I’ve been amazed at how different Delia and Aiden are.  Delia was terrified of men, especially men with beards, when she was a baby (sorry grandpas – both grandfathers had beards and she would cry and turn away when she saw them)…Aiden prefers men, he will reach out for strangers even, especially men with beards.  Delia loved baby dolls and stuffed animales from 3 months forward…Aiden could take them or leave them but is in love with any type of ball, calling out “ball, ball, ball” as we bass the giant cement balls in front of Target.  Delia never opened any of the cabinets in the kitchen and Aiden has already opened every cabinet he can get his hands on. 

My little boy amazes me every day.  He is so sweet, his hair finally growing in and taking on that long haired curly boy hair sweetness.  We went to an easter egg hunt this weekend and had a chance to sit with the Easter bunny.  It was so cute, even if the bunny reminded me of the oh so creepy bunny from Donnie Darko.  I saw that movie when I was 7 months pregnant with Delia and ended up hysterical in a puddle by the end of the movie.  Still, how sweet is my poor little one – hubby handed him right to the bunny, Aiden took one look and burst into tears.  He’s a people person and will go with anyone, but apparently the oversized bunny was just too much. 

My grandmother turned 90 on valentine’s day.  We were supposed to be there for her 90th birthday party, but an uncharacterstic snow storm (one of 2 or 3 this winter) hit the Baltimore area a couple of days before and the party was postponed.  So we’re heading down this weekend to celebrate a month late.  I’m beyond excited, not just for her birthday but also because we are driving down. 

I grew up taking driving vacations when I was younger.  We lived in Colorado and my father dragged us all around the west anywhere from a weekend to week long or even two.  I know some people have no tolerance for being in the car for long periods of time, but I loved those trips.  Since Delia was born, we’ve been on one driving vacation.  We drove down to Virginia to visit my best friend and then went to Chincoteague with my other best friend.  Delia got sick in Chincoteague and between having a 103 degree temperature and some sort of stomach virus ended up throwing up all the way home…11 hours to be exact. 

Needless to say we haven’t been in a hurry to drive anywhere, but we are going to drive this weekend.  Taking the scenic route, my husband assures me.  Staying in a hotel with an indoor pool, the one request Delia had.  I’m working on a scrapbook for my grandmother (and by working I mean I finally got the pictures printed, and there is an empty scrapbook on my desk downstairs, which will be magically transformed before the trip…and hey, 10 hours in the car, can’t forget that extra time just in case I’m running behind) and my father sent me this picture for it.  I just love this picture…I’ll let it speak for itself.

If you know me, you’re laughing…me, addicted to cleaning.  Well, not exactly.  When Aiden was about 3 months (can you believe he turns 1 on Thursday…I know, where does the time go???) I noticed that the dish soap didn’t seem to be washing out of his bottles.  I would go to fill them and there would be suds in there.  If I was making formula, it wasn’t a huge deal, but breast milk…seemed like a crime to throw it away, but I couldn’t really let the baby drink the sudsy milk.  I started looking around for a soap that I wouldn’t be mortified at the thought of the baby ingesting a little.  I’m a bit of a Target junkie, and had always admired those slick Method products, but never considered buying them.  This seemed like a great solution though – if a little was left, it would be OK because at least there were no horrible chemicals.

I was blown away the first time I used it.  I bought the French Lavender dish soap and could not believe how amazing everything smelled as I used it.  Even better than that – it rinsed so easily we never had a problem with leftover soap on the bottles again.  It was one of those things were I just kept wondering how I went without it my whole life… I loved the scent so much I went out the next day and bought the lavender multi-surface spray.  I realized that I could now let Delia clean off the kitchen counters – she was always asking but I never wanted her inhaling all those nasty fumes as she sprayed, or getting the stuff on her hands when she was wiping.  She was thrilled, I was thrilled and every time I cleaned it was like an aromatherapy experience for the whole house.

I was hooked and began replacing all of my cleaners with Method products.  I also tried out some of the Mrs. Myers Clean Day things – which I liked, but I didn’t love them the same way I loved the Method.  I found myself cleaning things I hadn’t cleaned in awhile, like the trash can, just so I could spray the yummy smelling French Lavender spray.  I can’t stand how most cleaners smell, it makes me nauseous and that chemical smell always makes me uneasy.  One of the best things about Method is that it is not that much more expensive then what I was using before.  I spend about 50 cents more on the dish soap, which to me, is well worth the benefits.

My newest love – the Wood for Good floor cleaner.  I’ve never been one to clean the floors a lot, but now that little Aiden is crawling everywhere, I wanted something that was quick and easy and non-toxic so that I could clean the floors a couple times a week.  Most of our floors are wood, so I bought the Wood for Good cleaner and tried it last week.  I was in HEAVEN.  The sweet smell of almond wafted through the whole house as I cleaned the floors.  You just squirt it right on and mop it up – it couldn’t be easier.  I was just going to do the hallway to test it and ended up doing all the wood floors.  Again – if you know me, you’re probably laughing – I’m never one to decide on a whim to clean my floors!  So, go out and try just one of their cleaners -you’ll be hooked and it’s good for your family and the environment!  As for me, well, aside from the products I mentioned, we also have the glass cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner, bathroom wipes, laundry detergent, fabric softener and a room air freshner.  And, I’ve got about $65 worth of other things in my cart at methodhome.com that I found that my local target doesn’t carry…like the baby laundry detergent…hmmmmmm, method anonymous…I may have to join soon.

