Changes, better than 2-Pac

Oh my, it has been 2 months and 1 day and so many things have changed. First of all, blogger is different. When did that happen? I reopened my blogger hopping I hit a wrong button, but alas, that's just the way it is. C'est la vi.
Where shall I start. I'm doing bullets again. Sorry.

• Asher and I made the pilgrimage out to Utah. It was the first time we had been back in 18 months. Far too long. Flying with a 2 year old is a pilgrimage, as it comes with great sacrifice.
• We had a lovely trip to Vegas with Bill's best friend from Brentwood. I left Asher in Utah with my parents where he had way more fun playing with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. And cars. And Bill and I met up for a weekend of friends and fun.
• All my siblings made it to the great state of Utah for a couple days! It seems to be a rare occurrence for my siblings to all be together anymore. But so fun when it happens.
• Did I mention, Bill and I had a vacation sans kid...yeah, it was great! So I thought I'd just throw it in there again.
• Asher turned 2 in April. He is a funny boy. He talks our ears off and loves to point out everything he sees as we drive. He LOVES his cousin that lives close by and asks for him daily. They are the best of friends until someone steals a Lighting McQueen. But all is quickly forgiven.
• I raced a 10 miler and a 5k every Friday for the month of April. Just the 5k's were weekly. It was actually really fun. Took the pressure off by racing so much. I didn't feel like all my training was for nothing if things didn't go as planned.
• Bill's firm suffered a massive Lehman Brothers like melt down. It was very stressful. As of this coming Tuesday, Bill's firm will no longer exist.  Did I say it was very stressful, it was.
• Luckily, Bill starts his new job this Monday. Hurray! I'm just grateful that Bill felt like he should start talking with headhunters when he did. Otherwise, we'd be out of a job like so many others.  Don't you worry, I've been praying in thanks like you wouldn't believe.
• Bill is very excited about his new firm and will be working solely in their energy practice group. At Dewey, he was doing energy and antitrust, but decided energy was the place for him.
• Since we had a week of downtime between the firm collapsing and the start at the new firm, we took a quick trip up to Rehoboth Beach, DE. It was great! Who goes to Delaware? We do.  And we at tons of sea food. (Hoda & KLG go there too)
• And then the usual stuff. We've been going to Nationals games, playing in the sand (much to my chagrin, it is impossible to contain), bbqing, eating fresh strawberries, relaxing (this week), and training for a triathlon (me).

 Nats game

 Asher's 2nd birthday. It was a banner day.

 Naked in an effort to keep the sand out of the car.  Despite nudity, the car and his bed were still covered in a layer of sand. Darn that mop of hair...

 I take it back. I like the new blogger. I guess all these changes are pretty good.

An Update!

It's been a month and I don't feel bad. Like always, I have no idea what we've been up to. So we're going bullet style.

• Asher has been sick lately with a cough. It is a bummer. He think he gets extra privileges since he is sick, hence the feet on the table while he eats.
• He had another hair cut. He generally has long hair because I LIKE IT! But there comes a point where he needs a trim. And getting a trim is like murder. Much screaming and gnashing of teeth. It is painful for everyone involved or around. Believe me, I've got huge biceps just from holding his arms down.
• We bought a new car! Hurray. It really isn't that exciting. You see, this is our third car in 3 years. How does that happen. Well our second car, was a heap of #@&*! It was a lemon. We poured money into it and it never got better. So the day that smoke started coming out of the engine and hot tears were streaming down my face, my trusty mechanic told me (again, this wasn't the first time) that we needed to get rid of our car. Now. So we did. It's embarrassing all the problems we had with our last car. I think we put our mechanic's daughter through a year of private school. All I have to say is, I'll never leave you again, Toyota. I'm sorry, I've learned my lesson. Well, I'll never leave Japanese cars again. Amen. (If you want to know what not to buy, ask me. I should do a smear page). It is nice to have a reliable car again. It starts every morning without a problem, it's amazing!
  
