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February 26, 2007

home for sale

we have decided to put our home up for sale. it sits on the corner of 42nd and alabama avenue in historic st. elmo. with around 1,700 sq. ft., this home in spacious and filled with beautiful windows that look over lookout mountain. high ceilings, refinished hardwood floors, and the original trim together give this home a lot of historic character, but our favorite aspect of this house is it's location in st. elmo. we have amazing neighbors that we are so sad to leave. click here for more information.

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February 21, 2007

a hand full

i am perpetually reminded that "i have my hands full" with three, little boys. despite the truth of this statement, it is difficult to graciously accept this comment over and over and over again. yes, we have a lot going on, but it is such a shame if those that comment cannot see that most things that are worth doing or having are difficult.

oliver has always been a joy. he snuggles. readily accepts however many kisses we send his way. is content to follow his big brothers around. plays well alone and in groups. i really could go on...we seemed to go right past the stages involved with the age of two with minimal temper tantrums and disobedient behavior.

he will be three in just a couple of weeks, and it seems that he was just a little behind when it came to asserting his will. now, he screams when he is sure that someone has taken a piece of his cereal; a desired toy is in sight but unfortunately in the hands of a bigger brother; when a snack is not handed out at the right time; or at just about any other point when he is not granted exactly what his one-track mind is thinking of. whew! thank goodness that i have dealt with a couple of other strong-willed little ones before meeting this stage with oliver.

i do find myself thinking that at this point it is true that i am busier and running in several directions at once. it does not help that we are facing some stressful times as a family that happen to be unrelated to the children. our days do seem longer, and we do look forward to bedtime. what is quite discouraging is when i put the boys down only to be faced with a whole roll of toilet paper carefully unrolled and crammed into the toilet--a small gift from oliver constructed when i was cleaning up dinner or helping with homework. other frustrating moments: visiting a friend only to find out that in those few moments i was caught up in conversation, oliver emptied a large quantity of fish food into their tank (we may be buying some new aquatic creatures for these friends in the near future). finding him alone with a marker with a face creatively painted with said marker. this morning, i left him alone in the living room with a video on and came back in to see him kissing dora the explorer on the screen. believe me, there are other related incidents...

my intention is not to focus on the negative. i actually find these incidents funny as well as maddening. i suppose i have enough friends with older children that i have a slight idea that greater struggles do lie ahead and that i should attempt to be consistent and keep my sense of humor.

ollie sporting the boys new helmet

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February 08, 2007

outing with dad

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February 05, 2007

new purses

i have been promising an update to my etsy shop for a couple of months. most of the purses that i made before christmas were sold or given as gifts in december, so i have been working on a little collection to sell.

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February 04, 2007

snowfall

i thought that i should go ahead and post these pictures of our first snowfall of the year. a few of the teachers at aidan's school had informed the children of this thing called a "snow day," so aidan came home filled with hope of seeing masses of this white stuff when he awoke the next morning. sure enough, when he jumped out of bed at 6am thursday morning everything was beautifully covered with snow. soon aidan and oliver were dancing in our room, holding our curtains back, and singing "oh yea, it's a snow day. oh, yea, it's a snow day." of course, they were also trying to pry us out of bed to play in the snow. after somehow encouraging them to play quietly in their room for a couple of hours (mean parents, i know), we all packed on the outer wear and headed into the wintery morning. abe, who was spending a few days with his grandparents, enjoyed time in the snow the following day. to make sure that his brother did not miss out on the fun, aidan did keep some snow in plastic containers in the freezer to show abel when he came home.

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