Being Suzie Homemaker

I just accomplished a momentous task. Are you ready for this? (drumroll, please...)

I organized the toy corner!

It all started when Max was looking for his plastic pirate ship this morning. Apparently his pirates wanted to go on a voyage, but their vessel was nowhere to be found! He and I searched high and low, pulling toys out of bins, looking under couches, making an absolute mess. And still, no ship.

At this point, the living room was in utter chaos. Then suddenly it struck me: why don't I just go whole hog? I decided to organize the mess, and not "organize" it in the way I usually mean the term (throw everything haphazardly into a bin or box, out of sight and out of mind). No, this was Organize with a capital O!

I emptied every bin, sorting toys as I went. I saw the bottom of the toy chest for the first time since we bought it (Oh, there's the plastic monkey head Max was looking for yesterday!"). I moved all the furniture and found toy cars, plastic bugs, tennis balls, you name it. I designated a place for everything, and if there was no place, it got retired to the basement. This way, I can bring those toys out in six months or a year and they will seem brand new!

It. felt. GREAT. I have no Before picture, that would have just been too darn embarrassing. But here is the During




and After



(This is your cue to ooooohh and aaahhh)

I know it won't last long (actually, it has already started to come undone) but it is wonderful for the moment, and I am inspired to try to keep it this organized... at least for this week.

The one problem is ... I still can't find the pirate ship.

Warm Weather and Warm Welcomes

We have been looking forward to summer for a long time, and not just for the good weather it brings. Our summer is jam-packed with visits from (and to) far away loved ones. This past weekend was the kickoff, as Grandma and Liam came up for a family wedding. We had so much fun, I could write a book! But I'll try to contain myself and just indulge you with the highlights.

They arrived by car on Friday afternoon, and Max picked up right where he left off with Uncle Liam. It was as if they hadn't even been separated for a few days, much less several months. After a few rounds of hugs, we caught up on life over Chinese takeout, our ever-present standby for dinner with visitors. After dinner, we introduced Grandma and Liam to the hiking trail near our house. Paul was glad to finally have another soul who was brave enough to hike the steep passes with him... and (to my chagrin) they even convinced Max to join them!




Friday night we stayed up chatting WAY too late, but even though I woke up with Lucian at 6am feeling like I needed a coffee IV, it was 100% worth it. Paul made super-awesome omelets (breakfast is that man's speciality, let me tell you) and then we packed up and piled into the car for our overnight trip to Sauk Centre for the wedding. All six of us managed to squeeze into the Buick: Liam between two carseats in the back, myself between Paul and Grandma on the front bench seat. I would describe it as ... cozy? Oh but it was worth it to only take one car!

The wedding was beautiful, and the reception was a blast! Max fell head-over-heels in love with the bride, and at the dance he tried repeatedly to grab her dress to gain her attention. Poor gal. But it wasn't just the bride he was after; he danced with just about every bridesmaid and every little girl who would give him the time of day!

Believe it or not, even Lucian joined in on the dancing. He's got the moves, that kid. But while Max would have danced the night away, Lucian was ready for bed a little after 9, so we went back to the hotel. To bed, you ask? Ha! Liam, Paul and Max put their swimsuits on and hit the pool until after 10:00... why waste time sleeping when we have only a precious few days together?



Sunday morning, we went to Mass and got to witness a group of children recieving their first Communion. So special! Then after Mass we met the relatives for a very nice Mothers Day brunch at the historic Palmer Hotel. We drove back home for a quick rest before heading to Grandma and Grandpa R's house for Uncle Ben's birthday! Liam and my dad got to renew their long-standing thumb-war battle, and the rest of us got to sit around enjoying each others' company. Oh, and the food was delicious, of course.

Monday morning we had breakfast at my coffee shop (yes, I'm declaring ownership. Try and stop me.) and then waved off Grandma and Liam with wishes for a safe drive home. Thankfully this goodbye was easier than most, because we'll be seeing them again at the end of the month!

So good to see you, Maureen and Liam! Max and Louie miss you already.

Gone Baby Gone

Our deck has a hole in the boards near the back door. It looks like this:



Last summer, it became a favorite hiding spot for many of Max's toys. It currently houses a duplo, two toy cars, a paint brush, and various other odds and ends. Today, Lucian joined the game, adding to the collection one of his prized possessions. What he didn't realize, however, is this: once an item is thrown into the hole, it is irretrievable. Gone for good. Buh-bye.

