Coming to the end

Well, hard to believe but my 12 week maternity leave is almost over.  How can that be?  Twelve weeks seemed like such a long time when we were waiting for Lucas's arrival and when he was first born, but now it doesn't feel like long enough.  When Nolan was born I had just started my job at the PCC and did not qualify for short-term disability or FMLA so I only took about 6 weeks off, most of which was unpaid.  This time, from the day that we learned that we were expecting another baby I knew that I was going to take the full 12 weeks off.  While it hasn't always been easy it has been a wonderful 12 weeks and as the time has gone by I have really started to struggle with the idea of going back to work.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I love my job at the PCC.  As I was preparing to be off of work my coworkers would frequently ask and make sure that I was planning on coming back to work and my answer was always YES.  The thought had never crossed my mind that I would want to be a full-time stay-at-home-mom, part-time, maybe.  Kevin had even joked that he thought I would get stir crazy by week 10 and be ready to go back to work, but the opposite has happened.  As the time has gone by the more comfortable I have become at being at home.  I have enjoyed my 1:1 times with Lucas as well as days at home with both boys.  I have enjoyed doing some crafty projects, taking naps, creating photo books of the boys, lunch dates with friends, and even doing cleaning/organizing around the house.  I think if you would ask Kevin he would also say that he would like for me to stay home with the boys..if we could afford it.  This is the problem...there are still bills to be paid and at this time in our lives it is just not financially possible for me to stay at home.  So, for now I will cherish these last days at home and be thankful that I do have a great job to go back to with supportive coworkers and work that I am passionate about.

Look Who is 2 Months Old!

"Pack Pack"

Today is Nolan's first day of preschool.  As I mentioned in a previous post, we went last week for orientation and he seemed to really enjoy himself and we felt good about our decision to start him in preschool this year.  This morning I got him dressed and he put on his "pack pack" as he calls it and we were off.  Lucas and I took him.  Kevin had been talking to him about needing to listen to his teachers so on the way to school he was telling me "we listen to the teachers mommy".  He went running up to the door when we arrived and wanted to show me around the classroom.  I helped him find his cubby to hang-up his backpack and we put up his family picture next to the other family pictures (the teacher told us that some of the kids put their family pictures next to their cots at nap time).  He got to make his name tag and couldn't wait to play.  

Seeing Nolan's excitement and talking with the teachers makes me feel happy and I confident that we made the right decision about which school to send him to and to start him this year.  Nolan's birthday is right after the cutoff for starting kindergarten which means he will be one of the older kids in his class.  We could have waited another year to begin preschool but I felt that he could really benefit from being in a more structured environment where he will also be provided with more educational activities and have increased interactions with children his own age.  Nolan has enjoyed his time at Angie's and we are grateful for the things he has learned there and the friendships he made but this transition feels right.  I'm sure there will be days when he will rather go to Angie's, especially after Lucas starts going there when I start work, but today he was excited about school and that makes me happy.  

Photo Book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly offers exclusive photobook layouts so you can make your book just the way you want.

Fun Family Day

Kevin worked this last weekend so he had yesterday off.  We had planned to attend Nolan's preschool (yes, I said preschool!!) orientation in the morning and then decided that it would be a good day to go to the State Fair.  It was a wonderful day!  We started the day going to the doctor for an early 3-year well child visit (and preschool was requesting a physical) and then it was off to Small Blessings for preschool orientation.  We started by going to Nolan's classroom and meeting briefly with his teachers and getting introduced to some of the other kiddos.  Nolan was a bit shy at first but once he saw that they had dinosaur toys he was good to go.  We hung out in the classroom with Nolan for about 30 minutes before Kevin, Lucas, and I went to meet with one of the teachers and one of the administration people to complete paperwork and talk more about the daily activities, our hopes and goals for Nolan, and how we want to be involved.  When we were done we went back to the classroom where the kiddos were circled up talking about all the different times during the day that they use water.  They are currently doing a water study and have been learning about pipes, where water comes from, how water is used, etc.  Nolan didn't even notice when we walked into the room.  It was great to see him engaged and enjoying himself.  I am very excited about this new step for Nolan and after yesterday I definitely feel like we have picked the right place and are doing the right thing by moving Nolan into preschool at this time.

After Nolan noticed that we were in the classroom he stood-up and announced to his teacher that it was time for him to go to the fair. :)  And off we went.  Nolan had a blast looking at all of the animals.  We saw the cows, pigs, and horses.  One of the farmers even let Nolan pet two of his pigs which Nolan loved.  He even oinked back at them.  He saw one of the cows being milked and he had to point out whenever he saw any of the animals pooping.  What a boy!  After have the most delicious pretzel and looking at the animals we went to the rides.  Last year Nolan rode on the carousel but this year he was big enough to ride on more of the rides, and boy do we have a little dare devil on our hands!  I don't do well with fair rides that spin you around in circles so thankfully Kevin was willing to ride the rides with Nolan, although he realized he didn't have as strong of a tolerance of them as he once did. Nolan would have ridden the rides all day if we would have let him.  On one of the rides Kevin could control how much they spun in circles and he asked Nolan if he wanted to spin a little bit and Nolan responded with "I want to spin A LOT!".  Nolan was definitely tired by the end of our time at the fair and was not happy about leaving but it was a great day!  Here are some pictures from our family fun day at the fair.

Matching

The boys in their matching dinosaur jammies.  Nolan thought the jammies were really cool and thought it was pretty awesome that Lucas had the same ones he did. :)  I just love these boys!

Beach Day and More

 Whenever Lucas is put on his back he turns his head to the left and starts pulling on his hair with his right hand.  As a result he has a nice little bald spot...thankfully he is starting to look more to his right.

 He also likes to suck on his hands and fingers while doing tummy time.

 Happy boy

 Lucas is too big to have bath time in the bathroom sink at grandma's so he has now been moved up to the kitchen sink. 

 Last weekend we made our first trip to the beach.  Nolan's first trip to the beach at almost age 3 and Lucas's first trip to the beach at almost 8 weeks!  We had a great time.  We went to Weko beach in Michigan just north of the Warren Dunes.  Kevin's mom, my mom, and sister Julia were able to join us.  It was a wonderful day and Nolan showed no fear of the water.  Nolan had so much fun that he has said that he wants to go back for his birthday in a few weeks.