Fall

The humidity is gone (fingers crossed). The mornings are cool enough to grab a sweatshirt and want to be cuddled under the blankets a little longer. The windows are open and the breeze blows in big gusts that make me smile. I love this kind of weather. We have been taking full advantage of the exit of summer and the entry of fall. Although there are still some bugs lingering to make us a little more cranky than usual, we are getting by. Quick update-Will is on his 3rd ear infection coupled with pink eye and Jack has strep. WEEEEEEEEEE

We were blessed with a special visit from Kay Kay and Bampa last week. They arrived late on Wednesday night to the Greenville airport. I kept Jack up and at the last minute told him he would get to come on a special adventure to pick them up. I knew if he was still awake when they came in the door that he would be downstairs instantly, so maybe this would help him to use up that silly, excited energy and go to bed easily. We 'surprised' Kay Kay and Bampa by sending them a text saying just I was waiting outside in the car, when we were actually INSIDE. Jack was so excited that we were "tricking" them. Kay Kay was SOOO excited to see her Jack. We then enjoyed 4 wonderful, adventure filled days. We brought them to The Children's Museum in downtown Greenville. We have been many times already, I just have never made it to post all or any of the pictures. Jack LOVES it!

Bampa and Will on the race track.

Shopping at the Bi-Lo market!

Watch your toes-it's all going on the floor! 

Kay Kay is putting a "cast" on Bampa-Jack's not so sure about this. 

 We went back to Sky Top Orchards (I talked about it here) for more Apple cider donuts, to adventure through the bamboo forest and feed the farm animals. We didn't pick anymore apples, but did bring home a yummy bag of already picked Macintosh!

Looking at the grape vines. "I want to pick THOSE."

and we brought the wagon because.....

On top of the mountain

Will is not amused....

Is that Shen? 

Will thought feeding the bunnies was HYSTERICAL

In the bamboo forest

Jack-"Where are the pandas?" Bampa-"In China"

And of course, some apple cider donuts!

Making special cookies with Kay Kay

And the best part....eating the frosting, i mean, decorating them. 

A little for the cookie, a little for Jack, a little more for Jack...oh and a little for the cookies. :)

We ventured downtown to show off the farmer's market that we love (I talked about it here). We went to the playground, we rode on George the train (a mini train that takes you on a 3/4 mile ride around the playground at one of the parks-you even go over a little bridge). Jack and Will got to blow the horn at the end of the ride. There was street hockey and secret agents and pirates and sword fighting and cars and adventure walks. I know that Kay Kay and Bampa were worn out by the end of each day. It was busy and fun. We were all sad to see them go (especially since Will got sick the next day), but we know we will see them again soon.

On George, the Train

Go Dukes!

Go Dukes!

Until next time.....

The great balancing act.

I have always admired those of my friends that are able to balance a full time work schedule with being a parent. I have been fortunate to only work part time since I had Jack. I have been even more fortunate to have had my mom-Kay Kay-as my source of child care. She also would work as gardener, housekeeper, laundry lady, nurse and adventure planner for my kiddies. Boy do we miss her and all the family we had to help us out when we needed them. As I have transitioned back into working and now working while using a child care facility, we have been faced with new challenges. 

Anxiety and Adjustment
Jack is a lot like me. He hates the unknown. He gets nervous about meeting new people. He gets nervous about not knowing what to expect. He LOVES a routine. At this point we have been going to daycare for almost 8 weeks. Six of those eight were for 4 of 5 week days. The routine is the same. The teachers are the same. The building is the same. I thought by now we would have it down pat, but we don't. He hates me leaving him in the morning-even with his most favorite teacher, Miss Cassie. There are always tears. I know part of it is a little show, a little manipulation, a little "seeing how far I can get this to go." I know that he stops crying shortly after I leave and he has a GREAT day! He is smiling and happy when Tom picks him up each day. He has even cried because he didn't want to leave at the end of the day. We show him the calendar each Sunday and talk about what days he will go to daycare and what days he will be home with me. We reiterate this every night and every morning. I have tried asking him what it IS about daycare that makes him so sad in the morning. For as articulate as he can be he can not come up with an adequate response; "I just don't want to go." is what I hear most frequently. I hate that I am the bad guy every morning and Tom gets to be the hero. I mean, I am happy for Tom to be the hero, but sad for me to be the bad guy. Will cries too at the drop off, but reaches his little chubby arms out to the teachers and goes willingly to their arms. Sometimes I think that because he sees Jack cry, he thinks he is supposed to cry too. He too is happy and tired when he gets picked up. All in all I do think they are adjusting well and I hope that my new schedule of only 2 or 3 work days a week will lend itself to overall happy kids. That is all I really want. Happy Kids. 

Germs
I know that they are out there. I work with them everyday. I just hate when they take over our little family. Germs and being sick now come with an added disadvantage, no extra help. In the past, if Jack or Will was sick, had a fever, was extra cranky, something minor, I could still go to work and leave instructions with my mom. Now, if we meet these new challenges, they have to stay home, which means Tom or I have to stay home too. Since starting at daycare Will has been giving his little immune system a work out. Most of which is just bad timing. He had an ear infection 2 weeks ago that left him screaming all night. I took a day out of work to recover from no sleep as well as take him to the doctor's. Just this past week we were faced with the same dilemma. Up all night screaming and also running a temperature. Again I called out of work. Again we are faced with a new ear infection and are working our way up the antibiotic chain. The next morning he was not feverish, but probably not feeling much like himself. I gave him some Tylenol and sent him on to daycare so I could complete my work commitment for the week. I felt terrible. I knew that the teachers would call us if he had a new fever, and he didn't all day. I knew that he would do OK. I just felt bad. I wished he could be home where he could have his blankie all day to snuggle and we could watch movies or play cars or read books and I could just make him feel better. This morning I sent Jack with a cough. Nothing that sounded serious, more of an annoying tickle. I armed him with the tools to use his elbow to cover his mouth when he coughed and to wash his hands. He didn't have a fever, so he went. There were lots of tears this morning. Partly because it is the Tuesday after a long weekend and partly because that is just what they do when we get there and partly because i don't think they feel like themselves 100%. Thankfully I have a manager who is both super understanding and a mother herself. I called her to touch base with her after my second call out in 2 weeks. I wanted her to know that I would only call in sick if there was truly a reason to, not just to get a day off. She reassured me that the patients would be there when my kids were better. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. 

