What's Happening Lately...Sorta

Well, what's been happening is a whole lotta not bloggin'. But it has been just that crazy. Not to mention I seem to have a crude case of writer's block --- I think of stuff to write down, memories to capture, milestones to remember, and then poof- I sit down at the computer and get pinged by a dozen work emails, interrupted by children who would like to be fed or something else incredibly demanding, or I just want to nap. Usually it's the latter and I have zero willpower in that department.

But here goes --- just some random thoughts and catch up with the Clanahan's. I also have a few pics to dump from my i-phone but I think I'll save that for another fascinating post. Or maybe not. Let's see if I can get through this post without someone yelling "Mommy" or "MEEEEEE!" 

1. Mother's Day Out is going FANTASTIC. It has been so good for R&Q and so good for me as well : ) Although those 5 hours pass darn fast. At any rate, the kids both love it and barely give me a second glance as I leave. From the feedback I get from their wonderful teachers, they do really well listening, actually follow directions (what???!!!), and play wonderfully with the other kids. So warms my heart that even if I have a hard time getting a "please" or "thank you" here, they are doing it in public, where I suppose it matters! For Quinn, her report cards mostly say that she is a total doll, wants to be the class helper all the time, keeps up with the "big boys" without a problem, and is chatty and busy all.the.time. The only issue she's had lately is either rarely napping or only taking a 30 minute snooze. Which actually works out for me, because she usually crashes for another hour or 2 when she gets home. Ryan's feedback is that he is always sweet and cuddly, curious about almost everything, loves to play outside and read books, and has really come out of his shell the past few weeks. He's talking more and always takes great naps. His main issue is eating. The boy is PICKY and sometimes just won't eat at all - just will drink milk & water. But to be fair, he's used to having mainly "hot lunches" at home and is not a huge fan of lunch meat or anything else that I can send with him. So I try to stock him up on crackers, cheese, and peaches - things I know he will eat. Then he devours snacks as soon as he gets home!

Here are a couple of pics of the kids worn out on their way home from MDO, yay!

2. So the house has officially been on the market almost a month. We've had about 8 showings, all with mostly positive feedback. The main issue has been that our house unfortunately backs up to a fairly busy road (which wasn't nearly as busy 6 years ago!) But we still feel confident and did a little price adjustment yesterday so we'll see if that helps. I am SO tired of cleaning constantly in case we get a call for a showing. I literally have gone through twice as many paper towels this month, 2 containers of granite cleaner and 3 things of Clorox. FUN. If you know me at all, I am not a cleaner. I like things clean, but I do "surface cleaning", meaning baseboards and scrubbing shower scum is not my bag. Nor is vacuuming. Matt has always like to vacuum (did I score in that department or what?) so I never do. The other day we had a showing and I had a momentary freak out when I had to figure out how to turn the vacuum on. Turns out there's this handy little red button at the base. Hmmm.

So we'll see --- we are hoping that the next month will bring in a buyer and then we can get this show on the road! We haven't broken ground on the new place yet until we feel a little more positive about selling here. And it's a 4 month building process, barring weather. So now I am just hoping that we can be in the new house by mid to late fall. Here's hoping...

3. I believe we can now safely say we are getting entrenched in the terrible 2's. A little early for my taste. But we are dealing with multiple tantrums a day and plenty of time outs. It's interesting to see how they each get in trouble. For Ryan, I think he sometimes just "forgets" that he shouldn't do something and then knows immediately to stop. So he doesn't get timeout too often because the behavior doesn't continue. For Quinn, well, ... she's special : ) She knows exactly what she is doing, knows that it is wrong, and then she keeps doing it. And then melts into the floor and throws a fit if I take her away from it. Then her timeouts are used as "plotting" times when she thinks of what she will get into next. It's just such a science experiment to see their little personalities. I love them equally --- I love that Ryan doesn't want to disappoint and wants to be "good" and no matter my level of frustration, I love that Quinn is strong-willed and independent. Each set of their qualities will serve them well in life, and perhaps they can even learn a little bit from each other. Here's hoping!

