December 2012.

Oh, December.  I have a love/hate relationship with that month.

I love the holidays, hate the chaos that comes with it.  Love the cooler temps it brings to FL, hate when the temp spikes and I get back sweat while putting up my outside decorations.  Love the decorations, hate the fact that Floridians put up icicle lights and snowmen (My husband is totally included in this category.  He put icicle lights on our house last year.  I mean really, let’s not pretend that it’s ever going to snow here.  Frosty the Snowman would be a puddle.  Snoopy in a snowglobe?  I’m fine with it.)

 I saw this while at HobLob one day.  Of course I wanted to buy it immediately so that I could measure how much snow we get this year.  

Did December even happen?

No really. I'm not sure. Because those 31 days were a total blur. I tried getting ready for Christmas early, I really did. I had great aspirations of handmade gifts and holiday fun for the first Christmas that Brennan would kinda "get". I'm not sure why I thought I could pull that off when I am so consumed with taking care of children and maintaining a (semi) clean environment for them that I can barely keep my master bathroom from looking like a truck stop. Then there was that whole "how the heck am I supposed to get in the Christmas spirit when it's so hot outside that I have to turn on the AC because I'm sweating too much while putting up my tree?!" phase. Take that, add a dash of hearing "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" on the radio and you get a bawling, blubbering mess of a me.

But eventually I pulled myself up by the bootstraps, told myself to do it for the kiddo, and figured out that if I waited til after dark and cranked up the AC I could *almost* trick myself into believing that it wasn't hotter than the surface of the sun outside. So all 3 of the trees went up, hubby threw some icicle lights (ha!) on the front of the house, and we watched our kiddos stare at the lights in delight.

We were also lucky enough to have our friend Heather and her little man join us for a few days. She was a HUGE help around the house and Brennan and her little B had a blast playing with each other. When they left, we had 17 ... SEVENTEEN ... meals in our freezer and some cleaning projects that were starting to make me tick accomplished. What an amazing friend. Seriously.

A few days after they left, we hopped on a place and headed for the mitten. And when I say "hopped" I mean strategically executed a very carefully and methodically planned out process of getting 2 adults, 2 infants, a toddler, 2 carseats, a stroller, and crap-tons of luggage from the long term parking lot, into the airport, and onto the plane. Seriously, we amazed ourselves with how well it went. The next 10 days were a blur of parties, presents, and slobbery grandma kisses. The twins first Christmas was a great one, spent surrounded by family and friends. And their baptism on New Years Eve was beautiful. We're so blessed to be able to have my Dad baptize them. When all was said and done, we decided that it was a great trip, but we were glad to be home again and not living out of suitcases. And when we head back again in June, we'll be all the more experienced.

Then I sat down to write a blog entry and realized that it's now January. And it's a new year. And my babies are 4 months old and smiling and drooling and (mostly) sleeping through the night. Holy balls. You think time flies with your first child til you have your second (and third) and realize that it actually travels at light speed. Now if I could only figure out a way to keep up...

Hi Michigan, Bye Michigan

**Warning ... way too many pictures ahead!**

We had quite a whirlwind trip back to the mitten last weekend. After booking our tickets months ago, we went back and forth for FOREVER trying to figure out how to see the people we wanted to see, accomplish what we wanted to accomplish, and keep things even between the two families. After awhile, we resigned ourselves to the fact that we'll never be able to see everyone we want to see, do everything we want to do, and keep things even ... especially in 4 days.

So, we broke it down as evenly as we could and stayed with Brian's family for the first three nights and mine for the last two. This made the most sense since Brian's sister and brother-in-law were going to arrive on Thursday night/Friday morning and my sister wouldn't be in town til Saturday night.

