PSF: Irish Seuss

We take St. Patrick's Day pretty seriously around here. It started when the Irishman first moved across the pond...I went a bit over the top so he wouldn't be homesick. Then I got into it.

We decorate the house as soon as the Christmas decorations are down and my classroom shamrock table cloth is up February 15th. Some decorations never come down...they are shrugged off with, "You're Irish..it is okay." The local parade is a date saved in our calendars months in advance.

This year, the perfect St. Patrick's Day photo cards have been as carefully thought out and procrastinated as our Christmas card. We have been taking pictures for the last month trying to get just the right one.

This also means I won't let the Irishman share the Irish pictures yet, which is killing him.



I am pretty sure this one is out of the running, although it does make me laugh.

And yes, that hat may or may not have been bought at the dollar bin at Target for the cats...but I think it is cuter on the baby...and she doesn't have claws or teeth!

Happy Friday!




Hosted by Cecily and Amy

Flower Tush

I had my eye on these diapers before Caitlin was born...and before I decided cloth was do-able. As luck would have it I found them on sale. Those of you who know me know that I have a thing for a bargain!

I love these diapers! (How often does one make THAT statement!) Seriously though, look at that cute little bum! Almost seems a shame to dirty it...but she doesn't seem to mind!

They are Fuzzi Bunz for my cloth-diapering friends, and there are a few of you out there. We have a pair in red daisies as well for all those red soccer jerseys Daddy puts on her...it only seems fair!

AND, not that you asked, but the cloth diapering is going well. It isn't for everyone, but we were given lots of diapers...these are the only ones I purchased myself...so it really has saved us money even with the cost of washing. I wash a load each morning and Nana puts them on the clothesline in the sun after I leave for work. We just might be getting the hang of this!

And did I mention they are cute?

I might also have a thing for bows and socks, but you could never tell that from the fact that I even accessorized a diaper, huh?

Things I Love Thursday

WW: Smiles Overall

After we took her three-month pictures Caitlin was all smiles.  Silly girl!

She is so girlie in all her photos...but this morning as I changed the second very poopy noisey diaper in 15 minutes she let out a Daddy-worthy burp and I noticed a booger hanging out of her nose. She looked up at me with a drool-covered smile and laughed. Those are the moments!

(But my camera doesn't work before 6am...so you will just have to take my word for it!)


For more Wordful Wednesdays visit here:

Daddy's Turn

I have a ton of pictures on the camera to go through, but this on was saved from a couple of weeks ago. I figured it is only fair after Mommy and Me Monday.

Mommy and Me Monday

Hosted by Krystyn



I saw Krystyn's post last week about how she had very few pictures of herself with her children. I knew today would be the first ever "Mommy and Me Monday" so I tried to take a picture for it this weekend.

Hmmmm...I have 5 new pictures of Daddy and Caitlin...but I supposed it isn't "Irishman and Me Monday", huh?

SO...I scoured the hundreds thousands of photos we've taken since our little shamrock was born and picked my favorite of the dozen or so with me in it.


It is actually a picture from December. She looks so small!

We'll try again this week for a new picture...and maybe even one I like!

3 Months Old

Well, better late than never! I have had this posted saved for a week but had forgotten about it. Here is a look at Caitlin's 3 month pictures!

(Side note: I had the foot rest out on the recliner, so she was in no danger of falling...even though it looks like she is ready to launch herself off of the chair! Also...we'd replaced the throw on the recliner but wanted the pictures to match so the Irishman put the old one back on...which may or may not be why the pictures are a little crooked...)

For all the wonderful, smiley pictures we have of her, she is almost always fussy when we try to take these shots. It figures!

She doesn't go back to the doctor for another month, but she sure is growing! I went back through her clothes again last night packing away the things she's outgrown and pulling out the beginning of the 6 month sizes. She is comfortably in size 2 diapers at night now and still wears cloth diapers by day.

