The one with Two Redheads

Shortly after we brought Grady home, I remember sitting in the living room and looking out the window at a tree full of green leaves, offering shade to the house. Through my maternity leave I watched the season change and those leaves turn yellow. It was only fitting when I returned home this past week after returning back to work on Monday and looked out at the yard, I saw the wind had stripped so many of the trees of their leaves.  It's hard to believe so much time- a full season, has passed already from the time we brought him home and that we are already heading to the office on a daily basis. I don't think I was ready to come back to work but in order to keep up our elaborate lifestyle of having a house and eating, I don't think I have much of a choice. I'm still getting used to having the two and figuring out how to juggle them, the house, Matt, and myself appropriately and now we are adding work back into it.

The ladies at work have been looking forward to having him there on a full time basis as we've had to stop in here and there because of the conference wrap up. They've already commented that he's grown so much. And he already knows how to work them.. he was offering up smiles where he could on day 1 and 2. What a flirt! I can't believe he's already 2 months old... he's grown a bit into his face and personality but also is filling out sleepers and clothes.

It was a busy weekend... a lot of credit going to my mom who came not once but twice over the week to watch the kids for us. The first was so I could attend an all day meeting on Friday. She only had Grady. The second, she had a helper with Alaina as she had both kids so Matt and I could have a date night. He had gotten me tickets to Deuces Wild, dueling pianos for my birthday and promised me a fancy night out. He didn't disappoint. It was a great meal, a great show, but spending time with him was great... and the hand holding and him opening my car door for me was additional icing on the cake.

On Sunday, John, Allison, and Oliver came down to visit! It's been practically a year since we've seen them and it was so good to catch up. Oliver has gotten so big and grown up. He's still just as sweet and to hear him say his name and talk made my heart smile! It was great to see him and Eleanor play together. They are at an age where there isn't always harmony... such as when Oliver got smacked by our little bully but then they would crawl up in her stool or color in the box or stand together and it would just make me smile... there was an attempt of a hug when they left and it was a hot mess of affection!

We also had a chance to ask John and Allison if they'd be willing to be Grady's godparents. We had already got to ask Cousin Kevie if she'd also be his godmother, so this completed his set. I wish we would have had the opportunity to ask Kevie in person too but we'll see her when we are able to have the ceremony, next June.

best meal: date night meal which started out with cheesy pickles at the Frog, followed by shrimp scamp for Matt, Pecan crusted salmon for myself

John: Oh, you want to see Baby Grady?
Oliver: Grady is sleeping.
ALR to Allison: Oh, he said Grady's name really well!
Allison: We've been working on names. We tried Eleanor's too and he struggled a bit... "Nellnor" so we asked what he wanted to call her, El, Ellie, Len, and he said No, Nellnor. 

The one with and without the Smiles

Eleanor had school pictures this past week. She also participated in the retakes because the first set did not go well. Here's hoping our next set of family pics go better than these.

Other things Eleanor does better than pictures:
What does a frog say: she then sticks her tongue out back and forth with the appropriate noises!

Shusshing baby Grady or being a mother Hen: when he's fussy or crying as well as ensuring that he has blankets because that's what unhappy babies need: a good shhhhh, a blanket, and a paci jammed into their mouth. Daycare has also reported her being helpful there. She puts blankets on babies, tried to cuddle them, and has been checking the diapers of her colleagues. We've asked daycare for a discount since she appears to be taking on work duties.

Anatomy lesson: She's getting pretty good at knowing the parts of her body. We were told that at 2 years old, she should know 5. We've got way more than that... ears, eyes, mouth, nose, teeth, chin, hair, hands, toes, feet, and belly. Grandpa Perry asked if she was going to belly up to the table and she had no problems showing him hers. We are also working on elbow but that one is tricky.

Not to leave Grady out... he's working on a big milestone that maybe his sister should review... smiling! It reminds me of a pot that just starts to boil. He will start slow there's a little bit of build up to the bubble and then you'll get two or three in a row, sometimes one bigger than the next. Eleanor was stingy with her smiles to me... she would give them to others no problem so it makes me feel a bit special that he's pretty free with them to me.

