life with a toddler

survival + small victories = supermom!

January 7, 2015 by Rachel 4 Comments

I know I’m not alone when I say that most days I feel like I’m just surviving.

Get up. Drop Moosh off at the sitter. Rush to work. Survive 8+ hours at work. Pick up Moosh. Entertain Moosh/survive until his bedtime. Do chores. Workout. Sit down. Fall asleep. Wake up. Repeat.

Hum drum. Blah. Ugh.

But after the holidays — and after surviving the flu — I’m back on track. And if there’s one thing I love more than organization and structure,… well, it’s nothing. I love being on a schedule. I love checking things off my to-do list. And I love the feeling of a less-than-thrilling day becoming exciting by accomplishments!

So I celebrate the small victories.

I celebrate the fact that I made it to the gym after work last night. And that I cooked dinner for tonight while Moosh was playing with his trains before bed. Oh – and I vacuumed the whole house, did the dishes, straightened up, and started laundry. There’s nothing that can make me feel more like a super mom than getting s**t done. Am I right!?

I am mom. And I am superwoman! TELL ME I’m not the only one who feels this way!? … or don’t. That’s cool too. I would be totally fine knowing that I really am the ONLY person in the world who feels this way.

If you need me, I’ll be over here basking in the victory of motherhood and domesticity…

Post-Holiday Update //

January 4, 2015 by Rachel Leave a Comment

I’m finally over the flu! It’s been a rough seven to 10 days of it, but I’m officially over it! And since our house was riddled with illness over the holidays, I decided to keep life as low-key as possible. And it has been marvelous!

Our post-Christmas life has been a buzz with the excitement of new toys (for Moosh) and pajamas (for Mama)! And we have spent approximately 99% of our time at home enjoying these new gifts.

For serious.

And I’m not ashamed or mad about one second of it!

For New Years Eve my mom (Ari’s Mimi) came up from Kentucky to hang out with him for the whole day while Chad & I worked. And for the actual EVE itself, we ordered pizza and watched a movie. Me, Chad + Mimi just hung out. Surprisingly, we made it to midnight. And our lackluster celebration of the hour was just what we all needed.

And so was the sleeping in til 10 am (thanks Moosh!) the next day! In fact, we slept in so late that we were nearly late for our lunch date with Ari’s GrandparAunts (Mimi’s sisters)!

Other than our lunch date, we did nothing New Years Day. We napped, we lounged, we ate leftovers… and we soaked in the first few hours of 2015.

Friday we woke up super late. Again. And before we could eat our leftovers from the previous meals, we headed out for yet another lunch date! We met my moms other sister, Mooshie’s Grandma Dee, for lunch. It was craziness. Two of the loudest Italian women I know + a restaurant full of people + a cranky toddler + FaceTiming family in Portland = a hilarious trainwreck. Ha.

However, we’ll call the day a success. Moosh hasn’t been eating much lately. Our seemingly easy-eater has turned picky over the last month or so. But at lunch with Grandma Dee, he ate TONS of fruit and chicken. Hooray!

Bonus? I scored some new cups from Crate + Barrel to match our new plates for less than TEN DOLLARS. Holler.

Friday night we did more of the usual — relaxed in PJs and watched movies on the couch.

On Saturday we had a big date day planned! Part of my Christmas present to Chad was a couples massage at a local spa, Solaire, in Hudson. Grandma Dee was willing to hang with Moosh for the day while we went on our date. The couples massage was … not relaxing. Ha! I realize that I had some knots to work out, but I was hoping for a more relaxing setting; not a deep tissue massage. Oh well. It was still nice.

Post-massage we went to an early lunch at Peachtree Southern Kitchen and Cocktails. We were pretty much the only people there, which was fine with us!

My dad is from Memphis originally and, according to my tastes, I’m pretty much a southern girl. I was anxious to try the Chicken Liver Pate, but Chad said he preferred the Spicy Chicken Cracklins.

They were a bit too spicy for my tastes, but still good. I would have preferred a bit more honey to offset the spice. For our entrée, Chad ordered the Southern Boy Burger (Ground sirloin, BBQ pulled pork, pimento cheese, + special sauce). I ordered the Chicken + Waffles. Because, chicken and waffles. Obvy.

