10.31.2011

Happy Halloween


Happy Halloween from the Lucas house!
This year Zach had two costumes, the first was his favorite literary character for a parade at school. He then opted for some Will Turner/pirate character. He originally had a wig but ditched it for the rag covering instead.  He was more concerned  with his weapons, which included a sword and gun. JT went way outside the box and wanted to be Ra the Egyptian sun god. I think we got as close to his vision but he was definitely developing some angst as he left to meet up with friends.

10.26.2011

a good night on the couch

Many a night we have a visitor or two come to our room and sneak in to bed with us. When they were little, little we didn't mind so much but now that they are big and our bed only a queen, it gets a little too crowded. Granted the two of them have really stopped coming in especially since most nights they sleep together; however every now and again someone sneaks back in.

Last night Z came in to our room. Normally, I would just stay in bed but being monstrously large and trying to share a bed, isn't always the most comfortable and truth be told I was wide awake when he came in (I seem to have developed a bit of insomnia although I have yet to take good advantage of it ala Martha Stewart style; I usually lay awake wondering how long I should try to fall back to sleep versus getting up). When Zach got in our bed, I sat up and drank some water. Zach in turn cuddled up next to me, patted by belly and said:

"Good Night Chip and Dip. Have fun sleeping out on the couch."

He then kissed my belly, adjusted my pillow to his liking, and fell fast asleep.

Chip, Dip, and I did have a nice night on the couch along with two cats and a dog. Maybe it is time for a new, bigger couch.

10.25.2011

the chickens

I went to the doctor today to check on the chickens. Turns out they are doing well. They are both head-down and weigh almost three pounds each. A little scary to think about the possibility of lugging around 10 lbs of baby. It doesn't really seem humanly possible or at least no possible on my short torsoed body.

True to form, the chicken on the left side decided to be uncooperative when the tech was looking to get a face shot. She turned her head face down to avoid the paparazzi. The other one of course was more than willing to strike  pose. The image didn't come across super clear but clear enough to see some chubby cheeks.

10.24.2011

9

Birthdays are getting bittersweet at the Lucas house as the boys get older and older. Today is super sad because JT is 9, which is a year away from 10 and then 3 years from the teen years! This year is especially odd because he didn't request a party this year and we have been super busy with the school carnival so it feels a bit anti-climatic compared to his previous birthdays. To celebrate he is taking his dad and brother to WWE for some wrestling fun.



JT is a fabulous little boy. He is constantly curious about everything and is a sponge with information. He is also very sweet (maybe not always to his brother) but he is super considerate of other children. His teacher is always talking about how helpful he is at school especially with a child that has been struggling. He of course has his moments and because the two of us are so much alike we battle it out more than he and Rick. All-in-all he is a fabulously sweet child and we are super proud of him and continue to love watching him grow.

10.16.2011

a rare event

Not only does tournament baseball suffer from  lack of players in the fall but so does league ball. Every once in a while a friend from the Spring league team calls and asks if JT can play because he is short players. JT has played a few times but it is coach pitch with kids he doesn't know as well so he isn't too thrilled to play.

On Friday JT got the call and Rick accepted but later that evening JT had a bit of a meltdown about it. Zach on the other hand offered to play despite never having played coach pitch. Long of the short, Saturday morning rolled aorund and both boys got uniformed up and both boys played and Rick even got to coach since they were also short a coach this week.

All in all it was a great outting. The Hutto Red Sox won by one run with Zach playing a big role in the win. He batted three times (2 singles, 1 double) and with those three at bats brought in his brother each time. Rick loved that for perhaps the only time in his coaching career he got to have both boys on the same team. I don't think we will be moving Zach up in the Spring; he definitely wasn't ready for the speed or the agressiveness that comes with coach pitch but it was a fun experience.


10.12.2011

idle threats

On Monday the boys convinced me that we should go to Target to get a birthday present for a party JT was going to but what they were really interested in was seeing how they could spend their combined $9.
So long story short, upon realization of what we were really at Target for, I informed the boys that I thought it was best for them to look around and then they could work on saving more money to buy something. I also stated that no one would be getting legos since we are in a lego transition right now and need to focus on moving legos from one storage unit to another. The task seems to be taking longer as the boys get sidetracked and build things.

Fair warning, when you combine 1 tired child who has $4.50 and who believes that if he looks hard enough there is a lego set that costs just that, you get a cranky, Target meltdown. This meltdown was especially fun because we found ourselves in the baby aisle so I could look at car seats (I guess you still have to put newborns in car seats - go figure!). The shelves are arranged to hold the large toddler seat boxes, which means with a box missing from the shelf there was a nice spot for Zach to crawl in and hide while yelling the following:

"Fine! I am just going to stay here and live right here at Target and when you come back to shop if you are going to let me buy legos I will go home with you but if not then I will just keep living here until you say I can buy legos."