And what exactly was his donation to the abyss?



That's right, his bottle. He saw the hole and the urge was too strong to resist. When I came outside to put dinner on the table, he was crouched over the hole, staring in and crying. Didn't think that one through, huh dear?



Hoping that he would learn a quick and easy lesson from this event, I didn't replace his bottle right away. I gave him more milk in a sippy cup, which is a far distant second place option for milk consumption. He took a few sips, unhappily. Then he walked directly over to the hole, poised himself above it, and attempted to chuck the sippy cup down into no-man's land. I caught it just in time.

Lesson learned? Maybe.

Unwanted object disposal discovered? Definitely.

I imagine soon we'll start wondering where all the diapers are disappearing to.


**In other news: Recently a post that I wrote about our visit from Maureen and Liam was deleted from Blogger during some technical difficulties. They restored most of the posts that were removed, but it appears mine was lost for good. I'm in the process of rewriting it, and I'll try to get it reposted soon.**

Climb Every Mountain

Lucian is going to be the cause of my grey hair, I just know it. Does that surprise you? I know, when I've written about him, it's usually that he's so shy and reserved in comparison to his brother, but there is a mischevious side of him emerging that makes me think he will be a lot like his daddy as time goes on.

Like his daddy, you ask? Well, let me enlighten you- Paul was definitely a quiet one... he let Monica speak for him just like I let Tony speak for me. BUT he was super adventurous, loved fire and explosions, and climbing.

Climbing.

Max was never much of a climber. I mean, he didn't even walk until 16 months! He did some climbing as he got older, like any normal kid, but he never climbed higher than I was comfortable. In general, if he didn't think he could get down, he wouldn't try getting up. Lucian? Not so much. I was washing dishes today and glanced into the living room to see Max at the table coloring... Wait a minute! That's not Max, that's Lucian! And he's standing inches from the edge of the chair! How in the blazes did he get himself up there?

Yes, like the wonderful mother I am, I grabbed my camera and snapped pictures before coming to his rescue, but really he wasn't in any mood to be rescued. He was perfectly content to teeter on the very edge of the chair with a crayon in his mouth. What's the big deal?

Here's where I sigh loudly and add hair color to our budget...

Zoology

I'm a little behind, but I'm finally getting around to posting pictures from two recent zoo visits. The season has arrived when we can wander the outdoor trails at the Minnesota Zoo once again! Now, let's just hope the construction gets done before next year...

The first visit was with four of my friends and our ten children (including one daycare kid)- we were quite a sight to be seen! Thankfully it wasn't very busy, so our four strollers didn't clog the walkways too often.

We checked out the Tropical Trail first. By far, Max's favorite part of the trip was the fish feeding at the aquarium. We actually got to listen to a diver give a presentation while she fed the fish! He was riveted. Then we trekked out to the farm to see the Farm Babies. We all squeezed around one table for lunch, and amazingly there were no major meltdowns! Max attempted to help himself to an over-sized rainbow lollipop, but we managed to grab him and return the pilfered goods before any damage was done (to the treat or to my wallet)

Max the Turtle

The little kiddos were entranced by the fish in the tank

"Maaaaaa!" says the goat. "Maaaaa!" says Ellie.

"Maaaaa!" says Lachlan.

And "Maaaaaa!" says Angela!

Then last Friday, we made it to the zoo with my grandparents on the only nice day of the week. We were able to enjoy the animals and the weather, and we stayed until the zoo closed. I vote they stay open longer than 4:00! On this trip, we made the whole loop (minus the farm), and Grandpa got the fun job of trying to keep tabs on Max while Grandma and I stayed with Lucian and the stroller. My grandpa said that he had a great time talking to Max and that "He just talks until he figures out what he's trying to say!" Yep, that's my boy in a nutshell. When we left the zoo, we went back to meet Paul at our house for what has become our tradition: Chinese Takeout! Yum, yum.







Here's to many more zoo visits this summer!

Got the Blues

When I became a parent, it changed me in many ways. I have learned about an entirely new level of selflessness, I have grown in my faith, I have felt an indescribable joy greater than I ever thought possible.

But one change has occurred that completely blindsided me. Never in my wildest dreams could I have seen this coming! You may find it hard (nay, impossible!) to believe, and yet, it's true.