• The weather has been quite delicious here. In fact, next week is supposed to be in the 70's every day. I got a sunburn last week from spending 2 hours at the park.
• We celebrated Fat Tuesday here like usual and bought a King Cake. But lo and behold, there was no King! It was very disappointing.
• I went to Chick Fil A yesterday for lunch with a friend and it was delicious! That house sauce and fries are so good.
• Asher is of course a silly boy. Although he thinks I'm the silly person and tells me "you're so silly" about 80x a day. I like it.
• Bill convinced me to participate in his fantasy baseball league this year. There was much negotiating since I've been resisting for the past 4 years he's been doing the league. I'm getting a Sunday walk as a family for my participation. The draft is next week. My teammate and I are ready to go in and dominate.
• And last but not least, I think we have finally cured our cat's severe halitosis. Who knew a cat could possibly have that bad of breath. Cass would open his mouth to yawn and it was a stink fest. But a little teeth brushing and new food seems to have solved the problem.
• One more, I've started doing Instagram. My ability to document our life seems to be sporadic so I'm doing this and it's kind of fun. Anyone else doing it? Tell me and I'll follow you.
  

I don't have a good title

Tis a busy time of year. We went to the firm holiday party on Saturday. Bill pulled out the crushed velvet jacket for this special occasion. Where is the cravat, you ask? How can you wear crushed velvet without a cravat? Well my friends, he went without this year, but next year, we will conquer the cravat. I, on the other hand, went with the classic cocktail dress. It worked out. Who doesn't like the excuse to get dressed up once in a while?
We've been decorating for Christmas. Asher and the cat have slowly dismantled the bottom 2 1/2 feet of the tree. So we are very festive on the top 3 feet of the tree and scrooges on bottom. I've even decided to be crafty and made a wreath. Dang that pintrest, it gets me every time. That website is revolutionizing our Christmas this year. First making a wreath, now I feel the need to make all the tags for the presents. I have the unhealthy desire to be Martha Stewart. "It's a good thing".
We've decided not to buy any presents for Asher this year. Since he loves playing in left over costco boxes, that is what he is getting. Just kidding, none of the above is true. I'm sure he will be spoiled rotten, but boxes are the cheapest toys on earth. I like them, and so does he.
The cat has been spending his days hiding from Asher in either the bathtub or one of the bathroom sinks. I never knew watching me put on mascara would be so exciting for a cat, but he is right there with me every morning. And the tip of his tongue is always sticking out (see picture below) thus causing major halitosis.
Last but not least, an elephant has joined the family. Asher loves this stuffed animal. It likes us too. It has been into photo bombing, or just taking over pictures lately, which ever is easiest. Naughty elephant.
Oh yeah, and I'm 28. I feel like this is a big number. 27 was fine, 28 feels frighteningly close to 30. This month is extra busy because this is the one month that Bill and I are the same age. Must take advantage of our 28ness and be crazy before the old age of 29 rolls in with hearing loss and incontinence. Maybe a black tie new years party is in order?

We've moved

We've moved, we've had guests, we've had Thanksgiving (or T-give around these parts), we've unpacked, we've (especially Bill) traveled, we've had hair cuts, we've been scanning. We've been busy.

Fear not, he was not this calm at the end.

View from our balcony of our new apartment from 2 weeks ago. All the leaves are gone now.

Taking care of business before we move. He's a good helper.

Our trip to Washington and Bill's trips to the windy city for work. They have been plentiful.

I've been scanning pictures of Bill's family. This is one of my favorites of his Dad. It will be nice to have these little gems around.

