it’s fall! well, it’s starting to feel like it anyway …

everyone! stop what you are doing right now: it is 50 degrees. in south carolina! glory hallelujah! I am wearing a sweater, drinking coffee, and put my kids in jackets this morning. and it was all necessary, unlike most other mornings. you know, when I do it by habit, or in the hope it will be necessary.

let’s all just pause for a moment, and soak up this moment. ahhh.

okay, moving on. in my excitement, I do realize that 1.) this weather is totally normal back home, so you’re probably telling me to get over myself and 2.) there’s a massive hurricane bearing down on thousands of other people, who are now concerned about blizzards/storm surges/flash flooding/wind damage [and not all particularly in that order]. definitely thinking of my friends and others who are snuggled up in their homes in the northeast and hoping for the best.

this week has been relatively peaceful. we’re in a nice routine, full of work days and school days and having fun, hanging out at the park kind of days. while it doesn’t totally feel like home quite yet, I’m sure it will. part of it might be the renting? it might feel very different once we’ve bought a home. hopefully it won’t take that long, as home buying is a project way down the road.

we did have a chicken pox scare. S woke up Sunday morning with a ton of red spots on one arm, which coincided with some others I had seen on her face the other day. there was some slight panic, especially since she’d be vaccinated against it twice. while it’s not the worst disease to contract, I wasn’t really expecting to have to deal with it, given the states mandatory requirements. we were chill about it with her, all the while keeping an eye on her arm to see if they spread. we missed church, for fear of passing along an infection. we gave it a day, but no other spots popped up. that was nice, given that it meant I didn’t have a sick kid with an unvaccinated baby, and she didn’t miss school.

to which begs the question: how many damn bug bites did she have?! and, where did they all come from? I won’t lie, that was a bit unsettling. either there is craziness going on at the playground, or we’ve got some real problems elsewhere. moving on …

I’m 95% sure G is getting his first two teeth. from what I can tell, there are two li’l white bumps on the gums. poor kid, he has the first snotty nose of his life, he’s drooling up a storm, hates for his mouth to be messed with, and is waking up. [again] I swear – I got him set on his schedule, sleeping through the night for about a week. and then this.

but, oh, such is life.

I feel like I have to qualify any complaint about him. the kid is the happiest dang baby you have ever met. period. he flirts and laughs with anyone, he only cries when hungry. not even when he’s in pain, apparently. [we’ll see if my hypothesis holds true; if he’s teething, they should be here in a couple of days] definitely love him.

don’t let that face fool you – he’s loving himself some peas!

yea … Royals? eh, it fit, so I thought we’d try it on. because most days it’s 80, so shorts are completely appropriate. regardless, it did not help the Royals season end any better, nor help the AL win the World Series. fail. [but G looks pretty dang cute in it!]

more food! we’re a pro with the solids – there isn’t much that passes through his lips that he doesn’t like. I think you all will be surprised at how big he is once we’re home for Christmas – he’s a chunk!

we got together with some friends on Friday, the kids & I. R met some fellow professors, one named B, who is a wonderful lady and really fun to hang out with. her husband is from Ukraine, and currently stationed there as he’s finishing his own Ph.D. he sounds awesome, and we definitely can’t wait to meet him. meanwhile, we’ve had International Movie Nights and pumpkin carving nights with her, all to great success. see proof below.

I carved the pirate – yeah, I’ve got mad skills. B carved Scooby, which trumped my mad skills out of this place. intricate, to say the least.

some other friends, J & A, showed up later.  J & A are awesome – they’ve introduced us to the world of Catan, we all enjoy sports, beer & wine, going to the beach, are in love with our kiddos, and they are just about the darn nicest folks you’ve ever met.

earlier in the week, a best selling author had come to CofC. the college really wanted a big turnout, so they bought his latest book for every single faculty member and freshman [because it’s apart of their “First Year Experience” program they have to participate in] and then had it set up for him to speak in mid-October. his latest title, “Eating Animals” came out a while ago and since I had read his other two [fiction] titles and at the time was a hardcore vegetarian, I eagerly snagged it. fast forward three years, where I really can’t claim the title vegetarian at all. I was interested to see if he’d have anything to add that further my cognitive dissonance. he did.

R watched the kiddos, and I headed downtown. the talk was really good – certainly [re]challenged me [more on that to come later], and some of the students had good questions for him. others had really lame, border line accusatory questions that made for a few awkward moments. but then, only an hour or so into the talk, it was done. he spoke for about 50 min, took 5 questions [that took him over 30 min to answer], and then announced he was done. there were more than a handful of others who were in line to ask their questions who had to sit down, questions unasked, and there was no book signing. there were more than a few of us from the community there, and I think there had been the expectation that he’d have a table up for autographs and photos.

nope.

