A Child Arrived Just the Other Day...

So, after Thanksgiving, there was still much to do on our house.  The girls' room never quite got organized and the clothes in their drawers were a size too small.  Baby Boy's room was full of boxes.  The playroom was set up, but not organized.  I was starting to panic a little because I thought we wouldn't be done before our third child arrived.

It turns out that I was right!

Baby Boy was due on December 19th.  After much conversation and persuasion, our doctor agreed to schedule the C-Section date on December 12th, but she wanted it the week before.  Baby boy arrived on December 6th and I was not ready.

On Monday, December 5th, I went to my last sewing class to make a denim skirt for our family pictures.  I made the skirt, but didn't get to finish putting in the elastic waist or the hem.  Since I wasn't due for another two weeks, and pictures were scheduled for December 22nd, I knew I had time to finish.  I got home late from the class (around 10:40 when class was supposed to end at 9:30), and Husband rushed out the door to go study with the Rabbi.

I washed some dishes and started prepping lunches for school the next day.  I got tired, so I went to rest in bed and check my e-mail.  Around 11, Husband came home and I fell asleep.  Around 1:45, I woke with a start and realized (in a long, twisted, convoluted way) that my water had broken.  I have never had this happen naturally, so we had to Google and call the OBGYN to verify. 

To make a long story short, Baby Boy was born on December 6th, 2011 at 6:31 AM and weighed 6 pounds.

A Thankful Thanksgiving.

I realize that it has been some time since I last posted on this blog, and I do apologize.  Things here have been hectic.  I last posted right before Thanksgiving.  For Thanksgiving, my parents drove up and stayed with us.  It was nice having them here for our first Kosher Thanksgiving.  They ate Thanksgiving lunch at my Sister-in-law's family, but had dinner with us.  My husband's sister who lives nearby and her family joined us as well.

Husband and I wanted to have as close to our traditional Thanksgiving as possible.  So, we researched family favorites such as sweet potatoes and green bean casserole.  Now, we couldn't do the green bean casserole, but we still had green beans.  The meal was delicious and had some new favorites sprinkled in.

I am so thankful that we were able to host a Kosher Thanksgiving with delicious food and fabulous family.

Thanksgiving....A New Tradition

So this year is our first year to keep a kosher home.  We will be hosting Thanksgiving for our families and are trying to keep everything as traditional as possible.  Once again, we will be deep frying our turkeys.  Instead of green bean casserole (cream of mushroom soup is a milk product), we are doing a fresh version of green beans.  There will still be sweet potato casserole (with parve marshmallow fluff) and cornbread stuffing. 

We will be adding our own twists this year, just to keep things fun.  The desserts are a pumpkin spice cake, orange creamsicle, and a cranberry and pecan pie.  It is nice to have a house that is big enough to host a Thanksgiving dinner once again, since we had really outgrown the previous house for these types of gatherings.  The girls are excited that "Grandma" and "PePaw" are coming to visit and D even asked if they could watch her at dance class tonight.

This Thanksgiving, I am especially thankful for my family and friends who are excited of our move into a new house, helpful with preparing for baby number 3, and supportive of the life changes we have been making to become more observant.  I know it is not easily understood, but they are embracing us.  Thank you for being you.

If You Could See Me Now!

So, this morning I started thinking back.  Back in high school, I was a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl.  I never wore make up.  I was a girl who was "Au natural".

Now, I wear a dress or skirt to work every day (because of where I work, it is the dress code).  My morning routine includes cleaning my face and applying makeup.  My mom would be so proud!

The Sky is Falling...My Chicken Little Week

Do you ever have one of those weeks where you feel like the sky is falling?  Where the more things you accomplish, the less you have really done?  That is where I am right now.  The Yom Tovs (or holy days) are at an end until Passover.  Our family has really enjoyed them and had some amazing experiences.  I have a ton of mental pictures of my girls dancing with their daddy and the Torah on Simchat Torah.  We have memories of amazing meals with interesting people in their Sukkah.  I made a relationship with a lovely lady from New York (who actually called me and wants to continue building on the friendship!). 

Now that the festivities have wound down, reality is sinking in.  Since we moved in right before Rosh Hashanah, the holidays have fallen back to back to back, as they do every year.  This year, our family celebrated them differently.  After Shabbat, I called my parents.  We are so blessed that they are coming to spend Shabbat with us.  The girls are excited and can't wait to see them.  This started my "Chicken Little" complex.

They do need a place to sleep.  The guest room was known as the box room.  We had to clear out all of the boxes and make space for them to sleep.  This week (among our regularly scheduled programming) was dedicated to creating a space for visitors.  The room is now cleared out (and there is closet space for them!).

I also had a slight panic about the new addition to our family.  The baby's room was piled into the middle of the floor.  Now, we know that the baby will be bunking with us when he comes, but I still need access to burp clothes, clothes, and diapers.  So, husband set up the room so that I would have a little peace of mind.  Several boxes from the afore mentioned "box room" are stacked neatly in the baby's room against the walls.

We also haven't really talked about baby names.  We made a list of potential names, once.  That was as far as we got.  Maybe we can tackle this next week!!!

The next Chicken Little moment came Wednesday night.  I came home from work feeling worn down.  By the end of the night, I was running a low grade fever, was bundled up in bed by 8, and couldn't sleep through the night.  My congestion and drainage were keeping me (and apparently husband) up.  I tried adding pillows, I tried sleeping in a chair sitting straight up, I tried everything I could think of.  Thursday I was still tired, but feeling a little better.

Finally, my day on Thursday was chaos.  I had a day full of appointments.  Two different doctors appointments were 3 minutes away from each other in distance, but 3 1/2 hours apart in scheduling.  I tried to utilize the time the best that I could, so I ran a few errands.  The appointments were also in the town I used to live in, which is about an hour away from my home now.  On my way home, I decided to stop by the auto repair shop to get my brakes checked.  The brake pads were completely worn down and I needed a ton of work.  While I waited for the brake work to be done, I went to the mall across the street and sat at Starbucks and worked on my lesson plans for my maternity leave. 

