Mommy's Potpourri

Dear Anthony, Believe it or not, we did not put up a Christmas tree solely for your enjoyment. It is not a tree full of colorful baseballs to be picked off and thrown around the house. One day, I may make you a baseball tree though because it is kind of a fantastic idea. Love, Mommy

LOL trying to teach Anthony about thanksgiving. Me: Thanksgiving is tomorrow! It is a day where we thank God for all of the good things he has given us. Anthony: Yeah Me: Mommy is thankful for Daddy, you, Luke, food to eat, and the house we live in. What are you thankful for? Anthony: Um, apples.

Love Anthony's pretend phone conversations!  This is a transcript from today: Mom! What's up? What time is it? 10? (Note, it is 7:30am) Hi. Stay in bed. Like a diaaaaaaaamond in the sa-ky. Aight. Bye. Haha, love this kid.

Here are some home movies of the boys I took yesterday! They are just too funny.  Here is a good one of Lukie, being Lukie! Here is one of Anthony painting and being silly. And here is one of the boys together. Anthony is trying to sing Luke "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". lol, they are so cute. I love how they are interacting more and more.

Real quickly because I don't have a lot of time. Luke had his 6 month check up today! He is 17lbs 5oz, and 25'' long! Chunky little monkey! :)

Ever try to discipline your kid (or kids) only to have them do something hilarious? Now you have to be firm, while stifling a smile or laugh? hahaha. This happens to me all the time. Anthony often breaks out in to gymnastics when I tell him it is nap time. Shouts excerpts from "Go Dog, Go" when I want him to behave and use his "inside voice" in the store. Today, he was in the process of clearing out the cabinets so he can hide in there. The conversation went like this. Me: Anthony, we are not hiding in the cabinets right now. Mommy is cleaning the kitchen. Anthony: *without making eye contact* Oh. *Continues to take pots and pans out of the cabinet* Me: *Getting irritated* Anthony look at me. Put the pans back and close the cabinet. Anthony: *Tries to hurry in to the cabinet* Me: *After pulling Anthony out of the cabinet* Anthony this is your last warning. You are going to get a punishment if you do not obey. You need to listen to mommy and obey mommy. Anth...

So the other day we went to the allergist for a skin test. Anthony is allergic to a lot of stuff, and I don't feel like listing it all right now. In short, shellfish, fish, peanuts, treenuts, and eggs. The whole experience was terrible. Poor guy had to get 16 little needles in his back, and as most of them flared up was not allowed to scratch. He went wild. I can't say I blame him really though. I just tried to distract him the best I could. The doctor was really great though. He said he has seen many kids outgrow egg allergies, so we can retest him in 6-9 months or so. He also gave us information on the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network which has a LOT of useful information. This whole food allergy thing is like a whole new world we have to take on, but I'm ready.

Oh my. Lukie's personality is certainly starting to shine! He is hilarious!!! What I find the funniest is that he is very unintentionally destructive. He grabs everything, spills everything, and throws things around without a second thought, or concern for where it goes. It is so funny. I call him my little wrecking ball. He does not think about consequences (not that I would expect a 6 month old to completely grasp that concept), he just goes. He does not try to figure out how things work, or even care about different textures or colors or noises. He just bangs it on the floor, shoves it in his mouth, and throws it all around until it is out of reach. And he has so much fun doing it! If he finds something exciting, like a book for example,  he hits it as hard as he can over and over and over again. Oh, my big little guy! Already I can see that Luke is not as outgoing as Anthony. He loves attention, but pretty much only from mom or dad, or in an environment where there are not a...

Roasted Balsamic-Glazed Chicken on the Food Network Seriously the BEST roasted chicken recipe ever.

