life lately. the last week of summer 14'

This last week of summer was a good one. Lots of hard work, lots of fun and the added bonus of a three-day weekend. I think Dan probably got tired of me saying, "can you imagine if we had 3 days off every week?" I appreciate the extra days off here and there so much more because I work full time. And we spent that extra time doing some major re-charging today. So needed, so appreciated. 

Some time I'm going to spend one day taking a quick photo once every hour to remeber how much my roles varied through each day in this season of my life. On my commute home, I often reflect at how different life looks when I'm at work and when I'm at home. I love both those worlds and love that they each make the other than much better too.

If you asked Dan what his favorite part of this week was he would for sure answer getting this new tractor. Or bulldozer or backhoe or whatever it's called. It's "his dream" apparently... and he has been attached to it pretty much all weekend.

Dan and his best buddy posing by their first project done with the tractor- a retaining wall on the side of the driveway entrance. They were pretty proud. (PS: Jonah is in there too, hiding behind Dan in the baby backpack)

And we couldn't say farewell to summer without s'mores. S'mores in the mud and rain with friends? Sure, why not. The crazier the better for these monsters.

Summer Nights.

I love that our babies have this playground to call home for their childhood.

ripping off the band-aid.

2 out of 5 Engels agree that this lady went a little overboard with the cleaning today. Audrey told me (a few times), "oh goodness, all this cleaning is making me tired" and "oh, mommy, I just need to rest" as she would dramatically throw herself onto the couch. And before he went to bed Dan told me that he thinks that "we're all cleaned out for this 'funday sunday'." Don't feel too sorry for them- Jackson LOVES to clean and organize and they were rewarded with their very first slush-puppies. 

I can't help it, I canNOT go to work with an unorganized house. It's still not as perfect as I'd like for it to be, but I'm learning that's just the reality of living with 3 little monsters and 1 husband who maaaay not require the same level of clean as I do. Knowing that my home is in order and that my babies are taken care of are 2 necessaries for me to work full-time. It helps me feel at peace, allowing me to let go of the worries and focus on what I need to do during the work day. 

I have been thinking... that I've just been thinking too much about going back to work. The anticipation is what is killing me- that fuzzy time in between two chapters when every little thing is analyzed... and then analyzed again. I know that at this time tomorrow, when my first day is over, I will feel a lot better. I just need to rip off the band aid already. 

And until then, here's a little bit of life lately from the past few days: 

Lots of play time with the babies. That face in the swing? That's his opinion of swinging most of the time. Not a big fan just yet. 

We've also taken care of lots of last-minute errands and as anyone knows, errands are best capped off with ice cream. 

And last night was date night with Jackson & Audrey to see Disney Junior Live with their cousins. I don't think the peanut has ever sat still that long- she was star struck... and let the record books show that you can indeed eat an entire bag of cotton candy by yourself and not throw up (leave it to Jackson to inhale that much sugar without me realizing it...).

well... hello there, soccer mom.

Tonight JP had his first soccer practice. That's a big time big boy milestone for him and a slightly less thrilling parenting milestone for me- I'm now a soccer mom. And I own a mini van. Lord, help me, when did I get so old? Slightly kidding. On the plus side, it was so sweet to watch him. He was nervous- big time- but we had talked lots about how while new things are scary at first, they always turn out to be the things that are the most fun. There were some quiet tears at the beginning of practice, but he slowly started coming out of his shell by the end and I'm hopeful that each practice will give him more confidence- leaving more room for fun and less for worries. But, that's life, right? Pushing ourselves outside of our comfort zones because we know- we just know- that it's going to be worth it... and I want my little man to learn that much earlier than I did. 

And now if someone could go ahead and give me that same pep talk before my first day back to work in a week and a half that would be grrrrreat. 

so, I've been thinking...

...that days like today are going to make it really hard to go back to work. I mean, look at these faces. And this weather? It's like the perfect fall day just fell into our lap in the middle of July, making it impossible for anything to be on our to-do list except being outside- sorry, laundry, you didn't make the cut. Maybe tomorrow. 

