Pumpkin Patch

BP had his first pumpkin patch adventure a couple of weekends ago. He really enjoyed looking around at all the kids playing and all the big bright orange pumpkins. The rural community of Manchester hosts this every year to raise money for their community center (located in an old church). It was not exactly what I was expecting, but seemed fun for the kids!

Cleaning and Scrubbing (And Groceries) Can Wait till Tomorrow

Most of my days begin with this one simple question: What do I tackle first - and what won't get tackled at all? Water the plants, sweep the floor, mop the floor (especially the spot under Ben's chair where it seems half of his bowl of food ends up), do the dishes, fold the laundry, wash dirty diapers, make the bed, clip coupons, groceries... you get the picture! And with a boy as fun as BP, how will ANY of it get accomplished?!

Today, I am proud to say that I have watered the plants. Yep. And I'm planning to wash some dishes. And definitely make the bed. (I'm on a streak with that one.) But otherwise, I'm doubly proud to announce, that there isn't all that other stuff to do. I hosted a baby shower at my house yesterday. Thus, any mopping, sweeping, and dusting was done with fervor and due diligence (which means, to me of course, that it needn't be done again till the next shower we host.) All of this leaving me with a day for fun and frolicking about with my handsome boy. Well, I suppose there are some dirty clothes to wash ... and diapers ... and groceries ... Okay, so maybe a house wife and mom's job is never done. But I think all those other things will keep. Who knows what's in store for this nice sunny day?!

*Update on the coupon clipping - still a little overwhelmed. But clipping away. I did "buy" a large pack of name brand diapers, and wipes, and a gallon of milk the other day for only $5.80 at Walgreens. I think I will get the hang of it one of these days.

Discovering the coupon world... A hunt for TREASURE!

There is an entire underworld of couponing out there. You can get lost in it all if you're not careful. Yesterday I found myself wondering from blog to blog, website to website for HOURS. And then it all ended in me not saving money, but wasting time. So, beware - should you decide to join the coupon game, it will take over your life unless you enter with a plan! Here is my plan, now that I have wasted much time trying it the other way... and thanks to Erika for setting me straight! I'm going to start by bookmarking the following websites:

• www.couponmom.com
• www.faithfulprovisions.com - Mom of 4 who has a grocery budget of $40/week... and eats healthy!
• www.restaurant.com - Hoping to save big money for date nights here!

I've also subscribed to the following blogs so that I can get them in my Google Reader:

• A Thrifty Mom
• Coupon Cravings
• The Faithful Provisions feed

For the first few weeks, I will strictly use Coupon Mom and Faithful Provisions, while perusing the google reader feeds to get a better feel for other options.

JT and I are going to purchase a subscription to the Sunday Paper (at a discount here.)

I will purchase an accordion file folder where I will store my various coupons according to the "brand" of coupon (for ex: Proctor & Gamble or Red Plum.) And also by date. I know - it's a lot of organization... yikes!

Apparently the best way to do the coupon thing is to wait to use the coupon till the item goes on sale, or there is a double or triple coupon day. Thus the necessity for the file folder.
So, here begins my adventures in couponing. We'll see how I do - especially considering our lack of grocery store options in our sweet little town. (But we do have Walgreens and Walmart and Brookshires.) Wish me luck - and come along for the ride!

6 Months

We had our first attempt at a portrait sitting. It wasn't unsuccessful, but it was certainly stressful. I think we'll stick with taking "portrait pictures" at our "home studio" for a while. BP is SO cute. I mean, seriously - James and I will just stare at him and say out loud, "He is so cute." My heart is full. BP is learning to make raspberries with his mouth. It is the funniest thing to watch. Mostly his tongue gets stuck, leaving us with a luh-bluh sound. He has also found that sticking his fingers in his mouth makes it easier - plus, "how cool does my tongue feel?!" He's rocking and rolling, eating his toes, loving squash for dinner, and grabbing Mom's hair. It's amazing to watch his little personality develop. I get to watch him everyday all day. Is it possible that life could get any better than this?!

Time flies when you're having fun.

That was then...



This is now...


I can't believe my baby boy is 5 months already. He is so much fun. JT and I couldn't be prouder or more blessed. He is a beautiful boy. He is full of personality. He's discovering his voice - that it can create sounds that go up and down, that can have different "textures", and (my favorite) that it can be loud and soft... especially loud! He's discovering new ways to move his body - trying really hard to roll, but there's more grunting than rolling that happens! I love it when I'm holding him upright and he lifts his head up high and raises his eyebrows, looking around at all he can see and observe. He is just so cute, you could eat him up.

I also love that nothing phases him. Well, okay, there's the obvious - lack of sleep, or wanting to eat (now!), or needing a poopy diaper change. But otherwise, he is happy. JT or I could be stressed about work, or our house being a wreck, or our yard needing some major landscaping. But he is completely unphased and content. Politics is of no concern to him. He is unconcerned also with what people think about his hair (which is finally growing in - except for the patch on the back that has been rubbed off.) He really doesn't care what he's wearing, or how many times he's spit up on it. A big smile offered is met with an even bigger, brighter smile in return - that is the only requirement. There are no other expectations. Oh, to know that simplicity. Oh, to have that contentment in my own heart and life. BP, you inspire me.