Hopefully, this Shabbat will be a Shabbat of peace and for just a moment in time, my sky will stop falling!

Sukkot in the Hood

As you can tell if you have been following me for any length of time, this year has produced a lot of "firsts".  To add on to our list of first, we built a Sukkah this year for the first time.  Since we are now living in an area that has a Jewish population separate from my family, we didn't know exactly what to expect with Sukkot.

On Wednesday night, we were invited to eat with some friends.  On Yom Tovs, you can carry or push a stroller, so I pushed the girls and husband met us there when he was done praying.  A noticeable difference between a Shabbat meal and a Sukkot meal is the quantity of guests.  At Sukkot, there are only a handful of guests at each meal instead of a really large crowd.  According to several of our hosts, this is because there are so many opportunities to host a meal in the sukkah that you can spread out the guests more.  For Thursday lunch, we hosted a coworker of mine and her family.  We did a very family friendly, okay kid friendly, meal and had a great time hanging out and schmoozing.

On Thursday afternoon, we participated in our first Sukkah hop.  We visited four different sukkahs and ate snacks in each one.  It was nice to see where people lived, what they served, and how they built their sukkah.  Thursday night, we ate out again.  This meal started even later because you can not prepare for one day while still celebrating the previous day.  The night turned cooler and D had to borrow a sweater.  Who would have thought that we would get Fall weather in Texas?!?!?! 

For Friday lunch, we ate at someone's home once again.  The small guest list made all of the meals more intimate and easier to converse.  After leaving lunch, we rushed home to prepare for guests in our sukkah.  We were going to be stop number two on Friday's sukkah hop.  After setting up, we went to the first sukkah.  D was so excited to tell everyone who would listen that they would be going to her sukkah next.  She was quite the hostess!!!  She showed everyone the food and the cooler full of drinks.  Then, we headed out to the final two sukkahs on the hop.

After we lit candles on Friday night, D asked me whose house we were eating at.  I told her that we weren't going anywhere for Shabbat dinner and were staying home to eat as a family.  She was so disappointed!!!  I fed them early and put them straight to bed.  They were exhausted from their day of activities.  They slept for almost 14 hours!!!!!  We did all of our Shabbat meals at home, to get our kids back onto a schedule and routine.  It was also nice not to have to rush somewhere.

On Monday, everyone went back to work and school.  We were blessed that a coworker invited us to dinner at her sukkah.  The dinner was perfect for our girls with hot dogs and hamburgers.  The storms rolled in and we rolled out and headed home.  It was a late night full of storms, but our sukkah survived!!  We know of several sukkahs that fell or collapsed.  Now, we are getting ready for Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah.  The marathon of holidays is coming to a close.

Sukkah Building

When we moved into the new house, I had numerous goals and aspirations.  There were things I wanted to accomplish, ways of life I wanted to implement, and so forth.  Now, I realize that some of my goals were not as realistic as others.  We are not completely unpacked.  We are not completely set up.  We only have one picture hanging in our entire house.  I try not to be too hard on myself, as we only moved in about 3 weeks ago and had a ton of holidays where we couldn't work on the house.  Instead, I focus on what we have done.

We have set up a playroom for the girls.  We have put all of husband's books on bookshelves.  We have beds set up for everyone to sleep in.  And, we have built a Sukkah!!  I have never had a Sukkah of my own before.  I researched and asked coworkers and tried to pick the best one for my family.  Since a sukkah isn't cheap, I wanted it to be long lasting, durable, easy to store, easy to assemble, and family friendly.  Here is what we ended up with.

Our Sukkah Kit

D helping "read" the directions.  Yup, they are upside down.

Little L arranging pieces.

Everyone lining up poles for the base of the Sukkah.

Little L is telling Daddy how to do it.

The frame is up.  After the frame was put together, the rain started pounding down.  We stopped for the night.

 

Husband and the kids had off of school on Monday for Columbus Day.  So, they finished the Sukkah.  I was so excited and blessed to come home to see the final product.

We are all ready for our first Sukkot guests!!!

Kashering Our Kitchen

Husband and I decided a while ago that when we moved into the Dallas/Plano area, we were going to Kasher our kitchen.  We have been moving toward a more observant lifestyle, so this fit our new way of thinking.  I don't think either of us knew exactly what this would entail.

After the sale of our house, when we moved into the apartment, we started only buying kosher packaged foods.  Upon moving into the house, it was all kosher all the time.  The Kashering Rabbi came to our house for a preliminary meeting.  He checked our pantry, fridge, and freezer.  In all of these places combined, he only found 5 items that were not Kosher.

Last week he came to the house to Kasher it.  Husband spent 5 hours with him preparing everything, cooking dishware, immersing dishes in boiling water, and getting things ready for the Utensil Mikveh.  I came home to wet towels all over the floor from kashering the counters and boxes upon boxes of dishes waiting to be toveled (dipped in utensil mikveh).

We took our last set (other than our good crystal that still has labels on them) to the Mikveh yesterday.  Our dishwasher has been running a ton of loads to wash the toveled dishes.  Since a Mikveh is fed from rain water, the dishes were quite dirty and needed to be re-cleaned.  We are still washing dishes and placing them in the cabinets labeled with "Meat", "Dairy", and "Parve" stickers, but there is an end in sight.  The best feeling was knowing that we cooked our entire Shabbat dinner and break the fast meal completely Kosher.  We used Kosher dishes, on the Kosher counters, with Kosher food.

A Family Room

So, when we moved, we had the movers place every single box in the family room so that they were out of the way and we could unpack the boxes and move the items to the appropriate location.  The family room was practically wall to wall, floor to as tall as the movers (6 foot plus!!), carpet completely covered, etc.  The tile floor that led from the garage into the house was left open for walking, which was necessary. 

Over the last two and a half weeks, we slowly but surely emptied out the room.  Walking through the family room into and out of the house each day now gives us a sense of accomplishment.  We decided to truly make this the family room.  Part of the room is set aside as the girls' playroom.  It has a big book holder (I have a ton from my teaching days), an art easel, a rocking horse, a table and two chairs, a Lego box and a Lego wagon, and shelves waiting to be filled with the items we kept boxed up until we had a place for them.

