Jack Jack

1. 17 weeks

So the official news is out…though it was never a secret…I am 17 weeks pregnant.  We are expecting another boy in Feb.  I found out the day after Erin's funeral.  So needless to say, I did not drink my sorrows away this summer.  Instead I was nauseated and just plain miserable.  When we told the boys after coming back from Italy they determined that he should be named Jack.  They wanted to call him Jack Jack as a baby but then just Jack as a kid.  Now that I am further along in my pregnancy I am starting to feel like my old self again.  Besides the wine~I would really like to enjoy a glass of wine.

2. Paint Face
Cameron asks at least once a week to do "paint face."  Last week I gave in.  This was a picture of his first face.  After I did Owen's face, Cameron changed his mind.  So after a short melt down Mike washed his face and then those two did it again.  We only had it on for awhile but it made him very happy.  Even today he asked if we could do "paint face" to our pumpkins this year.

3. Fresh cut lawn

This has made the list many times before and it will never get old.  Last week on my only day off I mowed the lawn in the morning.  Our yard has been a disaster this year…to say the least.  But at least the 90 minutes gives me time to plan for NEXT year.  

4.  August 29
My sister's birthday was yesterday.  I started off the morning with an extremely large and comforting cup of coffee.  After work we went to her house and celebrated with the rest of the family.  We had qdoba and everyone else had margaritas and drinks. The kids ran wild and we stayed out late.  Cameron even slept in until 9 this morning and I had to wake him up.

The hurt and pain that this loss brings is unimaginable.   I miss her so much.

**These pictures are the boys laying outside Erin's house as we were waiting to get into the car.  It was 1030 at night and they were looking at the stars.**

5. It's bed time
I have been doing the post as the boys try and settle down for bed.  But I must say, I am pretty tired right now and I will feel a bit more relaxed laying in bed.

Early Mornings

1. 540 am

I can guarantee that no one in this house right now will wake up and come wondering out on their own.  I on the other hand have been up since 330 in the morning.  Some strange noise woke me up and I have been laying there ever since.  My mind has been a terrible thing this summer.  I have tried to keep it occupied, and for the most part I do a pretty good job at that.  The bed and the car usually get to me though.  This morning I decided to finally get up and put myself to good use…and update the blog.  So as I sit and sip my coffee, instead of my normal snooze routine as of late, I will make better use of my time.

2. The Gurchiek House

Last night we went over for pizza.  I think that our entire family loved the short outing.  My talked about their costumes and guns before we even got there.  All the kids played great together and it was really nice to sit down and catch up with adults.  Looking forward to more of these great nights.

3. Chemo kills
Today is my mom's chemo day.  So far I have worked all the days that she has received chemotherapy and today is no different.  In a few weeks I will be off and will be by her side…in street clothes --then off to lunch!!  YAY!! Anyways, back in March she was diagnosed with breast cancer and immediately following Erin's funeral she started chemo.  She has been doing great.  So today is the day…another life saving day for my mom!

4. Mike
There are so many reasons to be grateful for this man ~ my honest, hard working, insanely loving husband.

5. The piano
So this is going to be my new project.  I have not told Mike, but I hope to start working on the piano on Saturday.  We got one that we want to sand down and paint.  Then it needs to be tuned.  I don't know why, maybe it's because I grew up to music in my home, but I think that it is important to have in the house if possible.

The weekend

I am still having difficulties figuring out the photo situation.  And I don't have a ton of extra time to figure it all out.  (Sorry)  So as you will notice, this post is in sort of a wacky order.

1. Balloon animals at the mall

On Saturday Mike and I took the boys to stop at a few quick stores.  We were actually impressively quick and the boys were really good.  I think that it is because they got free balloon animals at Macys.  They are still floating around the house and have been hours of entertainment.  **You will notice a picture of Owen later in the post with his balloon as well.**

2. The puddle
We have a huge puddle that forms at the bottom of our driveway every time it rains.  It has been raining a lot lately and the boys have once again found the puddle.  This particular night they were COVERED  with muddy water.  I left to go to a retirement party for work so Mike had to do all of the dirty work.  Thank you!!!

3. Owen's first party
This weekend Owen was invited to his first party without Cameron.  They are in different classrooms this year and when Owen was invited is sort of made me nervous about the entire thing.  Both boys did great.  Mike and Cameron went to the splash park and Owen and I went to the party.  It was fun to see him playing with his classmates.

4. The coloring continues
I absolutely love this phase.  I hope it isn't a phase.  The boys are obsessed with art right now.  They sit down for hours.  Now I just need to buy more super hero coloring books.