Balance
The biggest challenge for me has been being able to find that balance between juggling all the housework with working with finding time to do stuff for myself and being a great mom. Certainly there are days where I don't feel like I can do it all. Days where I get frustrated easily with a cute little three year old's constant requests for attention. Days where I don't feel like I am good at my job. Days where I know I could have been a better mom. I have to remind myself sometimes that being a great mom is something that is individual to OUR family. There is so much that influences us as parents; social media, friends with kids, friends without kids, coworkers, parents, etc. I firmly believe that you have to do what is right for you and your family. Every situation is different and individual. I try not to compare my family and my children to others except to try and gain a new perspective on a situation and maybe try a new approach. I love to bounce ideas off other parents/friends and hope to come up with something that will work for us. I know I can only do so much in one day. I am slowly learning to do a little each day so I don't have to spend a whole Saturday overwhelmed with cleaning, chores and errands. I am also learning that my house doesn't have to look perfect or even remotely close to perfect. The time is better spent playing cars or travelling to outer space in a chalk drawn spaceship or building a fort out of blankets. The dishwasher and laundry can wait. These days, like so many other things, will go by too fast. My latest struggle has come with getting back into my gym routine. Will cries so hard when I bring him into the nursery at the Y. I hate that I make him feel that way. I miss my workouts. So many days I have debated in my head whether it was worth it to go through the drop off cry at the Y. I have decided it is. He is FINE. I need the time to workout and he (and Jack) eventually play and have fun. It is only for an hour. I am going to break these kids of this separation thing one way or another. 


And so here I am, slightly new to this balancing act, but starting to get the hang of it. I know that there will be more challenges ahead of us. I know we will find a way to work through them. 

Next time there will be more pictures.

Getting a jump on fall...

September 1st has arrived and although the temperatures don't make it feel like fall we are ready to embrace this next season. We got up early on Saturday morning and headed into the mountains of NC (about 45 minutes away) to Sky Top Orchards for some apple picking. We were told by some of Tom's co workers that this is prime apples picking time, especially our favorite variety, the McIntosh.  We wound our way up a twisty and winding road to the top of the mountain. The view during the drive was beautiful. Our ears popped as we drove closer and closer. This orchard sits on top of a mountain in Flat Rock, NC. We arrived right at 9am when the orchard opened and we were not disappointed.The temperatures were cool with a beautiful breeze, a nice change from the humid 90 degree temperatures at home. We unloaded from the car, got our orchard map and plunked 2 kiddies into the wagon. 

 

We grabbed an empty bushel and headed out into the orchard.

The terrain was a little tricky for our littlest walker and our less than four wheel drive capable wagon. We all got a work out this morning! Poor Will, wanted to walk around so badly, but the whole orchard was very hilly, the ground was still wet with dew and there were whole and slippery, mushed apples everywhere. He was slipping and sliding, tumbling down a little hill after rolling on one apple and landing on his face on another. He is a very independent little guy and did not like being held. He would ride in the wagon for short stretches, but took this time to throw all the apples we had picked out onto the ground. Will loved getting to pull the apples from the trees branches and he laughed and giggled every time one "popped" off the branch. 

Getting ready to toss that one out. 

Jack loved the orchard too. Prior to leaving he asked me if Michael would be meeting us at the orchard. Michael, his cousin, is who we have always gone apple picking with. He was very sad to learn that it would JUST be us this time and still doesn't understand how far away RI is. Once at the orchard, he had fun running up the rows, picking apples from the trees and "cleaning up" after Will when he would throw the apples out of the wagon. As we headed back toward the farm stand we spotted, what I later identified using Google as a RAT SNAKE. A HUGE black snake coiled up and slithering on top of a shed and then slipping inside through a hole in the side. 

On top of the world! 

Working hard to pull the wagon up the hill

Both smiling and sort of looking at me...quite the rarity. 

Brotherly love?

 At the end of our picking, we paid and loaded up the car. There was still so much to do and see here. We ended up meeting up with Tom's boss and his family, The Tierney's, who have made coming here a family outing for many years. We chatted while the boys played on a huge playground. Meanwhile, Tom stood in line for the other thing this place is known for....APPLE CIDER DONUTS! You can watch them being made while you wait in line and then there are many tables to sit at to enjoy them. Tom brought 2 dozen to the table and we called the boys to join us! The warm, soft, sticky and sweet donuts were a perfect end to our time at Sky Top. There were plenty to share with The Tierney's and we all left with some to take home!

We spent 2 hours at the orchard and farm and still left some things to do for next time. There are farm animals you can feed, a bamboo forest to explore and there will be more donuts! We are excited to have found and enjoyed the morning at Sky Top and look forward to returning soon. 

Once we got home and washed all of our apples we started planning what to do with them. At the end of the weekend, I had made an apple crisp and apple sauce, both delicious! I am planning to make some apple chips and maybe some apple cinnamon oatmeal too. I love watching Jack and Will attack an apple too. The only time Jack will eat the skin is if he is holding the whole apple. Will ate right through to the seeds. An added bonus-our house has smelled amazing too!