Yes, D is usually wearing her bike helmet these days.  In the bottom picture, it is right before bedtime and she is even in her PJs.  She comes home, puts it on, and goes outside to ride her bike.  These pictures were taken as she noticed new items in the room.  We also have two love seats in the room and our new entertainment center in boxes.  The store is waiting on a few parts of the entertainment unit, so we can't put it together just yet.  It is nice to have a place where the girls can play and we can interact as a family.

Rosh Hashanah...Happy New Year!

What an awe inspiring few days I have had!!!  Wednesday night was Eruv Rosh Hashanah, followed by a three day Yom Tov.  Rosh Hashanah ended at sundown on Friday night, right as Shabbat began.  I learned a lot over the last few days and wanted to share the highlights.

• We are blessed to live in a community where we were invited to all four Yom Tov meals.
• Our  oven has a safety feature that turns itself off after a given (though unknown) amount of time.
• One of the Rabbis invited us as last minute Shabbat guests for dinner since our oven went cold and we were not supposed to turn it back on.
• Shabbat dinner with just the Rabbi's family felt like a true family dinner and was intimate and cozy.
• Our chulent was delicious, and we learned from making it for the first time.
• If you freeze Yartzeit candles, they last a little longer.
• A three day holiday takes a lot more planning and organizing if you are creating any meals or hosting any guests.
• Finding the right combination of favorite toys and comfort items will allow an 18 month old with separation anxiety to feel comfortable enough to let Mommy leave her in childcare so that Mommy can pray.
• A mommy who is not used to this will leave praying numerous times to listen outside of said daughter's childcare room to make sure this is really happening.

I hope to continue learning about and through the holidays as this year and future years progress.  We are already looking toward Yom Kippur (Friday night) and Sukkot which follows shortly thereafter.

Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah

This past weekend was the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah.  It is the creation story in the Torah.  This is the time where we read about the creation of the heavens and earth, the water and land, day and night, etc.  While I was sitting at Shabbat dinner at a house that we have never eaten at before, I looked around at the group they had assembled.  In the Orthodox world, most Friday night dinners are graced with numerous guests, and this one was no different.

There was the host family and their four children.  Sitting next to them was a single mother and her two preteen sons.  To their right was a family with two of their children eating with us and another spending Shabbat "down south" (in the south eruv).  The parents were the guest speakers for Shabbat services and a ladies learning.  Next to them were three teenage girls who were boarding "down south" and visiting for Shabbat.  Then there was my family of four.  The hosts (a Rabbi and Rebitzen) were very laid back and comfortable being a part of a diverse group.  The children walked a thin line between sitting and playing, with playing taking the lead for most of the meal. 

After the meal, and before dessert, the Rabbi did a little Torah talk.  The discussion was on the Torah portion, which is the creation story.  The Rabbi's take on it was that at this time of the year, as we are making new year's resolutions, starting the Teshuvah (forgiveness) process, and preparing for the holidays in general, this is also a time for us to recreate ourselves.  We can take the qualities we were not as happy with this year and turn them into something we are proud of.  We can improve on ourselves, as we are constantly a work in progress.

As I go into Rosh Hashanah, starting tomorrow night, I will be thinking of what I want to accomplish in the coming year and who I want to be.  G-d is giving me the chance to recreate myself and improve on the areas that I feel need to be tweaked.

L'Shanah Tovah, Happy New Year.  May the New Year be a Good Year.

Sukkah Shopping!

Since we moved into our new house (okay, since we started squatting there), our family wanted to start celebrating our Judaism in different ways.  The first step is Shabbos (or Shabbat).  Our family received a dinner invitation for tonight, and we get to walk there!!!  The house is two streets away (give or take) and D is so excited that it is so close.  We are also participating in a Shabbaton this weekend at the DATA (Dallas Area Torah Association) center.  This is about half a mile from the house.  As we start to unpack our boxes (we are making progress), we are setting up a hand washing station at the wet bar.

We also decided that we wanted to build a Sukkah this year.  Since we live so close to family and friends, this is a great way to make every day of Sukkot special.  I ordered the Sukkah kit, luluv and etrog this week, and they will be here in time to set them up for Sukkot.   I know that D and Little L will love eating outside in the sukkah and will enjoy decorating it with us.  What great memories we hope to make with our family and friends.

Blessings Abound

I realize that after G-d tests you, you are showered with blessings.  And that, that we have been.  We officially closed on our house Tuesday (yesterday), so when I went to the house after dance class, it was really "going home".  But our blessings started before that.

On Sunday, I got a phone call from a woman I went to Israel with asking if she could arrange dinners for my family while we got settled.  What a mitzvah?!?!?!  We did not have anything in our house unpacked and the fridge wasn't even set up.  We thanked her profusely and told her what a blessing the dinners would be.  On Monday night, our first dinner arrived and it was so wonderful to come home to a freshly made dinner, especially since we still haven't gotten down to our pots and pans!!!

Tuesday night, another dinner arrived at our home and we were able to eat a healthy and delicious dinner as a family.  We are so blessed that our new Jewish community is providing food for us this week to help us get settled.

As if a week's worth of dinners wasn't enough, there are more blessings.  We have had three invitations to Shabbos dinner this Friday night!!!!  Since we don't play favorites, we accepted the first offer.  The other offers are working with us to find other times for our family to come to dinner.  We are having second night Rosh Hashanah dinner at one house and will probably be doing next Shabbat with the other family.

The community around us is lifting us up and making us not only feel welcome, but a part of the community.  Husband is already taking classes and learning.  I went to my first Sisterhood meeting.  The girls are excited when someone comes to our house to deliver food.  What blessings we have living in our new house surrounded by a community that has welcomed us with open arms.  This is my first time to live in a community where I knew neighbors nearby (as an adult) and where I felt this welcome and wanted. 

Things are looking good as we notice all of our new blessings.