Crazy Week

I don't know if you've heard but we have had a crazy week here on the east coast. First, I've had these two little turkeys all week. Of course I had Asher, but we had cousin as well. The boys have a pretty good time together. Of course there has been a little bit of toy stealing, but that is to be expected, no? Sharing the red firetruck is so hard.
This picture might refresh your memory, here they are together at the ripe old age of 4 months (Asher) and 6 weeks (Cousin). They were so tiny. I like them!
They didn't share a crib, but Asher feels like his crib is so fun and bouncy, so Cousin had to give it a try too. And try out Asher's binki, in case it tastes better than his own.Anyway, these two boys kept me busy. Applause to all you mom's of twins or more.
So like I said, we were full of excitement around here. On Tuesday, we had a nice little earthquake. It was scary. Bill, the native Californian, didn't blink and eye. Although he did say it was the longest earthquake he has ever been in.
Here is the breakdown (if you care to know):
Boys are down for a nap. I'm brushing the cat in the kitchen. I feel a little rumble and walk over the balcony because I think it is just wind. Low and behold, the trees aren't moving. Then the real quake starts and I start running to the bedrooms where the boys are. I could see the walls moving, the book shelves swaying and things are falling off the shelves as I run by. I even managed to catch a vase. I am thinking to myself, "get to the bath tub".
(I'm a native Midwesterner. We grew up with tornado drills and you run to bathtub, I was only acting on my natural instinct, too bad it was the wrong natural disaster). Anyway, I make it to the bathroom door by the time the rumbling stops. The boys are awake and crying. Cousin had a baseball land in his crib, but no harm. Asher was fine.
Point is, it was scary. Cell phone lines were jammed. Only form of communication is email and facebook. Dang that social media, it really is handy. And I will say, it is nice to have a data plan on my cell phone.
The end, all family was fine and accounted for.We did have a tornado of little boys. They can make quite the mess...really fast.
And now, as I type this, we are experiencing tropical storm Irene, I'm glad we don't have the full hurricane to deal with. So fun. I'm just praying we don't lose power, or water.
So there you have it, a week of excitement with 3 natural disasters.

Weavers in Real Life

Us in real life
My sister was kind enough to take this picture mid-sitting down. Looks like we are, well you can guess what I was going to say.

So I've been told that my blog doesn't really give an accurate picture of what our life is really like. Since you asked, I'll tell you.

• Up until 2 days ago, my side of the bedroom was covered in dirty clothes. Much of which were sweaty crusty running clothes. Bill's side on the other hand was nice and tidy, as always.
• I wanted to sign Asher up for a music class, but they are really expensive, especially for a 16 month old. So instead, we are doing our own music class. I'm enriching my son with the likes of Bob Dylan and Brandon Flowers. He'll thank me later. I'm still thanking my brother for a music education consisting of Pink Floyd, The Cure, and R.E.M.
  
• We are in freak out mode around here, Bill resumes firm life in 2.5 weeks and counting. I'm probably freaking out more than he is. Okay, it's all me. I'm scared.
• My car trunk is a storage unit for strollers. We currently have 3 in there. Usually just two, but a third has been added while we babysit our nephew next week.
• I LOVE to eat out side, Bill hates eating outside.
• My house is a disaster until 5 minutes before I go pick up Bill from the Metro. Then I rush around and pick up every duplo, dvd, stray cheerio and car and make the house look like we live in a museum. I try really hard anyway.
• I miss being able to go to the bathroom with the door closed. Or by myself. Is 2 minutes really too much to ask?
• I want to buy these shoes (in chocolate) for Asher. But alas, he will grow out of them before he ever wears them enough to justify the price.
• I get weirded out when old people come over and "pet" Asher when we are out and about. I just pray that they don't want to hold him because this little pumpkin is big enough to take home a blue ribbon at the county fair. He is definitely a healthy little boy.
• The drama between Asher and Cass never ends. I'm always having to protect the cat.
• According to Asher, we have a At named Ass. He can say car, I don't know why he can't say cat or Cass. Maybe he is calling Cass what he thinks he really is.
• I had to kill a giant spider the other night while Bill was out of town. I dry heaved 4 times by the time I killed it and cleaned up the guts that had squirted out. It was sick. I prefer to save those jobs for the man of the house.
• Lastly, I hate sweeping. Our apartment has all "wood" floors. Keeping the floors nice is not something I excel at. Give me carpet any day (except in the kitchen and dining room).

