The UnCreative Mama

Although I consider myself creative in some ways, dressing & costumes is not one of my strong points. Before I had kids, I posted about being a Halloween Grinch - I really disliked the holiday. I do not like dressing up in costume or theme at all. I know, some of you are thinking I am no fun but I feel silly and uncreative in this department. Maybe if I were good at putting together a fabulous outfit I'd enjoy it more, but since I never dress up - it's unlikely.

However, now that I have kids I think it's fun to dress them up in adorable costumes and make yummy treats for friends. I have already pinned some ideas on Pinterest of things I'll be making for the teachers at daycare and some of my co-workers but I am totally stuck on a costume idea for Addison. (For now, Ava is getting a hand-me-down ladybug costume from her sister) This is one of those times I desperately wish I could sew. Last year, I bought Addison's adorable bumblebee costume from Gymboree.

It was cute and unlike many store bought costumes, I didn't think it looked tacky. This year, all of the store bought costumes I can find are cheap looking, except for Pottery Barn but those look really hot - in Florida the past 2 Halloweens have been very warm. Plus, she's at an age where she might have an opinion about what she wants to be. I thought Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz would be adorable but I can't make that and she doesn't know who it is. Right now, I am leaning towards Minnie Mouse (they a cute version on ebay that's not tacky looking) - does anyone have any other ideas for this uncreative mama? I realize it's not even September 1, but I have to get on this early so we don't get stuck without a plan!

They Made A Movie About Me

The overriding theme of my blog lately is all about balance (or lack thereof) in my life. It's no secret that I am feeling the burn of trying to find our new normal routine with two kids and being back to work. This blog is a journal of sorts for me. I am in the process of making the past several years in blog books using blog2print and I am enjoying looking at where I was at different points over the past few years. Right now I am happy, fulfilled, and just keeping my head above water. You might think those three things don't fit into the same sentence but they do in my world. Yesterday I had 2 meetings and 3 interviews. I realized at 9 am I had double-booked myself at 2 pm. Thank goodness I caught it and was able to push one back a half hour - otherwise, we would have had two candidates for a job sitting next to each other in the lobby. I lose my keys constantly, I forget things, get dates wrong, and feel like I am careening through life. But I know I'm not alone. I see many of my good friends at daycare each morning dropping off their precious babies and racing to slide into their offices at the last minute. I read the debates of stay-at-home moms vs. working moms on the internet and I wonder why we waste that energy. Why debate over who's got it harder - there are challenges with both, let's respect each other and move on. I did see this preview and related to it so much I just had to share - this is SO my life right now!

Acting Like a Grown-Up

Having kids is one way to really make you start acting like a grown up fast. The level of preparation that is required by going almost anywhere is almost comical. It won't be like this for long but for now, it's a big responsibility to make sure everyone of happy and well taken care of. This month's Parents magazine has an article in it about disaster kits. That, combined with the tropical storm/hurricane warnings that have been popping up, made me realize that I can no longer be dismissive of this type of planning. Sure, we'd evacuate if there was a big storm headed this way but even a category 1 could leave us without power for days, or worse, what about tornados and other things you can't see coming? So, I made a list and we braved Wal-Mart. You know it's serious when we actually make a trip to Wal-Mart - I haven't been there in probably a year, but for some things, Target just won't cut it. Although I still need to add a few things to our box, it was fairly painless and I got almost everything we needed for under $100. I made a "replenish list" of everything in the box, along with expiration dates, so that we know when to replenish our supplies. I've included a list below the pics in case you decide to make one too (when it's listed all out it seems kind of crazy but it wasn't expensive and I'd rather be the person on our street with everything we need than the one with sunburned children waiting in a line for diapers and emergency supplies).

This isn't everything but here's some of the gear before I packed it into a large plastic container.

My little helper

Our Kit

First Aid Kit

Children's acetaminophen

Waterproof matches

flash light

batteries

weather radio

glow sticks (found in the camping section)

water

granola bars, crackers, peanut butter

canned soups, peaches & boiled peanuts

paper towels

plastic sheeting

duct tape

garbage bags

can opener

copies of important documents

fleece blanket (they recommend 1 per person but that's bulky!)

sunscreen

hand sanitizer

Clorox wipes

utility knife

diapers & wipes

Fun stuff (sticker/coloring book, crayons, small toys)



You must know that Crazy Betty was beyond thrilled to hear we were doing this. She obsesses over hurricanes and wants to discuss the evacuation plan every 5 minutes when a storm is headed our way. I think I may be a mini Betty despite all of my teasing, after all, I did insist on 4 mil plastic sheeting in case we need to seal out chemicals ;)