What was even better was the poor grandmother that was in the aisle with us and who initially couldn't see Zach and therefore she had no clue where the yelling was coming from. She seemed overly confused especially when I accepted Zach's offer and started walking away. He met us at the exit and then while in the car, between hysterics of crying he made the next comment:

"You  just don't trust me. Whenever you drop something, you ask JT to pick it up. I never get to pick up anything you drop!"

When we got home, he went straight to his room, took an hour long nap and then had one of his best t-ball games ever which included the following performance:
  • throwing out a runner at first from third base
  • hitting a home run
  • getting all three outs in one inning while playing at the pitcher position
  • and throwing a ball from (short) center field to home and almost getting the out
He was awarded game ball for his outstanding effort but he has yet to get any new legos. Poor kid.

10.07.2011

the world is not designed for twins

I went to Costco today (more on that in a moment) and while I was there I saw this woman pulling two carts. First I paused because I was truly amazed at how she was navigating what turned out to be not so nice kind of a place with two carts. And as I stood staring and she turned her carts, I discovered that she had two carts because one cart was occupied solely by twin boys (probably about 4 years old). And then I sighed and looked at my over sized cart that was filled to the brim and realized Costco alone with twins may not be in my future. It would definitely be a 4 person trip.

I love Costco or maybe it is the memory of Costco. It is just one of those childhood hold-overs. I remember when my parents got their account and at the time the apparent exclusivity of it. And all so we could buy lots of toilet paper at once! Rick and I don't go as often anymore (although I imagine that changes with our new need for diapers) but today I went to get treats for the teacher in-service days next week.

I will acknowledge that I am hormonal and therefore I have less patience than most people and these hormones may also cause me to add a bit of hyperbole to my adventure  but I found almost everyone at Costco rude (with exception of the check-out guys). It just seemed that people (some not all) felt that the rest of us were a nuisance to their Costco shopping and had no problem cutting us off, blocking aisles, or pushing at the sample stations ( I swear I was not at any sample stations but I am always amazed at how crazed people get over them).

The worst part of my adventure came in the parking lot.  One of my top pet peeves is people who wait for you to load your car just so they can have your spot. And what made it worse today was that by the time I made it to my car, it dawned on me that this was why Rick told me not to go alone. I think it probably took me an hour (ok that is hyperbole) to load up the car and all the time this woman sat in her car with her turn signal on, waiting for my not so prime parking spot. When I finally pulled out, she was sure to give me a scowl for making her wait. Part of me wishes I would have just told her to get her butt out of her car and help the pregnant load her car but I didn't instead I drove away and was met with an awesome line of traffic and about 5 cars that refused to pause those two seconds to allow me to get in line to exit the parking lot. I guess they all had far more important things to do than be nice to someone.

Otherwise shopping for 70+ teacher and staff members at Costco was fun; who doesn't want to have a cart filled with 6 dozen muffins. I just hope they all enjoy eating the things that I was craving while shopping! It might not be good to have the pregnant in charge of Hospitality for the teachers.

10.06.2011

The Halloweenie Quilt Experiment

I bet you thought we weren't going to do it? You thought Chandra and I would buy our fabric and it would be well past Halloween before either of us completed our projects. Well, we impressed ourselves and got our quilts done. Now that isn't to say they are perfect but I am excited to have my first holiday quilt.

Chandra remained true to our original design whereas I got a bit panicky when first cutting the fabric and went with a very similar (ok maybe exact) design as the one I made for Judes last year. As Chandra mentions, she isn't thrilled with the binding (I talked her in to the method from Amy Butler) but I am pleased to have completed it that I am ok with perhaps the less than  professional binding. My only complaint is that I think the batting is too fluffy (that is amateur quilter talk for too thick) so I think I will experiment with other batting for the next quilt. Yes, Chandra and I are in negotiations for the next quilt. Actually we have two we want to try: a Christmas quilt and then a very long-term investment in a hexie quilt.

JT helped me pick out the backing and I have to admit, I think it makes the quilt even better. And just like Chandra's (although we weren't together when purchased) mine has glitter!

Note: the quilt is folded over but it ended up being just shy of a full size quilt. Basically the perfect size for taking naps on the couch.

10.02.2011

Baseball With Zach

Things That Make Us Happy

I am sitting at the kitchen bar this morning watching JT cook french toast including his new experimental PB&J stuffed for everyone. The chickens and I are opting for original french toast but it is fun to watch him cook. Zach is hanging out with  legos (big surprise!). And Rick is exposing us to some new tunes that he has been listening to. Not too shabby of a Sunday morning.

Zach's teacher is always talking to us about excited Zach is for his sisters and that during Writers Workshop he writes a lot about the girls. Recently they had a project where they talked about things that make them happy and drew pictures.


In case it is hard to decipher, from left to right, Zach's bike, me on the ultra-sound table getting the announcement that we are having girls, and a swing set.

I hope everyone is getting to do something that makes them happy to today. After breakfast, I am sneaking off to Jo Anns!