A nice red, a chilled white, really just pour me a glass already.

Each month I try to write a good amount for each post. But sometimes this Mom gets busy and so I often will just write something short & sweet. So here is my first “Short & Sweet” post.

      We moved to the Cape a year and a half ago and that fall as we settled in my son started pre-school in Eastham. Almost every week picking him up we’d drive home and after the rotary we would continue on 6 towards Brewster and along that stretch of the road there is almost always one of those big empty liter bottles of wine. A couple weeks ago I noticed two. It got me thinking, where did this wine come from, what is its back-story. As a breastfeeding Mom I have had a (one ok maybe two) glass here and there, not too often, or is it not often enough?!  So if you find yourself heading down route 6 after the rotary, look along the side of that road and perhaps you too will notice that random wine bottle and come up with your own backstory for it. But I really think some Mom and her girlfriends enjoyed that bottle and had some laughs. How it ended up on the road though who knows.   

  Perhaps this bottle and the 2^nd bottle fell off a truck en route to a dump, or on the way to be recycled, could it be that simple. Could it be teenagers sneaking wine out of their parent’s fridge or liquor cabinet and then tossing the evidence in the woods behind their house, note I do not condone teen-age drinking. Then I noticed the trend of these Mom’s and women old timey posts online about wine and I think that wine is definitely from a Mom. I’m not sure why it ended up on the side of the road, but it’s from a Mom. Winter is almost over, but in these winter months when it’s harder to get outside with the kids and find things to keep them busy even the tons of toys they have are not enough, at the end of the day when your little cuties are in bed sleeping away looking so innocent and cute, its nice to finish off your evening with a glass of wine. I think it’s well deserved, along with some mindless viewing of something on the DVR.

     I’m not saying you need to self medicate with wine, or it’s the crutch that gets us through the day. But after bedtime I like to have a glass of wine or beer before I myself go to bed. It’s not a 7-day a week treat, but it is a treat that I look forward to some evenings. So Cheers to you, whether it’s 2-buck chuck or a more expensive label enjoy and although we got snow last night, today is officially the last day of winter. Bring on the margaritas! 

Meaningful Conversations

     When was the last time you had a meaningful conversation. It seems when I talk with my friends these days we jump from topic to topic, are interrupted by children, phone calls, texts, emails, you name it. The meaningful conversation has gone by the wayside. My son will stop his Father and I from talking  saying exactly that “stop talking,” so we stop and explain that sometimes Mom’s and Dad’s need to talk about things and then when we he goes off to play, and we start to get back into it we realize we have no idea what we were talking about. Perhaps it’s the “Mom brain” the busyness of day-to-day life, the exhaustion, but my goal is to get back to a meaningful conversation with a beginning and end.

     Not that I mind the sparse chit chat here and there, it’s actually is nice to trade a few words here and there and then run after your three-year-old. It keeps things light and each of us gets something out of it. A parenting tip, a recipe snippet, a joke, a cute story, and then we move on. Group party’s seem to be the toughest area for this, there is no way to really stop and have a full conversation if the kids are involved, and when the adults are in excess I seem to feel the need to check in with everyone before time gets away from me. Hmm, maybe it’s the people pleaser in me.

      At night my 3-year-old son and I have pillow talk, after his bath and book he and I lie down on his pillows and chat about the day and what’s coming up the next day. Anything he wants to talk about, what behavior I want to bring up to him, listening is a big thing these days. He keeps saying “I’m gonna work on it.” I think once he’s asleep though it all seeps out of his mind. Lol. Then I remember he’s only three. After he does close his eyes and I’m downstairs emptying my DVR I do have some quality texts and facebook postings with my friends. So maybe the face to face conversation is getting away from me, but the meaningful texts that make me smile and laugh throughout the day are enough I think to check in and know we are all out there getting through it.

     I know many people say we are becoming more out of touch due to all of our devices cell phones, iPads, laptops, but maybe they are bringing us even closer together since we all have so much going on. I do like to unplug when the kids are around and my focus becomes about the family. But I think when you have a lot of people you are close with and tend to hang out with, a short message on facebook or a quick text to check in is an easy way to let your friends know that you are here for them if only across town in the comfort of your own home. No matter how we do it, we will get back to our meaningful conversations, no matter how long or short they may be. By phone, text, FB message, email, as long as we stay connected in one form or another. 

Sleep to Dream more like Dream of Sleep

Guess I picked a bad year to quit caffeine.

Yes, we have a new baby in this house; my 2^nd son was born this past August, and yes, we expected to be surviving on less sleep, but it seems as if this lack of sleep has become an epidemic among a lot of Cape families. Our first born will be turning 3 at the end of this Month and has an on-again off-again habit of waking up before dawn. The times have varied but generally it’s been between the hours of 12 and 5am. What has changed? He has mostly stopped napping daytime, he does get some quiet time in his room when he’s home and sometime he does even fall asleep.  He falls asleep in the most adorable places and poses; on the bathroom mat, on the floor of his room, halfway off his bed, behind his giant stuffed gorilla named George, you name it.