I figured I should start recording my menus so that I have a reference to look back on for ideas.  Here's what's for dinner this week. And please, feel free to share your meal ideas in the comments!! :) Sunday: Potato Leek soup and ham sandwiches Monday: Balsamic Roasted Chicken, Kale and beans, scalloped potatoes Tuesday: Chicken and Lime Chili (with the chicken leftover from Monday) Wednesday: Hot Dog crescents, broccoli Thursday: Spaghetti & Meatballs, Salad, Garlic Bread Friday: Tacos, tomato & corn salad, beans & rice Saturday: Pork -something (haven't decided yet), spinach, rice Sunday: Leftovers

Newsflash to my adorable and strong-willed 2 year old: Mommy ALWAYS wins! Please understand this sooner rather than later, and save yourself some tears. Yesterday, this battle has been over cleaning up. We were at a stand-off for about 40 minutes over cleaning up crayons. It would go something like this. MOMMY: Clean up the crayons ANTHONY: Throws crayons on the floor Antony sits in time out. Wash rinse, repeat. He finally cleaned them all up, by himself, and next time I asked him to do it, he listened the first time. Today's battle is over nap time. He keeps getting out of bed. Anthony is exhausted, and will be taking a nap today whether he likes it or not. He is going to have to learn this the hard way.

One of my favorite things to hear is Ian singing Anthony to sleep. He doesn't do it all the time, but it is just so sweet when he does. I am so grateful to have such a caring and loving husband.

Today was a good day. Tough, because Anthony woke up around 5:30 this morning again, and did not nap today. But he should sleep really well tonight, so I am not worried. It is situations like this that I really appreciate being a stay at home mom.  Our schedule is so  flexible. I cannot imagine the stress of having to wake up at a certain time every day and be out the door no matter how much sleep the kids got the night before, etc. So anyway, today was Anthony's 2 year check up. He weighs in at 28.6lbs, and is 34 inches long. Still a peanut, but following his curve very well. We also got the allergy tests back and it confirmed that he is allergic to eggs, all nuts, and all seafood. Poor kid! Thankfully, we now have an epi-pen, and we were referred to an allergist. I am so glad we are getting all this out in the open, instead of being scared to introduce him to new foods for fear of an allergic reaction. All in all it was a really great appointment. I just love our pediatric...

This past few days held a lot for us. We started potty training. I would say we are sort of loosely doing potty training right now. He is peeing in the potty but I don't think he knows how to hold his pee, or tell us when he needs to go yet. But peeing in the potty is a great start! :) Yesterday Anthony officially turned 2 years old. He is such a big boy, I cannot believe how quickly time is flying even though our days together seem long. For his birthday I made eggless strawberry cupcakes with homemade strawberry icing, and they turned out pretty yummy. They seem more muffin-like than cupcake-like though... but still they are delicious. Anthony loved the batter and the icing. I let him eat so much of it, that I didn't even end up giving him a cupcake yesterday. haha. Today he will have one though.  Also this past week we have become acquainted with the spider that lives outside of my husband and I's bedroom window. We named her Brenda, and my brother tells me she is a ...

Sleeping in the big boy bed gives a lot of freedom to an almost-2-year-old. He can wake up in the middle of the night and climb in to bed with mom and dad. He can quietly play with his toys as long as he doesn't wake anyone up in the process. He can find a crayon and color all over his mirror. He can do (and has done) all of these wonderful things. Today he found something new to do! I was falling back asleep after feeding Lukie around 6 this morning, when I hear the "creeeeek" of his bedroom door. I wait for him to come in to our room, which is what he normally does when he wakes up in the morning. Instead of the sound of our bedroom door opening, I hear a louder "CREEEEK" .  I fly out of bed thinking he had gotten in to the dishwasher, which I had not unloaded yet from the night before. All I can think of is stopping him from getting to the huge knife sitting in there. As I get to the kitchen, I am relieved to see that he is not in the dishwasher. Instea...

Anthony only likes apples because it is an edible ball. He takes a few bites, then rolls it across the floor, takes a few more bites and repeats the process. I would stop him if I didn't find it so hilarious and adorable.