I actually saw him in the alley, behind the arena where he had been speaking as I walked to grab dinner. he had been stopped by a couple of eager college students, who DID get an autograph [luckies] and were gushing to actually be speaking with him. he, on the other hand, did not look so thrilled.

maybe it was a New York versus Charleston thing? perhaps he didn’t think he needed to talk for more than an hour. maybe he was upset at the lack of turnout [there was maybe 300 people there – and there were definitely freshman who were made to go by their professors for extra credit, who left early]. who knows. I just know I had thought there’d be more, and there wasn’t. oh well.

book club was cancelled this last week. that was disappointing, too. the leader of the club was hosting it at her home this week, and sent a last minute e-mail out informing us it was cancelled. she explained that she suffers from an auto-immune disease, and had responded badly to a treatment that she received a couple of days before. while I was disappointed [because there was going to be easily be 20+ folks there to nerdily discuss our book of the month], I fully understood. given that Grandma Dee suffered from essentially the same thing for a decade and more, I get that you don’t get to just ignore your disease and move on. sometimes, it makes you go back to bed for days and you don’t get to do what you want. regardless, I have the novel for next month and we’ll hope for a better outcome [for her & our meetings].

a bit of sad news, too, unfortunately. I found out my Grandma A is in the hospital. it’s not an immediate crisis, but my dad and mom did go down this past weekend to check on her and see what the next step was. they think she’ll be discharged this next week, and she might have to upgrade her care at her assisted living home. [to say she’ll be unhappy about that is an understatement]. it’s during these times that I wish I was closer to home. a Christmas visit is a must!

on a happier note – Halloween is in two days! S is super excited. she really gets that it’s a fun holiday where you get tons of free candy. smart girl. she shifted in her idea of a costume [for the longest time she wanted to be a ballerina – that would have been okay]. we’ve been watching the X-Men Animated series from the 1990’s, and she LOVES Jubilee. I happily encouraged her to be her for Halloween, and she enthusiastically jumped on board. I think I’ve got her costume figured out, and will happily share pictures after the festivities have wrapped.

R’s mom, B, comes out this weekend, which should be awesome! S is excited, and I know B is also. to see the grandkids in person is so different from phone photos and li’l blog blurbs. I’ll do my best to keep up; November is a busy, busy month and I’ll eagerly share all!

hodge-podge smorgasbord!

I was flipping through my photo stream, realizing I had a number of different topics to write out. so, that’s my plan for the day – I’ll do my best to keep it somewhat together.
I had made mention of this on facebook a while ago, but R & I bought a chair recently at this cute, nicely stocked thrift store in West Ashley. I only bring this topic up because I’m so proud. we bought it, saying “yeah, and we’ll totally refinish it and it’ll look great with the desk!” uh-huh. we certainly don’t have the best track record of staying faithful with DIY projects. neither of us have a handiness gene, and I’m typically frustrated by how long these projects can take, and that doing it right can take so long. yes, I am a baby.

so, I decided to grow up, stay faithful to my word that I’d finish this chair, and do it the right way. and here are the results …

it’s a bit gross, aesthetically, but it had nice structure – so begins the project!

a bit worn and ugly, but fortunately, the sanding didn’t take long because of how little finish was left on it

and off we go! R & I actually managed to match the finish to the desk – given the lack of eye I have for color, I was impressed

first coat! the seat has a ton of damage, but I won’t lie, I kinda think it looks cool

and done! given how humid it is down here, it took FOREVER to dry. and by forever, I mean an extra 12 hours. regardless, it’s all shiny and new, and resting comfortably in our bedroom/office to the happiness of all!

onto somewhat sad news. my Kindle broke. I was disappointed, as anyone would be. I was really disappointed, though, because I had gotten really used to having it. a friend gave [ahem, “gave” is a loose term] me tons of e-book files, so I had plenty of options to run through, and given that my bag is normally weighed down by all the kid stuff I truck around, it was nice to have the lighter option of an e-reader. I also follow a lot of blogs, and a lot of those authors have shifted to e-book publications for some of their content. so, those are out of the running for the moment. is it the end of the world? for sure, no. I didn’t lose any of the files, so when I get a new one, it’ll be fine. just a minor hiccup in the world of technology.

some of you have seen this on facebook – definitely broken. and not fixable, especially since I have since thrown it away. oh well – it had a great run