We are lucky to be a two-parent household so we can take turns with each kid, Mom can sleep while Dad tries to coax the older one back to bed. Getting him back to sleep is the struggle, where does this energy come from in the middle of the night and can I have some of it?! Seriously. We talk about how if it’s dark outside its still bedtime. We lay with him, stroke his back, night-lights, singing, ignoring him. Finally he has passed the hurdle, but what are the tried and true methods to keep little ones in bed. My Mom talked about my brother sleeping at the top of the stairway, by the refrigerator downstairs with a pillow while they had dinner parties. She did say I was an amazing sleeper, so I definitely blame my husbands side of the family. (Kidding)

The baby sleeps amazingly, much of the time through the night or at least 8-9 hour stretches. He wakes has a quick bite and is back to bed much of the time, I’m lucky I know and his older brother was actually pretty similar. At around 6 or so months we sleep trained him using the Easy Sleep Solution and I swear it has been almost perfect every night since. My husband recently asked at what point does he learn to use the remote for morning cartoons! That will come a little later, and I’m happy now that my husband is a morning person, I’m the night owl. Going to bed early now though has become a necessity and habit to have the energy for our now four-person household.

I am truly amazed at how we can all survive on small amounts of sleep, yes I have had to eat a frozen pizza here and raid my pantry for odd pasta concoctions on days when getting to the store was the last thing I thought of while trying to run everything smoothly. But sacrifices, even that small are what having a family is all about. I guess sacrificing sleep for that matter too is fine as long as my family is happy and healthy.

I know a whole lot of Mom’s out there that are going through lack of sleep with new babies, and changing toddlers. We often share stories, tips, what works for each other and what doesn’t. It’s nice to have others to lean on during any and all parenting struggles. I’m amazed at the patience we all have, how we can all cook, (somewhat) clean and keep the households running while some of us additionally have jobs to do outside the home. I can see it in the future, maybe not the near future, but I see sleep somewhere down the road, maybe when as teenagers they will sleep until 2pm we will be able to get up do stuff then nap before they even see the light of day. Maybe on a childfree vacation we will sleep more than anything else. It will happen, but who knows with the addition of exercise and tossing the frozen pizzas, the sugar fix and junk we will have more energy and say f*ck the sleep we don’t need it. Maybe we will start getting the kids up for sunrises and early morning jogs. Haha.  Maybe I’ll just start drinking caffeine again. Whatever happens I know I have around me a group of Mom’s going through it with me and no matter the struggle we are kind of loving every minute of seeing these amazing little people grow up before our very eyes. Loving the journey. 

What challenges have your little ones given you in the sleep department?

What has worked to resolve these challenges?

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

     Happy Holidays! Am I the only one who thinks all holidays are going overboard each year? I feel like every time I go into the grocery store the next major holiday is on display and beating me over the head. In August I swear the Halloween candy was out, and the day after it becomes Thanksgiving Central and a kind of shared Christmas palooza. Once the Turkey is in the pan and done it is all Christmas all the time. Friends are posting the day after thanksgiving that they have their Christmas trees up and elves are on the shelf. Ok, it’s the first week of December and I’ll admit that we did get our tree, its up but not yet decorated. As a Mom of an almost three year-old and new three month old I feel the holiday pressure a little more than I did in my single child free days. What holiday traditions do I need to begin with my boys, how young is too young for an elf on the shelf, when do I find time to make Christmas cookies, wrap presents, ride the polar express, how do I keep them (and myself) away from excessive sweets and being spoiled by everything that comes along in the month of December. 

     As a child I have fond memories of Christmas, waking early and running down stairs to see what Santa had left behind. We had strict traditions though, each Christmas eve we would have a dance party with extended family playing the YMCA and Mickey Mouse’s’ I Love a Parade, parading all around the house. Most of this was played on vinyl until the latter years. Christmas morning we had to get the stockings and pull everything out of them before we even got a look at the living room where the tree and regular presents were. One year there was a bicycle for my brother, a hamster, a kitten for me, a camera for Mom, the year Nintendo came out found my brother complaining about sore thumbs at bedtime. Each year my Grandmother would take me to Boston to see the Nutcracker, and we would drive along 6A on the Cape and see all of the beautiful houses decorated with lights.

    My three-year old son is at such an amazing age, noticing everything around him, and reacting in a way, which just makes me get a tear in my eye or a huge smile at how happy he is with the little things. After Thanksgiving we were driving through Brewster at night, he noticed the Brewster General Store had put up their Christmas lights and all I heard was “WOWWW.” His excitement and awe just made me smile and look at his Dad, what a nostalgic moment. We went to see Santa arrive at the Cove in Orleans; he was more excited about the boat than the big guy. When I asked him what he wants from Santa he says presents and lights, no specific toy just what Christmas is about in his 3 year-old mind. We don’t feel the need to take him to sit on Santa’s lap when he isn’t sure what he’s all about, which additionally saves us time in line. Seeing the lights though, that will be something to do, something I look forward to. On a dark evening before Christmas, maybe with Grandpa and Grandma in the car we will drive up and down 6A and relive our youth through his beautiful big blue eyes. Small doses, less pressure to do everything, and honestly we all exist more peacefully by doing less while we can.

I am grateful for such a strong community, amazing family and friends. I feel blessed this holiday season. Bring on the overplayed Christmas carols and sugar cookies. Tis the Season.  

Snippet - Bynto Box

     Recently I got August a new vessel to carry his lunch in, a Goodbyn Bynto Lunchbox, basically it is a bento box for kids. It has three compartments and the middle one has a cute little thermos for juice or milk, the top has a handle and each kit comes with a bunch of stickers for your child to decorate it by his or herself or you can if your little one is too little. I decorated it for August and I will admit I got a little sticker crazy! Haha. Usually I don’t send him to daycare with the juice container, I remove it for more food space; he gets his sandwich space, dry snack area and then a frit area. It does have some snapping closed issues, and takes a little time. But it’s super cute and he loves carrying it by himself, or dragging it around, yeah it’s durable too.