Maggie turned 4! (in April, and I am now writing about it)

Maggie, I love you dearly. We celebrated your birthday with a pinata at the park. This is what you most wanted to do for you birthday. You requested that your cake be strawberry pink (fresh strawberry frosting--yum!) with sprinkles, and you sprinkled it yourself. You also really, really wanted a training wheel bike. I loved going on rides with you on your new bike around our quiet Ithaca neighborhood. You are very sweet and strong willed. I think we say strong willed to describe children because we are trying to direct their will, but what I think strong willed really means is that you are strong. That is a very good thing to be. You are also very loving. You are the composer of many original songs. I hear a new one almost every day. Today you sang about Mister Potato Head. You love developing friendships and strike up conversations with strangers often (e.g. in the elevator, at stores, etc.). This year you attended and loved preschool and learned how to swim. You have been trying to learn how to skip and practicing for a few weeks, and I think you finally have it figured out. You love being outside, especially if sand and water are allowed. You love twirly dresses and princesses. You love to be silly. You love little Jackie-boy and we all love you.

Here are a few of your favorites (in your own words):

Favorite food: noodles
Favorite color: all the colors
Favorite toy: elephant (teeny beany from a kid's meal)
Favorite Show: a little bit of Frozen, Calliou, but I have lot's of shows that are my favorite, and the dragon one because it has some scary parts and I like all of them
Favorite outfit: go-up dresses and being a ballet. I just love to be ballerinas.
Favorite snack: apples and goldfishes
Favorite thing to eat for lunch: PB sandwich
Favorite game: Candyland and hide n seek cause I can hide, but I have lots of favorites of games
Favorite animal: dogs
Favorite song: Heavenly Father (A Child's Prayer) and I am a Child of God
Favorite book: princesses books
Best friend: Opal, Ethan, Stuart, Mrs. S. I have a lot of best friends
Favorite cereal: the cereal with cheerios and strawberries (Trader Joe's), oatmeal, raisin bran, oatmeal squares, I have a lot of favorite cereals
Favorite thing to do outside: play with my brother, like we can play tag and I like playing tag with my brother
Favorite drink: spicy drink and juice and water and milk
Favorite holiday: Easter and all kinds of ones because they give me all kinds of treats
What do you like to take to bed with you at night: stuffed animals and blankies
Favorite thing to eat for breakfast: oatmeal and cereal
Favorite treat: lollipops, suckers, and treats I give her
What do you want to be when you grow up?: a mom
Favorite flavor of ice cream: all kinds of flavors. I want to tell you four: blueberry, chocolate mint, white mint and strawberry mix
What do you want to do before your next birthday: go on a trip to see Jeff and Sam
Favorite sport: I have lots of them. How bout if I do 5? I like to dance, do workouts, play soccer, basketball, and I like to play softball. I like to do gymnastics.

Where we are now (Seattle), what we left behind, and what we brought with us

Here I am. I am going to continue telling our story even though it has been awhile. I won't try to pick up where I left off, but will just move forward.

Joe graduated from Cornell with his MBA (woo hoo!), and at the Dean's Brunch of graduation, he was given the award for the student who most contributed to Johnson, making it a better place for all. I was very appreciative when the award was given; I watched him over the last two years serving other students and the school (sometimes selfishly wishing he wasn't quite such a service-giving human, even while recognizing that his charitable nature is one of the things that made me fall in love with him in the first place). It was validating to see that others also appreciated his efforts. I have seen so much growth in Joe. I really admire him and I am very proud of him (in a wifey kind of way), and as challenging as the last two years have been at times, I am grateful for the experiences we had and the friends we made. I have a hard time seeing my own growth as I see Joe's, and sometimes I feel like I am standing still, or at the very most treading water. I hope that I am moving forward too. 

Well, at least I have moved in one way. We moved our little family to Seattle for the beginning of Joe's career as an MBA. He is working for Amazon.com. The first couple weeks seem to have gone pretty well, for which I am very grateful. 

