cloth

of all the things i could blog about right now (4th of july, our new house, all the summer fun we've been having...), i choose cloth diapers! ha. i've been meaning to update on this for a long time and i figure i need to soon before diapers are a thing of the past. yep, i actually see a light at the end of the tunnel in regards to diapers. not sure if it's a girl thing or the fact that maya watches kellen go to the bathroom...but this girl has been going on the potty now since she was about 18 months old. the first time i thought it was a fluke...she said poo poo and pointed to her booty. i asked her if she wanted to go sit on the potty and lo and behold, the girl pooped! now she goes anywhere from 1- 4 times a day. she almost always goes first thing when she wakes up and often her diaper is dry in the morning. crazy - probably the only thing that is holding her back from being fully potty trained is me!!! it's so much work out and about ensuring that two are all set potty wise and that there are no accidents. but, moving on...this post is not about potty training!

it's about my switch to cloth diapers...almost a year ago!!! after much research and good intention, i finally switched to cloth after i quit my job (seriously, it's been almost a full year now!) and probably a good four months after i bought my first FOUR cloth diapers! there is no denying, a cloth diaper booty is way cute and really, the laundry hasn't been bad. but it is a lot of extra laundry. i probably wash diapes 2-3 times a week and it takes two cycles (1 cold wash with extra rinse, followed by 1 hot wash with extra rinse). in terms of better for the environment, i feel SO good about not putting bags of paper diapers in our trash, but there is a lot more water usage.

i went with mostly pocket diapers...fuzzibunz are my faves, but we also have a blueberry and some katydid diapers. i have a few all in one, which i didn't care for as much, but have found they make a really great night time diaper. i also have a couple of bamboo fitted diapers that require a cover and for that i have a few thirsties duo covers! on top of not having to buy paper diapers, i bought most of these diapers on super sale via daily deal sites or amazon (got several practically for FREE when they had $10 off purchase and 30% off diapers coupons in magazine...those were total scores!).

almost a year into it and my diapers are holding up really well...although i think they are starting to stink a bit! need to figure that out...but all in all, i'm so happy and proud of myself for making the switch. i did buy a pack of diapers when we went on vacay to hawaii and i have some left from that. we use a paper diaper every now and then when i don't have any clean/dry diapers or when i think her booty just needs a break (the moisture doesn't wick away from the skin with cloth like it does with paper). now if i can just muster the energy to potty train this girl, we'll say goodbye to the cloth and hello undies forevah!

wowee...

MAUI! i'm so late in posting about our maui vacation...what fun we had (no post would do it justice!). 11 days/10 nights in paradise. we have our friends the schmole's to thank for giving us the motivation to take the trip. ironically, we had been thinking about going to hawaii with the two babes before maya turned 2 (and thus required a paid plane ticket!) and after we they told us about how difficult their trip in december with their two babes we decided somewhere a little closer would probably be best. when they suggested we all go together, we were a little surprised (given their trip in december!)...but took little influencing to make it happen! another family friend of ours also met up with us in lahaina (after a week or so on kauai!) and stayed in the same condo complex as ours (they were next door, but quickly moved out of that crap hole and into a more updated unit!).

the first 7 nights we stayed in 3 bedroom condo in lahaina with our friends - who have 2 boys, each approximately 3 weeks younger than our kids. sure, it was hectic at times with two three year olds and two one year olds...but so, so fun to have playmates and another family who knew what to expect with vacationing with little ones! we had the perfect balance of hanging and exploring together and then downtime on our own. we even managed to pull off a night out for the six adults - thanks to an awesome sitter that we hired through an agency (brilliant idea, mandy and kari!). it was pretty great to be able to enjoy an amazing meal in the company of good friends with an incredible view and setting! if you are in maui, i highly recommend merriman's in kapalua - and get the pina colada...you won't be sorry!



after we said goodbye to our friends, we had 3 more nights. thanks to my old banfield job, i had some hotel points to use. unfortunately they were at two different resorts, but the savings was worth it! so we stayed 2 nights in wailea at the marriott and 1 night at the westin in kaanapali. after the first week in a condo, it was nice to be in a resort with the different pools and beautiful grounds. one afternoon aa and i each traded about an hour of alone time at the adult pool. we were both looking forward to it, but honestly i ended my time early because i was a little lonely and missing my peeps! aa ended up feeling the same! now if aa and i could have been alone together, i'm sure it would have been a different story...but unfortunately the sitter we had used earlier was not available.



