I only have 5 minutes

Uncategorized / November 15, 2009

OTW – full of fun

Friday night was summersault practice in the living room. They are one of Nolan’s favorite things to do and little brother Lincoln (who loves to do everything his big brother does) is getting close to figuring it out too. Check it out the form the kids have! This clip makes me laugh every time I watch it!

Saturday was a busy day. We had a little visitor in the morning; she came to play for a few hours before we headed to an Eagle Scout ceremony for a young man we know from church. After a celebratory lunch (with cake,) Nolan and I headed downtown. A friend of mine invited us to join her, her son and another friend & her two daughters at a Baby Loves Disco pj birthday party complete with lots of music, bubbles, fresh fruit treats, juice boxes and of course birthday cake. It was a fun afternoon with my favorite 3 ½ year old. We came home and had pizza & chocolate cake (Nolan & I ended up having 3 pieces throughout the day 🙂 I consider it a tasty way to practice again for my upcoming birthday – I’ll gladly take one (or three) for the team.

Nolan wanted to wear a tie to church this morning. Lincoln of course wanted to wear one too. We put one on him for the 7 minute drive to church, but I took it off when he went to the nursery, just to be safe, since it clips around his little neck. When we got home, he insisted on wearing Jake’s tie and posing for a picture with Nolan. Then he attempted to share a hug or a take-down. From the picture Jake took, it looks like it could have gone either way.

Uncategorized / November 12, 2009

Makin’ Manicotti

Last week when I went grocery shopping, I actually went with a plan in mind. The list I brought only contained items that I needed for the meals I was planning on preparing. What a unique concept! I know this should come as no surprise, but it was really nice to cook with a menu already laid out. Now I just need to keep myself motivated and plan out my next set of meals. Cooking, I don’t mind. It’s figuring out what I want to prepare that I really loathe.

Tonight’s main course was manicotti. I’ve never prepared it before, but Betty Crocker made it sound easy enough for me to figure out. While the boys were napping, I put together the sauce and filling. Then, when the sleeping mini-men awoke, I put them to work. Actually, asking them to stand on the booster chairs and help me cook doesn’t take much arm twisting. I armed them with spoons and had them help me fill the manicotti shells. Nolan stayed on task pretty well. Lincoln lost interest quite quickly once he realized how tasty the filling was – I didn’t really try to stop him. I figure if he wanted to enjoy the spinach & cottage cheese mix, that was fine with me. The meal was a success – both boys cleared their plates and we now have leftovers. I love leftovers.

Uncategorized / November 11, 2009

Typical Wednesday night stuff

When Lincoln was born, my Aunt Alice & Uncle Jerry sent a package containing a soft brown bear that sings Barry White’s “You’re The First, The Last, My Everything.”

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Nolan has loved it since day one, (here he is right after he opened the box with the bear inside)

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and Lincoln has enjoyed dancing along to the music ever since he figured out how to press the button on the bear’s arm to start the song.

The boys have pushed the red button so many times, I now have brain cells that are permanently dedicated to keeping the lyrics in my head, ready for me to sing along when I hear it start. Tonight I was given many chances to sing karaoke with the bear. It was actually very fun watching Lincoln get so excited about the music, even if it was Barry White.

Before I headed out for the evening (Wednesday night is my volleyball night,) Nolan had me put on a “cape” and we ran around the house. The boys and dogs all chased me. It was crazy! The boys were laughing and shouting with excitement and the dogs were both barking loudly. Just one more example of the nutty stuff that goes on within the Sheck house on a regular basis. I said to Jake tonight that our kids will never be able to say their mom was afraid to act silly – and then publish it for the world to see 🙂

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Uncategorized / November 10, 2009

Silly faces

I picked up a game at a church kid/toy sale that we store under the love seat in the living room. I’m not sure why it ended up there, but it’s convenient – the kids can get to it, but the dogs can’t. (The dogs like to eat cardboard & game pieces just about as much as they like to eat books.) We never play by the rules, but have fun putting together silly faces.

Uncategorized / November 9, 2009

Just a normal day

After having a weekend that was less than normal (my mom spent some time in the hospital unexpectedly) it was nice to have a day that was just “normal.” The boys got up and had a normal morning, ate normal breakfast – oatmeal with raisins & cinnamon, and made their normal request for part of my English muffin. They made their way to the garage to get into the suburban in their normal fashion and we arrived at preschool at our normal (almost on time) time. Lincoln and I went to the gym – he played in the child care center while I had a normal workout. After I finished, we took a break from our normal routine and stopped for a smoothie at the gym’s cafe. We picked Nolan up at his normal dismissal time, had a normal lunch and later took much needed, getting-to-be-more-normal nap. (Since Nolan has started school, I’ve found that he’s much more willing (and able) to take a decent nap in the afternoon. This is A-OK with me, because I occasionally get to nap as well.) Afternap time, we had a normal evening complete with dinner & playing in the porch.

I went to see my parents this evening to check in on my mom and deliver a squash & apple dish I made tonight. My mom is doing much better, which enables me to breathe a sigh of relief. (She is able to do so too, (literally) which is a huge improvement compared to over the weekend.) Today was just a normal day, and I’m thankful for that.

