Jeness Beach

I normally do not like to post so many things in one day, and space them out - but as I am getting back into this activity and blogging thing, and I have a lot to do to get well over 100 posts before calendar year-end, so bear with me and for those of you bored at work checking in on me, say hi in the comments section and thank me for supplying your day with a lot more excitement about what we have been up to!

Today we went to Jenness Beach in Rye, NH.  I should start off by saying, I was super psyched to move where we moved in NH, 1 mile, as the crow flies, to the ocean.  I loved going to the ocean when I was a kid, visiting Aunt Ruth and Uncle Ron at the Jersey Shore, loved going to Jones Beach in high school, and enjoyed exploring the coastal towns of Maine growing up too.  As I married into a lake and caribbean family - not a Nantucket-Camden-Jersey Shore family, I took what I could get when we moved to coastal NH and I swore I would get out to the beautiful beaches here when I had kids every chance I could get and smell that amazing salt water-sunscreen smell all summer long.  Well, here it is kids, almost 6 years living here and my first real visit to the beach.

We prepared well.  I want to do this again, make it a regular thing.  Beaches work until the fall, right?  I have a word document of all the beaches anyone has ever said we should visit in this area, we need to spend the next year or so figuring out where our spot is and perfecting the travel times, packing, parking, and set-up and then we will be golden.  Today, I prepared myself, was going to be rough - but it was the first learning experience, it only gets better from here!

There was a casuality, James lost his awesome Salty Dog visor.  I was super bummed about this and actually walked the scorching hot beach with the kids and all of the stuff multiple times to try and find it - but it was clear, as that thing was nice, that the second it dropped someone picked it up and it has a new happy (I hope) home...  All in all, lugging two kids, two bags, a camera, umbrella, two chairs, and more to the beach and only losing a visor - I guess not too bad.

I knew enough to pack a lunch, nothing like sandy sandwiches and booty on the beach.  They loved the water, but the tide was so far out and so far away from our chairs, and after the losing visor episode I was a little scared to leave the stuff alone (but more scared to leave my crazy 2 year old so close to the water unattended) - so it was not all smiles. Mommy was nervously looking back at our things while the boys happily played in the ocean.  Next time, one bag, one chair, one umbrella.  Wallet stays in the locked car and extra key is looped to Mommy's suit.  No camera.  Good to go.

The boys could have stayed there for hours.  They could have played in the water for days - and when I was tired of looking on at our stuff and made them sit with me under the umbrella - they happily played and made sand castles.  I got to read an US Weekly!  It was an awesome day.

We arrived late (we had to do the Walmart trip to get the essentials) - so parking wasn't easy, but in the future we will know to go early.  And, I hope we can try out other area beaches as well.  Now, what is with the smokers on the beach?

Blueberry Picking

Eating healthier here we come!  When we went to pick up our CSA and also booked some time in to go blueberry picking there.  Let me tell you, there is no way blueberry picking can be profitable with James.  Not at all.  No matter what I did, how I yelled, how I made him sit in the middle of the farm's road, the kid would just go back to the blueberry bush - pick the most perfect blueberries - no need to explain what color is not ready yet to this guy - and eat them right up.  He added 1 - ONE - blueberry to our basket the whole time we were there.  Finally, I was so embarassed how much he was stealing that we just left.  When we went to check-out the owner of the place saw me and said how come I only got a few blueberries?  I told him about James the consumer and that I think we need to add $5 onto our bill...  He said - why don't we just weigh him?  Ha!

Maybe next year he will be a little more understanding about how it is done. If so, I could see us picking blueberries for hours.  There was no one there and it was an awesome time, just down the street from us.  Next stop, Peach picking - then raspberry, blackberry and then apple!

Mini-Golf

In an effort to try to get back to having fun, being less-lazy, enjoy summer - but certainly not to eat better...  we went out to mini-golf a few nights ago at Captain's Cove Adventure in Hampton.  So much fun, and such an awesome time for the littles!  It was a Monday night, there were people there but there was hardly a wait on any of the golf holes.  The high school kids working the counter were actually nice, friendly and helpful!  The best part, we had got this deal from Groupon, golf for four along with four ice cream cones for $19!  This will work in their favor for sure as it was one of those places I always drove by but never went to - and Groupon made us do it and now we will be back!

