marriage

it was a good day.

October 7, 2015 by Rachel Leave a Comment

Thank you everyone for all of the birthday wishes Monday. I ended up being rather sick and only sleeping for 2 hours the night before, but I made the most of it. Lack of sleep and getting sick all night sure made for an interesting morning… Buuuut I got my butt outta bed and got a couple of things done before being swept away for a morning breakfast sandwich with a dear friend.

Post-breakfast, Chad + I took Moosh to the pumpkin patch to let him explore and get out some of that toddler energy. Maize Valley Farm + Winery in Hartville was just the place!

The place was empty, with the exception of a few other moms & tots. Moosh definitely needed someone who could keep up with him. And I definitely was not that person. So Chad chased the little stinker here, there, and everywhere.

First, he played on the playground, the hay bales, and the tractors.

He was so adventurous. It was amazing to witness this little boy explore, bravely stepping out a few feet further than normal from mommy & daddy. So much different to where we were just a short year ago.

After watching the boys run around (I did zero running. Ha. I just waddled and snapped some pictures), we caught the wagon for the hayride! Moosh loved it!

There were a couple of stops on our hayride tour of Maize Valley, the first being to pick our own pumpkins. Last year Moosh managed to pick a rotting pumpkin and the farm refused to even sell it; they just gave it to us – ha! This year my only rule for Moosh was to pick a pumpkin that wasn’t on it’s way to rotten already.

He wandered and wandered until the found the perfect [tiny] pumpkin! Sigh. There’s something adorable about watching your kid find the ‘perfect’ [for him] pumpkin!

And then it was off to watch the pumpkin chucker! Yep – a compressed-air pumpkin cannon. Chad was in heaven! Moosh was at first… but he grew tired of the chuckin’ pretty quickly! One day, kid, you’ll be super excited to see this.

Ya know what did hold his interest? Racing pigs. Yep. Racing. Pigs.

Sigh. Such a boy! After watching pigs run in a big circle, Moosh insisted on riding in the barrel cars with daddy… Thank goodness he didn’t ask me to go with him, because I wouldn’t have been able to get out! Ha!

By the end of our trip, we were all ready for a nap. Moosh actually said “I need a nap,” when we got home. And everyone napped… except me… the pregnant girl who only got 2 hours of sleep the night before. Ugh.

But I woke everyone up early because I really wanted to eat dinner. I decided I wanted Mexican food, so we checked out a (new to us) restaurant. The food was just okay. And Moosh was totally, totally, cray the whole time we were there. NEVER have I wished for a margarita so badly in my life. Ha! I’m glad Chad was able to enjoy one in my place. 🙂

Our last stop was a quick ice cream cone at Handels. I couldn’t even finish mine because I started to feel sick again. But Moosh had no probably double-fisting my cone with his.

We then put Moosh to bed and watched a movie… which is when I proceeded to get incredibly ill yet again. Regardless, I wouldn’t have changed the day. At all. It certainly wasn’t glamorous. But it was perfect in every way I needed it to be.

I am so grateful for my husband — for his love and his understanding of what exactly makes a perfect birthday when you’re wife is pregnant and sick and (mostly) miserable. ♥

i am my own worst enemy // but it will all be okay

September 23, 2015 by Rachel 1 Comment

Sometimes I get in my own head. I start to panic because it’s pretty much the worst place to spend a significant amount of time. I am THE BEST at doomsday scenarios, in every facet of my life. Seriously. I can jump from nothing to worst case scenario in 2 seconds flat. It’s a horrible feeling.

So when I play “worst case scenario” over and over again in my head, I literally have to talk myself off that proverbial ledge. I’ve been extremely stressed during this pregnancy. In addition to the major sickness, I’ll just burst into tears because this is not how life should be. And I’m missing a lot of work because of it. And that has me stressed out, like, beyond words. I just feel like none of this should be this way right now.

But wasn’t I just preaching in my mantra for this week (which, I’ll admit, is more for me than anyone else), that worrying just sucks the joy from today? Yes, yes I was.

Regardless of the many of the several doomsday scenarios I think of, I will be OK!

