Our Village

(Hey - I just noticed this is my 100th blog post! Woo hoo!)

Well, needless to say (if my 2 week absence isn't obvious), life has been quite hectic since going back to work. It's all sort of a blur, actually. Get up; try to get ready with a crying baby and a clingy toddler in my face; run out the door; oops, forgot Sid's bottles; go to work; drive all over town to pick up kids; make dinner; put kids to bed; wash bottles and pump parts; make Ivy's lunch for the next day; clean kitchen; and go to bed. Usually, all of this wouldn't be complete until about 10pm, at which point all I had the energy for was emptying my brain with some JERSEY SHORE or CUPCAKE WARS. And somehow, with the help of the Keurig in the office, I haven't yet fallen asleep at my desk at work.

The first week was rough, not gonna lie. My head consistently throbbed, we were all at each other's throats over various household tasks getting done, and I was left wondering how my life had become the proverbial rat race I had been trying to avoid. By week 2, we managed to figure it out a little better, ironing out the kinks from week 1. And we were lucky to have the help from my mom on Monday (Ivy was off school) which really set a more calm tone for the week. As my friend Caron always reminds me, it takes a village. Indeed.

Sidney is doing really well at day care. Transition week was less than perfect, but he's really getting the hang of it. He no longer fights the bottle, takes good naps, and gives the sitter a HUGE grin when he shows up. Of course the grin he gives me when I pick him up is even bigger. He's so chill about everything. Nights have not been terrible, and he get's a good 5-6 hour stretch before ending up in bed with us. He's probably ready to drop those middle of the night feedings (especially since he noshes his way through the early hours of morning!), but I'm too exhausted to be disciplined about putting him back in the bassinet. Plus its extra time we get to spend together, so I don't feel bad.

Ivy is excelling in preschool...I realize I say that like she's acing her AP classes, but seriously I cannot believe how much she is learning and absorbing. She regularly uses Hebrew around the house, and sings almost exclusively Hebrew songs. Her memory is astounding, telling me all kinds of details of her day and the conversations she has with her friends and teachers. She knows how to spell her name, Simon's name, and Morah Tristin's name. She can also read all of the names of the kids in her class. AND, in bigger news, she is about 75% potty trained! We realized we had been encouraging it and talking about it enough that she must know what to do already. So we backed off. And lo and behold, the other morning while I was making her lunch, she wandered into the kitchen and said "I pooped on the potty." She's been in underwear ever since and can make it through the day nearly accident-free. Halleluyah if I never see another Pull-Up again!

And I have to say that the real reason I haven't totally and completely lost it yet is because of my own job situation. I am so lucky to be in the position that I'm in, with a boss who is understanding, patient and flexible. I'm totally committed to making it work, because I like what I do and the cause that we're fighting for, it's just taking a little while to iron out the kinks of the drop off/pick up demands. It really does take a load off to not be stressed about work. I was in a much more stressful situation after Ivy was born, so by comparison this is a piece of cake. And when I'm feeling frustrated or missing the kids, I just remind myself why I'm doing this...well, mostly because I have to. But also because I like what I do and I think it's important for my kids to see that. I also think so much of Ivy's dynamic personality is due to the socialization and love she got at day care, and I hope Sidney also benefits from it. (It takes a village, remember?) I guess if I had the luxury of having a choice, or knowing that my income was going towards something other than necessities, I might rethink it. But for now, it is what it is.

So as I mentioned above, there have been a lot of big changes for Ivy these past few weeks. And I am finally ready to share the photos of the big girl bed and the rest of the room soon to be shared by both of the littles. Ivy has been doing great in her bed - she doesn't get out at night, and it's so cute to hear her in the morning call out "I'm awake - open the door!" I was worried about the transition, but so far it's been smooth. We'll see what happens when Sid moves in...

Tada! (Hello Ivy!)

There it is - the big girl bed!

Obligatory wall letters

Sid's corner

Mike and I celebrated 5 years of marriage yesterday. A big milestone, right? You're probably wondering what we did to celebrate. A fancy night out on the town? A trip to somewhere tropical? Close. A last-minute dinner at Souplantation. kids in tow, followed by underwear shopping for Ivy at Old Navy (she was so excited that she dropped her pants in the store and wanted to put new ones on right away), and then downing a bottle of cheap champagne while watching our wedding video, GOLDEN GIRLS reruns, and IT'S ME OR THE DOG on Animal Planet. Awesome. That's why I love him - we didn't really have an opportunity for a romantic celebration, but we knew how to have fun with what we have. And no one has ever accused us of not having fun!

Are we having fun yet?!

And in one final piece of news, there's going to be another Silverstein baby!!! No, you fool, not ours. I'm going to be an aunt! Erica and Adam are expecting a little boy at the end of May and we are all thrilled to pieces. I can't wait to have a nephew to spoil, since that's what good aunts do. And he'll have a lot of great hand-me-downs from Sid...except for the monkey onesie that we were so excited to pass down, Adam being a monkey lover and all, but I did not survive its last wear due to poop. Oh well.