Holiday Catch Up- Halloween

This year's Halloween was building up to be either a huge success or a huge disaster. Lily was jumping from costume to costume and was quite assertive in her choices.

She started out with this. We all loved this outfit and the whole idea.




Then she had to have this. And it was awfully adorable, so I was okay with it.




But then, every time Halloween was mentioned, Lily would angrily announce that she was not going to be a firefighter. She was not going to be a dragon. She was going to be a COWGIRL!!

Let me mention, Lily had no exposure to cowgirls. I was astonished when she brought me a catalog and correctly picked out the cowgirl as her costume choice. I dragged my feet about buying another costume clearly not wanting to spend our life savings on every costume out there, but finally gave in hoping for the best. She was adorable.




Lily loved everything about Halloween from making decorations to carving the pumpkin, zoo boo to trick or treating. She even loved giving out candy.
















Papa even dressed up!




We had an adorable little strawberry, too!




Halloween was a lot of fun this year and definitely a success!

Slowing down

It's that time of year. The time when I focus on replacing hurried errands with puzzles on the floor. Instead of forcing my girl into adorable outfits, we've been lounging around in pjs most of the day. We're trading in granola bars for homemade pancakes (a new favorite pastime Cousin Lanie brought to our house). I'm striving to allow quality time to replace the normal productivity I crave. And it's working so much better.




I'm enjoying my girls instead of trying to mold their moods to fit my to do list. I'm drinking my whole cup of coffee while we snuggle and watch movies. I'm making being a stay at home mom what I want it to be instead of the "clean this, cook this" expectations I had been putting on myself and it fits so much better.




There will be no spotless home for us for a while. Dinner might be grilled cheese. My yoga pants are making a comeback along with wavy hair that's a little frizzy. But I'm loving it again. We're doing crafts, watching movies, taking walks. Lily and I are chatting away while Addison sleeps. It's so wonderful to feel good in my own skin and content in the coziness that is our home.






The weather is getting crisp begging us to slow down and stay home. The holidays are reminding us to be thankful for the blessings behind our own front door. The Oneskos are slowing down and we're loving it.

House Rules

In this house... we eat Rice Krispie treats out of the bowl!

Some days being a mom sucks

It's not all roses and sunshine and strolls to Starbucks. I really really want it to be. But sometimes it's everybody's screaming. And when they stop screaming and finally go to sleep, someone else is peeing. On the floor. A growing puddle headed toward the carpet. So you wake the other one up trying to clean it up. So now everyone's screaming again. And you have to wash the other one from head to toe to get the pee off and she screams at you for doing that. What?! You actually want to stand there all day covered in pee? Who created this crazy little person?

Oh yeah, me. With some help from him.

And I need some explanation. How is milk straight from the fridge not cold enough? And who decided that nursing babies should have teeth?

Some days being a mom really sucks. But I'll take a deep breath and keep going. But not without a Starbucks.

To My Beautiful 3 Year Old Girl

To My Beautiful 3 Year Old Girl,

Lily, today you turned 3. As everyone says, time has flown by. It seems like just yesterday I had you and immediately fell in love. You may have grown, but one thing has not changed. Every day, my love for you grows more and more. If you remember nothing else, remember that. And remember that you, your sister and your daddy are the loves of my life. You are the best things that ever happened to me and the thing in my life I am most proud of.

Baby girl, you are getting so big. You are such a big helper, loving to bake and help Mommy clean. You love to spend hours chatting with me about what you love, what you think and everything in between. You said yesterday that you make everyone smile and it is so true. You plaster a permanent smile on your Daddy and my face (you can always make Sissy smile, too!). You are so funny and so compassionate and I love those things about you.

Today, we had such a great day. You got a Doc McStuffins doll and you took her everywhere with you. She sings and you love to sing along, "Time for your check-up!" You had a great time at McDonalds, Chuck-E-Cheese and even picked out princess shoes at Target (so you!!). We did crafts with a new table from Mimi and Grampa Jim and we all had a great time watching you create. We all love you so much.

Daddy's telling you a story and tucking you into bed. Your special day is coming to an end, but every day you're the most special bunny in my heart.

I love you so much!
Mommy

Poop

I have nothing against poop, really. I spend most of my days changing diapers and know that it is a crucial part of keeping my kids happy. So, though it's not my favorite thing in the world, I guess I'm glad to have it around. The thing I really question about poop is its timing. You see, when it comes to my kids, poop can almost be timed to the minute to the worst possible moment. In a car seat at a store, on my favorite dress, or my personal favorite...while I'm in the shower. I'm guessing this happens with your kids, too. (Humor me, please.)

Lily has to poop every time I'm in the shower. I mean it. Every time. I inevitably always have to spring from my glorious moment of peace into the cold air to place her on the potty and congratulate her while I'm dripping wet, suds in my hair. I also have to do this with a smile on my face and a "no big deal." But today, she did it by herself. I was SO proud! And said a little "thank you" prayer to God for this amazing uninterrupted shower.

Pants were back up. Toilet flushed. Everyone's happy. (I was actually ecstatic!) Until I heard the words that send chills up every Mom's spine. "Sorry, Mommy!!!" And then a "No big deal, right?"

I peeked out. Poop everywhere. Poop on the floor. Poop on the towel. Poop on her feet and poopy footprints everywhere.

All I could do was take a deep breath. I inhaled one more steamy moment in the shower and reminded myself that this, too, shall pass. (Meanwhile, I was hearing "Mommmmmeeeeee, what are you dooooiiiinnnggg?") I put on my game face, smiled my best smile and said, "no big deal." All while thinking...

I'm going to tell your prom date about this someday... And maybe all of the internet. You're welcome, Lily.

No big deal. :)

Sunny days

Most days are a whirlwind around here. A constant battle to balance a hungry baby, "play with me, Mommy!"s and poopy explosions. It's a wonderful mess of chaos that I love, but chaos nonetheless.

Today, the earth smiled on me. The baby went to sleep in the swing (which she almost never does anymore) leaving me time to put my bum foot up, sip my coffee and watch my amazing girl work her magic.

I sat in her sunny room while we chatted and she set up each and every one of her toys in the exact perfect spot. I smiled the whole time at how big she's getting and what a gift moments like these are. I snapped a few pictures to remember even though she told me not to.

Life is so so good.