R was beyond sweet, and gave me a lovely night off a couple of weeks ago. I feel like every mom is nodding their head when they read this, but getting out of the house is so, so needed. at least, every now again. especially now, when I don’t have quite the friendship network I did back in Kansas City, when I could just call someone up and head over. so, he gave me carte blanche, took charge of the kiddos, and I roamed around James Island for a little bit. I went to a coffee house, and felt the freedom to quiet down for a little bit – just to write, get my head calmed down to really think about where I was [emotionally, spiritually], and felt the freedom to read in a quiet spot. I feel like I’ve lost that art, just reading in quiet. I’m always trying to squeeze in a few pages here, another few pages there, in the midst of the kids talking/screaming/crying/babbling that to do so in silence took a little bit of work! the quiet spot was helpful, though, because how can your thoughts not be serene when you’re here:

Charleston Harbor – this is the exit towards the Atlantic. what there are not photos of, are the homes behind me. money, money, money. also, there’s a yacht club right next to the public park. apparently, the park officials are always building things [piers, decor, etc.] that the yacht club can see, even with their fencing, and they get upset. hehehe. regardless, the location is beautiful, and for those of you who come to visit, this is a guaranteed spot to view!

the peninsula – certainly a beautiful site, as well, especially as the sun sets

as most everyone knows, living away from home is hard. so, it’s AWESOME when care packages arrive. the mamas have been taking care of us on that front, and we are loving it! B, R’s mom, recently sent an incredible Halloween package to S – that kid was beyond excited! candy, coloring books, Halloween cups. oh, and candy. did I mention the candy? S was a fan of that, for sure. my mama sent a lovely box, full of Spanish Gardens, Smokehouse BBQ sauce, and Cascones pasta sauce. yeah, we ate well! breakfast burritos, barbecued chicken, and spaghetti were high on our list of dinners shortly thereafter!

so much win happening here! S got a blanket and some toys she had left behind in KY, as well as some Smarties [grandma knows what’s up!]; I got a copy of the local paper, G got new toys, and the sauces! oh, the sauces! apparently, there is barbecue in South Carolina. I don’t know if I buy that. in the meantime, I’ll enjoy my fantastic Smokehouse BBQ sauce, thank you very much.

speaking of the differences between South Carolina and Missouri … it’s hot. it’s mid-October, and most days, I’m still running my air conditioning. that makes me sad for so many reasons, namely for the lack of sweaters and my pocketbook cries when I get our energy bill. there are still tentative plans to head to the beach. because, you know, the highs are still in the 80’s, and the water wouldn’t be too cold just yet.

wow.

now, to be fair, it’s really nice in the mornings and evenings, anywhere from 50-65. we have our porch open, and I will say, I like that there aren’t quite so many layers when the kids are involved. I carry G more often than not [rather than putting him in his car seat, for which he is already too heavy for!], so it’s nice that there’s not that bulk.

see, I can see the positive side. a little. [R tells me to get over it, which is a fair point. I think sometimes I see this move as temporary, like it’s just a stopping point to coming back to Kansas City, of which neither point is true. so, I need to get used to the new normal]

we did get this posting from our apartment, which had the both of us cracking up.

what!?! ridiculous, is what I say. you are not going to freeze to death in that kind of weather. get an extra blanket. wear a jacket. I’m not saying, don’t get it fixed. I am saying, an emergency? this is an emergency? oh boy.

another sign this move is pretty darn permanent. I can vote! we both just got our registration cards in the mail this last week, so now, our votes totally count. because South Carolina will totally go blue, right? right.

if you know me at all, you know I love me a good book. like, if I have a new release in my hand, all I need is a cup of coffee. and no, I will not be answering questions, responding to prompts of conversations, or interacting with other humans during that period of time. only because I now have children will I pause. only because they need food. even then, I might try to get R to handle all of that for me.

one such instance is below – my beloved Thursday Next came back this year. awesome!

yea! I was thoroughly impressed with it, and definitely read it in a day. and now, I have to wait two years for the sequel. maybe I just reread the series in the meantime? or, knock out the many, many other titles I own but have not read yet. you know, whatever.

