Mayhem, Madness, and Morris Baby #3...

So I may have mentioned a few times that Morris Baby #3 is on his way.  Like soon.  As in 6 weeks or less.  Needless to say, this momma of two (soon to be three) is starting to stress out.  It has been complete mayhem at Morris Manor lately.

For starters, we are tightly packed into a three-bedroom house.  We looked at moving, but we really want to stay in this area/school district, and there is really nothing that completely suits our needs right now.  We live a modest life; the only houses available in our area are either new construction in aggressively over-priced developments or older houses that offer nothing more than a new address.  So we took that as a sign that it's not the right time to move.  Hmm...what to do? 

We are about to start a reconstruction project on our house.  Watch the blog for some before-and-after shots soon, but in a nutshell I can tell you that our house came with a dining room randomly placed off the foyer and connected to nothing else.  Over the years we set it up for dining and used it 2x a year, maximum.  Then it evolved into a playroom that rarely, if ever, had room to walk around.  The kids are like tornadoes in there, I swear!  Did I mention it's in the foyer?  So every time someone visits, that Little Tykes / Fisher Price warehouse is the first thing seen.  Now we have decided to close it in and turn it into Caroline's bedroom, freeing her current bedroom / nursery up for Baby Will. 

As if that's not enough, we have decided that in order to keep our house market-current for the future when we do decide to sell, we need to replace our carpets in the bedrooms.  I met with a woman who measured and priced the job.  I am satisfied after shopping the big-box stores and another carpet warehouse that she'll offer the best price.  But she started going over a checklist of what to do before the installers come.  Have you ever replaced carpet in an established home?  You practically have to move out!  Let's not forget that I'm eight months pregnant, so I only have so much energy and strength left.  Yet I'm pretty Type-A when it comes to projects like this.  So now I'm morphing into the girl standing around bossing everyone else.

You would think that a sheet rocking/framing job and new carpet are enough to keep us busy; not so fast.  My dear, sweet husband (who cannot say "no" to anyone but me) has just been asked to help coach a little-league football team.  Practice starts Monday.  I'm leaving on Sunday to go out of town with my mom for three nights to help her work a book conference.  And construction starts Tuesday.  Fun times!  Stress free, for sure (yeah, right!)

Did I mention that with my first pregnancy I had severe hypertension and toxemia?  I am always worried my blood pressure will start shooting up.  I was okay while pregnant with Caroline, but I have enough tension in my veins right now to climb out of my skin!

For those of you reading (and you know who you are) close enough to help, please feel free to JSU -- just show up.  Over the course of the next 6 weeks there will always be something around here to be done. 

Buckle up, peeps...we're in for a bumpy landing!

Ahoy, Matey!

I mentioned yesterday that while we were in Miramar Beach / Destin, FL we took the kids on a pirate ship cruise.  Hmm...what to say?  The kids loved it.  The grown-ups realized it was not all it's cracked up to be.  Anyway, it was quite the experience, that's for sure...

Rob, ready to board the ship

 Above and below: Rob and Whit before and after setting sail

There were 3 "pirates" on board.  Captain Cameron (not pictured) First Mate Tony (above) and Blackbeard (below).

Shortly after setting sail, we found a treasure chest!  Blackbeard ran ashore and retrieved it for the kids. 

Caroline was super excited about her gold dubloons!

What do you do when it's hot?  You pass out water guns and initiate a gun-slinging squirt fight, of course!  That was next on the agenda:

After a 2-hour trip around Destin Harbor, we were back on dry land, scurvy-free!  All in all I would recommend this trip only to the pirate enthusiasts or young at heart.  It was not terribly exciting, but the kids did have a nice time.

Beachin' It, Baby!

Last week, the Morris family spent a week at the beach in NW Florida.  We stayed at SanDestin Beach and Golf Resort, which I learned is actually in Miramar Beach, FL, not Destin, FL. 

In what promised to be an unfortunate coincidence, Tropical Storm Debby was also headed to the NW Florida shoreline.  In fact, as we pulled out and started driving south, I was getting so worried about the weather I could hardly concentrate.  But within 48 hours, it was clear that Debby's course would change for our benefit.

Clockwise from top left: 1. Sunday afternoon just across the FL state line 2. crossing the Choctawhatchee Mid-Bay bridge 3. Waking up Monday morning to a promising sky 4. Dinner Monday night...the hint of a rainbow is a promise of better weather ahead!

The week started off with a little work business to attend.  Mom and I had to expo at a writing conference. My pregnant BF Lorie rode down with me.  Her husband helped the two of us get set up until Mom could join us from yet another conference that started off her week.  Here's how our 3 tables looked:

On Tuesday Bobby and the kids made it down.  By Tuesday night, we were a party of eight: Mom, Lorie, Shane and their daughter Whitney, Bobby, me, and our 2 kids. 

Although we were working, we had our afternoons free...and that led us to discover something we had never personally realized before: the beach in the afternoons is prime time for play.  Normally we head out all day then rush back to shower and get ready for evening activities.  But when you take away your timed schedules, there is a real opportunity for evening seashore enjoyment.  Don't believe me?  Take Caroline and Whitney's word for it:

Overall it was a great trip.  Our kids all played so well together.  In fact, I really don't believe a vacation of this nature would be possible if not for the seamless blending of families. 

Whitney and Rob, same age minus 3 months.

Friday was a beach-free day.  We spent the morning at the pool and that afternoon the mommies and Nona took the kids on a pirate ship while the Daddies played golf.  I will do a separate post about it later this week, but it was so much fun!  Like I said, that morning was just a pool day, and as an added bonus my dad, Papa Joe, came in town too! Dad's sister lives just a quick 20 minutes from where we were and Dad was off the road for a little break.  So it worked out that he got to see his sister and his daughter/grandkids all in one day.  Swimming with Papa Joe was fun!

