Insomnia

This is just a quick update, since I'm battling insomnia and don't want to spend too much time awake tonight (of course, it's already been an hour and I'm still up... don't ask).

We're all moved into the new place, or at least, mostly there! Still a few boxes in the garage to unpack, mostly books, and the basement room needs to be finished up and organized. That's right, we moved, again. The second move in about three months. No choice, really, as the original house was being foreclosed on and we decided it would be prudent to move out prior to actually being evicted by the bank - I like to have time to find a house, instead of feeling pressured. And it worked out for us - we found a nice three bedroom two bath house close to my job with a fenced in yard and a great landlord. It felt like home the first night we spent here, and that's a great feeling, when you feel like you're home even when you're surrounded by boxes and you can't find anything at all.

In other news, Quinn is one. Yes, ONE. He's trying to walk, jabbers constantly (a few words in there - yes, no, mumma, da-ee), and now has serious opinions about things. He's also discovering that he can make choices about things like food - he'll shake his head no if he doesn't like something (or doesn't want it, usually, because the kid eats almost anything you put in front of him!) I'm planning on taking pictures of him this weekend in our yard, weather permitting, and I'll get them posted as soon as possible.

Eamon is officially in a big boy bed. He's actually in a queen bed now - he's inherited Garry and my old bed. He absolutely loves it - sprawls all over and has it covered with toys and blankets and pillows and stuffed animals, with just enough clear space for him (he's usually under some of the stuff on the bed). We're back to working on potty training again, at his request. And his vocabulary seems to have exploded in the last couple of weeks. I'm not sure whether it's just because something is finally clicking for him, or if it's the reduction in our house's stress levels over the last couple of weeks, but it's truly amazing to see how far he's come in his language in the last six months or so. Of course, it could also have something to do with the fact that we haven't had cable in a month and he's watching less tv at home (movies only!). We got pretty lax with the tv there for a while, so maybe it's a good thing that we don't currently have cable. He gets to watch one movie a day usually, his choice. He's adjusting well to it, although when it's over and it's time for bed, he tends to be a little vocal in his desire to stay up later and watch another movie.

Garry and I are good. Muddling along, I suppose. He's still loving his job, even more so now that he's hired one of our good friends to work for him doing benefits and other HR type things, so some of his workload is slowly easing and his stress levels from work are coming back down again. I'm managing at my job, thinking about a change at times, because it's getting a little wearying spending my days listening to people do nothing more than complain about things that are completely out of my control and expecting me to fix things that can't be fixed because someone (namely, the customer!) doesn't want to take responsibility. Of course, this economy doesn't make for a great time to switch jobs. As someone I work with said yesterday, this is a pretty secure job, since even broke people are addicted to their cell phones. Amen to that! So at this point it's a matter of waiting to see what's out there and weighing the pros and cons of a job switch, especially since any job change will necessitate us likely pushing back our plans for baby number 3 until I'm eligible for maternity leave. We'll see what happens!

This turned out a little longer than planned. I'm going to try and get a little sleep before the alarm goes off and I'm being dragged out of bed. The good news is, I took the day off work today. The bad news is, I've got a ton of errands to run and laundry to catch up on!

Faith

You know, my faith in other people has just been severely shaken. I'm reminded forcibly tonight why I'm so much happier in my little introverted shell, because when I'm in my little shell, I don't get taken advantage of, or hurt by people.

I found out tonight that someone that I thought was a friend, and who I did everything I could to help out when she was having a rough time, truly isn't a friend. It's a funny thing, but when you decide to return a phone to someone because you don't want it, you might want to delete all the text messages on that phone that involve the person in question. At some point, it should cross your mind that what you've said in text might be read by someone other than the intended recipient. You also might want to think about that before you lie to that person's face, over and over again. You'd also think that you might be a little grateful for the fact that my husband is responsible for getting you the best paying job you've ever had in your life. I guess not, though.

I'm down tonight, in a bad way. This has been a rough evening. I'm looking forward to bed, and sleep, and getting up in the morning and not worrying about this crap. I know it will bother me for a while, and I have to see this supposed friend at least one more time this week, but after that, I'm putting it all behind me and I'm done with her. I'm just glad that my life can get back to normal again soon.

Oh, in other news, we're moving. Again. Not sure where to yet, but I'm tired of worrying about this house going into foreclosure and our goal is to be somewhere else by Quinn's birthday. We're considering sucking it up and moving into a little apartment for a year, just so we can maybe do a little traveling to see family, save up some money, and ultimately buy a house in a year or two.