I also just finished Salman Rushdie’s memoir, “Joseph Anton”. absolutely amazing, and would highly recommend it. it has everything. a man living underground because religious conservatives in Iran issue a fatwa on his life. and he endures. for over 12 years. I’m set to meet with the book club I found. this month is “The Elephant Whisperer”. so, the title is stupid. and everyone I’ve talked with about it has agreed. but, once you get the heart of it, which is an English conservationist living in South Africa helping to rehabilitate a herd of elephants who had been abused and mistreated all on the back drop of South African politics and tribal living, it is amazing. I really didn’t think I’d like, and I ended up reading it in no time. we just decided on next months book, and I’m excited to get into that, as well.

other sad news: my TOMS are almost done. I’ve had them for a year and a half now, and have probably worn them everyday since I ordered them. now, they look like this:

the toe is gone! the left one is just bad, with the pinkie toe peeking out. man, I guess I’ll just have to buy another pair. darn it.

and now, to end on a high note – the kiddos! they are a resilient couple of adorable sweeties. as mentioned before, S is lovin’ school. G is on a pretty predictable schedule that sometimes includes sleeping through the night [YEA!]. S definitely knows she misses Kansas City, and is excited about our trip home. we’re already had many a conversation about how we need to inform Santa that he has to bring her presents to Kansas City, and not to Charleston. smart girl.

park time! know she’s having a ball – she just runs laps throughout the playground area, playing on the “big kid” playground

 

li’l G, having his own good time – definitely in the mouth/oral phase. blankets, toys, spoon, plastic toys that are too sharp and pointy – they all make it into his mouth. gross.

this kid, good lord. I know I posted it on facebook already, but it’s worthy of sharing with a large audience. the ONLY reason he cries is if he’s hungry. and then, it’s this. adorable!

 

S, enjoying her own care package. to say she enjoyed all this would be an understatement – love those grandmas!

and that’s a wrap. I’ll try to do better about weekly posts. in the meantime, hope you enjoyed catching up with us – talk with all of you soon!

 

the [emotional] move

I’ve had a lot running through my thoughts recently. I realized that I’ve lived here in Charleston for a full two months now.

wow.

two months without the norms of my existence. my family, my friends, my church. even in the midst of the craziness that is moving, I find myself thinking about Kansas City a lot. “what highways are under construction? what is going on downtown, at UMKC, at the Plaza, at the Kansas City Boiler Room? is it cool enough to head to the park? if it is, I’d love to go with M & N … oh, wait, I don’t live there anymore. dang it.” this is what I was the most sad about – the little things that make your knowledge of a person or a location – the small, everyday occurrences that you keep track of daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, that constitutes your understanding of where you are and the relationships you are in.

I see now why moving is on the top of the stress list. I see now that it, especially in our circumstances, it creates bone-tired parents who are trying to get a career up in the air and keeping the children alive. and the tiredness compounds on itself, especially without family members to jump in, create that much-needed break, and allow for some breathing room. I see that, also, my awesome family is incredible resilient. R has jumped head first into his work and social life. he has made some great friends through work, and is doing swimmingly there professionally. he loves the town, his office, the parks, the walking, the local coffeehouses. S is doing awesome [which you’ve already read on]. G, though I love him greatly, is still a baby. he has no clue as to what is going on. as long as he’s fed, allowed to get a couple decent naps a day, and snuggled with throughout, he’s fabulous.

I was in survival mode when I arrived. my wonderful mother was here, and helped set the apartment to rights. thanks to her, I have a functioning kitchen and children who were eagerly taken cared of. and then she left. and unfortunately, left in the worst of circumstances that culminated in my grandma Dee passing away. we were in town not quite two weeks before we packed up, and saw family in Kentucky. and while it was [and is] heartbreaking the reason why, I was delighted to see everyone again so soon. well, I was a mess of emotions, but one of those emotions was elation that I was seeing my family.

and then I had to drive home. in tears, I pulled out of Grandpa’s driveway and started the long drive south. I feel like that was the true, real beginning of our living here in town. R began work in earnest, S was excited about school, and we were all prepping for the beginning of work/school/fall, & all that wonderfully brings. I, in the name of staying sane, turned to my beloved iCal. if you know nothing about me, you’ll soon learn that I love lists, I love to-dos, and I love creating them and deleting them once they’re accomplished.

on a side note, R thinks I’m crazy. what, you don’t have 9 separate sub-calanders with multiple instructions for how to get through your day? how do you survive, sir? I say again, how, sir?

so, I turned to organization and systems and to-dos and feeling satisfaction with crossing off those items once completed. not, and please note this, continuing to foster old relationships and attempting to create new ones. I have avoided church – not because I can’t make the time or the service. there’s definitely a 9 and an 11. it’s 10 minutes away from my place. they even had children’s church at the local children’s museum. it’s killer, and S certainly did not want to leave once we finally made it there.