4. We've had some GORGEOUS weather around here. Perfect for playing outside almost all day - and especially in the evening when Mommy is trying to get dinner ready and have a few moments of silence. And that's reason #2589 why I love my husband --- for the past few weeks, almost religiously, he takes the kids outside, blows bubbles, plays balls, whatever, as soon as he gets home from work. It's like HEAVEN to me. A thirty minute heaven, but wonderful nonetheless.

5. I am finding it more and more challenging to work from home, raise the kids, get errands done, house stuff, cook dinner, ya know, the works. It's such a balancing act. Most days I feel just torn --- knowing that I should have given the kids more attention and worked less, or on the days where the kids have my full attention, I know that I may not be on as top of my work as I used to be. But I know I will look back and I won't remember the times that I didn't meet that one self-imposed deadline, but I will remember if I told R&Q that "Mommy is too busy to read you a book right now". I'm still just trying to find my footing. Some days I am more successful than others. But we're working on it.

6. I've had a lot of teeth and dentist related dreams lately. It's so bizarre. The first one, the dentist pulled out 10 of my teeth without pain meds because they were "bad". The second, my teeth just fell out. And then last night, I had a dream that I had my teeth polished and cleaned for hours. I have no idea why I feel the need to share that, but I'm pretty sure it means that my mind is working overtime at the moment.

7. While 2012 hasn't been the least stressful year --- I  have been incredibly blessed by a wonderful group of girlfriends who keep me sane. I know that I am not always the best friend in keeping up with everyone, but I am so thankful that I have people that I can call at the drop of a hat or shoot an email and know I will get back heartfelt advice and prayer. So thankful! These women are like family --- and I couldn't make it through everything without them! Or our "Mommy's Night Outs" : )

8. I think that's quite enough for now. I know I have more to update on the twins specifically and some milestones as we quickly approach their 2nd birthday in 6 weeks, aghhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! How did that happen? But I'll save you from all of the words. Plus, naptime is over and mommy is back on duty!

Love to you all,

Pit & Peak

I'm sort of ashamed to admit this - but perhaps on accident (purpose?), I stumbled (searched?) for something brainless on TV the other day. What's more brainless than "Kim and Kourtney take New York"? I settled only because Bravo was doing a marathon on "Tabitha's Salon Takeover" and even I can't stoop to that level. I was really praying for a "Real Housewives of Somewhere/Anywhere" episode. That sounds kinda wrong to pray for that. Anywho...

However, my point: I suppose it was the part where they were wrapping up their "highs" and "lows" to their time in NYC, except they called them "Pits and Peaks". It's kinda stuck with me. At our staff meetings for work, we always briefly run through our "Bests and Worsts" to get everyone updated. So I was familiar with the concept --- it's a nice way to break the ice, catch up, and also do a bit of reflecting.

I decided that I am going to ATTEMPT to do weekly "Pits and Peaks" here on the blog - and I'd love to hear (read!) yours as well! My prayer is that each week I have many more peaks than pits, but I won't bore you to death with my laundry list. Or I'll try not to. And I say attempt because things are getting a little crazy around here, as you'll see from evidence below. So we'll see how it goes!

I'm going to start with my "Pits" first because I always want to end with the positives! (Side note: "start with the pits" doesn't sounds like a very nice phrase...hmmmm)

The Pits:

I was hesitant to even blog about this because honestly I felt for awhile it wasn't even my story to share. But as I've had some reflection time, it would be remiss of me not to share this. A little over two weeks ago, my family and I lost a very, very dear friend. Like family-close friend. Like my soul-sister Amy's Mom, whom I felt powerfully connected to on so many levels. She also happened to be a dear friend of my mom's for years and years, and was my mom's boss for over 12 years. To say they were close would be an understatment. She walked a many a journey with my mom, both the good and bad, as did my mom with her. And oh my, how I loved this woman --- I loved her humor, her candidness, her spirit, her immense joy, generosity of spirit and time, and her deepest love for her family. She would go to the ends of the Earth for her husband, two amazing daughters, and three grandchildren.

Her death came as a complete shock to us all. She suffered what they think was a grand mal seizure while having lunch one day, was given CPR for 50 minutes and shocked 14 times. And she CAME BACK. She was put on a ventilator but as she started to come out of the coma, she was able to spend 3 precious days interacting with her family with all of her Lynda-mannerisms and she was STILL there. Unfortunately, complications arose and ultimately she went to be with our Lord and Savior.

