Here Comes Santa Claus

 We're in full holiday mode here and we're looking forward to Santa's arrival next Friday.  For the first time in our married life, we're staying home and not making the trip north. With that being said, we still don't really know what we're doing here at home. 

For Thanksgiving, we stayed in our bubble and had dinner with my mom and Michael and Declan had so much fun playing with Noel, Patchy and Boo along with all of his toys in his room.  It was a nice, simple day.

Since Thanksgiving, we've decorated our house and put up our Christmas tree, we've shopped online for Christmas gifts, we drove through a Christmas lights display and made Christmas cookies.  With one week left, we still need to wrap our Christmas gifts and make our gingerbread house.  Then we will be ready for Santa's visit!

Declan has really gotten into the holiday.  He talks about Santa, Mr. Grinch and Santa's reindeer constantly. It's so sweet and he melts my heart.  Tomorrow he has his Christmas party at school and similar to his Halloween party, I know he's excited for the snacks and cute games his teacher will come up with for the kids to play.  Speaking of school, he's doing so well in his new class.  He loves hanging out with his friends and his vocabulary is out of this world. I'm amazed at how much he picks up and how he responds to what we're saying and doing.  Right now one of my favorites is "Avocados from Mexico."  

He still loves helping in the kitchen and cooking with us and has gotten into watching The Pioneer Woman lately.  Funny story from last weekend, we were watching Home Alone and it got to the part where the bad guys were in the house and were getting hurt by Kevin's hijinks and Declan got so upset that they were getting hurt that he started crying and asked that we watch The Pioneer Woman instead. I tried to explain it was a Christmas classic and they were bad guys, but he wasn't having it so we turned it off and watched DVR episodes of The Pioneer Woman.  He's such an empathetic little boy. 

Otherwise, we haven't been up to a whole lot.

Here are a few pics of our latest happenings (or really just cuteness overload on behalf of Declan).

Declan is 2!!!

 Never in my wildest dreams think I would have a two year old but here we are one week after his birthday party and my little boy is TWO!!

Declan's actual birthday was on Monday but we celebrated last Saturday with a small party with our families.  Declan requested a tractor themed party with tacos, cupcakes and ice cream and this mama tried to fulfill those wishes.  After taking a few minutes to warm up to everyone, Declan had a blast playing with his cousins and being the center of the day.  Mommy and Daddy surprised him with a bike, Nana and PaPa surprised him with a Jeep and he also got a tractor trike from Steve, Kathy, Nicole and Matt along with a lot of other fun books, clothes, money and toys from everyone else.

He enjoyed his tacos and got he biggest kick out of us singing Happy Birthday to him. This year, unlike last year with his smash cake, he actually dug into it and enjoyed every bite.  We also taught him how to blow out his birthday candle which he thought was the coolest.

One other highlight for Declan's day was that Uncle Paul and Aunt Judy drove down from Chicago to attend the party. Declan talked about "Uncle Paul and Judy" for about a week before his party and was so happy to see them. We showed him a video from Christmas where Uncle Paul pushed him on an ottoman and he got the biggest kick out of it.  In fact, we had to keep watching it over and over again. I think he really wanted to recreate it too but unfortunately we don't own an ottoman.  Overall it was a really fun day and I'm so glad that in spite of all of the craziness in the world, we were able to come together to celebrate our miracle!

On Declan's actual birthday on Monday, we had a fairly normal day. Declan went to school and we went to work. D had a work dinner so once I picked up Declan from school we headed to Nana and PaPa's for dinner and more cake. We had chicken parmesan, spaghetti and cauliflower casserole to celebrate the night.  Luckily D's dinner got over early so he was able to join us for cake and Nana made Declan a special green cake to match his tractors.

Tuesday afternoon I took Declan to his two year checkup at the pediatrician. Going to the doctor is definitely different due to the pandemic. We had to sit in the car until they called us in for the appointment. We had to answer all of our questions via a telephone call with the nurse and then we wore our masks and headed directly back to a room for the checkup. This was only the second time Declan has worn a mask and I was nervous he wouldn't keep it on even though it was required. He got through it like a champ though and even got his flu shot for the year.  When we got home, we spent some extra time outside enjoying the weather and playing in the rocks in the front yard.