Squatters

http://www.merriam-webster.com/ defines a squatter as: : one that squats: as a: one that settles on property without right or title or payment of rent b: one that settles on public land under government regulation with the purpose of acquiring title.  That's us!

We are settling on a property without the title or paying rent.  With permission of course!!  So, last week was more than I could handle.  There were tears, there was screaming, there were a few choice words, and there was defeat.  On Wednesday afternoon, we were told that we were not closing at 8:30 AM on Thursday as anticipated.  On Thursday early afternoon, we were told that we were closing at 4:30 that same day.  As I was at the bank getting the cashiers' check, I was told that closing wasn't happening that day.

When husband showed up at the realtor's office for closing (while I was in route from the bank), they explained that we would be closing on Tuesday.  We had booked and cancelled movers, we had gotten a cashier's check, we had told our family that we were moving, only to hit another brick wall.  Our realtor had contacted the selling realtor and gotten permission for us to get a key and move in.  This signaled hope for us.

On Friday, I met the movers at our storage units and we unloaded both of them.  On Sunday afternoon, we cleaned out the fridge and got it up and running, set up the girls' room, put our bed together, and made lunches.  To most, this doesn't seem like much.  True,  there is still an entire room full of boxes that we cannot walk into.  True, the girls' only had one choice for lunch.  True, I had to use the diaper bag wipes because I have no way to get into the brand new box of wipes (didn't leave out scissors).  But, we spent our first night in our new house.

D slept in a bed instead of a pallet on the floor for the first time in a couple of weeks.  The girls had room to play without us worrying about them waking others or breaking something.  Tonight we will unpack more bags from our stay with my brother and sister in law and start to make the house our home, but for right now, we are  squatters!

This is Just a Test, It is Only a Test

I am a firm believer in being tested by G-d.  God tests us on a regular basis to remind us of numerous things including (but not limited to): patience, forgiveness, understanding, compassion, gratefulness, kindness to strangers, etc.  Over the last few months (a little over 3 months), I feel that G-d has been testing our family even more.

On June 30th, we moved our family of 4 to a two bedroom apartment.  This was a test for our family.  We moved from a 1500 square foot house to a much smaller apartment.

On August 8th, we were tested again when we were ready to close on our new house, and found out that due to Mortgage Fraud, there is a law that the current homeowners have to own the house for a minimum of 90 days before they can sell it.  Therefore, we were NOT getting our house yet and had to wait another full month.

On September 7th, we found out that we were not closing at the closing time that we had scheduled and did not know when we would be closing.  On September 8th, we were given a new closing time for that same day.  As I was at the bank getting our money to pay for our new house, we got a call stating that once again, we were not closing on the scheduled closing day.  We now have a new closing day of September 13th.

I have had a couple of breakdowns, we have had numerous fits from children living in the chaos, and we have had numerous deep conversations.  There have been kind words, hugs aplenty, and smiles galore.  The girls have deepened their relationship with their Aunt and Uncle, we have learned to live in a smaller space and be considerate of others around us, and appreciate what we have.  Our patience for each other has increased, while our quantity of things has decreased.  The lessons we have learned from our tests have been immeasurable.

We realize that things are much worse for others we know.  There is a four year old fighting Leukemia, a four year old fighting brain cancer, family friends who had one parent laid off and are living on one income, and so much more.  Our situation is minimal compared to the trials they are living through.  Our thoughts and prayers are with those who are struggling with anything in their life.

A Community Inside and Out

Once in a while, a situation happens that makes you realize how blessed you really are.  I am truly blessed to work at a school that is a community, inside and out.

This week had a couple of milestones and circumstances. One of our teachers had her first child's Bat Mitzvah.  The daughter spent time on Chesed projects, learning, and creating a D'Var Torah.  The staff rallied around the family and pitched in to either provide refreshments or to set up.

In this same week, a family was touched by tragedy.  The father of three students suddenly passed away.  The classmates surrounded their friends with love and support.  All three grade levels left school to make a Shiva call.  The Middle School held Kaddish for the students and their families who were sitting Shiva.  For the entire week, every morning you would see the generations of this family praying side by side with our students.  The students were respectful, thoughtful, and considerate.

The fact that our students stepped up and eased just a little of the pain that these children were facing is amazing.  The family will never be the same, but they know that they belong to a community that surrounds each and every one of them with love.

Getting Settled, sorta

For those who have been reading this blog or have had a conversation with me recently, you will know that we are technically homeless.  Because of mess ups with the house, we got out of our apartment lease and couldn't get back in.  We should be signing a contract to buy our house on September 8th, but until then, we do not have our own place.

My brother and his wife (newlyweds), are allowing my family of 4 to live in their guest room and office.  This weekend, we spent time organizing and tidying up to make things easier on us.  The formal living and dining was littered with boxes and bags and toys.  Now, everything is in a box tucked behind the dining room table and is out of sight.  Our lunch making station (non-refrigerated items) are laid out on the table so that we can pack lunches quickly.  Then we moved upstairs.....

The girls' clothes are in rolling carts in their room and are organized so that D can help get clothes out each night for the next day.  We have a "changing station" on the floor next to the bathroom for Little L as well as one downstairs so that I don't have to go up and down the stairs more than necessary.  We unpacked our suitcases and organized our clothes so that we don't have the morning scramble each and every morning.

These little things that we did to make us feel a little more settled have helped more than we can imagine.  Husband and the girls have left on time (and even early!!!) for the last two days, instead of Husband being stressed out and late because he takes the girls to school!  I have been at school earlier than ever!  Things are looking calmer, and that is the most important thing.

Counting My Blessings

Yesterday, I went back to work full time.  As we hustled to get lunches packed, a cranky child dressed and fed, etc. we were tripping all over each other in our little two bedroom apartment.  After husband and Little L left for school and work, it was just D and I at home for a little while.  I dropped her off at Adventure Kids (where she had an amazing time), and I had a drive into work by myself. 

I decided to turn off the radio and count my blessings.  Here they are in no particular order and I am sure that I have forgotten several, but it is a start.