One thing that we were both pretty insistent on doing was taking Brennan to Ann Arbor. It's very near and dear to our hearts and we not only wanted to share it with our kiddo (yes, we realize he'll never remember it and that it was totally just for our benefit) but we also needed to stock up a bit on U of M gear. So Friday morning we packed up the kiddo and headed north. First things first, we stopped at hubby's old frat house. It burned down a few years back and they're still in the rebuilding process. While we lived in Michigan, he was on the alumni board and very involved, but hasn't seen the progress on the house since last fall. It was nice to see the rebuilding process as the house holds so many great memories for both of us, but especially Brian. After the visit to DU, we enjoyed some shopping, walked around the Diag a bit, and headed to Jerusalem Garden for lunch.

Daddy & Brennan in the Diag ... **Gag Alert** These benches are very special to us. It's where Brian first told me he loved me and where he proposed to me 5 years ago!

Playing on the "M" ... legend has it that if you step on the "M" you'll fail your first Blue Book exam. Sorry buddy, I think you screwed yourself.

Later that day, we picked up Brian's sister Jen and her hubby Brian (I know, weird right?) and headed to the Toledo Zoo. We hadn't been there in a few years, but both went frequently as kids, so it was nice to share it with Brennan. And Brian pushed me around in a wheelchair since I hit my walking quota that morning. FYI, wheelchair vinyl is extra hot when wearing jean shorts and you will feel like you peed your pants when out in 90 degree weather. Yuck.

Brian's parents both had to work on Friday, so after the zoo, we met them for dinner. Mexican food = yummy. Not being able to share the margarita pitcher = crappy.

Saturday morning Brennan and I went to visit my dear friend Jessica and her beautiful babies, including a fresh one I hadn't yet met. Brennan and her son Matthew played together next to each other, while I got to snuggle on her sweet little Makenzie. The visit was way too short, but it was fabulous to see them. We had to head back to my in-laws' house to help with party preparations. Brian's grandma will turn 99 in a few weeks and we had her birthday party while most of the grandkids were in town. It was awesome to see the family and eat cake.

Me & Gram ... yes, she's 99. Doesn't look a day over 80 does she? We've established that Brian will definitely out-live me. I'm OK with that.

Brennan & Aunt Jen ... notice the balloons? Jen & Brian blew up 99 red balloons for the party. That's how they roll.

Sunday we headed to mass with both of our families, then headed to my aunt's house for our annual 4th of July party. Brennan had so. much. fun. chasing bubbles, swinging on the swing, and driving the golf cart. He was sooooo happy that day.

On the swing with Aunt Trix & Grammy

Driving already?!

Monday was my very favorite day. We had a quick photo shoot with our favorite photographer (who happens to be my sister's best friend) to capture The Belly in all of it's glory. Brennan did not cooperate for any cute big brother/belly shots, but every time I think he was awful, she manages to get amazing shots. I have no doubt this time will be the same.

The rest of the day we did NOTHING. We relaxed in the pool at my parents' house and spent time with my family. Brennan loved every minute of pool time and learned to count down from three when Daddy threw him up in the air. TooIt made me miss living in Michigan, where we could do this every weekend if we wanted. My friend Janelle and her adorable mini-me joined us for a bit too. It's always a breath of fresh air to see great friends.

So much fun in the pool with Daddy

Tuesday morning we headed back to FL. We were lucky enough to be upgraded to first class on the way back ... I think the lady at the ticket counter felt sorry for the lady with the giant belly, a toddler, and her husband the pack mule. Whatever, I'll totally take sympathy if it allows me to enjoy a nice big seat!

We don't know when we'll make it back the mitten again, so it was nice to enjoy our time there while we could. The jury is still out on whether or not we'll be crazy enough to attempt a trip at Christmas-time with a 2-year-old and two 4-month-olds. We'll cross that bridge (or just jump off of it) when we get there!

April Visit

As I've said before, we try to limit visitors to once per month. Now that I'm not travelling back to MI once a month anymore, it's not as big of a deal. It's just an attempt to protect our family time as just us three. So far, so good. Although I'm fully aware that the further we get into this pregnancy, the more that rule will fly out the window. I'm OK with it, because I know we're going to need help not only after the babies are here, but before too. But until then, we're enjoying our monthly visitors!

