Portland, Oregon

Paul has been invited to interview at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Oregon. The interview is scheduled for early December and we're really excited!

Where have I gone?

If you haven't heard from me for awhile and have been wondering where I am I'll tell you...I've been in Forks, Washington with Bella and Edward. Ok, now that you all think I'm crazy I might as well spill my guts...I think I AM going a little crazy! I'm jittery and anxious as I sit here and post because I'm not reading...I told you before that I read Twilight in 2 days. Well, it only got worse from there. I read the second book, New Moon, which is 563 pages, in 24 hours. I'm now on the third book, Eclipse, and I don't think I'll be returning to reality until I'm done. Then I'll have to wait until next fall for the fourth, and final book in the series. That makes me want to PANIC. What will I do? Maybe start paying attention to my kids, husband, and house : ) All I can say is READ THESE BOOKS! I can pretty much gaurantee that by the end of book one you will be IN LOVE with a 17-year old vampire named Edward Cullen. I know I am : ) And if you don't like it...well don't tell me because I might take it a little too personally. Just kidding (sort of)! Ok, I really can't take anymore of this blogging stuff right now. Alex is sleeping and I'm missing out on precious time with Edward...catch you later (probably not until I'm done with Eclipse.

My new obsession

Yes, you could say I am obsessed. I really wasn't that interested in reading this book, but after hearing so much about it, I was curious. So I broke down and read the first book of the Twilight series...in 2 days. I immediately requested the sequel from the library only to find I was #101 on the hold list. Not okay. I was going to actually BUY it today at Target but, of course, it was sold out. So then I called a girl in my new ward, that I barely know, because I vaguely remembered overhearing a conversation that she owned all three books in the series. My memory proved correct, and as soon as I hung up the phone we were on our way to her house to pick it up. I'm going to have to exercises a little more self-control though. Last night Paul was demanding that I put my book down and pay attention to him!

Confused parroting

We were in Target today and I couldn't find what I was looking for. Noah, once again picking up on my frustration said, "Jeepers-craps!" This would be a combination of "Jeepers-creepers" which Paul always says, and "Crap" which, apparently mommy says a little too much...oops : )I stared at him for a moment and then turned my back and silently laughed hysterically. I think he noticed though because I heard a little giggle come from him. I turned to him and told him nonchalantly that those weren't very polite words and we shouldn't say them. But a few minutes later, when I asked him to help me look for something, I heard him mutter under his breath again "Jeepers-craps"

Unsolved Mystery

I went jogging with the kids this morning, our usual route around the lake. After playing at the lake for a few minutes (long enough for Noah to fall and scrape his OTHER knee) I loaded the kids back into the stroller for our jog home. Alex had her pretty pink crocs on when we left...but when we arrived home they were gone. Both of them (although I don't know what I would do with just one). I was not happy. I was also too tired to jog back to the lake and back home again, so I threw the kids into the van and we drove our route, scouring the sidewalks for a pair of little pink crocs. No luck! How could that happen? It only takes us 12 minutes to jog home from the lake, how could they have disappeared so fast? I kept telling Alex she was a naughty girl, but for some reason, no matter how stern I am when I say it, she thinks that's funny. When we got inside this was my conversation with my kids:

Alex: Show! Show!
Mom: Ok, mommy will turn on a show for my little naughty girl
Noah: And for her really nice, good, big brother!

So, no more pretty pink crocs for Alex...oh well, at least now I don't have to worry about her leg being amputated by an escalator : )

Leaning Tower of Chocolate?

Ok, that was a totally cheesy title for this post...I know Paul's gonna give me a hard time for that.

I learned today (the hard way) that I'm not very good at stacking cakes. Oh well, this chocolate cake may not look appetizing but it tastes great! I'd share the recipe with you but you probably already have it (see back of Hershey's Baking Cocoa box) : )

Alex did not get to enjoy the fruits of her labors, she was fast asleep by the time this piece of art was finished. Noah however, enjoyed a nice big slice before bed. I said, "Isn't it delicious?" He paused for a minute then replied, "No...it's just good." Well, I didn't know I had a chocolate connosieur on my hands. I think it's delicious anyways, and so does Paul!