After tomorrow I don't think we'll have internet for a while - since we're going to start packing up I think we'll drop some of the extra stuff so we don't need to worry about it and just start fresh in whatever new place we end up at. I'll still have internet on my phone, of course ;-) Perks of working for the man!

A few thoughts

It's been a long week. And a long weekend. I think I need a weekend from my weekend. Yep, that's the kind of week it's been.

Please pray for my friend's little boy. X has biliary atresia, a life-threatening liver disease, and is in the hospital now. He's just been listed for a liver transplant, and we're hoping that his father will be his match. This little boy is just a bit younger than Quinn, and has already been through so much in his life. I can't imagine going through what their family is dealing with, and all I can say is B, you're a stronger woman that I am, and I can only hope and pray that everything goes well with matching.

In other news, after spending the weekend battling with a seriously cranky, moody toddler, he reminded me why I love being a mother (and yes, I needed some reminding!) I went out for coffee with a friend, and left the boys with Garry. He put them to bed (he thought!) but when I got home I noticed that the light was on in their room. Went to turn it off, and found Eamon sitting quietly on his bed, reading a book and playing with some blocks (he's a multitasker like Mommy). As soon as he saw me, he smiled, moved everything out of the way, and laid down so I could tuck him in and give him his good night kiss. Apparently he was waiting up for me. I turned the light off, closed the door, and cried.

Moments like these, I know, are what make up for the days when I really just want to give him away, and are what I'll remember in ten years and cry about.

Moments like these are the reason I love being a mother.

Fall already???

It's amazing - suddenly, it's the beginning of September and I would swear it was October, because it's been distinctly fall-like weather here. Poor Eamon has almost no clothes to wear these days, because he's outgrown all his warm clothes with the exception with 4 pairs of pants, 3 sweatshirts, and 2 long sleeved shirts. Needless to say, in the next couple of weeks we'll be stocking up on warmer clothes for him. Quinn, luckily, has a full wardrobe of fall and winter clothes, thanks to big brother and friends' hand-me-downs.

I'll get pictures posted of the house sometime this week, weekend at the latest. It's going to depend on how much time I have, really - tomorrow night Garry has choir practice (have I mentioned that he joined a men's choir? Tomorrow is his first night of practice.) For the next several weeks, we'll be missing Daddy every Tuesday evening, and probably every Sunday evening. It's in preparation for the Christmas concert, which we will definitely be going to, probably with Uncle Eddie who isn't going to be performing for this concert. We're excited and looking forward to it.

It's late here, and I need to get to bed so I can be ready for work in the morning. I'll check back in soon - my goal is NOT to wait an entire month between updates. Oh, and to take lots and lots of pictures of the boys. Of course.

Eamon

As always, the water boy:



Working on my bike!



Power tools!


Yard work is fun (except for the pesky grass) - otherwise known as - what happens when an OCD toddler tries to help:



Sorry for the quality of the video - I had to edit it a little to get it to upload correctly!

Quinn

We have teeth! Actually, we have 5 teeth now, but he only shows off the bottom two usually.



My smiley guy - this is his usual expression:



Serious little man:



Can you tell he LOVES the swing?



And this video shows his absolute favorite activity in the world:

It's been a crazy summer!

So, yes, I haven't posted in forever, but I have an excuse. Really. I do.

Here's the short version: I changed shifts at work and now work evenings. Garry changed jobs and is working for a new company. And we moved across town, which has entailed a lot of sweat, frustration, and just general stress. There's my excuse for not writing at all in the last several weeks. Good excuse, no?

Now, for the short update on us.

Quinn is cruising, determined to walk as soon as he can. He has 4 teeth, 4 more on the way, and eats more than Eamon does at most meals.

Eamon is becoming so much more verbal and it's absolutely wonderful to see (and hear). His vocabulary has just exploded over the last few weeks and we're really enjoying being able to start communicating with him. He's starting to get the hang of what timeout means, and now actually stays put in the timeout corner as requested, which is resulting in far less tantrums, which means that Mommy and Daddy's stress levels are down considerably.

Garry is busy with the new job. He's loving every minute of it, although it takes up more of his time than previously. But he's happy with the company and what he's doing, and that's the most important thing for him.