… I will still be alive.

… I will still have my health.

… I will still have this baby in my belly.

… I will still have my husband, who very much loves me.

… I will still have Moosh and his relentless toddler love.

… I will still have a roof over my head.

… I will still have food on the table, morning, noon and night.

In the same way that I can be my own worst enemy, I am also good at talking myself off the anxiety ledge. And if I just can’t manage to do it, I’ll reach out to someone who will do it for me. ♥

And everything will be okay.

And yesterday, someone on the internet reminded me that we survive even our worst days. And it’s true. And if you need that reminder today, or if you know someone who does, I’ll leave you with my favorite quote:

do what you can // it takes a village. still.

July 15, 2015 by Rachel 1 Comment

After Moosh was born, it became crystal clear that the saying “It takes a village to raise a child” is 100% true. I was, and forever will be, eternally grateful for everyone who brought over a meal or sacrificed their time to come clean our house and do the laundry. We even had several family members donate a few nights to staying with us overnight and hanging out with a very colicky baby while we slept.

And I’m already noticing this again during this pregnancy. In just the littlest ways, it has helped tremendously.

My Husband // It’s no secret that I’ve been sick and less than human over the last few months. I’ve slacked on everything. Obviously, it’s not on purpose; but there is still a huge amount of guilt over disregarded housework, laundry in piles, and a toddler disheveled. Not to mention my inability to go into work. He’s been incredibly supportive and has picked up my slack.

My Doctors + Pharmacist // They have all seen a lot of me lately. I’ve been in to see my doctor biweekly and the pharmacist about the same amount, if not more. My doctors (yes, the practice has multiple doctors that I rotate in seeing) haven’t batted an eye at trying different methods to help my extreme morning sickness. They’ve been patient and accomodating.

And as odd as it sounds, my pharmacist has been a huge supporter. Not only have I seen him on the regular over the last few years, but he was one of the first people to find out I was pregnant both times! The first time — with Moosh — I literally went one week to picking up my birth control pills to filling and picking up prenatal vitamins the next. This time around he had to go behind the counter to get me some B6 vitamins, which are made pretty much for combating morning sickness. Ha! Well over the course of this pregnancy, my dear pharmacist Patrick (yep, we’re on a first name basis — LOL), has told me about how his wife had a terrible time with both of her pregnancies. This last time I went in to get a new morning sickness medication Patrick offered an additional piece of advice… He told me not to feel guilty about the multiple doctors visits and not to feel like I was wasting their time. That all of them were happy to help and get me to feeling better. ♥ THANK YOU PATRICK!

My Family + Friends // Everyone has been so supportive. My mom calls in to check on me everyday. I know she wishes she could be here to help me through this time, but times like this last weekend she WAS able to come up and help out. And I totally appreciated having her take on a super crazy toddler for me.

My Coworkers // I’ve had so many people ask me how I’m doing on the daily. And there are so many women, so many mothers, who have been so incredibly supportive. Not really offering advice, ’cause let’s face it — there’s nothing a pregnant woman loves less than advice — they’ve just been consoling, comforting, and a shoulder for me to cry on.

So yeah. This quote. I’ve gotta remember this. I can’t change my situation; I’m simply waiting for the situation to change in my favor. Thank you to everyone who is respecting where I am. I’m going to use what I have (and that’s my resources — YOU!). And just know that I’m doing what I can. ♥ And I will forever be grateful for my village.

life lately //

July 9, 2015 by Rachel 1 Comment

Pregnancy has taken over my life, friends! Seriously. I’m sick pretty much all of the time (truly, very, very, sick). But as much of a cluster that this pregnancy has caused these last few months, I’ve also managed to fit in some happy to our lives. And I’ve been quiet about ALL of it… because let’s face it — I’ve barely been able to keep my eyes open, let alone blog, as of late.

So get ready for the longest blog post in the history of this blog. Ha! Oh – and lots and lots of pictures!

