September Smiles

For the first time in a looooooooong time, I have turned the calendar to September and actually smiled a big, huge smile. Although I loved teaching and it will always be a passion of mine, the feeling of knowing that September meant 9 more months of non-stop craziness was never something I enjoyed. It was especially tough to face the beginning of the school year once I became a mom. Knowing that 9 months would pass by before I got good, quality time with my own kid(s) was such a hard feeling.

This year was different. I am officially a mom and subbing just a day or two a week if I get the chance. The amount of stress I would normally feel at this time of the year is equal to the amount of joy I'm feeling being home with my babies just about every single day! I'm trying to figure out some sort of routine (yes, I said it...routine...shocker, right?!?). I thrive on routines and schedules, so this whole freedom of being home has been a bit of a challenge. I like the feeling that on some days there is absolutely nothing to do, but that can also start to get old in a hurry! For now, we're keeping busy by making trips to the library, going grocery shopping, hanging out with neighbors, starting MOPS, cleaning, doing laundry, and just hanging out together...it's more wonderful than I ever thought it would be!!!

Here's a few pictures to help you see just how much fun we've been having and all the smiles that go along with that fun!

Is it ever possible to get two kids to take a decent picture?!?
(Leah, Leah...look at the camera!)

(Okay Caleb, Leah is looking, but what are you doing?)

(Alrighty, you've both given up...maybe another day!)

another wonderful visit with Grandpa, Grandma, and Auntie Kalyn

celebrating the big 21 with Auntie Kalyn...hard to believe she was just 13 when we met

cutest boy in the world

cutest girl in the world

And we'll end with 3 facts about each kid:

CALEB:

1. finally gave up using the pacifier while sleeping (this momma can't believe her baby boy is now the farthest thing from a baby)

2. is super awesome with going potty...can't remember the last time he's had an accident

3. hates to share with his sister....his tricky way of getting toys away from her is to say that he's going to take the toy and "teach her how to use it"

LEAH:

1. wants to be on the move at all times (does so by utilizing the funniest "wounded soldier" crawl I've ever seen)

2. is so over the idea of eating baby food...can I just start eating the yummy stuff you guys are eating?!?

3. has the world's best belly laugh when you really get her going (Caleb tends to get her to laugh more than anyone else)

The 3 "F's" of the last FIVE weeks...

Okay...this time, we really do have a good excuse for why the blog has been left behind for five whole weeks. We have been SOOOOOOOOOOOO busy with :

a visit to a FUN park:

We went with the entire Lamont family to Cedar Point in Ohio. It was a blast to hang out with everyone and enjoy the awesome roller coasters. Caleb is pretty much Snoopy and Charlie Brown's biggest fan, so the fact that they are the mascots for this theme park worked out great. He loved meeting them at a character breakfast and riding all of their rides. Leah enjoyed watching and waiting for the day when she can ride too!

a FLOOD

Two days after getting home from our weekend in Ohio, we had a ton of rain. The sump pump in our basement stopped working and we ended up with a major flood. In order to take care of the water issue, we had to rip up the carpet and take down the (hideous) paneling. Taking down the paneling meant that the (hideous) drop ceiling had to come down as well as the drywall that it was glued and nailed to. We are SO blessed to have such an awesome church family that came to our rescue with this immense project. Several of the youth group boys managed to demo our entire basement in about 2 hours! Another friend from church helped by putting in two new sump pumps....and another couple came to help us paint when the new walls were put up. Meanwhile, everything that was in our basement ended up in either the garage or randomly placed throughout the house (not good for a person who likes everything organized and in its place). When all was said and done we were incredibly thankful that this happened for two reasons: we got rid of our hideous basement and have a new one paid for mostly by insurance....and we discovered a lot of mold behind the paneling that had probably been here for quite awhile and wouldn't have been taken care of had this not happened. God sure knew what he was doing!!!

FAMILY time

We have managed to spend a lot of quality time with family throughout these busy weeks. The kids are learning to enjoy each other's company a lot more now that Leah is getting older. She loves to watch Caleb and he loves to entertain her (and take away all of her toys). They had a ton of fun playing and enjoying our vacation to Lake of the Ozarks. This time, Daddy and Grandpa came too. It was SO nice to get away from the craziness at home for a week. We relaxed a lot and spent plenty of time in the hot, hot, hot Missouri sun. When we got back to reality we had a few more projects to finish up with our basement. Luckily, Grandpa Ron and Grandma Sue came up for the weekend so we could get just about everything done. The kids sure enjoyed seeing them!

