Monday, July 15, 2013

Little League Natitude

It's mid-July now but my blog is still living on June-time. Ooops.

Every June, Charlie's little league offers discounted tickets to a Nats game - in the highest, furthest seats in the house - and it's always been one of our favorite traditions. We buy up 8 tickets and go with our besties, the Allens. We fill up on beer, Jenny and I share soft pretzels and the guys down Ben's Chili Bowl dogs and the kids insist that we wait in the huge line for Dippin' Dots. And as is custom with home-played Sunday games, after the game, the kids run the bases high-fiving all the President mascots. It is always such a fun day!

Sadly, this year was a bit different than our usual routine. The Allens moved to Louisiana just two days before this game, so we went solo. Boo. :( And due to all the rain this season, the Nats had to make up a game with a double header so the kids running the bases was cancelled. But, on the brighter side, this was the first year that Henry did not freak out and monkey-cling to me the entire game.
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Doesn't get any higher than the 400 level! BALLERS!!! :)
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I have to be honest. My very first taste of a Ben's Chili Bowl dog was a bite off Mike's at a game a few weeks before this one. It was amazing -- even though I'm told it doesn't count as my first because it wasn't from the original place on U street. Feigning over that one bite, I got my very own at this game and it was totally delicious. Although, I forgot to get napkins. Fail. And a knife and fork. Fail. And I ordered it without mustard which is not "all the way". Fail. And I couldn't eat it all. Fail.
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Thanks to my girl, Siri, I got in some reverse camera shots! Hey, look! It's me with my favorites!!
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Why is Charlie cheering??? The Nats had just scored their sixth run which hooked us up with 6 free wings per ticket at Hard Times Cafe! YAY! Charlie's favorite!!
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What do you do when you're three at a major league game?? Climb all over the seats, of course! And be adorable.
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The Dippin' Dots. Always the Dippin' Dots.
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Since it was the little league's game, most of Charlie's team was there which meant Charlie had lots of friends to hang with. He even spent some time sitting next to his awesome Coach.

I think it's virtually impossible for 9 year old boys to make sweet, smiling faces at the camera.
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NATS WIN!!!! Go Nats!!!
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And more of Henry being adorable!
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Wednesday, July 3, 2013

The Scrappers: Our 2013 Spring Baseball Season

My hubby usually signs up as assistant coach for Charlie's sports teams. I love this. Since my hubby puts in lots of work hours, it gives Mike and Chuck specific, set aside, and special time together -- and it means I don't have to go to all of the practices and games. :) Which are long. And often.

This spring was cold. And I hate the cold. So, I ended up pawning an unusually large sum of the sports-related parenting to Mike, and didn't catch as many of the games as I normally do. Towards the end of the season, I realized if I didn't get my butt in gear, I'd have no pictures!!

One of the first games I made it to (aside from Charlie's pitching game) was a make-up game against the only undeafeated team in the league. AND WE BEAT THEM! Which gave us a chance to make it into the playoffs! All of a sudden I was kicking myself for slacking in my attendance. The games were fun! And Charlie was playing so well! And Henry wasn't nearly as hard to watch as he was last year! SCORE!!!
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Trucks, dirt and watching big bro at bat! The life of a toddler at big brother's baseball games!

He also picked up ticks at every.single.game. this year. Which, of course, made me insane. I hate ticks. And they love the flippin' baseball fields. And chomping on Henry's itty bitty toddler parts. So gross.
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Last year's spring season, we had to tempt Charlie with promises of a Dairy Queen ice cream cone if he'd get just one hit during a game. This year, that kid was getting himself a hit practically every time he got up to bat. Friggin' Dairy Queen, man. That's some seriously powerful motivation.

I was so proud, and quite surprised, by how much he had improved since this same time last year. As much as I jokingly say that DQ is the reason, I think it really has so much to do with his Dad's presence as a coach. They have such a bond over baseball. This is something a mom, at least ME as a mom, cannot give to Charlie. Mostly because they still make fun of me for not having a clue what is going on during the games. I have to ask a lot of questions. But I'm so glad it's something they share. And something Mike excels at as a Dad. Sports is so his thing. And now it's their thing. Adorable.
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And then, all too quickly, we had finished out the regular season and were playing our first playoff game.

By this point, I was SO into it! I was so pumped up! So excited! I wanted them to win!! I wanted it for Mike. I wanted it for Charlie. I wanted it for all those kids who were playing their best. I wanted them to win just one playoff game. Just one.