Moving is hard. There are many, many good things about Seattle, and I am not unhappy to be here. But, moving is just hard. We are currently living in temporary housing. We'll move into our home-to-be on August 1. The kids and I go out and have fun each day (parks, beaches, library, soon the zoo and museums), but we are missing home, missing structure, and missing friends. So many things are still unsettled. The worst part for me is that I haven't been handling the stress well. With this stress, I have been more short tempered with my children. I made the choice to move them across the country and take them away from everything that they know to be home; I should be especially loving and understanding, even of their increases in misbehavior. Instead, I am quick to anger, impatient, edgy, distracted. I am trying to calm myself. 

Here is a list to help us remember the home we left behind.

1. Friends made all the difference. Moving to Ithaca wasn't easy either.

2. Visits with Jeff and Sam

3. 34 flavors of soft serve

4. Exploring the beautiful northeast--Boston, NYC, DC, Niagra Falls, Cooperstown, Charleston, Skaneateles, Rochester, Syracuse

5. White tailed deer in my neighborhood every day

6. Autumn

7. Fall festivals and Hollenbeck's cider press, pumpkin regatta and Keene, NH

8. Grisamore Farms (possibly the best apple, blueberry, and raspberry picking in the world), Iron Kettle Farms

9. Historical, beautiful Cornell Campus, red cobble stone roads, Sage Hall, the White Library

10. Sapsucker Woods

11. My running buddies

12. Red Barns and green farm fields, rolling hills covered with grass and trees

13. Winding country roads and charming little towns

14. Did I mention that Ithaca is gorges?

15. Waterfalls, waterfalls, waterfalls

16. Quite streets

17. The Sciencenter, YMCA (Maggie's first real swim with big arms and my first triathlon), Wegmanns

18. Killer icicles

19. Maggie's first snowman

20. Walking to and from BOCES ("Maggie is very popular") with friends, Tareyton Park, Mrs. S

21. Cinnamon Rolls and hot chocolate after trick-or-treating

22. Having a friend outside my building to chat with always (as long as it is like 20 degrees outside)

23. Bike rides and scooter rides along quite, pretty streets with Maggie

24. Groceries from the Hanks when we first moved in

25. Dropcam babysitting, fire pits, and parties at Winston Court

26. Trina, a lifesaver and practically a stranger at the time, babysitting Maggie so that Joe could be there for Jack's birth

27. Joe and Ray moving our huge armoire desk onto all 4 walls of the apartment, finally putting back where it started

28. Sage Socials, riding the bus, and Joe's fellow students acting like Maggie and Jack are the only 2 kids in the world

29. Fireflies and Flat Rock

30. Sunday walks (sometimes with flashlights and lots of clothes)

31. Playgroup helping us visit every park in town

32. Visits to the mall pet shop, cat annex, and doggie shampoo parlor at the weirdest mall in the world

33. Intramurals--Soccer for me and football for Joe

34.  Second year students giving us the low down, and their friendship
35. Driving past Cayuga Lake and watching it as the seasons change

I will always remember Ithaca fondly. I am going to add it to the list of places that I have lived and loved (along with every other place I have lived). In other words, I am looking forward to the time that I feel so fondly in love with Seattle as I do Ithaca. Goodbye Ithaca.

Jack Jack Jack

"His name is Jackie-boy Robinson," says Maggie when people try to meet "her baby."

So, Jackie-boy Robinson, here is a bit about you right now.

You are 20 months old! I kinda can't believe it. Maggie has started telling you recently, "I wish you could just stay my little baby." I think she says this because she has heard me say it so many times. That being said, of course, I love watching you grow.

You are such a fun little boy. You are very loving and affectionate. There is literally nothing in the world that makes me happier than when you run up to me, climb on my lap, tuck your little lips in, and say, "mmmm, maw!" while planting a kiss right on my lips.

You love to make people laugh. You love to play with Maggie. You love reading books. Your favorite book is Goodnight Gorilla.You love cooking up creations in your play kitchen while I cook dinner or clean right beside you. You love sweeping the floor! You love sitting on my lap and putting the shapes into a shape sorter. You love pushing animals around in a stroller. You love  to copy Maggie and try to do what ever it is she is doing. You love to hit balls with our dollar store plastic golf club. You love taking baths and brushing your teeth (by yourself). You are a tough little boy. You will tumble off the couch or fall off a chair, and just pick yourself right back up. Every once in awhile you will come to me asking me to kiss whatever you hurt in your fall, and then you are ready to play again.

