gruff.  Perhaps you are saying "I love you" or "butterflies". 

So, children scream.  I get that.  I have two.  Screamers both.  Which I guess is the problem that I have with you.  Not that it's your fault.  Nope.  Not at all.  I have a problem.  It is not your fault.  You see, in the off chance that neither of my children are screaming, really the last thing I want to hear is your child.  Screaming.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that we'll be moving on soon.  A plethora of reasons, really.  Not the least of which is children screaming at 2 am.  Every night.  But in parting let me just say: Cherish these moments.  They grow up so fast.

Love,
Mom of the screaming children below.

PS  I'm sorry too.

Do not be fooled by my happy calm appearance.  Like so many things it is not
what is outside, but what is inside that counts.

30 Day Writing Challenge

Have you noticed that write has one T and written has two Ts?  And I always want to add an extra T to the word writing as well.  Spelling is not my strong suit.

Okay, so I usually have ideas pouring from my head so much so that I have blog posts scheduled three weeks in advance.  But I've noticed something.  Take time off writing and it's easy to lose that inspiration.  Just one week of vacation has me totally thrown! 

So I'm going to do the 30 day challenge that Julia did.  I'm not going to write every day, but I'm going to start this and when I feel like I got my groove back I'll kick it to the curb until I need it again.  :)

Today is 10 random things about your self!

1.  I hate the sound of ticking clocks.  Sometimes I forget this, and by a clock for my bedroom.  And then I have to hang it in another room.

2.  I have a yellow personality, which means chores around the house are really hard for me to do.  I have to find a way to make them fun, like a reward system.  Or listening to Michael. (if you have to ask which Michael, I don't know if we're friends)

3.  I'm looking for a townhouse.  It's very much like doing drugs.  The highest highs when you find something awesome, the lowest lows when you realize a) it's too much money b) they require 20% down c) it's in a bad part of town d) it doesn't have a garage or e) some other road block I have yet to come up against but probably will tomorrow.

4.  I can't write blog posts the night before.  I mean I CAN (I did this one) but I feel like they never turn out very good.

5.  I already said this, but spelling is not my strong suit. I really struggle with the word "definitely".  It took some time, but I managed to commit the spelling of "tomorrow" to memory.

6.  I don't mind my weight so much, but my shape is the issue.  I seem to have 20 extra pounds all in my belly.  I look cute for 3 months pregnant, but I'm not.

7.  Axel has made me scared to have another baby.  Just when I think things are finally looking up he likes to prove me wrong.  I don't know anyone more stubborn or strong willed than that kid.

8.  I really learned to love fall last year. 

9.  I often wonder what the fourth wall of the Cosby living room looks like.  And Monica's living room.

10.  I was going to write a post about missing school, since high school starts today, but I forgot when Axel screamed for 30 minutes. 

It will be this way forever

Leadvill Train in CO.  Worst family picture ever.  I should probably submit it to Awkward Family Photos.  Nothing to do with this post.

Something that has happened to me since becoming a mom (if I was like this before, I can't remember) is thinking that today is the way it will be forever.  But only the bad things.

Axel didn't sleep well last night?  It will be this way forever!

Olivia watched too much TV today?  I will be a bad mom forever!

Axel's naps were exactly opposite of Olivia's?  It will be this way forever!

Kids are a little clingy today (because they're sick)?  It will be this way forever!

I'm a little bit dramatic to say the least. 

A mom and a dad

Today is Father's Day (even though I probably wont post this any time soon[Yep!  It's now the middle of August! Ha!]) and naturally I'm thinking a lot about my dad.  My sister has been here this weekend and she is very close to my dad.  So am I.  I talked to my dad more often than most of my college roommates did with theirs. 

But at this point in my life I probably talk more to my mom.  I text her pictures of my kids, call her about questions and concerns and just call to fill my day.  And in my thoughts today I realized the importance of both my parents.

My mom is home during the day when I'm alone.  She may not totally remember how she took care of babies, but she's good at comforting me when I'm scared or concerned about something silly.

My dad and I shared a career in education.  Most of the things I wanted to talk about a lot of people would probably find boring.  Not my dad, he was always there to listen to when I needed to talk about problems with my students or my lesson plans. 

It's so nice to have backup (two's not enough, you need three at least--name the movie!)

The End of Summer

Our view from the train ride we took in Leadville.  I love the color of this house with the pretty purple and yellow flowers around it. 

This summer was hard for me.  Not hard like an actual trial.  Hard like waiting at a red light when you're on your way to get ice cream.

In May I got really excited for summer.  Until I realized, I don't work!  Adam isn't a teacher, he wasn't going to get time off.  Essentially, nothing was going to change.  The only thing different really was our trips.  I went to CA alone with my babies (meant to blog about it, never did, you're probably not sad about that) and then we went again in June and Adam came with.