We should talk about Joel Andrew and James Morris' golf game, but first I will mention that I was the only family member to get a hole in one, yay!  Joel Husband's competitiveness was coming out in force, no, not really - just kidding.  In all honesty, he did pretty well for a Williams- let his sons and me win at times- though he wanted to really teach the boys correct golfing etiquette like stay off the green while someone else is shooting and don't hit people with golf clubs, etc.

Joel Andrew did a good job, once we helped him line up the ball and hold the club correctly, and he would follow his ball nicely and get it in the cup eventually.  A star!  James, well, he didn't lose his ball the whole time, which is really saying something - I am so proud.  I would teach James to swing and for fun I would say "A one, a two..." and then finally hit the ball on "A three!"  - I immediately pictured James in the PGA doing the same thing before getting a birdie.  In the end, when we went to the next hole, James would just walk his ball right over to the cup and put it right in, cheer, pick it up and want to go to the next hole.  He will get better at this.

Mini Golf was capped by some ice cream - Joel Andrew is a serious chocolate ice cream eater...  and then New England cuisine at the Old Salt.  Dessert first, the new norm. Not a bad Monday night at all!

Baby-Thumb

James is a thumb sucker.  We have been casually trying to break him of this by saying: "No baby-thumb" when he is mid-suck, but it hasn't really worked.  I haven't been too nervous about it yet though - any tricks out there?  Here is what happened this morning, sure not to help stop him but...

We were on our way home from Sebago, and I decided not to put the movie on in the car in favor of a later in the day TV moment.  So, Joel Andrew mostly zoned and enjoyed listening to the music, but James talked and talked and talked.  Finally I said to Joel Andrew - "why is James talking so much?" And Joel Andrew said: "I don't know (annoyed)" and turned to James and said: "James, do baby thumb!"  This was too funny, plus I wanted 5 minutes of quiet, so I let it happen...

But seriously, now that I am getting to the point to be serious about it, any tips?

Spontaneous Dinner

Last night we were driving home from daycare, Joel Husband in Canada, and as I was plotting my usual, I will put on a Mickey while I make dinner then we will eat dinner, then I will put on a movie while I clean up and check email then we will all watch the movie then they will go to bed...  I noticed the weather was beautiful, and there was no time like the present.  I asked the boys if they wanted to go to the beach for dinner, and Joel Andrew told me he rather go to the ocean.  Yeah, ok then.

We went to the Beach Plum, which has hands-down the best lobster rolls ever.  They are not cheap, but boy are they good!  The boys somewhat listened.  Joel Andrew still likes to test, but when he realized that I was fully paying attention to him he relented into his sweet self.  We got our food - I ordered two kiddie vanilla ice creams that were bigger than my children's heads - and we went across the street to the beach to eat our dinner.  It was beautiful and perfect.  The summer is running past us and we almost missed this awesome chance to have fun.

James of course spilled apple juice all over me and fell on the rocks, but that was ok. When we got home the boys stripped down naked and I hosed them down outside.  This was both hysterical and fun and I hope I will never forget the image of the two of them, stark naked, running back and forth on the back porch as I hit them with the hose.  The screamed with joy and retreated into the garden before doing it again.  So much fun.  And then James pooped on the walkway.  Eh, that is a good potty training sign, right?  I love these guys.

No More Uppy

Today we started something new for James.  Or, by we I mean I.  No more uppy.  James frequently looks at me with those big eyes, and a small adorable pout and asks for uppy.  Then, I pick him up and squeeze and kiss him.  He is so delicious I just want to eat him (but you can't eat babies) I say all the time.  Anyway, the little "baby" is getting a bit (ok he is WAY TOO) big for uppy anymore.  Not to mention this is causing drama and problems in stressful situations like supermarkets, at toddler parties, at the top of staircases.  Uppy has got to go.

So, wish me luck as we venture into the no more uppy.  I am so sad to be getting rid of this milestone.  He is now officially a big boy!  I don't know who this is going to be harder on, me or James...  We moved him into his big boy bed without an event (so far) - I feel like getting rid of uppy may just be the change that tips us over the edge though....

