Saturday, October 29, 2011

we're moving! Pin It!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

pumpkin farm!!!!

we took ian to the pumpkin farm last year and had an absolute blast!  so we decided that this is one cool family tradition we want to keep going!  goebbert's is a really awesome place.  you can pick your own pumpkin (they have so many varieties- this year we got a cool grey pumpkin along with our normal soon-to-be-jack-o-lantern-pumpkin), see cool animals (including giraffes that eat right out of your hand), buy fudge and other delicious treats and see pig races!  this is definitely a must if you're living in the chicagoland area.  we like to "beat the crowd" and go on a weekday.  ian wasn't so sure about the animals this year- we finally did get some smiles out of him once we saw the goats and monkeys, but he loved the slide (leaving it induced a tantrum) and had a great time running around.  let's take a walk down memory lane...




(bffs, these two)

what a little peanut!  man, we took a lot of pictures last year... not so much this year.  we got to the farm with only 90 minutes to spare until closing (dave had to work!)...  but we still had a blast!

 fun in the giant rocking chair!

 tantrum slide

 pumpkin fun!

 ian's new bff- melmo

 little bat boy

little family!

and now a little something fun....


he's grown a little bit

what are your fall/halloween traditions?
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Monday, October 24, 2011

21 months

it's so hard to believe that in 3 months ian will be 2!  he turned 21 months yesterday!  i'm kinda going to be glad when i can stop counting months.  when do you stop counting months?!  dave always gets it wrong now...

this has probably been my absolute favorite month as a mother SO FAR.  the changes and developments that ian has made this month- fascinating. 

ian is probably learning 5-10 new words a day.  it's almost scary!  if you say a word to him, 9 times out of 10, he's going to repeat it back to you.  "go get your shoes, ian"...  "shooos, shooos."  there's not much of anything that gets by him.  he's still not talking in "sentences", but he's starting to string words together- "bless you" (anytime you sneeze, cough, sniffle, he sneezes, etc), "how are you", "thank you", "you're welcome", "i love you"... 

singing has become really big.  i have been singing to ian since he was born.  i always sing before naps and bedtime, and we have started singing during the day too.  my lineup usually consists of twinkle, twinkle little star, the abcs, jesus loves me, you are my sunshine, great day, and paparazzi (yes).  dave follows that up with go cubs go & bear down, chicago bears.  recently though ian took to the goodbye song (the video is a must).  he sings it about 10-20 times a day even doing the high notes (again, the video).  lately, he has taken to changing the lyrics to fit whatever situation he's in (all done, shoes on, thank you).  it's pdc.  he actually now can sing most of the songs we sing in full.  i'm impressed. 

another thing the singing has helped with is the alphabet- about 2-3 weeks ago ian amazed us when he sang the alphabet from a to z.  of course, this is probably more a song memorization thing rather than my son is a baby genius...  of course, right before he wowed us with the alphabet, he knocked our socks off one night by counting to 10.  are you kidding me kid?!?!

ian has finally started playing with some of his toys- which brings me a lot of relief since i felt like i had to be the entertainer for almost 8 hours a lot of the time.  he's also really taken a liking to art- he loves crayons, markers & paint. 

i would love to get him in some kind of school or kids program.  i want to try & work one day out of the house after we move, so i can hopefully leave my job @ target.  a friend of mine in georgia takes her daughter to a church school for toddlers that's 3 hours a day and they do all kinds of fun stuff and she interacts with other kids.  plus, it's super cheap.  so far, i can't find anything like that here in illinois.  he's either too young, or it's $900 park district preschool (please).  if anyone knows of anything like this, please let me know.  i know he'd love it.  if not, i'm moving home...  :)

other than that everything is pretty much the same.  ian sleeps until 9-10, is down to 1 nap a day, and goes between eating like a little piggy & eating like a little bird.  he's still in 12 mo pants and can wear 18 mo pants with a cloth diaper or belt.  he wears 9-18 month tops and 6-12 or 12-18 month pjs.  he's still our little skinny guy!  his new teeth are all in, so he's up to 16 total. 

