"No Puma"

As we continue to not sleeping well around this house (Adam is out of town for a couple days and I was up at midnight and 4am feeding Ainsley, 5:30 soothing her; and 1am and 5:15 soothing elise! WHAT IS GOING ON around here!?!), there are some moments of humor.
Although we don't watch much TV in general, Elise watches "Dora the Explorer" or "Go,Diego,Go" during breakfast most mornings...not to justify this, but the shows really are cute and VERY educational. They've helped her vocabulary immensely and it's fun to watch her interact with the show. We also think she has a CRUSH on Diego. Sometimes when we're playing outside, she'll invite Diego to come and play with us.... something along the lines of, "C'mon Diego, let's go" "Bubbles outside, Diego" etc...
Diego often helps animals get away from a puma (evidently a top predator in South America where he's located). So, when Elise woke up this morning at 5;30 and was crying, I went into her room to calm her down... she said "No Puma, mommy". I almost laughed out loud. Really!? I think it must've been a legitimate nightmare. so cute. I told her the puma wasn't really there and it was just pretend. She acknowledged that with "pretend puma, mommy. night night now" She went right back to sleep and is still snoozing away now at 8:55... so great.

"During" Picture

We're over 1/2 way through our 'replace carpeted stairs with wood' project, but it's been put on hold for a week or so while Adam is out of town...there are 33 pieces of wood (16 steps/17 risers-the "up" part of each step), each was stained 4x, dried/sanded in between, etc... it's been taking up a lot of time around here! But, Adam got 1/2 of them done the other day and it looks GREAT so far! yeah! I'm just excited for something easier to CLEAN than the stinkin' carpet!
YEAH

"Now I lay me down to sleep...."

...but spend most of the night up anyway!!!!! Augh. Last night was a ROUGH night around the Moseley household...Now, I'M NOT COMPLAINING, just sharing. Nights like this are RARE, but painful. So, If I owe you a phone call or email today, don't plan on seeing it. I'm struggling big time right now!

8pm- Elise bedtime (a little later than normal b/c neighborhood Memorial Day cookout)
9:30- Final feeding for Ainsley
10:15-sneak in Elise's room to change her diaper before bed. The cloth diapers can't make it all night, so we give her a fresh one last thing before bed...she doesn't even wake up! it's funny.
10:30- Adam and I go to bed
1 am- Elise wakes up crying. Hard. poor thing. I go in to settle her down and she says, "Owie, Mommy. on elbow...or...on knee" So I go to get a band-aid (she's a faker, but it's 1am). I come back and ask where the owie is..."foot, mommy". hmmm..sure. I put the band-aid on her foot, lay down with her, sing "Twinkle Twinkle" and "You are My Sunshine" about 5x each, then go back to bed'
1:30ish- I fall back asleep
2am-Ainsley wakes up crying. A little early for food, I think. I let her fuss for 15 minutes, but then go in and feed her anyway. She's hungry and eats a 'full meal'. takes 20 minutes.
2:50- Ainsley can't get back to sleep- she's crying again. Knowing she's full, I suspect a poopy diaper, so I send Adam in to soothe and change her
3am-We fall back asleep
3:15-Ainsley crying again...I go in this time. Just takes 2 minutes to soothe her, then she's OUT
3:45- Elise wakes up crying again. Adam goes in this time to soothe her. I lay (lie?) awake listening. Only takes 2 minutes.
5am-Ainsley wakes up again to eat (How is this possible!?). Her diaper leaked, so I have to change her outfit, diaper, sheet, etc...total time- 3o minutes...
6am-Ainsley crying again. Still looking for the elusive 'poopy diaper', Adam goes in to change her. She just has wet diaper, but actually GIGGLES at Adam from the changing table and LAUGHS as he puts her back into the crib. (she's seriously mocking us now!)
6:45- Adam wakes up for work. Ainsley crying again....I KNOW she's not hungry at this point, so I put earplugs in and roll back over. She's fine, I'm sure. Adam goes to work
7:45- I wake up for good...nothing like feeling 'refreshed' after a long weekend!!!!!!!!AUGH. I quickly make coffee and spend a few minutes getting ready for the day....although the coffee will do NOTHING for the bags under my eyes!
8:30 Ainsley wakes up to eat again and the day has officially begun.