That first playoff game was intense. For most of the game, we were winning. EVERY parent was standing up, pacing. Cheering. Clenching teeth. Leaning against the fence. We ALL wanted it for our kids.

And somewhere in the 4th, the other team caught up to our lead. Then in the 5th, we didn't score any runs. And they took it in the 6th. {Charlie read this over my shoulder and wanted me to make sure that I wrote that he got a double during this game, hee hee}

It. Was. Heartbreaking.

But I couldn't stop myself from photographing that last team talk from the coaches. Those Dads were truly upset. They wanted it too. They had worked hard along side those kids all season. I just think it's unbelievably amazing that these men take so much time out of their own lives - leaving work early several nights a week, dedicating Saturdays and sometimes Sundays, too - to support, teach and coach other people's kids. It's guys like these that make a difference in children's lives. It is so generous. And for that, it was hard to watch them have to close out the season on a loss.
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And one last "hands in" cheer for the Scrappers. Who played their hearts out.

And that's the true measure of winners.

Also, guys. The light. Swoon.
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Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Arbonne Product Giveaway

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A few weeks ago, I instagrammed a picture of my hair all wrapped up on the top of my head as I tried out my new Arbonne hair mask for the first time. I have very long hair, the bottom of which is covered in split ends. I needed some repair. Not to mention, a hair mask is a perfect excuse to lock myself in the bathroom, ALONE, which is a whole other kind of repair in itself. As with all my Arbonne products, this one did not disappoint. Once rinsed and dried, my hair felt as soft and healthy as if it'd just been cut.

Bonus - I was so excited to see that one of my favorite blogs - How to be a Redhead - re-grammed & facebooked the photo.  My forehead is famous!!

I first learned about Arbonne products last Thanksgiving while on vacation back home in Michigan. My girlfriend, Melissa, asked if I was interested in some girl time away from our kids to try some of the Arbonne products for which she is a consultant. I said, "Oh, Meliss, that sounds so lovely, but I'm the kind of girl who washes her face with a Dove bar -- when I remember to wash my face at all -- and then I just slap on some wrinkle lotion I found at Target."

"Oh, no! Jenn, you don't!?" she said. "One night of skipping a face wash ages your skin 14 days. And these products are all natural and free of chemicals. Do you know if the lotion you're using is paraben-free?"

Shut up. FOURTEEN DAYS for one itty-bitty, teeny-tiny night of skipping? I had turned thirty-one just a few months before this and the lines that I had never seen under my eyes before had suddenly emerged, clear as day. I had stopped purposely trying to tan my skin to keep it healthy. So why hadn't I stopped my bad habit of sleeping in my makeup? I'd also given up using all the acne products that said not to use when "pregnant or trying to become pregnant" -- because if they could harm a fetus, how could they possibly be alright for my regular non-pregnant body?? I wasn't even considering all the "regular" chemicals that don't come with warnings on the boxes.

"Ok, Meliss. You're right. It's time I stop treating my skin like I'm still in college. Let's do this."

Now I'm hooked. My skin, my hair, my body are all feeling pampered, youthful and beautiful. And I feel relaxed and healthy knowing I'm gross-stuff-free when I get ready for the day.

I really wanted to spread the word - not only about my love of the hair mask & subsequent famous forehead - but my love for all of my Arbonne products so I asked Melissa if she'd be interested in blogging a little bit about Arbonne's commitment to safe and natural beauty products -- and maybe even hook everyone up with a giveaway!

She was! So here it is!
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26 seconds is all it takes for the chemicals in your personal products to enter your bloodstream. Your skin is your largest organ in your body. What is in your products? Have you ever really thought about it? Well, now is the time! 

As a consultant for a Health & Wellness company,  I am dedicated to providing you with all natural products. Whatever your health & wellness needs are, Arbonne offers an array of PureSafe, & Beneficial products - men & women’s anti-aging skin care, sensitive skin care, detox/spa, skin & body care, baby care, cosmetics, nutritional supplements & much more! - to cover you for life...from Diapers to Depends! 