some of the highlights of the trip:

• shave ice and ice cream in the afternoon with the kid




• ladies night out with the girls...including a stop at the local gelato shop




• a group "hike" at iao valley state park





• deciding to stop at airport beach after the kids had fallen asleep in the car and enjoying some snorkeling and quiet time on the beach while the kids napped under a beach umbrella (they BOTH stayed asleep while we transferred their sleeping selves from carseats to the beach!)




• the above mentioned parent's night out





• eating at some of our favorite spots from our last trip to maui - the fish market, honolua store, aloha mixed plate
  



• watching the little ones play together nicely (and sometimes not so nicely!)
  
  
  
  
  
  



• a couple hours to enjoy a happy hour/dinner alone thanks to mandy and filip watching our kids




• simple but delicious bbq dinners out on the lawn with our good friends

• lots of fresh pineapple and papaya (maybe mixed with a little coconut rum and ice!)




• exploring the little town of pa'ia after our plans of going to baby beach were foiled when the kids fell asleep in the 5 minutes it took to drive there




• hanging on black rock beach with everyone and watching k squeal with delight as he jumped the waves with his friends







• just being together (especially walking along the beach watching the sunset and hanging on the hammock in the evening!)- with young kids, life can be crazy and it's easy to not slow down and enjoy. i'm thankful for the ten days we had together as a family. i know the kids loved having aa for ten whole days...they have been missing him lots and have really been in a daddy mode (no mama...daddy! is something i hear often) upon our return
  
  
  
  

we've now been back for a month (make that over two months!) and i keep dreaming of our return, especially with this crappy portland summer...AGAIN! until then, i guess we have pictures and a sound machine set to ocean waves!

thomas

a couple of weekends ago we made the long trek out to hood river to visit a special friend - thomas the train! thomas has been a mild obsession around here for about the last six months or so. i never quite understood the fascination with him (have you seen the show? it's a little strange!), but our boy really loves thomas and all of his friends. we're starting to build quite the little collection here. anyway, thomas comes in real life to hood river once a year, so of course we had to go see what is was all about!

our little engineers!


yep, after a few days of sunshine it decided to rain on us. fortunately it stopped while we were doing all of the outside activities.

i have to admit, he was pretty cool! we approached the train station and there he was in all his smiling glory! the look on kellen's face made the almost $100 in tickets/paraphernalia totally worthwhile. we were running a little late due to an accident along 84, so we were almost the last ones on the five car steam engine (which actually worked out well as we didn't have to stand in line with all the other thomas fans!). as we took off, the engine had us "help" thomas by chanting push, thomas, push and of course the all familiar thomas music was playing in the background. the actual train ride itself was pretty insignificant (especially since the kids and i had just taken a 35 minute train ride around washington park and the zoo a few days before!). we literally went down the tracks about 10 minutes and then back (with a pull, thomas, pull chant of course!).


see the line of people waiting...ya, it went back about 2 full train cars! the "official" picture station is just to the right of the kids and aa!

after the train ride you could stand in line with the other 500 passengers to get your picture taken with thomas - starting at only $12! aa was a smart one and pulled us out of the line and took us to the exit, where we could get the same shot with our own camera for free!!! here is the money shot:


we then met sir topham hat, who both frightened and facisnated maya at the same time. she wouldn't go near him, but kept saying "ata hat! ata hat!". i finally figured out she meant sir topham hat and she'd shout it when he was out of her sight. there were also lots of train tables with trains, blocks, a kid sized train to ride, temporary tattoos, coloring, a thomas movie viewing area (which was a highlight for kellen - really did we need to drive to hood river to watch a thomas show!?), story hour, bounce houses (k was not a fan!) and of course the mother load of thomas toys, trains and trinkets under one giant tent. fortunately we made it out of there without having to purchase another train!


love kellen holding maya's hand! also note his diesel 10 tattoo!



