Today Casey, Keaton and I got all touristy and went to downtown Chicago to visit the Willis (Sears) Tower. We decided to take advantage of the time we have in the Chicago area, just incase we decide to move, and do something we've wanted to do for awhile. We had a really good time, and didn't have an agenda, so we took our time and relaxed as we walked around the SkyDeck. It was a beautiful day, so we were able to see just about as far as you can see from the top of the tower. (I also found out that the tower is 368 Ashleys tall. Neat.) We also decided to stop by Garrett's Popcorn that we've heard so much about. We bought a tin of popcorn (and actually got it all the way home before eating any... we're saving it to share with the neighbors tonight). It was a really fun time roaming around downtown with the boys. I took quite a few pictures that I will need to check out soon. Check out Flickr in a few days and there should be something new and fun. :)
After we got home, we put Keaton in his swim suit and went over to our neighbor's pool. It was a lot of fun just hanging out with all the neighbors... and of course Keaton loved all of the attention. :) We have been going outside about once a week at night to sit and chat with the neighbors, which has been fun. This is the closest we've gotten to them, and of course that happens right before we may move away. Or not. I'll let you know how that works out later. It's a nail biter in the Hetrick household right now... so much to think about. I don't envy Casey right now!
More later...
-Ash
Casey, Ashley, Keaton, Nikolaus, & Rowan take on Chicagoland...
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Friday, July 29, 2011
Til It's Gone
I hate how clear things can be in hindsight. I know I have talked about this before, but it seems to be a theme in my life... and that is just becoming more apparent to me in the last week.
There is a chance we could be moving. To Ohio. And it didn't hit me until the realtor showed us houses in the Toledo area on Monday... we've got so much work to do if we move. This house has been terrific, especially for our first home. We really got lucky with the house, neighborhood, and price. It also amazes me how much different the housing market is now, and how much more house we could have in Toledo for the same price that we paid for this one, which we are outgrowing. We could easily get a 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom house with finished basement and a lot of other perks for the same price we paid for our little 2 bedroom ranch in Plainfield. It's hard not to get excited about something like that.
Still, though, thinking about moving has put a lot of other things in perspective for me. The friendships we've made here. The places I wish we would have gone more often. The classes I should have taken. Things I wish we would have done to the house that would have made it much more pleasing to the eye if we have to sell it. Hindsight, like Karma, is kind of a bitch. Why couldn't I have seen these things before?
Nothing is set in stone, and we probably won't have any decisions made until sometime next month, but it still makes you step back and realize the things you have that you didn't even notice until you might not have them anymore. Sometimes I think life is all about perspective... I really need to find a new one and take advantage of what I have right in front of me before I don't have it anymore.
And with that, I am motivated to go clean something. :)
-Ash
There is a chance we could be moving. To Ohio. And it didn't hit me until the realtor showed us houses in the Toledo area on Monday... we've got so much work to do if we move. This house has been terrific, especially for our first home. We really got lucky with the house, neighborhood, and price. It also amazes me how much different the housing market is now, and how much more house we could have in Toledo for the same price that we paid for this one, which we are outgrowing. We could easily get a 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom house with finished basement and a lot of other perks for the same price we paid for our little 2 bedroom ranch in Plainfield. It's hard not to get excited about something like that.
Still, though, thinking about moving has put a lot of other things in perspective for me. The friendships we've made here. The places I wish we would have gone more often. The classes I should have taken. Things I wish we would have done to the house that would have made it much more pleasing to the eye if we have to sell it. Hindsight, like Karma, is kind of a bitch. Why couldn't I have seen these things before?
Nothing is set in stone, and we probably won't have any decisions made until sometime next month, but it still makes you step back and realize the things you have that you didn't even notice until you might not have them anymore. Sometimes I think life is all about perspective... I really need to find a new one and take advantage of what I have right in front of me before I don't have it anymore.
And with that, I am motivated to go clean something. :)
-Ash
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Things I'm thankful for today...
- Driving in crazy weather and making it to our destination (Toledo, OH) without any problems.
- The hotel and area we are staying in is nice, clean, and friendly.
- The baby monitor reception reaches all the way downstairs to the restaurant/bar, so we can sit and relax after Keaton goes to sleep!
- Keaton is asleep!
- There is a pretty decent sushi restaurant right across the street from the hotel and we went there for dinner.