Our products are all: 
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You will never have to worry that you're using something on your skin that's toxic or could harm your health.  
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Please enter our giveaway to win an Arbonne Hair mask + a bonus of Arbonne's Baby Care Sunscreen for your little one (or for a friend's little one!) by simply liking Melissa's Arbonne page & my photography page on Facebook! Bonus entries for twitter love! :)

BTW, I never pay full price for my Arbonne products and Melissa can tell you how to get 20% or more off your Arbonnes purchase, plus cash rewards to use towards future purchases, as well! Contact Melissa for more information at melissa.meglio@gmail.com

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Monday, July 1, 2013

My Brain vs. My Brain

There was a time, back in 2004, when I did this parenting thing completely on my own terms. I was the only one I knew with a baby. Sometime after I gave birth to Charlie, I remember a friend convincing me to join MySpace. {Ha ha. MySpace.} So, this was even before I had entered the world of social media. God, that makes it seem like 2004 was eons ago! But once I was on MySpace, I found no other mothers there. Oddly, those "loner" years, I remember as some of my easiest of parenting. The years when there was no one else showing me what to do -- and no one else to compare myself to.

Except for the moms at the park. I'd compare myself to them - but in a way where I did not at all feel inferior. They were all 10-15 years older than me and constantly saying things like, "Use you words." in soft voices while their kids continued to throw sand in their faces. I found those moms incredibly obnoxious and would roll my eyes. Ugh. "Moms in their thirties," I'd think. "How sad. They're WAY too into their parenting. They probably read all the books and get very worried over what they say in them."

Oh, how I long for those years of 23 year old parenting back. It was so carefree. All I ever thought about was how much I adored Charlie. That was all that mattered and all I needed to know. It led the way for us.

Now I find that so many times, I fail - in my mind - as a parent. But why??? Why am i constantly disappointed in myself? I adore my children. Like, well-up-with-tears adore them. That was enough in 2004. Why is it leaving me feeling like such a failure in 2013??

I think we, as moms, and as women, are plagued with this onslaught of social media where our parenting, and our lives,  are put out in front of the world and we compare and compare and compare ourselves to determine where we fit. Do we fit? Are we doing it "right"? I think that social media has made parenting SO. MUCH. HARDER.

A few weeks ago,  I was over my children. Over. Them. I needed to work. Hub was out of town on business so I knew there was no relief in sight. And everytime I'd sit down to work, someone needed a snack or a drink or to go potty or to just tell me the same thing over and over again and to remind me that I had promised to take them to the park and hadn't done that yet and then, holy crap, it was the middle of the afternoon and I'd started 15 separate tasks but finished nothing! And those are the times when "it" happens. My kids broke into that "omg, you're driving me nuts, get out of my face!" space in my brain -- which all moms know, sits in a very sad corner of the "GUILT GUILT GUILT!!!" part of the brain. Which, when the two mix, that is when the pressure of being a "bad mom" creeps in and overtakes it all.

So, you go on Facebook to find a friend, to release the built up pressure, to relate. But instead, the first thing you see in your feed is Supermom. You know her. She's the one who is homeschooling and today, they're baking cookies while discussing Mozart while an organic, GMO-free dinner with VEGETABLES bakes in the oven. Oh, bad words. Damn you, Supermom. Damn you, Facebook. Damn you, wonderful, amazing, awful Facebook. And Supermom.

Forget the cookies, I'm supposed to make dinner too!?!? Even though dinner is something that happens EVERYDAY, I always forget about it. But Supermom doesn't. Nooooooo. She remembers dinner. And her children actually eat it without being threatened that they have to go to bed if they don't. Bad words, bad words, bad words!!!! I suck. I suck. I SUCK!!!!!!

I am ripped of all the memories of all the wonderful things I have ever done with my kids. My brain fills with thoughts of my suckiness. I suddenly can't remember to give myself a break because I run a business in addition to my mommy duties. I can't remember that yesterday I took them to a museum or that I orchestrated a fabulous birthday party a week ago because all I see is that today, they watched a lot of TV when they should have had all my attention and we should've made cookies!!! Supermom made cookies!!! And I didn't!!!! Ten years ago, on the rare occasion I'd be in the same space as her, Supermom made me feel badly for her and all her unnecessary overparenting and worry. Now, Supermom makes me insane. Supermom makes me feel like SuperSuck.