1.  My parents have been watching my dog while we are living in the apartment and will keep her until we are settled in the house.
2. My parents drove up the DFW to help us move into the house (when we thought that we were moving in the beginning of August), when we couldn't move into a house, they helped us move into storage units.
3. My brother helped us move into the apartment and into the storage unit.  That is two different moves that he has helped us with in a relatively short period.
4.  My brother and sister in law are allowing us to live with them and take over the second story of their house for three weeks until we can close on the house.  This is completely selfless and kindhearted on their part and we are truly appreciative.
5.  My husband has been patient, kind, considerate, and de-stressing as we have gone through all of the drama with the house.  He has kept me calm and has dealt well with my hormonal mood swings since I am now 22 weeks pregnant.
6. My children are amazing!!!  The girls have taken to living in the apartment so well.  Even though it is crowded, they find ways to play so creatively and nicely together.  They have taken all of the chaos in stride and are so resilient.
7.  My friend and coworker has cooked my family two dinners.  She delivered one when we moved into the apartment and then another one when my parents were in town because she could see that I was unraveling quickly.  The dinners were delicious and even included Challah for Shabbat and dessert.  This same woman even helped orchestrate two play dates for our kids to get us out of the apartment and to let my kids have a fun time.
8. I am blessed that Husband and I not only have jobs, but we both have jobs that we love.
9.  We are also blessed that our family members are in good health and good spirits.  The entire buying a house, delaying moving in, etc. has brought us closer together.  We really are a family filled with love.

The Air Goes out of our Sails (or Bed)

Last night was not a good night in our household.  We spent yesterday doing everything we could to be ready for today, since it was Little L's first day back at school and Husband had Convocation and meetings all day today.  We went shopping for everything Little L would need for school including a new lunch box and sippy cup.  After bath time last night, I laid out her first day of school outfit, packed her supply bag full of wipes and diapers, and changes of clothes, and made her lunch.  We were feeling good about how ready we were for today.

Then, around midnight, D woke up screaming.  She said her stomach hurt.  We tried going potty, rubbing her tummy, laying in a different position, etc.  She ended up getting a little sick, but felt much better afterwards.  Since we wanted to keep an eye on her, we moved her into our room. 

This weekend my parents and brother helped us move the big furniture that we couldn't fit into my car and put it into a storage unit since we will be transient for a while before we can move into the house.  This of course included our queen size bed.  We have an inflatable bed that has legs attached so that when it is full, it is the size of a bed.  Well, we think it must have a hole, because around 4:30, there was no air left in it.  The rest of our night was spent sleeping on the floor.  Let's hope that tonight goes better for us!

When it Rains, It Pours (in the middle of a drought!)

Once again, chaos has ensued at my apartment.  On Thursday, we found out that the house was in the worst flood plain even though the survey said it wasn't.  According to FEMA, it is.  We are seeing what we can do to fix this because lenders make you pay for flood insurance and for the level of flood plain it is, wowsers!!!

Then on Friday, we found out that we couldn't close on Monday, as anticipated.  There is a federal law about homeowners having to own a home for 90 days before they can sell it.  This started due to Mortgage fraud and such and has been a law for about a year.  Even though everyone suspected that it was a flipped house, no one caught how this would affect closing.  That means the flippers didn't know the law, their realtor didn't know the law, and our realtor didn't catch the problem. So our closing date has been moved once again.h

Then, we took the girls to the doctor because they both had coughs.  D's cough was sounding more like a drainage cough, but she was diagnoses with a sinus infection and allergies.  Little L was diagnosed with a cold where we "treat the symptoms".  Little L breaths like Darth Vader and has a barking cough, but didn't get any medication.  D broke out with a full body rash today, two days after she went to the doctor.

While the pregnancy is going pretty well, the stress and anxiety from everything else going on is wearing on me.  Hopefully, things will feel settled soon.

Ketchup or Catch up?

Do you ever feel like the more you do the more there is still left undone?  I feel like I have done laundry for a week!!  Today, the hampers are empty, the basket that I carry from the laundry room is empty, and the clothes have all been folded and put away.  Finally!  Then, Little L got smashed up banana all over her shirt and D spilt bright pink (thanks Colgate) toothpaste on her pajama shirt at bedtime.  I see another load of laundry in my future. 

Tomorrow, we have a dinner play date with a coworker of mine and her son, which D is super excited about.  During the day, I will start packing boxes of items that we did unpack since we thought we would be at the apartment for four full months.  I am ready to feel settled, but until then, I can be comforted to know that as unsettled as we are, we still have some aspects of being settled.  Things like dish washers to empty and clothes to be washed.  They will still be there in the morning.....

The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men

Today was Husband's last day of vacation before he heads back to work.  We wanted to do something fun as a family, so we loaded up the minivan and headed to Grapevine Mills to check out the aquarium.  After standing in line for a few minutes, we decided to ask how long the wait was to get in.  The guy working said, about an hour, and that was the shortest wait of the day!!!  There was NO way that my girls were going to stand in line for an hour, so we ditched those plans.

The day wasn't the fun, exciting, memorable last day before work that I wanted it to be, but we did get to spend it together.  We spent the day running errands and grabbing some great deals (2-pocket folders with brads for a penny!!!).  Even though it wasn't what we were hoping for, it was nice to spend the day together and my girls were exhausted when they crawled into bed.  We were only called in once and it was by Little L who thought she deserved to stay up later.  D slept through the entire thing.  Ah....

Now to face the next week and a half with just me and the girls.  Anyone have any cheap, air conditioned ideas to help a mother out?

Where did it go?

Where did my summer go?  This is the first summer I had entirely off in over 3 years and I had BIG plans for it.  As the saying goes, "Man plans and God laughs."  We have been super busy, but I will NOT go back to work feeling rested in the least.

