A Glimpse Into the Life of Willa

This is Willa at 14 months old.

Willa can now climb up onto furniture, so of course it is her favorite place to be. She has also managed to fall off of said furniture she can now climb up on. 

The car she is playing with has buttons that make noise. All the cars that make noise are her current favorites. She loves pressing the buttons over and over and has such an accomplished look on her face each time she does. 

Notice no bow in her hair. She rips them out as soon as I put them in these days. I even try to distract her for a minute after doing so, but she still generally rips them out right away. 

Notice the adorable onesie peeking out that is covered in strawberries. When I bought it, I imagined her wearing it when we went to pick strawberries somewhere. Now I wonder if we will ever leave the house again...slight exaggeration, but you get the point. 

Some of the things you can't see is Willa now walks everywhere. No more crawling for her. She also screams to communicate, which is...loud. The screams sound the same for happy and sad, good and bad, wanting something, etc. 

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a glimpse into the life of Callum

This is Callum standing in front of his preschool, showing off his show and tell item. 

It's a painting he did with his Grammy (Ian's mom). He's holding it upside down. 

When I was getting him out of the car, he kept hitting me with the painting. I told him to be careful or he could ruin it. He responded with, "I'll just make another one." If that doesn't sum up Callum's personality, I don't know what does. 

Callum calls those shoes he is wearing his "jumping shoes". It's what he has called them from the moment he saw them. 

That fleece he is wearing, we bought on our vacation to San Diego last summer. It was an amazing and relaxing vacation. 

Callum is the kid that keeps me both humbled and fully entertained every single day. He's a fun one to have around...especially now that he isn't as likely to run off from me in public. He'll run, but when I tell him to stop, will most likely stop, turn around and stick his tongue out at me. Like I said, he keeps me humble.

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Blueberry Picking

I love blueberry picking. It's something I find fun and I just love to take the kids. I had never even heard of blueberry picking before we moved back here seven years ago...maybe it's more recently become a thing? Who knows. Anyway, I knew I wanted to get out there this year, before the season had passed and before it was unbearably hot. 

We've had something going on every day of summer break so far and Friday was our first day free. I thought we would relax a bit. But the kids woke up and were at each other all morning. Just endless fighting and whining and I knew we needed to get out of the house. So, I loaded them up and took them blueberry picking.

The blueberry picking itself was quite successful. Now that I have two children that don't just sit there and eat all they pick! We managed to go home with just over four pounds. But the third child...well, he ate everything he picked and we had to guard the other buckets from him!

Right when we were getting back to the barn from picking blueberries, I looked like a bit of a circus act. Callum was trying to run away from me to the playground. I was pulling the wagon and trying to manage everyone else. Then I ran into someone I knew who offered to help. I kindly asked that she keep an eye on Callum at the playground while I go pay. Which, I must say, mom solidarity is just the best. We moms should always be willing to help each other out, yet so often don't. But back to the story. 

After I paid, we went out to the playground. The older two ran off and Callum was in the sand box, so I planted myself there. I was staring at the sandbox, but really in a daze, trying to decompress from the morning's events. I watched a kid repeatedly throw sand in another kid's face and it wasn't until the other parent intervened that I realized the sand throwing kid was MY KID. I was a bit mortified that I was literally staring at it happening, yet did nothing. Well, long story short, no matter what I tried, the sand throwing (literally directly in other kids faces) kept happening, so we left. 

But the blueberry picking itself, well that was great. And the blueberries are delicious. So, I'm chalking it up to a win. 

^^ These two lazy bums had me pull them in from the field. I'm pretty sure this is where the circus act started. I was pulling the wagon with one hand and holding on to Callum with the other, as he kept running away. 

Now to eat all those blueberries, which is never hard for us.

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The Kids Shared Room

Connor and Isla have shared a room for a little over a year and a half. In that time, I think I rearranged their room at least three times (that I can think of) to try to maximize the space. I had their beds parallel to each other, in an L shape and lastly across from each other, trying to give them each their own space. Someone had given us a bunkbed for Connor when we lived in our last house. He slept on the bottom bunk, but with kids wanting to play on the top bunk, there were a few head to ceiling fan incidences. So, when we moved, we ditched the bunkbed and just set the bottom bunk up as a single bed for Connor. I hadn't even considered bunkbeds again until I was at my favorite store, the Crate and Barrel outlet warehouse and saw a set there. And they were much shorter than our previous bunkbeds. And it was a full over twin. Something that I again hadn't ever thought of, which I now love. Anyway, I ended up getting them at 85% off, so went for it and haven't looked back. The bunkbeds have opened the kids room up so much. And the full size bed makes it so nice for reading together, of which I love to do with the kids. For a hot minute, we thought about moving Callum in as soon as we put in the bunkbeds, but we decided to hold off until we are fully sure he is done with a crib. But it is our ultimate plan for Connor and Callum to share a room. All the new decor I added to their room when I rearranged was actually from other places in our house...after all, "they" always say to shop your own house!

