What a great way to spend a Saturday! The Canal Cruise was just enough history for me and perfect timing for a toddler (40 minutes was all she could handle).
We began by eating a light lunch of Appetizers at Sine Irish Pub in downtown Richmond. We ordered Crab Cakes and Fried Green Tomatoes. Baby Girl loved it.The restaurant definitely had an Irish feel and they played great Irish music. It so made me want to travel to Ireland again but alas those days are over for awhile. Haha!
Then it was time for the cruise! Tickets were only $6.00/adult and Baby Girl and Baby Boy were free. Perfect! The Cruise Director kept everyone entertained with his jokes and knew so much about Richmond History.
On the drive home, The Hubs and I kept talking about how we felt like we were on vacation but so glad we were only 30 minutes from home.
Are you ready for Richmond, Virginia?! The Hubs and I have decided to do small "stay-cations" this summer since we have a newborn. We just aren't brave enough yet to travel long distances with two kids. Can you really blame us? So over the summer be prepared for unedited pictures of the family doing things around the area. Beware- my hair is going to get sweatier and sweatier as the summer goes (the heat is killer here). But maybe it will give you some ideas of things to do and ways to help you save money this summer : )
At the Richmond Metro Zoo, we began by packing lunches...who doesn't love the chance to eat a lunchable from the grocery store, right? We ate lunch under a shaded picnic area to avoid a meltdown for "icecream" later. Then we took off through the park...perfect size for toddlers, by the way. We were able to take a safari ride into uncharted territories and also spend plenty of time feeding the giraffes ; ) They had a snack bar in the back but since we'd already packed there was no need to stop there. All in all, it was a great day! Definitely worth a try...
I came back to reality and realized Baby Girl was on "repeat" once more. She wanted a cookie and this was the thousandths time I had told her, "No, cookies are for after dinner." I...had been daydreaming for the thousandths time about going on vacation. More specifically about driving to the airport with no destination in mind, picking an exotic location and booking my one way flight to nowhere. But reality came back very quickly as a stream of pee came flying at me as I changed Baby Boy's poopy diaper.
"I want a cookie. No...umm...I need a COOKIE!!"
"Baby Girl, go sit in your chair. I already told you, No more cookies until after dinner."
And she ran away from me screaming like a baby.
I'm not gonna lie. At that moment, I wanted to scream too! I wanted to scream to the roof top. I wanted to stomp my feet just like Baby Girl. And yes, I even wanted to cry big crocodile tears...exactly like my tantruming two year old.
This job is hard stuff. I never thought being a stay-at-home mom was going to be stressful but my gosh, I kick myself everyday for not being more appreciative of my own mother. And it shames me to say, this job, was never what I had intended on doing. When I was young, I had great plans to impact the world in a big way. I would say to my mom, "God has big plans for me. I don't know what they are but I'm going to do something great." I thought people only got recognition from doing a corporate job or a medical job. At that time, I thought being a stay-at-home mom was just not for me. Boy, was I so naïve and cocky! And it really bothers me to think that my mom had to sit and listen to me, for all those years, talk about how I wasn't going to stay home.
Fast forward 16 + years to a few days ago, The Hubs and I were sitting on the patio talking about our days. It was dusk and Baby Girl was playing at her water table. I was holding Baby Boy. He told me about his day of conference calls and getting to go out on business dinners. I couldn't help but be jealous. Satan was burning a huge hole in my heart. I tried with all my might to think of something interesting to say.
You know, like, "Well Baby Girl stuck her hand in her poopy diaper today or I'm pumping 40 oz now!"
But the more I talked, the more Satan turned the knife in my heart. He had got me.
"You are worthless." Satan said. " Why even bother talking when all you have to say is about poop and breast milk?"
Now, Satan didn't really say this to me. It was my own free will talking down to myself. And I was GOOD at it. So I shut my mouth and listened to The Hubs a little more.
"I need help." I blurted. "I can't clean the whole house and take care of two kids on my own. Every time I get ready to do something, one of them screams or needs to be fed...or poops! Maybe I should get a housecleaner."
The Hubs says matter of factly, "Well all we need to do is have a schedule. Monday, Wednesday, Friday you wash the clothes and we will fold them together that night." Sounded like a pretty good idea to me but he was missing the point!
I was drowning. Drowning in laundry, and little tots tears, and losing patience quickly. I didn't want him to say that he had the answer. What I wanted was for him to APPRECIATE me. I wanted him to say I was doing a FABULOUS job. But who am I kidding! He didn't know that's what I needed. He heard the facts and provided the solution. But I needed him to read my mind.