This is the world's best....

DAD

He truly is an AMAZING father and these two kids are incredibly lucky to call him their daddy.

My New Boss(es)

It's official....as of last Thursday, I am no longer employed by Frankfort School District 157c. My new bosses are two of the coolest kids in the world and I'm so excited for this new chapter in my life. It was a VERY hard decision to leave behind a career that I spent forever dreaming about, 6 years studying for (undergrad and masters), and 6 years doing. Teaching was definitely the best place for me as far as a job is concerned. I loved what I did and despite the challenging days or kids that pushed every last button, I am happy I spent the last 6 years in a profession that helped me make a difference in the lives of little kids. After becoming a mom, however, I've realized that there are no other kids who need me more than my own...and for now, that's who I'll be focusing on.

I give plenty of credit to those who balance a career and family, but I just never found a way to give 100% to every area of my life when I was working. I want to be a wonderful teacher and a wonderful mom, but somehow I find it incredibly difficult to do both at the same time. I know that someday I'll be back in the classroom and I'll appreciate it much more when my mind isn't preoccupied with the demands of baby/toddlerhood. It would be great if something part-time came along, but for now I'll just try to sub here and there (I want to stay in the loop since teaching changes so much year after year).

So, for now, it's day in and day out of changing diapers, dealing with temper tantrums, cleaning up messes, cooking, dusting, vacuuming, washing, and somehow keeping my sanity through it all. Along with the not-so-pleasant demands of being at home come some of the best rewards in the world. Day in and day out I'll also see my kids smiling, laughing, playing, singing, dancing, growing, changing, and hearing the most heartwarming words a mom can hear: "I love you Mommy". I know this is where I'm meant to be and there is definitely a wonderful sense of peace I have with the decision that has been made.

How could I not feel at peace when I see how precious these two little darlings are:

A Face You Can't Help But Love

We have definitely not been as good about blogging since our family added its newest member in December. Life sure gets busy with two kids to chase after!

Miss Leah is now a whopping SIX MONTHS OLD (as of a few weeks ago on June 30). We can't help but wonder where the time went these past several months. Although there were days when it felt like time stood still, it really did fly by when looking back. It's hard to believe that in another six months she'll be leaving behind the baby stage and beginning the toddler phase.

As of right now Leah is hitting all of the major milestones that a six month old should. She can roll both ways, sit up for a little while on her own, eats all sorts of fruits and veggies, loves to "stand" and put pressure on her little feet, sleeps through the night, and babbles away like she's got really important things to say! She still has definite fussy moments (probably due to the fact that she doesn't nap very well) and her digestive issues have come back with the introduction of solids (but that's much easier to deal with now that she's a little older).

Despite a lot of trying moments, we sure have enjoyed these first six months with our little girl. We can't wait to see what the future holds for our little "chunky monkey"!

June Has Come and Gone

Wow, a whole month has passed already?!? I feel like June just started and now we're already at the start of July. It sure is nice to know that this year (assuming I'm not going back to teaching...we still haven't finalized that decision) there really isn't an "end" to my summer break at home with my little darlings. It has been such a busy, but fun month and we've loved every minute of it. I'll give a small recap of all we did and plenty of pictures to sum it up:

Miss Leah's first Spring/Summer has been filled with lots of showers and storms.

Potty training was definitely a challenge, but in the end we had much success!

Chesney (aka our babysitter) has a new favorite place to sleep.

We miss Daddy while he's at work.

We had SO much fun on our week long trip to Carmi!

(snuggling with Grandpa)

(someday she's really going to be mad at me for this one)

(Auntie Kalyn's attempt to stay clean while feeding Leah)

(breakfast with Grandpa)

(meeting my wonderful Great Aunt Denise)

(first horse ride...on an adorable miniature horse)

(we're starting to get the gist of this whole brother and sister thing)

Grandma and Grandpa (and Auntie Kalyn and Aunt Denise) all came to our house!

Father's Day trip to Bass Pro Shop.

Playdate with the Sabaka girls...Leah and Noel are just a week apart.

This new jumper is becoming my favorite spot!

We had an AWESOME time at Great Aunt Nancy (aka Ancy) and Great Uncle Dave's house.

(he's a fish)

(swimming in the wonderful Lake of the Ozarks with Grandma)

(hanging out on the dock)

(getting used to the pool...fish #2)

(playing under the "mushroom waterfall")

(relaxing in the pool)

(lunch break at the pool)

(taking my first ride on the "sea-doer")

(brushing up on my fishing skills)