something different and a little fun today:

1. Where were you ten years ago?

i was 16 years old, a junior in high school. so much happened to me that year. in feburary i would have been in the middle of forensics season, competing in broadcasting competitions every weekend. i was madly infatuated with a boy i never dreamed would show interest in me. it helped my confidence which had previously been shattered by unfortunate events. my hair was starting to grow back from shaving it all off. i guess this morphed from a "where" answer...well, when i wasn't at school, i was probably in my basement bedroom, tons of candles lit, cutting and pasting together zines and watching R rated movies i rented from family video and hid under the seat of my car to sneak into the house (Pulp Fiction, The Virgin Suicides, etc) or listening to bright eyes and juliana theory on my boom box. 

2. What is on today's To Do List?

not much! we are at home all day today. yesterday we were out all day so today i have laundry to finish, dishes to do, and general house things to accomplish. 

3. What would you do if you were a billionaire?

pay off all our debt, make all the home improvements we need to make (hiring people to do ALL of it), buy all the furniture and decor i wanted, donate lots of it, set up funds for my children, buy a van or maybe a school bus to renovate (!!), go on VACATION. 

4. Name five places you have live.

1. Long Island, NY

2. Connecticut 

3. Illinois

4. Kent City, MI

5. Marquette, MI

(there are others!)

5. Name three of your bad habits.

1. not remembering to rinse the shower when i'm finished 

2. comparing my life to others too much

3. letting myself wallow when i feel sad

6. What are your favorite snacks?

dried cherries, cheese and crackers (the fancier, the better), fruit (especially raspberries and kiwi), fresh baked bread, salt and vinegar chips...

I am happy to report that it sounds like our roof will be fixed and all should be well. What a blessing. Seriously though, so many things I took for granted before owning a home. After the Great Fridge Debacle of this past summer, where every other day I woke up to a leaking freezer, I pretty much always send up a word of gratitude when I open our current fridge.

Orion took an extremely long nap this afternoon. I should have taken a nap as well, since I was up at 6am again, but I didn't really know or believe he was going to be asleep that long. Now I still have no idea what we should do for the rest of the day. It looks like I will definitely stay home tomorrow too and maybe longer than that, depending on if I can snow blow or not.

A favorite new game of his that grandmommers introduced him to is "car crash" where two toy cars bash into each other. Also highly effective with a car crashing into a tower of blocks. He giggles incessantly with every "CRASH!!" you narrate.

I feel nauseous again today. I am blaming this on something I ate instead of pregnancy. Maybe the four Texas Roadhouse style rolls I inhaled from the bag of clearance bakery items at Mejier?

I sincerely hope there is a lesson to be learned in all this trouble we are going through lately. Now, our roof is having issues. A leak from a lighting fixture prompted me to call Mike at work in the middle of the day. Tomorrow someone should be out to investigate. I had to box up all my books, decorations, and picture frames in case the ceiling gives out in my sitting room. This was really sad because it was the one area of the house that I had decorated to my liking. We are so over this snow and the surprises this house keeps producing.  My spirits feel quashed knowing we are supposed to get three to six more inches in the next day. Is there no relief from this abysmal weather?

Orion is Mr. Sniffles lately. Hopefully this means a tooth. Hopefully it will come quickly.

I wake up slowly. I still drink a cup of coffee in the morning, but I use a smaller mug. We usually have an episode of Sesame Street on, because I'm not super mom and it is better for everyone if I get that nice, slow start to my day (after O has had his breakfast and we've seen daddy off to work). Today I ate a bowl of granola with dried cherries. I suppose I could make my own granola, but the KIND brand is really good. Nice big chunks that I failed to recreate when I did attempt my last homemade granola.

The forecast today is acceptable. There seems there will be a break from the snow, for at least today. This is good news, as we have a play date scheduled across town at noon.

I had odd dreams last night and I am wondering if they were spurred by some before bed conversation I shared with Mike. We were discussing eventual family size. This is a really hard issue for me right now. I struggle with two separate extremes of feelings on the issue- I see the appeal in control over the number of children one chooses to have and I understand the practicality of that, especially being good stewards and making sure you can financially support your family--but part of me just hates to decide on a finite number of children preemptively instead of "just letting things happen". I never understood that "children are a blessing" adage until Orion was born. I hope that I'll be led to the right answer through prayer and faith. I am interested in NFP, however, trying to do that while breastfeeding seems impossible. Landmines everywhere.