This month, my sister Teresa (aka Aunt Trix, aka TT) and her boyfriend John came to visit. They arrived on Good Friday and were able to spend a week with us. It was nice to have them for our first holiday in FL.

Easter weekend included all kinds of fun. We took Brennan to an Easter egg hunt at the local community center, but he had more fun taking the eggs out of his basket. Yeah, maybe we should have tried a dry run at home first ...

That afternoon, we dyed eggs and decorated cookies. Dying eggs is certainly, um, interesting with an 18 month old. Cookie decorating was much easier as we could just let him go at it.

The Easter morning egg hunt in the backyard was much more successful than the first one. He was an egg hunting machine. And he really loved finding all of the goodies in his Easter basket!

During their visit, we also took Trix & John to the park near our house to swim. While we love going to the ocean, sometimes it can be a long day for Brennan. He loves every minute of it, but the waves knock him over and the sun is scorchingly hot and it gets to be a bit much. This park is GIANT and has two small "lakes" to swim in. It's a quick and fun way to cool off and Brennan can splash and play a lot more in the calm water. He had a blast as always.

Having them visit was great, especially since they're very low maintenance visitors. They asked what they can do to help and didn't need to be entertained. Which was very helpful since I WAY overdid it on Easter weekend and spent time the next week laying low. It was great to spend time with them. Another successful visit from family!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter to all! I hope your day was filled with faith, fun, and family. Ours sure was.

We started the day with early Mass, then came home to find eggs with Brennan. He had a blast and then moved on to tearing through his Easter basket. Then brunch, followed by cookie decorating. Then it was off to a glorious nap :)

Woke up, started dinner, ate a classic Stewart family Easter dinner, and now more relaxing.

This has been the first holiday that Brennan has really been able to have fun and participate in activities. He LOVED hunting for eggs. It's so much fun to watch him grow. I can't wait for all of the holidays yet to come.

Now, off to enjoy more family time!

Daddy's Birthday

So my hubby turned the big 2-8 last week and I was too busy to write about it. But at least I tried to make it a special day for him!

Brennan and I picked him and two of his friends up from work and went to Ruby's for a birthday lunch. Yummy... Then after we dropped him off we headed to Home Depot to get his present from my parents. When my mom asked me what to get for him this year, I knew exactly what he'd want - a grill. Ours couldn't fit it on the truck and was in rough shape anyways, so it didn't make it to FL with us. And since we've moved, I've heard Brian say a million times that "today would be the perfect day to grill!"

I was also excited to have something to wrap for him. He has wanted to go see his "bff" who lives in Cali for a few years now, but it's just hard to find the time/money to get out there. I told him that if he wanted, a plane ticket would be his bday present from me. He's been working so hard at his new job and I'm so proud of him. He really deserves it. So he booked the flight and is PUMPED to go.

Anywho, after getting the grill, the kiddo and I ran to the grocery store to grab some stuff for dinner (since Daddy refused to put in his dinner request til lunch that day!). Once he was laying down for his nap at home, I began my birthday marathon. Wrapped up the grill, signed the cards, decorated a bit, made and decorated the banana cupcakes, and started dinner.

Once Bri got home from work, we had a very low-key evening. Dinner, candles, cupcakes, and gift-opening. He was so surprised and excited about his grill. It warmed my heart to see him smile like that. While we miss our families and I'm sure Brian would want to celebrate his special day with them, we both agreed that it was kind of nice to celebrate as just our family of 3. While it's an adjustment not to have our families around, it brings the 3 of us closer. And that my friends, is priceless.

Christmas Chaos

Well, clearly the past few weeks have been INSANE, as I haven't had time to even consider writing a blog post. So let's see.....

