A Little Catch Up

these tacos have nothing to do with this post but i thought they looked so pretty

I live my life with a mild refractive error. Indeed it's slight so I can go day to day without glasses if they don't match my outfit, because in the end fashion always wins. So I wear them and I don't wear them, it just depends. And not really on fashion because me and The Good Lord both know that although I really do enjoy staying current, sometimes my budget gets away from me and I have to spend it on things like "food" and "savings". Instead of a new chunky cardigan like I really want. Geez. Life is boring. I think I really just need to go back to work to once again enjoy life in full fashion regalia. But then who would snuggle Jude for a half hour before his nap? (Are all first children always this well taken care of? I would like to think so.)

Back to my glasses though. Just as I haven't been blogging much this summer I also have not been wearing my glasses much either. I'm actually really looking forward to that monumental day when I put them back on and I'll be able to see foliage as it should be - one distinct leaf at a time instead of the greenish areas with points, as they are now. I've kind of been saving up for this great day of refractive correction. Maybe when the leaves really start to change? ... or when I have to find a new address in the dark. The anticipation is mounting! I know, it's the little things that keep life so exciting. 

he is also loving playgrounds and getting pretty good at them

In other news, Jude is pretty adorable these days and a lot of fun. He can say a few words but they are the kind that only a parent can decipher but they insist on counting them. His vocabulary consists of sounds that are suppose to mean: sure, please, thank you, more, baby, binky, Jacob (bff), uh-oh, cheese, cereal, banana, blueberry, water, plane, truck, car, balloon, ball, bus, bike, bubbles, woof, meow, squirrel (sometimes we can't even understand that one ;) ) eye, nose, mouth... and maybe a few more I'm forgetting. He loves to take books over to his little chair, have a good sit and read to himself. And also, so began the Cars craze in this house, closely followed by the Cars merchandise craze. I never thought this would happen to us but I don't even care. Jude loves it. He is also a trotter. On our walks he is at a constant trot so it's good, we all get a little bit more exercise. And on these walks he insists on making his rounds to the nearby construction site. The digger and the crane must be visited. Music has also started to move this boy- he gets the cuttest little wiggle on with the right tune and the right company (like his bff Jacob). 

And then Dan. Oh he always keeps me laughing. Why just this morning he asked if his outfit was good but then realized that instead of the navy shorts he thought he was wearing, he actually had plaid shorts on ... with a plaid top. They did not match. It was hilarious. We both laughed so hard and then I took a picture he won't let me post.

Friday

at the park this morning sitting on the bench, as he does

Hello, hello! What's this, two posts in ONE week. I must be taking crazy pills. I thought I would take a few paragraphs or so to ramble on about mostly nothing. And first on that list will be East Coast living. It is kind of a pain in the you know what. Living on the East Coast while having lots of West Coast connections is like being elderly before your time. I feel like all my West Coast people are continually sleeping in and staying up late and it just isn't fair. And it's boring. And I get a lot of calls at about, um, midnight from sisters and well wishers. I am a geriatric in bed already so they go to voice mail, but also my voicemail isn't working right now so don't leave one, fyi. Totally boring. I will always be jealous of my West Coast people. Party animals.

Today Jude and I had a delightful morning at Theater In The Woods. It was so cute! We were a little late to the play but still had a marvelous time. Jude was surprisingly attentive. The only thing that seemed to pull him this way or that was the sound of planes overhead. That kid, he lives for planes. He now points at them and then waves 'bye-bye'. He especially liked the clapping parts of the play because if there is anything Jude can do well, it is clapping. We will for sure go back. Such a nice morning! 

Then to kill some time before his nap while spending the least amount of $$ as possible we stopped in at the GoodWill. One of my favorite places. He always wants to play on The Island of Misfit Toys though. That's what we like to call the thrift store toy area. It's kind of gross but if I don't have him in a cart I can't stop him. This point has been reached! Life will never be the same. So he plays with the misfit toys now and looooves it. Then I bathe him in Purelle to keep the Hepatitis at bay.  So gross.

I almost bought him this little car but then my more sensible side stepped in and stopped me. Because where the eff am I gonna put that thing? Without a backyard that thing would be so annoying to haul around all the time. And it does have Hepatitis on it so I obviously don't want it in my house all the live long day either. He sure is making a cute face though. Awe, maybe I should have got it for him? He does have his shots, after all.

Anyway, have a wonderful weekend and I wish I was right there with you, you party animals. 

Dances With Wolves

Not last Friday but the Friday before Dan and I had somewhat of a disagreement. Well, one thing was said and then another and by the end of it there were some hurt feelings. Ooops. My mouth just gets away from me sometimes. And you know how it is when your feelings are hurt. Depending on how deep sometimes it can take a little while longer to bounce back to your normal self and your normal communication. I had said my sorry's and I meant them and Dan was simply dragging his feet in the 'I love Patience' department. Finally on Saturday night I just had to say it. Just like Chief Ten Bears I had to tell Dan that his mourning period was over. Stands With A Fist was done being sad! Since then if one of us doesn't get their way or whatever it is, the other will chirp in 'you're done mourning!'. Makes us laugh every time. And then unrelated but some what related is the fact that my hair is pretty much a doppelganger for the hair of Stands With A Fist. See, I've been doing this air dry thing and I have some natural wave going on. I find it a little unmanageable on the first day but by the second day it seems to calm down a bit and the resemblance lessens, thank the powers that be.

