Mommy guilt

As a working mom I often have guilt. This has been bad after a long PTO with my lovely daughter. We had the best 7 days of fun and summer. It has been hard. At work we have out WFH coworkers in town which equaled a long happy hour. It is fun but it left me longing for a hug from my favorite girl. She was still up watching TV which let me snuggle her and help her into PJ's. However I leave Monday feeling sad that I lost my evening of hugs and fun. Joe gave Abby the phone as I drove home and she asked the difficult question... why didn't you come home after work, my response 'corporate networking' I don't feel so great at it, I like smaller happy hours to get to know people. I don't have a loud voice so most can't hear me and a laid back personality so I just let others talk and pretend to listen. Well she is snoring now and time to get ready for another day. Grandma day here we come.

Case of the Monday's

Oh Monday... how I do not have any love for you. This morning started out with a very sleepy little girl. I got her ready for another day at Grandma's with her only opening her eyes enough to know that I was dressing her not to her liking. Joe looked at me while I was doing this and said "so this is how you do it." I am not sure how he makes it happen but I have a feeling there are a few disagreements. Finally dress Abby decided she was leaving with Dad and would not give up. Dad not always being the preferred parent decided he could drop her off and pick her up today.

I got to work early and didn't have to do any fighting... I called Joe on the way home and he handed it to Abby to talk and she surprisingly had a lot to say. When I got home she had Morgan's collar and leash begging to go for a walk. Today's high is 36 degrees but we went, Abby would not get in the stroller and held on to the leash and my hand the whole time. I was so cold by the time we got back but she was ready to sit up and eat dinner so totally worth it.

We also had a nice Easter with Joe's family relaxing, playing with Abby and an Easter Brunch. Here are some pictures from the weekend

Look who's 2

My baby has just turned 2 less than a month ago and life has become interesting and there are real stories to be shared.



My darling little girl is now a bossy and sassy little girl who wants her world a certain way. I can't say I blame her because I feel very much the same way but leads to struggles between us. She wants to do dress herself by blinding grabbing the first two things out of her dresser. I didn't even know that a long sleeve shirt can also be pants (I stand corrected) or that diapers are optional when you can figure out how to take them off and where underwear around your waist.



I love her more then you could ever imagine this beautiful little girl but everyday she looks like she has not been bathed in weeks and her clothing covered in dirt and food within minute of waking up. Lucky for me she is into Hello Kitty... I never understood the fascination with Hello Kitty, I still don't but she gets my kid in cloths that match and I think you go girl! You over priced Kitty head on apparel, I am even considering buying Hello Kitty items for myself (can't beat'em join them).

Abby has also found a love for bubble baths, this week she has taken one every night, the are an hour to an hour and a half of splashing, eating bubbles, throwing toys and tonight throwing poop. Yes poop problem in the tub number 3... ahh! I stepped out of the bath room to grab our property tax information and came back to poop being tossed in the direction of the toilet. I hung up on my husband in horror and put her on the toilet to finish and started picking up these fine nuggets. Abby decided she was done and hopped of before I had even gotten to draining her bath. To buy myself some time I ran to the closet for the hidden potty chair and had her sit there while I finished the cleaning. Things finally settled down and she has found the underwear in her dresser and decided she should put them on. I tried to convince her to get back in the tub but she was not parting with the underwear, so I did what I hope most mom's would do and putting in the tub with the underwear. She didn't seem to mind or even care so no harm I guess. This little person is now fast asleep in just a night diaper because that is all that I could get on her and even that was a struggle.



Abby's other favorite pass time lately is watching movies, it first started with that lovable monkey Curious George, I have seen all 5 seasons and both movies I could tell you anything about George or the man in the yellow hat. After a month maybe two she has now expanded to Kitties, Aristocats and I can tell you everybody wants to be a cat. We also tried Lion King (a bit to scary) and now her new favorite Trees... aka The Lorax, I like this movie so far but I have only seen in now about 15 times so things might change.

