our first eggs! (and other news)

+ Oh my word. I just changed the water for the chickens and found two fresh eggs. Our first eggs! Which basically turns today into a holiday. Eggs! Two of them!

+ On Sunday, my new stroller was delivered. It's a joovy sit and stand and for the first time since having Elsie, I can cart both my kids around in one stroller. This changes everything.

+ My toenails are blue. I'll spare you the picture, but last night I told Ivar I was going to get my toenails painted. He asked what color and I threw the question back at him. He said, "blue, like your eyes. Because I like your eyes." My heart swooned and I believe you'd have painted your toes blue too.

+ Ivar seems to have spurts of emotion that must be released. Sometimes they come out in tantrums, sometimes in silliness. My favorite was a few days ago in the car when he started panicking in the back seat, screaming, "I can't see my eyes!!! I can't see my eyes!" I looked back, and he was trying. I had to calmly explain that no one can see their eyes.

+I am taking an art journaling class online and it is so good for me. To have my modpodge out, to be free writing with a pen, to be squirting out paint, cutting out ribbon and paper and gluing it all down. It just feels so good to play.

+This weekend I am helping lead a mother daughter retreat for The Soul Sisterhood. I am so excited to meet the moms and daughters and to put my retreat leader hat back on. This will be my first two night stretch away from my kids since Elsie was born. I'll miss them, but I think we can agree that it is time!

Happy Weekend everybody. Or as said in our house, Happy Incredible Edible Eggs Day!

red barn farm

We spent a glorious evening at Red Barn Pizza Farm, a beautiful place that operates as a csa and brick oven pizza joint. The gardens are stunning and the rolling fields in the distance made me want to be a painter...it is just such a pretty time of year, everything green and bright.

Our pizza was awesome (though pricey!), and the weather was perfect. Most of all it was a great night of catching up with good friends. And for taking pictures by tall corn.

potty training and cupcakes

I have a friend who told me she was going to potty train her daughter in only three days. She told me about her plan the night before she was beginning. I decided to wait and see if it worked. 

Three days later I got a victorious text message. So hanging on her every word, I made a little plan and decided to give it a go. Ivar is more than ready, talking about it all the time. I had an eager pupil on my hands. And the thing about three day training is that if it doesn't go well, you're just back in the pack with the longer range trainers. I had nothing to loose.

We began yesterday morning by taking all the diapers in Ivar's room and putting them into Elsie's room. We removed his changing station and I showed him his new Thomas the train underwear. And then we unpacked his cool potty chair.

We had a few accidents and I began learning his cues. By the end of day one we had a double victory in the little potty and I was overjoyed. In the excitement I said to Ivar, "you did such a good job! let's make cupcakes to celebrate!" This sort of flew out of my mouth. It wasn't a bribe, because I hadn't mentioned the cupcakes as a reward. They were only now being brought up because cupcakes are Ivar's love language.

And since it was bedtime when I said it, I told him we'd make the cupcakes in the morning.

But then this morning came and after we had a few accidents I realized that I wasn't in the mood to make cupcakes with a two-year-old. Potty training, it turns out, is parental punishment enough. I didn't need to throw baking with a toddler into the mix.

So I loaded up the kids and we went to the cupcake shop in town. I adore this place. And as I sat there, eating my chocolate truffle cupcake I was very aware that this reward was speaking my love language as well. In fact, I don't think this trip to the cupcake shop had much to do with Ivar. It was for me, the potty trainer.

We've had a few more messes and a few more victories. We won't know how successful our three days have been until tomorrow night. But no matter what the outcome, you may very well find me hanging out at the cupcake shop. Because training is a lot of work.

to market, to market...

Well, I believe a morning like this morning separates the men from the boys. Or at least the carnivores from the herbivores. For sure the hens from the roosters.

Early this morning we took three of our roosters to be processed. Or as we told Ivar, "to a friend's house." I am sad to say goodbye to Almonzo and Hamburgerpoopedonthecarpet. They were awesome roosters and behaved nicely. I was sorry to see them go.

But I wasn't sorry to see Eggs go. Eggs is a bully. I called him jerkface for the last week of his life. He tried to attack me three times so that I started carrying a stick. And as he'd flap his wings towards me, scratching my legs with his talons I had a bawk of my own and screamed, "I am the alpha wolf!!!!"

It's too bad though. If Rory and I were the type who entered birds into illegal cock fights, and if we were looking to make a lot of money fast, I think Eggs would have been our ticket.

So on the menu this week: chicken, Hamburger and Eggs.

I don't know if I'll be able to do it though. Well maybe Eggs. Though Rory said, if his insides reflect his outsides, he is going to taste bad.

the things Ivar says

I just found Ivar laying on his belly on top of all of his foam blocks saying quietly to himself, "I am so amazing. I'm so amazing."

When he thinks the day is getting stale he'll ask me real upbeat, "So what's the plan?"

He loves playing Happy Birthday. He'll put all sorts of treasures in a little box and bring it to me, and I give him a big reaction and he runs off to fill the box with more surprises.

He was playing with blocks and made a cross. He came and found me screaming, "It's Grandpa Paul's church! It's Grandpa Paul's church!" I love that.

Rory's cousin Jon taught Ivar to kiss his forearms and say, "two tickets to the gun show." He whips it out at the most random times and it kills me every time.

I took the kids to pick our first baby tomato for my salad for lunch. I made it a big deal and told Ivar he could carry the baby tomato to the house for me. He cupped it gently in his hands. I picked some sweet peas and checked on the eggplants. When I got to the garage I asked where the tomato was. He replied, "I licked it. It was yucky. So I THROW IT!" Then I went on a pathetic scavenger hunt looking for the baby tomato. I didn't find it. I have a feeling the chickens won the hunt.