You are a great eater, and especially love fruit. I think oranges or berries are probably your favorite foods. I have to be quick to clear your tray when you are done eating because if I am too slow (and I usually am) you quickly clean your own high chair by throwing your food and dishes on the floor. That  simple act is your way of making it very clear that you are done.

You are a surprisingly good helper (really). You are very socially aware. If we are cleaning up blocks, you clean up blocks. After a snack you toss your dish in the sink. You can barely reach the counter. About half of the time when you are trying to put your dish away, the dish comes back down on your head because you didn't get it quite far enough. Undeterred, you pick it up try again. When we are trying to leave the house you bring me your shoes (usually not a matched pair). I love asking you to put dirty clothes in the laundry because you haven't quite figured that one out yet. You always put the clothes somewhere (i.e. in my clothes drawer), but not necessarily in the hamper.

You take one nap a day. Before your nap, we sit in in a rocking chair and read books. Then, we get up and turn the light off. I toss your blanket over my shoulder and you snuggle into my shoulder. I rub your back and sing to you. Usually I sing Brahms' Lullaby and a Primary Song. I love those quiet moments in your nursery. Then I lay you down in your crib and you go to sleep without a fuss.  After you wake up, you love to snuggle on the couch. I love these times too.

When you are unhappy about something (like getting your diaper changed) even though you might have a little tantrum, the tantrum usually passes quickly as long as I find the right distraction. You started attending nursery recently. You are always a little sad when I drop you off, but I hand you to my friend who comforts and distracts you while I leave. You cheer up after just a couple minutes and are happy for the rest of the time. When you first started attending, apparently, when music time would come around you refused to sit on the blanket with the other kids. Instead, you would go into the far corner of the room and play with a toy. When the music instructor tried to engage her, you told her firmly, "no."

You don't talk a lot, but here are some of the things that you do say: No (this is the one word that you say a lot!), yes, mama, dada, ma-ma (Maggie), ball, zoom, banana, up, please, uh-oh, ba-bye, drink, this and that, zip (as in zip up pajamas)...there are others I am sure, but that is a pretty good list.

Honestly Jack, I think you are pretty much perfect. I love everything about your little self, and I am excited to get to know you better as you continue to grow. I love making you laugh, I love kissing your cheeks, I love holding you close, I love being your Mommy!

Maggie Maggie Maggie

Well, I haven't written on here since September. This blog hasn't been forgotten, just neglected. I don't know that I will ever "catch up" so I am just going to pick up right here.

Tonight I am talking about Maggie. What a child. Sometimes she brings out the best in me and sometimes the worst, but she also brings lots and lots of joy to my world.

She has been cracking me up lately in what she says, and how she says it. Just a few examples:

"Look! I put my clothes all by myself on!"
"Sometimes I run away."
"Jesus is awesome! He helps me jump higher."
"Last day, when I was a grandma I saw one of those (a lemur)."
    Me: "Do you mean you saw one of those when we were at the zoo with Grandma?"
    Maggie: "No, when I was the grandma, then I was a baby and I saw one of those in my backyard.                         Cause that makes sense."
"Jack is getting bigger and poofier! Jack is almost poofy!"

 I hope I never forget the cute, funny, sweet way that she has about her.

"Look! I made a T and a 7 and an L and an L and an L!"

Recently I took the kids to Chipotle when Joe was out of town. Maggie asked me to bring her to an ice cream store. I told her, "No, and you already had too many treats today." She responded, "Next time, if you tell me that you won't take me to get ice cream because I had too many treats, then I will go by myself."

I was like, "what?" She caught me totally off guard--I am not even sure I responded. I think I just sat there in silence for a couple minutes trying to figure out if she could actually pull it off because I wouldn't put it past her to try.

