Friday, May 10, 2013

Quick Takes - The "Making Up For Lost Time" Edition

I wish I had some amazing reason for being a crappy blogger like Dwija, but - no.  I don't.  But I've missed blog land so very very much and it feels wonnnnderful to be writing quick takes again!!  Here we go.


Before I begin, this post is rated P for Poop.  Proceed with caution.


1. We're moving.  I don't know where.  But we are.  Probably.

Our lease is up on May 31 and I've picked up on the very nice hints from the kind folks at the leasing office that 3 small children who cry and throw tantrums in the apartment right above said office should probably find a new place more conducive to triple tantrums.  Besides which, I'm not crazy enough to commit to another year in a shoebox with a family that might very well contain 4 small children by next May 31.  Not pregnant, but I'm just sayin...

Gonna miss these glorious windows.
The problem is I haven't yet tracked down a new place with 3+ rooms and a backyard that is in an acceptable location and within our budget.  That means we are going month by month until we find a new place, which of course comes with the risk that I'm going to get a call from the apartment manager following the next epic tantrum to inform me that our rent has suddenly been increased to $15,000/month.

So if ya got a lead for me in the Baldimore area, gimme a shout hon :)

2. I started cloth diapering, which I blame heavily on Rosie, and I kind of love it.  I never understood when people talked about cloth diapering laundry being "fun laundry" - laundry is not fun.  It usually makes me want to cry, like when I have to hand Stephen rolls of paper towels when he gets out of the shower because I used the last of the regular towels for an emergency bath for a child who defecated in their pants.  But I've got to admit, it's amazingly cathartic to throw a very well contained bag of poop rags into the washing machine at night and have a fresh dryer of prefolds ready for me in the morning.  It's totally true that it's different than regular laundry - no sorting, no folding.  Totally doable.

Prefolds and a flip cover, baby.

3. Speaking of Rosie and poop, I cranked our relationship up a few notches last week when I showed up on her doorstep asking for a new pair of pants.  Clarification - pants for my child, not for me.  We were on our way home from dropping my sister off at a civil war reenactment in Virginia and Clare decided it was a good time to unleash her backup fecal storage tank.  Thankfully, Cecilia's pants were a perfect fit and we were able to proceed with a lovely play date.  You absolutely must go check out her incredibly hilarious and completely accurate recap of it all, including the photo shoot of 4 children under age 4.

Our matchmaking efforts seem to be working nicely.

4. Let's see, other major accomplishments of last few weeks?  Made a semi-solo trip to NY with the kiddos.  My mom and Haley met me halfway in PA and Haley rode back with us to help out for the rest of the way home.  The trip went amazingly smoothly thanks to Haley, Ronald McDonald, and the entertainment package on our minivan.

Haley and Ronald, the winning road trip combo.

5. While we were in NY, we got to attend my great uncle's 100th birthday.  They had a table of old photos and some certificates which I assumed were just for fun...

Congratulations from Pope Francis!

...and Jimmy Carter...and George W. Bush...

...oh and the Queen of England.  Yawn.
Nope, they were all real.  Apparently being 100 comes with some pretty amazing perks.

6. Then we kidnapped Emily and kept her for a while until she went off to her reenactment.  I hadn't been to a reenactment since I was a kid and it was a much more sobering experience as an adult.  It was very, very cool to see everyone camping out in their authentic tents and dressed in period clothing though - especially since I could go home to my nice cozy tick-free bed.


True story, I thought CSA was for "community supported agriculture" but actually I dropped my sister off at the confederate registration table.
Aren't they cute??!

Check out Emily's post for a bunch of really amazing photos!

7. OneTab update:


Yep, definitely just enabling me.

I have a problem.



On that note, go see Jen for the quick takes of the non-procrasinators!

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Play - Theme Thursday

I was going to make a big bloggy comeback tomorrow with a "7 quick reasons I've been a pathetic blogger lately" post, but I saw this week's Theme Thursday is "play" and I couldn't resist - it's basically all we do around here.



Has anyone played this game before?  It's one of my childhood favorites and I was stoked to find it at a local toy store this week - for 30% off!  Wahoo!!  It's a kind of tricky game, but surprisingly Ava seems to grasp the concept.



I love this one because it's a great illustration of how just simply getting out to experience any little bit of the world is so good for kids.  I'm trying to remember the little errands we find so dull as adults can be adventures to children.  I was brave this week because my sister is in town visiting and I knew I'd have an extra pair of hands to help...we decided to go to a bookstore.  A real live grown up bookstore.  With lots of expensive books within reach of a 2 and 3 year old.  And we survived!  And the bookstore survived!  Guess what happened when we were home?


That's right, they changed out of their "street clothes" and put their princess pajamas back on!  But after that Ava set up her own little bookstore and went shopping with her Easter basket.  And Clare decided to hurl herself headfirst down our new-to-us indoor slide.


That's right, I said indoor slide.  Because that's what every 1000 square foot apartment with 5 human occupants + 2 pets needs.


Actually, it's Dr. Indoor Slide.


Go see Cari for more fun play pictures!