April 11 = Sleepy Day

I've been really bad with keeping up with my blog posts so I'm not sure why everyone was so tired today but all of my pictures from today were of sleeping or almost sleeping babies:

April 10 = Girls on the Yard Day

Recently, Zachary took over as the O-Rep for the Midshipmen Action Group (MAG).  Today, we went to one of their events- it's called Girls on the Yard.  I don't know a ton about it but I had heard of an organization "Girls on the Run" so I'm guessing it's an extension of that.  It was female led and all the participants were female- the midship(wo)men led groups of girls in lots of different activities- one of which was running up and down stairs which made me thankful to be chasing two kids around instead.  But it looked like most of them were having fun- the rest were wishing they were chasing around kids with me- but it seemed like a really cool event and something I'll keep in mind for when Ms. Malia gets a little older.

April 9 = Headphones Day

We got Liam some headphones a few weeks ago.  He had no interest in them.  One fun thing about kids is that they can be totally uninterested in something one day and then randomly, be fascinated with it.  That was the case today.  Of course he's always fascinated with Gigi.

Also, I have to share this:  

April 8 = Big Talker Day

I have two cute pictures of my two adorable children from today:

And I also have a huge milestone to share!  Liam used the most words together that he ever has before.  It was so exciting!  He came downstairs with socks and said "Socks on.  Feet is cold."  I was so excited and reacted accordingly- Liam was so confused as to why I was so excited about him wanting socks.

April 7 = EEG Day

We started today off by taking Liam to the CDC so Malia and I could go to Walter Reed for her EEG.  It's always hard to decide when to leave because traffic is so unpredictable- sometimes there's no traffic at all, sometimes it adds an hour to your trip.  But today it just so happened that we timed it perfectly!  In order to get all the stuff on her head, the EEG technician recommends swaddling.  I say recommends instead of recommended because I happen to know, from experience, that he suggests this every time.  My poor kids and their need for EEGs.  So she did a really great job through most of it.  It took about 20 minutes to get everything in place and for the the first 15 minutes, she was fine.  And then she wasn't.  She was screaming, "ALL DONE," over and over and over again.  All I could do was rub her arm and talk to her but it actually ended up working in our favor because it wore her out.  The perfect EEG happens when the patient is observed awake, sleeping and then wakes up naturally.  Because she was so mad, she eventually fell asleep.  Here's a picture of the little lady, all wrapped up.

And then I took a video- if I had gone a little to the left, you'd be able to see a sign that says "please do not take pictures during testing."  I'm such a rebel.

She woke up on her own and did a pretty good job getting everything removed.  We got chickfila on the way home- it's a tradition.  I called and asked the CDC to keep Liam for an extra hour so we could both get a nap- Malia's nap during the EEG was for twenty minutes- not sufficient.  She got her nap after her bath- all that stuff in her hair- it was tough to get out and she was so sleepy- she was not happy about the bath but we made it.  And then we both passed out.  We got Liam and had a pretty regular evening so I'll close with these two funny things I saw on facebook:

April 6 = Sleepy Wednesday

Based on the pictures I took today, it looks like we had another lazy day.  I guess Liam wasn't ready to get up this morning:

 The cats were not having any of it- sleeping in their beds behind the couch...

