this is how it's been.

Nacho: Chancho. When you are a man, sometimes you wear stretchy pants in your room. It's for fun.
And sometimes, when you're a 36 pound 2 year old and your mama is 12 months pregnant*, she shouldn't be lifting you. No matter how many times you say, "Hold you" and look at her with those brown eyes. When I think back to this time in my life, I will try to remember how hormones + inability to lift your (giant) baby= lots and lots of tears. I will remember the night my mom offered to take them both when I was at the end of my rope, even knowing that she'd be up at 5 AM with the Mister. I'll remember the 2 hour nap that I took yesterday while the kids played with the Dada. I'll remember the recipe for herbal tea that saved my sanity and kicked weeks of insomnia. And I'll try to remember to be grateful when she's on the outside, no matter how hard it gets.

*12 months pregnant added for you, Katie.

merry christmas

As Evie is fond of saying, "Happy MerryChristmastime!"
Hope yours has been wonderful.

everyday grace.

Claire had a playdate the other day with her lifelong bff. Soon after,she brings me this. What's inside? Maybe a thank you note. I love that she stamped it and it was ready to go.
While tending to the Mister, I left the girls to watch Sid the Science Kid. I came back to find them sitting cuddled together just like this.
It was incredibly sweet,until Everett decided to dive bomb them.

i seem to recognize your face.

Sometimes she is unrecognizable. Angrily telling me that I'm not her mommy when she doesn't like something I say. Other times, she's the same girl she was covered in peanut butter not so long ago.Everett loves dance parties but tonight he didn't want her to dance. She looks at him in all seriousness and says, "You can't stop these dance moves, Ev." I'm pretty sure hearing that sentence come out of a four year old is the reason I had kids.

merry & bright.

Claire had her first big school program on Friday. For being 11 months pregnant, I only cried a moderate amount as she earnestly belted out the songs she'd been practicing since October. As I often feel with her, it is going too fast.

today in target.

We're walking past the bra section. Everett notices some of the "bullet bra" variety.

"HELMET!" He shouts. Over and over and over.

treehunting 2010.

Today, we got our tree. We went to the usual spot. Here's a shot with my girls:

And the dudes looking manly. I can tell you that at this moment, Everett's inner-monologue definitely included the words "big guy."

Somebody stole my saw.
Of course we should have let him carry that saw. He's 2 and he knows how to operate a grinder.