But, in the first 8 weeks we’d been here, we didn’t go once. the church that, seemingly in His fantastic way, the Father had provided for us, in introducing us to a Charleston resident the last week we went to Boiler Room. [nudging much, Father?]  I hide behind excuses – R was out late, so he’s in no shape to go with me; oh, we’re running late now, so we won’t be on time – I don’t want to be late the first time I go; uhh, I don’t know where to park, so I’ll be late and bumble in, causing attention to be focused on me; um, we all have colds, so we don’t want to go and infect everyone; oh, G got me up again in the middle of the night, so I’m really tired.

but in the end, that’s all they are. excuses. there is absolutely NO reason for me to have not gone in the time that we’d been here. or, to many other things that we’ve/I’ve been invited to while in town. it all boils down to me and my fear of all things new. I am an intense creature of habit. I also hide behind the excuse of my children. ‘oh, R wants to go out more than I do, so I’ll stay home.’ ‘oh, I’m not ready to go out – we’ll just stay in, instead, and have a quiet night at home’

now, there are some legitimate excuses to not have gone out or go somewhere. we all WERE sick one weekend, with everyone but the baby curled up with kleenexes and DayQuil. and in terms of going out, things are a bit tight post-move, so cost is a consideration. the kids do have bedtimes, so staying out late requires a babysitter, which requires money.

so this is where I’m at – balancing and being fully honest with myself. am I staying in/not going somewhere because of my fear? because I think I’ll embarrass myself in some way? because I don’t think enough of myself to interact with these different individuals, some of whom I’m not meeting on my own terms?

of course, that opens up more questions, as these thoughts seem to do. why am I intimidated? why do I feel nervous to interact with these individuals? what about them do I think is so great, and about me, so little? it makes me question some of my life decisions, that have put me in the place I am now. I have two little kids, and daycare is abhorrently high. to have both of them in a center full-time would be more than what I could make anywhere, and that is not an exaggeration. but, at the same time, do I feel ashamed to say I’m a stay-at-home mom? I actually don’t think I am, inherently. I think I put upon myself what I perceive others to be thinking; I’m surrounded by women who 1.) have children AND Ph.Ds or 2.) have no children, work, and live footloose and fancy free. I don’t necessarily have someone that I can directly relate to, here in town anyway. but, I’m not giving others a chance to say one way or the other about what I do or how I live – I’ve already predetermined that they will think less of me for staying home. and that’s not fair, to me or to them.

in the end, this is what I have to remember:

1.) the Father clearly made a path for us in Charleston. this was R’s job offer, it’s an amazing city, and the perfect place for a family.

2.) I knew moving would be hard. difficult, even. I’m allowed a bit of time to adjust, as that’s my personality to process emotionally a little slower than I do on a logistic level. but, I cannot hide behind that forever. or, for even too much longer. we are made for relationships – not for eternally making to-do lists, or living in my private world of my li’l family [as adorable as they are].

3.) I have a choice. I have a choice to be depressed, sad, lonely. or, a choice to embrace my new life, make the absolute best of it. as difficult as that can be, I’m trying. because it’s worth remembering – this is not a temporary move. this is for a significant amount of time, I may never move back to the Midwest, and once I make that psychological shift, I’ll be fine. better than that, I’ll be thriving.

the spectacular S!

as I mentioned in my last post, I’m behind. I do apologize, and I’m working on getting caught up. I even carved out more time to do so. without further ado, onto S!

she has been doing killer at school. she is in love with her teacher, and seems to have paired up with a fellow newbie. she goes back and forth as to whether they’re “real” friends; apparently the social worlds of four-year-olds are full of pitfalls that I was extremely unaware of. like, the boys are the guardians of the blue slide, and won’t let girls on there, so she can’t use it. and then, alternatively, she said the girls guarded the blue slide the next day, but because they aren’t her friends, they didn’t let her.

oh. okay. sheesh.

she’s loving it, though, social bumps notwithstanding. she gets to play outside at least twice a day; they work on letters and numbers; they get to color, glue, paint, and cut; they have guinea pigs, named Ryan and Sparkle, who they get to pet at different times throughout the day. all in all, she loves it.

she also had her first, true blue dental appointment a couple of weeks ago. it was at a pediatric dentist, so definitely kid-friendly. she had her teeth cleaned, counted, brushed & flossed. she got her own NEW Dora toothbrush, with bubble gum toothpaste. she also got x-rays taken, so she was excited/intrigued to see what that was all about. imagine her with bite-wings in her mouth, trying to ask a million questions to the hygienist. yeah, adorable.

the “not-s0-adorable” part: she had a cavity.

dang it.

not only does she have a cavity, she has it on a molar that she’ll have for a number of years, so we have to get it filled. [and by the way, it was HUGE! it’s not that we should have seen it, given how far back in her mouth it is, but it is more than apparent that she has a hole in her tooth once they showed it to me]. this is a bit of a digression here from S to myself, but … when checking out, we were informed that no, our dental plan does not cover cleanings and basic preventative care. it does it we’re willing to pay $60 more a month [which I’m not]; we’re on a fee schedule, insurance only covers so much, blah blah blah … you owe $100. and, you’ll owe way more than that when you come back for her cavity appointment.

the poor clerk who had to tell me this. just imagine … S is in the lobby, running/playing around, more than ready to go; I’m holding G, who just threw up all over my arm; and me, well, there’s my face. it’s on the floor.