I...don't...mind...Blues Clues.

Blues Clues. The kids television program about a little blue dog and her owner, Steve. Ever seen it? Ever laughed at it? Ever made fun of it mercilessly? Yes, yes, and yes for me. It came out around the time that my brothers and I were too cool for kids shows, and my dad had a very impressive Steve impersonation. Ask him about it sometime, I'm sure he'd indulge you! (right, Dad?)


So my entire experience with this show until now has consisted of mocking, sneering, laughing and pointing. Then we got Netflix. Under the kids 2-4 section of "Instant Watch" shows, up pops an adorable little blue dog. "I wanna watch that one!" says Max. Sigh. "Ok, Max, anything for you."

And honestly, it's not too bad! It teaches problem solving, drawing, music, puzzles of all kinds, and I actually don't cringe when I watch it. Ok, Steve is still a little over the top. (a little?) But now that I have a three year old, I realize how much he appreciates the over-the-top acting.

As is Max's way, as soon as we were done watching the show he wanted to play Blues Clues himself. So I came up with this fabulously genius idea to bring our game to the grocery store! We made a little notebook for our clues, then I told Blue (Max) that the puzzle we were trying to solve was "What's for dinner?"

We went to the store and I pointed out the three clues as I found them: tortillas, enchilada sauce and ground beef. We drew a picture of each clue in the notebook with a special red crayon before we put them in our cart. Then we puzzled and puzzled until we came up with the answer. Enchiladas!

It turned out to be a great way to keep Max occupied at the store, and Lucian did his part by chewing on the red crayon until we needed it. I never thought I'd say this, but... Thanks, Steve.

Beatification Bash

JP2, We love you!

For many of my friends and myself, Pope John Paul II was a life-changing figure in our spiritual development as young Catholics. First, he was the only Pope we ever knew, having been chosen before we were born. But second and more importantly, he lived his faith fearlessly and absolutely, calling every one of us to do the same. He was famous for exhorting the Catholic youth of the world to "Be not afraid!"

So it was with enormous joy and excitement that we gathered yesterday to celebrate the beatification of Pope John Paul II. Beatification is the second of three steps in the process of being named a saint in the Catholic church, and we can now refer to our late Holy Father as Blessed John Paul II!

In honor of the occasion, we invited our friends over for a party to celebrate the formal recognition of the man we already knew was a saint. We feasted on brunch food, sweets, and an amazing Pope John Paul cake courtesy of the Cahill family.




Then while the kids ran wild around the house, the adults engaged in an intense game of Pontifical Pursuit! (hat tip to John for the game title...) Men were pitted against women in this Papal version of Jeopardy to answer trivia questions about the newly Blessed pope. I went into the game expecting a civil, respectful test of knowledge, but boy was I in for it! These people are crazy competitive! It was a blast.



As I was the host of the game, I can say completely impartially that the women TOTALLY CREAMED the men! Well, in all honesty, it was pretty close until Final Jeopardy: the men wagered it all, the women were more conservative... and they both got the question wrong. Not exactly a stand-up-and-cheer ending, but a win for the women nonetheless. Go Team Vaticana!

Since it was Divine Mercy Sunday, and Blessed JPII had a special devotion to Jesus' Divine Mercy, we ended the party by praying together the Divine Mercy Chaplet. I think it was the perfect way to end a celebration of the holy, humble, Blessed John Paul II. (Pray for us!)





And now, here's your chance to play a round of Pontifical Pursuit! I've picked out a few of my favorite questions, and you'll have the chance to win... um... my undying love and affection? Leave a comment with your answers, and you CAN'T PLAY if you were at the party!

1. This Italian doctor and mother, beatified by Pope John Paul II, chose to save the life of her unborn child at the risk of her own life.

2. To the closest whole number, how many trips to the moon and back could Pope John Paul have taken with the number of miles he traveled as Pope?

3. How many saints did Pope John Paul beatify: 200, 700, 1300, 2100?

4. What Latin phrase did Pope John Paul use to describe his devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary?

5. Name six languages Pope John Paul II could speak fluently?

6. What was Pope John Paul’s favorite movie?

7. Which one of these four items does Vatican City make on its own for the Vatican household: Beer, Honey, Perfume, Butter?