The Cleveland Flea //

Moosh and I ventured to the flea for a few hours. It was a beautiful day, not too hot, not too cool. But it was very crowded. And many a flea-goers seemed unphased and unwilling to pay attention to the toddler they were nearly elbowing (I was wearing him as to avoid a trampling of the moosh). So that was fun. Ha.

Besides being a tad bit overwhelmed by the crowds of people not paying attention, we did manage to scope everything out. We said our hellos to our friends over at ReTread Akron and Studio KMR before settling in with our tasty lunch-finds: Tacos from #TeamSawyer and french fries from Melt Bar & Grilled.

After chowing on some delicious food (oh, and ice cream via Mason’s Creamery), Moosh wanted to listen to the DJ and dance in the open space. And who was I to stop him ~~from wearing himself out~~? All in all, it was a successful Flea trip. But truly, I could use a few people who watch where they are walking.

SOAR Playground //

Over the last couple of years I had heard about this “amazing” playground in Stow, Ohio. But there are so many other playgrounds around that I hadn’t ventrued out to find it. Well, we did. And it truly is amazing. Located in Silver Springs Park, the playground is suitable for young kids as well as the slightly older kid. And it’s very well known for being handicap accessible.

PS. Can you see Moosh in that picture?? He’s running up one of the ramps, which is one of his absolute favorite things to do.

An added bonus of this park is that you can still go play after a rainy day, or even a rainy few hours! No messy mud or mulch to deal with!

Movie Dates //

We’ve gone on THREE movie “dates” in the last couple of months. One was taking Ari to see The Lego Movie for $1 kids club day. He LOVED it! It was a new-to-him movie and an all-around new experience for all of us! Cinemark is doing Summer Movie Camps where they play movies in the morning at 9:30 am for just a dollar a ticket! So no pressure for us to stay through the whole movie. However, Moosh made it through most of The Lego Movie before we had to leave. 🙂

In addition to The Lego Movie, I took Moosh on a solo movie date TWICE since then! Once to see Penguins of Madagascar and the other time to see . These two times he acted like a pro! Ha! He was like, “Mommy, I want popcorn and fizzies.” (By the way, fizzies = root beer). And he sat through the whole movie BOTH TIMES (!!!!!).

Chad & I did have an opportunity to go see a movie I have been pumped to see for a while, Jurassic World. Guys!! I LOVED it! Sure, judge me. But the original Jurassic Park movie is one of my favorite movies of all time. This movie? This one was right back up there!

Meeting Spiderman //

Ari has developed a bit of an obsession with Spiderman, pretty much out of nowhere. Well, I shouldn’t say nowhere. He has a Spiderman sippy cup, but he had never actually seen an episode or movie of Spiderman. Well, he ended up meeting Spidey at Café O’Play in Stow.

And the dude was TERRIFIED, but I swear he was actually excited. We snuck away for a picture without the other kids chasing Spidey. Moosh talked about it all day, but he really does look terrified in the picture. I think he was just in shock.

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History //

Moosh and I ventured to University Circle to hit up the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. It’s been years since I’ve been and decided that a day-trip was indeed necessary! Moosh wanted to see dinos, but he ended up being pretty terrified of their size, compared to his less-than-36-inch stature.

We did find one gem that was impossible to pry him away from — the kids play and explore area in the basement! He used “science” to ‘dig up’ dino bones and explore bugs of the world. Very exciting stuff. The only problem? Eventually this mama had to pee and that meant full-on meltdown mode for one cranky little toddler. Nothing a quick trip to the gift shop couldn’t fix! He was holding a turtle stuffed animal for a while (this kid LOVES stuffed animals), but he ended up finding a pair of kids binoculars and he refused to let go of them. So we bought them (I know, I know… spoiled kid). I was surprised to find that he knew exactly how to use them. Whaaaat? Where do kids pick this stuff up, anyway!?

Race For The Place + Family Parties + Pregnancy Announcement //

So I have to be clear – our pregnancy announcement this time around was much less glamorous than the first time. The first time I was super nervous to tell everyone. This time I just wanted everyone to know because I was so tired of feeling sick for “no reason.” In fact, when telling people I mostly just blurted it out to family members.