One thing I did do today that I'm super excited about was making these cards!  Ohhhhh now I remember why today was a lazy day.  Yesterday we started this program that I was super excited about it.  It's called Smart Start and it's through the Navy and it teaches kids to throw and kick and catch and run and all this awesome stuff.  Well last night I go with all the enthusiasm in the world and it was awful.  First of all- I thought that since this program is for 3-5 year olds that the person in charge would take the kids and teach them all these wonderful things but instead she gave everyone a ball and was like okay now throw it back and forth.  Well Liam was not interested.  So he was just running all over the place.  Poor Malia was sitting at a table in a chair she couldn't get out of, not playing with some little toys I brought saying "mommy?  mommy??"  So we lasted 30 minutes.  And I reminded myself for the millionth time I've got to get some authority over this older child of mine.  So today I spent a lot of time thinking about what I could do.  Disciplining children is no small task but for me it's got an added element of complication because I'm not always sure what Liam understands and what he doesn't.  I am fully aware that he understands more than I think he does but from the experience we've had I honestly don't think he understands the concept of consequences.  Well I think he's starting to.  So before, when I've put him in timeout, I would ask him two minutes later if he knew why he was in timeout and as I was asking the question, I knew he didn't know the answer.  But I think he's ready now.  So I made a yellow light, red light card and printed out a picture of his timeout timer.  So this is going to be the equivalent of the count to three method that his pediatrician sells.  We've talked a lot about what different lights mean when we're riding in the car.  If you ask him what red means, he'll say stop.  So I thought it was a good visual representation the 1-2-3 method.  We shall see.  But as I was making those I thought it'd be fun to make cards for stuff we do on a regular basis so I can show him a picture of what we're going to do and maybe he'll be a little more cooperative.  We'll see how that works too!  Here are the cards:

And here's a picture of Zachary covering up Liam as we were going to bed.  I think it's so sweet- every night when we head upstairs to go to bed, he checks on Liam and covers him up and makes sure Gigi is near his hands so he can easily find her if he wakes up in the middle of the night.

April 5 = Selfie Day

Today we started off with MOPS.  Today's meeting was called "Tea and Treasures."  We had a really nice breakfast on China that people brought in and then we listened to a lady's testimony.  It was beautiful and inspirational and a great morning!

MOPS is a little early for us so when we got home it was time for a quick lunch and a good nap.  Here's Malia trying to wake Liam up from his nap.

Then it was time to take some selfies.  

April 4 = Sad Sad Day

So my title's a little dramatic.  The day started off fine.  Here's Malia drinking half of the smoothie I finally brought myself to make.  For weeks I've been planning on making smoothies every morning because I don't always eat the most complete breakfast.  Well I finally made one and Malia consumed a good deal of it.  Which is great- lots of vitamins and minerals for her!

We talked a lot about the color green today.  My objective was for Liam to take the green letters out of our container of magnetic letters and say them before he put them on the whiteboard.  However Malia wanted to play along and added some extra colors to the board.

Malia has been so cranky lately and I suspected it was teething but she doesn't let us look in her mouth.  I wanted to know what was going on in there so I got Zachary to help me pin her down.  Her upper canines have broken through- valid excuse for the crankiness.

The reason the title of today's post is sad sad day is because tonight was the NCAA championship game with my Tar Heels favored to win.  They didn't.  And that's all I'm going to say about that because it's a tad bit embarrassing to admit just how upset I was.

April 3 = Lazy Day

Today is Sunday and Zachary has duty so that translates to me and the kids having a lazy day.  Here's Liam doing an excellent job of embracing the lazy day:

 Also this Facebook meme made me laugh out loud and is so very accurate.

April 2 = Facebook Picture Day

I've gotten really behind on my blogging so I'm writing this ten days after the fact and I have no pictures of what we did today- only screenshots of stuff I saw on facebook.  So I thought I'd share.

So true!  I wrote yesterday about moms putting so much pressure on themselves to be the perfect mom.  We have a picture in our head of what we should look like and what our house should look like and what our kids' days should look like.  And instead of celebrating what's in front of us we compare it to that picture.  So this is a reminder to let go of expectations and just enjoy what is.

I say so many times- the five minutes of peace I get to finish something is never ever worth it.  Whether the entire changing table has been cleaned off or a roll of toilet paper has been rolled out entirely... the quiet is never a good thing.

Joshua Radin is my favorite singer and recently, he put an invitation on his Facebook page for people to send him lyrics they would get as a tattoo and he would write them so you can get the tattoo in his handwriting.  I'm probably never going to get lyrics tattooed on my body but it's still cool to see what lyrics people submit and his response to them.  In case you can't read this one it says "Wait till tomorrow, see what that brings."