Overall, a 2 year old is challenging but I wouldn't know what I would be doing without her in our life. Some day, a long time from now I hope that she is blessed with a little girl just like herself so I can enjoy the phone calls about her poop flinging kid who is a obsessed with a Kitty head on apparel too.

Happy Mother's Day!! I can't believe I am enjoying my second mother's day. I would have to say first I am just more in love with my child then I was a year ago. I love the curls, the smile, the attitude and the fact that she is my daughter forever. This weekend was perfect with 70 degree weather, sunshine and a yard to play in it was everything I could hope for. Abby and I worked in the yard and it was pretty fun, we went to The Depot and found some fun flowers. She sat in the cart and turned around to pull all the buds off the plants we found. I also found some new pots and as we check out she waved at all the people coming in and leaving. She was like the 'official' greeter at 'The Depot' the young women checking us out was not sure what to think... or at least that was my observation. When we got home we worked in the garden Uncle Ty tilled for us. I walked away to put some flowers in the new pots and when I got back Abby's face was covered in dirt but just so happy. I gave her a smaller pot to work in and it kept her busy for at least an hour. This also included the gardening shovel but I held strong when it came down to my gardening gloves... this girl knows what she wants. It was a great weekend and I am so proud to be this little girls mother. We also made memories I hope to carry with me forever and if I could get a picture of it, THE SMILE! Love,Mom

"Stop making that noise!"

This is something said often. My sweet little girl can make a noise so horrible it could make anyone lose there mind. It starts in the morning with the diaper change and then during the wrestling match, others would call getting dressed. Then every time you take away something she can't have... Then nap time (Finally) and then it continues until bed time. It seems to get worse when she is tired and it makes me say things to her like 'stop making that noise' or 'I can't think while you make that noise.' I feel like a bad mom until other people start saying the same things. I have been told and continue to remind myself that some day she will grow out of this. Until then I would say that riding in the car with Abby is as dangerous as texting while driving some times... AND PLEASE STOP MAKING THAT NOISE!!!

Haven't been here in awhile...

Life has been crazy and not sure where to start... first I GOT A NEW JOB! Oh and I love it... The babe is now 11 months with a lot of opinions and walking everywhere. She can tell me what a monkey says and how big she is... it is amazing how you go from enjoying that baby you bring home with you to fighting over changing that stinky diaper she is sitting in. She has officially learned how to work over my touch screen phone and I am excited to get a new one in a few months. Morgan (our dog)has officially gained anywhere from 5-10 lbs since the babe started eating table food. We love and hate this. Joe is enjoying fatherhood by teaching Abby how to be tough and that scary things are funny... well only if your not tired. I have been focusing on running and so far it has been going good. It takes time away from my family but it is worth it and I am determined to not buy all new clothes.

The 10th Anniversary

9/11/01... Started out like any other day here in MN. I woke up the same time I did everyday to get to school by 7 a.m. I liked to be early get to my gym locker and my school locker with a few minutes to chat with friends. It was in pre-calc with Mr. Boone, I was taking a dreaded quiz, the loud speaking came on. Our Principal came on advising us that the Twin Towers had been hit by planes. He was unsure of the detail but with a heavy heart was aware of the terror the people of NY were feeling. Mr. Boone went on to teach his lesson plan of the day, refusing to let us watch history unfold before our eyes. The day continued on and due to me not taking a history classes I did not get to see history unfold... I then had to go to cross country practice and when I got home all I wanted to do was catch up on all the things I had missed and wondered about. As the evening dragged on the more a realized that this was a tragic thing that happened to so many innocent people and although tomorrow marks the 10 year anniversary since this has happened, we have all experienced so much change in our everyday lives. If we want to fly we have to have a full body scan or pat down... even the babies?! We fear people that are walking down the street, afraid to work in tall buildings and a typically beautiful fall day 9/11.

However in these 10 years we have also learned a lot about America... we all believe in something that is bigger then us and that fear can only hold us back as long as we let it. To all the families that lost someone I am truly sorry for your loss... it was unfair and never should have happened. Also to all those who helped rescue others that day you were braver then most will be in there entire lifetime!!