Dollhouse Update, & Happy Birthday to an Awesome Big Boy

Before James (then called Deuce) was born, and when I knew he was going to be a boy, I was really upset about my dollhouse.  Who would use it now?  Not boys, for sure.  You can read all about my sadness of this situation here - Basic re-cap, my grandfather took about 5 years to hand make a dollhouse for me,  all the hard wood floors are in an intricate design.  The windows move up and down, there are balconies, a fireplace, a skylight.  The inside rooms are wallpapered with wallpaper from my childhood home. I got it when I turned 5, it was really special. I didn't think a boy would ever play with it nicely or treat it well - as it is so special and delicate how could I give it to someone who will just have GI Joe war attacks off of it?  Then, a few months ago, my biggest little guy and I were visiting someone else's house, where they had a dollhouse, and he was enthralled.

We went to the public library, and there was a dollhouse and again he was enthralled.  He loves to play pretend, moving the characters around, the furniture around, he goes into full on pretend stories.  He asked me if he could get a dollhouse too.

So, we did it, after 24 years of moving the dollhouse from sitting spot to sitting spot, from house to house, from attic to attic - I got it down, painted it, dusted it off and was thrilled to give it to my big guy this morning.  The look on his face was priceless.  Even better, for 25 straight minutes, even with Pa somewhere else in our house, he played - interspersed with comments like: "Thank you Mommy, I like it really, really much."  We are not using the dollhouse furniture that I had, as that was really more for display and not play (plus tornado Angus ripped through it decimating a lot of the good pieces about 8 years ago) - I bought a fisher price set that fits nicely, is a good starter and we can add rooms on as more holidays and birthdays go by making the present constantly fun and new!  To prompt this, I had said to Joel Andrew: "See this room, it is the bathroom, but it doesn't have a toilet yet, we can get one."  Joel responded: "We don't need to get one Mommy, we can just pretend."

Joel Andrew is the best, smartest, understanding, little guy in the world.  He is stubborn, and he knows what he wants and he is a good manipulator already, I can tell (and I mean that in the best sense, as I am a good manipulator too - I think as long as you channel this power for good only.  He also is so polite and knows how to sweet talk the ladies.  When we eat dinner, totally unprompted he will say: "thank you for making a good dinner Mommy!"

His memory is incredible.  You can tell him something once and he will never forget it.  I told him that I needed to start eating better when he asked me why we couldn't go to McDonalds.  Later that week he tells Nana and Pa "Mommy said she is going to start eating better."  Now I guess he is going to hold me to it!  He can be so stubborn.  You still have to prepare him for things, but with preparation, he will do anything and he will do it well.  Joel Andrew, we are going to go to the dentist, they will poke at you, but after if you are good we will go to the playground.  He goes, he tries really hard and at the worst parts he stops and says: "after I get to go to the playground if I am good."

I can't believe that 4 years ago he was born.  That's like college.  Life was a standstill for a while, but all of the sudden - like everyone told me it would - the fast forward button has been hit and now we are flying.  He is big enough to enjoy my dollhouse, which was always a possible someday thing.  I hope he loves it and has fun.  I hope James - AKA Toddlerzilla does not become interested in it, at least not for now!

As a sidebar, I wish the dollhouse toys you get were less pink and more neutral.  I got the Grandpa with Golf Clubs and the Dad with the wheelbarrow and rake - but most of the furniture and beds and stuff are all geared to girls.  I guess it doesn't matter, Joel could care less.  A color is a color.  But it would be extra-cool if they had a mini-Uncle Jeremy mechanic set and a mini-man room like his Daddy set with fish tank & pool table too!

Happy Birthday to my little guy.  Like I told you when I first held you in my arms: "we are going to have so much fun!"

The New Wednesday Schedule

Each Wednesday I have off from work (ironically not this whole Wednesday as I write to you, but this is a funny two weeks with our big Festival at work any everything).  But our Wednesdays at home are pretty cyclical - and not in the way I thought.

We have not been going on our adventures as I had thought we would do.  Once upon a time, before I went back to work full time me and the boys were going to the zoo, aquarium, beach, all these places every chance we got.  When I was first back at my new part-time gig we did that too but something has taken over and we are missing our outings.  I think I need to get a re-handle on how I work and not be checking my email at all on Mondays or Wednesdays moving forward.  We need to have more adventures!