Little Bakers

Noah and Alex "helping" mommy make a cake. Noah kept up a steady stream of instuctions, and Alex was singing the whole time (completely oblivious to her big brothers instructions). We were having a blast until the floor became so cluttered that Alex kept tripping over glass bowls and slipping on cookie sheets. What would I do without my little helpers : )

Another interview invite...

Paul got an invitation to interview at Wake Forest University, in North Carolina. We'll continue to keep you all updated : )

Immunizations for Alex

Yesterday was Alex's 18-month well-child visit. Alex HATES going to the doctor. She's clingy and whiney the whole time and doesn't cooperate with the nurses or doctor. I admit that, with both of my kids, I cried the first time they got shots as newborns. But we've been through it enough times by now that I've toughened up considerably. So I wasn't prepared for my tears...But this time Alex remembered and knew what was coming. As soon as the doctor left and the nurse walked in Alex started clinging to me and sobbing hysterically, "Owie! Owie! Owie!" It was heartbreaking!

Another bug story...

We were all getting ready for church last sunday and I walked into the dining room and barely stifled my scream...however, I learned from our experience with the ant what the kids would do if they saw me freak out about a bug : ) But this was no ordinary bug climbing up my wall...in fact I had no idea what it was, just that it was big and FREAKY! I quickly and quietly rushed Paul into the room (in his towel) to show him. "Oh, that's just a centipede. Get a shoe and kill it" he calmly stated. Yeah right! That thing was like 3 feet long! Ok, more like three inches, but seriously...I was not about to go near it. Paul kept insisting there was nothing to be afraid of because it wouldn't hurt me. Why don't men get that fear of bugs is not a rational fear? I know it's not going to hurt me but that doesn't make it any less terrifying...I mean, can you imagine that thing crawling on you?!? So, I was standing guard in the dining room, waiting for Paul to come and kill it when I realized if I didn't hurry and blowdry my hair I would make us late for church. It wasn't moving much though so Paul and I decided it was safe to leave it where it was for a few minutes until Paul could get dressed and come take care of it. A few minutes later I hear Paul say, "Hey, where did it go?" Are you kidding me!!! We searched, but never did find it. So now, anytime I see something out of the corner of my eye, feel something brush against my skin, or sit down on the toilet (anyone seen Arachnaphobia?) I freak out. I just know it's going to reappear...and Paul better be home when it does! This is what it looked like (seriously).

Smarty Pants

We went jogging yesterday and I let the kids get out and play at the lake for awhile (yes, I needed a breather). Of course they wanted to play in the dirt. When I loaded Alex back into the stroller her clothes were filthy and her hands were black . But when we got home her whole face was black! I took one look at her and said, "Oh my gosh!" Alex looked back at me and said, "Gosh dangit! What a mess!" Here she is, using her dirty hands to eat candy - I'm such a good mom : ) Anything to get her to sit still for a picture!

Expressions of frustration...

Yesterday was a very busy day - visiting teaching, errands, birthday party. We came home exhausted and ready to take a break. We got to the back porch and the screen door was jammed shut - it really wouldn't budge. We tried the front door but it's always locked and we don't have a key for it. Then we tried the neighbor but he wasn't home, so we went back to the porch and tried the back door again. I was struggling with it and the kids could tell I was frustrated. This is what they had to say:

Noah: "Ooohhhh, this is re-dick-alis!" (interpretation - ridiculous)

Alex: "Gosh dangit, gosh dangit, gosh dangit!"

Apparently that's the worst thing they've ever heard me say - thank goodness : )

And yes, I did get the screen door "un-stuck." Why doesn't Noah ever call me a superhero?

Congratulations Paul!

So, Paul may have posted a list of all the schools we applied to for residency, but he neglected to tell you that he has already received his first invitation to interview...at the Mayo Clinic!

Congratulations Paul! I'm so proud of you and I love you!

Too embarassing to post? Nah...