Needless to say, you can imagine that the conversation didn't end well. I told him the truth. That I was jealous of him. That I wanted to be the one doing great things. I had always dreamed of doing something great, right? He was getting to go out each day and have business dinners and fly on planes weekly. And here I was doing exactly what I hadn't intended on doing.
And even now, as I write this out and the tears come, God has invaded my mind. He keeps whispering in my ear, "You are doing exaxtly what I had intended for you to do. You are fulfilling my big plans for you. You are worth it. Kim, no one sees it but I do. Raising these children, loving them unconditionally, showing Baby Girl how to control her temper and teaching them about Me is more than enough. Let go of your plans and take hold of my plans.
I belong to a wonderful MOPS group and one of the mentor moms spoke about how our life is a beautiful mess. She told us not to look at someone else's life and think that they had it all together. She said that everyone has problems and everyone's life was a beautiful mess. So I'm vowing in front of my God and my blogging friends to let go of the idea of a perfect house, a perfect family, and a perfect me. I am beautifully imperfect and thank God He made me that way.
Baby Boy made his debut at 11:26 am on April 22, 2013 weighing in at 8 lb 3.5 oz and 21.5 inches long...this blog is dedicated to him.
Baby Boy...you are a dream. Sometimes I lie awake listening to you breathe-fast and then slow...I suppose you are learning how to slow your breathing down as I am learning to slow down myself. Learning to stop and ENJOY your tinyness.
Your smell...just like your daddy's smell. I love kissing your head and breathing in the smell that makes you-YOU.
Your large hands and large feet...just like Baby Girl. I believe you and her will grow up to be tall basketball piano playing people : )
You never seem to cry-unless your hungry and then it's only grunts. You sneeze like a man, so loud and manly. You even look like a little boy. You have the most hair I've ever seen on a baby and I love spiking it up...reminding me of a little skater dude ; )
You are absolutely a perfect gift from our God above. I looked at you tonight in the rocker while singing to you and I told you about how you came at the right time and God handpicked you from heaven to be our little boy.
Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep Little Baby
Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep Precious One
Momma's Here and She Loves You So Much
Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep, Go to Sleep
I LoveYou!
I never knew how I could love a son. In fact, I was a little scared with how I was going to feel when they placed you in my arms. I knew how to treat little girls. I knew they liked bows, princesses, sparkly shoes and being told their pretty. But I didn't know how to handle a boy. Would you like camoflage or sports? Would you be wild and crazy like so many others have told me boys are? Would you love me when you were older? I hoped so... But all those feelings have washed away and you fit perfectly into our family. I have found that I love you just the same as I love Baby Girl. I've learned that it doesn't matter...boy or girl...you both fit into my heart perfectly.
You didn't want to enter the world on your own. I'd joked with several people that I must have a 5 Star Womb because none of my children ever want to come out. Starting at week 38 I began having lots of contractions...but then they'd stop. It was very frustrating to think I was going in labor and then everything stop suddenly. That's when I decided that I would like to have you in our arms at week 39. We needed family here to watch your Big Sister and since they lived kind of far away we planned your induction.
You were induced by gel induction and I have to say, "It was the best decision I'd ever made." In the hospital that night, I began having contractions. Even though the doctors said that most likely the gel would do nothing...it worked. I went from 1 cm to 5 cm in a few hours. My water half way broke...we thought it had broken completely though. The contractions kept coming and everytime the nurse would check me, I'd still be at 5 cm. So I decided to go ahead and get the epidural. I wanted to be able to sleep so I'd be rested when you arrived. Finally, the doctor came in that morning and realized my water had only half way broke. She broke the rest and I went from 5 cm to 9 cm in less than an hour. I kept having intense pain in my lower abdomen. This was completely different than Baby Girl's birth.
The nurse checked me again and said, "You are complete. It's time to try practice pushing." We got ready to push and she immediately stopped me. "No. Stop. He's there. I can see the head. I need to call the doctor now." So I practiced my breathing and waited patiently. The doctor came within a few minutes and I got ready to push again. But this time, I kept getting frustrated because I couldn't see from the mirror. I kept saying, "No mom, move the mirror this way. A little to the left. I can't see." The nurse stopped me and said, "Honey, his head is right there. Just look down." "What!" I thought. I didn't even push! One contraction had sent your head out. No pushing needed. I pushed only 2 more times and very little I might add...and there you were!
It was so fast. I didn't know whether to cry or laugh at how fast you came. I was overwhelmed and suddenly realized that your whole life is going to be fast. I needed to enjoy it starting now. They placed you on my chest. You were crying loudly. "It's alright, Baby. Momma's here." They wrapped you up and you grew calm. You were perfect. Everything about you was amazing.
Son, you are precious to us. You are loved by us. You were wanted. You came at the right time...your time. You were handpicked by God.