The first weekend in June we participated as an extended family in the Race for the Place, to benefit the Gathering Place in Cleveland in honor of my aunt. Well as soon as we got there my one aunt said “Aww, Ari doesn’t look like a baby anymore. We need another baby in the family.” and I just blurted out “Well you’re getting one.” She freaked with excitement and I was relieved to have told someone. Ha. And that’s kind of how it went. We told family as we saw them. Most people said that they could tell (could it be the pregnancy glow? Probably not. It was likely the barfy look on my face and a pouch in my belly.).

I also felt like I needed to be honest with people because I was planning on running the 5k race. Which, while pregnant and very sick, was going to be … interesting. I used Moosh as an excuse to run slow, since I was pushing him in the jogger. But thankfully, my sister and brother-in-law ran alongside me and helped push him when I needed a break. Also? It’s good practice for them! Ha!

We ended up finishing in about 32 minutes. Far from my best time (like, real far), but it was my first race pregnant, so I was proud to have finished.

A few weeks later we went to a surprise 40th birthday party for Chad’s cousin. We spilled the beans pretty much as soon as we walked in (plus Moosh was wearing his “Big Bro” shirt!). And then later we announced it on Social Media with a picture of Moosh in that same shirt.

It felt great for the news to just be OUT! Freeing, actually. I hate secrets. Especially secrets like this.

Visits From Mimi + Poppy //

My parents rarely are able to visit together these days. They are both working opposite schedules and their desire to see Moosh often outweighs their need to travel together. It’s good for us because it means visitors often! We’ve been able to go to Café O’Play with both Mimi + Poppy on separate occasions. Plus lunch dates galore! Poppy loved checking out one of Moosh’s fave places — Retro Dog! And this mama never says no to a Sahlen’s Hot Dog (miss you, Buffalo, NY!).

When Mimi came to visit we took Moosh for a run and to the farmers market in Kent, and then later a playdate at Café O’Play. With Poppy, we went to Café O’Play, lunch, and then we (ie. Poppy) put together Ari’s tricycle!

Fathers Day Surprise //

I mentioned before that the one thing Chad requested for Father’s Day was to spend the day alone. I totally, totally get it. Moosh has been a bit of a monster these days. And I’d be lying if I said I wanted anything other than that for Mother’s Day (or my birthday — cough:cough). Moosh and I had to go for a drive to pick up his new Thomas the Tank table anyway. So we ventured and left Chad at home.

While we were out that way, we decided to swing by Chad’s dads house unannounced. He wasn’t home, but Chad’s aunt + uncle live next store so we pretty much barged in on them to say hello. And yes, I totally spilled the beans about the pregnancy to them in the first .2 seconds too (clearly this was pre-party & pre-FB announcement). Ha! As we chatted, Chad’s dad ended up coming home and he was super happy and super surprised that we were visiting for Father’s Day!

Ari was being his goofy and happy self (thank GOD) so we decided it was ‘safe’ enough to venture to Tai Pan in Middlefield for lunch. This teeny Chinese restaurant was a staple in our diet growing up and I honestly cannot eat at other Chinese restaurants because of it. We are so spoiled. It’s on the list of the top 100 Chinese restaurants in America… and it’s located in the town that carries the title “Fourth Largest Amish Community In The World.” Way to go, Middlefield, Ohio! Ha. There are exactly ZERO pictures from lunch, because wrangling a toddler through an hour+ lunch is nearly impossible. But pictures or none, I assure you it was delicious!

By the time we got home, Moosh was ready for bed. Chad had the Father’s Day he dreamed of, and I wore Moosh out. Success!

Toddler Snuggles //

As much of a PITA Moosh has been, he’s had his moments of awesome, too. He’s been a snuggle bug, but only when he’s avoiding bedtime. Regardless, I’ll take it. Beggars can’t be choosers!

Outdoor Summer Fun! //

Between having a zoo membership and having a plethora of local parks to explore, we have been busy! For one, the Akron Zoo is so completely accessible for a quick trip to wear out our little man. As a member, parking is free. And at most, we end up spending a couple bucks on the carousel. We love it. And Moosh loves bringing friends with him! Especially Kayden (whom Moosh declares to be his ‘BEST friend.’). Too cute.