Noah singing along to his favorite show, Caillou, in his undies of course. And I think he must have gotten those dance moves from Paul...or Uncle Tanner : )

Crazy Alex

Not a good picture, I know. But what you are seeing is the beginnings of Alex's "crazy face" caught on camera for the very first time! This is truly miraculous! I never thought it would happen. For those of you who have never witnessed it in person, I'm sorry, I can't even begin to describe or explain it to you. It's just something she does when she's really wound up and excited. It's like she's suddenly lost all control. It's hilarious...and frightening. You never know what's she's going to do next when she makes her "crazy face."

Scary Alex

Alex loves to "scare" people - another little trick she learned from big brother. She runs up to you and yells "RRRAAAAAAA!" Terrifying, I know. After eating oreos though, it's a litte scarier than usual - I was afraid I was going to end up splattered with chocolate goo

Pretty Alex...Pantless Alex

I took these pictures the other day because I just thought Alex looked especially cute - pretty pigtails, pretty shirt, and...wait no pants? That's right, Alex who always wants to be like big brother, has started taking off her pants as well. People are going to start to wonder what we're teaching our children in the Gunn household. I can assure you that Paul and I do not remove our pants when we walk through the door (although Paul would probably prefer that we did).

P.S. Alex thinks she needs to have her face pressed up against the camera lens to get her picture taken - the only way I could get anything other than a close up of her mouth and nose was to catch her running at high speed around the dining room table...I'll take what I can get : )

Noah got baptized!

Ok, not really...I hope it's not sacreligious to joke around about this.

After oreo cookies Noah and Alex were taking a bath together. I got Alex out first and stepped out of the bathroom for a couple minutes to get her diaper on. I know, I know, you're never supposed to do that...and I did get freaked out for a minute because when I poked my head around the corner to check on Noah I couldn't see him. I raced over to the tub and found him like this...laying on his back, submerging his head (but not his face) underneath the water. He smiled up at me and said, "Mom, did you know I got baptized?" Hilarious! At least he's not afraid of it anymore. I took him to his first baptism about 6 months ago and after Noah watched the kid get dunked he looked at me and whimpered, "Mommy, I don't want to get baptized!"

Oreo Piggies

How do you eat your oreos? Noah likes to untwist them and eat one side at a time, while Alex prefers to shove as many whole cookies into her mouth at one time as she can get her hands on. Needless to say, it was bathtime after this

Noah's first painting!

For preschool all the kids bring a backpack with certain items - scissors, glue stick, sitting mat, paint shirt. Noah has been most excited about the paint shirt. When I picked him up from his first day of preschool he told me all about it on the way home. Then he said, "But mom, we didn't paint!" His one dissapointment. Luckily his second day of preschool did entail a paint project. The mom who taught that day told me Noah was more excited than any of the other kids and wanted to go first (they were taking shifts). But then he realized that the teacher needed to trace his body onto the poster first - he flat out refused. So they traced another little boy for Noah and Noah still got to paint a picture of himself. He was so proud we went right home and hung it in his bedroom. When I asked him why he didn't want to get traced he said, "I thought it was pretty scary." I said, "That's not scary." Noah started giggling and admitted, "I was too shy!"

P.S. Notice that Noah is holding one leg of his shorts up. Remember that scraped knee he got on Labor Day, while I was running the 5K? Yep, that's it. It's been an ordeal for the past 2 weeks! He wants a band-aid on...now he wants it off but he screams and cries because it hurts to take it-off...he's re-opened the wound several times and caused it to bleed again which totally freaks him out...and, most importantly, he cannot STAND for any piece of clothing to touch band-aid or scab (he reminds me every time I help him dress/undress). So, yes, he's been walking around with his shorts held up for 2 weeks. There's hardly any scab left but he's obviously not going to stop until it's completely healed. What a weirdo - he always looks hilarious walking around in public with his shorts pulled up almost to his underwear, his white thigh exposed : )

Noah Paul Gunn, Future MD

Noah loves wearing this scrub cap Paul brought home

Another Perfect Day (almost)

