- Ohhhh, July... -

...you started off with a BANG!...

...and have been pop-booming out of control ever since! The minute all of the 4th of July festivities were over, [I thought] we would slouch back to the mundane/monotonous baseline that is "every day life" around here. But no.

Nopeeee! 

Just for one instance: It was a Friday afternoon ~2pm and I was changing one of Scarlett's diaper bombs [poop emoji ^to the nth degree!!!]. I heard a queer noise like water-trickling-turned-gushing coming from the kitchen area, so I poked my head out of the nursery to see if Harper had maybe pushed a chair over to the sink and turned the faucet on. Nope, she was still in the living room putting a mustache and a purse on Mr. Potato Head.  Weird! I scanned my eyes over the rest of the kitchen, and F#*&! S#@%! Holy crapppppers! The ice/water hole on the refrigerator was hemorrhaging bucketssss of water EVERYWHERE! I velcro-ed Scarlett's sh*t diaper back on and dumped her on the living room floor before dashing to the kitchen to assess the mess. Harper quickly came over to help, but the water was soaking full-sized bath towels quicker than we could throw them down! Of courseeeee, Brian didn't answer his phone in our moment of panic; but luckily Uncle Garett did! I was hoping he'd be at home [he lives just down the street from us!], but alas he was not and had to talk us through the disaster over the phone.  He directed me to the water shut-off valve in the basement [but not easily; I was about to disconnect the washer and dryer on first try and the water heater on second try -- and finally had to send him a photo of what I was touching so he could confirm it was the correct valve............allllll while water was still spewing upstairs and Scarlett was screaming her head off re: wallering in a poopy diaper and Harper was at the top of the stairs yelling/panicking, "Mommy? Mommyyyyy? Mommy! 'Da water still comin' out! Where are you Mommyyyyyyy!!?]

HOLY MESS!!! Finally it stopped and we began sopping/mopping up the pond on our floor. Oh, and yes, we soon got Scarlett a fresh diapey! Moments before Brian walked in the front door [still unaware of what had just occurred!], Harper set her diva fan right by the edge of the fridge to help dry out all the water that likely seeped into the cracks of the hardwood floor..... Ohhhhh MERCY. Gimme a margarita right meow.

Then! For the next instance: A few days passed by after the fridge incident, and Brian left for [yet another!] work trip. Not gonna be shy about saying it -- I freaking loathe his work travel!!!!! I loveeee spending time with my babies, but I get mild anxiety when I'm the solo parent -- still working my job while trying to juggle daycare drop-offs and pick-ups and dinners and baths and bedtimes juuuust to turn around and do it again all by myself the next day. Ugh. It's hard, especially when I'm a sleeper and sleep has to go to the backburner while he's gone. But! We got to FaceTime Daddy right before his plane took off, and then #girlhouse it was!

When Daddy returned home, the tables were turned and Mommy had to work a little 26-hours of overtime. It was SEVEN. DAYS. IN. A. ROW. which equates to 66 hours on the clock + 14-ish hours of drive time... What the whatttttttt?  Long story, buttttt it was a pre-meditated situation and Brian agreed to take some vacation from work to keep our family afloat while I was gone all week makin' 'dem dolla dolla billz and so!  I clung to the evenings with my babies as well as the pic updates from Daddy Daycare to get me through the week! It was interesting to say the least and definitely made me value my "part-time" status the other 51 weeks of the year! <3

In the middle of all our chaos, we still squeezed in lunch at 54th Street with Danette...

...a cousin play date at Great Aunt Joanie's... 

...ice cream at Bobby's with Grammy and Papa...

...Elly's 8th birthday party...

...a party at Uncle Jon's to cheer for Croatia in the World Cup...

 ...another [different!] cousin play date at Airplane Park...

...annnnnnd a sweet corn-picking session at the family pig farm! [Harp said, "Poo, it 'mells here!"]

Phewwwwww! I don't know what else to say, other than: 

5 days left of July..... LET'S DO IT!!! :)

- Tiny Dancers -

After the completion of gymnastics class way back when, Harper has been asking to start another class at the YMCA and so! A five-week stint of ballet/tap/dance it was! 

I was working an extra shift at the hospital on the evening of her very first class, so Brian happily agreed to get her dressed and off to class. A couple of hours later, Emma sent me these pics...

...and when I initially opened them at work I couldn't decide if I should be mortified/embarrassed for Harper or just fall off my chair laughing. Ohhhhh, Daddy...!!! Luckily, Harper didn't seem to mind her wardrobe... :D

For the next week, we dug a little ballet tutu out of her closet [thank you Aunt Lisa for the best hand-me-downs ever!] and she blended in with the other kiddos a little lot better... ;) :)

I/we absolutely loved watching Harper and Kate through the windows each week as they learned new dance steps and got their groove on! In the last few minutes of each class, the teachers invite the parents in for a "recital" so the kids can show off the new steps they've learned, and it's sooo adorable!