First, we put our house on the market.  This decision came after many years of discussing, debating, and improving on the house.  We loved our little house, but we were outgrowing it rapidly, plus it was nowhere near our family, friends, or Jewish community.  With baby number 3 on the way, our small house wasn't going to cut it anymore.  Ten days after putting it on the market, we had an offer on our house!!!!  I freaked out because I thought that I had plenty of time to find a new house in the area we wanted.  Boy was I wrong!!!  After closing at the end of June, we moved our family of four to a two bedroom apartment and signed a short term lease.  The apartment is lovely and we would have stayed longer if they had 3 bedrooms, but they didn't.

Then the traveling began.  First, we took the girls to visit my parents and Sea World.  D loved the shows, animals, and water park.

Little L loved dancing to Elmo and Friends!  The trip was rushed, but everyone had a great time.  My mom is now out of the cast and feeling better.

Shortly after our trip to San Antonio, it was time to visit my in laws in Florida.  Neither girl has been to the beach, so I was curious as to how they would act.  D couldn't get enough of it!!!  She loved the crashing waves, the sand on the beach (but not in her shoes), and would have stayed even longer if we would have let her.  Little L was more hesitant, of course, but she warmed up quickly.  She really liked putting sand in her bucket and pouring it out, and even braved the waves with us.  D liked watching the Blue Angels who were putting on quite a show for us.

When we got home from Florida, the search for a house continued.  We knew what we were looking for (and had looked at a LOT of houses), but we still had not found our house.  The day after we got home, we looked at a house and it was perfect!!!  We looked at it 3 times that day (once with my Sister-In-Law, once with realtor, and once with Brother and Sister-In-Law).  The house was just right for my family.  So, as of right now, we are closing on August 8th, which is after Husband goes back to work.  That makes it a little tough, but well worth it.  We hope to be mostly settled before I return to work.

So, it was a crazy, full, busy summer.  It was great and my children got to do things they have never done before.  I just wish it wasn't so darn hot!!

It's Been a While

So, I need to start off with an apology of sorts.  Life got a hold of me and I stopped updating my blog.  I found out recently by several of you, that this is basically how you keep up with what is going on with me and my family. 

Since I last wrote in March, things have been rolling along cheerfully, for the most part.  In April, I took the girls by myself to Houston.  D and Little L enjoyed walking around Buc-ee's.  For those of you who don't know what that is, it is better than a gas station with some of the largest and cleanest bathrooms I have ever seen.  We got to spend three nights with Gigi, my grandmother, and they totally had a blast.  Gigi took us shopping for matching outfits, bought us a bunch of toys including two large balls, and took us to the park across the street.  The time went too quickly, but it was a lot of fun.

May was a month of celebrating.  My mother took her mother (Gigi) to the Kentucky Derby!!  They both wore fancy, but tasteful hats (no Prince William's wedding style hats here!) and had a blast.  The men were southern gentlemen who helped them out whenever they turned around.  Both of them knew it was a trip of a lifetime and a wonderful way to spend Mother's Day.

My dad came to visit us for Mother's Day.  D had her very first dance recital so he came to watch.  She did a tap and a ballet number and my almost 4 year old actually danced!!!!  I was completely prepared for her to just stand up there, but she didn't.  The tap routine had them dancing with a stick, which made the other mommies and I worried.  There were no casualties or injuries.

Shortly after Mother's Day, we put our house on the market.  Our nice 3 bedroom, 2 bath house was not meeting our needs anymore.  Since most of our family, friends, and activities are in Dallas, we decided that we didn't like missing out on things because we live too far away.  Ten days after our house was listed, we had a total of 21 showings and two offers.

On June 30th, we will be closing on our house and moving into an apartment for a few months.  We found a nice apartment that specializes in short term leases while we look for a house in Plano/North Dallas.  Since we were not expecting our house to sell so quickly, we hadn't really been looking at houses, but we have spent a lot of evenings and Sundays looking now.  Hopefully we will find our home soon enough.

Husband finished up his first year as an Educational Diagnostician and had a great year.  He has a group of friends and feels like this is a great place for him.  I finished up my first year back at teaching and LOVED it!!!  It was a nice reminder of why I got into education in the first place.  D and Little L had a great year at their dual language campus and D is singing and telling us words in Spanish all of the time.  I will try to write soon with our new updates and progress on the move.

Coincidence?

Today a coworker/friend lent me two books that she highly recommended.  I love books and am thrilled when someone else recommends them because I know that at least one person found value in the book.  The books are: Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and Cinderella Ate My Daughter.  So, what is the coincidence you ask?

Today in the mail, my oldest daughter D received a special delivery. 

A couple of weeks ago, I entered a contest to win a free shoe delivery from Snow White through Pretty Princess Parties (DFW).  We found out this morning that the shoes were on their way, and when I checked my mail, there they were!!!  So, Cinderella Ate My Daughter and Snow White shoes on the same day?
D LOVES her new shoes and the note from Snow White. 

She asked where Snow White was, and we told her that Snow White was at her castle.  She immediately put on the shoes and started prancing around the house. 

We made sure that the shoes were in a place where she could see them as she drifted off to sleep. 

I am sure she is dreaming about Snow White, the castle, her new dress up shoes, and her personal letter from Snow White.  Sweet Dreams!

Self medicating for the wrong thing

Sunday, as you read in my last blog, was a very busy day for us.  So, when my neck and upper shoulder started hurting, I thought I had just pushed myself a little too far.  I thought I had strained a muscle or something like that.  Instantly, I went into self-medicating mode.  First, I took Advil and applied heat.  Then, I tried Tylenol and applied heat.  Finally, I attempted Excedrin and once again applied heat.  None of these truly eased my discomfort, but the hot pad and Bengay released some of the tension in my neck for a VERY brief time. 

Then, this morning I woke up and couldn't turn my head at all, brush my hair because it hurt to extend my arm in that direction, and needed help putting my shirt on.  Okay, I finally decided that maybe I need to see a doctor.  I checked into CareNow at 5:45 (I was up anyways) and they would have me in their system when they opened their doors at 8.  I arrived at 7:55 and checked in.  Soon after, I was hustled back to the room.  Two hours, one steroid shot, and two prescriptions later, I was diagnosed with Mono.

