1. I got a lot of emails from all of you about my Newborn Woes and I just want to say thank you! Sometimes I write those kinds of posts in the heat of the moment and then when everything settles down and I have time to reflect I wonder if I've taken it too far. When I've read too many "everything is coming up roses" blog posts I see around the Internet I suddenly have the urge to puke. But I also don't want to turn into a Negative Nellie. Just a little twist of humor without sounding like a jerk is sometimes the ticket to get the right perspective on everything, don't ya think?
Basically what I'm saying is that we love our little Bobby with all we have and wouldn't trade him for the world. He's just a bit challenging right now.
2. Guess what?! We hired a babysitter! I'm so so SO excited about this. Up until this point we've used a couple of middle school girls who live in our neighborhood. They have all been fine but none of them has had quite the competency level I felt was required for looking after our brood of young 'ducks. Consequently, I've never left the kids for more than an hour or two for fear that the sitter wouldn't be able to handle much beyond that. But when Bobby came along I knew I needed someone who really knew what they were doing if Brian and I were ever going to be able to have a date again.
With some recommendations from other moms, I took to Care.com. It cost me $28 for a month's membership. What I loved about the site was being able to search by college. Since we live within six blocks of two universities, I knew it would be smart to hire someone who attended one of those schools. We picked a few girls that looked promising, sent out some emails and after an interview, found one we liked. She's been over to babysit for us twice and she's great! She's outgoing, playful, yet still firm with boundaries. The kids get so excited when she comes over and I'm never fearful of what I'm going to find when I get home. Yay!
3. Temps were brutally cold in our neck of the woods this week. That coupled with the fact that Brian has been busier at work prompted me to look into a grocery delivery service. Have you ever used one? I thought if I ever had a real excuse to pay a couple extra bucks just for the ease of it all, this was it.
I used Coborns Delivers and loved it! I ordered all my groceries on Wednesday night and by Thursday they were all in my pantry and frig. The delivery man even brought them into the kitchen for me. I was impressed by their quality of produce, sale items and user-friendly website. In all, I probably spent $10 more than I would if I got in my car and went to the store. This won't be a service that I will use regularly but $10 is totally something I'm willing to part with on this day and at this time when just making sure my pants aren't on backwards is a challenge.
4. As I mentioned, it was bitterly cold in Minnesota this week. Am I weird that I sometimes find it thrilling to see just how low the temperature can go? I love it when our weather makes the national news headlines. Maybe the rest of the country thinks we're crazy for calling this place home but I think it shows what a tough and hearty bunch we really are because, although we still talk about the weather ad nauseum (Cold enough for ya, eh?), our lives pretty much carry on as usual. It's also crazy to think that our temperatures will swing just as far in the opposite direction come summer meaning that if you lived here in any given year you would experience a temperature swing of more than 100 degrees.
William had ski practice on Wednesday night. At the time the air temp was six below zero with a windchill in the teens or twenties below zero. It was brutal. The instructors told the kids to do two runs and then go in. William uttered not a single word of complaint and when his two runs were finished, he asked to do a third. A Minnesota child he is indeed.
I know I'm late to the party on this one but if you haven't watched it yet, you MUST watch this clip Jimmy Kimmel put together on Los Angeles weather reporters. Hilarious!
Basically what I'm saying is that we love our little Bobby with all we have and wouldn't trade him for the world. He's just a bit challenging right now.
2. Guess what?! We hired a babysitter! I'm so so SO excited about this. Up until this point we've used a couple of middle school girls who live in our neighborhood. They have all been fine but none of them has had quite the competency level I felt was required for looking after our brood of young 'ducks. Consequently, I've never left the kids for more than an hour or two for fear that the sitter wouldn't be able to handle much beyond that. But when Bobby came along I knew I needed someone who really knew what they were doing if Brian and I were ever going to be able to have a date again.
