February 12: Lovebugs

This photo doesn't even come close to capturing how sweet this moment was. I spend all day with Alice, and often, much of the day with Henry and still there is nothing that melts my heart more than seeing them with Mike. Sometimes, when we're all in the same room, which is often--Alice doesn't really do her own thing yet, and Henry would much rather be with us than without--I look around and think, "how did I get this beautiful family?"

Today was a lovely, low-key day with our little foursome. Delicious eggs and bagels for breakfast, new glasses for Henry (a weaker prescription--yes!!), a stop in to our favorite local shop, Miss Ruth's Time Bomb where we filled up on cupcakes and I enjoyed a mimosa with my girl Sarah and a lazy afternoon at home. We're calling it a day soon with some plain and simple comfort food: sloppy joes, sweet potato fries and corn. Saturday, I love you.

February 11: I lurve you, you know, I loave you...

Annie Hall...what a classic. February is such a good movie month. Not only do you have so many fun, romantic, quirky films about love (especially the ones by Woody Allen...can't get enough of those), but it's awards season, which means dozens of past Oscar winners for your viewing pleasure.

Shifting gears--in the spirit of yesterday's post, here are a few shots of my mantle, ready for V-Day. I don't typically decorate the house for this holiday, because I usually forget all about it, but this year, since I'm home, it seems like I'm bombarded with reminders. If I weren't on maternity leave, I'd be working late into the night and every weekend getting applications read, re-read, checked, checked again, cut, bumped up, merit-aid awarded, committee-d...etc. etc. etc. This year would have been especially taxing given that Dson is up significantly in app numbers. I'm really proud of this, since I know that building the applicant pool doesn't start in app season, but, rather, with counselor outreach efforts, on-campus programs, interviews, info sessions, high school visits beginning when these kids are in their junior year (a long process). Still, I feel like I can't take ownership for this impressive pool since I'm not the one making the final decisions. I'll get over it, and I'll stop worrying about work so much. Right now there is really nothing better than being at home with my little baby. March, April and May will be busy enough with a 3/4/5 month old, a 3-year-old, a husband who works 50 minutes from home and is in class 2 nights a week and my own responsibilities at work (which will still require night and weekend work).

I can hear Henry and Mike making breakfast in the kitchen while Alice "talks" away in her little bouncy seat. Weekend mornings are my favorite, and I'm going to go enjoy this one with all of my funny valentines.

February 10: ...on the 48th day of Christmas my true love gave to meeee...

A wreath that is Christmas festive, but not overtly holiday themed--meaning that I can get away with letting it hang into mid-February. My obsession with decorating the house for the holidays began in, well, late September when I fully accepted the fact that for the bulk of the holiday season I would either be enormously pregnant, or healing postpartum with a newborn. For this very reason, everything was moved up. Fall decorations were up after Labor Day, Halloween candy was purchased about 3 weeks before Halloween (and then "repurchased" a few days before due to the fact that I'd consumed most of what we had) and we were ready for Christmas by Thanksgiving.

I didn't do this alone. My sister Megan, who had her first child in October, generously offered to come during her maternity leave time and help me. It was really kind of nice to have someone else tending to garland and lights while I rested on the couch cooing with my then 5-week old nephew. Fall decor was down and holiday decorations up by November 22nd, tree was up and decorated by November 26th, cookies baked by December 1st, baby born on December 3rd--scheduled down to the minute. I kind of feel bad for not taking it easy, especially since I was supposed to be on bed rest, but it was truly out of my control. A ridiculously dangerous marriage of my passion for holiday decorating and an extreme case of nesting had consumed my brain. It was a lost cause from the start.

This beautiful wreath and the holiday flower box arrangements that you can't see were compliments of my very talented mother who, in addition to coming and helping me with Alice the first week home, created and added the finishing touches to my Christmas cottage. She made this wreath, adding four birds--one for each of us. Everything else is down, packed away in the basement until next winter, but I just can't bring myself to remove the wreath, a beautiful symbol of my very loving, giving, tender family.

February 9: Forever in the rinse cycle

two minutes later...


Notice something different? Yes, you are so observant, Alice is not wearing any clothes in the second photo. This was costume change #4 for the day, perhaps a record for my stinky little kitten-baby. She goes through more clothing than her father and brother combined, and that is quite a feat. At 2 going on 3, Henry practically invented the word "mess". Apple juice, milk, pudding, tomato sauce--you name it, we've washed it. The most endearing part, is the heartfelt "sorry!!" that follows every spill. Of course we give him a big hug and kiss and explain that we understand it was an accident and that he's not in trouble. Still, his clothes have seen the spin cycle so many times I'm surprised they're still in tact. As for Mike*, he changes after work each day then wears something for an hour and it's in the laundry basket. Honestly husband, do you really think it got that dirty in 60 minutes time? While I'm on the topic--who washes their jeans after two wears? TWO wears?! Denim sacrilege! I'll hold off to the bitter end before I throw my jeans in the wash. Maybe I'm revealing too much here? Are you thinking of me and finding this image coming to mind? I'd say between the three of them--Mike the outfit-changing wonder, Henry the bull in the china shop and Diaper disaster Alice--I've got about a load of laundry a day. I truly have NO clue as to how I'll keep us stocked with clean clothes once I go back to work. And with that, I'm off...to throw the wash in the dryer. Just another exciting day in Mollywood.