And me? I'm here, looking forward to the end of August when I get to change my shift at work. I managed to get an awesome shift - Monday through Friday, 9-5:45. It was my second choice for hours, so I can't complain about it, and it will be nice to have my weekends back with my family.

I'll get pictures of the house and the kids posted soon, hopefully this weekend. And hopefully one day soon we'll have some family pictures to share, since I don't think we have a single picture of all four of us. Sad, no?

And...

Because I'm having technical difficulty today, here's a collage of several pictures from today (yes, including those already posted) - I will come back and add more later hopefully as I get them uploaded and edited and all that fun stuff...

New pictures

Today was beautiful, so we decided it would be a good idea to take some new pictures of the boys. Eamon was especially hyper, so most of these are of Quinn, although I did get a couple of good ones of Eamon.

Busy busy busy

I've completely slacked off yet again. My excuse? Two mobile kids and some gorgeous weather. Summer is here and the boys love being outside, so between work and being outside as much as possible to wear Eamon out, it's been a little difficult to find the time to get online and blog.

So, an update for now, followed by pics later today for sure.

The family news first - we are considering moving. Not just houses, but states. Garry has begun looking into the possibility of jobs on the East Coast, so that we're closer to my parents and sisters; both of us would like the boys to be able to spend as much time as possible with their grandparents and aunts, and that means moving closer. Garry's also beginning to burn out on his job, and is just ready for a change. 3+ years is the longest he's stayed in one position, and he's ready for a new challenge. We have some options, so we'll see what happens in the next month or so. While we absolutely love Wichita, I'm ready for a new place (the perpetual drifter in me!) and Garry is ready for a new job, which likely will entail moving elsewhere.

In other news, Eamon is TALKING! Yes, he is finally talking. Two months after having his tubes put in, he's started to really communicate well most of the time and we're slowly seeing a lessening of the tantrums from him now that he can actually express himself to us and we understand. It's a wonderful thing, most of the time, although hearing "mom! mom! mom!" a million times a day gets very, very old. I keep reminding myself that he's communicating and we're understanding, and that's the most important thing, no matter how annoying it gets sometimes.

The last two months have been a huge milestone time for us. Eamon is in a "big boy bed" - we had to convert his crib about a month ago as he'd figured out how to climb in and out at will, and open his bedroom door to wander around the house. Rather than risk a broken neck from falling while climbing, we turned his crib into a toddler bed and he's currently loving it. He's so proud of his big boy bed that anytime someone new comes over he insists on taking them to his room to show it off.

Eamon is also suddenly decided it's time to potty train. He tells us when his diaper needs changed (every time he pees or poops, pretty much!) and likes to sit on the big potty. We're taking it slow and letting him tell us when he needs (or wants!) to sit on the potty, and that seems to be working well for us right now. We've had several days where he's woken up dry from his naps, so we're slowly moving in the right direction, and the even better news is that since he's so grown up now, the bottle is coming very close to being eliminated from his life. He takes a cup to bed most nights now, and doesn't throw a fit about a bottle unless he's very, very tired. Thank God for small mercies - I'm ready to be done with bottles and the way it's looking now, it won't be too much longer before we can toss the entire lot.

And now for Quinn and his big milestones... He sits like a pro, is a crawling machine, and just this weekend learned to not only get himself into a sitting position, but also to pull up onto his knees. Yes, he's considering starting to walk, I think. I'm so not ready for this yet - I've just gotten used to the idea that he crawls! Well, army crawls, but that's because he chooses not to crawl on hands and knees. For some reason he likes being on his belly and can motor around amazingly fast. We're getting close to being done with baby food, since he's all about finger foods and I'm slowly starting to just give him our dinner chopped up, with caution because he STILL has no teeth! I still have a hard time looking at him and realizing that he's going to be 8 months old in less than a week. Where has the time gone???? I don't feel like I should have an 8 month old. Of course, I don't feel like I should have a 2 year old right now either. It's amazing how fast time flies. I looked at our daycare provider the other day and commented that in 4 months we'll be throwing Quinn his 1st birthday party, and she immediately responded with "he's not allowed to grow up!" Needless to say, there's nothing we can do to keep him from growing up, and he's doing it much, much faster than his big brother did. Makes me want another baby, but it's not in the cards right now. We've agreed to wait a couple of years before starting on #3. I suppose I'd better get on some kind of really good birth control if I want to avoid another oops baby.

Pictures to come, as soon as I've had a chance to sort through them a bit and pick out some good ones!