I thought this was a teenage disease from kissing.  At my age, this shouldn't be a concern of mine.  Turns out, it is a virus in the spleen.  The doctors treat the symptoms, which vary greatly from sore throat to exhaustion, but cannot treat the disease.  You actually get Mono two to three weeks BEFORE you show symptoms, and you can continue to show symptoms for up to a MONTH after you have been diagnosed!!!  The doctor told me to drink lots of fluids (hard when it hurts to swallow) and get lots of rest (hard with two young children who don't really get that mommy is sick), but told me I could go right back to work.  Oh yeah, she also told me to avoid contact sports.  I told her I avoid those without a doctor's orders!

What a Weekend!

What a crazy full weekend we have had in our household!  The focus this weekend was on the lawn.  We started by mowing the front yard.  We put grass seed down two weeks ago, and were told to water it often and wait two weeks to mow.  So, Friday afternoon, it was mowed.  Then the yard work and chores increased. 

We Kashered our pantry to prepare for Passover (which starts Monday night in a week).  We started to clean out the fridge and freezer as well, so we will be eating a lot from those two places before Passover.  To Kasher the pantry, we started by emptying everything out.  As we took the items out, we separated them into two piles-Kosher for Passover and not Kosher for Passover.  Then, we scrubbed down the shelves and scrubbed the floor of the pantry.  Since it was empty and needed sprucing up, we put shelf liner on all of the shelves and reorganized it as we reloaded it with items okay for Passover.

Then, we moved onto yard work.  Husband power washed two-thirds of our deck.  To some, this may not be a big deal, but our deck has three layers and each layer could easily fit an outdoor living room or dining room (so it is BIG).  The power washer got tired a couple of times and needed to rest, but husband didn't stop working.  I weeded the front landscaping so that we could replant with fresh new flowers.

Today, the BIG work started.  We removed rocks from the side of our entry to make way for flowers.  Big sister D got some work gloves and lent a hand.

Little L hung out in a pack and play filled with toys.  Mostly she stood up and talked to us, but she did play some.

D was so excited with her new gloves, that she had to show them off to anyone who would look.  Little L was a captive audience.

It took us two trips to Lowe's, one trip to Marshall's Grain Company, one really long nap by both girls at the same time, and the entire day.  After the first trip to Lowe's, we realized that we had grossly underestimated our needs, so I schlepped back (thank goodness it is right around the corner).  The back of the Mom Mobile was PACKED (and we still didn't have everything we needed)!

After all of this got planted, we headed to a different store, Marshall Grain, to pick up some taller plants.  The front is almost done.  We still need to get mulch, but it is looking good.  We even had enough energy to wash 6 loads of laundry and start mowing the backyard.  Hopefully, the Advil will keep the body pains at bay, because everyone will sleep well tonight!

Laundry Day

So, I am NOT a fan of doing laundry.  The problem isn't the collecting from hampers, putting it into the washing machine, or transferring to the dryer.  I really don't like the folding, hanging, and putting away.  It is time consuming.  It takes longer to fold, hang, and put away one load of clothes than to empty the dishwasher (or fill it up for that matter).  Plus, the most annoying part is the pile of stray socks that I am stuck with.  How these socks lose their mates is beyond me.  I think I will be buying all white socks in both girls sizes, then no matter what, they will match something.

Hmm..I don't know if I can give up the socks that match with the girls' outfits quite yet.  Hopefully, I will find a use for all of those mismatched individual socks one day.

A Time for Family

Several times over the last three days I have been reminded of how precious family is.  Last week, husband and I decided that since I am off for Passover break (a week and a half!), I should take the girls to see my grandmother.  The drive will be a minimum of 5 hours, depending on crying one year old, potty breaks for 3.5 year old, and caffeine for me. 

My grandmother, the last of all of my grandparents, is 91 years old.  She asks me during each of my weekly phone calls about the girls and is terrified that she will not ever see them again because she cannot travel easily (though she offered to fly here to drive back with me.  Sweet kind woman that she is!). 

I am not taking the trip for myself, even though I deeply love my grandmother and want to see her.  I am not truly doing it for her, though I think she believes that I am.  I am taking the girls on a road trip by myself for my girls.  They deserve wonderful memories of their great grandmother.  They deserve pictures of her with them.  They deserve to be spoiled rotten by her.  Most importantly, they deserve HER!!

My grandmother with my big girl, D, at her baby naming.

My grandmother with BOTH of my girls celebrating her 90th birthday just 3 weeks after Little L was born.

We are Family!

I found out on Sunday that a friend of mine's husband's grandmother passed away.  They just saw her a month or so ago, and this was very sudden.  Another coworker spent yesterday at the hospital with her teenage daughter trying to figure out why the daughter is so sick.

Why am I bringing up lose of family and sick family members?  Because, I am constantly reminded of the "family" I work with.  When a coworker needed to go home because her daughter had been sick and the mom was barely functioning, the school rallied behind her and pitched in to send her home.  When the other coworker needed to go to the hospital today to check on her daughter, teachers stepped in to cover her classes so that she could take care of her family.  When I had to bring a sick child to work so I could put together lesson plans for a sub, teachers offered to help or cancel their classes with me.

I am truly blessed to work in a place that not only says, "Family First", but backs it up.  A member of the leadership team covered my class one day when I couldn't get a sub.  The teachers notice if you are not at school, running late, or acting differently.  And they ASK if everything is okay.  I am so appreciative to work with people who treat each other as family and pitch in when times are tough.

Drinking and Driving!

D loves her Dora bike that Uncle gave her for Chanukah two years ago.  She loves it so much, that when she is on it, she wants to stop for nothing.

So, she drinks and drives.

But at least she wears a helmet!

We Walkin' , Yes indeed!!!

I realize that I haven't posted in quite a while (like since Little L turned 1) and I am sorry.  Life here has been quite busy.  Things at work have been busier, but they are slowing down somewhat.

In the last two weeks, Little L has taken off!  She has a bunch of words including: uh oh, all done, all gone, hi, DA DA, and up.  She went from charging into things with her crawl to walking!  She is still unsteady, but she walks everywhere.  A crawl is so beneath her!  Even when she takes a few steps and falls, she gets right back up and walks again.  She loves to walk and walk and walk.