after a couple of hours of thomas overload it was time for lunch...and a beer! we headed up the hill to big horse brew pub for some grub and then over to mike's ice cream for a little treat before the kids and i settled in for a little nappy on the ride home! all in all, a good day.


this girl is trouble!!!


kellen's "don't take a picture of me...funny face"

**side note: we made the mistake of telling kellen about this little adventure on monday when our thomas engineer hat and whistle arrived in the mail. bad idea. every day, every hour we had to discuss when we were going to see thomas!

sneek peak

i've sat down several times to document our maui trip and just haven't found the time to complete it! to move on from the below post, here's a sneak peek. we had so much fun!


boogie boarding in the grass!


my hawaiian girl!


the kids playing in the shallow waters of baby beach in lahaina


enjoying one of many hawaiian shave ice, or "ice sundae" as k liked to call them!


the best nap - right on kaanapali beach with the REAL ocean sound in the background (as opposed to the ocean sound machine we all sleep with every night!).


family pic


self portrait family pic in the hammock (grumpy maya!)


daddy and his babies


mama and m taking a snack break

i'll post more details soon!

finally

maya finally has grown an attachment to something other than me! i've been trying basically her whole life to have a lovey (like k has his teddy and blanket). when maya was born and we learned she was a girl...the one thing i wanted was a pink version of the blanket kellen LOVES. i figured since kellen LOVES his blanket so much, maya would love it too. wrong. not that she dislikes that blanket...she could just care less about it. one of many things to remind me that she is a different baby/person than her brother!



in preparation for her to someday (it really will happen!) sleep in her own bed, i really have wanted her to have a blanket and/or object that she is attached to and finds comfort in. i had heard great things about this blanket called the dream blanket, so when i stumbled upon a great sale i figured it wouldn't hurt to try. amazingly, she took a liking to it! she calls it "b" and every night when it's time to get ready for bed, she looks around the house for her b. the moment i knew she was really attached was when it was dirty in the laundry basket and she tried to pull it out crying, "beeeeeee, beeeeee!" at around the same time she took a liking to a stuffed bear that was given to her at birth. she calls him teddy, just like kellen's teddy and she needs both b and teddy to settle in for bed. i'm so thankful she now has these two to love and snuggle her and i really believe that soon they will help her to make the transition out of my arms at night!

ps. she does have a space of her own, really a corner in the office. i realize if we want to get serious about her sleeping, we should probably put more effort into giving her a room and a bed that she could actually sleep in. but we have been unwilling to give up the office or too lazy to make the change. we really just need a bigger house, but that also takes effort! here's a couple pics of her corner.

mama, i hate this crib!


the walls of her corner


ok - i guess i don't have the greatest pics of her space! i actually took these a few months ago, hoping to document something for her baby book, but never finished the photo session because she was hating it! here you get a glimps of the rug. it's pink, orange, green and cream striped and there is also a little white floor lamp and a chair to sit in...but no pics of the entire space. sorry! my sister loaned us the crib - it's a mini crib that folds up and is actually sort of cute. but as you can see...she hates it!

paycheck

as i mentioned below, i have recently started a little side contract that really just came out of the blue. today marks the start of my fourth week and so far so good. i'm working 15-20 hours a week, from home and on a temporary/contract basis. i'm actually still a little shocked to find myself working (for a paycheck...cause really, i've been working my butt off the last 8 months!), but it's kind of a perfect situation. i get to use my mind a bit, make a little money to restock my dwindling savings account, keep my resume fresh and current, but still have my focus here with my family. it's also make it easy knowing that i have an end date and the whole summer to look forward to with my babies!

so here's the scoop...a couple of months ago a former nike co-worker of mine reached out randomly to see if i was enjoying staying home and oh by the way would i be interested in a full time position (not at nike, at a company called knowledge universe). i replied that i was loving it and not looking for a full time role, but if he ever needed some part time help, i'd be happy to do it from home (thinking there wasn't a chance and really not looking for something!). Lo and behold, he replied right back that he might indeed have a need for that and that we should talk. a few weeks later, i found myself with a laptop, blackberry and back earning a paycheck!