This Weekend

This weekend was a much needed break. We had a date night, built castles out of pillows, played with play-doh, went to the playground, took a cat nap (miraculous!), and even got some stuff done. Perfect balance between productivity and playing which is nearly impossible to achieve. I am feeling encouraged! Tomorrow I'll share my weekend project - a disaster preparedness kit for our family - aren't you just dying to read about that!?! I'm sure you'll rush right back :)

In her "castle" - my bed is now her favorite place to play

breakdown = breakthrough

About 10 minutes after typing last night's blog post I had a breakdown of sorts... or maybe a breakthrough is a better way to describe it. The pressure of trying to figure it all out and balance all of the demands of life hit me like a ton of bricks. The good news is that I needed to have a "breakthrough" and it was better to have it happen then than at work or in front of anyone else! Here are the results of my breakthrough -

We are going to hire a housekeeper. Not on a weekly basis but someone to come 1-2 times a month to do the scrubbing and deep cleaning that I just can't make time for without sacrificing time with my family or my sanity.

I am going to stop being so hard on myself. It was my New Year's resolution that somehow fell by the wayside. I have this stupid drive to make everything perfect but what I am realizing is that things are perfect - it's just a different kind of perfect. Plus, I'm less than a month into being back at work and I sometimes forget that new routines take time to settle into.

I am going to start making changes. Some little changes now, that will lead to big changes later. I'll elaborate more later but to start - no more wasting 2 hours of my life watching The Bachelor Pad (although I'll still be watching The Bachelor when it comes back). More time each day moving towards things I want out of life.

More date nights, more photography, more fun ... it's all on the agenda. Starting now!

All Over The Place

I have been all over the place today. I started the day at 5:00 am with snuggles from my sweet Ava. With Addison I stressed incessently about sleep or lack thereof - this time it is sooo much easier and I honestly don't mind getting up early with her. However, around 7 am I developed a bad attitude because I realized I was never going to make it out of the house on time. Bottles to make, hair to put in pigtails, clothes to iron, lunches to pack, and the list goes on. I continued to get grumpier as the morning progressed and by 10 am I was contemplating a career change, hiring a personal assistant, and going back to bed. I managed to pull myself together by lunchtime but I literally have 20 different things bouncing around in my head.

• Do I need to hire a housekeeper? (maybe)
• Am I going to try to make all homemade baby food for Ava? (it's likely, although I swore I wasn't going to stress about it this time I found a great blog with lots of ideas for simplifying)
• Do I want to continue working in my regular job or be crazy and do something new? (I don't know)
• Should I buy a new camera? (yes, the Canon 5DII is calling but I should do more research first)
• Is there any way to achieve balance when you are a full-time working mother/part-time photographer/perfectionist? (I am REALLY trying to figure this one out)
• Is it possible to actually drown in laundry?
• Pinterest - fabulous website or dangerous addiction? (I'm going with the latter)
• Should I go to Junior League tomorrow or be home with my family?
• Are people who have their parents/in-laws in town really lucky or is it a mixed blessing? (100% lucky - I don't care if they drive you nuts - if you have any family in your city that can help you by babysitting even every once in awhile you are EXTREMELY lucky. You must never complain about this because the people who don't have it will want to punch you in the eye.)
• How can I slow down/stop time?

It's 10:30 and I could keep on typing that list. My brain is a scary place to be right now.

Best Intentions

I had every intention of catching up on several things (blogging included) while in Naples these past few days. One minor detail - a ridiculously comfortable bed and very few actual obligations in the evenings = lazy me! I rested and it felt wonderful! The conference was great, time with my mom and Ava was fab, the hotel was beautiful (although for a "Waldorf Astoria" brand hotel I was a little surprised it wasn't even fancier, I know, I'm being a hotel snob), and it was an overall great few days. I missed Addison tremendously and seeing her today was fun - she was so excited! I took very few photos but here are a few...

The weather was stormy on and off the whole time, we watched a beautiful lightening storm over the Gulf on the first night

She liked the bed too :)

I totally jacked this photo from the conference blog - I didn't take it but here's a view of the real purpose of the trip (Although California Pizza Kitchen and shopping were a great side purpose)

If you had to pick ...

If you had to pick ...

Only 3 movies to watch for the rest of your life, what would they be?
I would choose The Sound of Music, The Notebook and Elf

3 songs?
Brown Eyed Girl, How He Loves, Somewhere Over the Rainbow (the ukelele version)

3 foods?  (assuming these would provide all the nutrients you would need and not make you fat)
I would choose macaroni & cheese, ice cream and blueberries.

