Merry Freakin' Christmas Cards

I never sent out a birth announcement when Lucy was born mainly because time slipped away. So, I had a great idea to get our family pictures taken and order Christmas cards and all that good stuff. So, a few weeks ago we attempted a photo shoot with a very talented and fun photographer, Hannah Vickers, hannahvickersphotography.com. The kids got new clothes and we all dressed alike, sort of. She took us to this place at ACU that has these cool rocks with scripture etched into them and a little fountain, very cool. Anyways, it was a diaster! Miles was running a way from us and crying and trying to climb into the fountain and Lucy was very scared of Hannah's big camera and NOT happy about me not holding her. In our family's defense, the pictures were at 5:00 pm on a Thursday night and the kids were hungry and John had had a long day at work, yada, yada. So, Hannah emailed me the proofs and offered at least five times to take the pictures again. Yeah, they were that bad. So, I took her up on the offer and rescheduled. I mean c'mon, she has got a business to run and I'm sure she didn't want to put her name on those pictures. We went Saturday at 3:45 - we had nothing else to do that day, both kids napped, it was after nap time...
It was a disaster. It was the coldest day Abilene has had in a while and my kids were both a little sick (now a lot sicker - or is it more sick?). The wind was blowing, Miles was throwing one fit after another, Lucy didn't cry that much but she WOULD NOT smile either. She was very concerned about her surroundings. So, about 15 minutes into the shoot, John and I just started laughing. We decided to let her take a few pictures of us smiling holding two crying kids because that was more what life was like right now. Although they turned out cute and really funny, you can't very well send that out with Merry Christmas at the bottom! What a downer! :) John says, we ought to write "Merry Freakin' Christmas." I do think that is funny, but I'm not sure that is the message we want to send out this year. :) Oh well.

Here are some recent pictures I took of the kids!


Can you see what the future holds? Lucy is laughing now but in a few years...


Lucy and her boyfriend Simon are dressed up for Halloween. He is only 3 months old and he is as big as she is! Aren't they cute?


Lucy as a ladybug with her daddy


We carved a pumpkin and dug out all the seeds and roasted them. Miles had a great time and the roasted seeds were very tasty!


Miles in his Spiderman costume

My Tuesday

Tuesdays are my crazy days and I don't think I could get through them unless I laugh at how ridiculous they are. It is the day I teach a class early morning and the day my husband works late. Isn't that how it always works out? So, here is a run down:


The alarm goes off at 4:40 a.m. I push snooze until 4:50 and then make myself sit up in bed. First it's in to the kitchen to pump (I'm breastfeeding, sorry if this image is offensive). Get dressed in the dark, brush my teeth, grab my yoga mat and my mascara (it's never too early). Arrive at the health club at 5:30. Get the room set up for Body Flow class. Teach my class, there is good crowd, all goes well. Chit chat with a few members after class then head home. Walk in the door at 7:05 and both kids are up. Feed Lucy. Then fix Miles his favorite breakfast for the moment (he goes through phases) - yogurt, banana, and half a bagel. Lucy gets oatmeal cereal and pears and I get honey nut oatmeal. Clean up breakfast and its 7:44 which means I have six minutes to take a shower before my husband needs to leave for work or try to face the task alone with two kids. 6 minute shower it is! It actually took 8, but my husband was gracious. I let Miles watch a little PBS while I put Lucy down for a morning nap. I change her diaper, rock her and sing a little song, lay her in her bed to fall asleep. Finally have my first sip of COFFEE!! Get myself ready, with Miles's help. Iron clothes for myself and Miles and Lucy. Get dressed, get Miles dressed. Pack the diaper bag for both kids with diapers, wipes, toy for Lucy, book and trains for Miles, sippy cup of water and granola bar for Miles. Lucy wakes up. Get Lucy dressed, feed Lucy, burp her and get all three of us into the car. 9:49 and our doctor's appointment is at 10:00 - not bad. Wait an hour in the doctor's office waiting room. In the room, Miles falls backwards off of the doctor's stool that I told him not to climb up on. He is crying loudly. Lucy is crying loudly because she is naked and so offended. Lots of shots, two crying kids, and two hours later... why did I schedule their check-ups at the same time?? My husband, who works across the street from the doctor's office, came over to help me. He was my knight in shining armor today!
Grab lunch for Miles on the way home and let him eat in the car seat. Whatever!! Get home, distribute Tylenol to both kids, feed Lucy, and let Miles color. 1:00 is nap time so I put Lucy in the exer-saucer to play while I put Miles down. We change our diaper, read two books and sing one song. Hug and kiss Miles, hug and kiss puppy. 1:25 Lucy goes down for her nap. We read one book, sing one song, change diaper, lay in bed. 1:45 Miles is still not asleep, in fact, he is knocking on his door. I change his diaper (again!) and lay him back in bed. 2:15 Miles is not asleep but playing with his trains. He is not crying so I leave him alone. I fold and put away laundry, clean the toilet and the bathroom counter and sink, empty and reload the dishwasher all while listening to the ipod to prepare for my RPM class at 4:30p.m.
3:00 and Miles is still not asleep and now it is time for nap to be over. I get him completely dressed and reload the diaper bag for him and give two time outs. Shots + no nap = CRANKY. I change clothes for spin class and get my stuff together. Lucy gets up at 3:30. I feed her, burp her, get her dressed and diaper bag packed and get all three of us loaded into the car. I get to the gym at 4:18 and class starts at 4:30 - not good. Check both kids into the Kidz Zone, run to class, set up the room, get my water, start class - 4:33. Not bad. Great class, heart rate monitor says I burned 565 calories. I missed the ending on song 7, the big finale. O'Well, next time! Grab my stuff, fill out my time card, and run to the Kidz Zone to change Miles's dirty diaper (they don't change diapers, very annoying). Get both kids out of gym and loaded into car. Get home, hold Lucy because she is very fragile from having to go to the Kidz Zone. Cook Miles's dinner. Sit and feed Lucy oatmeal and sweet potatoes while Miles eats dinner. Clean up dinner and kids. Bathe Lucy. Then its diaper, lotion and pajamas. Lucy sits in bouncy while I bathe Miles and his trucks, he brings like 5 trucks in there with him. I know, I need to draw the line! :) Diaper, lotion, and pajamas for Miles. Then we sing the "clean up song" and pick up all the of the toys all over the house and put them back where they belong. I get milk for Miles and let him watch a little bit of "Cars" while I feed Lucy. I burp her, find her pacifier, read one book, say one prayer, sing one song and lay her in her bed. Miles and I say bye-bye to Cars, the light, the trees, the bathroom, the trucks, Lucy, the door, mommy and daddy's room, everything...
We read two books, say one prayer, sing two songs, hugs and kisses for Miles, hugs and kisses for puppy.
7:50 p.m. my husband walks in the door and I finally get to shower after my spin class! I load the dinner dishes into the dishwasher and start it, then I switch clothes from washer to dryer and start a new load in the washer. Then I eat dinner (a bagel with cream cheese, sadly) on the couch, check email, check facebook. Fall in bed to get some sleep.