This week at school they also started transitioning Declan to the two year old room. He got to spend a few hours each day making new friends and getting to know his new teacher. I know he'll miss some of his friends in the toddler room (he talks about Margot and Leah all the time!) but he's ready to move on  and I'm excited to see him continue to grow and learn.

Speaking of learning and growing, Declan has become a sponge at learning new tricks and is talking up a storm. He has started putting words together to make sentences and let's you know exactly what he wants. He's at such a fun age and each day is a new adventure.  It's so exciting to see what new things he will do and what he will say.  I'm so lucky to be this little guy's mama!

Labor Day 2020

 We're enjoying the last little bit of summer and taking full advantage of our 3 day weekend.  In spite of all of the craziness, we've found time to get out and bring some normalcy to our time together.

Last weekend, our niece and nephew turned 9 and we got to celebrate their birthdays with a socially distanced pool party at my dad's. Declan absolutely loves the water and since swimming lessons were again cancelled, it was great to get him into the pool before the weather changes.  He had a blast playing with his cousins and socializing with other family that attended.  He may of also enjoyed a cupcake or two during our visit.

This weekend, we decided to keep with our tradition of apple picking. We found a cute, little orchard in Augusta, MO last year and decided to visit again this year. Declan had so much fun peach picking on vacation in July and figured he would have as much fun with the apples. We did not disappoint our little guy. He loved picking apples straight off of the tree and taking a big bite out of them. We ended up picking almost 14 pounds of apples and I'm sure he ate about a pound in the orchard.  He learned about an "apple picker" and even got to see a tractor at the farm and orchard.

After apple picking, we went to one of our favorite spots for pizza and took in more time outside when we set up Declan's pool in the backyard.  We have no idea when we're going to be able to get him back into swimming lessons but we're happy we can at least set up his little pool when it's nice out in the meantime.  He seems to love any type of water (bath, little pool, big pool) so his afternoon was made.

Today we're taking it easy at home before restarting the work week tomorrow.  We're having a picnic of smoked pulled pork (thanks D!) at home and spending as much time outside as we can.  We're also starting the party preparations for Declan's 2nd birthday next month.  It's so hard to believe that our miracle is almost two.  He's so excited for his tractor party and this mama isn't going to let him down.

Hope everyone has a relaxing and safe Labor Day!

Summer Fun

We're continuing to enjoy our summer and we've been having fun checking out new spots while staying social distanced.

After our stay-cation, D had to travel out of town for work for a week so Declan and I got some extra special time together.  We stayed close to home but got outside to walk on one of our favorite trails and spent a good amount of time hanging out at Nana and Papa's house.

Last weekend Dustin and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary. 5 years -- sometimes its hard to believe it been that long and other times it seems like its been longer.  Originally we were thinking about a weekend away and then the pandemic hit and we decided to scrap that idea. We still wanted to celebrate but we decided to just go out for the day.  We took Declan with us and headed to Charleville Winery and Microbrewery in Ste. Genevieve on Saturday afternoon.  It was the perfect setting for the day -- we sat outside under the porch and enjoyed some snacks and drinks while taking in the rolling hills. Declan loved the owners' dog that moseyed through the yard, seeing a tractor (one of his new favorite things!) on the property and eating.  After a few hours, we headed back home and had a low-key night in, having Taco Bell for dinner and finishing the last of our wedding cake.  Our top layer of cake lasted us 5 years and really it was as good at the 5 year mark as it was year one. (The perk of picking a great wedding cake bakery -- thanks Wedding Wonderland!)

The weekdays are typically filled with a lot of work and not much time for fun once we get home in the evening so we've made it a point to plan a fun weekend day each week.  This weekend we took Declan to Big Joel's Safari Park and Petting Zoo.  He loved going to the Zoo during our stay-cation and still talks about the animals he saw so I thought it would be fun for him to get up close to animals and get a chance to pet them and possibly feed them.  He wasn't afraid and got used to holding the spoon out for the animals to eat from but he wasn't so sure about them eating directly from his hand though!