- I realize I haven't yet talked about why we are here... Casey has a job interview on Tuesday. We are here checking out the area. There is a decent chance we won't be moving and Casey won't change his jobs (at the Naperville location, at least), but he is keeping his options open. Thus, we took the family road trip here today.
Random: I am sitting by a window at the restaurant right now, and Casey is sitting outside the window with a glass of wine and a cigar. For people that don't know we are married, we probably look strange as we keep looking at each other and "talking" back and forth. I always wonder what people would think in situations like this if they observed us without knowing our situation. As someone who does that with other people, I would find it humorous. Anyway... more later. :)
-Ash
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Scaling the walls.
I just saw Keaton climb up on the couch by himself. Yay for scary milestones! As long as he doesn't try to climb out of his crib, I think we will be okay. Right?? One of my friends has a little girl named Harper that was born on the same day as Keaton, and she and her husband had to transition the crib to a toddler bed recently because Harper figured out how to climb out. I sincerely hope Keaton decides to wait for awhile... I don't know how we will ever get him to go to sleep when he realizes he can get out by himself and play instead!
Last night he woke up crying at 12:30, 1:30, 2:30 to almost 3, and 5 a.m., before waking up at 6:30 for the day. He is pretty tired right now, but he doesn't act like he wants to sleep at all... I hope he gives in soon so I can get something done around here! Luckily he's not in a bad mood (like he was most of yesterday). His tummy was upset part of the night, and at 5 I decided to let him come sleep in bed with me- something he rarely ever does anymore. It seemed to calm him down a bit, and we both got a little bit more sleep. Hopefully he'll decide that a 2 hour nap sounds good. I could get a lot done in that amount of time... the floor needs to be mopped and the kitchen is a disaster! The bathrooms could use a good cleaning as well. Looks like he is slowing down a bit right now, so instead of blog, I'm going to get a start on getting the house clean. If any other milestones come up, I'll be sure to let you know. :)
-Ash
Last night he woke up crying at 12:30, 1:30, 2:30 to almost 3, and 5 a.m., before waking up at 6:30 for the day. He is pretty tired right now, but he doesn't act like he wants to sleep at all... I hope he gives in soon so I can get something done around here! Luckily he's not in a bad mood (like he was most of yesterday). His tummy was upset part of the night, and at 5 I decided to let him come sleep in bed with me- something he rarely ever does anymore. It seemed to calm him down a bit, and we both got a little bit more sleep. Hopefully he'll decide that a 2 hour nap sounds good. I could get a lot done in that amount of time... the floor needs to be mopped and the kitchen is a disaster! The bathrooms could use a good cleaning as well. Looks like he is slowing down a bit right now, so instead of blog, I'm going to get a start on getting the house clean. If any other milestones come up, I'll be sure to let you know. :)
-Ash
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Down for the Count
Keaton is finally asleep for the evening, so now I have some free time on my hands. I figured that I could spend one night uploading photos/video from both cameras and my phone, so I should have a decent amount on Flickr very very soon. It is way too hot to go outside and chat with the neighbors, so I will hermit myself in the house for an evening. Or two. :)
This morning I saw that it was 86 degrees outside, but the heat index made it feel like 102. Really? I'm not sure how that works, but that was before 10 a.m... YUCK. Kansas is getting hit pretty hard, too. It's tough because of course my child only wants to go outside and play with bubbles. Seriously, I told my parents recently that if I had a nickel for every time he has said "bubble" recently, he'd have a pretty good start on his college education fund. Bubbles, Melmo, and Wah Wah, followed closely by Mama and Go. He cracks me up and really knows what he wants, and will not hesitate to say it over... and over... and over... until you distract him or give in. (I try hard to distract first and give in only occasionally, otherwise he will learn to play me like a fiddle!) Oh, and his favorite snacks are "Jel-do" and "Goga" (jello and gogurt).
Speaking of words, today I took him to Barnes and Noble because I wanted to get a Scrabble Dictionary. I have been playing Words with Friends (the internet version of Scrabble) lately and I find that there are so many times I have the letters q, x, z, or v and I have to wrack my brain to come up with words for them. I figured a little studying wouldn't hurt. Then there are the people I have played in the past who definitely cheat... you can always tell who they are when every word they play is something like "xylyl" or "ywis". Who the hell knows what those are? And if you do, I mean really do, then don't play me. I feel like an idiot. LOL...
