Happy Birthday Auggie!

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I can’t believe that this guy is already TWO. The saying goes that the days are long and the years are short and that couldn’t be more true with this guy. It feels like yesterday that I was dropping B at school and heading to the hospital.

We celebrated the birthday boy with a fra-mly party with a construction theme and I have to say, it came out pretty awesome. I think the birthday boy wasn’t the only one who had fun!

Who knew blue prints made such cute and easy table cloths.

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Fun party favors

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Ready to par-tay!

IMG_7866CHEEEESSSEEEEE!

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His home made cake didn’t turn out too shabby

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It’s too bad they don’t look like us….

IMG_7895Happy birthday Auggie boy! You are such a crack up and bring so much happiness to our lives. Please stop growing so fast!

Tuesdays with Auggie

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I distinctly remember the day that Baylor and I had our first two way conversation. She had woken up from her nap early and was standing in her crib, crying. As I opened the door, I asked her what was wrong. She pointed to her ears and said “Ears. Hurt.”. It was like Helen Keller signing water. It was amazing to speak to her and have her answer back!

With the Auggie boy, our conversations sound a little more like this:

Mommy!!

Yes Auggie.

MOMMY!!

That’s my name.

MOMMY! MOMMY! MOMMY!!!

Augustus. I’m. Right. Here. What do you need?

YOWD!!

Yes, hammering the train table IS loud.

Ok. Dank you, Mommy. 

I would give that kid a pony if he said orssie peas, mommy. Dank you. It’s so stinking cute, I can’t stand it!

 

Mirror Mirror on the Wall

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Ta da!!

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When we I thought our living room needed an update, I thought we needed a mirror over the side board. We went round and round on what size, what kind, what shape…and then it hit me. I wanted a barn wood mirror. Specifically old barn wood that we found ourselves in Montana. And because I’m married to a carpenter, I get what I want (well that and I’m pushy…).

We got the barn wood this summer and PW and compromised on a taller, horizontal rectangle. He spent an entire day plotting out how to cut the wood that we had which was all different depths, slightly different lengths and with a lot of character to be preserved. He is most proud of the little dowel that was stuck in one of the pieces.

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One thing we didn’t account for is how freaking heavy it is. Thankfully with several different heavy weight hooks, a lot of swearing and some luck, we made it happen. Thank you for being so good at this stuff PW!

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THE Best Kale Salad

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The only thing you need to know is that A. Peter agreed to try this. B. He had seconds. And C. he said I should make it again and soon. Boom. Best recipe ever.

1 bunch Black or Tuscan kale, de-veined and chopped into small pieces

1/3 of a lemon

1 tsp garlic paste

2 count olive oil

1 cup cooked quinoa

1/4 cup graded (powdery) Parmesan cheese

Dried cranberries

Roasted pumpkin seeds

 

At least an hour before you’re ready to eat, toss chopped kale, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and some salt and pepper. Make sure to work everything into the kale to tenderize it. Set aside for at least an hour.

Cook quinoa according to directions. Toss hot quinoa with the kale mixture. Add Parmesan cheese, some cranberries and seeds. Mix and taste for more lemon (it’s easy to add too much at the start!). Serve room temperature or chill.

Kale is super sturdy so this salad keeps really well over night!

If you are a fan of True Food Kitchen’s kale salad, you’re going to love this. It’s really similar and you could add in bread crumbs instead of the quinoa for the TFK version. Just go easy with the lemon.

Paige Denim

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Why are good jeans so hard to find?? Shopping for good jeans is as bad as shopping for a good bra. Or a bathing suit. No one ever says “I’m so pumped to go bathing suit shopping!”. Jeans are the same way for me. I’m picking about the fit, the rise and of course, the length. Why are models 6 feet tall but jeans all have 30 inch inseams? Where do the tall girls get their denim?!

I found my answer last fall at Nordstrom. I was turned on to Paige Denim and I have to say, a year later, I love them just as much. Of course, Nordstrom stopped carrying the style I like. Which turned out to be a good thing because I found Paige.com instead. In trying to track down my favorite cut (Skyline Straight) in the wash I wanted, I emailed the company. I was shocked to see an email just an hour later from the customer service rep saying she had just personally restocked that style and wash and that she was holding out a pair in my size and how would I like them shipped to me. Amazing!

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I lived in these white jeans I bought from them this summer and just ordered the same pair in black hoping to get the same good use out of them. They carry several styles and fits – my favorite is that the straight cut jeans are on the narrower side at the ankle – skinny jeans without the tapered leg – perfection!

Check it out at www.paige.com 

Oh – and they have maternity jeans – where the heck were these when I needed them!?