We also have a park in our backyard. Literally. We have a small backyard and just beyond a teeny fence is a park, complete with slides, swings, and a kiddie pool! On the hot days (though those are few and far between), we’ve been hitting up the kiddie pool. Moosh is officially unafraid! Woo hoo!

The rain has certainly gotten the best of our outdoor fun as of late, but before the downpours began, we managed to fit in our fair share of outdoor play.

Thirsty Dog 8k //

I was pumped to sign up for the Akron Marathon Thirsty Dog 8k race. I signed up months ago and anticipated the big day for so long! GOOD BEER at the finish line! In fact, a special beer, The Blue Line Brew, brewed specially for this event. And then I got pregnant. Running has been difficult, sure, but I knew I could finish. Again, not my fastest time; not even close. But I finished. But I was too exhausted and tired post-race to even consider waiting in line for a sip of the (very low alcohol content – so hush haters) blue line brew. There was just no way!

So yeah, I finished the nearly-five-mile course and then pretty much crashed for the whole rest of the day. Oh well.

Fourth of July Fun //

We had planned on having a super chill Fourth Of July, but plans change, y’all. We ended up being incredibly busy.

I knew I definitely wanted to take Moosh to the parade again. Last year he had fun, but he was still young. This year I told him there would be music, marching and candy. Candy!!?? Yep, candy, kid. Well, as if that weren’t enough, his friend Kayden was meeting us there AND we got donuts so he could share with all the kids while we waited. He was in heaven. And truthfully? So was I.

Post-parade (and mid-sugar high) we headed home to pick up Chad (who, unfortunately, got called into work and missed the parade) and we headed to meet up with my sister for a cookout and swim. Moosh had a blast in the pool and I got a bit of sunburn.

But wait – there’s more! Our fun day didn’t stop there! We had another party to head to after hanging with my sister. We hoped Moosh would nap on the way. But nope. Bummer. He played and played and played at the last party before heading home to a bath and to crash. And we all crashed. No fireworks, no sparklers; just our beds.

So yeah. We’ve been busy lately. Add in gymnastics + swim lessons + a gazillion household chores and you’ve got one busy little family. But I wouldn’t have it any other way! OK, back to regularly scheduled blogging! Ha!

the truth about this 2nd pregnancy //

June 30, 2015 by Rachel 1 Comment

My pants started to get tight prior to even finding out I was pregnant. Which totally made sense once I found out I was pregnant. However, that happens FAST with a second pregnancy! Dang! People weren’t kidding!

Morning sickness that lasts all day and taking care of a crazy ass toddler is hell on Earth. I know it shouldn’t last forever, but when you’re in the thick of it, it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I’m trying to figure out HOW my boobs are going to get even bigger as pregnancy progresses and then after delivery. HOW is that even possible!?

Speaking of boobs, I have to wear two sports bras — TWO!! — when I run.

And speaking of running, I actually have continued to run. With Ari, I could barely walk without peeing myself. But this time around I’m staying active. In fact, walking/running intervals has been the one thing that reduces my nausea. Walking is definitely the easier of the two. Sometimes running makes my stomach churn. Yuck! However, I have run TWO races since finding out I was pregnant — a 5k and an 8k.

I can’t put words together into sentences. Mom brain has kicked in mega hard and mega fast. I couldn’t remember the word WHEELCHAIR. Instead? Instead I called it “a big person stroller thing.” Yep. That happened. With someone who didn’t know I was pregnant. And I didn’t even know them well. Suuuuper.

More updates to come. Oh and blog posts that aren’t about pregnancy… Once I can get my pregnancy brain wrapped around the English language again. Ha.

weekend wrap up // Memorial Day Edition

June 2, 2015 by Rachel Leave a Comment

Oh hey, it’s a week later already. Short work weeks don’t equate to long blog weeks, that’s for sure. Cause I haven’t even had a chance to TALK about our Memorial Day Weekend, let alone sit down and write about it.