I am almost done with my rereading of the Mitford series. I have started the Little House series again as well, to tide me over. Something comfortable about old books one hasn't read in ages and enjoyed while younger...I am a fan. I also have the whole Anne of Green Gables series to read, which I have never done. Of course, I read other books as well, I just find it a great comfort to have books that are mostly peaceful and "PG" as it were to read before bed, which is usually the only time of day I have to read. Also on my eventual "to read" list are: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (who was a favorite author of mine in high school), The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton, and Thrashing About with God by Mandy Steward.

The hat should find itself finished by the weekend. I wish so much that I had saved the tag from that yarn so I knew the brand and colorway. I love knitting with yarn that has little color flecks in it. Very satisfying to see little pops of color between the neutral background.

Good morning!

Another snowy Monday in beautiful Michigan. The morning routine of coffee and Sesame Street is in full swing. I'm very happy that after another bump in the bathtub from hell last night Orion is not sporting any new bruises. Poor thing. I cannot wait to rip out that dumb steel tub once and for all.

We spent the weekend in Ludington with Grandmommers and Grandpop. Mike spent his weekend in Detroit visiting a friend. I think it was a really good time for both of us. He hasn't had any "guy time" in quite awhile and I always appreciate going to see my parents.

I was able to hold down the fort so my dad could get out and go on a small adventure of his own to Manistee on Saturday so I was happy to do that small thing. Plus, I was rewarded with him watching Orion while I napped upon his return. I woke up from the nap with a kitty snuggling my feet :) Small joys.

Other favorite parts of the weekend included: watching the biathlon for the first time, knitting next to mom late into the evening, watching Orion master stacking the wooden donuts, eating Make Your Own Pizzas (a grand old tradition), and enjoying Orion entertaining his grandparents and vice versa. There will also always be something I love about waking up in that house, especially waking up in my old bedroom, where you get a beautiful view of our quiet, snowy backyard. That view kept me in bed despite the smell of bacon wafting up the stairs Sunday morning. Orion slept VERY well in the pack and play while we were there and even slept in until 8 yesterday morning. He also transitioned back to his bed fine last night, thank heavens. '

The yarn is scheduled to show up tomorrow, even though it says it is in Holland today, which means I hope it will arrive today...except, it unfortunately is shipping through FedEx and we always have terrible luck with them not able to find any of the places we live. UPS never has issues. I'm crossing my fingers. Mike has a package coming through them as well...

M&M's group starts again tomorrow. I hope the weather is good enough that I feel comfortable venturing out. I could certainly use some social time. Wednesday we are supposed to go over and have a play date with friends too, which will be great.

Tomorrow Orion will be 15 months old! And my ultrasound is in only 9 more days! Both Mike and my dad think that this baby is a girl. We will still have to wait until July to find out ;)

This weekend was interesting. It went nothing how any of us had planned and was a real test of my patience at times. Luckily, it appears things will be on the upswing from here and hopefully I will not have to go out in any more snow storms this year. On a happy note, we did finally eat breakfast at Deboer's and it was delicious. I think they must make their own English muffins and if you like eggs Benedict, you should definitely order it there. Mass was great as well. We celebrated Candlemass (40 days since the celebration of Christmas) by having a candlelit service! It was the first time our church has done that, I've been told, since Candlemass usually falls during the week. The date also marks the fact that we are officially halfway through winter. What a great thing to hear!

Orion is sleeping in his new toddler bed! Bedtime is taking a little longer, because although he is tired, I think he gets a little scared or rolls around a bit and is confused at the new situation. After a second rocking, he falls right asleep until morning! He took a two and a half hour nap in the bed yesterday afternoon too. We are very proud of him and are excited he really likes it. He'll climb in and out of it multiple times a day and lay down all by himself saying "nigh nigh" when he is tired.

I ordered myself some new yarn yesterday. I've never ordered yarn from the internet before, but the big box stores here have a poor selection lately and I'm too scared (and broke) to go to the LYS because I have not heard great things...I still enjoy shopping at Nautical Yarn when I'm able, however. I decided to purchase yarn from Knitpicks. I ordered a bunch of Brava worsted weight in some pretty colors (like Tranquil and Dove Heather) and I also ordered a baby blanket and hat kit, which will teach me the new skill of mitered squares! I watched a youtube video on it yesterday and it looks like I'll be able to pull it off ;) Hopefully I can have it all finished before July! I am actually confident this time.