Big Kid Busyness

Hello again! September ends tomorrow and I feel like it's barely begun. Life is just so full and busy- super fun and often surprisingly relaxing- but full and not as conducive to pauses for reflection as it used to be (oh, naptime, may you RIP). Before we pass out at night, James and I have been reflecting lately on life with big kids versus little ones. We seem to be the rare souls who found life with toddlers to be basically the greatest thing ever (we had very agreeable toddlers) and we miss it terribly. Don't get me wrong- we LOVE having big kids, but I think what made Cora's first few years with us so damn magical was that we had the big and medium kids with their helpfulness and independence and solid sleeping schedules AND the baby/toddler with the chubbiness and laughs and bodies exploding with joy anytime you walked into a room. It was a nice little combo for many years and, though I think we savored it as much as you can savor anything while also living it, and we are also enjoying the phase we're in now, we both miss that toddler time in our lives an awful lot.

Now our kids spend most of their time scattered in various directions and the days of a hard stop on the parenting at 8 p.m. and James and I getting to hang out alone until 11 are long over. For example, last Friday Cora got to return to her old preschool for a parents night out from 5:30-8:30 (the owner of the school is her best friend's dad, and he thought her bestie would enjoy having Cora there to play with and Cora LOVED the chance to return to her old stomping grounds and made cards for all her old teachers before leaving), Claire had a Friday Fun Night at gymnastics from 7-9:30 (she'd won three free passes in class and brought along her two best friends and they had the best time), and Landon had his first Cotillion dance from 7-8:15 with an after party from 8:45-9:45 and pictures beforehand at a friend's house at 6:15. James and I had a birthday party at a brewery from 6-9. The kids were also welcome to attend- and we'll definitely go back to the brewery because it was awesome, but they were too busy to join us.

The logistics were daunting, but thanks to friends and carpools everyone got where they needed to be and had a fabulous time. Even Landon, who had been dreading Cotillion and REALLY dreading wearing the pants (PANTS!!! he would exclaim if you were here to hear him) and button-down shirt that were required. It was the first pair of non-ski pants I'd bought him in 3 years (not at all exaggerating, he hasn't worn pants in Texas since 3rd grade because he is ridiculous and stubborn and exactly his dad) and I had to stay in his room while he dressed so he wouldn't run away and hide like he'd already tried once. Then I had to use a knife to add a hole to his belt because apparently he has the tiniest of hips.

But look how handsome!

My baby boy, all fancy and trying to pretend he isn't a little excited about the coed dance situation before him. We met up with friends for pictures- we've known these kids since Kindergarten and oy I can't believe we're all in middle school.

And then another friend transported to the after party where everyone got to run around and play dodgeball and tag for an hour.

When Landon got home we got all the details, James and I hanging out in the kitchen with our big kid at 10 p.m. while the girls slept nearby, learning that Cotillion "wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be" and "the box step is actually kind of fun." Other tidbits: "when a girl asks you to dance you kind of have to say yes," "I just asked the girl who was right in front of me," and "the after party was the best part, because of all the dodgeball." He and James box stepped around the living room the next morning and it reminded me so strongly of all the times James tried to teach me to waltz in our kitchen. Sadly, I remain a hopeless case.

Also last weekend we went to a Bulldog Bonanza event hosted by the wonderful rescue organization that saved our Maggie. She made some new bulldog friends and generally enjoyed being fussed over by all the attendees.

Maggie loves any outing she gets to go on with the family and we're all waiting for it to (FINALLY! maybe! someday!) get cooler so she can join us on more. We were at the event for about 20 minutes, just long enough to buy some raffle tickets and take my new favorite picture of all four kids, and then she was hyperventilating. 100 degrees this late in September is just mean.

But still, Maggie was so happy to be there. This was her face when we got home and I told her to exit the vehicle.

I guess I do sort of still have one toddler.

I love her an absurd amount.

(I feel like she's laughing at me in this picture and I love it.)

(Except that Maggie would actually never laugh at you and just wants you to know you're loved.)

