4.23.2014

Currently {link up} coupla charmers


The deal: Use our themes or use your own - just let us know what is 'currently' going on with you! Be sure to stop by and say hello to the other bloggers linking up - especially to my amazing co-host at Harvesting Kale.

This week's themes: making, eating, enjoying, hiding, noticing

This week Otto has been Making himself sick on candy. Yay holidays? Professional Investigators that we are, Rob and I are pretty sure he snuck a bunch of egg hunt candy Saturday night because first thing Sunday morning he stumbled downstairs, got super excited to see his Easter basket, and then turned around and threw up. Later we found a stash of wrappers under his bed. Poorly hidden evidence, if you ask me. Classic. He then spent the rest of the day trying to convince us he felt great so he could have... wait for it... more candy of course.

And speaking of being a victim of candy lust. I am a tragedy. Guys, I've been Eating bittersweet chocolate with almonds, a lot of it, every day. Damn it, Trader Joe's, they have this bar called the Pound Plus (because it's stupid-big) but it should be called the Lindsey Bar of Shame because I was like, "Oh heck yeah, Trader Joe's, I'm IN FOR THAT!" and then it's been a non-stop chocolate gnaw-a-thon ever since. I hide it in a top cupboard so it's mine, all mine! ::snarls:: So good. I'll never quite you, bar of shame.

Everyone was Enjoying themselves this past weekend. We kicked off Saturday with an egg hunt at Katherine's house. Then decorated eggs Saturday night. Then Otto sneak-binged on candy and threw up. But the rest of Easter morning was pretty great. Sunday afternoon, I was in a movie. Weird right? I actually got that role I mentioned auditioning for a few weeks back and they filmed on Sunday. You guys. I don't have words to describe how thrilling this was. Scary. Terrifying. But exciting. And super fun. Somewhere in the back of my head I've always thought I'd love acting. So maybe this is the beginning of something? Who knows.

Otto has been Hiding candy wrappers under his bed. I know I already said this. But it's just so funny. What a kid thing to do. His room has become quite the collector's trove of small toys, candy wrappers, and stacks of paper with his notes and drawings. Like a little future teenager. How funny.

Loretta has been Noticing more and more words. Ok, that's kind of a stretch. But she's been attempting longer and longer sentences and really taking on words and repeating words back to us more and more. She has a hard time with pronunciation and we were working on "Care Bear" the other day so I said, "Ca Ca Ca Care Bear" and she said it back. Now when she's having a hard time saying anything she slows down and then says, "Ca Ca Ca..." like "Ca Ca Ca Melon" at dinner tonight. It is the cutest thing in the universe. Her cute trumps how exhausting she can be sometimes. She's a charmer.

That was this week and here are next week's themes:
buying, snapping, scoring, struggling, losing 

big things, little things


It just takes a handful of little things to cut into a thriving ::side eye:: blog schedule. One little thing who lives in my house has been doing just that lately. I usually wake up crazy early to blog, like 4am. But little miss has developed spider sense for my (pretty darn quiet and a bedroom away from her) iPhone alarm. The second it goes off, she's standing in her crib, yodeling like a wounded seagull, "UPPY! UPPEEEEE!" The sounds she makes hurt my spine. I'm not joking. These aren't sad, hungry, upset, mad, or any other normal thing cries. They're just terrible sounds. She's a smart one and I think she realized that if you make your voice sound like someone playing a broken trombone while raking nails down a chalkboard... well, mama comes running - fast.

Anyways, beyond the interrupted schedule, I don't really have an excuse for how quiet this little blog has gone lately. I love the weekly Currently posts so I manage to get those out. But I'm not baking anything I invented or crafting anything or taking grand trips, etc. We're just kind of chilling at home. It's nicer out and we eat dinner in the yard when we can. The kids are wonderful, if challenging, little humans. And I feel boring in a not-that-bad kind of way.

4.17.2014

Currently {link up} oh, the damned universe lately


The deal: Use our themes or use your own - just let us know what is 'currently' going on with you! Be sure to stop by and say hello to the other bloggers linking up - especially to my amazing co-host at Harvesting Kale.

This week's themes: clearing, digging, mixing, reading, watching

This week I have been... Clearing out the pantry and putting all the five bazillion varieties of kids' snacks I've accumulated into one big snack basket. Stop me if the thrill of THAT made you pee your pants but for reals, when did snacks become such a thing? Also when were honeycrisp and pink lady apples invented (??) because I swear they didn't exist when I was a kid.

The kids have been Digging in the backyard, mixing sweat & dirt & laughter & leaving their toys in the grass which makes me crazy... exactly the way kids are supposed to. On a side note I'm getting a little nervous that Otto's hair is going to be a problem this summer. When he gets hot and sweaty his eczema goes nuts. It's so funny how hard it has been for me to just let him have this hair thing. To his face, sure, do what you want with your hair buddy. But, in my mind, it's like this whole big thing I think about way more than anyone should think about their kid's hair. Conclusion: it's hair, I need to get over it.