She is so much more alert and grabs at things. (My hair being her favorite of course!) It is looking like she will roll over any day now...I just hope I am home when that happens! I know it's not that big a deal, but I hate the thought of missing it.

We love our baby girl!

My Sneaky Irishman

You could almost see the wheels turning as we put the foam letters down for the baby a couple of weeks ago. It wasn't long before the Irishman struck. The littlest things amuse him...

Side note: The top word...minus the 'G' of course is an Irish not-really-a-swear-word. My in-laws LOVED the show Father Ted. It is a comedy about three priests exiled off the coast of Ireland for various offences (Boy I can just think of the Google searches that would lead one to this post now...) and they use the word all the time. I am not typically one for English/Irish TV, but it is rather funny.




Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

Things I Love Thursday: Fuzzy PJs

I used to HATE Thursdays. In high school I thought the day had no merit...it was teasingly close to Friday but still too far from the weekend. Then came Must-See-TV, and my view of Thursday changed. Thursday night TV is almost as good as the thought that Friday is near...so my view on the day has changed.

Not that that is what I was going to write about...but anyway -

I LOVE fuzzy PJs. We have had cold weather here this week (by Florida standards) so we broke out the fuzzy baby PJs. I love it! Caitlin is just so cozy and snuggly in the fuzzy PJs.

Although to be fair, I love all PJs. I am one of those people who has no problem changing into my PJs within 5 minutes of coming home from work. But my baby girl in Fuzzy PJs? That is best of all!

Even better yet? My secret pal at school yesterday gave me the book Pajama Time! by Sandra Boynton. The Irishman and his mom went to Mass for Ash Wednesday last night and I got to do bedtime solo. I decided to lie on the bed with her and we both looked at the book. She smiled and laughed, and my heart skipped.

Writing that last bit SO makes me not want to go to work today...but that is not an option so I better get moving!

What things do you love?

Wordful Wednesday: Crikey!

The Irishman has a thing for Crocs. He has a pair...leather to make them classy. They are so worn he hydroplanes when it is wet. Despite nearly killing himself in them countless times, LOVES them and threatens to give Crocs as gifts to all of his family. (And yes, he did give me a pair. I wear them to clean the cat's litter box...read into that what you will!)

My super-romantic Valentine's day gift to him? New Crocs. Better yet? I ordered them on Valentine's day so they are not even here yet. Best of all? He can't wait for them to arrive!

Caitlin got a pair of Daddy's favorite kind of shoes for Christmas this year...in pink of course! (Okay so they are pink Irish imitation Crocs, but I won't tell if you won't!)

Join WW here:

Weekend Wonderfuls

Why can't all weekends be long weekends?

Saturday morning started with an Irish event...that is worthy of its own post. (The draft is awaiting my husband's approval) Saturday the Irishman treated his girls to the Cheesecake Factory for lunch...although we have to work on Miss Caitlin. I only got a few bites of my salad before she and I left to walk outside. She can't be perfect all the time!

It was a nice weekend. The weather was a little cooler. The weekend was a little longer. It was all good!



For Valentine's Day, the Irishman bought new flowers for our flower baskets. Over the long weekend, he and his mom worked on the patio. They weeded, cleaned, and planted the new flowers. It looks SO good! I have been meaning to get around to it since...I can't even remember! We are going to pick up some more flowers before the baptism (end of March) and I hope to get some herbs for my garden boxes. For now though I am enjoying their hard work!

While they were hard at work, Caitlin and I played inside. I think I got the best of both worlds!

Hearts for Hannah

I wrote about Hannah last fall. I went to college with her mom Kim and had been following the family blog online for a while when I read about Hannah's illness. Hannah lost her battle with cancer in December. I get the Caringbridge updates e-mailed to me and when I read about "Hearts for Hannah" I wanted to do something.