I just love teaching Anthony. I am sure I will enjoy teaching Luke as well, but Anthony is at an age where he can communicate well enough that you can measure what he is learning. I think the most important thing to do is to instill a love for learning. We read books all the time, and I try to allow Anthony to explore his surroundings, and (safely) follow through with his curiosities. Discovering and learning new things can be so much fun, even when it is messy, loud, and repetitive. A lot of times when I feel myself getting uptight about him making a mess, or getting dirty, or banging pots and pans together, I remember that he is really discovering this stuff for the first time. It is all brand new to him, so I should relax and let him have some fun. Safe fun, but fun nonetheless. Anyway, Anthony counts to ten, - actually he does 1-12 and 16-20. hahaha. And recites some of his ABCs and can recogize some of the letters and numbers as well. And he does this ALL. DAY. LONG. Talk abou...

I always hear of those studies or articles that say that a stay at home mom should be paid over $100,000 a year for everything she does. If that's the case, that means as a stay at home mom, I am severely underpaid, right? WRONG!! No, I cannot go spend my bi-weekly paycheck at Homegoods, or use my overtime to save up for a vacation, but I am paid with something much greater. Smiles, laughs, hugs, kisses, and the look on his face when he realizes he learned something. Seeing one brother care for the other, even at a young age is absolutely priceless. Here is a little glimpse into our life.

"Veteran parents say "It goes so fast; enjoy every minute." Yet it sure doesn't feel fast. The eating, crying, pooping and laundry feel endless. It's easy to wish away our time. If only he would sleep through the night...eat solids...be potty-trained...go to preschool. Blink. He's a surly teenager. In the place of sloppy kisses are sullen silences. You long for the days you rocked him in your arms. The ability to enjoy our lives is a gift (see Ecclesiastes 5:19). We can either speed up the time by focusing on tomorrow, or we can savor the moments-the good, the bad and the mundane-by focusing on today. These may truly be the sweetest moments of our lives." That was an excerpt from my "New Mom's Prayer Bible." I thought it was so relevant to my life, that I wanted to share it with you all. "Then I realized that it is good and proper for a  man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during...

Border's bookstore going out of business. Yeah man! I tried taking a look around when they had their books for a measly 20% off. That was in the beginning of the summer and I was pretty disappointed with the fake sale. However, I heard that the prices are way better now so I packed up the boys in my fabulous double stroller, put on my sneakers, and walked on down there. I should not have even gone. Ian told me not to spend any money, but he and I both knew that was close to impossible. I have been looking forward to this for months now. Since May, I thought of about a million things I "need" from Borders before they shut their doors for- ev- ver. Add that to the million things I realize we "need" after I see them, and we are talking about me buying enough stuff to set up a nice little mini-Borders in our half of the basement. I do openly admit now that I do have a bit of a shopping addiction. Only when dealing with "homey" things though. Home Goods...

Today was Luke's 4 month appointment. Time sure is flying. I cannot believe he is already 4 months old. The doctor asked if I planned on starting him on cereal soon!! I was stunned. I cannot believe he will be eating real food soon. He is growing up too fast. Anyway, I think we are going to wait until he is 6 months to start solids. He just isn't showing any interest in the food we are eating and breastmilk seems to fill him up just fine. Anyway, on to the fun stuff. Lukie is 14lbs 3oz, which puts him in the 50th percentile for his weight! Just perfect! At his last appointment 2 months ago he weighed 10lbs 9oz. He is gaining wonderfully! He is also 24 3/4 inches long, up from 22 1/4 last appointment. Also, I scheduled Anthony to get an allergy test later this week. We already know he is allergic to eggs, peanuts, and fish but I am going to be so relieved to have a complete list of what exactly he is allergic to. My mom got me a couple of books that have really been helpful....

Anthony is eating snack. From the kitchen he yells "Babe! All done!" hahahahha!!! He must hear Ian call me babe all the time. Cracks me up!!