I could not believe that I had to walk in and drop actual money. when I have insurance. and apparently, the fun only begins there in terms of South Carolina insurance. but, well, that’s a story for another time.

she’s excited. it happens early tomorrow morning, so she’ll have a fun story to tell at school throughout the day.

all in all, she’s loving living here. we’ve been to the pool a handful of times, as well as the beach. she has NO fear of water. she thinks she knows how to swim [where she got that idea, I’m not entirely sure], so she just jumps right on in. it’s slightly scary, in a “I’m so proud of her” way. fearless, this one. we’ve been to the county park a few times as well; it’s incredible. miles of walking trails, a brand-new playground, spray park, and camping. we haven’t taken advantage of the camping, as we have no gear. I can imagine in the future, though, it’ll be on the docket. regardless …

 

walking trails in the County Park – R & S made laps around G & I, but what do you expect? they can run WAY faster than we can.

some art has continued to be produced. she still LOVES to draw. she wants to draw on her homework, so her teacher suggested she color on the back of it. her favorite center at school is art. when she comes home, she pulls out her markers. clearly, art is her first love. we’re definitely on the lookout for some local classes to encourage her.

some recent drawings of the local artist – after I took this photo, she colored it brown. for what reasons, I don’t know.

this just looks like some crazy impressionist-something. watch her be the next Jackson Pollock. I will never understand it, but I’ll totally support her.

we’ve been downtown a couple of times, too. more specifically, we’ve been to the college to walk around and see what R gets to enjoy on a regular basis. this shot is from the main courtyard area, where the original college began, with its 12 or so students and small faculty. it’s beautiful, and where they hold graduation. and why wouldn’t they?

she was bummed this wasn’t a playground [can’t a kid just appreciate history, for goodness sakes!?!] regardless, she found things to do. mainly, chasing squirrels. I would imagine this shot is surrounding that on some level.

and finally … a lot of you have already seen this shot, but it’s certainly an important one. first day of [pre]school. she was more than proud to be headed out of the house that morning!

 

so proud. and excited. she certainly loves that school!

she’s a wonderful big sister, loving on her li’l brother. she gets him giggling like no other, and loves to talk with him in the car on all our errands and travels. in all, she’s just a fun kid. we’re already prepping Christmas lists & Santa letters, just FYI. I’ll be sure to grab photos of those before they get sent off to the big guy!

I’ll be sure to post about her dental visit – oh, the grand tales she will have after tomorrow morning!

water, water, everywhere – and not a drop to drink!

hello family & friends! I feel like there’s so much to write on this week, so let’s get to it!

R’s department had a get-to-know-you picnic last weekend. it was nice to get out, enjoy the spectacular weather, and meet the folks he works with on a daily basis now. S had a blast, because they had a killer playground. she also reunited with some other kids she’d met in the last few weeks. she ran until she could run no more. and then, we walked to the edge of the pier.

the land you can [kind of] see is Daniels Island, which we haven’t personally checked out, but here is really nice. calm waters for a boat, eh?

then, it was prep time for school! oh my word, I still can’t really believe it. we grabbed the last of the needed school supplies on Sunday, and got ready the night before. S could hardly stand it. for three weeks, she’s lamented being a “fall kid”, wanting to instead be a “summer kid” at school so she could attend already. we had to prep her, too, that she wouldn’t be there all day. and yes, she’s still disappointed about that reality, and has requested that I go back to work full-time so she can go all day with her friends.

thanks, kids. thanks.

anyway, she was more than ready for Monday morning. she even let me take a picture, which is a rare occurrence these days.

complete with backpack & lunch box – we’re ready to go!

G and I enjoyed a quiet morning. it was a little jarring, to not have to run interference or answer a million questions or get down art supplies or pour milk or get down snacks. [rest assured, though, all of that picks back up around 1!] in the midst of our morning, I got a phone call from the center. that’s never a good sign.

dang, if that’s not a great lookin’ black eye. we didn’t even make it two hours into school before that happened!