Here is what Kim wrote:

As I've mentioned before, Hannah would have turned 5 on Monday, Feb. 15. I cannot really even describe how much I dread that day- as I said in previous posts, she was so excited to "get 5" and get to go to kindergarte​n. I hadn't had the heart to explain to her that she didn't get to go to school that very day... that she would have to wait until August. Anyway, I began thinking of a way that I could make her birthday have some sort of positive connotation and help others along the way. So, I would like to call Monday a "Hearts for Hannah" day (I had always thought it would be fun to have a Valentine's themed birthday party for her, but I never got the chance).

All of you precious people who so obviously have "Hearts for Hannah", I'm asking you to do something for someone on Monday (or whatever day works best for you) and tell us about it. Selfishly, I think that this will really help us make it through the day. Give blood (or remind us about how you already donated), pay for someone's order behind you in line, leave a surprise note for someone, tell someone you love him/her and why, etc. I'm sure you can think of many more ideas than I ever could.


I'm going to try and get some big hearts to take to church, school, Nana's office, etc. if people wouldn't mind writing down how they had "Hearts for Hannah". Hopefully I can record posts from here, Facebook etc. on hearts. I would like to put these together in a scrapbook for Caleb to see someday. One of my greatest dreams for him is to really know one day how much impact his big sister had.


I know everyone is so busy, and I don't want to add any stress to your lives.... but if you have a chance to participate Monday, thank you in advance. And if you don't, that's ok too!

If you are able to particpate, please send a note to Kim either through the Caringbridge site or e-mailed to kimberly.crumby(AT)att(DOT)net to let her know! Kim mentioned that it was okay to spread the word via blogs, Facebook, etc so feel free to share! I made the little button thing at the top of the post using a picture from the family blog and my limited Photoshop Elements knowledge...but I know nothing about adding a link. Hannah had a thing for pink and purple, so hope I was on the right track.

I cannot imagine what the family must be going through. I pray that the good deeds done in Hannah's memory help to bring something positive to a particularly difficult day.

Happy Valentine's Day!

This was my favorite of Caitlin's Valentine's cards.



Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentines, Part 2

If you missed yesterday's post, I started my Valentine top 5. I made these for my students and our co-workers. They were a hit! So...here are the next two. I am saving my favorite for Valentine's Day.

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#3:
Some-bunny Special

#2:
Flower Power

Valentine's Top 5

Thank goodness for a long weekend! I am SO tired!

Wednesday night I stayed up WAY too late put my Photoshop Elements skills to the test and made cards for my students for today's Valentine's Day party. Here are the first of the cards...I have them in top 5 order. The Irishman and I put them in a different order, but it is my blog so here is my list!

#5:
The retro look

#4:
Beary Special


Come back tomorrow to see the rest!

ABC, Here's Looking at Me!

Last weekend we put down the foam letters in the living room. Caitlin is getting closer to rolling over and is enjoying more and more time with her play gym mat. Certain people (no names...but they may be Irish) were making a big fuss about getting up and down off the floor so I thought it would be a help. It also isn't a bad background for photos....

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I'd planned to post yesterday but it seems I was not meant to touch electronic devices yesterday. The wireless was down yesterday morning making for a very boring morning pump. Then the microwave decided to die for no good reason half way through my morning bottle prep. I checked the breakers and all before waking up the Irishman. He too played around with it only to have it come back as quick as it left. Odd.

Then I got to school and half the building was without power. Seriously...no computers and partial lighting. Fun times. On the plus side...it is a good excuse for not answering parent e-mails!

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I stayed up too late last night designing Valentine cards for my class. I'll post them later in the week. Caitlin woke up right before the dream feed so I woke up early this morning and am going to try to fit in a shower...this really may be Mission Impossible, but hopefully without the self-destruct part!

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Update on Mauree's little boy Silas: They've run all sorts of tests but do not really have an answer yet. They were going to go home (they live 3 hours from the hospital where they are now) and come back next week to go over tests and such but Silas spiked a fever. Mauree posted a picture of him on Facebook this week. He looked good for a little boy who'd been poked and tested all week!