After lunch we planned on seeing Unbroken, but we had some time before it started. So we stopped home for a nap (I didn’t sleep well the night before). Aaaaand I accidentally slept through the movie. Oops! So yeah, we spent date day napping while our kid was painting pottery with his Grandma Dee. Oops. Hey, it’s what we needed!

By today, Sunday, we knew we had to get Moosh back on some sort of schedule. I decided yesterday that I would skip my run with my running partner and just run whenever I could. No schedule. No pressure. Just do it on my own time. So we slept in. Moosh seemed normal, for the first time in days. And while I was on my way to the gym to get in a run, I decided to hit the trails instead. The weather was perfect for running. The downpour of rain we’ve had the last 48-hours stopped. Sure, the Towpath was a bit muddy, but I managed to fit in nearly 6 miles to get myself on track for my week-late start to marathon training!

So the holidays were rough. But they also turned out exactly the way we needed them to.

Seriously. Don’t underestimate the need to disconnect from technology and just REST. If you think you need it, YOU DO. Turns out the digital world is right where I left it. I missed nothing monumental while I was unplugged. In fact, I caught up on things that ARE important. 🙂 2015, you’re going to be great. I can feel it.

And I’m ready. Bring it. XO.

Ari’s Christmas Wishlist //

December 21, 2014 by Rachel Leave a Comment

One of the things that’s been shocking to me over the last month or so is how aware Moosh is of Christmas this year. I mean, he’s only two; and we’ve very rarely (if ever?) mentioned the jolly fat man. But apparently he caught on all on his own!

Right after Thanksgiving we saw the fake Christmas trees in Target and he immediately pointed at them from afar and yelled “Ho, ho! Mommy! Ho, ho!” Which, as a mom, is an incredible thing to hear — your child connect the dots all on their own.

And thus my excitement grew for Christmas. I can honestly say that I’ve never been THIS excited about any holiday before in my life. The tree is up; I’ve made TWO batches of cookies (one a double batch, the second just because I wanted him to cut out cookies again with me); we are in the process of making our second gingerbread house; and, heck!, I even went shopping on black Friday!

As my excitement grows, so does his. Every day he eyes up the presents around the tree. I keep reminding him that if he waits patiently to open them for just a few more days, Santa will bring him more presents. This seems to keep him at bay.

Another thing that’s been really clear is that he definitely has an interest in specific things this year. Sure, he can’t say he WANTS them (not exactly, at least); but the dude has interests…

I’m not going to lie. He’s getting all of these things. 🙂

NERF Gun. He started playing with one at a friends house and he loved it! Technically Santa is bringing two of these. What fun is one? You’ve gotta have two so that you can ‘battle’ each other. (Something tells me Daddy is going to have just as much fun with this.)
A Microphone. He loves to sing. And I have been singing since I was his age. I definitely want him to continue to belt Frozen songs at the top of his lungs.
LeapFrog LeapPad Ultra XDI Tablet. He’ll have his own “iPad” and won’t have to use Mommy & Daddy’s! Tons of educational games. This kid is ready.
A baby doll in a backpack! He loves pushing around a doll stroller, but right now he just pushes his trains in it (or he gets in it and makes us push him — yes, he fits. Sigh.). So he’s going to love having a baby to actually push around.
Big boy undies! Hoping these will help to encourage him to use the potty. No rush; Santa is just showing a little encouragement, that’s all. 😉
Membership to the Akron Zoo. Last year we went every single week, even if it was just for an hour. It’s easy enough to get in and out of, and is very rarely packed.
Melissa & Doug Tool Kit. Ever since discovering Wreck It Ralph, he’s been obsessed with hammering and pounding things. Such a boy.
Thomas everything. The choo choo obsession is neverending. Sigh.
Frozen CD. The only CD I have bought in ages. Because it will stay in my car and we will listen to it on repeat as he sings/screams “Love is an open dooooooor!”

I am so anxious for Christmas! I cannot wait to see the look on his face when he sees the tree on Christmas morning! Tell me I’m not the only parent who feels this way!?!