The Weekend

Thanks Auntie Eve for Jude's dapper tie, so cute it almost killed us!! She got it here. 

Hey, ho, let's go, yo. I don't know why I write like that just there. Sometimes I feel cooler than I actually was am. So yeah, Mothers Day round up. It was lots of fun and a lot better than last year. Last year Jude screamed the whole bloody day and I remember telling Dan that it was one of the worst days ever. I can be so dramatic sometimes, but if you were there you would have felt the same way. I remember being super sad I didn't get to go to church. I was so sad because I love getting actual physical things back from church since we pay so much tithing. I mean, I know I get to use the facilities and there is that crumb of bread I get every week, but I still have this consuming desire to actually put my hands all over something that was bought with my sacred funds that is mine. Is that weird? I like a physical manifestation of my commandment keeping. A return on my investment, if you will. Whether it be a darn potted flower or fancy truffles, I want it. I want them all. I bought them! Put it in my hands! I guess maybe I could go visit that mall my church built- perhaps it would satisfy that need as well? (eye roll)

This year was better though. I got the potted flower and gave it to my LGBT neighbors to plant in their flower bed as we don't have one, Jude didn't scream once, meals were made for me (and cleaned up!), we got to visit with some great friends from Calgary, and I got an item from my Amazon Wish List so basically a win-win. I already waxed poetic about the blessings my holy uterus has brought unto me so please see posts below about being a Mother. That one was for Betina, wink wink.

That's it, just a quick Tuesday night post to let you all know we had a rather nice Sunday and tomorrow I'll announce the winner of the baby moccs. I'm thinking everyones names will go in a hat and Jude can pick the winner... till then, xoxo!!

Spring Lovin'

The last picture I took on our most awesome weekend ever. Spring is in the air people and we are loving it. When on the East Coast it is very important to soak up as much mild spring weather as possible before the humidity kicks in. Humidity is no joke. Can I get an amen?! Therefore this week will consist of picnic dinners in the park (come join us!), and being outside all day, and parks, and walks. That humidity will probably kick in next week (boo) so we'll live it up while we can.

Spring always reminds me of Bambi. All the baby animals and all the twitterpated-ness. Ahhhh! I mean, I love my husband- we are 5 years and counting, we keep things fresh... but that new love, it only happens once. To be twitterpated! That first little while when you can't wait to see him, you want to be with him all the live long day, you can't wait for his touch because it feels like electricity. For this reason I've been suggesting to Dan that we break up so we can do that first bit all over again. Just today he didn't put something back where it belonged and I said that's it, we are breaking up and you can sleep in the car! It's all kind of exciting because I could be starting a new spring relationship tomorrow complete with twitterpation- anyone wanna babysit Jude, if you know what I mean :)?

Mutually Assured Destruction

This past Christmas Dan and I filled each others stockings with a few fun doo-dahs and then we thought it would be so sweet to add some coupons. I don't remember who suggested the idea, but I was on board, mostly to see what coupons Dan would be willing to offer. He got all fancy on me and used colored paper and markers and tape and all I did was write them down in a card. That's not the point though. The point is, is these coupons are awesome. We each offered up a few redeemable things that we typically don't do for the other person. Among my offerings was the watching of an old movie from start to finish with no media (iPhone, computer... may the Good Lord help me) and 3 sleep-ins (I would take our little Rooster to play while Dan sleeps because Dan always does this for me on the weekends, bless his heart).

Those damn coupons. We keep threatening each other to redeem them. I don't know what we were thinking when we wrote them out- surely The Christmas Spirit had blinded us from knowing our true capabilities. Dan keeps bringing up his Sleep-Ins. Then I'll narrow my eyes and tell him I'm going to cash in my Dan Flosses Every Night coupon and then silence. Just a little bit of a Cold War situation going on over here, you know, nothing too serious. The only thing protecting my sleep-in weekends is the fact that Dan's large fingers are very hard to put in his mouth. I am thankful for these things. After the giving and exchanging of our coupons, I thought 'awe, lets do this every Christmas'. I was so naive. These coupons give each of us the power to inflict catastrophic damage on the other and this power is too great! It's too much! If I've learned anything from this experience, it is don't ever ever do Christmas coupons. May you be wiser than we.

Having nothing to do with coupons, I have to now tell you all about a most delicious recipe. Click here friends. We had these for dinner last night and they were so good... so good that I have to share. Definitely going into our rotation. Everything I make with fresh ginger I love. I always mean to use it more. Do you have any amazing fresh ginger recipes?

And then a reminder of how handsome my shaggy headed boys are.

So handsome, right?