I know it's not a sign of good things for the earth, but I grew up in a dysfunctional home, so a good day is a good day...you just have to roll with it. Chicago has been 70 - 80 degrees almost every day this week. Chicago. Not Texas, or FL..but Chicago, in Illinois. It has been wonderful.
Peanut was sick for several days, but it hardly slowed him down at all.
I think I have a sunburn. I love it!
So maybe the world is coming to an end, or maybe it's global climate change (or maybe both) but thanks Chicago for this awesome weather। p with a dino.
that's what peanut said yesterday, at nap time. Oh, he slept....but only for about 20 minutes.
the beautiful start to a very short nap
Then he was up up up to party.
We went to my moms. A first in many years. We usually go to Detroit but the people we see there, J's fam, moved too far away to visit at thanksgiving.
Dinner at my moms went better than I thought. E melted down a bunch, but when you skip a nap, that happens. He was super cute with his cousin and ate turkey, which is a big deal because he doesn't like meat very much.
yyyyyyuuuuuum!
with the cousin
This good holiday makes me feel cautionarily optimistic about christmas. We are in town for both holidays this year. certain people i know who d not live in my house are a little stressie and sad at christmas, but it comes out as anger.
More on that later, or not.
For now, I'm going to leave it with the fact that we had a great holiday!
did you hear about the giveaway? You only have a few more days to enter to win your very own custom made softie. See the give it away now post for more details!
So e and I raked leaves this morning and he loves leaves. He loves jumping in them, throwing them, filling buckets with them...everything! We ran out of bags so more fun will ensue next weekend I'm sure. Here's a cute pic of our fun time. I love how focused he is!
I am not sure what else to say right now other than that I'm in the planning stages of a giveaway of a craft. So stay tuned. For real. It's the kind of giveaway that you don;t want to miss. Let's call it, choose my own adventure. That's right. Oooooo, you're going to love it.
Here in Chicagoland, as everywhere, I think, the weather has been crummy since, well, for a while. We had a mediocre summer, a crummy start to fall with very cold temps and lots of dismal rain. My backyard is a mud pit. When I say that, and I mean dismal, it rained for days, it makes what I am going to say next all the more meaningful. This weekend made up for everything!!
Made up for the days as dark as evenings, for the constant battering rain, the 45 degree days with gooey leaf puddles, made up for everything.
We took Peanut to the north park nature center today, kind of a wild place in the middle of the city. It feels like you are in the woods, though you can hear the traffic go by and the planes overhead from time to time. It's so beautiful and serene. And what's fun is being able to let peanut run free because there are no cars to worry about or houses for him to walk into. There was even some very interesting deer drama between two stags courting a doe. It was quite interesting. I was in heaven watching Peanut enjoy nature the way I do.
I will post pictures later. I want to now but my computer is very slow and I'm not in the mood to deal with it. Downloading the camera takes awhile.
this is a picture of peanut at a different nature center with his mama. She gets him out and doing things often.
one or two brief last notes...I want to without sounding pathetic, say that i really need to lose weight and am looking for some busy person ideas for that. I saw a picture of myself today that I couldn't believe.
Anyway, if you have any ideas, drop me a comment or two. And read my other posts this week. 8 posts in 8 days, and only 3 comments: thanks Leslie, Meg and Kristen!
these apples are delicious. As a matter of fact they are she said. can all this fruit be free?
It was awhile ago now, but we hit the apple orchard this year. It was tons of fun. We always go with my mom and sisters. This year it was super cold and we went to a place in Wisconsin called Apple Holler. A hootin tootin good time if also a bit expensive and commercial. Still, it was one of those times that was super fun, and it's always nice to have a good time with my family, since that isn't always the case. Peanut loves my mom, and she's a good cha cha (that's her grandma name), but her mothering leaves something to be desired. I've mentioned it before so I won't go into it now. We all know I will mention it again as the holiday season approaches and I grow stressed from it.
I love apple orchard day though. It kind of brings out the best of us all. We come together, pick together, try to stay warm together, enjoy the crisp sweet taste of apples and the warm sugary taste of apple donuts together. This year, peanut was so mobile and loved eating his apples. I think this warmed my mother's heart. Whatever happens, whatever ugly passes between us, I like that we have this. A healthy fall day to celebrate harvest, the earth and going forward. We got a lot of apples that day, but since peanut is an apple or 2 a day kinda guy, and i am a apple or two a day kinda mommy, they are all already gone. So we are back to buying them from Trader Joes.
Here are some pictures from the day.
cha cha picking the first apple
My sister's friend M, Auntie M (my youngest sister who is in High School), My nephew K and apples
A week ago, J and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary. We had a rare dinner out to celebrate. We brought the peanut because it feels right to, but also because babysitters are kind of hard to come by. and expensive. and well, again we miss peanut.
J started a paying baby-sitting gig which is awesome. It's just the miracle we needed to get the bills paid and not feel like we are drowning in bills. I feel so relaxed about it now. Chicago is expensive, but it's where we are now, and I like it here, but I also do think that it would be easier to do this if we lived somewhere cheaper. I have 3 jobs here though, and one of them, 2 of them actually, is pretty hard to come by. I am a service dog trainer. and that's not an easy job to get. I also hold a job in a university, and most unis have a firing freeze right now due to the economic crisis. a few months ago, or maybe even a year ago now (where does the time go?) we were considering moving to MN. Then the crisis broke and there was no hope for a job. I'm glad we didn't move. J and p have all kinds of friends and i have my dream job working with service dogs.
In baby news, little 18 month old had a rough night last night. J is trying to nurse him less at night, but sometimes he gets up and wants to nurse right away. Since he sleeps with us, and is very insistent, there is no sleeping when he wants to nurse and the answer is no. So last night, so J could sleep, I packed him up and we slept on the couch with some water. He resists transitional objects, so i brought his small red furry monster, but he wanted nothing to do with him. "No" he said. But he cried every time I tried to take away the sippy. So I ditched it after he fell asleep. For those of you reading and worrying about P's safety on a couch, please don't. He was safe, and had plenty of room, and we have done this before. He slept from 2 till 643. That's how long I slept too. Initially, he had slept from 9:30 till 1:30. Sleep is hard again. That's what I get for thinking it was easier.
I have an extra dog this weekend. A service dog I'm re-training. P loves dogs and couldn't be happier. Winnie, our dog, is also pretty happy.
Well, for a busy mom, I've certainly said more than I thought I would today.
One last thing, I clearly remember what 9/11 2001 was like, and I wish I could hug everyone who is saddened by the disaster. I guess I will just have to remember them and hope that helps a little somehow. I hope peanut never has to experience a day like that. yesterday at the park, his friend showed up in the exact outfit pretty much. P is trying on his friends helmet.
Have a great weekend y'all and if you're reading, shout me out a hi, even if you usually lurk. I'm wondering who reads and I have no way of knowing unless you comment.
p with a dino.
cha cha picking the first apple
My sister's friend M, Auntie M (my youngest sister who is in High School), My nephew K and apples
Cha cha and Auntie J (K's Mom)
Peanut and his cousin K
Mama, Mommy and Peanut
P loves dogs and couldn't be happier. Winnie, our dog, is also pretty happy.
yesterday at the park, his friend showed up in the exact outfit pretty much. P is trying on his friends helmet.