*should note that Mike was borderline offended by this exaggeration of life in our house as he has been very good about cutting back on his dirty clothes pile. I recognize and appreciate that immensely and in no way mean to suggest that he is a burden...I love him dearly and would marry him and his pile of laundry all over again today if I could. ;)

February 8: Quarantine, day 3

After a trip to the doctor's, we've determined that this is not the flu, instead, a yucky stomach virus with sore throat and...ear infection. Ohh the misery of the ear infection!! Curse you, virus! The pain was so horrible, in fact, that even the magnificent Dr. Holly Hoffman and her zebra stethoscope couldn't cheer him up. He actually turned down my multiple ice pop offers--unheard of! A little childrens' ibuprofen (grape), a prescription of Azithromycin, H2O and many hours of sleep have taken my preschooler from zombie monster, back to his busy, playful, ice-pop-loving, slightly demanding self. Here are a few photos of him from this morning, baby-talking with his sister and playing with his Leap Frog magnets. Right now, he's trying to stick a plastic "lug nut drill" up my nose and asking that I find his Bob the Builder hat. Looks like we're feeling better again.

Hit Play, February!

Ok, so this is not terribly original, in fact, I stole it directly from my sister (www.itsbeeguile.blogspot.com). In lieu of a photo, I'm also going to share my February playlist. Of course I have to dedicate this to Beezus, since she was the one that inspired me to post it. :)

Songs I'm listening to a lot these days:

The Bird and the Bee--Rich Girl (yes, Hall & Oates cover...melt!)
Dr. Dog---Nobody Knows Who You Are
The Thrills---Restaurant
Bob Dylan---Girl from the North Country (to be fair, that would make the list any month)
The Mountain Goats---Dance Music
Bruno Coulais---Baby (from the documentary--one of Hen's favorite things to watch)
The Black Ghosts---Repetition Kills You
Blossom Dearie---I'm Hip
The Talking Heads---And She Was
Santo & Johnny---Sleepwalk (our wedding song)

Ok, so it's a short list, and nothing really "new" to speak of, but it's mostly comfort music, and that's exactly what February calls for in my book!

February 7: My original muse

As I look through our iPhoto at the seriously daunting number of pictures that we've accumulated over the years, I can't help but to notice a very clear (and understandable) shift in subjects that occurs right around March, 2008. Before Henry and Alice, there was always Elsie. Our first real shared responsibility, Mike and I adopted her from the Rutland VT Humane Society on January 21, 2006. This date marked our one year as a couple and we did things in style, by picking up a pooch. We knew it would be a lot of work, but were blissfully ignorant of the true impact that caring for another creature would have on our lives. Elsie is a really good dog, honestly, I go so far as to say "the most well behaved dog ever", and I don't tend to speak in superlatives (ha! so false, I know, but it sounded good). However, when we got our second dog, Laika, Mike was quick to remind me of the maaaaany shoes, rugs, clothes, pieces of furniture, home decor accessories, pillows, comforters etc. that Elsie chewed through. I guess having a dog is a lot like having a baby--involves patience, love and a very selective memory!

Here's to my original muse, Elsie Mae, and many more years of life with the prettiest and most well behaved dog ever.

February 6: The healing power of donuts

There are few things as great as a huge plate of donuts on a Sunday morning. Since Henry is my flesh and blood, he already knows this to be quite true and is even quicker than I to suggest "dough-nees" (McDougallese for those sweet treats) on any given morning. The promise of donuts was honestly the only thing that kept him from demanding to go home last night. It's not that he doesn't love spending time at GiGi & Grandpa Mac's (they're like celebs in his world), it was the horrible, no good, very bad FLU that reared its ugly head at around 11pm.

Donuts helped, but, unfortunately, are not an actual cure for the common cold, and Hen-Bo is out for the count. Hopefully tomorrow looks better, but we'll keep fingers crossed that this doesn't travel any further through the house--if so, there are more than a few apple fritters, krullers and glazed custard-filled in my near future.

February 5: Aunties

The sisters descended upon 412 Kauffman this weekend, with husbands, fiances and children in tow. Quite a bit has happened in less than 24 hours, most importantly, the very unexpected loss of the dining room table. After over 30 years of service, the ol' girl finally gave in under the weight of full plates and leaning elbows. It's fixable, thank goodness--that table is like an institution here--but it was quite dramatic when it happened, and a certain two year old ("3 in March") was pretty traumatized. We found ourselves grabbing plates, glasses, forks and knives as those lucky few sitting in the middle held up the two sides of the split table.

After clearing the room entirely, we managed to fit our growing family around the kitchen table, where we laughed about the surprise of the evening's events and greatly enjoyed a slightly cold, still delicious family dinner.