The Lost Post

Not only did I make sure to write a nice post about our Shavuos experience, I actually stayed up late putting it together. And it got lost somewhere between me pushing the send button and it actually getting sent. It's nowhere to be found. Not in my email drafts (been blogging from my phone lately). Not in my blog profile. Not miraculously on my phone in some random file.

So just assume we loved the chag cuz I'm not rewriting it!

But one quick thing from that post:
One morning, Benny and Shuky were heading out to shul and they bumped into the neighbor across the hall. Benny obviously needed to know exactly where he was heading so he asked. They said they were headed to the lake to do some grilling. Benny told them that sounded nice. "We're going to Har Sinai to get the torah. We have a really long walk! We can't go all the way up though, we have to wait at the bottom by the fences. Only Moshe can go all the way up!"

He was able to join the rest of the kids' group at the front of the shul to sing about the holiday. He knew all the words to all the songs already, sang loud and proud next to all his new friends!

Sometimes he really helps us feel okay about this journey we are on. Jewish school or not, he is definitely learning!!

We have our new place mostly furnished at this point. Got some stuff on Craigslist and from thrift stores. Keeping our eyes out for the last few things we need.

I'm heading to Postville this weekend to switch back to my car. I switched with my father for our move, to avoid renting a truck and help with finding furniture once here.

Wish me luck. It's a 7 hour drive and it's just me and the kids going!

A Swimmingly Good Day

Today was really a great day!

My mom took care of the kids for quite a few hours this morning, I got out for some much needed alone time. I didn't really have too many things I needed to do specifically, I wanted to look for some clothes for the kids.

Found some cute stuff at Old Navy.

Had fun browsing in Babies R Us. I have some friends in the market for strollers and wanted to get my hands on some of the newer models.

Drove with the windows all down, sunroof open, music way louder than it should have been, singing along at the top of my lungs (even at red lights, with other cars around me) iced tea from Starbucks happily being sipped.

There was nothing that could have made me happier today.

Or so I thought.

A little bit after I got home, I realized the pool had opened for the season in our complex. The ultimate cherry on top of the already awesome day! Got everything slathered in sun screen, little (and big) bathing suits adorned, pulled out our red wagon, and had tons of fun!!

And now, the kids are making their way to LaLaLand and I have a good book to read.

Have a good one all of you!

Kansas Cityans

We are here in Kansas City. It was an interesting trip getting here but we'll just leave it at that. Our apartment here is cute and the area is beautiful! It's interesting how one apartment can put another in perspective so much.

This is an old building in the process of being revamped. Our carpet is brand new, there's a strong paint smell so we know the walls were just painted, the kitchen was given a little face lift. It is two bedrooms and two full bathrooms, with almost the same amount of square footage as our three bedroom at home. Obviously, the bedrooms are bigger and the living space (i.e. living room/dining room) is definitely a better use of space and feels much more open!

Yet, at the same time, there are things I definitely miss about my apartment in Ames. We are on the second floor, I've been spoiled by living in a building with an elevator. I've been spoiled by having a guaranteed parking spot in a closed garage. I've been spoiled by having brand new bathrooms, even though they did a great job scrubbing this place down before handing us the keys. And I've definitely been spoiled by having actual furniture. But that should be a given.

We are slowly making this a home. We moved in yesterday. Today, my mom and I took the kids and went treasure hunting. We found an awesome mirror in a wooden frame to sit on the mantel. [Oh, did I mention we have a fireplace here?] I think I'd like to paint the wood a fun color, maybe a turquoise for a pop of color!

We borrowed a folding table from friends for now and are watching Craigslist for something else. The same awesome friends provided us with two beds for the summer and we have an air mattress as well. The closets in this apartment are enormous and completely void the need for dressers! Two less things to worry about. We are trying to decide what to do in terms of a couch. I hate to buy a used couch, who knows what's been on it or what may be coming in with it! On the other hand, buying a new couch is a hefty investment now and again when it's time to get home. Do we want to put that much money into a couch? Am I just totally over thinking this one? Probably. But it's what I do.

I will try to get some pictures up but seeing as to how I never put up the pictures I promised from the first apartment we got in Ames, I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you.

Rules

Tonight, dinner was put together by me and Benny. He helped me clear the table. We've started pulling out the things we want to take so that was quite a job! After the table was set, we decided to make some fresh iced tea. I usually have K-cups to make it easier but we are out so I used tea bags. While I was taking the food out of the oven, Benny stirred the tea. Too rough, unfortunately. He burst all the tea bags in the pitcher and it had to be poured out. I had basically used all the ice for that batch. My initial reaction was more than necessary. He was sorry, I was sorry. He said he would be more careful so we started on the new batch.

During dinner, Bella was sleeping so we got to give a little extra attention. He loved it, obviously. Ate really nicely, had some fun conversations with us.
Then he made an announcement. "Mommy, I have some rules four you and Tatty. I have seven rules."
"Nice. Let's hear it kid."
"Rule #1. No yelling. You have to talk in a quiet voice."
Direct response to my overreaction. First thought is, this can work for both of us. I explained to him that we don't like yelling and if he would maybe try harder to listen the first time instead of the fifth, that rule would be alot easier to follow.
He went on to list his six other rules. They were a mix of needing tissues for his boogies, needing to refill his robot ice tray, and some other random things he came up with.

We made our peace treaty. I love the kid so much! His little brain continues to amaze me, minute to minute.

Good Choices

Benny has been having a lot of accidents lately. Maybe it's stress, he knows we are leaving for the summer soon, things have been tense because of finals, things are tight financially (being in between school and work). Whatever the reason, we needed something to motivate him. There's only so many times I can remind him that he has this whole potty training thing well under his belt. Only so many times I can give myself the pep talk that it'll all be ok!

We printed out some cute little dollar bills for him, called Decision Dollars, for every time he makes a good choice! Mostly intended for bathroom choices but can be used as backup for when the robot chart just isn't doing it. He can trade them in for real dollars (at a slightly high exchange rate, it's a tough economy!!), and we will let him take his real money to the store and buy himself a prize.

Not only is this covering the positive reinforcements needed but it's also good for his math skills. I gave him a little wallet for them (an IDF pencil bag I got in Israel years ago), cleared out a space in one of his drawers, made a big deal, we are good to go!

Hopefully this will work out well! I really don't know what my laundry situation is going to be in KC yet (still working out the details) and I really don't want to have to deal with that mess!

For now, both kids are kvetching and I probably should deal with them. Maybe.