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Jellybean update: Four pound jar is half empty. It'd like to say I had help with it, but I'd be lying.

At least it is Thursday!

You are my...errr

You are my sunshine...
Okay so maybe she wasn't feeling the "sunshine" thing!

I love the faces on this one. She can be quite a ham when she wants to be!

A Bad Case of the Mondays

I heard her crying...it is hard not to when the Pack-n-Play is located just a few feet from my head. I glanced at the clock and realized I only had 30 minutes before my alarm went off and "Mission Impossible" began. (As a refresher that is the morning routine where I attempt to get out of the room and ready for work without waking the baby) I thought I might get back to bed for 10-15 minutes or so...

That was before I heard it...

The "up the back" blowout...that occurred while she was in my arms. Lovely.

Even after changing her diaper...and clothes...and the changing pad...I had hope.

Until the third diaper. Sigh.

Side note: We use cloth diapers by day and disposables at night. Speaking of which it is time to place yet another Diapers.com order...

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I was fortunate to get everything done yesterday that I needed to. The Irishman was great and did all the shopping. Nana took the baby for a walk. I graded papers and planned lessons. Not fun, but it is done!

Best of all, the Irishman bought me these at Costco yesterday. I may or may not have added them to the list with a coupon attached...



If this morning is any indication the four pounds of goodness they may not be enough to get me through the week!

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All complaining aside...please pray for my friend Mauree. Her youngest son, Silas has had tummy issues for the last several months. They had some blood work that didn't look right on Friday and then Saturday they rushed him to Little Rock with a suspected mass in the abdomen. Yesterday the oncologist said there is no mass (thank God!) and he is seeing some GI specialist now to try to get to the bottom of this.

Mauree is one of the sweetest people I know. We had pre-cal together in high school but I didn't really get to know her until college. She was the only person from home at the University of Arkansas and she became my Kappa Delta big sister. She has always been a good friend..she sent me a couple of supportive e-mails a few weeks back when Caitlin wasn't taking the bottle. (Including a super sweet one addressed to Caitlin herself!) She is a wonderful mommy to three little boys.

So...please pray for Silas and the Nantze family!

Weekend At Last!

I made it through my first week back at work. My first day back went a million times better than expected...no tears! Okay so I might have choked up once talking to my class in the middle of the "I'm back" speech I'd been planning for weeks... Caitlin was very well behaved for her Nana as well. All-in-all, the week was a success.

I have my daily routine pretty much set. Waking up at 5:30am the week before for "Mission Impossible" practice paid off. I can now sneak out of the room in the morning without waking the baby...let's hope I don't jinx myself here! I am not crazy about the routine, but it works.

I am exhausted. I am trying to get 9-10 hours of school work into a 8 hour day while pumping during my breaks. Not quite sure how to make it work, but I will find a way. Unfortunately they also took away the assistant we had in the fall due to budget cuts...so all this with less help than ever. I have already recruited some sweet former students to help me in the mornings before school.

I have a pile of papers to grade and lesson planning to do. I tried to work during nap time yesterday...by the time I put away the laundry and the shopping I had time to grade 4 papers. I have about 140 136 left to go...

But we are making the most of the weekend! It may be Superbowl weekend, but we started with soccer.

Daddy dressed Caitlin in her "Me and My Dad Love Liverpool" onesie and bib for the game. Thankfully it was a good result. (Caitlin and her daddy have bragging rights over cousin Violet and her daddy for now!)

I hear the baby cooing in the monitor now...and it is time to hang the diapers on the clothesline before Mass. It sounds like my morning computer time is up!

Thank you so much for all the kind words and prayers this week. I wish I didn't have to go back to work, but it was not nearly as bad as I had feared! Now to do it all again...

Happy Weekend!

Pretty Pastels

TGIF!