we're not potty training.  he just isn't ready.  he's actually gone on it twice by accident, but refuses to sit any other time.  he thinks the potty is a shoe.  i. am. so. ready.  we'll keep at it.  i was potty trained by 22 months and my brother by 24.  fingers crossed!

still no results from the blood work our allergist required us to get. the test was 2 months ago, the results were in by the time we got back from atlanta, but they haven't bothered to call us with them.  i have decided not to bother to pay my bill.  it's sad that we have to pay bills like this in the first place, but thanks for the awesome insurance, ge. 

i will leave you with cute pictures of ian b\c that always helps me forget for a little while that my husband's company has screwed us into near financial ruin with their insurance "plan."  enjoy this little cutie!  i do!  oh, and i went overboard...

 sweetest face.

 these 2 = trouble

 no photos please!

 someone doesn't belong here!

 weeeee!

 ian, ian motorcycle

 again... trouble.

 what happens if you leave the freezer open.  the pizz-burglar strikes

 i like hats.  i didn't say i liked good hats.

 go sparty!

 i will not pose for photos in our matching team gear!


 playing haa-key and riding my giraffe!

 you want me to hold this?

 nope, not holding it, and it's not sitting in the chair with me!

nyah, nyah, i win this month!
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Thursday, October 20, 2011

moving... it's so emotional

so, i've been very absent lately...  duh.  as i've mentioned before- we're moving.  in 10 short days we will be moving for the 3rd time in the almost 3 years that we have lived here.  now we're not moving far.... just a mere 15 miles, but it almost seems like a world away... 

here's the map.  feel free not to stalk me... 

dave will be closer to work, which is good for him... however, i will be farther away from both of my jobs.  i've been debating whether or not to put in a transfer to go to a store closer to me, but i already don't like my job enough as it is...  i'd hate starting over somewhere else, although there are 2 other stores within 4 miles of my home. 

work aside...  that has nothing to do with the emotions of moving.  we've been up here for almost 3 years, and there are still emotions from leaving atlanta to come here.  leaving the house we bought together, the house we came home to after our wedding.  the house that we made our home.  we were only there 18 months before we made the move to come up here.  we spent some time living with dave's parents before we moved into this house 2 years ago. 

when we moved in here i was almost 3 months from giving birth to ian.  it was the house we chose to live in as a new family.  this is where we painted his room, put together his crib, washed his itty bitty clothes.  it's where we chose his name, it's the room i would sneak into at night, long before he was born, and the room we still sneak into at night to check & see if he's still breathing to see how adorable he is when he sleeps.  this is the "home" that we brought him home to, where we saw his first smile, watched him crawl, where he took his first steps.  it's where we drank through a blizzard, and where my dad burned 40 lbs of ribs.  laughed until we cried, and cried until we laughed.  who knew there could be so many memories in one little place in such a short time. 

so again, we move.  and although we would have liked to have stayed- we asked to stay.  our rent is increasing, and the value is not.  we will move into another place, and it will be home for a while, but my question is this- when will our son, our family have a real place to call home.  one that isn't renewed by contract, one that we can fully make our own.  i have wiped the tears from my eyes walking into his room realizing that it won't be his room much longer... and that we still have to repaint!  but i realize this- maybe home for us isn't a physical place- at least not right now.  i guarantee it will come one day- where we own our own place again, the place that ian can say is "the house i grew up in."  just not right now.  for us...  home is wherever i’m with you.

so i remind myself that we haven't found our home, not just yet.  and these temporary places will have to do.  they may be where the memories happened, but i'm taking the memories with me.

i'll miss a few things about this place:  proximity to work.  proximity to everything (we're kinda moving to "the middle of nowhere"- not really, but compared to where we are now, yes).  giant closet in our room & in ian's room.  ian having his own bathroom in his room.  my garden.  no steps to get into the house.  attic space.  my lazy susan cabinet.  my shower curtain (again... really?!).  stairs... maybe.  finally being w\in 5 miles of chick fil a. 