 

Dad of the Year

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This guy wins Dad of the Year on this vacation. While I went shopping with Noni, Peter rented the infamous four person bike with the kids. And then proceeded to pedal it on his own.  Winner! Winner! Dad O’the Year!photo 3 (45) photo 4 (26)

Sunset on the Beach

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The last night in San Diego, the light was amazing. It was an overcast day, but still a little sunny…it was strange but in a good way. It made for some spectacular pictures:

No filter, no special settings.

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This is my favorite. Do you see the sun in the very top of the frame?IMG_7806

The Beach

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We always have a ball at the beach and this year was no exception. Each year keeps getting better as the kids get older and they’re able to do new things.

Both of them are crazy for the water. They like to run into it, swim, dive, fall over, run from it and repeat. As Baylor and I were holding hands and jumping over the waves that rolled our way, I asked her if she wanted to try boogie boarding (body boarding? I don’t know what the kids are calling it these days). I love to go out on the boogie board. As kids, we spent hours sitting, watching, waiting, riding and paddling back out. We learning which waves were the good ones, when to catch them and how to ride all the way to the sand. Being on a board in the cold, salty water on a hot day are some of my most favorite childhood memories.

“Should we go get the boogie board and give it a try?”

“No. We should wait for daddy.”

“No because there’s a chance daddy won’t let us do it so let’s go get it now.”

A few whiny minutes later, I convinced her to lay out on the board between waves. As she began to protest, I shoved her and the board into a breaking wave and then watched in awe as she rode it all the way to the shore. When the board stopped, she waited a second before jumping up. She turned and looked at me with the biggest, toothless smile and screamed “LET’S DO IT AGAIN!!!!!!!!!”. Which we did. For the next 2 hours and then for hours more the next day.

Ahhhh. Such a gorgeous day!

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She may have my eyes and hair, but she has her daddy’s walk
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Getting brave….

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Loving every moment!

(She also lost another tooth. What is it about vacation and losing teeth with this kid?!)

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Someone else wanted in on the action

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Auggie! Let’s build a sand castle! Let me take your picture while you work. Auggie. Auggie! Over here!

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Auggs! Auggie! Just one picture!

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Ok I lied. One picture where you don’t look so pissed off.

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Ok thank you! As you were.

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Sharks? SHARKS?!

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Phew. Just a pod of dolphins.

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Break Time

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Whew. It’s been a long couple of weeks. Auggie boy has decided to drop that whole sleeping through the night thing and wake up multiple times a night and then for good by about 5am. I’m barely sane with a full night’s rest. Give me multiple nights of no more than a few hour of consecutive sleep AND no end in sight? Holy moly. It’s not pretty. Picture me and another mom standing outside of the preschool, barely holding back tears as we carefully and in great detail describe all the things we’ve been doing to get our 23 month olds to sleep longer and later. Teeth? Reflux? Growth spurt? Backout shades? Humidifier? Sound machine? Temperature? And couple the crabby exhausted toddler with a sassy five year old who knows how to push her momma’s buttons and you’ve got yourself a recipe for a major mommy meltdown. And melt I did.

I’ve come to learn as an adult, that I’m not great at taking a break. I’m really good at digging in when the going gets tough, which is not exactly a good thing.

I remember about a week after Auggie was born, Peter announced that Grandma was coming to watch the kids and we were going out. Going out?! Going OUT?? Who’s going out? Us?? Where? How?? But he insisted. We drove to the mall, walked around a little, sat and ate cupcakes, talked without being interrupted. It was maybe two hours, but it was a break that I so desperately needed but didn’t know it.

Which is why it was so good we planned our annual trip to San Diego months ago. Reservations were booked. Dog boarding set up. We were going despite the fact that it was one of the busiest weeks ever. End of the month billing for me, closing time for Peter, Parent’s Night at school, back to school meetings, and on and on. The beauty of San Diego though is that you don’t need much and anything you forget is easily replaced. That said, our crew still takes a lot of gear…as I surveyed the living room that was piled high with the beach wagon, sand toys, umbrellas, suitcases, wine, snacks, pack n play, both joggers and a bunch of other crap that I can’t even remember, I decided if we didn’t have it, we’d figure it out.

We piled into the truck and we were off! And despite the fact that Auggie still didn’t sleep well until the LAST NIGHT of vacation, it was the break we all needed but didn’t know it. Auggie has decided to start sleeping better. Baylor has decided not to try to push mommy to the point of needing a straight jacket. Grandma took Auggie for a day and gave me *gasp* 6 whole hours to myself (which I spent working…but at least it was without distraction!). We’re going to survive. Thank goodness for the beach.

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