I think I'll tweak Ainsley's feedings later today so that ALL of us can nap this afternoon!!!!!!

So, again, I'm not complaining. I love being able to comfort the girls, but there's nothing more frustrating than nights like this when I KNOW I'll need energy for the next day and just wish I could rationalize with a 2 year old and a 3 1/2 month old! Yikes.

Art time...

Something I work hard on as a mother is to be OK with mess and chaos somedays... it can be hard on me as one who would rather have things always neat/clean/organized/etc... I also like to make sure we have FUN around the house. =) We're hoping that by encouraging creativity, being ok with dirt and messiness in a controlled way, that elise will really enjoy just being a KID and not be scared of mud, rain, etc...and not just want to stay inside where it's 'clean and safe'...we want her to be adventurous and independent.
Yesterday (Thursday) afternoon, I was thankful to catch up on the phone with a friend that I haven't talked to in several months. Alicia called soon after Elise and I started finger painting in the driveway...and things went downhill as I only paid attention to elise about 80% of they way! After I got off the phone, we had a lot more fun, but the BODY PAINTING had already been done...the final picture was the temper tantrum that ensued when I put the paints away and told her it was time to go in for a bath...she got over it pretty quickly, but I got a great shot of her pitiful face. =)

How do I title this one!?!?....

Last night we watched (I'm only slightly embarrassed to admit this!) on the HISTORY CHANNEL "MonsterQuest: Sasquatch Attack". Maybe it's my lack of sleep with Ainsley still not sleeping through the night or the pitiful TV primetime lineup these days, but we were GLUED to the TV watching the latest research mixed with folklore regarding Bigfoot/Sasquatch/The Yeti, depending where you're from. I was slightly disturbed at how interested we actually were in the whole thing. I really consider myself a logical and scientific person who has NEVER believed in the reality of a large ape-like creature living in the deep woods that has 24 inch feet and weighing it at appx 850 lbs. that walks upright and "shares" some human DNA.....

until last night....


I'm leaning toward being a believer nowadays...


Really.

They had some legitimate (or at least it seems LEGITIMATE and it was on HISTORY CHANNEL-a reliable source) data and historical references to support the existence. The researchers even had set a trap and obtained tissue, blood, and hair samples of the "thing" that had been stalking a few hunters deep in the northern Canadian wilderness. Apparently, that's what Sasquatch do, they hunt and stalk people who come into their territory, but they're a very 'shy' creature.

I'm almost more embarrassed typing this than I thought I would be. But I'm pressing on...

Once it's been analyzed, the hair wasn't a match to ANY KNOWN living creature. The DNA samples are still being studied, but the preliminary results show it to be a CLOSE match to humans and the only deviating DNA were a match to APES...isn't that crazy? I don't think this is conclusive or it would've made bigger headlines, but it's at least something, right? maybe....

Ok, I do sound crazy. I'm just saying that I'm now more willing to give Sasquatch a chance than I used to be....

If you want to check "history.com" for the next time the show is playing, go ahead. I won't laugh at you...and you may change your mind, too!

ps- look to the column on the right and you can VOTE in our poll about Sasquatches!

House Projects...

Since it's been a few months and we've finally started really feeling "settled" in this new house, we figured it's time to start ripping it apart and changing things-it was only a matter of time, really. Our first project is to rip up the carpet on the steps, take out part of the wood that is currently there (Adam understands this, I'm just the "sous chef" around here!). So, we decided on a red oak for the wood, bought it all at Lowe's and are doing it ourselves...that'll save us about $800 we figure! nice! The carpet is about 8 years old, been through a LOT of kids, the last owners had 4 cats, we have a VERY shedding dog in Gus, so you can see the need for a change! The first step is staining/sanding/varnishing all the steps and the riser pieces, so I'm doing a lot of that work during naptimes so we can make the most progress possible. Elise has been 'helping' sometimes using her new hammer and Home Depot apron that Mimi brought her last weekend. She thinks the hammer is the coolest thing since she's just like Daddy now! We'll put up some before and after shots once we really start making progress. Should be fun. Here's a shot of elise with the new 'gear' on. (Mimi's friend who got the stuff from Home Depot also had another friend paint it all and personalize it! So it's not just a hammer, but a hammer with pink paint and "elise" on it. The apron is covered with little animals and cute 'girly' things. We love it!)