Saturday //

So those big plans I had to go to yoga, Crafty Mart at Thirsty Dog, and a pool party? Well the idea of over booking my planner kind of over loaded my brain. Seriously. I skipped EVERYTHING. Well, except the pool party and cookout with my sister.

Moosh hasn’t been swimming in ages. And last time he went, he was skeptical, to say the very least. But we told him we were going to go swimming and so he wouldn’t stop saying “I wanna go swimming, Mommy!” And like all things a toddler learns to say, he repeated this over and over and over again. I thought once he saw the pool he would remember how much anxiety the water gave him.

But nope. Dude wanted to swim. And he did. And he wanted to splash. And he did that too. A lot. Oh, silly butt Moosh.

We also cooked out and ate delicious food with my sister and brother in law. It was the perfect day, except for the fact that Moosh didn’t nap except for our 30 minute drive home (maybe 40 minutes considering I made Chad stop at Grandpa’s Cheesebarn on the way home!).

A no-nap toddler is the exact kind of thing that will make a Saturday evening exhausting. Early bed times for all!

Sunday //

We slept and slept and slept, friends. It was glorious. We had to wake Moosh up so that we could get him ready for our adventures that day. I know, parent-friends… I know you’re jealous that we have to wake our toddler up after 12+ hours of sleep a night. Sorry (but really, sorry not sorry).

We spent another day with my sister and brother-in-law. This time at the Marc’s Great American Rib Cook-Off and Music Festival at Jacob’s Pavilion, downtown CLE! The plan was to arrive at the festival just after they opened at noon for two reasons: 1. To beat the crowds & heat; 2. To buy time from a potential no-nap crazy-baby. Mission accomplished! We arrived just as they were opening the gates.

The great thing about so many of these festivals in Northeast Ohio is that they are affordable and relatively easy to get to. Parking was a breeze (holla! $5 parking a block away!), even on a day when both the Indians were playing and the Cavs were playing in a home playoff game! There were concerns about the safety thanks to the #BreloVerdict coming down the day before; but honestly, I think the media was trying to turn the demonstrations into more than what they were. When we arrived downtown it was clear we had nothing to worry about (another reason CLE/Northeast Ohio is a great place to live).

Anyways… back to ribs. 🙂

It was seriously empty when we arrived. We were able to make a full lap around the festival, planning our ‘attack’ on the barbeque! Moosh was a champ while we ate. Of course, we kept him distracted with baked beans (dude LOVES baked beans). We split a lot of food with my sister and BIL, which meant we were able to try a lot of different vendors.

All of them were delicious (including the ice cream waffle sandwich and the funnel cake (Mooshies first!). As you can guess, we were a no-nap family yet again. Even after getting to (and leaving from) the rib cook-off early, he still refused to nap. That’s a major parenting UGH, friends. So another early bedtime was in store. For sure.

Monday //

We slept in again. Hooray for sleeping in! We had pretty much ZERO plans for our Memorial Day. Thank goodness! Shortly after we woke up Moosh and I went running (you’ll remember this post here about our experience) and then we got coffee and kombucha (thanks, Bearded Buch!) from Scribbles in Kent! I’ve been meaning to stop in to Scribbles since I tasted their cold brew at Crafty Mart a couple of months ago. And I finally got to go and sip some delicious cold coffee again. Ha!

After our running/coffee date, we picked up Chad and went to ChickFilA for a quick lunch (you know, because that makes sense after a run. Ha! Oops.). Follow up with watching the Cavs basketball game? And call that a successful Monday. For serious. It may sound boring, but it’s perfection to our teeny family. 🙂

However, things took an ugly turn when we put Moosh to bed. He was awake and coughing. And I was listening to him on the monitor, convinced he would stop and fall asleep. But he didn’t. He just kept coughing. So we had to bring him into bed with us. It was… rough, to say the least. It was ROUGH. He finally fell asleep around 3:00 am. And I finally fell asleep around 5:30 am.

Sure, it didn’t end the way I intended it to; but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. ♥♥♥