Archives for February 2013

Goings-Ons

First of all I try really hard to have correct spelling and English grammar on here…I really do.  Other than the use of lots of made up words and that I absolutely write like I think and I am very aware I use way to many ellipsises … those little dot, dot, dot guys.  So I actually googled today’s title and what do you know…”Goings-on” is in the dictionary…well, at least dictionary.com.

go·ings–on noun plural \ˌgō-iŋ-ˈzȯn, ˌgȯ(-)iŋ-, -ˈzän\

 Definition of GOINGS-ON

2: irregular or reprehensible happenings or conduct

I just had to share that.  Crazy I know.
Sooooo, in Amon news, he pulled up this weekend and then yesterday started cruising around things in our house and up the stairs.  We were all so shocked.  We were watching the Super Bowl and then we were all like, “Heeeeeyyy.”  Followed by lots of cheering and clapping for him.
Hudson was the most excited.  He darted off quickly and came back with his camera.
Harper and Josh are checker players for sure.  It’s really funny watching and hearing them battle it out on the checker board.  It’s quite cute.
Josh and I just really weren’t sure what to say about this next pictures.  “Ummmm, you look beautiful Sol” in a very sheepish, reluctant tone.  On most days, the boys will do just about anything Harper wants if she asks the right way.  I personally, love his high heels.  He has stellar legs.
This never happens.  When Amon is tired he usually wants to be put in his bed, but he’s been a bit sick…just teething stuff in my motherly opinion, so Josh coaxed him into a snooze in his arms.  I was jealous.
Sol used every last dollar he got for his birthday and from his penny bank to purchase the Millenium Falcon.  Huddy and I both gave him a high-5.
I wish I could bottle their love for each other.  I bet I could sell it for millions.
I like this guy.  He is just so funny and special and quirky.  He definitely marches to his own beat.  And sweet as all get out.
Kid drawings are the best drawings.  Our house is littered with drawings and designs and different things cut out and glued back together.  I love it.  I hope, some how, they will be creative for the rest of their lives.
And today Amon and I got a rare lunch date with Josh.  It was nice to have just the three of us together…reminded me of Ethiopia and the hospital.
I am beginning to work on some Saturday Sale items.  There definitely will not be as many pieces as last sale…time has just really gotten away from me, but I will have at least a few pieces.  I’ll post more details on Friday.
Hope your day is grand.
Happy Tuesday!

Happy 4th Birthday Solomon!

Sol’s highly anticipated 4th birthday was Friday and he lived it up.  We celebrated him well.  Thursday night we did a little Chuck E Cheesing…going on a Thursday was such a good idea, VS going on a Friday night.  So Friday was all pretty low key and just some at home fun.

Everyone was up early because Harper had school and Josh had to be at work way too early.  He was so cute with his presents.  This picture accurately shows just how early it was.  It makes me laugh out loud.

Sol chose ice cream sundaes for his birthday breakfast.  Last year he went with Batman pancakes, so sundaes were a change.

He completely melts my heart.  Big time.  How did Josh and I get the amazing opportunity to be his parents?!?  God just blows me away.

The rest of the day was spent just playing with his presents and he picked McDonalds for lunch.  Huddy struggled a bit this birthday with the cool presents Sol got…even though he knew about them and even helped wrap them.  It’s hard when you essentially have twins minus the same birthday.  But they worked it out and we did a lot of kitchen timer sharing…I set the kitchen timer, when it beeps they switch toys…I set the timer again, when it beeps they switch…repeat, repeat, repeat.  It works well for them.

We did a movie night too.  Sol picked Hotel Transylvania from Redbox.  The movie was waaaaay cute.  We all liked it and there was lots of belly laughing.

I told Sol he could pick anything he wanted for dinner.  That meant anything…like take out, homemade, whatever he wanted.  He chose chicken tortilla soup.  Harper and Huddy both sighed.  Harper even tried to talk him out of it, but that wasn’t happening.  The boy digs his spicy chicken tortilla soup.  So I loaded my crock put up and we all feasted that night.

He asked for chocolate cupcakes with “that white icing” aka cream cheese frosting.  He had been talking about cookies for forever, so I totally had it all figured out in my head for some awesome Transformer cookies and then he surprised me with the cupcake choice.  I was short on time and, well, just plain tired, so when I found these $1.99 Transformer pencil sharpeners I high-fived myself and even though it wasn’t a groundbreaking cupcake, I knew Solomon would love them and I was right.

I laughed so hard when the kids took the sharpeners toppers off their cupcakes and Josh said, “No, don’t lick the icing off them.”  Sooooo, maybe not the safest cupcake topper…who doesn’t love a bloody tongue on your birthday.

With every year, the singing of happy birthday is my favorite.  I always tear up…sometimes it’s a full on weep and that was definitely the case this year.  My heart is just so full for this kid.  He is so fun and passionate and crazy and sweet and tough and hard headed and old manish…ugh…he just has my heart.

It was his day and it was such a good, sweet day.  Why God gave us Solomon, I’ll never know…why He thought we were okay enough to entrust us with him, blows my mind, but with each of our kiddos, we are truly, truly thankful God took a chance on us as parents.  It is an honor to be his Mom and Dad.  What an amazing kid.  He challenges me as a parent and loves on me hard when I make mistakes.  He’s going to change the world.  He has the drive and passion to be anything he wants and I cannot…I repeat…CANNOT wait to see what all God has planned for him.  I know it is going to be something truly incredible.  Happy 4th birthday Solomon Kelley.  We are crazy in love with you.

