Blue Jeans and a Good Hair Day - Spring Break edition :)

"5 years. 365 days. 1825 happy moments captured."

  
Lots and lots of happy this Spring Break week.  Right now, I'm typing this little diddy barefoot on my driveway, iced caramel macchiato next to a bucket of sidewalk chalk, with Cruz out like a light in his carseat in the car.  No worries, as the doors of the car are indeed open and Cruz is hanging on to the soccer ball he just scored at Target.  Starbucks for mom, a soccer ball for Cruz.  I'm loving this weather, the baby blankets on the clothesline, and the iced tea brewing by the deck.  Spring has officially arrived and life is good.    

Saturday: Two and a half hours at Jordan Creek, BY MYSELF!  Beau had an awards reception in Des Moines last weekend, so we were able to enjoy a night for the two of us while Cruz stayed at Grandma and Poppa's.  While the food, the drinks, and the chance to dress up were a major plus, the chance to shop without a stroller was an added bonus (and did I mention the Gap welcomed me with a 40% sale?!)

Sunday: A clean pantry (the finished product, definitely NOT Cruz dumping an entire container of Quaker Oats on the floor)

Monday: an accomplished home-cooked meal, the table set, and a contented toddler’s arms wrapped around his mommy’s legs.  There's nothing that says accomplishment more than a home-cooked meal on the table before Dad even walks through the door!
 

Tuesday: watching Cruz go down the slide for the first time.  And then again, and again, and again :)
 

Wednesday: what’s not to love about this day? Stuffed Iowa toast at Newton’s Café, a late morning excursion to the park, some picnic essentials at Sweet Basil Market, some barefoot cuddling on a favorite quilt, an abandoned car and a long walk home, a sleepy baby in a stroller, and grilled pork kabobs on the grill.
 

Thursday: an afternoon in the backyard, just me and Cruz.  Bubbles and blueberries, snuggles and chases.
 

 

Friday:  Not a thing on the agenda except a trip to Target, a Starbucks coffee, and an afternoon of play.

"It is a happy talent to know how to play."

-Emerson

Cruz meets toad.

Feel free to play along and link to your own 'Blue Jeans and a Good Hair Day.' Happy Friday!

Spring Fever

Every year, Mother Nature decides to reward teachers and students with a beautiful and unexpectedly warm weather day sometime during the week of Spring Break.  A blue sky, plenty of sunshine, and above average temperatures to invite us outdoors and get us that much more excited for summertime. 

And this year, well, she was out to impress.

This Spring Break week has not only provided blue skies, plenty of sunshine, and above average temps., but a week of record breaking temps.  Shorts, t-shirts, walk-around-barefoot-turn-the-furnace-off-and-sleep-with-the-windows-open temps.  I don't remember a March this warm for this many days in a row, and it's starting to feel like June instead of March.

I'm not sure what I'm enjoying more --- the weather, or the week away from the toxicity of school right now.  I didn't even realize the extent of how much of my life was consumed by the uncertainty of my job status until I had a chance to step away from the environment for a week.  It's truly been a vacation --- a chance to let it all go for a week and focus on my family, my house, and the simplicity of everyday life.

It seems we've went non-stop this week, yet, we've filled our days with the 'non-stop' that leaves you replenished and relaxed instead of stressed and spent.  My Spring Break has included afternoons in the sun with one happy boy, that is, until a motorcycle or neighbor's yellow lab comes barreling down our street (insert frightened shriek and hang-on-for-dear-life-excuse-to-cuddle-moment).  My Spring Break has included lazy mornings in pajamas, blue plastic playground slides, vinegar solution on windows, and evening baths to soak dirty feet.  My Spring Break has included easy, content, and the calm assurance that everything will be okay.  

What else has this glorious Spring Break included???

...the park!  Last year, we'd stroll by the park and I'd dream of a rough and tumbling little bruiser running through the park.  And this year, I'm sure I'll dream of a sweet little immovable baby sitting on a blanket!  Cruz loved the park, so much that we visited three different ones in three days.  Although the slide and the swings were definitely his favorite part, he also enjoyed staring in awe at the 'big kids' showing him the ropes.

I hope I never forget his reaction during our first trip.  He was so excited, so in awe, that he'd move from one thing to the next, smiling from ear to ear, and letting out this sort of low-pitched 'ah-ha-ha' as if he'd just found his own little slice of heaven.  And I tell you what --- there's nothing better than seeing your babies that happy.   