Spin Away...

For probably 3 years now, I've ALMOST bought a Salad Spinner at every Pampered Chef party I've been to. (and with husbands deployed so much in Japan, there were LOTS of Pampered Chef parties!!). Every time I looked at, I thought, "that would be cool, but I'm NOT spending $70 or whatever it was to DRY LETTUCE"....Then I saw Martha Stewart on the Today show a month or so ago and she said "A Salad (and fruit) Spinner is in my top 5 favorite kitchen items". Really!?! So, I had some Gift $$ at Linens-n-Things and went out to finally buy one. It's only $30 there and IS THE GREATEST THING! I seriously love it. Enough to take time and write a blog about it during one of the rare afternoons that BOTH girls are napping at the same time. That's big. So, if you're on the fence about this same purchase...hesitate no more.

Middleton Plantation

On Friday, we went to Middleton Plantation ("middletonplace.org") with my (Erica's) mom and the girls. It is an official Historic site and was soooo cool. It has tons of historical significance- dating back to the slave-trade days... The largest living Oak Tree in the United States on the grounds ("The Continental Oak")- absolutely gigantic! They have a whole bunch of animals that just roam the grounds, too. Swans, Sheep/lambs, peacocks, chickens, etc...it's a riot- elise was chasing them like crazy. They also had (within fences, of course) goats, horses, cows, pigs, etc..... the place is also known for the immaculate flower gardens, NOT for it's accessibility of double-jogging strollers (I worked up a serious sweat a few times pushing 70+ pounds up some good hills. We also saw (swimming free-no fences or anything!) an alligator!!! It was only about 15 feet away from us, but pretty small- probably 4 feet long. We asked one of the park rangers about their largest, also FREE ROAMING, alligator- she said they have several 14-16 foot ones there on the property!! !UNREAL! It was a fun morning out, for sure. Elise LOVED all the animals and REALLY wanted to pet the Alligators! nice. We've taught her to say "Go Gators" whenever she sees an alligator pic, so that's funny. Anyway, here are a few pics...enjoy.

Big Day for a LIttle Girl

Although Ainsley still isn't sleeping great through the night, she had a BIG day on Tuesday! (sorry, I'm a few days behind on blogging...Adam is out of town, my mom is here visiting....we're a little off-routine). Elise was at her little pre-school and I was on a "Cleaning Blitz" to get ready for my mom to arrive...and just playing with Ainsley some. While changing her outfit for the 2nd time that morning, tickling her tummy, making goofy faces, etc...she let out a huge GIGGLE! It seems small, but it's actually a milestone with babies that they intentionally laugh. It was adorable and a cute 'moment'. Just a little while later, she was laying (lying?) on her back on the playmat and all of a sudden, she rolled over onto her tummy! YAY! She was so shocked and pleased with herself! It was fun. Then she was stuck and got ticked off pretty quickly. I'm sure it'll be awhile before she's a regular "roller", but this was a solid victory for a little baby!

"Muffer Day"

We had a great Mother's Day around here...the flowers above were a gift from my brothers and new (YAY!) Sister-in-Law....they arrived on Friday, so I've been enjoying them all weekend. =) Elise wished everyone we saw yesterday a "Appy Muffers Day"- way cute! My gift from Adam is an attempt to fulfill one of my topics from my Tagged List (see earlier Blog)...a tennis racket and 4 Tennis Lessons! It'll be fun to have some lessons AND get away from the girls for 4 Monday nights...(I mean...uh..It'll be nice to allow adam some one-on-one time with the girls!). Adam was supossed to leave last night for a week of JAG training in Rhode Island, but the flight got cancelled so he came back home and surprised us. It was nice to have him around unexpectedly for the evening and now he's gone for the week. Happy Mother's Day to all of you out there!