I have no snappy pictures to post of our beautiful holidays.  They are mostly on my camera, and well, there is the fact that I was sick for weeks so maybe I didn’t take as many as usual – started the week before Christmas and I’m still on antibiotics for an ear infection that doesn’t seem to want to go away.  Aiden is on his third type of antibiotics for a similar ear infection – poor little guy.  Anyway, I’m never very good with New Year’s resolutions – usually preferring just not to make them.  This year I had grand plans for things like -”being on time”, “keeping the house clean” – I don’t know, it never feels right.  I’ve been thinking a lot about my family and my life, and although I try not to use this expression, because I feel like it is overused – I am truly blessed.  I adore my kids, my husband is smart, kind and does laundry (ok, not always the way I want it,  but still…), we have a house, jobs – mine is at home so I can watch my precious little ones grow.  It’s not always perfect – what is perfection anyway?  So, I think the only resolution I need in 2010 is to appreciate what I have.  Really appreciate it, absorb it, be thankful, thankful, thankful…Happy New Year.

Every year I struggle to find a great idea for a holiday present for Delia’s teacher.  The ideal gift is something that is pretty, functional and doesn’t break the bank.  We have fallen back on nice soap and lotion sets from Bath and Body Works on one too many occasions.  I really wanted this year to be different and I’m super excited with the idea I came up with.  I knew that this year I wanted to design our holiday cards.  I designed Aiden’s birth announcement and had it printed at Vista Print on their fabulous linen paper and was very pleased with the results.  Thrilled actually, and even more so because I didn’t expect to like the finished product as much as I did.  So, as I was playing around with our holiday cards I had an idea to create a teacher card, have it printed at Vista Print and put it in one of those voile bags they have at the dollar store for wedding favors.  I immediately went to work on designing and finding the perfect quote and this is what I came up with:

I can get 20 linen finish notecards printed up for about $12 plus S&H, throw them in the beautiful bag that costs me about a quarter, and I’ve got a fabulous, personalized teacher gift for under $20.  I’ve decided to offer it as a freebie to anyone who wants to use it as well.  I just ask that you read and follow the terms of use.  You can have them printed at VistaPrint where you can add your teacher names in, using any of their fonts.  I used Parisian BT.  Click on the card above or in the sidebar and you can download the .zip file.  I can’t believe I have the teacher holiday gift crossed of my to do list and it’s only October!  Enjoy!

OK – so once again, I’ve totally abandoned my blog!  The end of summer was a little crazy here, a vacation and then visitors and then more visitors, an emergency trip to the doctors thrown in for good measure – I feel like school starting has slowed things down – which is a GOOD thing!  While browsing through the 315 photos from the last couple weeks of summer these two just popped out at me.  I can’t help gushing about how stinkin’ cute my own kids are – such sweethearts.

OK, so maybe you aren’t supposed to gush about your kids – but seriously – did you ever see such cuties.  And look at Delia’s little bangs.  I thought I was going to cry when she insisted on having bangs – but I have to admit – I LOVE them.  They are making me want to get some for myself.  We’ll see – I have endured the last 15 months with braces, for the second time in my life, and when they come off next Wednesday – I might just be in a crazy let’s go get my hair cut and add some bangs kinda mood.  Or, maybe I’ll just revel in being able to wear bright lipstick again without fearing that it will bring attention to the metal garb in my mouth.  It’s been a long road – didn’t really plan on being pregnant and having braces at the same time, but now that it’s almost finished I know it was worth it.  Enough babbling, still have a little work to do tonight – have a great night!

I downloaded some pictures I took yesterday. I found this really cool site over the weekend with wonderfully modern wear for baby, and they had this really cute picture of a baby sleeping in a chair. Of course, I can’t find the site now (if anyone recognizes this totally vague description – please let me know what site I’m thinking of), I thought I saved it in my faves, but it doesn’t seem to be there. Anyway, I kept thinking that it would be a cool way to take a photo of Aiden, so here is my attempt – not anywhere near as elegant and perfect as the one I saw – but he could not be cuter. Here he is almost smiling,

and here, almost crying…I know, it sort of looks the same, but trust me – it’s a different look altogether.  Crying, smiling, sleeping, I can’t stop looking at him.  It amazes me how quickly you fall in love with your children.

So, one day when Daddy is home we will try this baby in the chair pose again.  It was nice to finally be able to take a picture inside with enough light – it has been a cold and dreary winter.  Still cold, 5 degrees this morning – but at least the sun is out!  Ok, I hear prince charming waking up from his nap – lunch break’s over!

(I found the site – The Modern Baby Co – is that baby not the cutest!)