Probably the highlight of the day for Declan was getting to play on a tractor, truck and train made out of wood.  He had to make two trips to the kids' area and wasn't happy when we had to leave. This kid is obsessed with trucks, tractors and trains -- not sure where he got his love of machinery (guess it runs in the genes) but its so cute watching him and hearing him talk about all 3.

After the safari park, we headed to lunch and sat outside watching the "big trucks" pass by on the interstate and my little dude left as a happy camper.

We plan to spend as many weekends as we can soaking up the sun and enjoying as much time outside as possible before we're stuck back inside.

Staycation 2020

Today is the last day of our summer stay-cation and we've had a fun week in spite of the pandemic still raging on throughout the community. I definitely feel we made the right choice for this summer and we made great memories as a family over the past week. So here's a rundown of our family stay-cation.

Last Saturday was our first official day of vacation but Declan had swimming lessons so we stuck around home for the most part and had a normal Saturday after swimming lessons in the morning.

On Sunday, we drove to St. James, MO and visited Maramec Spring Park.  We've been getting into the outdoors a lot more due to the pandemic and Maramec Spring Park did not disappoint. We circled the spring and talked to the trout and learned more about the history of the area.  The water was so clear and we got a lot of steps in circling the fishing holes. Afterwards we stopped for lunch at Public House Brewing and sat out in The Gardens enjoying a burger and a refreshing drink.

On Monday, we had 9 am reservations at the St. Louis Zoo.  We got up early and picked up my mom and Michael and headed east. I personally hadn't been to the zoo in 20-25 years and was excited to take Declan to see the animals.  We donned our masks and saw as many of the exhibits as we could given the current conditions. The best part of the day for Declan was getting to ride the train around the park a few times.  He also got a chimpanzee stuffed animal named Eco that Nana bought for him at the gift shop and that's his new buddy when he stays at Nana and Papa's house.

On Tuesday, Dustin wanted to take care of some of the chores around home so we laid low most of the morning and played hockey in the basement and then helped D cut grass with the intention of going to Babler State Park in the afternoon but the weather had different plans for us as it stormed all afternoon as soon as Declan woke up from his nap. So instead, we went to GFS and picked up supplies for Ribfest weekend.

On Wednesday, we headed to Grafton to explore Pere Marquette State Park and pick fruit at Eckerts. We stopped at Eckerts first and picked peaches and blackberries out in the orchards. After picking our fruit, we took a drive through Pere Marquette and had a picnic lunch. Declan enjoyed picking the fruit straight from the trees and sampling his choice at Eckerts.

Wednesday evening my mom and step-dad offered to take Declan for the night so that Dustin and I could have a dinner date. It was the first time we've actually gone out to dinner just the two of us in a long time. We drove out to Wentzville and had dinner at Stone Summit Steak and Seafood. It's been a place we've wanted to try for some time and since they had an outdoor patio, it was a great choice for the night. Declan had so much fun spending the night at Nana and Papa's and didn't seem to care that we weren't there.

On Thursday, we picked up Declan and headed to the National Museum of Transportation. Declan has a new obsession with trains and tractors and we thought it would be fun for him to see some big equipment up close.  He again loved riding the miniature train around the complex and even climbed up into an engine and pretended to drive the train.  Another cute thing he picked up after riding the trains at both the Zoo and the NMOT is that he knows what a train conductor says when their ready to roll.  You can ask him, "Declan, what does a train conductor say?" and he proudly belts out "All Aboard...ChooChoo."  It's the best.

On Friday, we decided to stay home again as Dustin was preparing to head to Ribfest on Saturday morning and wanted to get his ribs on the smoker so that he was ready for the competition. It was a pretty quiet day at home and after Declan's afternoon nap, we let him play out in the "pool" in the backyard.  Nana and Papa came over that evening and Declan helped make homemade pizza for dinner.

On Saturday, Dustin headed out super early for Chicago with my step-dad Michael.  Declan and I thought it would be best to stay home this year and allow him to have fun here. We had swimming lessons to attend and this time Mommy got to go in the pool with Decky (Decky is the nickname Declan gave himself and it's the cutest.)  My mom came with us and took pictures and cheered Declan on. He had an absolute blast swimming, splashing and jumping in.

