Trucks and Pancakes make for an awesome Saturday

Last weekend was amazing in Grayson-land.  It was the annual Touch A Truck event sponsored by the Junior League on Saturday, and Grayson had a ball.

 

We kicked off the event by hitting up our favorite breakfast spot in the Strip- DeLuccas.  Chocolate chip pancakes, scrambled eggs and french toast made for one giddy baby tummy- even if the bacon was not up to his standards.

 

 

Not only did we drop it, but then we ran it over with Thomas. Because it was too crispy. I have a 20 month old food snob on my hands, apparently.

 

After his tummy was sufficiently full, we headed over to a parking lot of about 30 different trucks and diggers that kiddos were allowed to climb all over.

 

 

Loved, loved, loved the fire trucks.

 

Checking out the scoop on the digger

 

This picture melts my heart.

 

Big grins after blowing the horn on the Mack Truck

 

Blowing kisses

 

Seriously, this kid's day was made. 

 

If you have an event like this around you, I highly recommend going- its a cheap way to easily become favorite parent ever.



What Motherhood has taught me...so far, that is.

Ah Motherhood- you are a tricky devil.  I don't think anything makes you feel like you can do it all and makes you realize know absolutely nothing about anything at the exact same time.  In these short months that I have been a Mama I have had successes and failures, and each one taught me something different.

 

1. Even if you are terrified of giving birth, and 40+ weeks you will NOT be saying "I'm too scared to have this baby". Rather you will say "Get this kid out of my kidneys and off of my bladder" to anyone who will listen.  I'm pretty sure the hubs was never more surprised when I said flat out to the doctor to take Grayson by C-Section (considering I pass out at the thought of needles on a normal day) because I wanted nothing more than to snuggle my baby and have him stop kicking me in the bladder.

 

2. The moment that child is born, you learn what love really is. Yes you love your spouse, your pets, your family- but until you lay eyes on your own baby you've got no idea. Trust me on this one.

 

3.  Babies can sense when you're upset. When Grayson was a bitty bean and he would get sick, he never wanted me- he wanted his Daddy.  I couldn't figure out what was wrong, why my baby didn't want me- I really felt like a failure. I would be lying if it didn't make me cry that he reached for Daddy and not Mommy- and Patrick of course thought it was amazing that he was the favorite.  One day I realized that whenever Grayson didn't feel well, I got all worked up and he could tell that I was all wired.  Patrick is probably one of the most laid back men on the planet, so when Grayson would lay on him he just felt relaxed.  Once I figured that out, I chilled out, and all of a sudden he loved his Mama and wanted me. 

 

4. You are never prepared- motherhood will always get you.  You just have to run to the store for a quick second? Thats when your kid will poop out of his diaper. You have a change of clothes? They will need two or three.  Just be prepared to accept defeat, its easier that way.

5. If you're excited and just oh-so-sure your little bundle of joy is going to love something, there is a good chance they will hate it. I wanted to cloth diaper and I loved Sophie and the Mama-Roo- he wears disposables, threw Sophie and screamed the whole time in the Mama Roo. Consider it practice for the teenage years when they will fight you on everything.

6. Its impossible to find the information for easy questions like how much formula should you buy? All I wanted was someone to say you need X amount of diapers a week and you'll need X amount of formula, but it was nowhere.  That's because every baby is different, and its impossible to predict how they will eat/pee/poo from day to day.  Here's a good place to start, as a newborn you can expect to go through around 2 containers of formula a week and around 12 diapers a day.

7. In college we all pulled fun all nighters where you managed to go for a few days without sleep. Do not think that life with a baby will be the same. All nighters will be frequent, but you can no longer handle them with the same zest and vigor you once did.  Invest in a good coffee pot and some strong dark circle concealer.

8. Its okay.  Its okay if the toddler wants to eat nothing but a banana and some cheese its for lunch. Its okay if you cant remember when you last switched the laundry. Its okay if the baby and you don't get out of pj's until three minutes before Daddy walks in the door. Its okay to sniff your baby in public to see if he or she has pooped. Its okay if you hide in the bathroom to eat the Reece's Cup so you don't have to share with a tiny human. Really, its okay.  The people who judge either never had kids or they just suck, period.