Uncategorized / November 6, 2009

Fall clean-up take two

We started round 2 of leaf cleanup this afternoon. I took the boys outside and they pushed leaves around while I blew them into a pile before loading them into the yard waste bin. In order to fit them all in, they needed to be compacted. I stomped them down first and then Nolan wanted his turn. He was pretty excited to give it a try. (Oh, and it’s dark, but it was only 5:30 when this was taken.)

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Two QOTD from Nolan:

As I was getting dinner ready tonight, the boys were eating bananas and peanut butter. Nolan calls to me and says “Mommy, I think you should take a picture of me licking this.”

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Then as we were finishing dinner (or trying to,) I said, “Nolan, you need to eat your dinner.” His response, “It’s not dinner, it’s pizza.” Jake and I just chuckled to one another 🙂

Uncategorized / November 5, 2009

Tears and laughter

Sometimes I just need a good cry. I’m not sure what triggered it tonight, but there was no stopping it. Maybe it’s lack of good sleep, or that I’m frustrated my house isn’t organized, or that the laundry pile never seems to get any smaller, or that I just don’t have any more to give today. Maybe it’s none of those things and I just needed a good cleansing of my tear ducts. Whatever it is, it got me thinking. I believe that shedding tears is good for the soul. I think letting go of what builds up inside you through those tiny drops can help give you a fresh perspective – not that they necessarily solve any problem specifically, but they often lead to a clearer understanding of what you need to do or where you need to be. Tonight, I think my tears have helped me realize just how much I need my sleep. I know it’s not earth-shattering, but I have been ignoring that need for most of the week. So at least for tonight, I’m going to be responsible and go to bed early. (Or at least earlier than usual.) Good night!

Just a little footnote. I actually started drafting this post in my head while locked in the bathroom letting my tears fall freely. I had to stop crying because I started laughing. As I tried to find a clean piece of paper to write down my thoughts, I quickly discovered that Nolan had filled 2/3 of the notepad on the counter with his drawings. I knew he used it to draw, but had no idea how extensive his artwork collection had become. My boys…they can make me smile even when they’re sleeping.

Uncategorized / November 4, 2009

To nap or not to nap

We are going through a bit of a rough patch with Lincoln lately. His naps have been atrocious, almost non-existent. He’ll fall asleep for 45 minutes or an hour and then wake up screaming. Any attempt to put him back to sleep is futile. He wants nothing to do with my consoling and only wants to get out of his crib. But being since I’ve got a few years on him, I know better. And based on his previous napping track record, (the kid used to nap for 2-3 hours without waking) I also know he needs a nap longer than an hour. Today, I pulled the “auntie card.” I laid him down and asked if he wanted to see Auntie Larissa tonight. He nodded yes and stopped crying. (This was an amazing response. I would have asked him earlier had I known how it would quiet him.) I then proceeded to tell him that if he wanted to see her for dinner tonight, he needed to calm down and take a nap. He nodded again in agreement and I stepped away from the crib and left the room. No tears, no screaming, just silence. I thought for sure he’d pick back up again once I shut his door, but no, all was quiet. Amazing! I’ll have to try this little trick again – a little incentive to nap can’t hurt, right? Who knows, I may just be on to something.

Uncategorized / November 3, 2009

When Dad’s away…

the goofies will play. Jake had a dinner outing for work tonight, so the boys and I spent the entire day together. The closer we got to bedtime, the sillier things got. I think everyone was a little over tired.

Nolan has been asking me about my swim goggles lately. I don’t know who told him I owned a pair, but I guess that’s not really very important. As a “reward” for finishing his dinner tonight, I pulled them out and let him try them on. Not to be outdone, Lincoln also had to have a turn. He didn’t want them anywhere near his face. Apparently he thought they made a better necklace. Next up, the two of them decided the laundry basket that I just emptied would make a good boat. Initially, Lincoln sat in it while Nolan pulled him around their room and then dumped him backwards. They both thought it was hilarious. Then they climbed in together (emphasis on climb, for Lincoln) and laughed some more. I think we had a double case of the sillys tonight. I’ll gladly take those ANY night over the whinys, sobbys or the tantrumys.

Uncategorized / November 2, 2009

OTW – Halloween

Halloween was a blast this year! The boys were both pretty excited about it going into the big day. In the end, we actually had to cut Lincoln off. I think he would have tried another block’s worth of houses if we had let him. The kid has the candy grab down pat – thanks for the practice, Uncle Tony! Good thing most houses put the candy into his bucket instead. Here’s a rundown of the day, in pictures.

We visited Nana & Papa’s house in the morning. Since Nana recently had shoulder surgery, it was easier to go to her.

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The next doorbell we rang was Uncle Tony’s. He put on his Halloween costume too – he was The Karate Kid this year.

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Later in the day we carved our lone pumpkin. This baby came straight from our garden. It’s the only thing (aside from the celery) that did well this summer. I think it sucked the life out of every other pumpkin that attempted to grow on the same vine.

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