The weekend was a bit slow and relaxed... for a couple reasons. Matt was crazy busy at work with the finalization of the runway project and reopening everything up and then being short staffed he worked a shift to cover the gap, leaving him tired on Saturday. We relaxed, played, napped where we could, but don't think we didn't get anything accomplished. We made 21 pints of applesauce for the kids and also 10 pints of stewed tomatoes - courtesy of Grandma for the produce. We were so busy with that and each other I realized afterwards I didn't even get a picture.

best meal: Matt grilled salmon, which was good but leftover salmon cream cheese omelets is always wonderful

MJR feeding GRR: Oh my gosh, you are the slowest eater ever. Why can't you be like your sister?
ALR thinking back to the previous conversation with EER
             ALR: what do you have
             ALR: that's not yours 
             ALR: put that down
             ALR: who do you think you are
             ALR: I said put it down
             ALR: that's mine
             ALR: give that back
             ALR: where is your father
             ALR: Get out of there
             ALR: AHHHHHH!
             ALR: go find your dad
ALR to MJR: I'm okay that he's not like his sister. Could you imagine two of them right now?

The one with the Fall Things

Sadly, I know my maternity leave is nearing an end. This one has been very different from Eleanor's maternity leave because I've struggled with my health different than with her. She was a good baby but required more attention OR I was a mother who had had no clue what to expect and the transition wasn't as easy as I would have liked to admit. With him I've had more visits to the clinic for checks on myself... and stuff that I wouldn't have expected, like the outer and inner ear infection. Either way, I'm not sure about returning to work because now my attention will be further divided but it is nice to feel some self purpose at work. Grady will come to work with me, at least til the end of the year but I have a feeling my boss will not let me sleep when baby sleep or be too inclined to play "where's your smile" like I've been doing at my leisure.

This week, we tried to soak up the fall days. We went out with Eleanor and she experienced her first leave raking. She wasn't too sure about it! Her dad thought she was too dressed up for leaving with her fancy peacoat and her fancy boots but I had to do it! She helped push the collector, she swept them off the deck with me, and we did a final collection and snacking of all the garden items.

I also was honored this week by the Center for Nursing as a Champion of Nurses. They had their annual conference and gala, where they give out their awards. This was the first time they gave out this category. Myself and Sen. Mathern won the award and it was an honor to be considered even, especially when I found out I was nominated by the Center's assistant director.

The weekend was a bit more fall activities... Matt and Eleanor carved her first Halloween pumpkin. Grady and I watched and took pics and enjoyed the show. She loved it. I thought for sure she'd watch for 2 minutes and be done... she was involved for the whole process. She knew we were keeping the seeds and like to dig out the gunk and even her and Dad snacked on some of the pumpkin flesh. The only thing she didn't like was when the pumpkin goo got on her chair and she ended up stepping on it!

EER has random babbling
ALR: What did you hear.
MJR: I'm outta here.
ALR: That's what I heard.
MJR: That's the fun part of right now is guessing what she is saying. It's like a game "Guess What Eleanor Says"
EER: whatev
  
MJR swears about something.
ALR hears him as she walks into kitchen
ALR: You really need to watch yourself as someone is picking up on things.
MJR: I know, I know. 
Conversation continues on things
30 seconds laters
EER walks into kitchen
EER: $h!t butt
MJR looks at ALR: I really need to start watching it.

The one with the Petroffs

After a busy week, heck a busy month, things may finally be beginning to settle. The summer sun is fading and the fall leaves are filling the yard. Eleanor and I took probably one of our last strolls through the garden and she picked a few tomatoes and popped them right into her mouth. It's getting harder and harder to find the red ones for her. We've taken almost all the garden out, just a few tomato bushes left that we are hoping turn before the chill drops even more.

Grady and I went to Well Baby check this week, he's up another 1/2 a pound and almost another inch. We'll see what they say at his 2 month appointment but he's growing for sure. He's also ornerier than he's been, howling or sleeping seems to be his two favorite activities. Eleanor has taken a special interest in him lately and wants to give him her pretend bottle and insists on putting a blanket on him whenever he doesn't have one. We are still working on what gentle means... we may have a long road on that one.