I love how Anthony talks baby-talk to Luke. He doesn't realize he is still a baby himself! :)

This post is all about Luke Aaron, the newest little man in my life. Luke has a few nicknames. He is mostly called "Lukie" or "Lukie-bear", and is very lovingly referred to as "Pukey Lukie" for reasons that should be obvious to anyone who is brave enough to hold him for more than 5 minutes. Lukie was born right on his due date, which was a good thing because I don't think I would have been able to stand another day of false labor! These were taken seconds after his birth! I went in to active labor around 3pm and delivered him at 9:59pm (with only 2 pushes!). We were released from the hospital around 2pm the next day! :) He is now 3 1/2 months old and is a spectacularly easy-going baby. Once he starts losing his cool though, he is almost impossible to calm down. A lot like his mommy in that way. Lukie is already rolling over from his back to his tummy. He is also a real cuddle-bug. Loves to always be held and talked to. He will cry to be t...

"I will not let my child control my emotions, I will not let my child control my emotions." I find myself repeating this over and over in my mind many times throughout the day. Like when Anthony unrolls an entire roll of aluminum foil --which you cannot roll back up without it getting all crinkly. Or when I find he has taken a bite out of every single plum in the fruit bowl, or smeared hand lotion all over his hair. But today he really tested me. First of all, let me try to explain why this was so irritating. I have been trying to cook healthier sides for the family. Last night I made a side dish of orzo, kale, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes. It was really yummy and I worked hard on it. Cooking always takes me like twice as long as the recipes say they should take because I don't know how to prep very well yet. My timing is always off. Anyway, so it took me a while to get that little dish together and I was excited to see we had leftovers. "This will be perfect fo...

Who Dunnit? Who poured oregano all over the kitchen floor??

I've been reading some parenting books lately. This was brought on by the arrival of my almost 2 year old's tantrums. While I did not get a much needed cure for his overly dramatic reactions to EVERYTHING, I did read a lot about scheduling. The boys and I currently have a loose schedule. It is truly difficult to have a strict schedule when caring for both boys, and honestly I never want to be someone who lives by the minute anyway.  I have been reading about the importance of scheduling "structured play time." This is when you decide an activity, and your child does it for an allotted amount of time. Apparently this helps broaden your child's attention span, helps him sit still, etc. etc. I have tried this many times before. It does not work, and I feel silly telling him to go "sit down and play!" So we don't do it anymore. I am wondering if kids Anthony's age actually do this! All Ant wants to do is run around and tear the house apart! Don...

Ok, maybe it's not a heat wave yet but its like 90-something degrees and way too hot for my comfort! On days like this, we usually get outside early in the morning, like right after breakfast or so. It's normally in the 70s or low 80s at that time, which is much more bearable for me and little Luke. Anthony however, would live outside in a box if he could. I can't even SAY the word outside, because he gets fixated on it and I hear nothing but "siiiiide, siiiide" all day long. And when we come in from outside, it is always an ordeal no matter how long we have spent out there. It makes me crazy. Its like all day he thinks of ways to get out. He has tried sneaking out, hiding in the foyer thing (well, what do you call the space between our door and the front door?), and then just bolting when the door opens. In fact, he is currently trying a new tactic. First of all, let me say that we went outside this morning and had a lovely time playing for a long while. In t...

Anyone who knows me knows how much I hate to clean. HATE it. I have a couple of friends who actually enjoy cleaning, and I wish I had their knack for organization, and motivation. But I don't, and I don't think I ever will. I have come to terms with that. Sometimes I wish my husband loved to clean so it would get done happily... but nope. He hates to clean too. I've seen him sweep one time since we got married almost 3 years ago. And vacuum once too. But I can't hop on the "blame my husband" train because he works 12 hour days and the last last LAST thing he should be worried about is coming home and cleaning. That is just how I feel, personally. But it still stinks and I hate it.  But it has to get done. So I made a handy dandy schedule. I am hoping this is helpful. It's basically a "things that need to get done during nap time" schedule. And it all really rests on what mood Luke is in while Anthony sleeps. I am glad that Anthony actually ha...