^^ One fun thing with the rearrange was making the kids a little reading nook. I also framed a piece of artwork each of them had done in school this year and hung it there.

^^ This poor Ikea dresser is on its last leg, literally. We have screwed it back together from the outside so many times and one of the drawers really doesn't work anymore. I'm looking for a new one for them, but have yet to find anything I like in my price range. 

^^ Connor's frankenstein on the left and Isla's bugs on the right.

^^ Yep, Isla has two baskets of stuffed animals. And they really can't be contained in just those! 

^^ I won these adorable Christmas ornaments in a contest a few years ago. In our last house they were hanging on the kids doors, now they are over their coat hooks.

It's been a couple months now that we've had the bunkbeds and I love them. I love that the kids can't see each other at night, so don't fight at bedtime about say someone looking at the other or something like that. Plus, Callum has yet to master the ladder yet, so there's that. When that day comes though...eek!!! The last thing I want to do is hang a little shelf on the wall inside/beside the kids beds so they can each have a couple books right there in their beds, instead of spread out all over their beds.

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A Children's Gift Guide So You Don't Just Have To Randomly Pick Something Off The Shelf At The Store

rain boots // playhouse // cash register // sleep suit

coffee maker // paper roll // book // bean bag // 

fidget cube // nightlight // dartboard // cleaning kit

I have learned over the years, I like things for my kids that are either useful or toys that can spur on imaginative play. Here is a list of things we either have and love or are wishing for. It covers a wide range of gift ideas for kids all the way up to age 10. These presents are all over the price spectrum, many of them very budget friendly. 

Books are always a good idea. Perhaps The Watermelon Seed board book or Little Dinos Don't Bite for the little one in your life. 

How To Train A Train or Diary of A Fly for the slightly older one. 

And Nancy Clancy, Captain Underpants or Diary of A Wimpy Kid for the older reader. 

In fact, Captain Underpants the movie will make the whole family laugh. 

So will classics like Home Alone and Ernest Goes to Camp. 

Wood toys are timeless.

This wood coffee maker is cool. 

What kid doesn't want to make their own candy?

This diy charm bracelet kit was a favorite of Isla's. 

This cash register is a huge hit in our home. 

Melissa & Doug dress up outfits are awesome too. 

This cleaning set is played with by my kids and their friends all the time. 

This astronaut helmet is a favorite in our home. 

What baby wouldn't look cute in this beanie?

And what mom wouldn't be happy if her kid was gifted a pair of hunter rain boots?

Playhouses, especially ones that easily come apart for storage, are always a good idea. 

As are outdoor ones.

How about a fun sleep suit for the little girl in your life?

Or a cool umbrella?

How about a magnetic dartboard for the older kid in your life?

And let us not forget fidget cubes. Those are all the rage right now.

Or even something for their room, like a cool nightlight.

Or perhaps a safe for their prized posessions. 

Or even a comfy bean bag chair. 

Craft items are always a win. This paper roll is cheap and cool. 

And these dot paints are fun. 

If you are going for something unique, a venus fly trap is sure to intrigue them.

And if all else fails, games are always a winner and the classics are still a big hit - monopoly, battleship and scrabble junior. 

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Busy, busy, busy

I remember a time, not so long ago, when I had two toddlers and I truly thought life was busy. And it was. There was the constant clean up of toys and food that was thrown. There was the endless book reading. And the laundry. So much laundry. Then there were the trips to the store for essentials, like diapers and wine ;) Walks to the park. Messes to be picked up and more. 

I remember in the thick of it all, a much more seasoned mom saying "You think you are busy now, just wait until they are in school!" After the feeling of wanting to throat punch her subsided, I am sure I made some sarcastic comment like, "at least you get to sleep through the night" and moved on.  Fast forward a few years and now I have two kids in school. All the sudden, I have had my ah-ha moment. Except, I was stupid. I decided to have a toddler AT THE SAME TIME as kids in school. Talk about really piling it on. 