Insta Friday

I’m on a roll people…this is like 5…maybe just 4 Insta Fridays in a roll.  A culmination of my Instagram pics over the last week.  I’m pitterpatterart if you want to follow along.

Silly faces are always the best faces.

The wee Kelleys are totally old people when it comes to their cereal selections…Life, Cheerios and Raisin Bran.  At least the Cheerios were honey nut.  I’m sure their fiber intake is superb.

I’ve been having to go through old childhood items.  Can I get a what, what for my hippie turtle candle.  Josh Kelley and I will probably light this baby tonight along with some incense and then turn on our black light and enjoy our Pink Floyd poster.  Memories.

Amon’s most favorite spot.  Too fun pulling in the driveway and seeing his sweet little face.

Speaking of sweet face…there are no words…I’m done.  He wins.

I’ve been working on getting my creative area cleaned up and organized.  This is the aftermath of last Saturday’s sale.

My lunch date…every day.

If I had known just how happy and how clean her room would stay now…I would have bought her a desk a long time ago.  A desk…who knew?

After bath Amon is the more serious and refined Amon.

“Make Your Own Salad” night is maybe my most favorite meal to make.  Instructions:  Tear up lettuce and put toppings such as croutons, carrots, cheese, broccoli, chicken, eggs, etc in different bowls.  Assemble your own.  The end.

Someone asked about how I keep up with my running so precisely.  I have two ways…I have a gps watch that keeps it for me or I use the Map My Run app a reader recommended to me.  Love both of them.

I picked up two new running partners this week.  They’re pretty fun…I just may keep them.

Happiness is Chuck E Cheese for your birthday.

Happiness is Chuck E Cheese for your birthday…with Amon.

BTW…we use online coupons at CC to keep the cost low.  Also each kid is signed up for birthday jazz, so they get a coupon for like 20 tokens free for their birthday.

Sol asked for Transformer cupcakes for his birthday.  I really thought he was going to pick cookies and I had this grand idea for Transformer cookies and then he went with cupcakes.  So what’s a mom in a pinch supposed to do?  How about buy a $1.99 pack of Transformer pencil sharpeners, top those cupcakes off and call it a day.  And Sol is thrilled.

I’ve never told him before, but the #1 reason I married Josh Kelley was for his mad birthday door skillz.  He had me at “I’m a pretty good drawer.”

Our tradition is they can have anything their little birthday heart desires for breakfast on their big day.  Sol requested ice cream sundaes.  He’s my kind of man.

A little McDonalds for lunch with my guys.  Amon decided to rock a collar today for Sol’s birthday.

And this may be my all time favorite Instagram picture ever.  It is just sooooooo them.  And I love that today has been one filled with so much fun and adoration for Solomon.  He is truly a special and crazy amazing little boy.  We are incredibly blessed to be his Mom & Dad.

Have a great weekend.  Happy Friday.

58.4

I’m doing a little super late night blogging here…trying to get it in before midnight.  Today marked the last day of January and tomorrow…as in Friday…is Sol’s birthday.  The night before a birthday always makes for a late night…always.

So one of my goals for 2013 was to set monthly running goals.  There was no rhyme or reason to the number I chose for January…55 miles…but I am happy to report that I logged 58.4 miles.  I picked up some extra miles this week when I started running with my niece Campbell and nephew Cooper…I think I may have found some new running buddies.

Some call it sweating, but I call it glowing.  Boom.

For February I am going to tackle 62 miles…I actually put a little thought into this number, so we’ll see how it goes.

Other than my rad running shoes that I have talked about far too much, my number one running necessity is my headband.  Now I have been through quite a few headbands…I have tried them all and then my Zumba instructor Janet told me about these headbands from banded2gether.com and the great cause they help support.  Well at that moment the heavens opened and a choir of angels began to sing Olivia Newton John’s “Let’s Get Physical”.  These are the best headbands I have ever had and I now own three of them.

The.Best.Headband.Ever.  Serious.  I mean it.  Mark it.  Go check them out.

Tonight we did a little pre-birthday partying at Chuck E Cheese.  We decided to skip out on the craziness of CC on a Friday night…we made such a wise choice.  It was awesome.  When Sol decided that was what he wanted to do for his birthday…pretty sure Josh and I high-fived.  I know there are some haters out there, but goodness, we love Chuck E Cheese.  The pizza.  The games.  The tickets.  The crappy prizes.  The crazy kiddos running mad wild.  The skee ball.  And my infamous battle to break the record on the basketball game.  Tonight the high score was 76…I got 72…two times in a row.  New arch nemesis.  It was all glorious.

That blur is Sol…he was a crazy pitching machine tonight.  Dude’s got an arm.

Now I need to go to bed.  I just finished up Sol’s cupcakes…which I topped with pencil sharpeners.  I’m serious.  You do what you gotta do sometimes.  And Josh just got done putting up his birthday door.

Amon is teething so I’m sure Josh and I will be playing ‘rock, paper, scissors’ in the middle of the night to see who has to get up to handle that little hot mess.  So to bed I go.  Hope you had a good Thursday…the weekend is here.  Word.

Happy Super Late Thursday Night.