I cried my eyes out for nights and couldn't sleep for days. Last weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to celebrate her life (which really is a peak), and let me tell you, God was all over that service and the family. Their strength, courage, and grace they have exhibited through all has been a testimony of "Life with Christ" (stealing that from my dear friend's eulogy, because that's how Lynda lived). She lived every day with Christ in her heart, and she radiated that. And we know while we all grieve during these difficult times, that she is up there in Heaven having a party and reuniting with my Dad (who loved her and she loved him in return). The neatest part? Their plots are literally almost next door to each other in this massive cemetery - like 25 feet away. I love that and feel the comfort knowing that our families will always have that connection. Anyway, while it was definitely the "Pits" - there were huge "Peaks" that God allowed to shine through as he always does. Rest in peace, Miss Lynda and give my daddy a big hug from me.

Ok, onto the Peaks:

1. Ryan and Quinn got into our first choice Mother's Day Out (Preschool) for next fall!!! I just never realized how crazy and insane it would be. We are thrilled with the school they will be attending, as it is one that we can see them going all the way through until Kindergarten (oh, my, that word gives me shivers!). Anyway, they had to go in a lottery and thank goodness since there were 2 of them, if one was selected, the other was automatically in. Amen for twins! Anyway, they will go twice a week next fall, Monday/Wednesday. I would have preferred Tues/Thursday but beggars can't be choosers and we are on the wait list for that session now.

2. We put down earnest money on a new house this weekend ---aghhhhhh!!! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE everything about the new house. And it's our 10-15-20 year house, once we are there, we don't plan on moving for a long time. Anyway, this week/weekend has been crazy, doing paperwork, submitting applications, meeting with realtors to sell our current house, and de-clutterville. So much to do. But I just try to keep reminding myself that it will be a few months of hell and then it will be settled and done. It was going to happen at some point, so it might as well be now. Here we go! Keep ya posted - but we are probably a good 5-6 months to even being close to settled in the new place. Thank goodness for contingency in this economical environment. And pooh on the people who bought too much house (and the people that lent them $) years ago that make the process incredibly difficult these days - ok, off the box.

3. R&Q continue to love MDO. Quinn is thriving amongst the big boys and Ryan is just loving all of the attention. Wednesdays have now become the hard days in our house because they lapped up all of the loving and attention from the teachers on Tuesday. Mommy is not nearly as exciting. I just crack up because apparently they are big rule followers and actually listen to directions --- my children??? : )

So many more peaks - but those are the highlights. What is your peak and pit this week? Would love to hear!!!!

In Him,

Valentine's Day 2012

Well, since Valentine's Day was on a Tuesday this year, the kids were at MDO much of the day. So I didn't have as much time with my little love bugs as usual, but that sure made the pick up that much sweeter. They had a great day and their little class even had a Valentine's Day party and decorated treat bags for them to bring home. So sweet :) And according to their wonderful teacher, Miss Kara, both of them did wonderfully - and Ryan did not even cry when they put him down for his nap this time. He just rolled over and went straight to sleep.

I'm just amazed at how they have transitioned so well - from very little structure (minus our schedule of course) to a structured environments with strangers and other little kids. I think that having each other probably helps them feel more at ease, even if they ignore each other half of the time they are there!

I took a couple of pictures, but by the time we got home, they were so exhausted, they were not much in the mood for picture taking. Happy Valentine's to my little bugs and Happy Valentine's Day to my wonderful husband! 10 years of Vdays and counting : ) Here's to many, many more. Love you, babe.

I don't think this was actually Valentine's Day but I just love this outfit.

This is Q's "Oh, s*&t face" when she knows she's done something wrong : )

This one kills me - she looks so grown up!

He headed straight for the music toy at MDO. What a shocker. And he needs a haircut. Pardon the mess.

Delirious at home after school. His GQ pose - a little blurry but it was so cute, I had to keep it.

My future little hoarder. 2 water cups and a paci.

Relaxing after school and showing me her belly. Showing her belly & her heart are her 2 favorite things right now.