9. You develop some super human strength as a Mom.  Those infant carriers are heavy, and yet you can juggle one of them loaded with a 20 pound baby and all of the groceries with ease.  You can also resist the urge to cry out when you stub your toe after putting baby down to sleep or step on a lego on the way out the door after checking on a sleeping toddler.  You learn to change the rankest of diapers and clean up the grossest of messes without gagging, even if your gag reflex is in full swing when it comes to anything not child related.

10. No one will love that baby as much as you, or know what they need like you can.  If you think something is right for your baby, then trust your gut. Doctors, Mothers, Mothers In Law, friends and even complete strangers may have advice, but if its not right for you and your baby then tell them to stick it.  They'll respect you for it, and if they don't you really won't care.

11. Find Mommy friends.  They will be your biggest support system, because someone who doesn't have kids just cant get why you do not attend dinner parties after bedtime or refuse to skip the all holy nap time. Mommies will get it.

and lastly

12. You are an awesome Mommy.  I know there are days you don't feel like it. There are days you yell at the baby or get stressed out and feel like the worst Mom in the world. You are not. You are amazing and wonderful and you just need someone to remind you of that.  If you ever find yourself in that situation, just email, tweet, or comment- Ill let you know how amazing you are :)

The best moment of my life hands down- even if I was tied down and sliced open.



This year the hubs ran the marathon and the bean got the flu.

The crazy part- these two events happened to us in the same span of three hours. Sweet, right?

 I thought we were pretty well in the clear- three flu shots, sore arms and November to April behind us.  I may have even done a little celebratory dance. But that bug is a persistent S.O.B.

 

Sunday the Hubs and MIL ran the Pittsburgh Half, and just like last year Grayson, Mommy and Grandpap were there to cheer them on.

 

It was pretty chilly, and when this picture was taken it was a whopping 5:50 AM- so we must really love Daddy. By the time we made it over to the start corrals Grayson was passed out in his stroller, snug as a bug in a rug. 

 

 

We took our final run fast its cold out here pictures and headed off to see them at the first checkpoint of the course. As we are sitting waiting for them and 30K of our closest friends to run by, Grayson was peacefully sleeping in his stroller.  Like a good Mommy I had a change of clothes with two extra shirts and an extra hoodie and a full pack of baby wipes in the diaper bag, but I really didn't anticipate needing anything in the short 3 hours we would be downtown. I guess that would be naive moment number two.

 

After watching the race leaders fly by I looked down to see this sweet sight-

 

 

and that's when it all went to hell in a hand basket.  Not thirty seconds after taking this picture my sweet boy woke up and projectile vomited all over himself, the blanket and his stroller.

 

I immediately fly into Mommy mode- taking him out of the stroller, comforting him and I passed him off to Grandpap. I broke out the wipes and extra clothes and we set out cleaning off the baby and the stroller.  Once I got the stroller cleaned and Pap got the kiddo changed into dry clothes we kind of pushed the stroller over the pile on the sidewalk and I started walking looking for a trashcan to toss the huge pile of wipes in my hands.  No dice.  Thanks to the bombings in Boston- every trashcan was removed from the course, and I had to walk two blocks off the beaten path to find one.  Super.

 

I made it back to the kiddo, who was sitting on the bridge rail laughing hysterically at all of the people running by and chalked it up to getting motion sick on the T (Pittsburgh's sad excuse for a subway system).  We saw Daddy and high fived him, then set off to our next stop. 

 

We stopped to get some doughnuts (its tradition, after all) and while we were waiting Grandpap was holding Grayson showing him all the busyness of the Strip.  That's when sicky round two struck- all down Pap's shoulder. All I could think was how I was out of clean clothes as I set out scrubbing down a baby and my FIL with more baby wipes.

 

Now, our car is stuck- we literally can not leave until they finish the race due to closed roads. I'm out of clean clothes for the baby, and now my FIL has puke all over him as well. It was a crap shoot for sure. By the time the hubs would cross the finish line, Grayson would have had two more experiences retching all over the place. Literally the second they crossed the finish line we were there saying "Eat your banana and get a move on."

 

I was so grossed out at that point that I didn't even take a picture of the hubs with his medal after he finished. Wife fail. I am super proud of him, but I just didn't love him enough to take a picture with him in my current state of ickyness.