After swimming, we came back home and my mom helped me meal prep for the week ahead. With going back to work, I needed to make sure we're prepared as much as possible for the week ahead. Then we headed back to my mom's to have dinner and see Boo the cat and "NoNo" (Noel the dog). Declan absolutely loves the pets and running around there (or sitting in their beds).  We had dinner with my mom and then came home for bedtime.

Today has been another low-key day. Declan and I have been playing and "cooking" (playing with a saucepan and pretending) and waiting for Daddy and Papa to get back from Ribfest.

Overall we had a good week home and enjoyed some much needed downtime.  Declan is eager to get back to school and see his friends this week but I'm sure glad we got to make some memories together over the past week. I know he won't remember much of it as he gets older but I realize that I definitely will remember this time with him and will treasure it forever.

Mid-Summer Update

We're about halfway through summer and I'm 8 weeks back to work in the office, so I thought it would be a good time to check in and update. 

We're still enjoying a lot of time at home but have found a new fun family activity on the weekends to get out of the house -- hiking.  Each weekend we find a trail in our area to go out and enjoy the weather (albeit hot) and get some exercise in. Thankfully we live in a great area with trails galore, which has made it fun to get out while social distancing.  We may or may not reward ourselves with ice cream depending on the day and temperature but it gives us something to look forward to on the weekends.

Declan is so happy to be back at school too.  Our little guy missed the interaction with his friends and teachers and besides day one, when he was a tiny bit sad at drop off, he's thrived with being back in his routine. Unlike myself, my son is a social butterfly who likes to go play with his friends and teachers each day.  It makes me feel better knowing that he's excited to go to school each day and I know the school is taking all of the extra precautions to keep him healthy.  He's such a smart boy too and at 21 months, he knows all of his colors, a multitude of animals, sounds, names (he remembers every name!), different foods and all sorts of objects (tools are his favorite).

Working on puzzles at school

We also re-enrolled Declan in swimming lessons this summer and he absolutely loves going to the pool on Saturday mornings. Like preschool, the facility is taking extra precautions and the class size is limited to just 4 babies/toddlers but he's having a blast in the water.  Unfortunately our neighborhood pool is closed for the summer, but the lessons on each week have been a blessing for us and so much so that we've signed up for the next 8 week session so Declan can go to the "pool" through September.

Swimming with Daddy

Next week, D and I are taking off a week from work for our vacation.  We debated for months if we were going to take a trip somewhere or just stay home and we finally decided given the uptick in Covid cases all over, we'd just take a stay-cation this year. We're still planning to enjoy our time off but rather than driving 13 hours to the cabin or to a beach, we're going to spend the week exploring our own area. We reserved a spot at the zoo for one day, we're going to go hiking a few days and hit other outside attractions during our time off -- all focusing on being outside and keeping our distance from others.  Both D and I are in need of time off as work has been crazy for both of us and I'm ready to unplug for a week.

Other than everything mentioned above, the only other activity taking up our time is spending time helping at my mom and Michael's house.  They moved in a few weeks ago and are finishing up the last of the construction/clean up/moving in process and we've helped out as we can.  It's also allowed Declan to spend time with Nana and Papa and typically, we get to have dinner together a few nights a week.

Having 2nd breakfast at Nana and Papa's

It's been a pretty good summer so far, nothing like what I expected of summertime (in pre-pandemic life) but we're making memories and enjoying our time together.

End of Quarantine

Today was officially my last day of working from home.  After 9 weeks of working in the middle of my living room, I will be reporting back to the office starting on Tuesday next week. This is only possible as Declan is going back to preschool starting on Tuesday and I have to say it is all very bittersweet.
At times it's been extremely hard to work from home.  Some days I couldn't concentrate and just wanted to do something fun with my son.  Other days, I put my headphones in and went to town with little to no distraction as was able to get twice as much work done as I would have in the office and other days, was a combination of work craziness and home craziness.  I wouldn't change anything about the last 9 weeks...well, maybe besides my level of patience and cutting myself a break when I felt like I was failing at everything.
But, the silver lining is that I got to spend more time with my son and watch him grow up so much! Each day he's learning and absorbing more and more and I'm just so happy I got to be a part of it every day.  I loved having him come up to me while I've been working and hugging me and saying "mama work" or making animal noises at me.  I loved hearing about the tractors and lawnmowers he saw while out on his daily walk and checking in on him while he napped.  I've loved getting the extra time with him on my furlough days and while we haven't had any extravagant plans, we've been able take walks or play in the rocks or stop by Nana and Papa's to check on the construction progress at their new house.

