Remembering my Mimi

A week ago last Friday, I received a phone call that my Mimi, Elizabeth Swift Brown, had passed away.

She had been very sick for a very long time so the phone call brought a mixed bag of emotions. Sadness and relief. Shock and peace. A wish that I could have had more time with her and comfort that her time and pain was finally over.

My Mimi was a character. A force to be reckoned with. Feisty. Spirited. When she would ask you how you were doing, "I'm fine" or "I'm good" were never an acceptable answer. She let Kyle know this the first time they met. He made it a point never to mention "doing well" again! She was always "marvelous, darling" (in the most delicious East Texas accent you've ever heard), even when she wasn't.

At the young age of 82, she came down to College Station for my Kappa initiation and stood through the hours long ceremony. When one of my friends noticed that Mimi had lost an earring, she simply replied "Oh heavens, I guess I'm a gypsy!" and just rolled with it.

Mimi was not the typical "bake cookies with you" kind of grandmother. She was more the take you to Neimans at Christmas type! Always fashionable, she loved the color yellow. I never pass by a yellow rose without thinking of her.

In my adult years I have really enjoyed hearing others tell me stories about her, how she was a woman ahead of her time. At a time when most women did not work outside the home, Mimi did. She was passionate about her work in the wood flooring business she founded with my grandfather. I was tickled to hear the story about how she added ceramic tile to the product line. When samples of the tiles started coming in for display, my grandfather said that they weren't in the ceramic tile business to which she replied, "Now we are."

At  95 years old, the time spent I spent with my family and her memorial service truly felt like a "celebration of life". It was good to see all of my aunts, uncles and cousins and share stories about our time with her. Unsurprisingly, we clung to many of the same stories. She was the matriarch of our family and will truly be missed!

And, since no post would truly be complete without an "out of the mouths of babes" moment, I wanted to share Cooper's reaction to the news.

Since Kyle's mom is also a Mimi, Cooper has always known my grandmother as "Mimi Elizabeth". The last time he saw her was in February when we went up to celebrate her birthday. At the time, she had a broken hip. Cooper went on and on about Mimi Elizabeth's "broken weg" and how he was going to fix it.

After I got the call, Cooper noticed I was crying and asked what was wrong. I told him that Mimi Elizabeth had died and that it made me sad. He said "Oh Mom, I'm sorry. I'll get Mimi Elizabeth a new bandaid. Did she fall off her scooter?" I'm sure Mimi got a good chuckle about that one from Heaven. Although,  she most definitely would have chosen a souped up Cadillac over a scooter!

All this because he loves me?

From the minute we step foot on school campus, Cooper is always scheming ways to get home. Exhibit A: his Mother's Day card to me:

My mom is special because…she takes me to my house! Of all the things!

Back when Cooper was teensy and hated school a lot more than he does today, I read a lot of books and blogs about separation anxiety. The silver lining, which I'm sure all desperate parents like myself cling to, is that separation anxiety is a sign that kids have formed a strong bond with their parents. I told myself this in the dark days. "Yes, I am such a good mom that my son wants to hurl every time I leave him." Consolation prize?

Today was the last day of school for Cooper, and our last day at the school Cooper has been going to since he was 19 months old. SADNESS! Not only will I miss his sweet little school but it's the end of an era and one more sign that my baby is no longer a baby anymore. I was looking back at my post from the beginning of the school year (here) this morning. I can't believe how tiny he was at the beginning of the year and how HUGE he looks now!

August 2013

May 2014

August 2013

May 2014

One thing that hasn't changed is the waterworks when I leave. Yes, this sweet little face crumples and turns red at the start of our goodbye routine. Every. Single. Time. 

He thinks its hilarious to stand too close to the camera. At least I get a smile. Sigh.

Showing off his artwork!

Maybe next year my sweet boy will work on making me feel like less of an a-hole every time I leave him! In the two years he has been at school, he has never been allowed to go home because of his antics but that never stops him from trying. One thing is for sure, he is persistent! He must REALLY love me!

Rosemary Beach 2014

Ahhhh, vacation. We had such a fun time at Rosemary Beach last year (see post here) that we decided to quadruple the crowd this year. Not only did we have sweet Carrington in tow but we also had three other families join us.

With the four families combined, we had 15 people including 7 children under 5 in one house. It was as crazy, loud and fun as it sounds. And, I am happy to report that despite the few minor emergency room visits that everyone survived and is talking about doing it again next year. Huge success in my book!

Kyle and Cooper drove with another Dad and kid so that we could have a car in case of emergency. Turned out we used the car most of all on our daily trek to the grocery store. Feeding 15 is serious business! Princess Carrington and I were lucky enough to fly with the rest of the group. Travel was a breeze for all of us and we'll definitely be driving next year. I just wasn't brave enough to take a 10 month old who just learned how to crawl and in a rear facing seat on a 10 hour drive. Thank you Southwest Airlines summer flight specials!