Saturday was great...Another crisp cool, fall-like day. Since our kids have nothing but shorts, tank-tops and flip-flops we decided to head to the outlets and get the kids outfitted for fall/winter. Those of you who have ever ridden in a car with my 2 children will understand and appreciate how much courage this took on our part...It is a 45 minute drive. I was so proud of Paul for being willing to take a family outing all in the same car : ) The kids did miraculously well on the way there. We headed straight to Baby Gap, caused a little bit of a scene and a very big mess, with the kids pulling everything off hangers and shelves. Noah wants to pick out his own clothes now and Alex is obsessed with shoes (she gets that from her dad...really). Noah kept trying to put something in my shopping bag and I kept taking it out without paying much attention and he finally snapped at me, "Mom, I want to buy these undies for Alex!" I have no idea why, but yes, he did have a package of little girls pink panties. What a helpful brother : ) After spending way too much money (growing kids are ridiculously expensive) we headed over to Stride Rite - Alex was happy as can be to try on hundreds of pairs of shoes - Noah, on the other hand...after bribing, pleading, threatening and cajoling we finally resorted to chasing him through the store (which he of course thought was hilarious) and holding him down just to hold a shoe up to the bottom of his foot. After that the kids and I headed off to the playground while Paul looked for a shirt and tie to wear with his new "interview" suit. No luck for Paul, unfortunately.

We drove through Wendy's and raced home (with Alex screaming half the time because she didn't want to share the Sprite with Noah) just in time for babysitting group. The family we swap with wanted to go test-drive some cars and the dealreships are closed at night...so we were scheduled to babysit from 3-5 and then we'd take our kids to their place from 6-8 for our date night. Alex was talking a nap, their little boy Caleb was falling asleep in my lap, and Noah and Ammon were coloring...at least that's what we thought they were doing. We could see them sitting in the dining room with the paper and crayon box out and they were laughing and having a great time together. Noah walks in a few minutes later with a look I know all too well - that guilty smile. I think he's thinking something like this: Mom, I want to tell you what I did because I'm so proud, but I know you won't be. Here's how our conversation actually went:

Noah: Mom, I've been cutting
Me: With your scissors?
Noah: Yeah
Me: What have you been cutting?
Noah: Ammon's hair!

I thought I was going to throw up. I raced over to Ammon who proudly showed off his new haircut...I brushed the top of his head with my hands and big chunks of hair fell to the floor. Panic. I was sure his parents would never trust us with their kids again or even want to have anything to do with us. Luckily, that was not the case. They thought it was pretty funny actually. I have to admit, I was relieved he'd cut a little boy's hair, who can get a buzz cut, and not a little girl's (like Alex)!

An hour later we were dropping our kids off and heading out for date night, just me and Paul. Considering what we'd spent on the kids clothes that day Paul suggested we head to McDonald's. We probably would have if it wasn't in the ghetto : ) Instead we treated ourselves to a shared burritto at Chipotle and a stroll through the book store. It was great! I don't think we'd have made it happy and sane through med school without date night.

That was our almost perfect Saturday - minus the haircut and I'd have called it perfect! Sorry to bore you all with the details, but for me it was one of the funnest days we've had as a family recently and I want to remember it (ok, I know "funnest" is not a word but I like it). Hope you all had a great Saturday too!

Residency applications

So I sent my applications to anesthesiology residency programs in this week and these are the places we applied:

University of Washington
Oregon Health and Science University
Stanford University
UC Davis
UC San Diego
University of Arizona
University of Utah
University of Colorado
University of New Mexico
University of Minnesota
Mayo Clinic
University of Wisconsin
University of Iowa
University Hospitals of Cleveland
Cleveland Clinic
Duke University
Wake Forest University

Now we just wait to be invited for interviews. We won't find out where we'll going until March 20.

Today's quotes from Noah

I was giving hugs to Noah and Alex and Noah said, "We love alls each others!"

I overheard Noah say to Alex, very seriously, "Alex, daddy is a superhero"

The Perfect Day

I've been feeling a little guilty...I think I talk/blog more about the rough moments I have with my kids than the good ones. Let's be honest, the bad days make for much more entertaining stories! But, I wanted to have it on the record that the kids and I had a great day together this week. It was as close to perfect as you can come when you're broke, your husband is an over-worked med-student, and you have 2 toddlers : ) It was just a regular day - nothing super exciting or out of the ordinary...morning jog to the lake, afternoon trip to target, fhe. The kids were just so happy, sweet, and enjoyable to be around...THE WHOLE DAY! I think Heavenly Father knows I need those days every once in awhile - they keep me going. So, for anyone who's been reading my blog and wondering...I absolutely love my kids!