We are so proud of our BFF tiny dancers and can't wait to see what they choose to learn next! Love you two ballerinas!!! 

- FAMILY RESTAURANT... -

...OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

Sweet little Sissy caught some zzz's while Harp and Mommy tore up the kitchen making green beans! sweet potatoes! and peas!  

*****

Baby Food

Prep/Total Time: 10 minutes per batch

• frozen peas
• frozen green beans
• sweet potatoes [cut into small chunks before cooking]

Steam veggies on stove. Drain. Rinse with cold water for a few minutes to stop the cooking process. Dump soft veggies into blender. Blend! Eat/freeze! Enjoy! 

*****

Harper was so proud of our project and couldn't wait for Scarlett to give it the taste test the next day...

...whiiiiich didn't really go over too well; the sweet potatoes that went in immediately came back out [paired with a squinted-eye shudder] and she ultimately decided to stick with her beloved oatmeal and peas instead. But Harper lapped up Scarlett's rejected bowl of sweet potatoes annnnd even asked for seconds! #illtakeit!

And now? Food in 'da freezer for MONTHS! Healthy and cheap and convenient and perfecttttt. Holla at 'cho girls if anyone wants to make an order for carryout! Bonus: these purees come out lookin' the sameeee way they went in! ;) :/ :)

Hooray for puree!

- Festivities on the Fourth -

Here we go again with Scarlett's accelerated artwork: 

^^ I noticed the tips of her toenails on the left foot were a little blue a few days before I saw the bulletin board debut, so I'm thiiiiiinking she contributed to the firework on the far left or the far right; ohhhh daycare, I'm catchin' on to you!  But cheers to one of our favorite holidays.....and more cheers for teachin' 'em young how to properly celebrate the FOURTH OF JULYYYYY!!! 

America!

America!

Ahhhh-merrrr-ica! 

And I juuuust have to sprint down memory lane for a hot second and say one sentimental thang: last year at this time, we were announcing Baby F. numero dos to the world [!!!]. And this year, that feisty little fetus-turned-firecracker was able to take part in the festivities with the big kids! Zomgggg, I love these two little people more than words can say!!!

[^^ Sister skirts compliments of Grammy Resa!]

Of course, we didn't just don matching outfits for nothing; the 4th of July isn't at all a 4th of July without Brian's parents' annual backyard barbecue and firework show!

The kids played while the adults ate...and all the while, Brian was shut off in the shed loading his firework boards onto a trailer and programming the remotes to make sure the show would go off without a hitch...

 ...and it did! There were glow sticks everywhere, then the fireworks started and it was awesome! Harper is her daddy's daughter fo' sho': a mini-pyro in the making! :/

We spent the night at Grammy and Papa's and woke up to another day full of holiday fun...

 ...including a pool day at Bill and Suzanne's!

"There she isssss, MISS AMERICA!" ...We're in biiiig, big trouble with this one! BIG trouble.

We caught our community fireworks on the way home that evening and found Harper the perfect seat while Scarlett snoozed in the [running] car...

^^ ...there was only a brief meltdown when the fireworks were over and Harper realized we couldn't go inside Kohl's for a 9:50pm shopping spree.   

Then lastly [but most awesomely!], the weekend rolled around and we hit up Fair St. Louis for some music and fireworks.

Scarlett fell asleep on her milk source riiiight before the fireworks started and caught some zzz's through the whole show! Harper watched most of the show through my phone screen because she was dead set on "takin' some pit-churs of 'da boo-tiful fireworks!" [and actually, she isn't too bad in the photography department]!

Happy 4th of July, everyone! Happy birthday, America!!! Cheers to freedom and this beautiful life we live! :) 

- Reunioning with a FAMILY -

Not mad I married into this awesome family!  ...The best moments of Brian's family reunion and homecoming parade: 2018 edition!

Catch all y'all Croatians next year! 

- Five months young! -

Oh hello, pretty girl...

Rahhhhhhhh rawr! You're gonna be SIX MONTHS tomorrow, so I'm typing with fast and furious fingers before the clock strikes me out.  But this month! Month five: you're sooooo full of smiles [and even those big belly laughs when someone kisses your tummy!], BUT! no one would ever know it by your sober ole' monthly chalkboard photos!  You were smiling and babbling on and on for at least an hour before I staged this photo; after seeing that, I was so sure we would get a good grin today, but nope nope nope! Not a one.