The worst part about beach vacations is how quickly they seem to end.  Yet, as always, I know we will return soon.  Here are way too many a few shots from the week of fun:

Aren't naps on the beach the greatest?

Happy Fourth of July!  Today is one of those days where we are going to relax and enjoy the independence given to us by Independence Day!  I hope your day is just as good!

Potties, Pappies, and Piercings

So much ado happening in such a quick time frame around here!  This will be quite the Caroline-centric post.  As you know, I'm quickly progressing in my pregnancy, and the idea of having an infant, a toddler, and a Kindergartner sometimes frightens me.  More specifically, it's the combination of needy toddler and innocently helpless infant that keep me awake at night.

However, recently and rather quickly Caroline has eliminated two big daily obstacles. All. On. Her. Own!  The first development is that Caroline is potty trained now!  Yay!  Whoop-Whoop!  As a very important side note, I wanted to potty train C, but I was frozen by lack of direction and motivation.  I kept hearing on Pinterest and from friends how I should basically just put her in panties and let her pee all over herself.  Well, all it took was the magic of Dora panties and she was scared to death of messing them up.  Girlfriend loves, loves Dora!

Meanwhile, Caroline kept playing in my jewelry box.  Specifically with my earrings.  I told her if she would learn how to potty I would get her some of her very own earrings.  I had no idea how easily she would actually figure it out!

Subsequently, Caroline recently had a nasty bout of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease, a virus which produces a tell-tale blistery rash around a person's mouth.  C was in a lot of pain and she somehow convinced herself that her pappy had created that rash.  So my sweet baby had to sleep without her pappy for a couple of nights.  Then she...wait for it...put her pappy in the trash can!

So long, pappy!  (And, yes, I know my trash needs to be emptied!)

She has only mentioned the pappy twice since then and both times she has been so easily consoled and distracted.

Well, as you can imagine, I had to hold up my end of the bargain now.  If there is one thing I did hear her say over and over it was "I get ea-wings now!"  Caroline knew she was due a reward and she was ready to collect!

I took C today to a local/popular accessories boutique, after making sure there were 2 people on hand to pierce them simultaneously.

Here's a before-and-after of Caroline without and with pierced ears.  See those tears?

Well let me tell you about the tears...I mentioned she has a healing rash around her mouth.  In the picture below you will see she's holding a sucker in her hand.  She didn't really cry about the piercing pain.  She cried because her sucker was hurting her lips.  Crazy girl!

So there you have it.  My sweet baby girl goes potty all by herself, takes no pappy anymore, and has pierced ears.  Life moves quickly around here.

Later,
 

Orange Beach Escape

This week, I got to escape "life" and head down to the beach for a couple of days.  My mom's job took us down to Orange Beach as a vendor to display at a conference.  At first she and I were going to go down there and stay in a hotel and head right back. But once we got the schedule we realized we would have free afternoons each day.  So we decided to bring my girlfriend Lorie as our au pair for the mornings.  Her daughter Whitney (6) and Rob always play so well together.  Then our afternoons would be vacation days.  Here's how it all went...

Day One -- Arrival, Set-Up, Check In

It was so incredibly humid as we were unloading our wares into the exhibition space.  But we didn't think much about it.  Until this happened:

Needless to say, we were so afraid this was going to be the tone for the weekend.  Ugh-uh...

Nah.  We got checked into the condo next, and it wasn't long before the kids were itching to hit the beach.  I love the shore at dusk.  The beach is quiet and the water is usually warmer from the day. The kids loved it too.

Day Two -- Work and Play

Keeping in mind that this was a working vacation for Mom and me, we had to get up the next morning at 5:45 AM!  And let me tell you, that was one early wake up call!  I didn't take any pictures of our set up this time, but I wasn't all that pleased with it, anyway.

While we were working, Lorie took the kids to the Gulf Shores Zoo.  While there, Rob apparently overcame his trepidation of interacting with and feeding live animals!

Soon enough it was time to play, and we had beautiful weather! 

By the way, do you remember my sweet Rob took swimming lessons?  Well they paid off!  He swam like a fish!

That night we had a delicious dinner out at one of my all time favorite haunts in Gulf Shores/Orange Beach. 



Day Three -- More Work, More Play

This was the last day of our conference and of our quick little vacation.  It marked another early wake-up call for mom and me.  It was odd leaving the condo while the others were asleep.  We kind of snuck out each morning.  On this day Rob, Whitney, and Lorie went to an arcade for a few hours until we were through with our responsibilities.

The afternoon marked more pool time for the kids.  Have I mentioned that since Rob discovered his newly acquired skills and love of swimming, he wants nothing to do with the beach?  Yeah, that's not going over very well with this beach-bum mom, but we'll work on that later.  Quiet night in the condo.  The kids watched Dolphin Tale and attempted to watch We Bought a Zoo but they were fast asleep quickly.  All this playing truly wore their little bodies out!

Day Four -- Home, James

It's true what they say, all good things must come to an end.  This almost felt like a marathon of a trip.  We squeezed in both work and play.  We loaded and unloaded the car, we beached, swam, watched movies, ate, and more!  By the time I got home, I felt like I was wearing 10-ton weights around my shoulders and ankles.  But I think the kids enjoyed themselves.  Lucky Lorie and Whitney got to check out of our condo and check into another one with their family for a (much more relaxing) few days.  But I know I will be back to the coast really soon!

Until then, enjoy your summer!