Welcome to the Suburbs Storm Style

We had seen on the weather reports that like every other day this spring we were in for rain this week. I didn't think much of it except to make a snarky comment to Glenn about our old house needing an arc if it was going to rain as much as they said it was.  But our new house is high on the street, has a sump up and a back-up and to this point has not given us reason to worry about a little rain. Little was not the right word. 

It started raining on Wednesday… most of the day on and off.  It was a tranquil steady rain that made you want to curl up with a hot drink and a book and watch it come down.  By dinner time it was really raining. We slept through the storm on Wednesday night with the exception of the thunder and lightning that woke me up but not anyone else in our house.  I got in the shower on Thursday morning and thought nothing of the rain the night before. I only kept thinking how wet I was going to get taking Brady in to preschool.  

My phone started buzzing at 6:15 with my mom asking if we could talk. Still not thinking anything I called her to hear that my brother’s house was flooded in Elmhurst, my brother was in D.C. and my dad was on his way from Bloomington to help my sister in law. At that point, I looked at Glenn with panic in my voice and told him to check the basement. He did and there was a SMALL puddle seeping in.

Brady and I left to go to school and then I saw this.

I put the car in reverse knowing Glenn’s car would not make it through the water. We shuttled our nanny and her son through the water in our SUV and then the three of us set off for preschool, school and work. It took us a long time, lots of rerouting and what we saw brought tears to my eyes. Homes submerged that looked they were floating. And on top of it all the rain was not stopping.

After getting to school, it was decided a few minutes later to cancel.  The daycare was closing. Glenn left work, we picked up Brady and headed home. To find this.

The only route to and from our house was a kayak. 

I learned today that my street and neighbors are amazing, even the ones that have lost everything.

So thank you suburbs and mother nature. For teaching me a couple of lessons- that my neighbors are fighters and my friends and that my sump pump is the new love of my husband's life. 

And even after a storm, beauty shows up. Hello pretty deer looking for dry land. And oh, snowflakes you can go away anytime. 

Happy Weekend Friends.

Friday Already

Happy Friday friends! For some reasons the weeks just keep going by and before I know it summer is going to be here and life is going to be totally different. If we could just Mother Nature the memo that it is supposed to be spring not winter I think I could start smelling the BBQ grill, see the breeze ripple papers on our island with the windows open and see my kids running thru the yard as the sun starts its slow descent for the night. Here are some of the million thoughts racing in my head as the week ends.

~I am questioning what is up with Cate right now. She is fussy. Really fussy. She is 19 months old. She shouldn’t be right? Why? Why does she cry all of the time? Why does she want to be held all of the time? Why are simple things like brushing her teeth resulting in full blown tears and screaming? What is she needing or not getting at some point each day? My original instinct questioned if she was sick or not. Could be. But something just doesn’t seem right. Yes, she is strong willed and verbal.  Am I struggling with this because we never dealt with until now? I will take any suggestions or things to try.  Is it something we should take her to the doctor for? Is it normal? Looking for anything here people which could include a 12 pack of beer.

~ I am contemplating change. Change for me. Vague I know. But, I keep thinking about what change means for me, for my husband and for my kids. We are finding things are barely but starting to get easier. And with a change comes uncertainty, new routines, new roles and a new life.  I have spent a lot of time this week lying awake at night trying to decide at my core what I want, what I need and what I risks I am willing to take and I am just not sure. 

~ Do you sell things on Craigslist? I do. I get in these moods to sell all things in our house and I do. I sell anything I can and secretly do the touchdown dance the minute I have the cash in my hand from a sale. I buy nothing to this point on Craigslist but I just keep thinking that we have nice stuff in our house and even though I don’t want it anymore someone might.   Am I wrong? Is there something I should be buying off Craigslist?

~Lastly, this is TMI for some of you but I learned an important lesson yesterday when I was conditioning with the freshmen softball team. After two kids, jump roping just doesn’t work. It just doesn’t. Use your imagination and then know I sprinted to the bathroom….

Have a great weekend. We have no plans other than a dinner date tomorrow night. Hoping for some spring cleaning, relaxing, good food and some sleep! How about you? 

Weekend in Review

This weekend was good. Just good. I haven’t been good at coming to this space and writing.  But I thought you deserved to see a tiny peek in to our lives.  I have been living and my priority has shifted to be present whenever possible because as a working mom my time is so limited with my kids. So, hence less writing and sharing.

Friday night we spent the early part of the evening at a happy hour with friends. My friends and Brady’s friends. I am so lucky that my kid has picked friends whose parents I really enjoy spending time with… we drink, we talk, we laugh and we watch as our kids interact and love each other.

15 years from now I hope they are still friends like this. 