 

We spent the next 72 hours getting sick pretty much around the clock and sleeping on the bathroom floor with a sicky baby. In fact, we were so worried about the bean that we didn't even realize that Patrick had something seriously wrong with his foot after the race. A quick trip to MedExpress last night revealed a stress fracture was the culprit, and they sent him home with a fancy boot and orders to see a podiatrist.

 

This year's Marathon was nothing but problems- next year, I think I'm skipping the whole thing and staying in bed. 





Linking Up with The Sunday Social!

Im back on this wonderful Sunday Funday to link up with Neely and Ashley for the Sunday Social!

  1. What is your shopping weakness? If I'm shopping for myself I love Ann Taylor Loft and New York and Company. Clothes that I can wear to work and get on the sale rack for reasonable prices- score!  Now, its rare that I even shop for myself. Usually if I see a SALE email pop up I'm going to spend my cash on the kid at either Gymboree, Children's Place, Old Navy or Carters.  He is most def the best dressed person in our house these days.  If we're not necessarily talking clothes but just shopping weaknesses I have to say its Target. Please tell me I'm not the only one who goes in for one thing and comes out with a cart full of things?! Its like they hypnotize you when you cruise the dollar spot or something...     2. What is your food weakness? I'm a sucker for a good crispy french fry and some mac n cheese.     3. What is your go to movie to watch when nothing else is on? Sweet Home Alabama. Pretty sure I play it in my head when I'm bored and I can't watch TV.     4. What is your go to breakfast food? During the week, an Eggo and a can of Coca Cola. Don't judge. On the weekends, Grayson and I usually split cereal or if I'm feeling really motivated Ill make us some pancakes to share.   5. Do you drink coffee, if so how do you take it? I don't.  That's why I start my day with a can of the red caffeine.  My students can vouch for the fact that every day there is a can on my desk and I tell them frequently that's what keeps me sane.    

Crazy Kid

Two days ago, Daddy got a new tool for work in the mail. As he was cleaning out all of the packing peanuts and checking to make sure it arrived in once piece, Grayson found a new hangout.

 

 

Sometimes I wonder why we pay so much money for toys when the best things to play with seem to be something that we never would have thought could be fun!



Secrets from the Hubs- uh oh!

The other day I saw a link up I couldnt wait to partake in from the fabulous Becky from over at Mrs. to Mama.

Letting our loved ones say some things about us- seems harmless right? Well, thats what I thought until I sent a quick email to the hubs asking him to partake in the fun...then I thought, "Oh crap, what did I just do?!"

 

 

 

Lets see what the hubs had to say about me, shall we?  All of this is in his own words-

Hi guys and girls. Its the 'hubs' here to hijack Bethany's blog for the day to tell you all of her dirty little secrets. Just kidding, I still have to live with her and all.  Okay, here goes nothing.

Honestly to describe my wife.... She is perfect. She gave me a beautiful family I am grateful for everyday.

 

She is grateful. We may not live in the shiniest and newest house on the block but she knows we have worked hard for what we have.

 

She is an overachiever. She goes above and beyond for everything.

 

Don't scrape the bottom of the bowl with your spoon to try to get out the last of that ice cream or the last of the spaghetti sauce. The noise irks her and she yells at you for it. Then she eats your last bite of ice cream.

 

Don't park in her parking spot, or mine either for that matter. Its a city living thing. She wants a driveway with our next house but for now just don't park in her spot. The McKeesport comes out in her every time.

 

She loves to plan a good party. She can plan a party like no one I have ever met. All the details are perfect all the way down to the forks matching the balloons. Before I met her I didn't know forks could match balloons, but apparently its a big deal.

 

She is humble. She doesn't need praise from everyone for every little thing she does. In fact, she would probably go crazy if she had to listen to that all day.

 

She will wash and fold laundry, but putting it away is a battle for the ages.

 

If you want to see her pass out, show her a cut or wound. Shes horrible with blood and needles. Like pass out cold on the floor when she saw someone get an IV. Im still amazed she agreed to a c-section.

 

Don't let her watch Kleenex commercials or sappy movies. She cries every single time, even if she's already seen the movie. Sometimes that makes it worse, because she starts crying knowing the sad stuff is coming. I think it is cute though.

 

She loves a good challenge. Don't tell her she cant do it because you will usually lose that bet.

 

She loves Ralphie May. In my opinion it doesn't get much better than that.