S apparently rushed the blue slide with unabashed enthusiasm, and fell right into the ladder. in the above photo, it looks pretty puffy and sore. it only got worse as the week wore on, but has fortunately begun to fade away. she had an actual scrape in it, too, so it bled everywhere. she, apparently, was not fazed by this event at all. the staff told me her first question was: “does this mean I don’t get to play on the playground anymore?!?”

good lord.

once she was assured she could go back, post ice pack and band-aid, she calmed down. and one morning when I dropped her off, I saw her rush right back to the same slide that did the damage. yeah, she’s tough.

G is doing well. we’re officially done with nursing. I knew it’d come some time or another – he has an appetite! and one, apparently, that I cannot keep up with. once I officially moved him to formula, he actually hit a 4 hour schedule [which had never happened before – ever] and his naps are the best they’ve ever been. even when I was supplementing, they weren’t this good. I’m a little sad I won’t be nursing anymore, especially since he’s probably the last li’l Milner, but I couldn’t justify it anymore. he was a hungry, hungry baby. we did go ahead and try out some oatmeal this last week.

I’m not totally sure what this face says – all I know is he did not dig solid food. given his new formula schedule, I’d say that’s okay. we’ll shelve it for a few more months.

he’s just a super happy, grinny, adorable baby – once he starts to really sleep through the night, all of us will be that much happier. but now that I know the ONLY reason he’s ever unhappy is because he’s hungry, I feel confident that will fall in line soon enough.

and just in case you don’t believe me on how happy he is …

 

boom.

triple boom.

I also got a little work on their room done this week. both bedrooms are seriously lacking in decor. a few months ago, I had found some prints I really like – they weren’t too girly or boyish, they matched the bedding I wanted, and wouldn’t overpower what I want to do with S’s side of the room. I finally got all the products printed, purchased, & cut. [and thanks to the handmadehome.net for these – they were apart of her free printable giveaways, which you can find at her website – awesome!]

G’s side of the room – now, not quite so bare

a li’l up close & personal

we have plans for S’s side of the room, but that’ll have to wait for a moment. they are killed posters, which we’ve wanted for a while. I’m super eager to get them, though, and show them off!

in other news, R almost drowned coming home from work on Tuesday. I’d like to say that’s an exaggeration, but, well, it kind of wasn’t. Isaac, when it was still just a baby tropical storm before becoming the awful hurricane that it did, spiraled as far west as Mexico and as far east as us in the Carolina beaches. it rained an inch an hour for a few hours, and quickly overtook the city. downtown floods pretty consistently, but even the locals were taken aback by how drastic this storm was. we later heard it was the most rain they’d ever received from a storm that was not a hurricane.

okay. cool.

and by the way, these folks know water. we saw many umbrellas, galoshes, raincoats, and kayaks. yes. kayaks. folks throw helmets on, and jump in their kayaks to navigate and swim downtown. you know, for fun.

mt pleasant flooded; west ashley flooded; james island flooded. everywhere was flooded. I went to get S from school in the midst of it, and could not drive the main drag home because the intersection was impassable. oh, and did I mention my phone was dead, so I couldn’t route myself back. oh, and right before it died, I was talking with R, who was saying the water was up to his car door, he didn’t know how he’d get home, and then hung up on me, shouting profanity out of fear of the rising water.

needless to say, it was a bit stressful.

fortunately, S’s teacher gave me directions home that worked [meaning, none of THOSE roads were washed out]. I got home, and waited uneasily for my phone to charge and/or for R to get home. fortunately, my phone charged enough to call, and I found out he was okay. we were both a bit shaken. this might be part of the reason why …

that was a decent intersection. all of the others were washed out. oh boy.

in the end, it was fine. no one was hurt, there was only moderate flooding, and our town got some rain that made it even more beautiful and lush. it did confirm to me that when there is a true hurricane on our doorstep, we are not staying. not with two babies here, anyway. our car stinks, too, apparently. R had water leak in, through the door & due to the fact he had to have the window rolled down so he could see. I’m not quite sure what we do with that; he [jokingly] suggested we just put car air freshners in there and see what happens. something tells me that’s not going to do anything, except make his car carry a dual smell of “new car scent” and mold.

all in all, we’re good. missing everyone in KC, that’s for sure! I got excited today was 1 September, because it meant fall is right around the corner, and then Christmas is right around THAT corner, which means I then get to fly home! even if I didn’t want it to, time would fly. between school and chasing these two kiddos around all day, it flies right by. that being said, feel free to stop by anytime! we’d love seeing a familiar face!

the weekly rundown

we’ve been in our new town for a couple of weeks now. fortunately, there was significantly less trauma in the past few days than our family had previously been experiencing. while I’m still processing and sad about my Grandma Dee’s passing, this past week has been quiet and calm.

it’s been nice.

