bye-bye summer

I was born to be a teacher. Literally. Two of my grandparents were teachers, my mom is a teacher, my aunt is a teacher, my other aunt is a teacher (speech pathologist like me, actually) and I grew up celebrating the end of one school year and preparing for the beginning of the next. I helped my mom get her room ready every year; putting up bulletin boards, taking out those thick, brightly colored textbooks. Reading books that I was supposed to be putting on her bookshelves, and taking some home to read later. Helping her write names on desks, chore lists, popsicle sticks. Walking through an empty school that smells like school, only cleaner. I loved every minute of it (and still do).

Something happens to me in the fall. It's like a new, fresh start as soon as the air gets a little cooler (and usually, here, it warms back up and cools off, then warms up, etc. until it starts snowing). I can start a new year with my old job and meet new kids and it is my most favorite time of year.

I love dreary days when I light my FAVORITE candle and put out my fall decorations and wait for leaves to turn colors. I love baking things made out of pumpkin and drinking apple cider. I love unpacking boxes of things I put away last year. I love going into my empty school, my empty classroom and starting all over, putting things away. I wouldn't change a thing about my job so that I get this fresh start every fall!

Don't get me wrong, we've had a WONDERFUL summer around here. I got the chance to lay around with my boys all day, play in the sandbox, swim in the pool (kiddie pool, people), read books, clean my house (really well during naps), soak up some hugs, break up some fights and just enjoy my kids. And now, I'm ready to go back to work.

I will miss hanging out with my kids all day, sleeping in until 7:00, sitting on the floor reading books until whenever, running to the store whenever, running to the park whenever, thinking about what I might make for supper and making treats for when the boys got up from their naps.

I will NOT miss the fighting, biting, and stealing of toys. Nor will I miss changing diapers. That is definitely not something I will ever miss :).

And now, when I work all day and come home to my boys, I truly enjoy my time with them. I will rarely have moments where I need to "get away" from them. We'll read books, and play for a condensed amount of time, but still have a lot of fun!

I'm good when I'm busy. That's something I've learned about myself. I love to relax, but I'm good when I'm busy, so bring on the school year!! I'm ready for it!

dj jazzy twins

I come from a fairly musical family. I think I may have instilled some of my musical talent in my kids - if I do say so myself.

Enjoy. :)

P.S. Ask me how much I hate "Livin la vida loca". I dare you.

and we're back!

Why is it that whenever I get home from a vacation, I am more exhausted than when I left??

It may have something to do with the fact that when my boys were gone last week, I rented movies and stayed up late, late, late (like 1:00am) watching them and counting on the fact that I would get to sleep in. I was up at 7:30, people!

Or maybe that when I went to Grandma's house on Wednesday, she had me non-stop racing around to pasta bar, visiting friends, Pizza Ranch buffet (at which, by the way, Luke preferred to eat green beans to pizza. Whose kid is that??), Grandpa's play on Friday night (yay for Paynesville Community Theatre), bonfires, swimming, tanning, chasing dogs, staying up WAY TOO LATE visiting with Adam's family, etc. Plus I read a couple of good books, the boys got to see Auntie Amy and Pete in their triathalon today, and I got to see a couple of old friends!

It was a good weekend. I should show you some pictures. Oh, but wait, my camera was upstairs in my bag all weekend and I didn't get any, hopefully Auntie Amy will send me a really cute one of Luke, sleeping in the swing. He fell asleep, drool dripping down the front of the swing (shaped like a car, so there's a place for drool to drip).