side note: it does feel good to earn money. i don't think it's hugely important, because i do believe i'm doing my fair share contributing to our family, but money and the value we place on it is a weird thing. i recently applied for a credit card and had to put $0 income for my own and to my surprise (although i'm not sure why) i wasn't instantly approved. i've never had that happen and i won't lie, it felt a little odd/sad. i then applied under aaron's name and indeed, instant approval. i also am realizing that i've made virtually spent no money on myself since i quit my job (ie. i haven't had a haircut in 8 months) and now that i'm making a little money, i suddenly feel ok scheduling a hair appt for myself.

i feel really fortunate to have the type of career/experience that allows me the flexiblity to do this kind of work. when i quit i thought that i could always consult/contract if i wanted/needed and it sure feels good to know that it's possible. i remember back when i graduated from uo and was offered the job as a recruiter. at the time i knew nothing about recruiting as as career choice (i think it was still fairly new to specialize in recruitment) and can't tell you how many times i had to explain to friends and family what i do (to do this day, some of my family still just think i'm a headhunter!). i've definitely had my highs and lows and moments where i questioned my career choice, but it does pay to be a recruiter if/when you are looking for a job and to have a bunch of recruiter colleagues and friends!!!

seven

yesterday was our seven year anniversary. we ate a bunch of great food (toro bravo for dinner, papa haydn for dessert, then simpatico for breakfast the next day), had the house to ourselves for an entire night and then marveled at the last seven years. the day was beautiful, warm and sunny - just like the day we were married. i remember it like it was yesterday - it was perfect (except for the 300 missing candles that still haunt me to this day!!!!).



this was the first year we stayed home for our anniversary. for our first we went to cannon beach for a long weekend - there happened to be an art festival going on that we didn't know about and all the galleries had receptions with free wine, food and music. we enjoyed it all and then went back to our room and dug our forks into two cakes made by the baker who did our wedding cakes (who is sadly now out of business). our second we spent at skamania lodge. it was nice for sure, but skamania felt a little like an older crowd and just wasn't for us. for our third i was fairly early in my pregnancy with kellen and we spent a long weekend in victoria. we almost missed the ferry cause aa was parking the car and taking his sweet time. we rented a condo right off the harbor and had a great weekend walking and exploring a new city. for our fourth, kellen was five months old so we decided to stay closer to home and went back to cannon beach. we stayed in the same place, hit up all of our favorite spots and enjoyed our first anniversary as parents. for our fifth we wanted to do something a little more special and decided to have our first night (really three) away from kellen and headed down to san francisco to explore. i was also just finishing my first trimester with maya. we stayed right downtown and despite the rain and not so great weather, we walked and ate our way all over that city! so much fun and while we missed our boy, it was so nice to have that time as a couple. finally last year, for number six we again decided to go back to the place that never fails us - cannon beach. this time with our six month old baby girl. k stayed in salem with grandma and papa. what fun it was to celebrate and also have a little weekend with just our girl - a real rarity for #2!


i love this picture of my nephew when we were cutting the cake! he's now a teenager...ah! where does the time go?

we would have loved to have a little weekend away this year, but with a hawaii vacation right around the corner and a baby girl who still really hasn't slept through the night without a little comfort from me it just didn't feel right. but, we did have a night to ourselves because auntie molly was kind enough to take both kids for the night (knowing full well that maya might be a challenge!). we were actually going to play it by ear and possibly pick maya up after dinner and then drop her off the next morning again so we could go out to breakfast...but my sis texted at 10 to say they were all going to bed and that was that. maya was a dream - woke up once at 1:30 and rocked back to sleep until 8am. sure, she was with my sister the whole time, but boy did it feel good to know that she could sleep without me! {and somehow this post about our anniverary has turned into a post about maya!}



a close up of the angie and aaron bobblehead dolls that aaron's parents had made for us!

back to our wedding/anniversary...it was everything i hoped it to be - short and sweet ceremony, surrounded by our most loved friends and family and then a big party to celebrate where everyone enjoyed delish food, good drinks and danced their booties off! not to mention the fact that i married my best friend...truly. lots has changed these last seven years and it hasn't always been easy, but i'm so so so fortunate to have aa as my #1 teammate, partner and love.