My Little Laundry

I don't have a lot to say about this one, but aren't they cute? There was another cute one of them kissing in the laundry basket but I had to hold the laundry basket up with my foot since Little Sissy was making it tip over, and you could see my big nasty toenail in the picture. Even painted, it definitely marred the beauty of the girls.

Going on a Date

Sadly, I can't remember the last date Hubby and I went on. This is proof that it's been a while. You can tell by the picture that I was way excited to get dressed up and go out and that Hubby is not interested in dressing up if he doesn't have to. Anyway...we got to go see Les Miserables at the Muny tonight. It's my favorite show ever. The music makes me cry. I think this is my 4th time to see it on stage. This was not my favorite time, but it was still good nevertheless. I think when Inspector Javert kills himself at the end because he can't live with knowing his pursuit for "justice" keeps getting returned with mercy is such a great picture of what legalism will do to a soul. At one point we had a counselor who recommended this movie to us because we were struggling with grace/forgiveness/justice issues. This might be why it's my favorite show. I can relate to so many of the characters on different levels. My sweet in-laws came to stay with the girls and let us go enjoy. It was also my debut into maternity clothes. That kind of felt weird and I think I look a little like a Target bag, but I had a cute headband that matched. I'm obsessed with my clothes right now (see the minivan mom entry). Sorry. Anyway, if you've never seen Les Mis you should go see it (after you've seen the version of the movie with Liam Neeson that will fill you in on all the details you'll miss from seeing it on stage). It might change your life. If not, you might at least cry. If not, you might at least enjoy a good night out. Get the lemon freeze if you see it at the Muny. It will definitely enhance your experience.

All Worn Out

Big Sissy crawled in my bed mid-nap this day, which is very rare. I thought she looked so cute in her little pigtails, all snuggled up with all her sleeping friends. It was actually a cool day (clearly not from this week!!!), and we had had a picnic and played in the park with our friends Beth and JJ. I think she's just the cutest thing. :)

Minivan Mommy

Well, it's official. I'm a minivan mom. I always pictured myself as more of a jeep mom. I thought minivans were just for moms with bad haircuts and too-short jeans. I should just stop that list right there....anyway, we traded in my cute little Honda Accord for a used Honda Odyssey. I have to say that I'm really liking it so far. Sunday I sat in the floor and fed Little Sissy lunch after church while we were driving home (not safe, I know). But the point is that I had room to do that. And cupholders everywhere...it's heaven on wheels. If I really got to pick what I wanted, it would be newer and have leather seats and one of those systems that tell you where to turn to get anywhere (although I have Hubby for that). But it does have a built-in DVD system, which we haven't even clued the girls into yet. We're taking an overnight road trip this weekend, and it has room for both a big double stroller and luggage. Woo hoo! I'm really excited about all this room. As I think about it, I might have a minivan haircut right now. Ughhh... I went out and bought some new clothes just in case I was dressed like a minivan mom too. Aren't I vain?! (no comments to that, please). I felt so sad to drive away from my little red car. I think our young salesman is buying it for himself. It looked so shiny and familiar in the rearview mirror. This is why I could never break up with anyone when I was younger. I have a hard time giving up anything even for something better. So...I'm forcing myself to move on. I am switching my loyalties to our cute, gently used silver Honda Odyssey. And I'm tugging on my pants at this moment, just in case.

Transitions

Right now I am watching Little Sissy play with little plastic balls in our basement. She is discovering the cool sound they make when you throw them on the concrete floor. It's such a disappointment to accidentally hit the carpet and not get the same auditory experience. Big Sissy is taking a nap, which is great because she doesn't always. But this is not great because it's 4:00 and Little Sissy took her nap at 11:30. She seems to be transitioning to one nap only, which means they are now on totally different schedules. What this means for me is (1) It's hard to go anywhere because someone's always napping and (2) I'm no longer one of those people napping.

The other transition is that now I would normally be anticipating Hubby'arrival and family dinner time. Last week he started a new job (still at UPS). It's more money, which is much needed and appreciated. But his hours are crazy (mostly nights). Our family time now is after he wakes up (around 1 in the afternoon) and before he goes to work (around 4). We haven't really figured out yet when our husband/wife together time is. The good news is that I think I'm almost over the pregnancy hump. For example, I didn't take a nap all weekend and I was OK, a little tired but still functioning. AND, I ate a salad for dinner last night and was OK (meaning I didn't have to go back later to get 2 hamburgers and a milkshake). This is good for our grocery budget and my weighing-in shock syndrome.

Hopefully soon we'll figure out our family schedule and will have a new normal. Right now I feel confused, like I'm always waiting for something but I'm not sure what is supposed to happen next. This seems to be proof that I am not good at change even though I pretend to be the live-on-the-fly spontaneous one in our family. More updates later on our transitions. In other news, we're shopping for mini vans. This is not a transition I ever thought I would like but I'm actually excited to have more space and the ability to take someone else with us in our car. Big Sissy is a lot like me, however, so I'm already having to talk her through the idea that when we get a van that means we will no longer have our car she's so attached to. I think, in conclusion, that we like new things as long as it means we don't have to let go of anything else good or familiar.

Naming another person

Man, how in the world did Adam name all those animals in the garden? He must have been so creative! I had no problem naming Big Sissy, but we deliberated over Little Sissy's name for months. Now, though I still love the name, I regret that there are so many children with her name. I always swore I wouldn't do that to a child (I always had to give my last name to distinguish myself from all the others with the same name). So now I have the challenge of naming yet another little person. I want an old-fasioned name that doesn't sound like a dumpy great aunt in her flowered bathrobe. I need to get a warm fuzzy feeling about it. But it can't be on the top 50 list in the last decade either. Any ideas?? Of course, I'm assuming we'll have another girl. Who knows?! If I have a boy, at least I get to start with a new list.

Need Pictures

These are some fun recent pics of the girls. Big Sissy loves to play dress-up. In this one she's being "Dr. Brimm." The one of Little Sissy is at the Magic House. She had a great time crawling up the little slides and chewing on the balls that hundreds of kids play with...eeeew. She's so happy though! We're doing more indoor play right now because of the heat wave.