I need to get out. But I look like......

 I am really blessed to have the job that I have but more importantly the boss that I have! I have two days at home one to work and one to be off. And any other day that comes up I can have off. Blessed. 

So on the days I am home, sometimes I wake up in the morning and think... "What the heck are we going to do all day?!" Right now Lincoln is two days shy of being 8 months and his schedule is pretty set (knock on wood!). We get up around 7:45-8 and then first nap is around 10 for about two hours. Then second nap is around 2:00-2:30 for one to two hours. And then bed at 7:30. It's pretty great.  But when he's up, he gets bored really quick. There are only so many practice snacks we can have and toys we can play with over and over. 

It's a struggle to get dressed because he is so busy and really... What's the point. 

There are some days, most days when we just NEED TO GET OUT!! 

It's been raining a lot lately and Lincoln would live outside if we let him, and walks aren't always in the cards for us. But you know what is....?? TARGET! Some days I just need to get out, no matter what I look like. Lincoln needs to see something other than mom and I need to see something other than play mats and toys! 

I have found that when we do get out it is so good for the both of us! Like, mentally healthy good. Some days I can shower during his first nap and look "OK" but other days I look and Lincoln and say... "Well at least I love you" because I look like What Not to Wear is hiding around the corner to come and get me. 

Normally I would care, but it feels so good to get fresh air that I just don't have the time to care.  

Some places we like to go are

Target

Target

Target😘

Costco (SAMPLES!!)

Fred Meyer 

Starbucks 

Costco is a great one. You can spend so much time in there and not get bored AND get snacks. Because eating when you have a little one is rough!! Right?!?! A trick to get them to last longer is feed them and then leave or if they are in the snacking stage baby mum mums, it'll buy you like 20-30 more min!

I see other moms with TWO kids out and they look fantastic! I'm thinking .... "Oh your nanny is home cleaning up, that's why you had time to get ready" 

Yoga pants have a whole new meaning to me, same with super soft cotton t-shirts. A baseball cap is amazing but better than that is the oversized stretchy headband! Oh and I'm not saying I don't always shower, because I do. I'm saying that when I get to take and shower for 5 min....I'm not wasting any time on fancy hair and make up!!

Our outing gives me energy and sucks it out of Lincoln, it's a win win!! We get home and I am ready to make dinner and clean up his toys while he takes his second nap. And when he wakes up we play or have a bath and play some more and then...PTL daddy is home!!!

Even if you don't feel like it, even if you are going mad and everyone is crying... GET OUT OF THE HOUSE! It is worth it, I promise. 

Lincoln at Target😊

I think it's just me....

So... My sister and I started this idea in the summer. I've been waiting for her to accept the admin position and she hasn't. Not that she doesn't want to, she just....has a 2 year old and a job where she sometimes works 60+ hours a week AND she pregnant! We're hoping she goes for another presidential baby name (it's looking like the chances are good!) 

But by now my little Lincoln is 7 months old and he is the best thing ever! I love being his mommy. Watching every step is so fun and challenging to me. 

This past summer my husband and I got the crazy idea to buy a house when Lincoln was only 2 months old....oh we should not have done that. We were living in Portland in a condo that was on the 4th story and was 56 stairs to get to. About 4 weeks into us having Lincoln, I was done climbin them. We had to move. So we started looking and bought a house in Wilsonville, however the house wasn't built yet. The builder said it would be done on September 28th. We put our condo on the market and it sold in 7 days! We were going to close on the 25th of September. No big deal. We can live with one of our parents for a few days. SO we start to pack up our first home. We lived there for three years almost exactly. During packing we decide that our kitty Zoé isn't happy with us anymore. Really she isn't happy with Lincoln, it's not fair for us to keep her and keep putting her in the bedroom away from us. We give her away to a girl named Zoey:) they are a perfect match. It was a sad day for us. But she is happy now. 

On top of getting rid of our cat and packing.... My sister decides to move away. Ugh. AND I went back to work. This summer was rough. I had a million emotions running through my body. 

So we pack and find out that our house won't be finished until the end of October! We pack up and leave our condo and move in with my parents. We are so thankful we have a place to stay. We were living in Salem and still working in Portland. It was a crazy time. 

Oh and on top of all of that, we hear the house won't be ready until November 30th!!!!! We so didn't pack enough clothes for that. At. All. 

There were many break downs. Many tears. And we learned a lot. 

We are in our house now for about a month and we love it. Lincoln is happy and we are so so happy!! 

More updates to come!

On a walk with beautiful Mt. Hood behind us. 

First Christmas with Lincoln 

Welcome home!