There’s nothing like it…motherhood. Nevermind the workday and whatever happened during it and nevermind meeting hubby for lunch, though that was very nice. The most memorable parts of my day inevitably revolve around my role as a mommy. It is what it is. Some people find that dull or just not their cup of tea. I get it. I am sometimes surprised or amused myself when I think of my brand of exciting these days. Nevertheless, it is my life and life is good.

So, what was the most memorable part of my day? Hmm. Maybe it was Cole waking up chipper and making sure we all got “dowstairs” for “breffest”…”go Bella.” Or maybe it was him putting on his own shoes, saying “daddy bathroom” and running over to knock on the bathroom door to tell daddy “all done.” Could it have been the sweet morning kiss goodbye or his enjoyment tonight of some purple slushie or his sudden announcement that he wanted to see his penguins followed by his dash to the stairs to go upstairs for his bath? Or the minute when he ran into his room in the buff, turned on his twilight turtle and marveled at the stars that were decorating his little legs? Perhaps it was when he had us laughing till there were tears when his repeated request for a frog sounded more like he had some bad potty mouth. But then again, there was the time soon after when he hugged and kissed some of his toys and requested we do the same…ah, the nightly routine. It may or may not be the part where he woke up a bit scared from a nightmare and called out for mommy and daddy in a heartbreaking way or the part where we had a nice, reassuring family hug. All said though, I think it was the part where I rocked little man for a little bit longer, soothing him whilst his tiny brother or sister tried diligently to kick him from within. Yep, there’s nothing like it and I feel blessed.

Literally…he just keeps getting faster and faster with his walking. But, aside from that, here are just a few of the things he has done that we’ve found amusing (as well as challenging!):

> He removes corner guards from the furniture (a babyproofing thing).
> If we try to get him to eat something like his broccoli cheese meal by dipping a cracker into it and handing it to him, he takes a moment to wipe the broccoli cheese off of the cracker onto the highchair tray before eating the cracker.
> We have up play yard fencing to keep him in the living room. We have to put an old shelf on the outside of the end of it, as he will just push it open otherwise.
> He pulls the car mirror down into his lap.
> He pulls the throw pillows down off the couch to use them as stepping stools for climbing up onto the ottoman or couch. (Scratch that: He can get up onto the ottoman without pillow assistance now.)

What will be next??

On July 5, 2000, we loaded up our rented U-Haul truck, took our last looks (for a while anyway) around our parents’ houses, our old neighborhoods, and the city in which we’d both grown up, met each other, and fallen in love (Lancaster, PA) and drove into the sunset (literally…we didn’t head out of town until around 5pm) on our way to a new adventure, a new life in a big, hot state called Texas.

We left town, driving the U-Haul and my Ford Escort station wagon and towing Troy’s GTI behind the truck.  Our parents and Kevin were with us and we made a whole family road trip of it, taking turns driving each of the vehicles.  We stopped in Virginia, Tennessee, Arkansas, and finally Texas.  We moved into our brand new apartment, visited with our families some more before seeing them off at the airport, and then sat back and wondered what in the world we had ahead of us now that we’d actually seen our plan through.





And then we met you oh blog friends or we stayed in touch with you dear “tenured” friends…and life was good.  And it still is.  And, we’re feeling sentimental today, so to commemorate the occasion, here’s a fun little list…

Some things we’ve learned since moving to TX:

• Staying hydrated will help prevent passing out.
• Austin is weird and folks here would like to keep it that way.
• Going to “the lake” means going to one of various sections of the Colorado River…and is always fun.
• Jalapeno Ranch is fabulous! (and no that’s not a place)
• The “worst barbecue in TX” is actually the best.  :-)
• Manor is pronounced “may-ner,” Guadalupe does not have a “pay” sound at the end of it, and Salazar is pronounced “sa-laser.”
• Things really are “bigger” here.
• Burnt orange is a beautiful color.
• Texans tell it like it is — you can drive down the highway and see business signs for “Guns,” “Flowers,” “Tacos,” and “Convenience Store”…hey, you’re not misled.
• It’s okay to traipse young’uns right along the highway if you’re doing it in a quest for great bluebonnet photos.
• You can get cupcakes from airstream trailers, have homemade soups delivered to your doorstep, and enjoy eating your dinner off of waxpaper here.
• 100 degrees and 112 degrees feel about the same.
• Allergy season is every season.
• “God blessed Texas with his own hands…”

But the number one thing we’ve learned is that this is a great place to start a new life, to have fun and enjoy life, to make great friends, to find fulfilling work, and to start a family. We love you, Texas! Thanks for 10 great years (so far)!

For those of you addicted to Facebook you’ll understand this (and may even laugh). For those not on Facebook every day, well, you’ll probably get it too

Found this over on xkcd.com and it seriously made me laugh out loud.
(note to our parents: no this is not a hint)

Sleep deprivation is a funny thing. That is all

Enjoy some photos.

Yes… another rejected baby name (though I can hear this one coming out of the mouth of a hardened Irishman… feeergooos

Continuing the list of “nope, not my baby’s name”…

Anyone who’s seen the movie Superbad will recognize the name McLovin. We weren’t, however, expecting to find it as a suggested boy’s name on babynames.com.

What do you think? McLovin Schneider?

Troy: “I like seeing cows on hills. Do you think these are the happy cows that make the good cheese?”
—————-
Melanie: “This side trip to Solvang was worth it for the ostriches alone.”
—————-
Troy: “We should name our son Solvang.”
Melanie: “No.”
—————-
Troy: Santa Barbara drivers are inconsiderate. When entering the freeway you should put your blinker on and actually try to merge… not just run out the on-ramp and make traffic just accept your entry (seriously, 3 drivers did that to me today)