• 

Another less than perfect picture, no one is looking at the camera. Playing with sand is apparently really interesting.

So regarding the last post about couponing. I feel like the pressure is on and you all will be sorely disappointed. Let me just say this, first, we have no storage and so buying multiples really isn't an option for us, second, couponing is a lot of work (and I'm lazy), and third, why doesn't anyone ever have coupons for the stuff I buy the most--produce? My method of saving money is to have a little black book with a page devoted to the various stores in the area that I frequent. Each page I have listed the price of items that I buy frequently, ie. pasta, milk, meats, fruits and vegetables etc. That way I know if something really is a good deal or not, because I could never remember otherwise. I read the adds, and print out coupons when I see things that I need or plan meals around things on sale. So, though I'm not a hard core couponer, I'm working at being thrifty.

Enough of that. On to life. We really haven't done much. While our car was in the shop for 2 weeks, we stayed in most of the time, or went on walks to nearby places. But the weather was great, and it also helped me to be frugal. I do have a testimony of food storage, I managed to scrape together meals with what we had.
Anyway, being trapped at home, Bill pulled out the baseball gloves and baseballs. Like Father, like son, Asher loves baseball. That is fine by me. Like mother, like son, he loves water, bath time is great and pool time this summer will be even better.

Like I said, we've been walking a lot of places. My babe thinks the bar for his car seat is a perfect footrest. Even though it was lovely outside, I put a jacket on him so that he wouldn't get too cold while I was running fast. Just kidding, a light jacket was nice to have.
We went on a lot of runs together. He is generally a good sport, especially when we don't have to have the weather cover on the stroller.
And here is mischief. He was crawling around and got into my bag. He discovered my licorice and dumped it out and then helped himself. He thoroughly enjoyed.
On a final note, I've been reading the Hunger Games series. I need the 3rd book. I'm number 16 on the wait-list at the library for the book. Does anyone in the DC area of the last book I could borrow for a day or 2? Please?

Couponing...SOS

So I've been trying to be a good little saver and use coupons. I saw a lady at Target using coupons and when I started paying attention, her bill was at $98, after all her coupons were entered in, her bill was $43. I like saving money, but I've never had success like that. Maybe $5 here or there. Here is the problem, I look at couponing website and they have deals on stuff I don't buy - pop tarts, weight watchers frozen ice cream bars, oreos, gluten free food. Don't get me wrong, I love oreos, but I don't have room to buy 2 things of oreos to save $1. So what is the secret? I swear Target never has coupons out at the same time a manufacturer has coupons out. Should I start getting the Sunday paper? Any websites that are a must? Tell me, please! Because I just don't know.

Update on life

We've got trouble on our hands. This little munchkin is pulling himself up on things. He has left behind (for the most part) his army crawl and is doing a real crawl, he said "dadda" a lot today, not just throwing consonants and vowels together, he says "dadda" on purpose. Oy, why does my baby have to grow up so fast. This picture was taken today when we went in to get him after a nap. Yeah, he was a little angry it took us so long to come in and get him. Bad parenting, but the look on his face is priceless.
It was a father son day on Friday. They both wore their matching University of Chicago Law School shirts. We've been sitting on that little shirt for 3 years now and we finally got to use it. While wearing their matching shirts, they had a lively law conversation going when Asher yelled at Bill "moot". There you have it, the conversation was over. Asher won. Like father like son.
My parents were out the week between Christmas and New Years to babysit our nephew and visit with family. While they were here, we decided to head up to Lancaster, to the Amish community. This picture of a covered bridge is the only picture I took on our visit. And I have to say, I was a little bit disappointed. I expected Amish country to be a little less commercialized. Maybe we just visited the wrong places? Comments?? Anyone who has been agree, or disagree? We went to Intercourse and Bird in Hand. Yeah, those are both names of towns in Lancaster county. Those Amish are wily ones.