Name That Beer

Barrister Brew is launching it's second ever cold carbonated adult malt beverage, a smooth cherry porter, and we need your help developing an ear catching name. After a hard morning of PLAY-DOH creation, endless "Popsicles" and worms, my creative juices have just about evaporated (it was a shallow pool).

The cherry porter should have a sweet undertone of cherry mixed with the nutty roasted flavor of the darker porter, if I did it right, cross your fingers. Our goal is to keep some type of lawyer terms for the names of all the beers, hence "Barrister Brew," but all names will be considered. This next batch should be ready to pop in about a week, maybe your name could be the one. Derogatory lawyer comments are of course acceptable, how could they not...really?

Different Standards...

So, we've finally decided to finish unpacking the last 15 boxes that have been up in the Guest Room/Sewing Room/Upstairs Playroom, etc... In going through the boxes, we've found most of them are books, photo albums, journals and camping/outdoorsy equipment. Lately, I've felt like I've been back 'on top of my game' with Ainsley settling into a decent schedule, me fully recovered and exercising again, feeling settled in this house and city, etc.. UNTIL I STARTED READING AN OLD DAY PLANNER. I was laughing out loud as I read through one particular day...it looked like this:

October 2002
6:30am Bible Study with Dublin Young Life Girls
8:00 at office
11:30 Lunch with other YL Staff to discuss Banquet preparations
Then back to office until...
2:30 Go to Dublin Coffman HS to meet some students
3:15 Meet OSU Female leaders on Campus for Coffee
5:00 Work out
6:00 Home and dinner with Adam
7:30 Leave for Campaigners
8:00-9:30 Campaigners/Bible Study with DCHS Students

I'm tired just reading that now (and have continued respect for moms who can "do" full-time ministry/work while raising kids!!) Yikes! I remember the old feeling of "So, what did I accomplish today?" and how that would determine if I felt successful at all. Although I don't think that's the attitude God is totally pleased with, that's how I lived for a long time...
These days, I REALLY feel like I've accomplished enough at the end of the day if:
1.I'm dressed/makeup/hair done before the girls wake up
2.I keep the TV OFF during most of the morning so I can really pay attention to Elise and ENJOY the time with her
3.I make sure Elise is out of pj's by 10 am.
4.I eat real meals- no snacking-and try to prepare dinner 4-5 nights/week
5.I work out 5x/week
6.I keep the house relatively clean/organized/laundry done
7.Get out at least one or two weekdays to DO SOMETHING with the girls- park, zoo, strawberry picking, etc...

And, yep...that's about it!! Really! And, trust me, there are plenty of days that I only get 1/2 of those 7 accomplished.

I'm not sure if I'm:
a)Proud that my life is simpler
b)Embarrassed that I really have no life
c)Trying to take this "stage" in life as it is and know that it'll change again soon...

Regardless, I feel pretty content most days. I know that I'm doing my best as a mom/wife/friend/neighbor, the kids are usually bathed and dressed (ok, not always bathed, but good enough!), and trying to be content with the ROLE I have right now in life...I guess it's good that God challenges us in new ways all the time and has grace with us when we screw up even that! =)

More prayers...

There's nothing sweeter than a 2 year old praying. In addition to the (previously blogged and often heard) prayers for Gus, dinner, Mario (my parents' cat), etc... tonight as Adam was putting elise to bed, she added "Mommy, Ainsley, Daddy's mouf (mouth), Gus mouf, Daddys (shirt) pocket, Daddys arm, Daddys feet, books... ". So cute and neat to hear her. By the way, she also had her 3rd day of school today and the teacher said, "Elise is a great kid and one of the easiest in the whole class to deal with. She plays well with the other kids and loves snacktime." That's our girl!

Nothin' much today...