3 places to travel to?
New York City, The Amalfi Coast, Hawaii

My mom and I are in Naples this week for a conference. I was asking her these questions as I typed and she asked if I was creating my own meme, it's not what I set out to do but I would love for you to answer in the comments if you feel like sharing. Oh, and here's a smile just because she's cute

Call Me Conservative

So apparently it's World Breastfeeding Week. How do I know this? Because I have a Facebook friend who announced it earlier this week by posting a photo of herself breastfeeding her son in a local park. Before you get all offended on me let me explain that I am a big supporter of breastfeeding. And I think breastfeeding moms (myself included) deserve kudos for the sacrifice they make to do this, because it is a sacrifice. I just don't like talking about it unless I'm talking to another breastfeeding mom. I don't really like blogging about it to tell you the truth. I'm conservative like that. I'm the same way about a lot of topics, that's why you'll never see a status update or blog post from me about potty training either.

I think breastfeeding is natural and the best thing for the baby. I am not judgemental if you don't do it for whatever your reason is (unless you just don't want to even try, then I'll be honest - I do judge a little). I'm not afraid to do it discreetly with a cover around family, friends, or even somewhere semi-public if absolutely necessary. But I'm not all about bare boob pics on Facebook. I can only imagine the Google hits I'm going to get from that last sentence. I digress. Not only is it World Breastfeeding Week, but there is an event called  "The Big Latch On" to be held on Saturday with a goal of setting a record for the most babies latched on simultaneously. I laughed out loud when I saw that but clicked on the link out of curiousity. I was thinking our local spot would be somewhere like a hospital or birthing center. Imagine my surprise when I saw it was at the mall! Not only at the mall, but during an event that is already taking place at the mall. I'm sorry, I think breastfeeding is wonderful but I would not be caught dead breastfeeding in a large group at the mall. Call me conservative but I think that's a bit over the top. What are your opinions?

Tuesday Ten

1. The people in my office are constantly streaming their music over our already strained, too small Internet connection. They are sucking up all of our bandwidth and it makes me insane!

2. I want an iPad but I can't think of a reason why I "need" an iPad. Anyone?

3. So glad Ashley picked JP on the B'rette last night. We all know they will break up within a few months but it's still fun to watch.

4. I am going to a conference next week and I just realized that it may just be an unexpected few days of rest! Sure, I'll have to attend lots of meetings and sessions but I'll only have one baby (Ava) and my mother with me in a fab hotel. No clutter to clean up, no cooking, no lists calling my name!

5. Addison is more hilarious every day. Her verbal skills are exploding - last night she said "Mommy look at me, look at me with your face!" She also sang to us all through dinner and bath time. The best is her version of my fav childhood lullaby "Tender Shepherd," when she sings it she says "tender shopper" (fast forward to about 30 seconds in, that's when she finally gets the hang of the song although unless you know this song you'll likely have no idea what she's saying)


6. I got bamboozled into buying Dora the Explorer edamame at Whole Foods this weekend. Of course it was eye level to a toddler in the frozen section and Addison just had to have it. I thought I'd finally found the magic veggie she would eat. She talked about Dora beans all the way home but took one bite and she said "I don't like it" Guess which mommy is eating the Dora beans for lunch this week ;)

7. I love ice cream

8. I fall deeper in love with little Ava every single day.

9. Is anyone else going to secretly watch Jersey Shore tonight? I feel your judgement and although I should care, I totally don't.

10. I feel like the only person in the world who's not on Twitter (well, that's a slight exaggeration but I am in the minority in Internet addicts who aren't on it). I deleted my account a couple of years ago because I felt like it was too much. I still feel that way but wonder if I am missing out on something?

I Want To Have A Lovely House But ...

We spent the weekend reorganizing and cleaning out. Although we felt a huge sense of accomplishment, if you were to walk into my house right now you would likely wonder what we spent all of that time doing. There's still clutter strewn about - mostly because we did bigger projects and by the time we got done, we were too tired to deal with making everything look perfect. However, I think I apologize about the mess to people too often because everyone I mention it to seems to act like it's no big deal and not that bad. I have talked about priorities on here before and I think I continue to do it because I'm reminding myself it's ok (it's okay, really it is!). I am type A (I know, shocking revalation!) and am constantly striving to do better, be more organized, look more together, etc. I saw this quote on a sign hanging in Tara Whitney's house and instantly wanted one (maybe with a more modern look though). I LOVE this ...

"Some houses try to hide the fact

that children shelter there.

ours boasts of it quite openly--

the signs are everywhere.

for smears are on the windows,

little smudges on the doors.

i should apologize, I guess,

for toys strewn on the floor.

but I sat down with the children

and we played and laughed and read.

and if the bathtub doesn't shine

their eyes will shine instead.

or when, at times, I'm forced to choose

the one job or the other,

i want to have a lovely house,

but first I'll be a mother."

--author unknown

I need this hanging in my house so that I see it and remember this every day. Because I SO adore being their mother ...
(but if you have two small children, work full time, and have a perfect house - can you share your secrets? The perfectionist in me would love to know. Also, if you ever see this quote painted on something more modern looking than Tara's version, please let me know immediately - I want it. I looked on Etsy but no dice)