shaggy boombastic

after...

we're growing Ot's hair out. i have this dream of having a blonde-haired blue-eyed little hippie urchin cutie pie running around Oregon with belled out corduroys and flowy tendrils peaking out from under a woolen cap. the thing is, bangs-and-mullet-wise, we've been going through somethin' of an awkward stage lately. like he's been looking shaggy and neglected (or so says Nana with her eyes, tsk tsk). so we trimmed it up yesterday, just removed some of the mangey mullet in back and shaped the rest a bit... and now?.. duh! he looks super cute. but if i'm being totally honest? i think he might also have Jennie Garth's haircut from the last season of the old 90210. whatever... the "Kelly" was a cute haircut.

before...

this here pic is from Ot and mama's breakfast date Tuesday morning. i just love this pic, haha! because Ot looks like a 45 year old cheeto-eatin beer drinker who just saw his curling team win some curling something something on ESPN. right? oh boy. but we really did have a fun breakfast...

i let him drink straight applejuice. which is basically baby crack. then i let him try my pellegrino --> he loved it! he kept saying, "yucky ewwwww," then taking another sip and laughing like crazy. it was pretty much a magic pellegrino moment.

then he drove his tractor along the "roads" on the wall for a while and i snapped a shot of his soon-to-be-less-mangey locks. while chowing down on a sourdough egg&cheese sammy.

now just waiting for his stinkin bangs to grow out!
-lindsey

two point five

Ot is just two days shy of 2 1/2 ♥ and everything about him that's always been there is suddenly magnified (humor, tenacity, sweetness, sourness, daring, just all of it). he's coming into his own so much, growing confident in his body and words. using words like "maybe" and "sometime" and "probably" in the right context and accusing us, "you're teasing me!" when we joke or say something that doesn't make sense to him.

"leave the door open just a little bit, mom"

for someone who changes his mind every three seconds he's also insanely demanding about what he wants. he loves his routines and i feel cruddy about how this move is already uprooting some of that. the boxes that are accumulating in the living room...and the general dissarray... he has Oregon on his mind constantly. and he's excited, like really excited, and wants to talk about the rain, grass, our new garden, the mountains, the beach, the university football team, and his big boy room.

Me: It NEVER rains in Oregon
Otto: You're teasing me. It rains a LOT!

but he's obviously also concerned. at bedtime now (a seventy-five step process these days) he's now added "let's talk about Oregon" to his delay tactics. and every night we talk for ten minutes or so about our new home and how while mommy and daddy drive our things up to Oregon,Otto will get to stay with his Nanas and Papas and then fly in an airplane to Oregon just a few days later.

in all the hub-bub of the move, i'm trying not to miss all the leaps and bounds of advances Otto is making as he continues on his journey through toddlerhood. a few things he's up to...

- on Monday he had a whole day at preschool in underpants with no accidents!
- he knows his ABCs (he loves the India Arie version so sings em kinda groovy) and can count to twenty
- he loves to do "pushups" and (to my horror) jumping off of pretty much everything
- he's memorized several of his favorite books and reads along with me
- he plays independently with his toys for long periods, playing store and circus and having the characters interact and talk
- he has a girlfriend at school who he "hugs her back" and he thinks she looks like a cowgirl (really? it starts this early?)
- and since he's two he's also a little batshit crazy most days, at least at some point.

rob and i try to lead by example and be strong, fun, sympathetic parents. sometimes though, we just have to run from the room so we can bust out laughing without Otto seeing. he's a trip. each and every day a trip. and honestly, just the most amazing, happy, wonderful little trip i could ever imagine.
-Lindsey

ps. i've really had it with my phone camera. i'm definitely getting a little point-and-click in the $200 range. a few of you suggested the Canon Powershot. anyone else out there have a suggestion? i'm going to start comparing what's out there later this week because i've had it with sub-par pictures! boo!

packing couture, let's move our bodies! and giveaway winners.

packing couture
instead of "steppin out" this saturday i pretty much "stepped in" as we are midway through pack, pack, packing our house. definitely not the cutest outfit that ever happened, but i'll call it packing couture. this is what i wore...

 i wore: tee (thrifted from Buffalo), tank (Target), maxi skirt (Target) and awesome Jesus sandals (thrifted).

another view of the runway...

we still have mucho mucho to do though. like a certain "shoe situation"...

oh boy.

"let's move our bodies!"
moving on. so friday afternoon we took Otto to Whole Foods to pick up some dinner (we'd rented Follow That Bird and were planning a fun picnic dinner on the living room floor while we watched our movie). can i get a "holla" for golden sesame tofu?!

we had the freezer aisle to ourselves when the Beegees "night fever night fevahh-ah!" comes pumping on the loudspeaker. we're all kind of grooving through the aisle, when Ot busts out with, "let's move our bodies!" and starts doing the most awesome sittin-in-the-cart-disco dance i've ever seen. kid has moves! he was laughing and smiling and seriously grooving. it was awesome. so you know the whole Muth family rocked the frozen foods aisle for 4 minutes of Night Fevah-ah. yay disco.

my friend Rebecca hosts "Little Chatterbox" every Friday on her blog Musings of a Manic Mama. this week i'm linking up because Ot said something funny, yay!

giveaway winners!

i am always tardy when it comes to choosing giveaway winners. it's part of why i stopped doing so many giveaways. something in my brain is always super excited to host a giveaway and do the post. but when it comes time to random.org the winners, etc. etc. i just procrastinate forever. ugh. sorry! anyways, without any further ado, here are the winners of either Martha Stewart Living or Parents magazine subscriptions!

congrats Heather, MrsDivineBodies, and kathy! i'll be in touch this week to get your deets & will order your subscriptions right away!

ok. so! who's ready for the week? ::looks around, doesn't raise hand:: yeah, me too. ugh!
-Lindsey

lowwww keyyyyy

there is a lot of chaos going on around these parts lately. my house is a Mess (with a capital M) of semi-packing. i am a MESS (all caps, yo, mama's going nucking futs) of trying to get our act together in the next two weeks. and Bonus! i also already need my bangs trimmed (yay!). and if someone could l'oreal mousse my roots while i sleep, that'd be awesome. my eyebrows probably need plucked too. and if you could just shave my legs, pack up my house, and bake me a quiche while you're at it. thanks.

but tonight? tonight the hubs is off playing poker and i am doing a little tea therapy...

i recently discovered Yogi Vanilla Hazelnut flavor and oh. mah. gah! i'm also about to curl up with this...

and before long, do this: zzzzzzzzzzzzz.

i wish equally low key evenings to y'all. unless you're out partying and having fun. then more power to you, you crazy young unfogeys who i don't relate to at all. this shaggy, two-tone haired fogey salutes you with a head nod and a yawn.

ps. i totally need to draw the winners to the "my shame is i do coke rewards, let me get you a magazine subscription" giveaway. i'll do that this weekend and announce!

ok, off to do all of the above. night guys ♥
-Lindsey