Other random highlights that I can still remember from the last week:

Night out with my mamas at the byob restaurant down the street:

This drawing by Cora that I found on the counter:

Super hot baths with a really good book (thanks to my favorite kindle hack) after teaching a really hard evening barre class:

Breakfast tacos for dinner, a childhood favorite of mine I'm bringing back:

Picking up the girls from school on Friday with Maggie's assistance:

Attending Landon's Open House and finding a piece of his artwork on the wall:

Orangetheory, surprisingly. I'm really enjoying the cardio and heavier weights and feeling sore again. (Although, this was an endurance day and clearly cardio endurance is something I do not have yet! #RedZoneAllDay)

Enjoying a ladies lunch with the girls on Saturday while James was at a swim meet and Landon was at a friend's.

Maggie.

I mean, just always.

In thinking about big kids, I'd say another general highlight is added ease to our days and weekends. No longer do James and I need to map out our plan for the day to ensure that the kids always have coverage. Now, at least one kid is probably at a friend's house and Landon can watch the girls during any gaps and it all just sort of ebbs and flows throughout the weekend.

Maggie: Where are you going? Can I come?

Except on a Sunday morning when both big kids are at sleepovers and Cora knocks on our (locked, thank god) door at 7:30 a.m. because she's awake and there's no one to hang out with her or get her breakfast or turn on the TV. One more interrupted attempt to rekindle our Sunday morning later and we've decided only one big kid can be gone at a time. The combo package is really where it's at. Maggie, whose morning routine was also interrupted, agrees.

The week ahead is going to be quite busy. I'm subbing my second ever yoga class at TCU tomorrow (squee! I've been studying up this weekend), teach my usual TCU barre class and then a PTA Board meeting after work on Tuesday, fly to DC on Wednesday, attend a conference all day on Thursday (with AG Bill Barre as keynote speaker, which should be... interesting) and fly home late Thursday night, go out to celebrate a friend's birthday Friday night, and go see Phantom of the Opera with another friend Saturday. Cora is still in gymnastics, Claire has started volleyball, all three kids are swimming 2x a week with James, Landon finally actually has homework he has to do at home, and there is a lot of texting of logistics to our after school nannies. It all works- and will work- and man does it go by fast! Pretty soon no one will want to go to Trader Joe's with me to color on the white board or request 600 games of Uno in a single sitting. I'm just trying to soak it all up as we go.

On to food! One thing that helps with the savoring and keeping life from feeling too scattered is sitting down for dinner together every day (with everyone's presence mandatory Sunday - Thursday). We eat late - about 7:30 so we can all be together, and Cora goes to bed immediately after, but it's a routine we've had since before Claire was born and it's the calm in the crazy. The menu from the last few days and the week ahead:

Thursday: Crockpot Red Beans and Rice (we sub in smoked turkey sausage and use Trader Joe's frozen brown rice)- delicious!

Friday: Verde chicken enchiladas (prepped before we had friends over to swim, this recipe is about as easy as possible: mix shredded rotisserie chicken and 1 cup of Monterrey jack cheese, roll into a dozen wheat/corn tortillas, top with verde enchilada sauce and a little more Monterrey jack cheese, refrigerate as long as needed, bake for 30 mins at 375, enjoy!), with refried black beans and Mexican rice with an extra bag of steamed frozen mixed veggies mixed in.

Saturday: This whole wheat pizza dough to make this stromboli and these pizza rolls. Delish!

Sunday: Flank steak (with TJ's coffee dry rub that is amazing and somehow not ruined by containing coffee), roasted potatoes, carrots, and broccoli.

Monday: Chicken stew, with added shredded cabbage and cannellini beans. Top with parmesan!

Tuesday: Salmon cakes (these are SO good!), mashed potatoes (with mashed cauliflower mixed in), salad.

Wednesday: My mom's chili (2 lbs. ground beef cooked with diced onion and garlic, with 2 cans tomato soup, 1 can red enchilada sauce, 1 can diced tomatoes, 2 cans Ranch style beans, 2+ tsp chili powder) prepped and put in the crockpot before I head to the airport. Served with corn chips and cheese.

I'm out for dinner the rest of the week, so James will be in charge. I predict a lot of pasta and probably tacos and the kids will love it.