One thing I'm really proud to have done during this quarantine is a project at my mom and Michael's new house.  My mom wanted ship lap in her bathroom and I thought it would be fun to help make it happen.  I bought the ship lap supplies from Home Depot (Michael picked it up curbside) and helped Michael install it one afternoon when I was off of work.  I learned how to use a nail gun and how to install ship lap properly.

I'm a bit nervous to go back to work in the office. It reminds me of how I felt when my Maternity Leave was over and I had to drop Declan off at school for the first time. This time will be a bit different though as there still are health and safety precautions the school will be taking to ensure the kids stay safe so I'll be unable to come in and spend extra time with him when I drop him off.  I'm sure it will be harder on me than on him but I can't help but worry a bit.  I plan on getting as many extra cuddles as he will allow over this long weekend.

Mother's Day Recap

Another week home during self-quarantine and we're getting by.  Today has been another furlough day for me and besides answering a few emails, I'm trying to stay off of my work computer and enjoy the warmer weather with my boy. (He's napping right now so I thought it would be good to update the blog.)

We celebrated Mother's Day this past Sunday and even though we weren't able to go out like we have in years past, we had a good day.  D and my step-dad planned and made me and my mom brunch.  We had a variety of breakfast treats and a few drinks to enjoy the day.  I was also able to take a much needed nap while Declan napped.  Mama naps are few and far between as there always seems to be something that needs to done here at home so it was very nice to get some extra zzzzz's.

I got some really sweet gifts from Declan, D and my mom and Michael.  Declan even handmade me some picture frames out of shaving cream paint for cute pictures of him and Kinny.

We still haven't really ventured out over the last 8 weeks besides going hiking a few weekends ago but we may start to loosen up a bit so that we can focus on the new normal. Obviously we won't be going all over the place, but I don't know how much longer we can stay cooped up at home without going insane.  The weather is finally looking up so we may just take a few more walks and play outside.  Declan's school is thinking about reopening late May or early June and he will be going back.  He's flourished here at home but I know he needs the social interaction with other toddlers to keep growing. 
When Declan's back in school, I'll head back to the office.  I have realized over these weeks, that I need to be in the office in order to manage my team.  Being offsite for this long is difficult and I've overcompensated by working more, which is not good for my mental health.  I haven't gotten the break I need to remain successful at home and at work since my "office" is in the middle of my living room. 
I know we're facing a "new normal" and I think we're about ready to see what it is all about.

19 months old and no where to go

We're 7 weeks or so into our quarantine and my how different things are.  With the weather getting nicer, we're all getting the itch to go out and do things but we've been pretty strict and have stayed put.

Declan and I did make one trip to the doctor for his 18 month checkup a few weeks ago and while it was a bit scary with everyone in masks and gowns, I was glad we were able to keep up with his schedule and see the doctor.
He's on schedule growth-wise at 25lbs and 32 inches tall and is going to be smarter than his mama in no time.  Even though this has been hard working from home and having him here and on the go, I am very glad to have the extra time with him.  He absorbs everything going on around him and is so smart at such a young age. I truly feel like he's blossomed during these weeks at home.  He's talking up a storm now and some of his favorite words are:
Mama
Dada
Papa
Nana
Hot
Purple
Yellow
Blue
Hi
Bye Bye
Night Night
All Gone
More
Ball
Truck
Uh-oh
Clock
Shark
Bubbles
Tractor
Outside
No
Yeah
Thank You
Cracker
Ipad (we've had to resort to using the iPad for learning, reading and keeping Declan occupied but we've limited this usage)
Poop (we're somewhat happy about this as we hope it leads to potty training!)
And everyday he seems to add more words to his vocabulary.

He can sign "Please", "More", "All Done" and "Thank You" too.

His smile and laugh are infectious and he's become a love bug lately by giving us hugs and kisses.  He also knows when he's doing something wrong and will come over and hug your leg and say "hi" in the sweetest little voice.