Saturday I spent the day coaching in the morning, a birthday party for one of Brady’s friends in the afternoon at a glow in the dark bowling alley (super cute) and proceeded to have the same friends and more back at our house for some playing, pizza and the Final Four games.

Right after this he caught a fly ball unplanned. 

Sunday we regrouped for the week.  I did 19 loads of laundry from Friday to Sunday.  I cleaned out closets.  We went to the grocery store. We went to the park. We got the grill out for dinner. I took a run in the sunshine. We played. We picked up PILES upon PILES of deer poop in our backyard. (Talk about a smack in the face from the suburbs.)

Her lashes are ridiculous

Lululemon and I are still friends...

I went to bed last night exhausted but full. Content but wanting more. Grateful but ready to tackle the week. I went to bed thinking that this weekend was good. Really good. I am ready for you Monday. 

If You Are Looking For Me...

Contemporary Outdoor Chairs by Other Metro americancountryhomestore.com

I'm At the Beach! See You In A Week!

Sometimes...

all you need is some sunshine and a stick....

And yes, it is the end of March and the highs are in the 20's. So over winter.

Cate {18 Months}

Hey Cate,

You’re growing up before our eyes. Seriously, stop it. Stop growing up. Stop it with the sass. Stop it with the snuggles and the kisses that make us fall madly in love with you two seconds after we are exasperated with you.

There is not a meal that you don’t ask for a “bi” asking for what is on our plate. You walk in to the kitchen going to the pantry and say “dat” for anything you see that you can put in your belly.   You eat more than your brother does. You try anything. You want your own plate on your tray.  You want to be a big girl.  Yet, somehow you seem to still give us fits on the growth chart. Weighing in at a small 23 pounds you are in the 20^th percentile for weight… barely. Yet, those long legs are already giving your daddy gray hairs. 80^th percentile for height my sweet Cate.    Long and lean, huge blue eyes and long lashes spell trouble for us. 

You are so verbal and so capable of understanding. We ask you if you want to take and bath and you respond with “bubbes”.  Yes, you can have bubbles baby girl. “Pa Pa” you say as you try to pop the bubbles away!

I ask you where your eyes are and you blink. I ask about your teeth and you smile and point. But best of all, when I ask where your nose is, you stick your finger high up in your nostril.  Oh Cate, you are silly! 

You continue to have your share of germs. First RSV, then whooping cough to the latest diagnosis of double ear infection, sinus infection and molluscum contagiosum.  Lovely, really.  You are smart enough to know when we are trying to give you medicine and say no and run away. 

Your fearlessness has given you a fair share of bumps and bruises.  You hoard like your mother. Filling up anything with “stuff” dumping it out and doing it all over again. 

You used to be all daddy all the time but lately it’s me. It’s about mama… to feed you, brush your teeth and put you to sleep. You whine for me. And the whining grates on me after a long day but I know you just need me to love you for a while as your explore the big world. 

At the end of every night, when I lay you in your crib, I tell you “nigh nigh” you say it back to me.   I feel my stomach knot knowing that you are becoming a big girl and the baby in you is all but gone.  Try to stay little and need me a bit longer okay? 

Love,
Mama

Currently v.2

This blog has been silent for longer than I would have liked. But, what am I to do when the days consist of swimming lessons, softball coaching, and dinner making, grading papers, and trying to keep some sort of order in our house.   Sometimes, even the things that I mean to do go to the bottom of the list and sadly stay there.  Currently…

Eating… healthy. Seriously, with spring break just two weeks away, I find myself craving healthy foods like fruit and vegetables. I think it may also be related to Glenn and I exercising more and wanting to get back in to shape.  The years of being pregnant and nursing were hard on my body so healthy eating is just a start but I am loving feeling better, sleeping better not to mention my clothes fitting looser.

Drinking…water.  I find myself drinking a ton of water at school. We have a great water cooler and some days when I am just tired of sitting and staring at my computer screen, I walk to the teacher’s cafeteria to fill my cup with ice and water just as a way of taking a break.  Seriously, in a day I drink Starbucks and water…just waiting for summer so I can start sipping lemonade again!

Listening…to the buzz in my classroom as my students work on projects. I just got done watching two videos kids sent me about wealth distribution in America and real estate agents and the seller’s interest.  Both were fascinating but I think what is more remarkable is listening to kids talk about them and being excited about this stuff.

Reading… “The Shallows” by Nicholas Carr. With the unbelievable amount of technology that is being used and brought in to schools, I am furiously reading this book to understand some of the research related to what the internet is doing to our brain. Have you read it?

Come back next week. I will have an 18 month update on Cate and pictures from the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade and party at my brother’s house! I promise I will try to write more… Happy weekend!