With some recommendations from other moms, I took to Care.com. It cost me $28 for a month's membership. What I loved about the site was being able to search by college. Since we live within six blocks of two universities, I knew it would be smart to hire someone who attended one of those schools. We picked a few girls that looked promising, sent out some emails and after an interview, found one we liked. She's been over to babysit for us twice and she's great! She's outgoing, playful, yet still firm with boundaries. The kids get so excited when she comes over and I'm never fearful of what I'm going to find when I get home. Yay!
3. Temps were brutally cold in our neck of the woods this week. That coupled with the fact that Brian has been busier at work prompted me to look into a grocery delivery service. Have you ever used one? I thought if I ever had a real excuse to pay a couple extra bucks just for the ease of it all, this was it.
I used Coborns Delivers and loved it! I ordered all my groceries on Wednesday night and by Thursday they were all in my pantry and frig. The delivery man even brought them into the kitchen for me. I was impressed by their quality of produce, sale items and user-friendly website. In all, I probably spent $10 more than I would if I got in my car and went to the store. This won't be a service that I will use regularly but $10 is totally something I'm willing to part with on this day and at this time when just making sure my pants aren't on backwards is a challenge.
4. As I mentioned, it was bitterly cold in Minnesota this week. Am I weird that I sometimes find it thrilling to see just how low the temperature can go? I love it when our weather makes the national news headlines. Maybe the rest of the country thinks we're crazy for calling this place home but I think it shows what a tough and hearty bunch we really are because, although we still talk about the weather ad nauseum (Cold enough for ya, eh?), our lives pretty much carry on as usual. It's also crazy to think that our temperatures will swing just as far in the opposite direction come summer meaning that if you lived here in any given year you would experience a temperature swing of more than 100 degrees.
William had ski practice on Wednesday night. At the time the air temp was six below zero with a windchill in the teens or twenties below zero. It was brutal. The instructors told the kids to do two runs and then go in. William uttered not a single word of complaint and when his two runs were finished, he asked to do a third. A Minnesota child he is indeed.
I know I'm late to the party on this one but if you haven't watched it yet, you MUST watch this clip Jimmy Kimmel put together on Los Angeles weather reporters. Hilarious!
5. For the past two weeks I've taken to reading aloud a chapter book to the two older kids. At first I was only reading to William because I thought Lucy was too young to listen and comprehend but when I noticed she was just as mesmerized by the story, I started to make it part of their daily routine. We're currently reading "The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane" and I must say it is positively magical. I recommend!
As a bonus I've noticed that it's a great way to get the kids in their beds super fast because they can't wait to find out what's going to happen next. It also really calms them down and I have yet to hear a single peep come out of them after I've finished our three chapters and kiss them good night. Wins all around!
6. Who's watching Downton? Are you loving it? I thought Season 2 was a bit of a downer with all the war storylines but I'm really liking this season so far. I'm aspiring to be the Dowager (Maggie Smith) when I grow old. Heck, with all that wit, I want to be her now!
7. Finally, as some of you may have noticed, I need to update my blog header. I'm looking to hire someone who is proficient with Photoshop and graphic-y stuff to make me a new header design. Just the header, not the whole blog. No need to know anything about HTML or blogs in general. But I don't want actual photographs in my header so they would need to know about creating logos and such. If you know of anyone who fits the bill please let me know and we can talk about costs, etc.
As a bonus I've noticed that it's a great way to get the kids in their beds super fast because they can't wait to find out what's going to happen next. It also really calms them down and I have yet to hear a single peep come out of them after I've finished our three chapters and kiss them good night. Wins all around!
6. Who's watching Downton? Are you loving it? I thought Season 2 was a bit of a downer with all the war storylines but I'm really liking this season so far. I'm aspiring to be the Dowager (Maggie Smith) when I grow old. Heck, with all that wit, I want to be her now!
7. Finally, as some of you may have noticed, I need to update my blog header. I'm looking to hire someone who is proficient with Photoshop and graphic-y stuff to make me a new header design. Just the header, not the whole blog. No need to know anything about HTML or blogs in general. But I don't want actual photographs in my header so they would need to know about creating logos and such. If you know of anyone who fits the bill please let me know and we can talk about costs, etc.
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