My garden

This is the first year ever I have had a vegetable garden, granted it is very small, just along one side of my fence and only has a few tomato plants, one bell pepper plant, basil and mint in it, but I am very proud. I have grand plans of expanding next year with more peppers, squash, lettuce, etc. My tomatoes are doing very well and I am going to need to start figuring out something to do with them all. Also, as my mint supply is going strong, I am thinking of having a mojito party. I can even look up a recipe for a non-alcoholic version for non-drinkers. All in all, I am pretty pleased with my garden, it makes me very happy. Also, if you like tomatoes and want me to bring you some, let me know!

My day as a single working mom

Andy is out of town this week, on a consulting project in San Francisco, so I am doing the solo parent gig. Today was my first day ever as a single working mom. It is not easy and I am so blessed to have a husband who is around most of the time to share in the child-rearing. The day started at 3:45 AM with Joshua screaming. This, of course, woke me from my blissful sleep spread out across our queen sized bed (hey, there are some perks to being home alone). I ran in to get Joshua and tried to go back to sleep together on our bed. After an hour of sharing the bed with a rolly-poly toddler, I decided to put him back in his crib and get my extra hour of sleep. He did not like this, and protested, but eventually fell back asleep.

I was super-tired when my alarm clock went off at 6:00am, and turned it off and slept until 6:45. Joshua was still asleep after the middle of the night wakefulness, so I got a chance to take a quick shower and get ready by 7am. I am nothing if not efficient in the mornings, growing up sharing 1 shower with 5 people taught me this. I then had to WAKE JOSHUA UP (gasp) to get to the sitters and work.

Work was uneventful. I have a lot of organizing to do so when I leave my replacement is not lost at sea, and the day passed without incident. After work and picking up Joshua, we came home, had dinner together and played. Bedtime was a little tough because he refused to go into his crib (I set him up with his stuffed animals and blankets on the floor, we will see if he goes to sleep that way). All in all, not too bad of a day, but I am glad I do not have to do it all the time. Kudos to all those parents who do.

*Update.: Joshua was NOT sleeping, he is making a mess of his room. I had to put him in the crib and tough out the crying and beseeching.

Two little monkeys jumping on a bed

We had our good friends the Campings over this past weekend for dinner and afterwards let our two boys jump around in Joshua's crib. Looks like fun!

4th of July weekend

Ok, I realize this is late, chalk it up to a lot going on in my life right now. We had a great 4th of July weekend. Andy was able to NOT work for all 3 days (a small miracle in our house) and we spent the time doing fun summer things.







On Friday, the actual 4th, we spend the day at my parents, enjoying the Evanston Parade and a cook out. We got to hang out with my brother Jon and his girlfriend Caitlin and had a great time. Joshua missed the first part of the parade, but seemed to enjoy what he did see, especially the entries with music. I enjoyed the memories of growing up and seeing the ETHS band. Hey, they aren't great, but I was a proud member for 4 years and I even got to say hello to the conductor who hails from my days in high school.



On Saturday, after an early wake up call from Joshua (he was up a lot with all the noise from the pyros in our neighborhood, which I will NOT rant on here), we went to breakfast at m. henry *YUMMY* and then hit the beach for an hour and a half, making sand castles. Andy got sick of the sand, so we went home and Joshua took a SUPER long and early nap from 11-2 (he was tired, just like us). After nap time, we hit Millennium Park with friends. Joshua LOVED the water fountain, and thought it was very funny.

Sunday, was more low key with church in the AM and a brunch to celebrate with our friends the Campings as they dedicated their son at church. We had another day of eating really good food (too much, notice a theme for the weekend?) and spending time with friends and as a family. When we finally got home, we ALL crashed for a nap. What a great weekend!

I did it...

Well, yesterday I had the conversation with my boss resigning my position here at UIC. I have pretty mixed feelings about this, but I think it will be good. It has been time to move on for a while and for a bit I will be at home enjoying my toddler son (more pictures posted soon, I promise!). I don't have a last day yet, but we will work that out when she returns from out of town. If you want the gory details, ask me in person or call me, they will not be posted here. I do have a lot of peace about the decision. Thanks to all who prayed!