It was on that day, those few weeks back, where all of this happened exactly as I've described and I was spiraling downwards. So much to do. No time. Work deadlines approaching. My brain was consumed with stress and thoughts of unfinished laundry. And the kids wanted to eat, again. And that was annoying me. Why do they always want to eat?? And play outside? And fight over the same stupid piece of plastic? I remember this day as horrible. I remember being a terrible mom that day who scary-screamed more than I'd like to admit and said "Go play! Go find something else to do!" all too many times. If you asked me about this day, I'd have told you that I was a failure on that day. It was a "bad mom" kind of day. It was a day when a Supermom, I was not.

And then I found these photos in Lightroom. All from that day.

The evidence of my motherhood from that day looks like this.
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Henry is a stage five clinger. He wants to be on top of me or directly next to me at all times. Annoyed that he was following me from room to room, I started a game of throwing the laundry from the upstairs balcony down to him below to de-pressure the battle between task vs. attention. We now do it every time I have laundry and it's one of our favorite things.

And he loves to be independent and do things by himself. This has always caused a battle between us because he will flip out if he cannot figure out how to do something. So, that day, I started letting him dump the baskets of clothes into the machine. And he loves it. And I love the tippy toes.
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And when their Daddy is away on business, they sleep in my bed with me. It's a tradition that they love. And clearly, even on this crazy day when I felt so down on myself, here I was photographing them in the dark instead of tucking myself in for much needed sleep because they are just so cute and wonderful. And because I love them to death.
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If this is what that day actually looked like, then I am struck with the realization that Supermom is all in my head. It's not Supermom or Facebook's fault. Or Pinterest's. {let's just lump that asshole of a "you-don't-measure-up" webpage in there with them all, too}. It's mine. It's MY decision to feel like I am doing it wrong. It's my decision to freak out. It's my decision to focus on the parts that aren't pretty and taunting me and robbing me instead of cherishing and rising up to all the good times and the BEAUTY that is in our lives.

If this is what my motherhood looks like, then I'm clearly doing something right. Those two boys - well, sometimes they will have to watch a lot of TV. And sometimes I won't be able to finish the laundry. And sometimes I will shout "STOP IT!" many, many times during a day. And sometimes I will feed them pizza a few days in a row. And sometimes, this sort of day will repeat itself and I will lack patience and feel defeated, But, ALWAYS, I will love them and being their mom. So much. And that really is what makes a super mom.  

Deep breaths. They are ok. I am ok. 

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Charlie's "Science Is Awesome" 9th Birthday Party

Don't all things begin with a desperate need to buy themed vintage stamps from an etsy shop???? How could I ever resist? :)
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It's taken a while to blog Charlie's ninth birthday party because I was waiting until it was featured on Hostess with the Mostess which finally posted on the same day I flew to Boston WITHOUT my laptop! They had told me it would feature at the end of the month so I was not ready or prepared at all for a mid-June feature! And of course, I had to wait an additional five days to get home from B-town to even access my images! Crazy times! :)

I started planning Charlie's party back in November. The second Henry's Monster Party wrapped, my talented party-styling girlfriend, Rachel, wanted to know what was next. We asked Charlie to give us a theme to start working on -- and he said "LEGOS!!". That didn't really work for us. There are too many lego parties already out there. It might've taken a little persuasion to get him to decide that what he reeeally wanted was a chemistry party. :)

Rachel runs RV Parties with her BFF and partner, Victoria. They design the most adorable printables for pretty much any party theme. You can buy the science printables from this party as well the monster printables from Henry's party -- or a variety of many other themes - HERE at their etsy shop! You'll also see lots of my photography there. I'm their favorite professional photographer.
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I was seriously & intensely proud of the large chalkboard that we used for our backdrop at the dessert table. I knew two things: 1., there was NO WAY that I could handwrite anything on any chalkboard and have it look adorable - not to mention, I'm way to OCD to have the font on a backdrop not completely match with the party design/font, and 2., I did NOT want to buy a new, giant chalkboard and then have no idea what to do with it when the party wrapped.

But, thats why engineering prints from Staples are the greatest thing in the whole wide world. Yes. You heard me. The greatest.

If you need something printed in a very large size (this one was 36x48) but don't want to pay your child's college tuition for it - and it happens to be a black and white image - then head to Staples. I had Rachel design a large print to look like a fake chalkboard and had it printed for $6. Then I tacked it to a corkboard that I already had hanging over my desk in my office. Perfect.
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We had so many amazing treats on our dessert table!