AAHHH, Fall

Today was the first day that has felt like fall - and I loved it! I took the kids to the JCC Park today - Noah was so excited he actually agreed to wear pants! I love getting out the warm clothes. Speaking of which...my Roots sweat suit. I'm sick with a cold so after playing at the park with the kids this morning I came home and threw on my sweat suit...I instantly felt better, healthier, happier. Ok, slight exaggeration, I was not instantly cured, but it felt so good! This is the best sweat suit ever, I think everyone should have one. Oh, the simple pleasures in life...like a comfy Roots sweat suit. Does it count as a "simple" pleasure if it's not free/cheap? Maybe the word I'm looking for is "splurge." Either way, thanks Mom and Dad!

Dinner/Dessert

So I was craving something sweet tonight and was about to whip up a homemade chocolate cake with chocolate frosting (a new favorite in our house) but I felt a little guilty - I've only been running once this week. I decided to make crepes instead. Noah had a blast filling them up with butter, jam, and 2 kinds of sugar. Bon Appetit! Did I mention this was his dinner? Oh well, it's better than chocolate cake, right?

Sticker Removal

Just for the record, Alex did not stick her finger in a light socket, get struck by lightning, or take a ride in Grandpa's porsche with the top down...this is just what her hair looks like when she wakes up from her nap. She goes to bed a pretty little girl with pigtails and wakes up looking...well, scary. Poor Alex, we love you!

Stickers

My kids love stickers. They always make a huge mess, no matter how many times I say "Stickers are for hands and paper!" It just doesn't sink in. Today, I found Noah feeding them to Alex, who was happily gobbling them up. After scolding them, and telling them both that it was dangerous I came back to find Alex covered head to toe in stickers (oh yeah, and my dining room floor, chairs, and table). This is not the first time this has happened but it is the first time that they have ever "stickered" her eyes shut. Alex seems to enjoy this game...the problem comes when it's time to remove the stickers. She screams her head off! Come on, she doesn't even have any hair on her body, it can't hurt that bad! You'd think she would learn, but this happens every couple of days.


I had already begun removing some stickers from her when I thought to take a picture. Noah, thinking that Alex was crying about getting her picture taken ran over to her and said, "Oh, you don't have to be alone baby!" He sat down next to her and said "Cheese!" That, and her trusty blanky, cheered her up.

First Day of Preschool!

So here's my goofy kid on his first day of preschool. He was so excited! He was running circles around Alex this morning chanting, "I'm going to preschool! I'm going to preschool! I'm going to preschool!" Noah was especially excited to use his backpack. He helped me pack it last night with all the necessary preschool supplies and then he wore it around the house the rest of the night. Among his backpack items were 2 of his most cherished possesions - toy airplanes, which he brought for show and tell because the letter of the day was A. Noah had asked me several times if I was going to stay with him at preschool and I explained several times why I wasn't - so I wasn't sure how he would react when I dropped him off. Well, Noah marched up to the front porch and was ringing Madison's doorbell before I even had Alex out of her carseat. He seemed a little unsure about things once we were inside but as more kids arrived and sat down at the play-doh table with him he warmed right up. Next thing I knew he was waving at me saying, "Bye mom, bye Alex!" Well, that was easy...sort of...I'm a little embarassed to admit this but I got a little teary on the way home. Now, at the end of the day I'm feeling a little teary again but for the opposite reason - does anyone want to adopt 2 naughty, screaming, crying, fighting, defiant, smart-mouthed, tantrum throwing children? No? Ok, ok, I guess I'll keep them. : )

Alex's reaction to Noah's first day of preschool was funny as well...When we came home, just the two of us, she had a silly grin on her face. She kept pointing back and forth saying, "Momma...Alex!" and giggling. I think she was excited to have some time alone with Mommy. But when I told her it was time to go pick up Noah she ran for the door chanting his name.