We're having a nice quiet morning at home today- a little Play-Doh, some coloring, making some dinner during naptime...a pretty typical morning for the "moseley girls" ! Ainsley is still not sleeping great overnight, so we're trying to tweak her daytime schedule and see if that helps...I know that every kid is different, but since Elise was sleeping 9 hours straight overnight at 3 months, it's killing me that I'm still up every 3 hours with Ainsley! Grrr....but, we're all doing great otherwise. I just updated some pictures on the blog (the right side column)...so, enjoy!

Swimming "lesson"

Here are just a couple more pics of when elise fell in (only about 3 inches) the pond yesterday. I was there before she even fully hit the water, but she got filthy (do we see a theme with this kid?) and smelled horrible! We quickly headed back to the house for a hose-down for Gus and bath for elise...p.s. click on the actual picture on the left of elise in the water for a larger version- it's a great look on her face!

Super-Gus...

Several people have wondered when we'd do a posting focused on Gus, so here it is! The truth is, Gus is the greatest dog- so happy, laid back, and easy that we just forget about him sometimes...although he's 5 1/2 now, he sleeps about 20 hours a day and still acts like a puppy the other few. Sunday morning we took him on a long walk and then swimming and he was soooo happy. This little pond is right behind our house and we spent about 30 minutes there with Gus non-stop retrieving sticks, shaking off to SOAK us, and wagging that tail a whole lot. =) Elise had a blast, too...playing with a big stick also...right up until she fell in the water! I (Erica) was right there and it was pretty funny...she was never in danger. =)

we fancied up this blog...

So, Adam just spent some time adding links, favorite websites, friends' blogs, etc...to the right side of our blog page--then I thought, "maybe some people don't want us to have their site linked on here. So, If you don't want your blog listed on here, just tell me and we'll remove you. =) Thanks. Sorry we didn't ask first!

River Rat

On Saturday we went to a state park to try out the new kayak and see how Elise would like it. Turns out it was a roaring success. Elise seems to be a little bit of a river rat, took to the water right away and didn't slow down when it came time to ride in the boat. With her life jacket securely fastened she climbed right in the aft well like she had been a hundred times before. The boat handled well and Elise managed not to fall off, though her cup was declared overboard more than a few times and the river heard "turn round daddy, turn round" time and time again. While we were beached she climbed in an out of the boat and played in the water like a true river rat, we are so proud. Next we'll see how she does in the salt water and maybe by next year Ainsley can join her.

A Quacking success!

Of course Adam was totally cool and relaxed last night and this morning while I wasn't...and, once again, I should've followed his lead! Elise's first day at pre-school was a huge success! She is a "Duck" (all the 2 year-olds) and was so excited to go this morning- the whole drive in (ok, only 2 miles) I heard from the backseat: "school, Ben (a friend that we know who is also a Duck), slide, blocks, wagon, snack, school, snack..." all the things that we'd talked about last night and over breakfast that were going to be part of this "school" day. =). I walked her into the Duck room to say Hi to the teacher and deal with a (I was so sure of it) tearful goodbye. She dropped her backpack on the floor, LITERALLY said, "bye bye Mommy" and took off for the toys and slide. She never looked back. I chatted with the teacher for a minute, then waited to see if Elise was going to be sad... I never even saw her face. She was totally engrossed in some blocks and had already found Ben and given him a hug. hilarious. I left the room, choked back a few tears on my way to the car, and then enjoyed 3 hours of quiet and time with Ainsley!!!!!!! =)
When I picked her back up a few hours later (after checking my watch NO LESS than 30 times to MAKE SURE I wouldn't be a minute late!), she ran over and gave me a big hug, then took off back to the sandbox. She was filthy, her cute pink bow was gone, cheeks were flushed from running outside, yet she looked like a million bucks. The teachers said she was great; she listened well, was very polite, played well with others, sat quietly during snacktime (shocker!), and never stopped talking and playing. I was so proud of our little Duck! Sounds like she's going to take after her mom's "extrovertedness" after all! She talked non-stop on the drive home, ran around like a crazy kid for an hour and ate lunch, then CRASHED out for a nap...I'm betting she'll be down for 3 hours. It was quite a morning for all of us!