In the month of April, my company enforced a 5 day furlough for all employees and they've extended the furlough for May.  These extra days have helped us and allowed me to be more present with Declan during this crazy time.  Sure, my patience is tested on a daily basis....who's wouldn't be with a toddler, but I'm lucky to be working from home and able to see Declan's growth through all of the uncertainty.

Decorating Cookies with Mom

Cheese!

Learning Trucking Sales with Dad

Mom's Accounting Assistant -- he looks thrilled, right?!?

Pandemic update

Things continue to change by the minute here and we went from a halfway normal life to nothing being normal is a span of a few days. Monday I went to work and again warned my team about social distancing and being aware of the seriousness of what is happening worldwide.  We postponed meetings and started a lot more texting, emailing and phone calls rather than in person contact.  By mid-morning on Monday, my boss informed me that we would be sending people home with computers to more effectively social distance ourselves from each other.  By 4:30 Monday afternoon, I was packing up my desktop computer and monitors and necessary files in order to work from home for an undetermined period of time.

D had already been working from home for week and had commandeered our office in the basement so I set up shop in our living room using a utility table we bought to use for gatherings at home.  Declan usually has a small play area in the living room that had to be relocated to the basement for the time being. Here's my current "work from home" setup.

Tuesday morning I started work similar to the same way I work when I'm in the office.  Throughout the day, I was notified that more of my staff and my boss had also been ordered to work from home and they would all start the transition over the next few days.  Of course, we still need people in the office so only half of my team would be working offsite.
I really have been productive working from home. It is way different considering I'm so used to interacting with my employees, other departments and management in person but I'm finding ways to make this work.  I know for sure I'm home for at least one more week but we'll see what our Executive Management team decides beyond that.

Even with D and I working at home, we tried to keep Declan's schedule the same as it has been. He loves school and we want him to be able to interact with his friends and teachers, so we kept him enrolled.  We found out Thursday afternoon that school would be closing for an indefinite amount of time starting this Monday. I love my son dearly but being a toddler now that I have to keep eyes on him 99.9% of the time and he doesn't know to sit in one place for longer than 1 minute, so we've had to figure what we're going to do to keep him busy at home until the pandemic subsides. I'm so lucky we've got my mom as she's offered to watch him for us.  My mom has also been quarantined at home so we feel safe having her come out and watch him until everything gets back to somewhat normal.

Our lives have truly changed over the past few weeks.  I never thought I'd be one to use home delivery for much of anything and now we've found ourselves using Instacart to buy our groceries and using the occasional drive through for a quick meal out.  Last night D and I had date night in and played Uno once we got Declan to bed.  Unfortunately for me, I lost 5 out of 6 games even after Dustin said he didn't even remember how to play when we started. *eyeroll*

The one positive side of all of this is that we've been able to lessen the "go go go" and finally can take a minute to enjoy the calmer side of life.  I don't know what to expect when we're finally out of self-quarantine mode but my hope is that we can still enjoy some down time now and again.

Hope everyone is staying safe and remember to wash your hands!

Quarantine and Self-Distancing

Who would have thought we'd be in lock down mode at this point of 2020? Definitely not me and honestly this is all a bit frightening as this pandemic grows.

As of right now, both my job and D's have not shut down but we don't know what to expect over the next week as the surrounding cities and counties have enacted "stay home" orders.  Unfortunately for us with both of our positions in the transportation industry, trucking to be specific, we are considered essential and will probably continue pushing through each day until given orders to stay put.  Thankfully through all of this, Declan's preschool has not shut down but they have put strict precautions into place to keep everyone there safe in the meantime.  I will say the "mom guilt" is setting in and I just want to be able to be with him and protect him throughout all of this unknown but I am grateful that his preschool is trying to keep a sense of normalcy for him and the other kiddos still attending.

Before we started focusing on quarantining, we had a pretty busy weekend schedule.  Declan started swim lessons at the end of February (now on hold) and we found out he wasn't as thrilled with the pool as he is with the bathtub.  He had 3 lessons before it shut down and finally by week 3, he seemed to be getting the hang of it and only cried for a few minutes rather than during the entire 40 minute class.  My guess is that we will start over once life gets back to normal and hopefully he will do better the second time and like swimming in the pool this summer.