Anyway, while we were at B&N, we just happened to be there right before Storytime started. I used to take Keaton before he got super mobile and wouldn't sit still for more than a few minutes. I was reminded of why we don't go anymore as he wiggled out of my lap and ran up to the little 'stage' where Megan, the B&N employee and storytime hostess, was reading to the kids. Keaton decided it would be fun to run around with another little boy who was 19 months old, and the two took turns walking up and down one of the big steps on the stage. Trouble is, we are still working with Keaton on going up and down stairs (which would help if we actually had some in our house, besides the wooden ones in the basement that we don't play on), but when he saw the 19 month old step up and down it without a problem, he decided to try it out himself. All I could do, short of chasing him around the stage, was sit back and hold my breath. And that's exactly what I did until he fell down and smacked his head on the floor. Luckily he did not get hurt, or cry, but it was still a nerve-wracking situation all the way around. Boys will be boys, right? I wish parenthood came with either a book (i.e. Parenthood for Dummies) or some free anxiety medication.
The kid was super tired and a little cranky when we left B&N, so I figured he'd come home and take a nice nap for me. That was at 11:30 a.m. He didn't actually take a nap until 1:45 this afternoon. I should also mention that he woke up at 4:30 this morning! He has had some really strange sleep habits lately, I assume because his darn teeth are being so mean to him. I hope the final 4 come in quickly and we can get this part over with!
I guess that's about all for one day. On to edit photos...
-Ash
Turns out there were more videos than pics this time- check out YouTube.
This morning I saw that it was 86 degrees outside, but the heat index made it feel like 102. Really? I'm not sure how that works, but that was before 10 a.m... YUCK. Kansas is getting hit pretty hard, too. It's tough because of course my child only wants to go outside and play with bubbles. Seriously, I told my parents recently that if I had a nickel for every time he has said "bubble" recently, he'd have a pretty good start on his college education fund. Bubbles, Melmo, and Wah Wah, followed closely by Mama and Go. He cracks me up and really knows what he wants, and will not hesitate to say it over... and over... and over... until you distract him or give in. (I try hard to distract first and give in only occasionally, otherwise he will learn to play me like a fiddle!) Oh, and his favorite snacks are "Jel-do" and "Goga" (jello and gogurt).
Speaking of words, today I took him to Barnes and Noble because I wanted to get a Scrabble Dictionary. I have been playing Words with Friends (the internet version of Scrabble) lately and I find that there are so many times I have the letters q, x, z, or v and I have to wrack my brain to come up with words for them. I figured a little studying wouldn't hurt. Then there are the people I have played in the past who definitely cheat... you can always tell who they are when every word they play is something like "xylyl" or "ywis". Who the hell knows what those are? And if you do, I mean really do, then don't play me. I feel like an idiot. LOL...
Anyway, while we were at B&N, we just happened to be there right before Storytime started. I used to take Keaton before he got super mobile and wouldn't sit still for more than a few minutes. I was reminded of why we don't go anymore as he wiggled out of my lap and ran up to the little 'stage' where Megan, the B&N employee and storytime hostess, was reading to the kids. Keaton decided it would be fun to run around with another little boy who was 19 months old, and the two took turns walking up and down one of the big steps on the stage. Trouble is, we are still working with Keaton on going up and down stairs (which would help if we actually had some in our house, besides the wooden ones in the basement that we don't play on), but when he saw the 19 month old step up and down it without a problem, he decided to try it out himself. All I could do, short of chasing him around the stage, was sit back and hold my breath. And that's exactly what I did until he fell down and smacked his head on the floor. Luckily he did not get hurt, or cry, but it was still a nerve-wracking situation all the way around. Boys will be boys, right? I wish parenthood came with either a book (i.e. Parenthood for Dummies) or some free anxiety medication.
The kid was super tired and a little cranky when we left B&N, so I figured he'd come home and take a nice nap for me. That was at 11:30 a.m. He didn't actually take a nap until 1:45 this afternoon. I should also mention that he woke up at 4:30 this morning! He has had some really strange sleep habits lately, I assume because his darn teeth are being so mean to him. I hope the final 4 come in quickly and we can get this part over with!
I guess that's about all for one day. On to edit photos...
-Ash
Turns out there were more videos than pics this time- check out YouTube.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Time for a Change
I can always think of so many things during the day that might be blog-worthy. Then, when I actually have a free moment to sit down at the computer and blog, nothing. Oh well. I guess it'll be more Keatonisms or something... or whatever topic my brain lands on.