[Finally, after an exhausting effort on behalf of Grammy and Harper, you did crack a few.]  You don't particularly like to lay down anymore and are always craning your neck up if you're left in a supine position. You can almost sit up all by yourself [though we usually leave a little pillow behind your back juuuuust as a little pad for error!], and a little mound of toys between your chubby legs will keep you occupied for hours several minutes. I think I've been saying this for the past couple posts, but EVERYTHING goes straight to your mouth and you chew.chew.chew.chew.chewwww on anything you can get your little gums on. I had to dig some bibs out of the basement [Harper never wore bibs?!] because you are a drooling machine! 3.28 minutes with no bib = a soaked outfit from neck to nipple-line. Big, sloppy, droooooooly kisses are your specialty, and you'll plant one on the cheek of anyone who comes within arm's reach. You found your feet and -- not a shocker -- spend a good chunk of the day chewing on 'dem lil' tootsies. You have the sweetest little demeanor and only show your squeals if you're left in a room by yourself.  Harper calls you "stinker butt" ...not sure where she heard that one?! ;)

Lastly and most importantly, you had two memorable milestones this month!  First swim and FIRST FOOD! ...Momma got a new phone a couple weeks ago [party emojiiiii] and I haven't uploaded any new pics off yet, so stay tuned for some adorable poses of the pea-faced princess! 

Ahhhhh! Signing off now to enjoy the last day of life with a fabulous five-month-old!

- Christmas 2.0 :) -

Ahhh...a short reminiscence of Mother's Day twentah-eighteen that came and went without sight of a single scribbled on card or solitary homemade toddler gift [#notbitter ... #justamused] ...But love makes the world go 'round, and the love was abounding on May 13, 2018, and so! I rest my case forever and ever amen.

...But I was juuuuuust reminiscing/comparing for a hot second, because for literally three weeks before Father's Day, the girls and I spent our days hand-picking special cards ...and taking and printing pictures to glue in said cards ...and cutting vinyl with the Cricut ...and painting with brushes and our hands ...and HOLY crafting basicallllly 24/7 all for the dads/papas in our lives!  Every single day, Harper said, "Mommmmmy, is it Fah'ver's Day yet?!" with her head cocked to the side and eyebrows raised and lips pursed.  She always had the most anticipatory look on her sweet little face, which is when I decided to officially deem Father's Day as "Christmas 2.0."  [Admit it, it's appropriate.]  The second Brian walked in the door in the evenings, she would run to me and say, "Mommy! Where did you put 'dat ting we made today wif our hands on it so I can show Daddy?" Yessssss. Definitely Christmas 2.0.

She was also dead set on buying Brian a hot and steamy [sort of inappropriate, too] wife-to-husband card, but alas I coaxed her into the daughters-to-daddy section and she found a cute one with two baby bears wearing princess crowns that she liked almost as well. Phew.

All [bitter] joking aside, I am truly in awe of the love and patience that Brian has for these girls, and I was almostttt as excited as Harper was for Father's Day to arrive and for him to open his gifts!  It takes a real man to live with three attention-seeking women ;) :), but Brian does that perfectly and flawlessly day in and day out!

[^^ Swooning over these beautiful pieces of artwork that came home from the daycare... I cherish these little handmade things sooooo much -- probably more than Brian does hah! -- and literally almost cried when I saw the gifts in their daycare bags.  Harper was so proud of the things she made and again could hardly wait for Fah-ver's Day to arrive!]

Annnnnnd drumroll... Harper popped out of bed at 6:48am on the holiday of all holidays to give her daddy a hug and then begin the large task of transporting all her homemade gifts for him to open in bed!

Happy Father's Day, babe! We are blessed by you and hope you enjoyed your special day! :-* :-*

- A Mother's Love -

[Two months behind the times, buuuuut better late than never!]

I've always loved this quote: 

"To love and to be loved is to feel the sun from both sides." 

And while it probably wasn't originally penned specifically for all the momma's out there, after growing and raising and bonding with/falling head-over-heels in love with a pair of tiny humans, I totally believe that the quote is perfectly embodied and lived out through the amazing relationship between a momma and her child[ren]!  I've been feelin' the sun from both sides for a few years now, and there truly is nothing like it!!! *swoon*

We celebrated Mother's Day this year with a little sunrise breakfast before Mass...

...then on to brunch/lunch in 'da city [Grammy Resa's dream for the last decade]!

The dessert table/crepe bar was a hit for sure!

Rounded out the evening with dinner/BBQ for Grammy Ann!

Innnnnn a nutshell, I just want to send so many claps and cheers to all the moms out there: moms with babies on earth and moms with babies in heaven ...grandmas and great-grandmas ...moms-to-be and those who long to be moms ...mothers-in-law and stepmoms ...ALL THE MOMS!  We women are a unique and special mix of gentleness and sensitivity and nurturance and selflessness; we radiate a love that is like no other! 

So keep on keepin' on, mommas... You are cherished and celebrated today and every day! :-* :-*