Here are some pictures from our trip!

Babies on the way to the airport.

The first day on the beach was a little chilly but the babes had a blast nonetheless. Cooper wanted nothing to do with the pool, just like last year. He was content to stand at the water's edge for hours and "jump the waves". Good workout for all!

Beach baby belly!

Posing with Mom's Dos XX. Only 20 years until its yours little one!

By the end of the week, the water really cleared up and beach time looked more like this:

Cooper heaven.

I have very few pictures of him not in motion!

A breezy afternoon.

Beach hair!

My girl.

The favorite game of the trip, chase the waves!

Gun show.

Mealtime was something for the record books. The mess that was under the table could have fed a family of four! 

Look like a lot of kids/food/sippy cups? Look again. There are two missing!

Lucky for me, there was an extra little mommy to help out!

Sister's two vampire fangs really came in on the trip. Still waiting for the middle four. Ummm...

The "vamps".

Don't worry, Cooper's "planet light" made the trip. It's his newest treasure given to him by our sweet across the street neighbors. He even had it plugged into the car on the drive. You know, just in case he wanted to see Saturn. Crazy kid!

The "pwanet wight".

One night we hit up an outdoor concert. I think we were there for all of two songs but there was ice cream and beer aplenty. Happy crew!

Mommy / Daddy selfie. We need some practice!

Pure happiness on this boy's face.

Sleepy girl.

The worst part of the trip was definitely having to come home. And because I clearly needed help snapping back to reality, I had the trusty TSA to help me out. Thanks TSA, it's a scooter.

The Grumpus in the Wumpus

Have you ever wondered who steals socks from the dryer leaving you with less than a perfect pair? What about who leaves you only one square of toilet paper when you desperately need it most? Do you know who leaves the shower light on every single day? Kyle might think these are all things I have done but let me assure you that Cooper has taught me otherwise!

Introducing: The Grumpus in the Wumpus

According to Cooper he is a "tiny, tiny little man" that lives in our house and does all sorts of bad things. Good thing Cooper is in the know about this guy, otherwise he himself might get blamed for a whole lot of wrongdoings!

I often see traces of him like tracks from the water gun that was shot in the house and wrappers from candy that he must have taken out of the cabinet but I can never seem to catch him myself. Tricky little sucker.

One time the Grumpus in the Wumpus even had the nerve to pull the step stool up to the sink and spray water all over the kitchen! Cooper sent him to time-out for that one. (Nice touch, buddy.)

So, if you are ever searching for your missing keys or wonder who left a cup of milk in your car to sour please know that the Grumpus in the Wumpus was responsible. For everything. Future and past. Forever.

Cooper just thought you should know just in case he ever visits your home!

The New Gig

Hi. I'm back…reporting in from the other side. I'm two days in to my new stay-at-home-mom gig and things are pretty rosy!

I reported to my boss' office this morning at 6:15am. He gave me a smile that let me know he was happy to see me. I opened his blinds and watched as he stretched and scrambled out of the room, ready to take on the day.

"MOM! Wet's go watch Paw Patrol! Sit with me! Can I have some nuk (milk)? What are we going to do today?"

My other boss arrived around 6:45am with a sleepy little look on her face.  The three of us sat down to breakfast together and wished their other boss, my co-worker, a nice day at the office.

"Bye Daddy! Have a good day today!"

We are settling into our new routine and I'm even  figuring out how to squeeze a little laundry in between scooter races and play-doh. Priorities, people! Both kids are napping right now so I must be doing something right!

I'm sure there will be days I'm wishing to go into the office, but for now I'm appreciating the little things that are awesome about my new gig. Here are a few I've noted so far.

1. I went to the grocery store…ON A MONDAY! Did you know that there is no one at the grocery store on a Monday?! I had both kids and was in and out in 25 minutes instead of my usual hour. I parked at the front and got almost everything on my list, which leads me too…
2. If you forget something at the store, no worries…YOU CAN GO BACK! I'm so used to shopping for the week (during naptime, only on Sundays) that when I got home with no blueberries I was seriously bummed. That used to mean popping over to Whole Foods on my lunch and stashing food in our teeny office refrigerator or waiting until after kids went to bed for a 9pm run, ugh. But today, I just went to the store with Sister after I dropped Cooper at school. Much better!
3. Workout clothes are acceptable daytime attire! (At least I think they are…) Thank you to the Mom who brought that in style. And yes, they are actually getting used. I'm pretty sure pushing kids in a double BOB is like 18x the work.
4. I played pretend snowboarding for 30 minutes on a Monday morning! Damn you Paw Patrol for turning my kid on to snowboarding over skiing, but it was still cute and fun.
5. Kid food is delicious. I'm sure this will be a blow to the waistline (or maybe we'll just call it even with the double BOB-ing), but I have to admit that I do like the sandwich crusts and spare mac n' cheese. Sorry I'm not sorry.