And now I feel fat from all the eating, drinking, laying around, snacks, and treats, so I'm gonna go workout. Jillian, here I come.

it's just so quiet here

I am temporarily childless this week. And, man it is quiet.
I've sent the boys to their grandparents' house (Adam's parents) so I can get our house painted - which would really be impossible if my 2 best helpers were here! I can picture them picking at tape and tramping gray paint all over the wood floors, so I am grateful for grandmas but I miss my little buggers! I'm headed to the lake tomorrow to play, go see some farm animals with the boys, swim, boat, see Grandpa in his annual community play, see Auntie Amy and Pete in a triathalon (which she tried to talk me into - ummm, no thanks!) and just have some fun (hopefully) in the sun!!
So far grandma had some cute stories of the boys. She took them to vacation bible school to listen to the singing and Andrew was smiling at everyone and introducing himself! He points to his chest with his thumb and says "An-oo", then he points to Luke with his thumb and says "An-oo" and smiles at the strangers. It's cute but we still don't say Luke around here yet...
Lucas was pointing at the pictures on Grandma's fridge and naming all the people (that kid LOVES looking at pictures, especially of himself!). He named "An-oo", "Dad", and "Mom" then blew my picture a kiss. Grandma said it was too cute. He does love his mommy!
They did their fair share of fighting over grandma's toys too. And I sure miss them around here.

a letter to my skinny jeans

Dear Skinny Jeans:
I met you in the Gap and you were ON CLEARANCE!! Therefore, I had no excuse NOT to buy you, duh. I did not dare to try you on in the store because I didn't have the right boots for you, so I brought you home and threw you on and wore you around my house.
I had visions of me looking like one of those emaciated gap models, wearing you out clubbing and to fancy restaurants (Ok, I haven't been "out clubbin'" ever, really with the exception of my bachelorette party 5 years ago and the fanciest place I get to these days is Buffalo Wild Wings). We'd strut around lookin all hot and stuff and people would think, "Wow. She looks really good. You can't even tell she's had two kids!" (again, my dream, people...)
And I do look REALLY good from the knees down:

And that is all anyone will ever get to see.

Summer photos

Over the 4th of July, our whole family got together, as we do every year, and my sister-in-law took some wonderful pictures of my kids having fun at the lake. (for the record, my brother married well as she is pretty much an awesome photographer and pretty nice too. She has a photography company if anyone is interested... let me know!)

Here are the boys and their cousin, Grant.

On "Papa's Vrroom"

(grandpa's tractor)

Luke LOVES the water!!

Andrew's getting better, but the lifejacket made him tip backwards!

Andrew playing

Luke in the paddleboat

Luke is obviously fine with water. Sheesh!

Andrew's trying to dunk his head in too

Andrew in the paddleboat

(they were on shore, not in the lake)

They are so cool.

Thanks, Morgan!!

what we say

There is a lot of talking goin' on around here.
Well, if you know me at all, you know that I'm probably the one doing most of the talking, but my boys are joining in.
No, really!
I should explain - they've been talking for a long time now it seems. They started talking around 1 year or so, saying the typical "mama, dada, puppy, uh-oh, ball" - you know, the usual. But this summer, man, they are talking. And I wish I had a video camera on them all day, because they are funny.
Mostly they talk about "poop", "oh goos" (gross), "uky" (yucky) and blame everything on "An-oo" (neither says "Luke" yet, should I be worried? They receptively identify Luke as Luke or Lucas, but don't say it. Hmmm. I spose I should work on that).
Today I had an entire conversation with Luke about the "beep beep" aka carbon monoxide detector that beeps really loud if you push the test button. It went like this:

Luke: Mama!!
Me: What Lukie?
L: Mama! Beep beep, NO beep, NO NO NO, nah-tee, touch, no beep, touch, no, nahtee.
Me: Yup, No beep. All gone.
L: AH -gah, no beep. Touch, nah-tee. No No, An-oo No Beep, nah-tee, touch, no.
M: Nope, Andrew won't touch it
L: Nah-tee, no beep, ah-ga, uh-oh, ah-gah, no beep.
M: Right, no beep.
L: Mama!
M: What?
L: Cookie?

Ah yes, a boy after my own heart. Cookies make all the worries go away.

Also, although Andrew didn't have such a long conversation with me today he did tell me "Mama. Pretty. Eyes" (I'm training them well, aren't I? :)

Then he proceeded to poke my eye and I'm now wearing my glasses because my eye is still red and burning. Thanks baby.