what i won't miss:  lack of carpets.  having to vacuum/mop the white tile multiple times a day.  20 y/o heating system.  20 y/o washing machine.  all the mirrors.  vertical blinds.  garage door that doesn't open when the temp gets below 15.  my microwave.  my assy neighbors.  motorcycles racing down wise rd.  the skunks (oh, please don't tell me it smells like skunk in c-ville every night too).  white tile.  no carpet (it was worth saying again). 

so ready to make some new memories in our new place.  and can't wait to share it with you!! Pin It!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

outfit transition- sunset glory dress

ever since i participated in the 30 for 30, er, 30 for 29 challenge, i've been looking for more creative ways to dress from my closet.  i have pulled 10 bags of clothes out of my closet to donate or attempt to sell in the last year (which is really sad, right?  but what's more sad- that i'm getting rid of 10 bags of clothes, or that i had 10 bags worth of clothes)...  clothes that will never again fit the body of one who had a baby, and clothes that fit the body of someone who just had a baby.  i am left with the in between.  i am resolving for the next month (or however long it takes) to wear the things in my closet that i haven't worn in a while.  try them out and see if they are worth keeping.  yesterday, i wore a cute purple plaid tunic & leggings.  i bought the tunic & wore it while i was pregnant.  the tunic is super cute, but one of the buttons kept gaping out- guess what melissa?  it doesn't fit, so you don't need it.  of course, if it was gaping open now, how did it look when i was pregnant... yikes!

i also want to put together more creative ways to make clothes last for more than one season.  so here is my first attempt at taking a look from spring/summer into autumn/winter!

starring:  modcloth's sunset glory dress



 spring/summer:
dress: modcloth
jacket: loft
bag: vera bradley
shoes: seychelles


and.....

 autumn/winter:
dress: modcloth
cardigan: target
tights: target
booties: forever 21

i was able to cozy up my outfit just a bit by adding a 3/4-length cardigan and toasty tights in a gorgeous navy shade!  on my feet are the most painful shoes i've ever worn in my life- adorable booties from forever 21.  it was my first time wearing them... i really hope that's why they're so painful. 

so this was fun... can't wait to try it again soon once it gets cold.. again. 
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Wednesday, October 12, 2011

mommy reads: the help


sometimes after you have a baby you're a little late to the game of what is cool and what's not.  that was me and the help.  i had not even heard of the book until the movie came out, and i really didn't know much about the movie either.  dave & i were lucky enough to go on a movie date for our anniversary!  we weren't really impressed with anything that was playing, but we saw the help and dave said that was one that he thought he wouldn't mind seeing.  best choice ever.  so i saw the movie before i read the book- and i was in love with the movie.  my heart was just broken- i can't count how many times i cried, nor can i count how many times i laughed.  

the help takes place in segregated jackson, mississippi in 1962.  elizabeth, hilly & skeeter are the best of friends.  skeeter is home, fresh from ole miss with big plans for a career in journalism; while elizabeth & hilly left school early to marry & have babies.  they are now leading the "ideal" life of a southern woman.  aibileen & minny are maids for elizabeth & hilly's mother, respectively. after hilly comes up with the home help sanitation initiative, skeeter begins to grow uncomfortable with the way her friends treat their help.  she wonders how these women feel about working for white women while someone else raises their own children.  skeeter has the idea to write a book from the viewpoint of the help.  of course, this needs to be done in secret because of the times.  the book is split into stories from these 3 women, and each is told from their point of view.

all i can say is that you need to see the book, and the movie.  i know it's a fictionalized version of what was going on during the civil rights movement, but i'm sure there are elements of truth within it.  there are moments of sadness, and moments of joy.  just read it.

the movie is just as good.  there are little bits that are different, that were changed to make the movie flow better, but overall, it stays true to the book, and for that, i loved it.  

book 5/5.  movie 5/5.
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oops...

i did it again... 

i've been a bad blogger... again...  i've probably lost what little tiny readership i already had going for me...  but i've been sooooo busy... reading.  in fact, we've all been reading day and night...


some of us have been reading in our sleep...  Pin It!

