Milkymilk

Pinpointing

We were at the playground this morning when I saw it, our first real hint of fall color for the season.  

This afternoon, while putting Harper's shoes on, I told her for each pair of shoes we buy, Tom's gives another pair to a little girl in a third world country who cannot afford shoes.

H:  "Like Leah?"  (Who lives down the street in a bigger house than ours.)

M:  "No, not like Leah."

H:  "Like Lexie?"  (Still a bigger house, and in a better location.)

M:  "No, not like Lexie..."  (Starting to realize I'd rather not delay our trip to the craft store by trying to explain what a third world country is to a three year old.)

H:  "Like Rachael?"  (Rachael is a new girl in her class, and I have never been to her house.)

M:  "Yes.  Like Rachael."

Them Apples

Skylar has taken the girls out for pancakes, leavening me home alone. It is crisp drizzly fall morning, and this kind of quiet is the kind that makes you feels you could conquer anything, an invincible quiet. Of course, the thing that sounds best to do is to stay in bed.

The girls and I went apple picking with some buddies yesterday. Even though there is an orchard around the corner, we made an hour drive to get ‘eco-apples’ at Lyman Orachards. It was well worth it. The orchard was amazing, full of beautiful apples and breath taking views. They also had a place to get lunch, which sealed the deal for me. We’ll definitely go again.

Only, Harper took a long car nap on the way hope, exhausted from her hard work picking six pounds of apples. She stayed up till 10:00, ugh. Why is it a forty minute nap adds three hours to bedtime? Any-who, we let her watch the X-Factor with us, and admittedly, she is getting to an age where it is kind of nice to have a late night with her, every once in a while. The end of babies is not all bad.

Bunnies and Pie, saying good bye to summer

We went to the fair recently, which can only mean one thing.  Summer is coming to an end. 

I’m not going to lie, fall cannot come soon enough.  Don’t get me wrong.  This summer was lovely, a mild August (other than the hurricane), discovering new beaches, real ice cream shakes, friends at the playground, picnics almost every day, trips to museums, vacations to see family, good times.

But, my one woman show has lost its charm with Harper.  She is getting restless for school to start, and I am, too.  I miss my guilty pleasure: alone time with Kathy Lee and Hoda.  Yes.  Judge way, I can take it.  Of course, there is fall color, and sweaters, and cooler days, and lack of sweat, and all of that good stuff to look forward to as well.  Oh, and just maybe, please please please, with longer nights the kids might sleep until 7 a.m. again, pretty please.        

The Longest Time

We are back from our annual-ish big family vacation extravaganza. This year: destination San Diego. And, what a difference a year makes. As much as I miss having an itty-bitty baby, daily I am thankful not to have to travel with an infant and a two year old. Okay, not that a toddler and a three year old are easy as pie, and I’m sure anyone next to us on the six hour flight home would gladly inform you there is no pie, or any thing pleasurable, involved. Not to mention, four days later, we are still feeling the three hour time difference EVERY NIGHT when none of the girls will GO TO SLEEP, and I have vowed we will never go to the west coast again as a result.  That said, it was an awesome trip.

It was really wonderful to see our family, and thanks to my lack of sleep deprivation (yea no infants!), I got to really enjoy them this year. We do this thing when we get together where every family takes turns making dinner for everyone. It is super cost effective and ridiculously yummy. I highly recommend it for your next big to-do.

It was a bit of an epiphany trip, if there is such a thing. Skylar and I got a chance to visit Los Angeles, without the kids. We lived there for a number of years. It is where we met; fell in love, got married, and where Harper was conceived. It is not that we have not been back since we left four years ago; we have. It is not that we have moved three times and had two children since we left; our buddies out there have made babies. Some of them have moved as well. It is just that it looks completely different coming form the East Coast. The scale is entirely foreign, the freeways massive beyond comprehension, the sprawl immeasurable. I don’t mean that in a critical way, though. Yes, it is a pain in the ass to get around, but there is something dazzling about the vastness. I sort of fell a little in love with it again, after a very bad breakup.

I also realized for the first time, after two years of mostly complaining, I love Connecticut. What? Who could love Connecticut? Me. Yup. Leafy trees, The Merritt, seasons, over-educated people at every turn with cardigans and kakis, golf, tennis, yacht clubs, light houses, pearls, towns with their own lifestyle magazines, tuna salad sandwiches on the beach, all of it. It is a pretty life.

Get Out

Last night we passed by our local gas station; it is staggering how high gas prices have gotten.  The thing that really turns my stomach about the whole thing is it is just about the last thing on earth I’d like to spend money on.  So, rather than griping, I’m walking.

We bought a second car a few months ago.  Since then I’ve been driving more, as it is just so easy now that I have a car at my disposal daily.  (We took turns, and switched days before.)  I’m giving it up.  I’m giving our nice family car, the relatively fuel efficient one, to Skylar a few days a week, and hitting the pavement.  It is beautiful outside, so we might as well enjoy it!

Living with two little ones in suburban sprawl and a lack of sidewalks (Why Connecticut?  Why?) we have a lot of gear to get us out of the house.   Today, I want to share my fave, my Beco Butterfly 2.

SWOOOOON!  This is my 5^th baby carrier, and my fave.  It is so easy to put Casey, almost 14 months and about 21 pounds, on my back for long walks.  It distributes her weight evenly between my shoulders and hips, so super comfy.  I’ve even carried Harper, 3 yrs and over 32 pounds, ½ mile in it without a problem. 

And, it is way cuter than our car.  Nor could a car cover a little leftover baby bump belly the way a baby carrier can.  See big oil, I don’t need you :P