Jackie checking to see if his new soccer cleats are indeed the fastest shoes in the world. Confirmed.

::Video Catch-Up::

When cleaning off my phone yesterday I came across a few random videos from the past month or so...

This was from yesterday. Jackson and Audrey played "Doctor" ALL day. They had their "doctor coats" on and brought every stuffed animal and baby doll into their hospital set up in the great room to work on the sick patients. When Jonah woke up from one of his naps I set him in the jump-a-roo while I did some dishes and I overheard them starting to tend to their newest patient... Jonah Bear. I snuck behind the corner and taped them.... poor Jonah!

This is pretty much the normal scene around our house. Jackson and Audrey giving Jonah their endless- ENDLESS, I tell you- attention. 

This was from one of our hill-running nights. We decided to set up an obstacle course to run through. Gotta wear those babies out! Jackson was ALL about it (shocker...) and Audrey loved doing it too as long as she had ample water and rest breaks- a peanut, after all, does need her rest!

Just a random little clip from having dinner one night with the cousins at Mamaw's house. I try to remember to do this every once in awhile so we can look back on their little voices and adorable conversations.

Jackson getting a hit during a cousin baseball game.

Cousin baseball. Cracks me up. It was pure chaos- and they loved it. 

happy birthday, america.

splash pads should really come with a warning label.

In today's attempt at checking another item off our Summer Bucket List, we hit up the splash pad. 3 hours, a lot of splashing and one picnic later, I have decided that splash pads should come with a warning label- "Warning: splash pads are known to cause mothers to drink." In normal circumstances I think it would have been fine, but today there happened to be at least three large groups taking field trips there, which meant utter chaos and children running everywhere, making it hard to keep my eye on all three babies at once. 

But, just as I was strategizing in my head how to talk Jackson and Audrey into wanting to leave much earlier than planned, the nicest people came to my rescue- a girl scout troop. I cannot make this stuff up. We were sitting in the hot sun on our blanket having a picnic and I was attempting to feed a very hot, tired and hungry Jonah bear when a woman walked over and told me that one of the large groups- a girl scout troop- was getting ready to leave and asked if she could help take my things to their spot (in the shade!) so that I wouldn't have to stay out in the sun with my baby. I started to protest, not wanting to inconvenience her, but she explained that she's a military spouse and this is just what they are trained to do- to help each other out because they're often on their own when stationed away from home. Next thing I knew, several girl scouts came over, picked up all our things- blankets, socks, shoes, diaper bag, picnic bag, stroller- and moved them into the shade for us to continue our picnic.

What nice girls learning from a nice woman who happened to be a stranger but left with one more friend- an appreciative mom who was reminded once again that there is far more good than bad in this world. Moms helping moms, gotta love it.

Oh, and PS, thanks to our shaded spot, Jonah was much more comfortable and passed out in a matter of seconds- so sweet (and peaceful!).

tuesday at the museum (aka jp's "favorite place in the world")

Note: This week, The Museum Center and Music Hall- two of the most beautiful landmarks in Cincinnati (and, in my opinion, the country...), both of which hold tremendous history, were called out on the "America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places" list.... see HERE for more information on saving two places that hold a lot of room in my heart.

jonah bear's first Reds game.

 

introducing the babies to "Barb & Grandpas"...

There was a time somewhere tucked into my childhood when "B&G" stood for Barb & Grandpa. A time when my Grandma & Grandpa owned the B&G Dairy Bar... an ice cream spot in a nearby town. I have a lot of memories tucked away inside that little building that hasn't changed very much in all the years that have passed. Memories of learning to make the perfect ice cream cones, eating hot fudge straight from the pot, getting off the school bus to find that the waitress "Mickey" had made us a giant plate of french fries for our after-school snack (that lasted for about a week... and then Grandma insisted on salads instead), memories of watching TV from the recliner in the back room because I was too little and probably in the way, doing homework in the dining room and getting paid a whole $3 for a full day's work... Grandma Roy would have loved to see these two little monsters diving into their ice cream last night.  

jonah bear's first fair.