So, now, instead Wednesdays looks like this - and they are still wonderful, but just in a different way.  Joel Andrew wakes me up about 7:30, and we get James and lay in Mommy's bed and watch a Mickey while Mommy takes a shower.  We then go downstairs and play with toys for an hour while Mommy drinks coffee, watches the news and makes breakfast.  This is a glorious hour.  I missed my trashing morning talk shows!

After breakfast we get cleaned up and dressed.  This is where the bad part inevitably comes in.  By now I have gone on the check my work email, and gotten sucked in.  Then the boys start to fight and I just yell from the computer to clean up so we can go.  They ignore me, I get more sucked in, and then about 20 minutes later as tension builds I explode.  Why can't they just clean up while I get an email done?  Probably because they are 2 and 4 and I should not be emailing at all.  I swear, when this Festival is over, so am I with Monday and Wednesday emailing!

We usually have a brief morning activity that involves something local and errands.  This has been not the best for the boys, and it is really hard taking frick and frack to any kind of store.  James needs 3 eyes on him at all times and Joel Andrew asks about 1,000 questions and the combination wears thin, but I assume this is all par for the course.

The other day I tried to suggest we go to the beach and Joel Andrew just wanted to play in the backyard. We had fun, we used the swingset and pool, and sprinkler, I gardened, but I missed the beach and our adventures.  This is also why we have limited photos these days, I don't really take around the house photos and since we aren't off - nothing to show for it.

By lunch we eat at home, by nap Joel Andrew watches a Disney movie on the couch and you guessed it, I am back on the computer.  I do some scheduling things for sure, but let's be honest, it is mostly work.  I need to stop this, and August will be a new month for us.  Adventures twice a week every week at least!  No email checking on unnecessary days, home cooked meals, and back onto a diet plan (that's a whole nother ball of wax) - how did I get so far off track?  And, with all the "time" I have working part-time too?

Happy Anniversary, Ama and Grumpy

 A few weekends ago (I am really behind on blogging, can't you tell?) we went to my parents house in New Buffalo, MI for the weekend, to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary.  My parents renewed their vows - what Joel Andrew continues to call "Grumpy and Ama's wedding marriage."  We spent the first few days relaxing (sort of) at New Buffalo, eating at The Stray Dog (their version of The Salty Dog), going to the beach - which was a favorite for everyone, taking some naps, going for a boat ride with Kirk and Gary, running on the lawn in front of Ama and Grumpy's house including constantly taking out the electrical wire flags that were in the ground there.  I am pretty sure that is a felony and James should be in jail ten times over by now, but oh well!

There was napping and eating (more cream cheese toast eating than you could shake a stick at) and lots of tantrums.  I don't know what it is (perhaps it is he is 2!) but James has been on tantrum and sly overdrive lately.  By sly I mean he is just standing there looking calm and quiet one minute, and then out of nowhere he darts - in the middle of the street.  He did this while we were waiting in line for the restaurant to open Saturday morning and I never heard such a sound from my mother.  I was amazed my parents were so hands off when James walked over to them, I was about to say something like "hold him" - and then I knew it was coming, off he went.  In my parents defense, and for something I have come to learn, James is so different but you just do not expect it.  Joel Andrew was so good.  He had his moments, don't get me wrong - but when you asked him to do something, he did it.  James is pretty much quite the opposite.  This makes travel and taking him - and us - out of our elements, really rough.

But everyone had a great time.  Grumpy got some quality kiddo time and a great photo to show for it.  Joel could not get enough of Grumpy by the end of the weekend.  James had a good time as well, after he gave us a few heart attacks.  But the best news of the weekend was that we have finally figured out the airplane!  The trick, we sit in separate rows.  Joel Husband takes Joel Andrew, and I take James.  I watch a lot of Lorax for this, but James is fine and calm and happy.  But they did so great, and I felt fine after the flight - not a balled up mess of stress like usual.  I was saying before our trip that this is our last plane ride for a while, until they are 6 or 8 (except for Disney of course) - but now I am ready to go back in the plan anytime!  Just with another adult helper for sure!