In other news...
This time last year, we were announcing to our parents that we were pregnant. What a joyous time that was. What a wonderful memory. Time really does FLY when you're having fun!

Grampa Boh's Gown: A Line of Mothers

I am such a sentimental person. Heirlooms make me happy - like old friends with decades, even centuries of stories to be told behind their worn appearance. Take for instance the corner shelf found in the corner of my front room. It's covered mostly with dust, but also a few other pictures and tchotchkes that I've collected. Someday this may belong to a granddaughter or grandson, he or she will put their own little items on it, and maybe imagine what I placed on it once upon a time. Originally it belonged to my great-great grandmother. I have no idea what she placed on it, but I imagine her youthful hands carefully arranging things in just the right place, at just the right angle, just as I have done. What treasures did she have? Just to imagine her makes me feel closer to my own history.

In this photo, BP is wearing a very special heirloom belonging originally to my Great-Grandfather's family - his christening gown. To imagine a grandparent or great-grandparent that small is so difficult and fascinating. To imagine a great-grandparent who I have only heard stories of, wearing that gown is even more thrilling. What dreams of him his mother must have had as she watched her baby boy be christened! And who took the time to make this beautiful gown for him - did she? What joy and love must have captured her heart as she dressed him that day.

By now, a few generations of mothers have lived to watch their children be baptized, and grow, dreaming dreams for them. Some of these mothers, my grandmothers, have since passed on, though the gown remains. Generations of mothers have beamed with pride and love as they've dressed their child or children in such beautiful handiwork. I am now in that line of mothers.

Menu Plan Monday ~ March 1st

Found this blog today (now that I'm getting into this whole blogging world.) I am working on my weekly plan calendar, and one of the days includes menu planning and the next day is shopping day. Not sure I will adhere strictly to the schedule, but gonna give it a try nevertheless.

Menu Plan Monday ~ March 1st

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The Oscar Meyer Wiener Song - Really ???

So, in the midst of the crazy fog that is the first weeks of mommy-hood, my brain hit a roadblock anytime I attempted to sing sweet lullabies to my precious child. That roadblock song, beginning with the famous lyrics "My bologna has a first name..." could not possibly be the first song my child would be exposed to by his mother. Seriously, I'm a musician... an elementary music teacher for goodness sake. Is that the best I could do?!

At first, I tried to fight it, and just ended up sitting there stumped, staring blankly at my sweet boy. That wouldn't do. The next best song that would occasionally come to mind was a simple early elementary song from my college days in elementary music ed. classes: Hop Old Squirrel. (Hop old squirrel, eidel dum eidel dum - hop old squirrel eidel dum dee...) Not bad, but not great either.

Finally I gave in to good old Oscar Meyer, and decided by changing a few words here and there we could make it "our" own. It's no longer Oscar Meyer, and there is no longer any wiener involved... and it now happens to be one of his favorite songs.

Feel free to sing out loud. ...to the tune of the hot dog song:

My little boy has a first name, it's B-E-N-J-A-M-I-N (you have to spell that REALLY fast)
My little boy has a second name, it's _____ (because this is a public space, we'll leave that part out. :)
I love to hug him every day (sometimes I substitute "kiss" or "tickle" or "play with" for "hug.")
That is why I shout and say
That Benjamin has a way, with his M-O-M-M-A!

BFF

Benjamin and Nathaniel are already enjoying their playdates together. Born only 2 days apart, these two are destined to be BFFs... or at least their parents think so. We call it an "Arranged Friendship." Our two families have a short history of doing big life events together - moving cross-country (packed in the same u-haul), starting jobs in the same area of University life, getting pregnant within 2 months of each other, but then having the boys within 2 days of each other. So from sharing a u-haul to sharing a hospital, our lives are intertwined. And we are so glad to be able to share life with such good friends.

Where is Thumbkin... as well as the pacifiers, burp cloths, and my mind?!

Since the birth of BP, I seem to have lost my mind... even more! Pregnancy brain was a real thing for me, but I have since learned that there is such a thing as "Mommy brain". I am now learning how to use a calendar more regularly, and trying to get organized so things like the pacifiers don't go missing as often. But it is quite a challenge. I don't want to lose moments, though, so I am also learning to prioritize. My mom always had a cross-stitched picture hanging in my room that my Granny had given her. It read: "Cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow for babies grow up we've learned to our sorrow. So quiet down cobwebs, dust go to sleep. I'm rocking my baby and babies don't sleep." For some reason as a child, I decided to memorize that. And it has become such a real thing for me now. My little one is now 3 months old. He is in the nursery, supposed to be sleeping, but is instead exploring his voice. I am enjoying every moment of this adventure - in spite of the new "mommy brain."

This blog will include anecdotes and stories, pictures and videos, so that my family and friends - especially those far away - can peek into our little nursery rhyme world. Where is Thumbkin... Here I am!