 

She has a thing for Kenny Chesney. I tell her all the time that if he would walk by she would leave me in the dust, and I only think I'm half kidding on that one.

 

She loves telling corny jokes. The cornier the better. Under normal conditions I wouldn't admit this, but since its a special occasion Ill let it slip, I usually retell her jokes even though I claim they are horrible.

 

She loves to laugh. The more smiles the better.

 

She loves life.

 

 She is always looking for a new adventure.

 

She would die happy if she could go to all of the  restaurants featured on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives. Shes not a fancy eater- in fact shes actually super picky, so no french restaurants or overpriced steaks here. Just give her a cheeseburger and the perfect onion ring and as long as she can pull the actual onion out, shes good to go.

 

Honestly, I couldn't ask for more in a wife.

 

Well thats all I got for now, maybe Ill stop back in again sometime and spill some more details.

DIY- Superhero Wooden Cutouts!

Way back in September we had a Super Why themed first birthday for the Grayson Boy.  Like, for real, the kid was obsessed with that show so it was the only reasonable option for his big my-parents-kept-me-alive-for-a-whole-year shindig.

 

I did alot of DIY projects for the party- a birthday banner, a high chair re-do, custom superhero capes, cupcake face toppers, and these wooden cut outs for the kids to pose with and have their picture taken as a Super Reader.  I created tutorials for alot of the projects, but recently Ive been contacted alot about how I made these guys- so I decided to post directions on how I made them.

 

 

First, I have to let you in on my dirty little secret. I can NOT draw. Seriously, stick figures are as good as it gets.  When I try to draw diagrams on the board in class my students are often like, please just stop. Its that bad.  So how did I manage to make these guys look so darn good?

 

With this guy.

 

 



 

Yep, the overhead projector the teacher used in school to put notes up on the board.

 

I found one at a yard sale for $15 dollars and brought that little guy home, because I knew it would come in handy one day.  It just so happened that I was right.

 

First I went onto Sprout and printed out some coloring book pages of the characters.  Then I took them to a local copy store and ran them off on transparencies (clear plastic paper).  If you have a laser printer you can probably print right onto the transfer paper, but I have an ink jet so it would just smear like crazy on the transparency.

 

Then I had to pick up my board.  I used 4 x 4 Luan- which is a is a thin layer of plywood veneer made from tropical wood. Plywood is a wood panel made of thin layers of wood veneer glued together, but Luan typically has a solid core of wood between two layers of veneer, though the solid core may have problems with voids and dry spots in the glue of the veneer. It tends to be softer and lighter than most plywood. It cost me around $6 per sheet and I knew I could get two characters on one board- so roughly $3 per piece.  You can always get thicker plywood, its just up to you. 

 

I primed the Luan and set up the projector in the front hallway and got to work.  I positioned the first character on the overhead projector and fiddled until it was taking up the left half of the board.  Then I got to work with my Sharpe marker tracing the projected image.  I knew I would go back and paint over the lines with black craft paint, so this was just a quick trace to get the picture transferred.

 

 

 

 

 

Once I got one traced, I flipped the second character over and positioned it on the other side and repeated the process. Then I went back with a small paint brush and black craft paint and filled in all of the lines.

 

 

Once the black lines were dry it was time to bust out the craft paint.  I actually printed the characters out in color, then took that paper to the paint aisle at JoAnn's to match colors.  It was also really helpful to have them in color while I was painting, so that I didnt make any mistakes like mixing up two colors. Then I started painting.  It took maybe an hour and a half to paint both characters fully, then I let them dry and went back over the black edges again to clean up any painting out of the lines.

 

 

I will tell you that when you do this on your own you will look at it and see all of these little imperfections, but when you take a picture of it you will not see them at all- so don't freak out.  Once its all dry you send the husband out to the garage with the jigsaw to cut the characters out and build a small three sided box to affix to the back with some glue.  Then all you have to do is drive a garden stake into the ground and they stand up perfectly!

 

 

Then you just stick the birthday boy behind the Super You and take as many pictures as he will let you- which if you have my child, is about two before he runs away.

 

 

All total the project took maybe five hours total, from tracing to cut out and the total cost was somewhere around $35.  Not too shabby, but if you didn't already own the transparencies or most of the craft paint it could cost a bit more.  Even still, people on Etsy charge upwards of $50 per character, so it was a smart DIY choice.