Santa is Coming to Town

I love, love, love Christmas! Having little ones only makes me love it more because I want to make special memories and traditions that they will remember forever. One thing I do not do is brave the mall and wait in line to see and pay for the Santa they have there. Our church has a breakfast with Santa and, so far, I have been able to get a great shot of the kids with him. We also have a fun city activity where the fire department hosts a Santa and drives around neighborhoods visiting kids. If you drop labeled gifts off at the fire department ahead of time, Santa will bring your child a gift too. 

The following pictures are with the church Santa and the fire truck Santa. Merry Christmas!!

Xmas Shoot

Since Stella will be 6 months on December 19th, I decided to do a photo shoot for the Christmas card. Last year I just made the card, but I wanted to get a nice one of all of us.  Even though Noah wined through the whole thing and Stella can't sit up by herself, and I was threatening and bribing my son to behave and smile, we still got some great, frame-worthy pics. Enjoy the sample ones below. @appletreephoyograpy by Sarah Sidor

Mommy Woes

Life moves by so fast that when the weekends come I need time to catch my breath. Here we are on Saturday night, it's 9:30 and my 2 1/2 year old is still up talking to himself in bed. (I gave him a bath, he had some milk, played with my phone, threw a tantrum, and then let me rock him for a bit.) My 4 month old had her bath and is drinking her bottle now with my husband. If all goes according to plan, she will fall asleep too. Now, pre-children, 9:30 would mean hours and hours of fun, a few drinks, maybe a movie or some "cuddling". Post children.... 9:30 looks like I have about a half hour before I am going to crash.  The good news is tomorrow is Sunday, the bad news is tomorrow is Sunday. 

As a working mother, Sunday means writing up lesson plans and organizing myself for the week. Grocery shopping and pre-packing the diaper bag. We may fit in a trip to the pumpkin patch but that's about it. Oh, I forgot taking the children to church by myself because my husband will be going into work (yes, into work on a Sunday). So, in reference to my post title, mommy woes means that the stars in the show (the kids) get all the love and attention and applause, while the people behind the scenes (mom) gets zero recognition. I mean most of the time I can go on and on and not think about it, but sometimes it just hits you. I really wanted to paint my nails, get a haircut, and start working out again but none of that happened. 

Here's to an eventful Sunday and then the start of another hectic, crazy week. To those of you who read my little blog....we still have not sold our condo (dying inside every day this place does not sell)

But here's what makes the mommy woes all worth it....

Finding the time, with two little ones, to make a blog post is getting harder and harder. I am finding that I need to always have things pre-packed, or pre-ready, or pre-planned because spur of the moment just does not work out for us. For example, trying to leave for church, is nearly impossible if I don't plan ahead. The last two Sundays we have arrived with about 10 minutes left in the service- totally infuriating, especially since we live 40 minutes away from church so we have to drive all the way there just to miss most of it- drives me nuts. So, I realize that the diaper bag needs to be packed the night before and outfits for the kids (an most importantly myself) need to be decided on and laid out the night before as well. The number one thing I have to remind myself...my husband is little to no help, so I must do everything myself or delegate to the"t". And when in the most hurried flurry to leave the house always remember,  " Can I feed em and change em" and that will about cover your most important items. 

Noah is getting a little more friendly with his little sister so that is an upside. I still have to watch him like a hawk, but he isn't trying to hurt her on purpose as much. Hopefully in a couple more months he will start to be more helpful than hurtful. 

Stella is 2 months old today!! Wow! time goes so fast. I have to remind myself that I have about 6 months to keep saying, "I just had a baby" before I can't really use that as my weight loss excuse. I'm working at it, but it is a slooooooowww process. 

Crowded

It truly is amazing how fast life can change. 2 1/2 years ago, it was just Adam, Lola, and I. We knew we wouldn't be living here forever, so even though I didn't like living here, it was fine for the time being. Now, one little boy, and a second bambino on the way, has been the catalyst to finally move.

Noah and Lola love to play, but sometimes it just gets too crazy. It all happens in such a small space.

One of the main reasons we need to move is more indoor AND outdoor space. I want a yard, preferably fenced in, so Lola can run freely, off leash, and Noah has a safe place to play as well. I really hope we find the right home for our family.

Moving On!!!

Aside from being clearly overjoyed to be having a second baby.... I am seriously, almost equally ecstatic to be starting the house search/sale of our current home!!! I CAN'T STAND OUR HOME!

We just don't have the space for another child here. Don't think I'm not grateful to have a home in the first place; especially in lieu of all the recent tragedies. We have lived in our little condo (which was suppose to be temporary) for almost six years. A 100 pound dog, toddler, and new baby later... It's time to spread our wings.

I am nervous about the house search. We just went to an open house yesterday. The home was beautiful and had many of my wish list items, but the negatives were deal breakers. This new baby is coming in June and I'm wondering if we will find and sell by then? An exciting journey, nonetheless. Here are just a couple pics of the home we looked at. The negatives were a very small yard, a duplex right next door, and a train you could see and hear right in the back yard, oh and there wasn't a fireplace. I just couldn't get past those things, no matter how pretty the home was.

Adding a Little Baby Cheer

Due to my slight addiction to Pinterest, I have become a little obsessed with being extra ordinarily creative. No longer is is okay to just say you are pregnant...there are a multiple of much more creative ways to go about telling the world that you are going to have another child. 

I found out I was pregnant very quickly this time around (we were trying) so at Halloween I told my parents with the pumpkin idea below. At Thanksgiving we were ready to tell our close friends and family and I sent an email with the other photos you see. I, of course, told my closest friends and family in person, because I love to see their reactions. 

If you saw my last post, that is how I announced to the "public" that I am pregnant!!

Special Delivery

We can officially announce that Baby number 2 will be making its arrival in late June. Super excited!!!

Camping Bonanza!

This is our second annual fall camping trip. My mother -in-law, her boyfriend, my sister-in-law, her girlfriend, and my hubby, baby, and I all travel to southern Ohio to Hocking Hills for a camping trip. Now, mind  you, I am a little prissy, so this is a rented cabin with plumbing, electricity, cable, two bathrooms, 3 bedrooms, fully functional and clean kitchen, and decent decor.

At first I had a panic because as soon as we made the treck up the gravel road, through the woods, we realized that we had ZERO phone reception. I mean, horror movie style. The only thing my iphone was good for was taking pictures and that's it. Then I realized that we are camping and with family so not being able to check pinterest, facebook, or instagram for 3 days wouldn't kill me.

Here are some shots of the cabin, our hikes on some paths and trails, and a pumpkin patch visit. It was a great weekend and I look forward to it again. Plus, it really helped me get even more happy about Fall being here to stay.