Memoirs of a Moorings

Second Hand Fun

"I was so poor I had hand-me-down lunches." ~ Michael Nouri as Nick in "Flashdance"

I promised myself that this second child would get the thrill of knowing what a new toy felt like instead of constantly being given hand me down stuff. But seeing that his parents don't know how to throw anything away..it looks like he'll be stuck with a few second hand items for a while. We pulled this activity center out of garage last week and somebody (and their big brother) have been enjoying it to no end. A certain four-year-old is enjoying it so much that he keeps asking if he can sit in it.

Worth The Click Through

Love and adore this you.tube video. Love the little girl confidence. The joy!

Squirmy

"Children reinvent your world for you."  ~Susan Sarandon

Being that I am not a new mommy, I should know better than to put a baby who has discovered his squirminess anywhere where he can fall down. However, the past few days I've been saying to myself, "I can run over here in three seconds and he'll still be in the same place when I come back." He's proven me wrong every single time. So from now on, he will be strapped into his bouncy chair and can no longer chill alone on the couch--no, not even for a second.

Comfortable Company

"Brothers don't necessarily have to say anything to each other-they can sit in a room and be together and just be completely comfortable with each other."  ~ Leonardo DiCaprio

Love this photo...how they are both so into the TV...how big brother joined his baby brother on the floor...how he is holding his hand.

Whenever the baby is sitting by himself, Rhyan always says, "I'm going to go keep the baby comfortable."

Comfortable...company..it's all the same in this house.

"It's all love now......I think I'll save this picture for when they are older and the bickering starts.

W.ii Are Addicted

"Video games are bad for you? That's what they said about rock and roll." ~SHIGERU MIYAMOTO

My dad bought W.ii for our big boy. But it looks like we are all addicted. I've never been one for videos games, but I find myself saying, "okay, one more game and then it's your turn." The other night me and the hubby were up well past midnight racing each other on Mari.o Kart W.ii.

Not good.

So I have given myself a time limit and it is only on if someone else is in the house with me. I need someone to hold me accountable. I need treatment.

Thanks Daddy. Thanks alot.

Five Months and Counting....

"Never fear spoiling children by making them too happy. Happiness is the atmosphere in which all good affections grow." ~Thomas Bray

Seems like only yesterday we brought this skinny little baby home and now he's a whopping 15 pounds. Can we say good eater? We've started on the rice cereal and seems like he's enjoying it in between all the finger sucking.

None of us can get enough of this child. Daddy kisses him all day everyday and big brother is always trying to sneak and wake him up when he's napping so he can get some face time with his little bro. Too sweet.

Here's a little of what he's up to:

:: He's always on the look-out for daddy and big brother and greets them with the biggest smile.
:: He's taken to screaming at the top of his lungs. Very soprano-like...Vocal exercises for our future singer? We'll see.
:: Every thing that enters his hand must be pryed out..including mommy's hair. I picked him up the other day and he had the W*ii remote firmly in his grasp.
:: Sleeps soundly in his crib now.
:: Is still talking his head off?
:: Is so interested in every single thing that is going on around him.
:: Rarely cries.......unless he's starving or overly sleepy.
:: Is so fidgety. Diaper changes are a struggle these days.

I often wonder what life was like before this little one surprised us with his arrival. I can hardly remember.

Being Still: The One Thousand Gift List

"Blessed are the single-hearted, for they shall enjoy much peace. If you refuse to be hurried and pressed, if you stay your soul on God, nothing can keep you from that clearness of spirit which is life and peace. In that stillness you will know what His will is." ~Amy Carmichael

163. The sweet aroma of chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven
164. Little hands practicing letters and numbers
165. Smooth fat baby cheeks to kiss
166. A husband with a strong work ethic
167. Our little baby reaching to touch my face
168. And reaching for his own reflection in the mirror
169. A big brother who wakes and snuggles with "his" baby
170. The jasmine in full bloom in the front yard
171. Hands busy with creative projects
172. High-pitched baby squeals from a very vocal baby
173. A caregiver who is great with our big boy
174. Longtime friends from out of town gathered around the table for a home-cooked meal
175. And reminiscing about 23 years of friendship

176. A cousin who called to pray with me and encourage me

177. And reminded me of God's work in times past

178. A fresh cup of coffee

179. New green plants to liven up the house.

Four Year Old Randomness

    "Kids: they dance before they learn there is anything that isn't music."  ~William Stafford

The older this kid gets.....the funnier he is. He is notorious for disliking change. So when he came home last week to the den rearrangement, he immediately told me. "I'm jealous of you because this room is not correct. It's all crooked."

"What does jealous mean?" I asked him.

"Angry. And I'm still l jealous at you about this room."

And I hear that every single day.

My sister has gotten us all hooked on using the continuous shoot function on our point and shoot cameras. And we have a little subject who likes to "model" for us and do a different pose for every shot. Case in point:

Jump Start

“The creative mind plays with the object it loves." ~ Carl Gustav Jung

Been super busy around these parts. In between entertaining a little fat baby who wants you to be smiling in his face 24-7, I managed two invite/announcement projects.

My favorite was by far the 200 engagement announcements I finished up. My dear hubby even got crafty and helped finish them up when I couldn't see straight. Aren't they cute? Veronica--so glad you liked them :-)

And a friend from college called me out of the blue to ask me to do some bridal shower invites from her. These are an adaptation of an earlier invite.

I love being all creative and crafty--it gives me such a high!

And the One Project a Month has gotten me all excited about little things around the house that needed to be done that just didn't get done...and once they got done, I realized they only took a few minutes.....like:

~organizing all of the digital pics I downloaded into appropriately titled folders.

~hanging up two small filing shelves near my desk and actually cleaning off my desk
~ hanging up a towel rack in the master bathroom
~rearranging the den

It's amazing how doing those small things you've been meaning to do around the house can really re-energize you to get on track.

And I've gotten so much work done in the boy's room that I decided to post that other "before" picture from the previous post.

Now with all the mini-projects I've completed, I can go back to kissing that sweet little baby who wants all the attention! Of course I couldn't post without a picture of one of the boys. I would hear it from the grandparents.

 

 

Bring It On

"Amidst all the clutter, beyond all the obstacles, aside from all the static, are the goals set. Put your head down, do the best job possible, let the flak pass, and work towards those goals." ~Donald Rumsfeld

So after stalking photographer extraordinaire T.ara W.hitney's blog for months on end, (I was so close to contacting her for my belly shots) I  de-lurked my self to join her OPAM  (One Project A  Month) challenge. And with so much clutter in this household, I've decided to start big and take on the boy's room. Since the room got set up when I was pregnant, things were pretty much thrown together and have stayed that way since the arrival of our little one.
I took a full shot of the room, but it was such a mess I could dare show it all :-( Perhaps when I have some "after" pics.  *

I have until the end of the month to:

:: hang those shelves sitting behind their door
:: get rid of those horrible mini blinds and finish hanging the curtain rod and put up the curtains,
:: tame the toy monster
:: finish organizing the closet
:: clean up the blue horizontal stripe painted along the wall.

My head is spinning just thinking about it all. But I have put myself out there so I must finish. I think I can.....I think I can....

*updated to add: with so much progress. I felt brave enough to post the other before shot.