Although Maggie has a bit of feisty craziness to her, she is my little ray of sunshine. She loves making new friends, like Melanie who works at our laundromat, and Miss Lisa, her old swim teacher. I can't count the number of times that I have heard her say, "She is my favorite friend!" As soon as we walk out our door, she is looking for a friend (adult or child that she can strike up a conversation with).

Maggie is a bit popular in her pre-school, or at least that is what Mrs. S told us. Recently Maggie attended Eamon's (a classmate) birthday party with Joe. When they arrived, Joe began introductions. "Hi, this is Maggie." Eamon's mother said, "Hi, Maggie." Then Joe said, "and I am Joe Webb." Eamon's mom said, "Oh, your MaggieWEBB! Maggie is popular. Eamon is always telling stories about her. One time, when I went to pick Eamon up from pre-school, I saw a cute girl walk by and I said, 'Who's that?', and Eamon said, "That's not Maggie Webb."At the end of the party, Eamon's mom asked to take a picture of Maggie and Eamon because she needed to send a picture to her mother-in-law who's always asking Eamon, "How is Maggie Webb doing?"

Honestly, I think that the reason that kids love Maggie is that she loves them! She goes out of her way to say hi and is always trying to strike up conversations with both friends and strangers. She is such a great example to me, and I hope she never loses her inhibition to approach people and make friends.

The rest of autumn

Note: this is published as a draft. I typed this draft long ago, intending to finish and add pictures, but due to the inaccessibility of my pictures right now, and the fact that I will never keep up this blog if I don't just move forward, I am publishing it as is.

There is no way to catch up on everything that I have missed, so I won't. Here are just a couple highlights.

Maggie started preschool and she loves it! On the first day, she didn't even look back, say bye, or give a single hug. Joe was pretty torn up about it. I, on the other hand, was just relieved that she has decided to embrace school because I knew that if she decided not to, then we would most likely be skipping preschool this year because, in a battle of will, I am afraid she would win. I do try to grab her for a hug each day when I drop her off--she complies but certainly doesn't care. She is happy to see me when I pick her up though, which does help repair my ego. Except for one day, when I showed up about 1 min before the bell signaled the end of class. She looked at me like I was an alien. Then, Mrs. S rang the bell, and I finally got the smile and hug that I am used to. Her teacher, Mrs. S, told me a couple weeks ago that, "Maggie has become popular. She is quite the hot little commodity and all the kids want to play with her." Hmmm. I hope it is because she is being nice, friendly, and her perky, fun little self. She certainly loves being with other kids, so maybe they just love her back.

One weekend we headed to NYC. We (me and the kids) danced on the big piano at FAO Schwartz, and I realized that I am not just a big kid after all because I couldn't let go and play chop sticks even though I really wanted to. The onlooking crowd was too large. Luckily, I could at least pretend like I was there for Jack. After a fun filled day in the city, we headed out to visit some old friends in Connecticut. The DeGroots are seriously cool people, and I miss them like crazy this year. Together we all headed to Keene, NH where we helped break the world record for the most jack-o-lanterns (30, 581 to be exact). We contributed 3. Woo hoo. Really though, it was awesome. It may be hard to imagine just what 30, 581 lighted jack-o-lanterns in one very small town looks like, but it is pretty incredible.

Halloween happened. Jack was a sea monster/dinosaur/dragon depending on who was looking. Maggie was a fairy princess superhero complete with a bright pink cape and wings, depending on the event. We hit up as many Halloween parties as we could find, so the kids got lots of chances to wear their costumes.  Joe and I attended the Johnson Halloween party-- I thought we looked awesome, even if none of the international students (which Joe's good friends are mostly comprised of) had no idea who we were.

Autumn was here but now it's gone

Note: this is published as a draft. I typed this draft long ago, intending to finish and add pictures, but due to the inaccessibility of my pictures right now, and the fact that I will never keep up this blog if I don't just move forward, I am publishing it as is.

The snow falling outside says that we have definitely hit winter. Autumn is over (tear) and I didn't write a thing about it. But, I am determined not to give up on this blog, and I can't just skip my favorite season, so here is part 1 of 2 overly long posts.