Happy Anniversary Ama and Grumpy!

Choo-Choo Museum with Grumpy

On our visit to Chicago/New Buffalo this past weekend, Grumpy took Joel Andrew, James Morris and I to the Hesston Steam Museum in La Porte, Indiana.  Yes, we were in three states in just a little bit of time!  We were in the middle of the weekend with Ama and Grumpy, and it was time to GET OUT of the house!  The boys were good all things considered, but it is a lot traveling with the two of them.  So, Grumpy and I took them to the choo-choo museum.

I wasn't sure what to expect.  I thought it would be maybe one choo-choo to ride on, and then a bunch of model trains.  It was quite the opposite, there were more than four trains to ride on, and acres and acres of land that the trains took you through.  This allowed the trains to get up to a speed fast enough that you really felt what it was like to ride on one of these trains ages ago.  You buy a ticket, with up to four train ride punches and each ride is about 5-8 minutes long.  This could have been tough with James but luckily we kept him quiet and happy for most of it - the scenery gets to be the same after a while, lots of woods with a "swamp" here and there, but going under and over the bridges was a real treat.  I also was nervous that at some point during a ride Joel Andrew would announce he had to pee really badly, luckily that did not happen.

Grumpy and I noticed that there was not much in the way of safety considerations.  Just a rope between you and tumbling out of the train, and actually that was only on one side.  I figure, this being America, they must be all in check with their safety and so I continue on like no big deal.  After our large train ride, we got into the half size one where you sit in a booth with another person.  There were no completely empty booths, so James and I sat with a girl, about 12.  During the ride this girl explained that her foster Dad is a big volunteer here, they stay in the volunteer campground (my dad suggested I get a volunteer campground for my volunteers), and that they come back every summer, each weekend, to help.  She works the popcorn machine. Pretty cool.  She noted that this is a fully volunteer-run organization which I cannot believe, as there were at least 25 volunteers I could count, running the trains, taking tickets, running the shop or the concessions, tinkering with train parts, etc.  Then the girl tells me she likes to work with this other volunteer, who is in a wheel chair.  The woman in the wheelchair is sad, I learn, because she cannot operate the small ride-on trains anymore because a few years ago she was operating it and it fell on her and now she is in a wheelchair.  Cue us getting off the mid-size train and Grumpy saying, lets go on the ride-on ones.

I did, I decided that was years ago, and nothing has happened since.  But, you were literally strateling a train about 2 feet off the ground.  The conductor comes over and tells us that since it is the end of the day, we get a double ride as he needs to close down the track.  Great, double the time...  As we pull out of the station, I literally see a woman in a wheelchair waving nostalgically. We did survive though.  The kids loved it.  Joel Andrew could not get enough of Grumpy.

The only bummer is that we arrived towards the end of the day, so by the time the train rides were over the gift shop and soda fountain were closed.  You could have made a three hour day out of it literally when you factor everything on the grounds in, and I am sure the kids would have loved another train ride.

Stellar pick, Grumpy!  I hope you can get to that gift shop for us for Joel Andrew's christmas present.  He will be talking about this one for years!

Oc-Puss

Each night James and I wave night night to the paintings in his room.  It is our routine.  We put on his music and then we wave night night to pirate Mickey and Donald and Goofy and Pluto that are in his Disney painting with the crew re-enacting the Pirates of the Caribbean scene with Pluto the dog holding the key in his mouth, and the others behind bars.

After that I close his closet door (for good luck in ensuring a good night sleep.  Literally have done this ever night since the first night he slept really well and haven't stopped.  It is always slightly ajar, and we close it as our next step).  Then we go to the pirate ship painting, and say night night to the pirates and the "tick-tock" (crocodile) and James always ends with "Night night Oc-Puss" - for the Octopus in the picture.  I always follow it with "Night night "Oc-to-Pus" but am secretly thankful he says the word wrong because it is the cutest thing ever.  I always give him a squeeze and put him to bed.

Tonight he said "Night night OcT-Pus"  The T was in there.  He is growing up way too fast.  After I closed the door I heard him scream: "I love you Mommy."  I will take that!