Here's the thing about school. First there are all the drop offs and pick ups. Having one half day and one all day sure keeps life interesting. Then throw in all those minimum days just to throw you for a loop. Add on the "family projects"...seriously, how many family project togetherness activities do you want me to do teachers?!? Do you really think we are having a family bonding sesh around the table while working on the project? Nope. It usually involves me "helping" (i.e. trying to make sure the project doesn't get ruined by said child's genius project ideas) the person assigned the project while using a leg to keep away a toddler who is trying to grab at the project, all the while the other older child who isn't involved gives us their opinion about the project. Talk about bringing a family together! Then there's the normal day to day homework. And the reading logs. Let us not forget the reading logs. And let's throw in a few school activities to keep it fun. Sure I can bring something for the upcoming class party. And I would love to help with the Christmas craft. School feels like it consumes so much that the only time I really have to get anything done is while both kids are in school. 

That gives me exactly three hours each day to get stuff done. Now, I work an entire morning a week in the kids classrooms, so I only have four mornings to do all the things. Things like grocery shopping and appointment making. Cleaning the house and doing the laundry. And maybe I should try to see a friend every once in a while so I don't become a recluse! Let us not forget, all this happens with a toddler in tow.  

Don't you worry, I love this life of mine. I love these crazy kids of mine. I just never realized how all encompassing and life changing school is not just on a child, but on the whole family. 

And to think you wondered why I don't blog as often as I used to! 

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The Lowdown on Halloween

Instead of dragging out halloween into a million separate posts, I am going to bust it all out in one. But, let's be honest about something, the day's festivities for halloween are starting to rival christmas. It's kind of crazy in that matter. 

The kids elementary school is the only one left in our area that still does a halloween parade. So, all the parents come and all the kids parade around. Then the choir sings...I may or may not have ducked out at this point, given I had a toddler that wasn't super into just chilling in his stroller with me. Both kids also had halloween parties that morning at school as well. But given that younger siblings aren't allowed in the classroom, I skipped the parties. At school, Connor was a ninja and Isla was a witch, which she was all day long. And, surprisingly, both kids acknowledged me during their parade. This is a big deal for Connor! He usually ignores me at things like this. 

^^ Do you see that midair leap?!

In the evening, we did some early trick or treating in our neighborhood before handing out candy at our house. The boys wore matching astronaut costumes and Isla was still a witch. Our neighborhood gets super into halloween. We get hundreds and hundreds of trick or treaters. One street over is actually blocked off to traffic even. Many houses decorate like crazy...we had some spider webbing and a big spider, so we are legit too ;)

Callum wasn't super into the trick or treating. He just wanted to run around. He didn't even care about the candy. The other two, on the other hand, they really cared about the candy. They would literally rifle through people's candy bowls in search of the perfect piece of candy. Yep, we have "those" kids. There may have even been some fighting over a piece of candy right at someone's door one of the times...you know, just sharing in the spirit of honesty! 

Though the kids liked trick or treating, they really wanted to get home and pass out candy. Connor actually changed into a third costume to pass out candy, but I didn't get a picture because it was already dark out. But he wanted to look spooky and scare people. The kids were super hyped and pumped about passing out candy. It actually didn't last super long because they claimed one of their friend's won the jackpot and filled his candy basket with all our candy. They wanted more candy to pass out, but I decided to call it a night and let them still go to bed at the normal time. 

And just like that, halloween 2017 was over. 

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little moments not to be forgotten

// blowing dandelions //

// bath time //

// baseball //

// playing with stuff he shouldn't be //

// siblings //

// trike ride //

// good morning //

// box fun //

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Isla Said What?! {five}

I wish I did a better job keeping track of the things that my kids say, because they crack me up on a daily basis with what comes out of their mouths...even if half of it is inappropriate and may never be repeated! 


Mom, it looks like we may have a problem. Mom, now we officially have a problem!


I'm newin pooin. You know what that means mom? Almost everything I'm wearing is new.


I'm going to close my eyes. I don't want to see you guys slobbery kiss.


My hair's been a bit floppy today (i.e. keeps going in her face).


The leaves are dancing (i.e. blowing in the wind).


The boss of my mom is my dad.
When I heard her telling someone this, I was seriously like "Uh, WHAT?!"


Upon discovering Isla didn't flush the toilet:
I did that for you mom. Aren't you going to say thank you?


Mom you're so funny because you have a crazy brain. 
I'll just take that as a compliment! 

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little moments not to be forgotten

// peek-a-boo //

// aloe vera clippings from a neighbor //

// writing...imagining //

// bubble blowing //

// eating //

// discarded drawings //

// baseball practice //

// happy boy //

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