We started October with a visit from my parents. It is the first time my parents have had the chance to see Ithaca (even though my mom came when Jack was born, no seeing was done on that visit), so we packed in as much as we could. They picked the perfect time to visit. If it could be autumn in Ithaca all year, I would never want to leave. The leaves were beautiful and the weather was perfect.

After writing the rest of the post about all the things that we did while my parents were here, I realized that I didn't even talk about why I loved their visit so much. It's not because we did lots of fun things (which we did) but because we were together. Maggie has talked about her grandparents almost every day since they left, and is beyond excited to visit in December. Jack even warmed up to them right away, which is really unusual. So, you can read the rest of the post, or don't. The real takeaway is that there is nothing better than visits from family, especially when they have to fly all the way across the country to see you.

We visited Grisamore Farms to pick pumpkins, apples, and fall raspberries (the best!). I love apple picking more than I even love apple eating. Also, I picked the hugest apple that I have ever seen. Like, by far the hugest. It was as big as Maggie's perfect pumpkin which she found at the farthest edge of the pumpkin patch.

We hiked the gorge trail at Watkins Glen. Although it was my third visit, I still found myself in awe and I would hike it again in a heartbeat. 19 waterfalls in 1.5 miles. Yellow leaves littered the banks of the river, and we saw a giant hornet's nest which some brainiac decided to throw rocks at. Luckily his aim was about as good as the processing power in his brain, and we continued our hike in peace.

We also did a tour of all the local church history sites. You can learn about our church here. Even when chasing two kids, there is such a peaceful spirit in the Sacred Grove. I love visiting.

After some time in Palmyra, we headed up to Niagara Falls. This visit to Niagara was a bit more enjoyable (although no more memorable) than the last time Joe and I visited.  I made everyone live my dream with me by riding on the Maid of the Mist; as much as I wanted to ride the boat, I actually expected it to disappoint but it TOTALLY did not. I think Niagara Falls is similar to the Grand Canyon. When viewed from the rim, it feels like a pretty picture. To really appreciate the Grand Canyon you have to hike down in, and to really appreciate Niagara Falls, you have to be right next to it, feeling the turbulence of the water and getting soaked in the waterfall's spray. It was awesome!

Back home but not for long

Wow, speaking of being behind, I just realized that I never even mentioned the fact that we moved 2,745 miles across the country from Seattle back to our current home in upstate NY. So, yes we did.

Unpacking was a treat because prior to leaving we threw (some literally) our personal belongings in one bedroom so that we could sublet our apartment for the summer, and the mountain of belongings was so large that we could barely close the door. After a couple days we decided to ditch the unpacking in favor of a road trip.

Our first stop: Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is a beautiful city, and felt perhaps more foreign than I expected which made the trip seem like a real getaway.

Perhaps the greatest highlight was spending time with Joe's childhood friend Will Butler, his wife Jenny, and their adorable son Alex. Will is an actual rock star which makes him an unusually interesting person to me, but both he and his wife are incredibly down to earth and super nice.  We all walked around Mount Royal Park and dined at Aux Vivres, which is the kind of cool, vegan restaurant that I eat at all the time in my dreams where I am an actual cool person.

Other Montreal activities included:

The Biodome

Seeing a huge catfish which Jack loved

Sampling poutine--to my knowledge, the most famous local cuisine. French fries + cheese curds +gravy.

 Visiting St. Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal

Looking over the city at sunset

Strolling around the city, admiring the graffitied walls

 And buying some delicious berries at Atwater Market, the "Pike's Place" of Montreal

After Montreal, we spent a night in Lake Placid which has something of a Jackson Hole meets New England kind of vibe--a very happy place for me. Our priceline motel had the name "Motor" in the title--that tells you everything you need to know about the room we slept in, but the motel also had free kayaks and paddle boats to take out on Mirror Lake. This we loved!

Jack loved dragging his hand through the water as Joe paddled 

Maggie loved paddling which means we also did a lot of floating

We finished up the trip by taking in a 360 view of the Adirondacks with a hike up Owl's head mountain. Then we called our trip a success.