 

**This is Cameron at the playground/splash park during the party**

5. Colts Season Tickets
I have been to my second game as a season ticket holder in 5 years.  I love the seats and it will be great that the boys will finally be able to see a game too.  I am grateful to my parents for having the boys spend the night last night.  Sleeping in felt amazing…and not having to pay the babysitter!!!

two times this week. be impressed.

1. My sweet Owen

This boy is beyond what words can describe.  He is so sensitive and has careful watch of people's feelings.  For example, if I am ever crying about missing Erin he immediately stops what he is doing, comes and gives me a hug and kiss, and then he finds a picture of Erin in the house and brings it to me. He stands with me and keeps hugging me until I am done crying.  He does the same for my mom.  As I sit and type this blog Mike is trying to get the boys into bed.  Owen went and picked out a book and he came around the corner and said, "Mike, I have your favorite book."  It was the book that Mike's mom read to him as a child.  Sammy the Seal.  So stinking cute.  Love my brown-eyed boy.

2. The TV

We haven't had cable since May.  I will admit, sometimes this is pretty hard but usually we are so busy and out enjoying life we don't miss it much.  We still have Netflix that the boys watch before bed every night.  I don't think that they have a clue that they don't have real TV.  We haven't even set up the basic channels.  Yes, we are losers.

3. Coloring
The boys have been coloring like CRAZY lately.  They can sit down for an hour and just color.  They love to write letters to people and send them in the mail.  Cameron calls an envelope a letter….I don't correct him because I think that it's sweet and I want him to still be little.  I know, I am a crazy mom.

4. Shelby

Little miss Shelby keeps me sane at work.  I must admit, we have a pretty wonderful job filled with great patients and food that we shouldn't eat.  BUT we also work with some pretty crazy people.  She is my bit of happiness everyday.  Don't get me wrong -- there is sooooo much more to her wonderfulness ---I just can't even describe it all here.  :)

5. The boys are OLD.

It's insane what they do, they say, and how much they know.  I am with them every day and yet if I sit down and watch them purposefully I am amazed.  A friend posted her baby rolling over on Facebook the other day and I thought about how as they are little you get so excited for milestones, and now, it's not that I don't get excited but they learn something every. single. day.  It's hard to keep track.  

What??!! I'm back….hopefully.

So it has been a year.  A good year and a terrible year.  In the past 12 months a lot has happened.  Mike and I got married, we have done a ton of traveling, and we have had an unbelievable amount of fun.

But the past few months have been extremely heart breaking and difficult.  In May my sister was in an accident and passed away.  To use the words devastating does not even begin to express our feelings on this loss.  It is unimaginable.  

These past few months I have been working on purely getting a grip onto our new normal.  It's been hard.  Very hard.  

One thing that we are thankful that Erin did was write her blog for herself, her family, and one day to her children.  So so grateful for this -- and so I decided that I need to get back into the habit of writing down our day to day happenings as well.  This blog is still going to work on the same theme of 5 things that we grateful for in our lives….usually the small, ordinary things of life.  So to start things off….here are 5 things for tonight.

1. I was able to get back onto the blog.

I have a lot of things to do on my "To Do" list.  So tonight as the boys painted I finally got myself to sit down and figure out how to get pictures onto the computer since my set up has changed in the past year.  Now as I sit here and write I am late at preparing dinner and the boys have stopped painting, so the rest of this has to be QUICK.

2. Toddler Radio on Pandora

Yes, I have a slight obsession with this station.  Usually I am the mom who listens to her own station, and I will admit that I don't listen to this when the boys are not with me -- BUT when they are here this station is the BEST.  It plays old, great music.  And it is what I am listening to right now.

3. The day off

I am going back to three days a week.   Holy moly I am so excited.  I didn't work today because I am down to four days.  I have gotten so much done, including cleaning the fridge. I am soooooo looking forward to the next few weeks for the change.

4. Cousin love

In the pictures below the boys are hanging with their cousins.  In the one immediately below they are saying "cheers" with their popsicles.  So silly.  

5. First day of Pre-K
Can you really say much more than that.  They love it.  I would not say that I love it….but I am learning to tolerate.  It will be interesting to see where these boys end up in the next 13 years.  I had to add this picture because Nash is photo bombing in the background.

6. My sanity 
He usually keeps me pretty sane.  This picture was from our recent trip to Florence.  We went to Greece and Italy for two weeks.  How can you not be grateful. What a wonderful man.