I've been Reading How Remarkable Women Lead for our Facebook "The Ladies Who Book Club". That's about all I've been reading lately. The idea of getting lost in the pages of a good book is super appealing though... and because of the forced pace of the book club, that's not really an option. Guess it's time for a trip to the book store. I'm interested in seeing what y'all are reading :)

And I've been Watching tantrums. Someone in this house is extreme and feeling very under-served by the Damned! Universe! Lately! That's all I'll say about that.

That was this week and here are next week's themes:
making, eating, enjoying, hiding, noticing 

4.14.2014

the ladies who book club

You are invited to join our virtual book club that is now on its 3rd book & has over 20 members from 3 different countries! Some are working moms, like myself. Some are single ladies. Some are stay at home moms. Some are career professionals. I can't even tell you how honored I am to be a founding member of this amazing group of women who come from many walks of life and bring their own thoughts, passions, and insights to our weekly discussions.

The group is intended for ladies who are interested in reading a little, inspiring each other, discussing their thoughts, and socializing online since we all live a bazillion lightyears apart from each other plus who has time to socialize in person anyways?

Details below but first I just want to moon over the amazingness that is internet friends... I have met some of the most important women in my life through this little blog. Katherine is one of them, she lives about twenty minutes away and our kids are obsessed with each other, but we "met" before I ever lived in Oregon. We met via the blogosphere (yes computer "add to dictionary" for lack of a cooler word) and because of Katherine I was able to move across country two years ago, from Tucson to Eugene, a city I'd never even visited, and feel like I had a friend in town right away.

Because of the blogosphere I can basically talk to people I love and care about, who make me laugh and inspire me to be a better mother, professional, and just plain human, any time of day or night. Anyways, that is what this book club is about. I am so excited about this little group. Please join in, if you've already read How Remarkable Women Lead feel free to chime in as we open up discussions chapter-by-chapter each week (starting today for this book) and if you aren't interested in How Remarkable Women Lead just wait it out and join in for a future book. Whatever you like, it's a casual group of ladies who book club.

******

Details: ladies who book club is a “closed group” on facebook. We tackle one chapter a week and use the group wall to open up discussions, inviting other members to join in by either commenting on a thread started by Katherine or myself or start their own discussion point. Each week following we will begin discussion on a new chapter. Our plan is to keep things pretty free form. Everyone will likely have a different take on what they’re reading based on where they are in their lives. More than anything we just want to provide a place we can freely discuss the book and how we can apply the principles in our lives. Sound like something you need in your life right now? If you want to join us in reading How Remarkable Women Lead, just click here and request to join!

4.10.2014

Currently {link up} these little characters of mine


The deal: Use our themes or use your own - just let us know what is 'currently' going on with you! Be sure to stop by and say hello to the other bloggers linking up - especially to my amazing co-host at Harvesting Kale.

This week's themes: dropping, making, wearing, kissing, keeping

This week we have been... Dropping everything on Monday as Loretta's babysitter was dealing with a family emergency. That situation is on the mend now, thank goodness. Anyways, Monday with Loretta was actually kind of amazing. It's hard as a working mom and the breadwinner to take anything in stride. I'm terrible about going with the flow. It's something I really wish I was better about... So, I had a few things to do at work that had to get done Monday so we packed a "go bag" with snacks, crayons, toys and headed off to work. Loretta lit up the joint and LOVED meeting everyone and then to her dismay I locked her in my office with me for the most annoying 2 hours of my life. That "go bag" kept her occupied for about five minutes, then she was crawling all over me, tearing up the place, and just losing it. I had to go to a really zen place and crank out some detail-oriented stuff as fast as I could so I could escape. Stress! We finally made it out of there and then the day got good. It was gorgeous outside so we played in the backyard for a bit and then later took a walk around the neighborhood. I don't really get one-on-one time with her very often and she was just loving every second of it and so was I. Also, she found a huge stick (see pic) and was the funniest little peanut parading down the street with a giant branch bigger than she was.

We have been Making plans for summer or at least planning to plan for summer. I'm hoping this year to get over to Portland at least a few times and to get our butts down to Disney (someway, somehow). I think this might be magic Disney time in Otto & Loretta's lives and so that's the summer vacation goal!

Otto Van Halen has been Wearing some pretty rad gear.
We went to a friend's house Saturday night and Otto was in awe of her 10 year old who was cool enough to play with my guy for a few hours. Rock on, little cute one!

I have been Kissing sweaty, dirty, adorable heads. Ahhh, the smell of happy kids when the temperatures rise. It's just great.

and we've been Keeping our seeds safely tucked away in their packages ::sarcasm font::. It's almost mid-April and time to get my seed starts going... I just need to get motivated one evening and do it. What's my problem? Gah! Anyways, garden season is about to hit and I'm excited to have a patch of things growing out back, but planting is a pretty big to-do or there won't be a garden. Time to get my rear in gear.

That was this week and here are next week's themes:
clearing, digging, mixing, reading, watching 

4.09.2014

his and hers

I'm so excited to share some pics of Loretta and Otto's bedrooms with you guys. A month ago this was one shared bedroom (now Loretta's) and one room full of everything we didn't want to unpack when we moved into this house 18 months ago (now Otto's). We managed to shove all that unpacked stuff into a closet (Go Team Muth!) and I'm really proud to say we managed to create both of these rooms without buying a single "new" thing. We thrifted a bit, but still, I'm gonna say, "Go Team Muth!" one more time for sticking to a New Year's Resolution and generally being frugal.