I was so sad to leave our second CA trip.  It had been the perfect combination of work and play (I finally refinished my mom's second wing back chair, check it out here).  We went to a water park and my brother Rob came up from LA.  Just fun.

To help myself (and Olivia) feel better, we often talked about our upcoming trip to Breckenridge CO.  A final hurrah of summer.  We got home last night, and even though it was a rough week (Axel made sure of that) I still got that "vacation is over" let down.  

Yes, it's still warm.  Yes, we will still go to the pool several times a week.  But summer, as it existed for me, is over.  Even this morning, when Axel woke up at 6, the dark sky was telling me that summer is over.  Back to real life now and the next trip we are looking forward to is Thanksgiving or Christmas.  That's far away!!

Hmmmm. . . I've gotta come up with something sooner than that.  Maybe another trip to Logan this fall?

Wanna watch the Bachelorette with me? Finale!!!

Can you believe it's finally here?  Aubrey and I are about to post the final bachelorette post.  So get ready for the most dramatic blog post of the summer. (Chris Harrison told me I could say that even if I really meant "boring")

Des says she wants to go home, and Chris H. (for Host or Harrison, you decide!) says he understands, but gently reminds her that according to her contract she has to stay.  They cut that part out.

Chris says how much she chooses to share with the remaining two men is up to her.  Actually it's up to ABC.  Nice try though. (Hint: Tell them everything now so it's not a surprise later!)

Chris explains to the remaining men that "Brooks is not with us."  The men aren't sure if he left or if he died. 

I'm pretty sure I want to skip over the Bachelor Nation weighing in.  I read twitter, I don't think they can say anything I haven't heard.  Skip.

Des breaks up with Drew and. . . what else is there?  Does she run away with Chris?

Des is glad she didn't walk away and give up on love.  Leaving the show is "giving up on love"?   Someone should tell Des how everyone else falls in love.

Des: All of the poems?  No!  (I feel the same way, Des.)

Des's father asks "Why should Desiree choose you?"
Chris: Why?  Because I'm the only guy left. . . and I write horrible poems.

Des was unsure that she wanted her brother there.   But that was a requirement for her being signed as the Bachelorette so she allowed it.

Des might be "listening" to her brother's advice, but she really looks like she wants to punch him in the face.

Chris H. says: It could be the greatest day of her life or it could be the worst.
One thing I love about Chris H is that he's never extreme.

And as I watch the proposal, I have to say that despite this being an incredibly boring season it has wrapped up and ended in a way that I find sincere and moving.

They always do.

And for the final time, here's Aubrey and what she has to say!

Rocky Mountain Hi--igh! Colorado

Almost two years ago we took a little five-month-old on a road trip to Colorado for a family reunion in Breckenridge.  It was so fun, so beautiful there, and wouldn't you know?  We're going again!  We're leaving tomorrow, this time with a 2-year-old and a six-month-old.  And my sister Kellie, who will hopefully help with some of the back seat melt down issues.

On our last trip home from Breckenridge everything went wrong that could possibly go wrong.  I didn't have a blog then (just my interior design blog) so I wrote this on facebook.  Now I'm remembering this bizarre but really fun day. (I added a few notes to help everything make sense)

How do you turn a 7 1/2 hour drive into 14?

1. Get a speeding ticket.
2. Decide to stop and see the delicate arch in Moab. Meet up with Andrew, Martha and Blake [brother, sis-in-law and cousin] and do a short little mile hike to the view point.
3. Accidentally run into your grandma and grandpa at Arches, where they ask you to pick up your stranded cousins in Price UT.
4. Get stuck behind a truck fire on the freeway for 45 minutes. Get out of the car and hang out with your bro and other "neighbors"!
5. Get to Price on fumes (because there is a serious lack of gas stations on the 6!) and pick up Billy and Cait [stranded cousins]. Drop off the rental car [Billy and Cait's rental car] and meet up with Andrew and Martha and Blake at Main Street Grill.
6. Grandpa calls to see if everyone is alright. Then, since he's pulling into Price, he'll join you for dinner, with grandma, Ann and De [more aunts and cousins]. We call this family reunion take 2.
7. Say goodbye again! Take Billy and Cait home to Provo.
8. About 3 miles from the exit to your house, run into some seriously awful construction traffic. At 11:30 PM. Take 45 MORE minutes than usual to get home.
9. Put a crying baby to bed and then hope you get into your own bed before falling asleep!

So glad to be home! What a super fun/awful/exhausting day!!!

*     *     *

I hope none of these things happen to us again, not now that we've added two new babies (Martha and I both had babies this year) but I really look back on that day with fondness.  And it made for a great story!

And now, a few pictures from our stop at the delicate arch and the truck fire.

Thanks to the zoom feature on our camera.  We did not get this close.  Way too hot that day to hike with a baby.

Ever the spitter, Olivia always had a bib on.

This was a huge fire.

Seriously awful pants, but they were so comfy.