Miss Lulu's Sweet Treats sent us the cake pops atoms on a stick. They are the best cake pops I've ever had in my entire life. No joke. I *might* have lied to a couple of the children who asked if they could have one and said they were for display only so there'd be a few leftover. And the chocolate-dipped Oreo Molecules were her idea and I looove how creative and perfectly themed they are!

And the amazing Jessica of J&J Bakeshop - local here in VA - provided us with the perfect cookies decorated to look like the element of Charlie!! She is so talented, y'all. I ordered specialty cookies from her for Christmas gifts last year and I encourage you all to find a reason to need cookies just to see what she can do!

And I made the cupcakes because I'm a cupcake snob now and can only eat the cake that my BFF, Mandie, makes or the cake my BFF, Mandie, taught me how to make.
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I was also really proud of my party favor idea! Last summer, I taught Charlie the Mentos + Diet Soda reaction - read about it here - (so many links in this post!!). He loved it so much that I figured it should either be an experiment at the party or the favor! Since it's pretty messy and doesn't take very long to react, I figured, favor it is! I think it's always best to send the messy stuff home to the parents. Just like it's always best to serve the guests all the sugar RIGHT before the end of the party. :)
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Did you know that lab coats are RIDICULOUSLY expensive?? And that even the costume ones for kids to play doctor and dress up with on Halloween don't even dip below $10 each?? As much as I wanted real lab coats that I'd have embroidered with guest names for the party, that's just plain insane and I could not encourage the market to continue to charge those prices! Harumph!!

Instead, I bought the 5-pack of two-sizes-too-large white undershirt tees from Target and cut them up the middle! Voila! Lab coats on the cheap!

I did splurge on party color lab goggles for about $3 each. Totally worth it. So cute.

And Charlie's adorable science shirt was a custom design by Ella Mella who rocks my world with their awesome kid's fashions.
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And Henry's shirt was sent to us from Periodically Inspired! I just love how she smooshed periodic table elements together to form geeky-chic words. Henry's my precious little GeNiUS!! And a bit of a camera ham, too!

Once the house was decorated and the kids dressed, it was time to paaaaartay!

An amazing woman, Calsin, runs a business of bringing science, technology, engineering and mathemathics to parties and playdates and schools, oh my! She. Is. Awesome. She told me that if she didn't have her business, she'd set up a lab in her garage and experiment anyway! I loved it. That's how I feel about my photography. If there wasn't work, there'd STILL be pictures. Her business, STEM-KIDS, is such a great concept. Learning can be a BLAST (literally!) and parties don't have to lack brain power, either! Calsin can tailor the experiments for any party. I didn't want the party to cross sciences (OCD, much?) so everything had to stay in a "chemistry" theme. Duh. And, the experiments also needed to entertain eight very active nine year olds.  Calsin knew just what to do -- MESSY, hands-on chemical reactions that would result in slime, exploding "elephant toothpaste" and a giant bowl full of smoky, bubbly dry ice!

EXPERIMENT #1: SLIME

The kids loved this. Calsin set up a table full of the necessary ingredients and as the kids started to mix everything together, it started forming ooey-gooey slime! After they finished squishing it in their fingers, we packed up their custom-colored slime in take home bags!
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EXPERIMENT #2: ELEPHANT TOOTHPASTE

Whats better than seeing foamy goo grow and grow and grow, so much so that it spills up and out of a bottle and into a tray for you to play with it!? NOTHING!
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Birthday boy was the first one to pour in the special ingredient to make the chemical reaction activate! He was SO excited!! And, um, he's also incredibly cute.
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EXPERIMENT #3: SUBLIMATION DEMONSTRATION

I'm a creative. I photograph things. I can write fairly well. And I daydream great things. I enjoy and am awed by science but, I am no scientist. So, I have to admit that when Calsin said we'd do a "sublimation demonstration", I just blindly nodded my head like I had a clue what she was talking about.

Google and Wikipedia say that sublimation is "the transition of a substance directly from the solid to the gas phase without passing through an intermediate liquid phase." So, why the dry ice turned into a smoky gas without any water sneaking in between those phases, all makes sense now. (Can you tell I was concentrating on proper exposure and focus while she was explaining all of this to the kiddos???) Oy.
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Adding in some dish washing liquid will create a giant bubble that will enclose the smoke inside of it and when it pops, the smoke explodes out! It's really fun and the kids obviously LOVED getting the chance to be the one to pop the bubble!
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And then it was time to blow out the candles and for me to cry the weepy mama-cry because my baaaaaaby is NINE!!!
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See the party with all our vendor info plus more of my wit and charm in describing the details (and more pictures!!) on the fabulous and well-followed Hostess with the Mostess blog HERE.