We've also been trying to lend a hand to my mom and Michael as they continue to build their house out by us.  Taping, mudding and sanding drywall and lending a hand wherever needed so that they can get moved out here sooner.  We are looking forward to when they are just a few miles from us, which hopefully will be a few months from now.

With everything else cancelled and limited options for going out as the weather has not cooperated, we've spent a lot of time home in the basement playing hockey, driving Declan around in his cozy coupe and "fixing" everything with Declan's tool bench and tools.

Hopefully everyone will listen to the guidelines set by the officials and we can get back to normal soon enough. Stay safe out there!

This is 37

Today is my 37th birthday!  I'm off of work today celebrating, actually, no I'm just home trying to catch up on chores here (and writing a 2nd blog post for 2020!).

I wasn't planning to taking the day off but it's one of the perks of having 10 years of service in at my company -- you get your birthday off of work.
It was up in the air until yesterday if I was even going to get the day off.  We have our auditors in this week reviewing financials for 2019 and of course, my birthday would happen to fall during the visit. Thankfully I worked my butt off to get enough done ahead of time and the auditor was confident that I wouldn't be needed today....so here I am.

So what can I say about turning 37 --
I never imagined being at this point in my life.  I started this blog back in 2005 at the age of 22 and had no idea of what was in store for me. I went back and read old posts over the weekend of the birthdays in my 20s -- what a difference life is now.

My 23rd birthday I was a single gal all about going out dancing with my girlfriends from work.

I dreaded my 24th birthday because I thought I was old *eyeroll* and hadn't accomplished enough in my short life.

My 25th birthday was on the heels of being promoted and being happy my car insurance was going down because I hit a milestone being in my mid-20s.

26 was another birthday extravaganza where I spent a lot of time enjoying karaoke and a night out with friends and was excited for a home-cooked pork steak dinner with my family.

10 years I celebrated my 27th birthday and checked off pole dancing lessons from my bucket list.

My 28th birthday was memorable with our girls dinner at Kobe and night out in Westport dancing and celebrating life.

I celebrated my golden (29th) birthday having a blast with both my family and friends with a happy hour and more karaoke and while I was going through one of the harder years of my life, I was glad to have such a great group of friends and family to celebrate with.

In 2013 I turned 30.  I have to say my 30th birthday is one I will soon not forget. My work fam decorated my desk and this was the year I introduced my family to D.  We had been dating about a month and I thought it was the best time for them to get to know him. I remember being nervous that they would grill him but he was so genuine and personable they couldn't help but love him.

My 31st birthday was another memorable one but for all of the wrong reasons. This was the year I was stranded in NOLA because of the ice storm that hit the south.  I remember just wanting to get home after a 1 day work trip turned into 3 days in a city that was shut down because ice just isn't something that happens there. We found a flight out the night of my birthday and my brother graciously picked me up at the airport and we all had a home-cooked dinner and dessert at the loft prepared by Chef D Flay.

For birthday number 32, D again made me dinner and we had gumbo (reliving my 31st birthday in NOLA) and unlike my 20s, this was another low-key birthday at home with D and Kinny.

My 33rd birthday was the first in our new house and I decided to have a fun night out with my coworkers listening to one of my favorite cover bands.

34 hit me that I was starting to get old but I did get my mechanical pencils that I asked for from D.

Birthday #35 will be etched into my mind until I'm no longer on this earth. Just 6 days before my 35th birthday, we had the embryos implanted from our IVF cycle. I was in the middle of my two week wait praying that I would be pregnant. I remember going out to lunch with my family and celebrating but not being able to tell them about all of the stuff (stims, retrieval, implantation) we had gone through in the month of January and hoping that we could tell them in 13 weeks that we were having a baby.

My 36th birthday passed in a blur. It was 4 short weeks after going back to work full time after maternity leave. I was either sleep deprived or in over my head at work (or both!). Looking back at Declan's first year calendar, I do know that D had to take off of work and take Declan to the doctor as daycare illnesses started setting in.

And that brings us back up to today -- at 37, I am married, living in the 'burbs with my husband, almost 16 month old son and 12 year old kitty. Unlike my 23/24 year old self, I do know I've accomplished a lot in my life. Right now, I'm a successful Senior Accountant with a future ahead of her.  I've managed to move up with hard work, perseverance and dedication.