Yes, that's really me at the sewing machine

So Noah needed a "sitting square" for preschool. Normally my motto is "If you can't buy it, we don't have it. If we can't afford, we'll live without it." I don't do crafts. PERIOD. But it's not like I could go out and buy a "sitting square" (official definition - a mat to sit on during circle time). I thought about finding a scrap of carpet or just a piece of felt but I wanted it to be something meaningful for Noah, to help get him excited for preschool. He's been a little nervous and apparently had some misconceptions. I was talking to him about all the things he was going to be doing at preschool and when I mentioned circle time Noah started whimpering and said, "I'm scared of circle time!" When I asked him why he said, "Do we have to go really really fast?" I have no idea what he was envisioning, but obviously not anything close to what circle time actually is. When I explained it to him he was very relieved. So, back to the sitting square. How hard could it be to sew 2 pieces of fabric together with a little bit of trim around the edges? This, from the girl who hasn't touched a sewing machine since 8th grade and who has a major anxiety attack anytime she walks into a craft store! But I decided to tough it out...ok not really. On the way to the craft store I called my friend Jen for backup - luckily she was willing to come with me and Noah to the store and I roped her into helping me with this project. And thank goodness! I honestly couldn't have done it on my own. So, after showing Noah about 20 different fabrics with bugs, balls, cars, and anything boy you can think of he settled on the dinosaurs. But when we took it to the counter to be measured and cut Noah got upset. When we got home I said, "Show dad what you picked out for your preschool mat!" Noah took the fabric and ran and hid. I found him crying in our room. He kept saying, "I didn't want her to cut the dinosaurs!" I reassured him I would sew it up for him but this holds no meaning to my kids, who have never even seen a sewing machine. To make a long story short, I took my supplies over to Jen's house who helped me measure, cut, and iron the batting to the fabric. She set up the sewing machine for me but I am proud to say that I SEWED THE WHOLE THING BY MYSELF! Noah was very happy with the finished product and I must say, so am I (just don't look too close)! But let's be honest...I'll probably never touch a sewing machine for another 12 years.

Sick? How about some red licorice for dinner

On Saturday afternoon Noah started acting sick - the telltale sign is that he's not constantly bouncing off the walls. He complained of a headache and he seemed to be running a fever. All he wanted to do was lay on mom's bed - with mommy of course. Paul had some friends over to watch the BYU game that night so there was dinner and treats out on the table. Noah was supposed to be watching a movie on the portable DVD player in my room. I went to check on him and found him asleep in my rocking chair with red licorice all over his hands, chest, and face. I'm sure that really helped! He woke up when I tried to take a picture of him, and when I tried to clean him up he got annoyed with me: "Mommy, I don't feel good and I'm really tired. I need to take a rest in your chair." And eat candy.

Attack of the Cleveland Ant

The other day Paul the kids and I were driving home from a friends house. We'd just barely left when Paul suddenly swerved and muttered something under his breath (he denies it was a swear word). I screamed and Paul said, "Something bit me!" He was wearing flip-flops and something had gotten his toe. "What was it?" I said. Paul said he wasn't sure and we kept going. Seconds later, another yelp and swerve from Paul. He's swatting at the car mat and trying to drive, I lifted my feet onto my seat and started yelling, and both of the kids started sobbing! "Well what do you think it was?" I said. Paul kept insisting he didn't know, so I of course assumed the worst and said, "Was it a rat?" Paul thought that was the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard - what I meant though, was a little baby mouse. That could live in a car right? I'm sure it would have plenty of food to survive in our car. So, after bite number 2 Paul pulled over and shook out the car mat - still no sign of the culprit. I kept my feet up on the seat while trying to console our terrified children and Paul got back in and drove with one foot. A few minutes later Paul yelled, "There it is! Give me the wipes! No not one wipe, the whole package!" I'm scrambling and screaming, the kids are bawling all over again and Paul throws the package of wipes at the ant crawling across the dashboard. He missed. Paul and I proceeded to argue about the wipes. I didn't want to give him the whole package because I didn't want bug guts on it. He said, "If I'm doing the killing I get to choose the weapon!" Fair enough. A few more minutes, we've finally calmed the kids again, and out of the corner of my eye I see the ant crawling up my window. Chaos erupts. Paul yelling "Get it!" me screaming hysterically and throwing the wipes package at the window, kids now screaming like they're being tortured. Missed again. We arrived home with no further incidents but we never did get the ant...The next day I drove everywhere with one foot up on the seat. Great parenting, huh? Our kids will probably be afraid of ants for the rest of their lives