Cookies and life as we know it

It's cookie season and I have no self control. I'm trying to be good and eat lots of fruits and vegetables. But lets be honest, the fruit selection this time of year is weak. And frankly, a mini cheeseburger sounds way better to me right know than a salad.
So here is my question (please leave comments), what do you guys eat everyday. Staying home all day makes me want to graze on crackers. I love crackers. Do any of you have any other tasty alternatives¿ Cool, I just figured out how to do the the upside-down question mark¿

In other news (in no specific order):

• My sweet babe is crawling. I like it and I don't. I need to get some gates.
• We put of the tree last night and I've already had to redecorate the bottom half of the tree, not because of my kid- but because of the cat.
• Bill is officially an Esquire. We all rejoiced!
• I signed up for the cherry blossom 10 miler, it's a lottery to get in, cross your fingers I win. I need something to motivate me to keep running.
• All I want to eat are cookies, like these.
• And lastly, well, I don't have anything else to say. I thought by having a kid my life would get less boring. I was wrong. We go to target, we go on runs, he naps, and we chill.
• oh I know, I mopped my floors this morning. I feel happy strangely enough. I hate cleaning this apartment, probably because 1 item left out makes the place feel like a disaster. So I always feel like I'm picking up etc. ¿What am I going to do when we live in a place that is bigger than 800 sq feet? Maybe liking the apartment more will give me reason to clean.
  

Sending out an SOS

Help. I need HELP!
My little munchkin used to be a GREAT sleeper. He would go to sleep by 8, wake up at 4 or 5, and sleep until 8.
Then we moved.
Now he is an awful sleeper. Last night I put him to bed at 7, because he was exhausted and he woke up at 12, 2, 4, 6 and finally around 7:45 for the day. He even napped pretty well yesterday, but refused his last nap.
I can't do this any more. He is almost 6 months old, he should be sleeping through the night. Not every night is like this, but most nights, he wakes up multiple times. We went through a period of inconsolable crying during the middle of the night. It was horrible. I'm sure our neighbors love us. He doesn't have an ear ache, and I haven't seen any sign of a tooth.
I've read online that a move can really mess up their sleeping. I'm starting to reconsider this move, just kidding, but my 2 am self is.
Advice Please. I know you all have it. So save me.
oh yeah, he rolls, it's a huge pain and won't sleep on his tummy. Oh yeah, one more thing, out of desperation, I tried a little cry it out session. He won - he went for 45 minutes. Don't judge, we were checking on him.



Above picture is to showcase his hair. It naturally stands straight up. I love it.

Mr Mom

We are alive, I promise. It has just been a busy summer - well busy month of July. First off I went back to work. Lame I know. Something about being responsible and having an income until Bill's job starts. Got to pay the bills:( So Bill has been a stay at home dad all while studying for the CA bar. We made it work. When I got home from work, I would take over and Bill would continue studying until 1 or 2 in the morning. There may have been a day or two when I received a panicked email about a baby not sleeping and thus no studying was accomplished. But over all, it all worked out. And I think Bill enjoyed the time with our babe. I'm sure this was the face made when I walked out the door every day. Just kidding, he was fine.

Also, I ran a 5k this month. I decided I needed a race to motivate me and get back in shape. It went better than I thought, but I looked at the pictures and decided they were all too ugly to post.
Oh yeah, cut my hair way short. I put my faith in Dave to make me look great. He might have failed. It isn't that bad, but I feel like I have mom hair. Dave told me it wasn't a mom cut, it has too much spice for that. Whatever. It's growing on me...get it?! bahahaha. I think I'm growing it out, but I've adjusted and love how easy it is, just not how short it is.
I've also been searching for a new apartment. I'm losing sleep over it. Needless to say, it is very stressful and all consuming - thus no blogging. DC is muy expensive and the apartments are small.
And our final activity of this month was Bill taking the bar. Can I get a hallelujah that it is over?! I've felt like a single mom for the last month. No fun. I know studying for and taking the bar sucked too. Oh well, it's over. Now we have to squeeze in as much fun as possible before we move.
Now onto a busy August, and maybe life will slow down a bit in September. Cross your fingers.