I may not always be the best wife, but I try my hardest to support my husband in all of his endeavors and try to keep my nagging down to a minimum.
As a mom, I'm learning every single day what it takes to raise a smart, caring, successful son. I know he doesn't quite understand but everything I do each day is out of love and to make his life better.

At 37, I know now I don't have to be the best at everything in life but I will always give what I can for those who mean the most to me. I've realized what is important and what can wait until tomorrow. I'm trying hard to live in the moment and enjoy the little things life has to offer. I have no crazy bucket list I need to complete just taking life and experiences as they come.

So here's to 37 -- I hope I can make it my best year yet.

Time to Dust Off the Blog

One whole post in 2019, what a slacker I am.  Actually, I'm just a tired mama with a lot on her plate, but I can say, we're all thriving.  My baby boy is growing by the minute and is the best little guy. At 15.5 months, he's walking and always on the go and giving mama a run for her money all the time.

So let's see....I'll try to give the Cliff Notes version of the last 8 months.

After Mother's Day, Declan went to his first Cardinals baseball game and we celebrated the Blues winning the Stanley Cup and attended the Championship Parade as a family on Father's Day weekend.  My brother also got married in June so there was an abundance of excitement throughout the month.

In August, Dustin and I celebrated our 4th Wedding Anniversary while on our family vacation to the Upper Peninsula. Declan got to experience the Soo Locks for the first time and see the Point Iroquois Lighthouse.

In September, we went apple picking and started planning Declan's 1st Birthday Party.  It was the first and maybe only time I tried to be the "Pinterest Mom."  We planned a St. Louis Blues Stanley Cup Championship party and it was a huge success!  We invited our immediate family and planned it for a day the Blues had a game so everyone could wear their Blues gear.  It was really symbolic for us to have this party for 2 reasons -- 1) I went into labor opening night of the 2018-2019 season and 2) the Blues won the Stanley Cup for the first time ever.  For me, it had an extra special meaning. Declan is such a special boy and he is definitely loved by everyone!

Declan officially finished taking bottles at his first birthday too.  It's was so hard to believe that this little guy was considered a toddler and we transitioned to food and regular milk 100% of the time.

Later in October, Declan celebrated Halloween with Kinny.  Both went as pumpkins and they were the cutest pumpkins around. It was a brutally cold night so he and Dustin only visited a few of our closer neighbors but he also got to go to a Trunk or Treat at my work earlier in the month so he didn't totally miss out on the Halloween experience.

In November, we celebrated Thanksgiving.  Declan has the cutest Thanksgiving Feast at school one afternoon and Dustin and I were lucky enough to attend with him.  Also, as his shirt suggests, he was all about the pie!  :)  Dustin took Declan Black Friday shopping as I had to work and they had a lot of fun hanging out.  Dustin even splurged for breakfast before shopping and that probably was Declan's favorite part of the day.

December brought the first snow of the season along with the holidays and a lot of travel for us.  We visited everyone in Michigan and also had multiple Christmases here at home.  Declan also met Santa at Breakfast with Santa at his school and we're happy to say he did not cry when meeting the jolly old man.

At the end of December, I officially lost my baby to the toddler years when Declan got his first haircut and let's just say there were a lot of tears from both Declan and mommy. Declan didn't want to sit in the chair and get his hair cut and mommy saw her baby grow up in a blink of an eye.

So far the New Year has been unbelievably busy for us.  I'm in my extremely busy time at work so juggling parenting, home life and work has been a whirlwind. We're surviving but we're taking advantage of a few minutes of downtime when we can.

I celebrated my 10 year anniversary at work (prior service and current service) last week and was celebrated by our Owner and VPs.  It was nice to hear their comments about my role in the Company.  I went to dinner at a REALLY fancy restaurant with them and our Director of Operations that evening and was given some promising news about my future. I hope I can continue to impress them and be successful in my position while trying to be the best mom and wife I can be.

That Cliff Notes version actually was pretty long!  As I continue to juggle what life throws as me, I hope to be able to update more regularly, but I won't make any promises so I'll just say...until next time!