Someone remind me of these on my next whiny/rainy/teething/"my bunny snack wrapper opened down the middle not the side" kind of day!

A letter to my daughter: My decision to become a stay-at-home mom

Dearest Carrington,

We are about to enter a new stage of life together! My time as a working mom has come to an end and I want to tell you all about it, sweet girl. It's not that I don't want your brother to read this one day, I do. I am writing specifically to you because one day you may be standing in these very shoes and [hopefully] you'll like to hear a nugget of hard earned wisdom from your dear ol' mom.

First, a little about my job… I love my job. I think I'm good at my job. I feel challenged and rewarded and fulfilled and all of those warm-fuzzy HR words that you're supposed to feel. I went through a couple of jobs before I found what I really enjoyed doing, but I am grateful to say that I did find it. I am telling you this because if I didn't feel these things, I would have never gone back to work after your brother was born. I will never regret that for a time I chose to be a working mom.

However, as cliche as it may sound, I have always struggled with the feeling that I was never going to be able to give 100% to my job and I was never going to be able to give 100% to you. If you're reading this as an adult, you probably know enough about me by now that you know that not giving 100% doesn't sit well with me. I'd like to think that perhaps I've lightened up with age but I'm guessing not!

I know a lot of moms who do the working mom thing beautifully. I'd like to think that I did too, for a time. Sometimes I felt like I was a better mom because I worked. While I didn't have as much time with you during the day, I really tried to make every single moment that I had with you count. If you don't believe me, just ask my friends that I haven't seen too much of over the last 3 years!

However, at the end of the day, you win. We win. I "Leaned In" and I tried but I just could never drown the notion that you and your brother were getting bigger by the minute and I was missing it. No matter how well I do in my career or how much money I make, I can never buy this time back with you. I can't tell you how fortunate I feel that this is a choice that I get to make.

At this moment, I can't say with certainty that this is a forever choice for me. Maybe one day I'll wander back into the working world, or at least dip a toe in the water. But right now I feel very, VERY excited to give this a shot and to be there with you everyday to watch you grow and learn and play and just be little.

My hope for you is that one day you are in this exact same spot with a job that makes you happy and children so precious that you can't stand to be away from them. If you get here, I know that you will make the right choice for you and your family because really there isn't a wrong choice. This is truly a high class problem to have and I hope that you recognize that just like I do.


Here's to us.


All my love,

Mom

How can I resist that face?!

Second Kid Probs

My friend Chelsea and I are constantly going back and forth on what we call #secondkidprobs. Mainly, these are things that we do with our second kids that would make our first kid selves cringe.

I started to make a list of my #secondkidprobs and wish I could go back in time to and show my one-kid self this list, just for grins. But, then again, I would probably not be grinning for too long…let’s just say that baby Cooper’s mom would not approve!

So here’s my list. I hope all of you 2^nd and 3^rd time Mommies can relate and I hope that all of your first time Mommies don’t judge me (too hard)!

•  I made 100% of my firstborn’s baby food. I made maybe 5% of my second’s. In fact, I’m pushing her to solid food as fast as I can so I can just make the same meal for both of them. At nine months, she’s pretty dang close. She may or may not have had a bite of her brother’s hamburger patty the other day.
• On that note…I let my second kid eat a Cheeto at 9 months. To be fair, it was a “natural Cheeto”, whatever that means, so I should get some credit for that. Also to be fair, it was me that was eating said cheeto, she simply plucked it from my hand. I didn’t stop her. I also didn’t stop her from having another!
•  I let my second kid get in our bed. I NEVER let my first in bed with us. EVER. PERIOD. Now, Sister gets in bed with us every morning! She wakes up usually between 5:30 and 6am. I figured out that if I lay her right next to me after I feed her that she will drift back to sleep for another hour. I quickly traded my fear of having a 10 year old in my bed for that extra bit of sleep. Praying I’m not short-sighted on this!
• There are about 50 pictures of my first around my house. There is one (1!!!) picture of my second. I have pictures of her, I just can’t seem to ever find time to hang/frame!
• Bedtime is more of an ideal than a rule. As a baby, my first never saw the light of day past 7:15pm ON. THE. DOT. We avoided going to parties and dinners that would keep him out past his bedtime. While most nights with Sister are the same, she definitely gets toted around way more. As long as she’s still smiling, right?!
• If I have to leave the room, I make sure the dog is in there with her. You know, to alert me to any problems and also to provide entertainment! Genius right here. I used to drag my first to the bathroom with me. Never again, if I can help it!
• Sometimes baths consist of a good ol' wipe down with a baby wipe. Big brother definitely was in the tub every night but, if wipes are good enough for the tush they're good enough for the body, right?!

What other #secondkidprobs are out there? Would love to hear from you!

My smiley second kid!

If you missed the video on Instagram this week, here's the full version of Sister laughing at Cooper. That's the other thing about second kids…they think everything their siblings do is hilarious!