The weekend was busy. Starting with Friday night, the Erickson's stopped by to visit. We were able to pick up right where we've left off with them. Good friends are a wonderful thing. On Saturday, Matt ended up working a morning shift at the airport. When he got home, we packed up and drove out to Dickinson for Alice's first birthday. It's been ages since we've seen her and it was fun to celebrate the little button. She's got a great disposition and the cutest butt scoot! Was fun to see her interact and her and Eleanor even got to play a bit. She was pretty dainty with her cake, which made me chuckle. On Sunday, Matt went out to help with fall calves, leaving me solo again. Mornings are tough with my brood... everyone wants something at the same time. I was finally able to catch my breath in the afternoon, in time for Petroffs to stop over after visiting the pumpkin patch. Seeing the girls play together was sweet. Eleanor is struggling a bit with sharing and frustration and what not but when they started playing peek a boo and even hugged goodbye, it warmed my heart!

Best meal: tuna steaks with a four cheese rice and steamed green beans.

MJR comes home from picking up EER from daycare
MJR: We raise a strong female with leadership skills and they make it sound like it's a bad thing.
ALR: What do you mean?
MJR: Well, daycare says she's the alpha in the room and she gets the kids to do what she wants them to do.
ALR: Alpha?
MJR: See, that's a leader... it's just different terminology
ALR: What if they don't do what she wants them to do
MJR: Well they also mentioned something about hitting, possibly biting, pushing, and throwing toys 
ALR: Gee, if only she had some spirit.

The one with the Pumpkin Patch

My baby is growing... officially on the scale and as a matter of fact. He's a month old now. I'm not sure where that time went. He's weighing 9lb 10 oz and is coming in at 22 inches. He's finally grown out of newborn clothes - and to think I kept thinking I was just shrinking them. He's a completely different baby than Eleanor, a bit more laid back. He takes his time with his bottles and doesn't stretch like she did... plus he does this little giggle sound that makes me chuckle. With the conference over and just going through some debriefings, I'm able to finally settle into my maternity leave.

We celebrated my birthday this week. Grady and I were up with Matt and Eleanor the morning of so they were able to give me my gift and a beautiful set of colored daisies. My second gift came that night, Mom dropped off a peach cobbler for me! It was still warm even! Talk about being special! Matt had asked where I wanted to eat the night of my birthday and instead of going out, I asked that we go as a family to Papa's Pumpkin Patch! Matt had never been and I haven't been for years. It was a great time. The best part was the city hosted us as a perk for their employees and Mom gave us a GRE coupon too. Eleanor played on the wooden train, went down the slide, played in the corn crib, wandered around the pumpkins, and explored. We tried to get her to ride the little train but she was not having it, maybe next year.

Everyone got to pick out a pumpkin...size appropriate that is. Mine could have been a little bigger, but Eleanor couldn't decide which one she wanted so we made it easier for her! I also picked out some squash that I'm going to try to cook up later. It was a fun night out and couldn't believe how late it had gotten when we left.

Other big happenings this week has been the end of the garden. The weather has turned a bit and we are in full swing fall. That means the plants are about done and the pots need to go away and the harvest happens a little bit more. This always makes me a little sad but this year was different for me because of the little red head that helped with the harvest. There she was, carrying the ice cream bucket for me and pulling on red, and sometimes green tomatoes, and dropping them in the bucket. She'd then pick up the bucket and move to the next plant with me. I will also miss her going after the cherry tomatoes on their plants so she could pop them in her mouth and end up with seeds all over her face and shirt. I'm pretty sure she ate 90% of our garden peas with 5% going to Matt and I and the remaining percentage dropping onto the ground out of her fingers. I'm already looking forward to having a garden with her next year. She was pretty excited to do a harvest at Grandma's house too... Grandma even gave her cucumbers to add to her bucket. While we played in the garden, Matt hauled silage with Dad.

Best meal: Matt made tuna steaks, I made butter noodles, we added green beans and glasses of wine... it's like we are adults again. The angry redhead had mashed up broccoli and chicken strips.

MJR in nice tone: Eleanor, come out of there.
10 minutes later, MJR tone becoming sterner: Hey, come out of there.
10 minutes later, MJR enter dadtone mode: No!
5 mmutes later, MJR: I said no! Ahhh, you stink. Your brother stinks.
ALR to herself: This is what our lives have become.