Thursday, June 20, 2013

Last Day of School

Holy crap. I have a fourth grader. This is a BIG deal. I remember fourth grade. That was the year when I just couldn't stand reading Johnny Tremaine (boooooooring) so I skimmed it instead, then busted out a book report for the first time without actually having done the work (such.a.rebel). That was the year a new, cute boy came to our school and sat across from me and all I could think was that he was sooo annoying (two years later, I was head-over-heels in love with him). That was the year I first found out about the Titanic and made my mom drive me to the library so I could research all about it. (This was SEVEN years before the movie. I was totally ahead of my time). That was the year that my first friend got her first period and that was HUGE. That was the year that Mrs. Banks hid Reeses peanut butter cups in her drawer and she'd give you one if you had the hiccups. So, naturally, I faked hiccups all.the.time. That was the last year the teacher still read stories out loud to us after recess and I can remember Number the Stars by Lois Lowry almost perfectly.

Fourth grade. FOURTH GRADE! What is that!? How have I raised someone to the point that they are going to REMEMBER FOURTH GRADE!? I'm only 30, how do I have a fourth grader? Oh, crap. No, that's not even true, I'm 31. Damn it!

Look, I am not one of "those" moms. I don't helicopter. I don't want my children to like me so much that I can't control them. I don't fill their schedules so they won't ever be bored. I don't cater to them - much. But I am head over heels for them. And the last day of school is one of those times that gets to me every year where I become a weepy, reflective mess of a mommy. What is it about your first child that it's almost impossible to think about them growing up without seeing that teeny tiny little bundle you held in your arms, freshly new to life, as your heart just about exploded out of your chest? I just can't believe that it's been nine years since I stared down at those big brown eyes for the first time and realized that my life would be completely different - and 5000 times more amazing - with him in it.

I just can't believe that he's as tall as my shoulder, has big front teeth and wants gel in his hair because it looks cool. I just can't believe that he will choose to watch baseball by himself and talk about all that baseball stuff with his dad like it's their own foreign language. I can't believe that he will empty the dishwasher, take out the recycling, make his own lunch and occasionally, tell me "no!" even though he knows the consequences. I can't believe he thinks his own brilliant thoughts and has his own brilliant opinions.

I can't believe that in three short months, he's going to fourth grade.

I just can't believe it.

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My God, he's handsome.

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On the last day of school, the other room mom and I brought pizza for their class lunch while they watched a movie and signed yearbooks. The teacher had allowed them to sit next to whomever they chose and all the boys were in a row, sandwiched between two rows of girls. I watched Charlie as he giggled to his friend, Cal, begged for extra pizza, and accepted attention confidently as the class called out to him as the tiger in Swiss Family Robinson came on screen, since it was his assigned animal from their big research and presentation project.

I watched and I could see... he's happy. He's a really good, really happy kid. My heart is still as full as it was when I first met him. I love him so much. I love every single thing about him. And I am so proud.

And when I watch him, I still see him with those same brand-new-mama eyes. I marvel at him. I am amazed by him. Tears flood to my eyes if I think about it too much. It's an overhwleming, all-consuming love. I still don't really understand how or why he came to me back in those days when I was so young and had no clue about a thing, but my God! I am so grateful. I am so grateful that he is in my life. And I am in his.
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And, as has become our new tradition, the last day of school means there will be a water fight! Not only is it a wonderful treat for the kids to walk home to tons of loaded squirt guns and water balloons, but it also, momentarily, takes away all the sadness of that last day. I wrote about this last year and had many, many more pictures then. It was rainy this year so I had to pack away the DSLR and turn to instagram.

Henry was, as usual, adorable. Last year, the water fight made him cry, but this year he LOVED it. He just about attacked me to help fill the water balloons! So much so that every time I'd turn my head, he'd snatch one out of the bucket and smash it onto the driveway. I was baking a cake while filling balloons and when I walked inside for TWO SECONDS to turn the pans around, I came back out to find the neighbor had stopped his jeep to tattle on Henry for ransacking my bucket and throwing about 15 of our ammo into the street. Monster.
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I'd love to be able to stop time. But since it's impossible to avoid last days, I'm just so lucky to be living these moments with these amazing boys.