R has gotten into a work flow, which he’s excited about. we always hit a time in the summer when we’re both ready for a schedule and typical rhythm, so the fact that school is starting so soon is nice. he has had “real-deal, professional” meetings with other professors, he’s in the midst of finalizing class details, and has his new faculty orientation next week.

yeah, he’s big stuff.

S is enjoying her new city. we signed her up for preschool, to which she is BEYOND excited about. I knew she’d love it, and prepped her before we interviewed there that we were not staying for the day; that I hadn’t officially signed her up, so we couldn’t stay with the teacher & kids; that we’d eventually come back.

let’s just say, it did no good.

she threw a bit of a fit on the way out, and pouted in the lobby while I talked with the director. she really lost it when she saw those same kids going outside to play on a bouncy castle, and run in the water.

she’s ready for some serious socialization, let me tell ya!

I’m excited for her to go. they have a math & reading curriculum that they work in daily; they play outside, offer dance & karate [among other things], go on field trips, feed her lunch, and send her home. it’ll be great for her.

shoot. it’ll be great for me, too, if we’re all being honest here.

baby G is doing awesome! this kid is stinkin’ adorable, let me tell you. now that we’re home, settled, in a routine, and figured out that he was basically starving for the first few weeks of his life, he’s good. I don’t think I wrote about this earlier, but two days before we were leaving for Charleston, I was beyond frustrated. he wasn’t sleeping well [still]; every time he finished nursing, he was still crying; you could barely interact with him because all he would do was cry & fuss. I was by myself with the two kids, and freaking out as to how I would travel with him when he was this upset.

after thinking/talking it through with some friends and R, I began to consider the idea that he was still hungry. apparently, all the time. I decided to give him a 2 oz bottle, thinking we’ll test this hypothesis.

I have never seen a baby eat that fast in all my life. ever.

ever since then, I’ve been nursing him first and then offering a bit of a bottle afterward. he takes a full feeding every time, and then some. so, long story short, he was fussy and mad and crying for all those weeks because he was a hungry baby. fortunately we figured it out soon enough, and there seems to be little to no damage done.

 

if this smile doesn’t convince you, I don’t know what will

he is killer now. he’s on an official three hour schedule, and as of last night, sleeping through the night. while that was exciting, we’ll give it a bit more time to see if it sticks. but given that for the last three months, I’ve never had more than 5 hours of sleep at a time, last night was awesome.

I took the kids to the pool a couple of days ago – S loved it. she’s got some arm floaties, so she was all bold and brave, headed out into deeper water than I was excited to let her into. mostly, it was because I was there with G by myself, and wasn’t sure how I would rescue her, if need be. all my worrying was for naught, though. she listened, helped me with G, and wanted to come back soon. she had a blast, as did he. they both seem to be li’l water babies. given their current geographic location, that would be a good thing.

we headed to the local county park yesterday. it, too, was incredible. they had an awesome playground area for the kids, and ton of walking/biking trails. we actually got a little lost and turned out when we needed to head back. it probably doesn’t help that both R or I are a little navigationally challenged, but in our defense – the trails go far back, there weren’t markers, and it was getting dark. we’re heading back there when we’ve got more light in the day. it’s also a camping site, so that’s something to consider for the future.

amazingly beautiful – Spanish moss & palm trees were everywhere

 

in other news, my mother-in-law is headed this way tomorrow! she typically vacations in Florida with some friends, and they’re taking a jaunt northward to see us here. S has NO idea she’s coming here – I’m thinking she’ll be pretty stoked about it. we’ll have some beach time, visit our favorite crab shack, and show off our new digs. we had other exciting news recently: my lovely sister, M, is pregnant! they’re expecting #2 in March, rather near R and my brother-in-laws shared birthday – can the Milner/English family go for a third on the 27th?! stay tuned! I’m building a photo gallery at the moment – it’s no where near done, but I did get some photos up today. I’m excited about where it’ll go. it’s nice, too, to be surrounded by family.

we’re enjoying our time here. I won’t lie; it doesn’t quite feel like home. it’s a nice city, we’re enjoying the weather and all it offers. but, Kansas City still has the hold of hometown. I’m sure as time goes on, it’ll feel more real and concrete that this is home. I’ll let that happen organically; in the meantime, I’m enjoying the summer with these three awesome people in my family, and going to soak up some more time at the beach!