April 1 = New Backyard Day

First I saw this on facebook today and I loved it.  They're simple things that can help us be better moms.  At MOPS the other week, we talked about how it's hard for us to see ourselves as "good moms" and chances are, we all are.  If someone asked me, "Do you think you're a good mom?" the first thoughts that would come to my mind are all the things where I fall short.  The fact that I don't do my preschool routine every day.  The fact that I let my kids watch a little too much tv and play on the iPad too much.  The fact that we might eat chickfila too much.  Sometimes I forget to put their coats in the car.  Sometimes I let them go to bed without brushing their teeth.  Sometimes I sit in the locker room for an extra ten minutes to check my email and facebook and maybe play a game of Sudoku before going to pick up the kids from the gym's kids' club.  But in the grand scheme of things none of that matters.  He'll be in school soon enough... he doesn't need preschool every day.  I can't tell you how much he's learned from watching Caillou and it's hard to believe what all he can do on the ABC Mouse app.  Chicken nuggets and french fries once a week isn't going to kill anyone- in fact, both kids could use some extra calories.  Now the brushing teeth... I really want them to learn to take good care of their teeth.  I gotta work on that one.  The extra ten minutes in the kids' club- they need time with peers.  So why not concentrate on the tons of hugs and kisses I get and give every day?  The fact that they are kind and friendly to other people.  The love they have for each other.  The fact that they feel safe and loved and know when they're hurt or upset or frustrated they can come and sit on my lap and I'll rub their backs and kiss their foreheads and squeeze them until they start laughing and forget whatever made them come to me in the first place.  And I know I'm not the only one. This was a good reminder that it's the little things- things we probably don't even realize we're doing that make us all good moms.

 Speaking of using the iPad too much...

Anyway- what I wanted to talk about in this blog post is our new backyard.  Well it's not new but the "grass" is!  We put these outdoor carpets down today was our first day being able to play outside!

Liam's a fan... of the backyard and still a fan of his bow tie.  

March 31 = Say Goodbye Day

Alexandra's visit was so wonderful but she had to leave us today.  We headed to the gym again and then went to the commissary to pick up some things for lunch and we ate at the kids' favorite playground.  Here's our spread of deli meat, bread, cheese, strawberries and triscuits.  Yum!

March 30 = Kinder Farm Park Day

We started our day off at the gym.  I love doing that.  I love getting the kids up, getting them dressed, eating breakfast and then heading straight to the car to go to the gym.  By the time that's done we come home and it's time for lunch and a nap.  Everyone's usually happy and busy and it's just a good flow to the day.  I sent this picture to Zachary because while doing some lifting, I got a blister on my hand and I wanted him to see it so he'd think I was legit.  He was impressed.

 Then we headed to chickfila for lunch of course and then to Kinder Farm Park.  This was Malia on the way to the park... not ideal.

So in our hurry to get to the gym this morning, I forgot coats for the kids.  Thankfully I had an extra coat for Liam but I didn't have one for Malia so this is what happened with that:

After we got moving, there wasn't a need for coats or mommy's shirt so we were good to go.  This was our first time visiting- it's a little intimidating to take two kids to a park (or anywhere for that matter) by yourself because it's hard to keep up with one and much harder to keep up with two especially when they like to go in opposite directions.  So I thought Alexandra's visit presented the perfect opportunity for us to go!  Kinder Farm Park has walking trails and farm animals and a playground.  Here's the cow- it was huge!

As I said, it's hard to keep up with even one so I didn't get pictures of the pigs and piglets and the brand new baby goats that made the cutest little sounds!

After seeing the animals, we headed to the playground! I was so impressed with Liam climbing this wall!

And then he went across this rope bridge and I was blown away.  So proud!

Both kids went down a pretty long slide.  It was long but it was pretty hard to go down quickly so it was really safe.

 I mainly stuck with Liam while Alexandra took Malia.  Here they are on a dinosaur friend!

Toward the end of our visit, our friends Amy and Evie came- Liam greeted Evie with a hug:

 

All good things must come to an end.  Malia was not a happy camper on the ride home.