After her birthday, she gave up formula and her bottle.  We did a "cold turkey quit" and she didn't even blink an eye!  She loves milk and her sippy cup!  She drinks a lot of water out of the cup too and loves that she can carry it herself, usually by the handles, but sometimes in her teeth!

Tomorrow we are going to the Dallas Kosher Chili Cookoff.  We had such a good time last year and are hoping that D will even taste some this time.  Little L will try anything, so it should be fun!

Fabulous First Fiesta!

What a great birthday party we had last Sunday.  Little L turned one!!!!  We had family, and just a few friends over for a party.

Little L was all smiles as her guests arrived.  We started with cake, because we could!!

The top was confetti cake and the bottom was strawberry.  The cake balls around the outside were chocolate.  I piped a little purple on the top and added a band of Mike and Ike's to add some color.  The green cakes are "cacti" and one was Little L's smash cake.

Little L thought the cake was lip smacking good!!!  We decorated maracas and picture frames with markers and fiesta stickers.  The kids picked flowers (dandelions mainly) and ran through the grass.  They also kicked a ball around in the yard while the adults chatted.

The hot dog lunch was a huge success as well.  D tried to eat it in a bun for the first time.  Little L got small bites of cut up hot dogs, which she enjoyed.  Each guest left with a pinata stuffed with toys and candy.

Little L CRASHED after her guests left.  It is hard to be the center of attention.



Tuesday looked like Monday to me

Do you ever have a day that seems to drag on forever while speeding by?  Does one event catapult you into a never ending day in desperate need of a "do over"?  Well, ladies and gentlemen, that was my day on Tuesday.

I got into my car to go to work and saw that my gas light was on.  No big deal as I drive past my favorite gas station on my way to school.  As I started to back out of the drive, I realized that something was wrong with my car.  It wasn't riding correctly at all.  I pulled over right in front of my house only to see that I had a flat tire.  This wasn't a small hole, get a patch kind of flat.  This was an unfixable, my tire is now in two parts torn on the tread, going to need a new tire type of flat.  Thank God for AAA!!!  I got out my trusty card and dialed the number.  I had less than an hour until they would arrive, so I went into my house and after calling work to let them know what happened, I did what any other stranded at home person would do.  I folded laundry. 

When the tow truck arrived, we searched for the spare only to find it between the front seat and middle row of the mini van.  Not easy to get to.  I held up the trap door while the tow guy used tools to get the spare out.  I have NO idea how he would have done it on his own.  He threw the spare on, told me that all of my tires were in a similar situation, and thanked me for calling.  He thanked me!!!  Now, I of course had thanked him profusely for being my knight in a shiny white tow truck, but it was kind of him.

So, off to the tire store I drove.  When I got there, the assistant manager (I think) came out to my car.  He looked at my tire and was very impressed.  It was in two distinct pieces I tell you!!  I was in and out in under 30 minutes with four fancy new tires.  He did try to Pimp My Ride, but a pimped minivan is just wrong on so many levels.  Then I was off to work, finally!!!

When I arrived, I thought that I was 30 minutes before my first class.  I was actually 30 minutes late for a class using the lab for research!!  OY!!!  So, my day officially started at 10, and the first break I got in my day (other than a quick potty break during a research time) was at 3.  I had classes coming in for research, classes I was teaching, and a club I lead.  After classes, I picked up the girls to take them to dance (D dances tap and ballet while Little L entertains the parents).  We finally got home around 7:15.  My day still wasn't over.

After feeding the girls and putting them to bed, I still had work to do.  I baked pizza dough for this weekend when my parents are in town.  I started the cake balls that will adorn the birthday cake I am making for Little L's first birthday.  The sink full of dishes was washed out and the dishwasher was run.  After moving a load of laundry into the dryer, I finally fell into bed. 

It really was a never ending day.  But I made it through with a lot of praying (after paying the tire bill!!), focus on work, and a pie that husband threw into my lunch bag.  Not bad for one day's work.

Irish Eyes are Smiling!

My followers will remember that I made matching shirts for the girls to wear to the Irish Festival this past Sunday.  They came out great, and the weather was warm enough to actually wear them!!!

The girls had so much fun at the Irish Festival.  Little L was a huge fan of the people watching.

And eating.  She has the top of a bread bowl here and it is very exciting for her.

She is shoving more food into her mouth.  She earned the title of "The Linebacker" for a reason!

D was excited by all of it.  She felt the temperature of a fountain.

She visited with all of the dogs.  She especially loved the Irish Wolfhound.  Yes, this one is as tall as she is!!

She watched her cousin Irish Dance from the best seat in the house.  She was getting tired at this point, so the smile is gone, but she is still having fun.

And she loved the attention she was getting for her special headband (which she actually wore all day!)

Most of all, she enjoyed matching her little sister and doted on her often.

All in all, it was a great day!!!

I Made it in March....First Item!

So, I decided that I need to step out of my comfort zone and create some items.  I have a love (but not a talent) for crafting.  I have tried numerous things from knitting to scrap booking to sewing.  All of these have been one hit wonders (or a few more).  So, I chose to make the girls matching shirts for the Irish Festival on Sunday.  I tried to buy matching shirts, but I didn't love any.  I know that to most people, this is NOT a big deal, but to me, it was HUGE!!!  Here is what I did. I found fun (and CHEAP) fabric.

Then I cut matching Shamrocks out of the fabric.

Next, I traced the Shamrocks onto Wonder Under.  This is great stuff for the beginning crafter.

After tracing, it was time to iron the shamrocks to the shirt.

Here is what the shamrock on the shirt looked like.

So far, so good!  Two shirts with shamrocks.

To make the shamrock POP, I traced it with gold fabric paint.

Matching, one of a kind shirts!  Now they just have to dry!!!

Next major project is baking Little L's first birthday cake.  If all goes well, it will go with the theme and be cute as can be!!  Stay posted for those pictures!