His...

As you can see, there is a giant pole right in the middle of Otto's room! This 101 year old house has character and I love it but there are weird things like giant poles in the middle of rooms. Hard to put furniture and/or take photos in this room but we figured it out. And my favorite part is the way Otto set up his desk. He brought all of these things upstairs, set them up, and spends hours writing, drawing, playing castle, ruining vintage lunchboxes (ahem), and just enjoying his own space. Just what a room should be for a little guy.

Hers...

My favorite part about Loretta's space is that she loves it. She is sleeping better since we moved her crib and she loves to help pick out her clothes now that her dresser is more her own height.

Anyways thanks for taking a little room tour with us!

4.06.2014

three gratitudes, 5

Today I'm grateful for my husband and Tylenol. Sometimes life without a gall bladder gets interesting. On Friday night we went out for ice cream (the adventure begins) then later that evening our friends came over for board games... well, a circuit breaker (or something) in our neighborhood blew out so we ended up hanging out in the living room by candlelight for a few hours... I had two beers, a brownie, and more ice cream (power's out you gotta save the ice cream, yo!). That was my extreme party night of wild abandon and I woke up Saturday basically poisoned. Thankfully Rob laid down the law, around 8am yesterday he actually said, "I'm going to have to lay down the law here, you go to bed, now." I spent the whole day in bed until 2pm, just a lump of misery. Thank goodness for my guy letting me sleep off my "bender".

I'm also grateful for my little streak of bravery that's grown as I've gotten older. Recently an opportunity to try out for a part in a short film came my way. This is my secret little dream! But honestly all through my childhood and early adulthood I was just too timid to take a chance on myself. Fingers crossed I think my tryout went really well and if I get the part I will be able to cross something off my relatively short bucket list.

Finally, this morning I am grateful for half co-sleeping. Every night I get an opportunity to cuddle my Loretta for about twenty minutes before she demands, "bed, more water," which means she's ready to go back to her crib. Some nights we do this song and dance a few times. I really do love it. Otto, who recently transitioned to his own big boy bedroom (post coming hopefully tomorrow) still climbs into our bed around 2am. This morning I woke up to Otto talking in his sleep. What a charming moment, here's what I heard:

"You only get one wish and you can't take it back. Ok, I wish to be a karate... master!" And then a few moments later, "I'll kick your butts. I'll kick your butts."

Oh my goodness.

4.03.2014

Currently {link up} a quiet week


The deal: Use our themes or use your own - just let us know what is 'currently' going on with you! Be sure to stop by and say hello to the other bloggers linking up - especially to my amazing co-host at Harvesting Kale.

This week's themes: reading, feeling, racing, using, smelling

This week we have been... Reading Magic Treehouse at bedtime. A chapter a night is a big part of Otto's bedtime. I wish it was also a part of Loretta's but she gets so intensely sleepy at bedtime that books tend to get ripped out of hands and angrily slammed into faces. She has hurt my face; she has hurt her face. A funny bunny! I predict sometime pretty soon she'll start taking part in Otto's bedtime book reading and then one of my life dreams will come true, which is sitting in a pile of my children ready bedtime stories. Bucket List: check! Anyways, we were on a Roald Dahl kick for a while there which was awesome, then seemed to be trudging through The Marvelous Land of Oz FOREVER because it put Otto to sleep within a few pages, every night. So I'm stoked to be reading one of our Magic Treehouse books. We're slowly collecting them all from the thrift store and I predict a little reader will be ravenously devouring them on his own within the next couple of years. Yay reading! Seriously, yay reading! Reading!

Otto has been Feeling pretty nonchalant about being a petty thief. He pocketed a toy screwdriver from his best friend's house during a playdate recently and got busted trying to sneak it into his toybox. We had a talk. And Otto wrote an apology note to his buddy along with returning the contraband. I'll tell you this, he was thrilled to write the note to his friend and excited to deliver it at school. Five year olds, go figure...

The kids have been Racing around, pretty much just tossing our house all week. It looks like we were either robbed or that the cops have been here searching for evidence. Either way, it's time for an intense toy room cleaning. I feel like every piece of every toy/game/craft is just kind of scattered everywhere and am looking forward to re-organizing kid stuff and weeding out the junkiest for donation soon.

For the first time in my life, I have been Using dry shampoo. Feel the excitement! Call the newspapers! No but really, it's always seemed so expensive and I didn't know if it would really work, but I found some on the cheap at TJ Maxx and decided to give it a whirl. PEOPLE! This stuff is magic business.

and we've been Smelling fresh baked bread. This week I added a little rosemary & oregano to the dough and the outcome was amazing. Loretta's babysitter loaned (lent?) me a bread book and so this weekend I'm going to try something new. Baking bread is just the best. Next cooking challenge: pickling!

That was this week and here are next week's themes:
dropping, making, wearing, kissing, keeping