This may sound like a ridiculous story to anyone who's never seen a Cleveland ant...those of you who have know what I'm talking about. This picture is the closest thing I could find : )

All About Noah

The preschool kids are playing a get-to-know you game next week for their first day of class and I got a list of questions to ask Noah. Here are his reponses:

1. Favorite toy - My airplanes
2. Favorite color - Green
3. What I want to be when I grow up - A Doctor
4. Favorite food - Fish
5. Name of pet(s), or pet they would like to have - I want a fish named Norman

Interesting that the pet he wants to have is also his favorite food...I was thinking about getting him one but now I'm a little nervous

Strip Tease

We came home from the library yesterday afternoon and I put Alex straight to bed. I headed out to the living room to check on Noah and what did I find? A trail of clothes. First it was his shoes...a few feet further were his shorts...a few more steps and there's his shirt...all leading to a naked Noah asleep on my chair. I guess I should be grateful he left his underwear on this time. Paul's response to Noah's desire to always be naked: "Hey, I don't like to wear pants either." Wonderful.

This nap turned into a 3-hour event. Noah doesn't usually take naps but when he does he's comatose. Waking him is futile - he doesn't even open his eyes, just sobs hysterically until you let him go back to sleep. So yesterday he finally woke up on his own at 7pm. What time did Noah finally go to bed last night? 1am. Frustrating, yes - but I have to say, when he wakes up from these naps he's the sweetest little boy you've ever met! But the night wasn't over for me...Alex is teething and woke up sobbing hysterically at 5am - I didn't get her back to bed until 6am. I fell back asleep, praying the kids would sleep in, but no such luck. Noah was up at 6:45am. Paul was on call last night and when he came home this morning he thought it was pretty funny that he got more sleep than I did. Oh, motherhood...

5K!!!

I did it! On Labor Day I ran a 5k. I've never been much of a runner but this summer I've been going 3 days a week with the kids. I throw them in the Bob (our wonderful double jogging stroller, and one of my most prized posessions) and we make our 3 mile loop around the lake. If I'm feeling really tough we even make it around the second lake, adding another mile to our roundtrip total. I'm actually starting to enjoy it! At least, when the kids aren't fighting in the stroller and driving me nuts! That's when I turn up the i-pod and ignore them...although I do feel sorry for anyone within a one mile radius who can hear my kids screaming! This was my first race and my best buddy Jen did it with me. We turned out to be great running partners! Our goal was to make it in under 30 minutes. We kept a nice steady pace (even on the uphill sections!) and crossed the finish line at 28min 30 sec! Hurray for us! We got a nice surprise along the way too...Just after the second mile marker we spotted Jen's husband DJ, Paul, and the kids cheering us on. We were pretty tired at that point but seeing them gave us a little adrenaline rush, enough to keep us going. However, things did not go so well for Paul and the kids after we passed. The kids broke down, both crying for their mommy and Noah fell down and scraped his knee. Jen and I were waiting for them at the finish line and I could hear them before I could see them. Noah was sitting in the stroller sobbing about his bloddy knee and Paul was carrying Alex, who was also crying, while pushing the double stroller. Paul says next time they'll just see me at the finish line.

Jen and I had a lot of fun running together but we're obviously not in that great of shape because we were to out of breath to carry on a conversation. Our conversation over that 28min 30 sec run went like this:

"You doing ok?"
"Yeah, you"
"Yeah"
"How's the pace?"
"Good"
We're doing good"
"Keep it up"
"One more mile"

And that's it...Thanks for keeping me going Jen! Next step...10K!