How about... Productivity. It has been on my mind a lot lately. I look around my house and get overwhelmed with the amount of things I need to do. The problem is, I'm not doing anything. I must scare myself into submission because I feel paralyzed when I JUST cleaned up all the toys, or JUST swept the floor, and it's a mess again. That said, I managed to get quite a few things done yesterday, and it felt good. Sometimes I wish I had the energy to do it when Keaton goes to sleep, because then it would be clean for more than a few hours! Oh well. If I can ever convince Casey that we need a maid, I will stop complaining about my house. So pretty much... never. ;)
It looks like Dr. Hetrick and I may actually get a date night tomorrow night. I found a babysitter at the last minute, so we may take in dinner and a movie. We need to do things like that more often. I get so wrapped up in being Keaton's Mommy that I tend to forget about being Casey's wife. So we're working on that. I am super glad it's Friday, and I'm ready for the weekend (minus that dentist appointment in the morning to have a cavity filled...). Not sure what we have planned this weekend, but I hope to take in every minute of it. The weeks seem kind of long right now, probably because Keaton and I tend to do the same things every day. Wake up. Watch Curious George. Eat breakfast. Clean up. Play with toys until Keaton wears out. Nap (sometimes I do, too.). Eat lunch. Clean up. Play with toys- especially the beloved BUBBLES. Haha! Eat a snack. Wait for Daddy to get home. Eat dinner. Keaton goes to bed, then I clean up again. Seriously... over and over and over. Time for a break in the schedule! But before long it won't be summer anymore, and I will miss days like this. I just need to remember that I am the one that can change things around here... so I should. And I will.
That's enough from me for today. Time to go do something!
-Ash
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| Casey and Keaton drew this on our driveway last night. The little pink squiggly lines were all Mr. K. |
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
More Keat
Newest Keaton words/phrases/activities, etc.:
-Ash
- Tyler (Ty-lah)... our neighbor who is 6 months older than Keaton
- Peek-A-Boo- I forget how he says it, but you can tell what he means. He loves to jump out from behind a curtain or peek out from where ever he's hiding and say it... I need video!
- Peaches- he now says it clear as day
- Cat- previously it sounded more like "Ca" (which is also his word for 'car', so it was nice to hear that distinct T at the end. He saw a cat yesterday at the Farmer's Market and became instantly obsessed.
- Cracker (cah cah). I think I wrote about this one previously, but today he was having a meltdown because I wouldn't give him a pacifier, so I started showing him videos of himself on YouTube. We got to the one with the graham cracker, and he stood up, said, "Cah cah" and led me to the pantry. Kid knows what he wants!
- Back (Bat)... he found this little plastic tool you use to massage your back, and I showed him what it was for. Now he will say, "Bat" and rub my back with it. While I feel guilty and almost as if I'm crossing some sort of child labor law line... it still feels good and I'm not going to tell him to stop if he wants to. LOL.
- Sweep (Seet)- he loves to sweep and he always tries to grab the broom whenever he sees it. Again with the child labor thing... but he WANTS to! I'm not going to stop him!
-Ash
Monday, July 11, 2011
More Keatonisims
He said so many things this weekend... really. I can't remember them all. He's also been singing a lot. Yesterday he said "E I E I O" (after a few tries) and he helped filled in the blank to the theme from Elmo's World. I just sang the "La la la la, la la la la" and paused, and he said, "Melmo!". That was pretty awesome. :) Today when it started raining, he was looking out the window and I said, "It's raining!" and he started doing the hand gestures to the Itsy Bitsy Spider. LOVE. IT.
This morning, Keaton "tooted" (that's our word for passing gas in the Hetrick household) and I said, "Keaton, did you toot?" and he smiled really big and said, "Toots!" LOL...
Sometimes he will look at me and said, "Mama, I wan wah-wah." He even throws in the little doe eyes and blinks them at me. Then he moves on to "Mama, WAH-WAH." If I don't give it to him by then, meltdown ensues. We're working on it.
In other news, we had a great weekend. The weather was nice and hot, so Saturday afternoon we went for a swim in our neighbors' pool. Our neighbor Rob and his 4 girls were all there swimming, too, so we had a great time hanging out with them. They invited us to dinner that evening, so we went to Old Country Buffet (I think the last time I was there was in high school?) and got to witness what it was like for one guy to try to feed 4 girls under 10. It was pretty chaotic. I don't even know if he was able to eat anything, because as soon as he would get one girl settled, another one would ask for something. Sidenote, I will never have 4 kids.