March 29 = CDC Day

My college roommate came to visit us last night!  She's here until Thursday and I couldn't be happier about it.  Today we went to the gym and then took the kids to the CDC so we could eat lunch and do some shopping sans kids.  We ate at the Breakfast Shoppe- so so good.  And then we went to Target and Home Depot and DSW and Old Navy.  It was so nice to be able to walk around leisurely!  Oh also.  At Home Depot... we went there to get some stuff for our backyard and as we pulled in we saw these two men running through the parking lot with chainsaws.  They jumped in a car and it sped off- like with a getaway driver.  We witnessed the theft of chainsaws from a Home Depot- it was insane.  And thankfully that was the most exciting part of the day.  Alexandra got this picture of the babies holding hands on the way out of the CDC- how sweet!

March 26 = Rugby Day

We started off today with Chickfila Breakfast- my favorite!  Later, we headed to the Naval Academy to show my parents Zachary's office- they've never seen it before!  Then he went to the Army/Navy rugby game.  Zachary got dressed without colors in mind and showed up wearing what looked like Army colors- oops.  Here's the whole crew:

And here's Malia in her Easter dress.  But it was cold so she's also in a coat and sweat pants.  Kind of takes away from how beautiful the dress is.

This is right before both kids were clearly ready to go:

So after about 30 minutes Zachary stayed behind to keep watching but the rest of us headed home for naps.  So I titled today Rugby day but a tiny portion of the day was spent at the match.  Later, we made buffalo wings and potato skins and watched Carolina advance to the next round of the NCAA tournament- great ending to a great day!

March 25 = Easter Egg Hunt Day

First, I want to share this because I've done this so many times.  I try not to use too many boxed foods but I can't break my family of their Mac & Cheese habit so...

Also, I have a goal of starting potty training today.  Being that I am writing this a week and a half after the fact, I can give you a spoiler- it doesn't work out.  But here's a cute picture of Liam in his underwear:

My parents came to Maryland this morning- they left early and got here around lunch time.  They were hoping to come one of the last two weekends when Zachary was gone but the first weekend, they had a Garth Brooks concert to go to- totally valid excuse.  And the second one, also valid, there was a death in the family and the funeral was that weekend.  So this Easter weekend it is!  Our first activity of the weekend was an Easter Egg hunt.  This isn't the most exciting video but I'll share it anyway because it features an iPad being dropped a full flight of stairs and Malia throwing an egg in Liam's basket.

March 24 = Quiet Waters Park Day

We had a fun day today! Here's Malia right after she woke up, still holding on to her blanket and her Minnie.

 After we got dressed and had breakfast, we headed to Quiet Waters Park.  I have no pictures because it took every bit of my concentration to keep an eye on two children who refused to play near each other.  I would have my eye on one, turn my head to find the other, look back and the first had moved.  We met with three other moms and their kids so I kept asking whoever was closest if they saw the one I was having a hard time locating.  When we left, I backed out of the spot and something sounded funny.  I backed up far enough and then put the van in drive and it still sounded funny.  So I got out and this is what I saw:

 I saw that it had ripped off and was worthless but didn't want to damage anything by taking it off myself.  I called Zachary but he was unavailable.  I called my dad and sent him this picture and he asked if I had any duct tape to tape it up so it wouldn't drag.  I didn't.  So I called our roadside assistance but the only thing they could do was tow us somewhere to fix it which with two hungry, tired kids in the car was not appealing at all.  I was about to figure out how to rip it off by any means necessary when a man, his daughter, and his dad pulled up.  They recommended taking it off instead of getting it towed where someone else would take it off and asked if they could do it for me which I gratefully accepted.

We went home, got naps, and then we were off to another play date!  We met my friend Anne and her three kids!  Little Thomas is a few months old now and I got to hold him which made my day.  Zachary met us there for the last little bit and then we headed home.  Zachary got a charcoal grill so after dinner, we took a trip to Ace Hardware to get some charcoal and other stuff he needed and stopped by a Dunkin Donuts/Baskin Robbins right after.  These kids love them some ice cream!