Daddy and Ry Ry. Quinn was over pictures at this point.

Special treat bags. I may or may not have eaten their candy. Isn't that the privilege of being Mommy?

First of many Valentine's Day cards to come, I'm sure : )

Heading home! School is exhausting, Mom!

Mother's Day Out - Day 1.

A few weeks ago I started getting a little desperate about finding a Mother's Day Out program to send the kids to - just a few hours each week so Momma could get some rest and babies could grasp onto some social skills and get out into the "real world". ha!

Anyway, I got soooo lucky and found a good program that was looking to open up a Tuesday class but needed 2 more kids --- bingo, TWINS. They even bypassed the rule that R&Q needed to be 18 months by 9/1/11 (they were 18 months in December). Thank you, Lord! I'm actually really excited about that because I think it's great for them to be around older children and learn to mimic their behavior and speech.

Anyway, the day finally came --- and as much as I was looking forward to it, I was also pretty sad this a.m. as I was packing up their bags and lovingly cutting up chicken and cheese for their lunches. (Oh, and apparently MDO's don't serve heated lunches - my kids have been spoiled! They get "hot lunches" almost every day!)

As I dressed them this morning in their jeans and comfy play clothes, I was just struck at how old they looked. Quinn's hair seemed longer just overnight and Ryan was, well, just so "toddlerish" (yes, it's a word - it my dictionary).

I know they were a little confused about why Mommy was rushing them around this morning to get ready as we usually are pretty leisurely around here and not out of pjs before noon. And then I started to feel guilty about what I was about to push them into, even though I knew they would probably (hopefully?) enjoy the day.

By some miracle, we made it out the door in time and I was even able to capture a few pictures for once. They aren't high quality as we were very rushed. First, I got them in the car, strapped in, and realized I forgot pictures.

Unstrap, back out, to the front door to take pictures.

Back to car, strap back in, pull out of garage, start to shut garage,

Oh, s*5t, LUNCHES still in the fridge.

Back in the house, grab lunches, on the go. No time for Sonic. Bummer.

We made it on time (first to arrive, thank you very much --- and that will probably be the only time this semester)

Let me just tell you how we were loaded down - 2 kids, one very large stroller, one nap mat for each (LSU for Quinn, A&M for Ry Guy), one backpack for each, one cooler bag for each, a large bag full of "donation" wipes, Clorox, and cups for the class, diapers, and a mommy with a camera. There were stares, I'm not gonna lie.

We finally made it in and while I was fully prepared for tears, there were none. Except for me. Once they got into the classroom, they were off and exploring. I didn't even get kisses good bye. So they didn't cry, but I shed a few tears. Not because I was so sad to leave them (although I was), but because they are GROWING UP. Babies that are old enough to understand that Mommy is leaving but they are going to have a fun day. Yikes.

Anyway, it's only 1 day a week for 5 hours, but will be a good transition to the 2 days a week I hope to get in the fall. And 5 hours goes FAST. I had a doctors appointment, then another preschool registration (still hoping for another school for the fall - nothing against our current school but I have an alma mater of sorts I'd like to see them in), quick stop at the pharmacy, home, lunch, and back to pick them up.

And oh, was I overjoyed to see them. And I think they were happy to see me. They both had GREAT days - and each of them showed their personalities in true form. Quinn was the curious one who tried her hardest to keep up with all of the older boys. And Ryan was the cautious one and a little bit more unsure but still happy and sweet (except at naptime, which I am sure he will adjust to). Both came home completely wiped out and went down for another nap --- yay for that!

Here are a few pics from the day. Pardon the quality - we were super rushed!



Quinnie!




Ry Guy - looking so much like daddy here




The best of the outside shots





Almost there - already ripped off her bow and shoes. I don't know why I even bother to put them on until we arrive at our destination.




Outside school. They look thrilled, huh???




Oh, that was just 1/8 of our gear




Already getting busy!




Quinn on the move going to check it all out. I tried to get her to stand still for ONE shot to no avail :)


More posts to come later. I have much to say on a more serious topic but I have to get my head together and wrap my senses around it all. Let's just say these pictures brought so much needed light into my life today.

In Him,