Me and Ian were talking about how much lives have changed since we had kids. Not only the way we spend our time together as a family, but also our mentalities. For example, I was talking to a friend of mine who either just got a tattoo or was thinking about getting another, or both. I can't remember. Anyway, I have been wanting to get a tattoo, so I asked her how much she thought a small one would cost. She said "oh, not that much! Maybe 60 bucks?" I immediately said "Oh, well that's 3 boxes of diapers, which is too much".  I realized then, that I convert the cost of pretty much everything to the amount of diapers I could get for the same price. haha! I never thought the biggest commodity in my life would be a jumbo box of Target brand diapers, or that this exchange rate would help curb my appetite for things that I want, but don't need to buy. An example would be a Nintendo Wii. I have wanted one for a couple of years now. But it costs like10 boxes ...

Oh, we just had a spectacular weekend. The perfect New England weekend really. We moved to New England when we got married 2 1/2 years ago, and now it is really growing on me.  Rhode Island is just so beautiful. On Saturday we went to Watch Hill Beach with the kids. I forgot my camera, but found a picture of it online. It is every bit as pretty as that picture shows, and there were not many people there either. Anthony just ran and ran and ran up and down the beach. He didn't even look back to see if Daddy was keeping up with him!  He also loved going into the water, and watching the boats and the birds. This was Anthony and Luke's first time at the real beach. It was also our first time going to a RI beach! :) Sunday was a lazy day. We went to church, and the boys slept most of the day.  Monday we went to a park in Jamestown with some friends. 4 couples, with 6 kids. It was such a wonderful, relaxing time.  Anthony spent a majority of our time there throwing rock...

Reading books with Anthony is always fun. He is becoming so hilarious. When we get to certain pictures he points and yells "Daddy" over and over again.  First, here is an actual picture of my husband: (that's me in there too) This is Daddy #1. Yup, It's Ramses from "The Prince of Egypt." I can see the resemblance! If Ian had hair, he would certainly wear it in a ponytail with gold embellishments. The medallion around his neck is something he would wear too.  And he is always shirtless, especially when in a grueling horse race! This Daddy could beat up your daddy any day! Here is Daddy #2, from "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" This must be a different side of Daddy than Ramses portrays. This Daddy is pensive, with kind eyes. He is daydreaming about something wonderful (probably mommy) and always has something nice to say. I think this one looks a lot more like my husband! So because when we get to the end of this "Brown Bea...

My oldest son will be 2 at the end of September. He is becoming impossible. He is just starting to throw tantrums, and scream and yell for what seems like all day long.  When I know he just wants a reaction out of me I ignore him, which really ticks him off. Sometimes when he is yelling and thrashing about I just stare at him and wonder where on earth he came from. Who's side of the family contributed to his short little fuse and unbelievable lung capacity? I call him hurricane Anthony. He destroys the house in a whirlwind of flailing arms, and noise. Yesterday I caught him sticking peas in his ears. They fit perfectly in there! He spits out his drink on to the floor and plays in it. Generally drives me crazy. Demands I read him "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" 38 times in a row. But then on the other hand he is just so adorable! How can you not love this face? He is learning a ton of new words. He says "see ya!" which I find hilarious. He loves to read (I gladly ...

Can someone please explain to me how this amount of dirt can be swept off of the floor of my little kitchen on a daily basis?? Gross I know. I just do not understand it.  No matter what I do, how long we have been out or home, what we eat or where we eat, I sweep this up every single day. I am forced  to chalk it up to summertime and a toddler. I refuse to take any blame in this (although I think I see a strand of my hair in there).   Am I the only  one who wonders where all this dirt comes from? ;)

Hi! My name is Jessi and I am addicted to blogging. Since giving birth to my first son, I have had quite the blogging dryspell. Before he came along, I blogged about being a college student. Really interesting stuff...haha. But now, since having my boys I am feeling the itch again! I MUST document my seemingly mundane life! A brief introduction: My husband and I were married in December 2008. I got pregnant sometime within our first week of marriage. Anthony was born in September of 09.  I got pregnant again when he was 10 months old, and Luke was born in April of this year. I stay at home with the boys full time, and I am trying hard to become more "domestic". It certainly does not come easily for me.  Here is our life! Enjoy! :)