December 20-23 consisted of frenzied packing. We're lucky enough to have fantastic family and friends who helped immensely. Late on December 23, I picked Brian up from the airport and our little family of three reunited once again. And then, the holiday chaos began.

December 24 was made up of haircuts for the boys, a visit to Santa for Brennan, last minute gift-buying, and then off to Brian's dad's side Christmas gathering. It's a tradition to celebrate at Brian's grandma's tiny little house, which is crowded with just us adults. But this year, all of the great grandkids were also there. 15 adults + 4 4-year-olds (3 of whom are triplet boys) + a 14 month old + a 10 month old = mass chaos. But, it's fun. We get along really well with Brian's cousins on that side and we're usually laughing and enjoying Gram's cherry bounce til late in the evening. This year however, while we were driving home, Brian mentioned that this year was very different. But that's what you get when all of the adults are making sure that nothing gets broken or spilled on Gram's carpet, that the little ones aren't getting trampled by the big ones, and that Gram herself isn't getting knocked over by any of them. All of the policing leaves little time for adult conversation and cherry bounce consumption!

Christmas day was much more relaxing. We had a relaxing morning under our tiny tree that I managed to put up amidst the packing. Then we headed to church to celebrate the birth of Christ and to hear my dad preach. After church, we had brunch with some very close family friends and headed back to my parent's house for presents! The day was calm, with no rushing from place to place, and we were able to enjoy the holiday. My mom's dinner was amazing as usual.

On December 26 we headed to Brian's parents' house to celebrate with his parents and his sister and brother-in-law, who were in town from Virginia. After all of the presents were opened, we were off to his aunt's house for Christmas with his Mom's side of the family. Gifts were exchanged, food was eaten, and we headed home. Once home, our very best friends came to help us pack and between the packing and hauling, we managed to celebrate with them as well. Finally, around 2am, we settled in for our last night in our house.

Morning came early. But, there was lots to get accomplished, so we got to work, joined by our family and friends, and moved all of our belongings into our garages. We scrubbed the house from top to bottom to ready it for our new tenants. When all was said and done, we said goodbye to our house and headed to my parents' house for the night. We were exhausted, but had to finalize packing for Mexico the next morning. I think that God knew what He was doing when He made this week so hectic for me, because I didn't have any time to dwell on the sadness of leaving our house or the nervousness of leaving Brennan for a week. We went to bed looking forward to warm weather and relaxation the next day!

Busy busy buusy bsuy buasdf.................

The weekend flew by way too fast. Spent Saturday celebrating Christmas with my Mom's side of the family. It was, as always, delightfully loud and tons of fun. But this year was different without Brian and with Brennan as active as he's been lately. Luckily, my parents are always willing to run after him so I can sit down for a minute or two. Judging from this family gathering, I can tell that the rest of our Christmas gatherings will be shorter than usual. First, they usually prevent Brennan from getting his normal nap in, so he's extra cranky. Second, he just gets overstimulated. He's loving his newfound independence now that he's walking, and he doesn't want people holding and squeezing him. But of course, no one cares if they piss off my child. I'm the one who has to deal with it. Argh.

Sunday was equally as busy. Brennan was up and down all night from a lack of routine on Saturday and he slept til 9:30 Sunday morning. We headed to Mom & Dad's where Brennan stayed for most of the day while my sister and I went shopping and then I headed off to my last night of bowling (yay!). I was able to snag some cute new clothes and hopefully get rid of some of my boring, frumpy "mom" clothes that make me feel so crappy about my body. I know that I should feel proud of the weight I've lost and will continue to lose, and hopefully a refreshed wardrobe will help me do so!

Today has consisted solely of packing. My MIL came over for a few (five) hours and finished up the kitchen. Tonight, a few (fantastic) friends came over to donate their muscles and fabulous packing skills and we got TONS more done. I'm so lucky to have friends and family who will give up their valuable time to help me!