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

me: a to z

i need a little blog filler b\c i've been so busy lately... sorry!


Age ..... 30
Bedsize ..... Queen. 
Chore you most dislike ..... putting clothes away.  i will live out of a laundry basket
Dogs ..... yes, 2.  does anyone want a dog?
Essential start to my day ..... i check my email while i "wake up"
Favorite color ..... red
Gold or Silver ..... both
Height ..... 5' 1"
Instrument I've played ..... trumpet.  years ago.  years.
Job Title ..... mom, wife.  i also work as a personal assistant, and a cashier. 
Kids .... ian, of course!
Live in ..... schaumburg, il for another 3 weeks.

Mother's name ..... cathy
Nicknames ..... mel.
Overnight hospital stays .... ian's birth.  a few other times too.
Pet Peeves ..... bad drivers.
Quote from a movie ..... after all, tomorrow is another day
Right or left handed ..... right.
Siblings ..... younger brother.
Time you wake up ..... whenever my little alarm clock gets up
Underwear ..... do I wear it?  Yes.
Vegetables I hate ..... squash & turnips are my top 2.
What makes you late ..... anything.  ok, mostly myself..
X-rays ..... yeah, i've had a few
Yummy food I make .....everything.  esp. chilli
Zoo animal favorite ..... pigs!  are pigs at the zoo? Pin It!

Monday, October 3, 2011

mommy reads: something borrowed


i decided to read something borrowed again because i had just forced my way through between a rock & a hard place, and i needed an easy read.  that and the fact that we had the movie saved on our dvr from a bunch of expiring free ppv movies.  it wasn't really a movie i wanted to see, but we were out of options and time was running out.  i read this book and its sequel, something blue many years ago.  spoiler:  i liked something blue WAY more than i liked something borrowed...  here's the review...

rachel & darcy have been best friends since childhood.  shy, "plain" rachel busted her butt through law school and now hates her job as an attorney for a large firm in nyc.  boisterous and gorgeous darcy has skated by through life on her looks, has a fabulous job & a gorgeous fiancee.  on the eve of rachel's 30th bday, darcy throws her a surprise party, where rachel ends up sleeping with darcy's fiancee.  she thinks it's just a fling, but neither of them can forget... but the question rachel has for dex is will he or won't he call off his engagement to darcy to be with rachel.... 

i have a few problems.  the book is a good book, but the entire premise of it is a girl who basically steals her best friend's fiancee, and then spends the rest of the novel trying to justify it by remembering all the bad things darcy has ever done to her in  their lives and only seeing the negative personality traits of her supposed best friend.  sure, darcy is shallow, egotistical and self-centered, but does that mean that she deserves to be cheated on by the 2 people she trusts the most?  and yes, the ending does have a twist, which the "heroine" uses to further justify her case... but still.  no.  everyone in this novel needs a good, loud wake up call.  i mean, you find yourself cheering for rachel & dex- they're in love, they had a missed connection years ago when they attended law school together (it was rachel who introduced him to darcy in the first place), but just because you knew him first doesn't make a difference- it doesn't give you the right.  in the end, no one wins.  including me for reading it again.  so although the story has no moral value, but you can't help but kind of like it.  i'm torn.  but seriously, if you take time to read this book- read the sequel- it's definitely better.  hint:  darcy's the heroine.

the movie wasn't much better.  kate hudson plays darcy, which i can totally see- BUT i have a problem when actors don't even physically resemble the characters they're playing.  darcy was supposed to be a tanned brunette- and kate hudson is not that.  i also think kate hudson was pregnant when this was filmed- b\c she totally has pregnant face.  there were also characters missing, and total story changes.  john krasinski was a welcome addition to the movie although his character was a minor part of the novel (look for him more in the 2nd book (and film, apparently)).  also, i can't ever decide if i think ginnifer goodwin is cute, or annoys me to no end.  same with kate hudson.  skip it.

book:  2.5\5.  movie 1\5. 

sad times.  all our books have been packed for our move and i can't find them.  nooooooooooooo! Pin It!