The next day, Beau couldn't resist the two of us home without him, and decided to take the entire day off to be with us.  We made sure to make good use of every minute of it.  It began with breakfast at our favorite hometown cafe, Newton's, followed by a morning for Cruz to show Dad his moves at the park.

We slid down the slide,

 

 

...tried out the swings,

...and mostly stared at all the other kids playing.

 

(maybe they'll play with me if I make my fish face...)

We picnicked.  Popped a squat at George Wyth with some cheese and crackers, fresh berries, and our favorites from local food market, Sweet Basil Market, and munched, lounged, and enjoyed each others' company.  I love picnics, and after seven years of convincing my husband that summer food is best enjoyed from a quilt in the grass, I think he's finally coming around.  I guess it doesn't hurt that he now has a little miniature to keep him entertained ;)

 

Forrest Gump, anyone?

...and we walked.  Decided on a whim to leave the car parked at George Wyth and walk the three miles back to our neighborhood.  Cruz got in his afternoon nap, Beau and I talked like old times, and my white arms basked in the afternoon sun. 

...our night ended with pork and roasted red pepper kabobs on the Big Green Egg, compliments of Stonewall Kitchen's Roasted Apple Grille Sauce. 

  
...and who could forget our post-bath walks at dusk.  The perfect night cap before bedtime.  

And last but not least, a long (and yes, I admit), overdue haircut.  By dad, on the deck, sitting on mom's lap with a bath towel draped around his cute little neck.  He did much better this time, and although I was close to tears at first, shrieking at the sight of the long locks falling to the deck floor, I got over it when I saw how handsome he looks....

The 'before' shot...

And the 'after'...I can't believe how grown up he looks!

Lots of fun coming this weekend.  Who doesn't love some March Madness, St. Patty's Day, and 70 degree weather?!  

The Fever

Last night, I rocked Cruz to sleep in the middle of a thunderstorm. I rested my cheek on the top of his blond head and listened to the rain wash away the long, cold winter. I love a good rain storm, especially at night…the raindrops that rest on the windows, the sounds of cars swishing through the puddles in the streets, and the power and mightiness of a good crack of thunder. Cruz slept like a baby (go figure) during our first rainstorm together, and after nestling him in his cozy crib and retiring to bed myself, I silently praised God for the blessings of a warm house, a little baby, and a new Spring.

Aside from the mid-thirty degree temps that just won’t seem to go away, spring is indeed here and I have the fever...

SPRING FEVER.

Spring is the green grass that’s starting to envelop our front lawn. Those unnoticed window boxes just waiting for some fresh dirt and pretty blooms. The need to open my freshly cleaned windows and suck in the fresh air outside. Spring is that salad with cucumbers, that burger on the grill, and that neighborhood walk at 6:00 in the daylight. Spring is a no-coat-necessary, buy-a-new-pair-of-flip-flops, wear-a-cute-summer-dress, and be-outside-as-much-as-possible mentality, even if it’s just grabbing the mail, pulling the garbage out, or walking into school from the parking lot. Tasks that are so hard to do in the winter become easy in the spring. Moods become lighter, days become longer, and life just becomes sweeter.

So what's screaming Spring to me at home this week?  

...A trip to Bath and Body Works to scope out the seasonal Wallflowers, including scents that smell so good, you'd rather pour them down your throat instead of plug them into your wall.  Scents of Peach Bellini, Caribbean Salsa, and Pink Sangria now fill my house and each room becomes a new destination.  

...Pastels.  A pink cardigan, a bottle of Victoria's Secret lotion, and a brand new baby food cookbook, covered in fuzzy baby chick yellow.
 

...A new salad.  Fresh greens, some craisins, bacon (of course), and a warm Gorgonzola cheese dressing.

...A baby dressed in (baby) blue.  A baby who loves to 'talk,' and looks at you so intently, trying his best to communicate with you, as if his language makes absolute sense to him.  I often imagine him as one of the babies in "Look Who's Talking," and wonder what he's thinking about in that little head of his.

...Cruz has this new thing.  Lately, whenever we lie on a blanket together, he'll reach up high on his tummy, shoot me this wide-mouthed grin, then turn his head the other way and bury his face into the blanket.  Then, he'll turn his head, glance at me from the corner of his eyes, reach up, and attempt to put a spell on me with the same smile all over again.  It works every time.  

...A walk in the neighborhood.  Hooded sweatshirts, cozy blankets, and one content baby.   

 

I can't believe it's just about April.  I've just about made it through another school year.  Cruz is just about six months...a half year old!  Seriously, where does the time go?