Long days at home

Some days I don't think I'm cut out for this stay-at-home mom stuff.  I find the hours dragging on as Evie watches yet another episode of Caillou and Noah rolls around on the floor while I scroll through my Facebook news feed.  I get overwhelmed by the sense that I have a never-ending to-to list waiting for me, yet I don't really have to do anything. Making meals, cleaning up from meals, doing laundry, getting groceries, playing make-believe and picking up toys are the things that fill my days, and escaping to the laptop is often my "break."  On days like these, I feel guilty and like I am doing a disservice to my kids.  Should I be planning more activities and outings?  Giving more structure to our days?  Then, I take a deep breath and try to do a little better the next day.  These long winter days indoors have been tough!

I admit that I like a tidy house, and there are days when all I can focus on are clutter and messes, and it drives me nuts!

We affectionately call this the "clutter shelf"

An average day in our living area

Every flat surface in the kitchen is covered in junk. AAARRGGHH!

But then I start noticing other sights instead of the clutter...

Happy, healthy baby playing so nicely with toys

A boy and his dog

Happy, healthy girl relaxing during afternoon quiet time

Our little princess in her new scarf

...and I remember that I'm doing an important job that I wouldn't trade for the world.

Making pizza

We rounded out the family birthday festivities with our nephew Elliot's 10th birthday last week!  He is such a sweet big cousin to our kids, and we were happy to celebrate him (but somehow I didn't manage to get a single picture of him!).

Chef Carly helped make dinner

Evie and I made gummy worm funfetti cupcakes

We also had a nice Valentine's weekend. Evie was so excited because she had picked out a special gift (maple candies) for me and wrapped it herself.  We don't typically do any big Valentine's gifts, but it is fun to give each other little treats.  

Date night on Friday at Blue Paddle Bistro

Valentine's treat exchange

The highlight of our weekend was our first trip to the ECHO center in Burlington.  This brutal cold has encouraged us to try some different indoor activities, and the ECHO center was the jackpot!  We figured Evie would have fun, but Noah also loved watching the fish and looking around at all the exhibits.  It's clean, has great exhibits and activities, good food, and everyone had fun.  We decided to get a membership, so we look forward to going back often.

 

And, one more photo for the "who does my baby look like?" series.  I know this one is blurry, but I had to show the resemblance between Noah and his cousin Colby when he was a baby.