So after watching Rob be Super Dad at dinner, we invited him over to sit outside and have some drinks once the kids went to bed. It was great catching up with him. A lot of crap has been going on in his life (read: soon-to-be EX wife is being a complete moron and is causing a lot of drama for him, his kids, and people on our street). Casey and I didn't realize how much had been going on around here or how far we were out of the loop until speaking with him. It was refreshing to see someone with such a great head on their shoulders, working his ass off to make sure his kids fare as well as possible in that type of situation. I still don't understand how a guy who has 2 jobs has to give up 60% of his paycheck to his wife who cheated on him (numerous times), among other things. It is just ridiculous. Anyway, I shouldn't air someone else's dirty laundry in my blog, so I apologize.
Well, little man is waking up now, so I should go. Time for lunch!
-Ash
This morning, Keaton "tooted" (that's our word for passing gas in the Hetrick household) and I said, "Keaton, did you toot?" and he smiled really big and said, "Toots!" LOL...
Sometimes he will look at me and said, "Mama, I wan wah-wah." He even throws in the little doe eyes and blinks them at me. Then he moves on to "Mama, WAH-WAH." If I don't give it to him by then, meltdown ensues. We're working on it.
In other news, we had a great weekend. The weather was nice and hot, so Saturday afternoon we went for a swim in our neighbors' pool. Our neighbor Rob and his 4 girls were all there swimming, too, so we had a great time hanging out with them. They invited us to dinner that evening, so we went to Old Country Buffet (I think the last time I was there was in high school?) and got to witness what it was like for one guy to try to feed 4 girls under 10. It was pretty chaotic. I don't even know if he was able to eat anything, because as soon as he would get one girl settled, another one would ask for something. Sidenote, I will never have 4 kids.
So after watching Rob be Super Dad at dinner, we invited him over to sit outside and have some drinks once the kids went to bed. It was great catching up with him. A lot of crap has been going on in his life (read: soon-to-be EX wife is being a complete moron and is causing a lot of drama for him, his kids, and people on our street). Casey and I didn't realize how much had been going on around here or how far we were out of the loop until speaking with him. It was refreshing to see someone with such a great head on their shoulders, working his ass off to make sure his kids fare as well as possible in that type of situation. I still don't understand how a guy who has 2 jobs has to give up 60% of his paycheck to his wife who cheated on him (numerous times), among other things. It is just ridiculous. Anyway, I shouldn't air someone else's dirty laundry in my blog, so I apologize.
Well, little man is waking up now, so I should go. Time for lunch!
-Ash
Friday, July 8, 2011
Early Morning Update
Some early morning thoughts for you today. I am up before the sun, and before MY son, which is very very rare. Casey and I managed to be in bed and asleep by 10 last night, which is also rare. So I am awake, and luckily Mr. K is not... yet. I figure he will sense I am blogging so he should wake up anytime now (although I would absolutely LOVE it if he slept past 6... he hasn't done that for me at all this week!).
I got a haircut last night. I decided to switch is up a little and had my stylist part it on the opposite side. We'll see if I can tolerate the change... I just needed something different. Casey didn't even notice, which kind of cracked me up. I looked at him, pointed at my hair, and said, "... nothing?" Then he looked me over and couldn't figure out what was new. LOL... I think that must be a mean joke to play on a man...not many guys I know would have noticed, either. I think it's drastic, but I also analyze myself in the mirror on a pretty regular basis, so I shouldn't expect him to know what's different right away. It's not like I dyed my hair blue or shaved it off... I think he would notice then. I think. ;) (Just kidding, babe... if you ever happen to read this.)
In other news, we just got back Tuesday from another quick trip to Topeka. We had a lot of fun- maybe too much- because it went so fast that I barely remember we were there. Keaton absolutely LOVED all the attention from everyone, and has take the rest of the week since we've been back to kind of 'detox' from all the attention. He's also getting at least one, maybe two of his canine teeth, which has actually not gone well at all. He has been probably the moodiest he has ever been, and super clingy. Needless to say, I am very thankful today is Friday. I am ready for a weekend without many plans. I am ready for Casey to be home and to help mellow Keaton out a little. I also think I will finally cash in my massage that the boys bought me for Mother's Day last year. I have never made time to go, which is sad. Oh well... hopefully it'll work out.
I also have a dentist appointment in the morning... yay.
In other (good) news, we got a Dyson vacuum a few weeks ago, but didn't actually get to use it until last night. Boy, was it worth the money!! I just did a once-over in the living room and hallway, and the amount of crud the thing sucked up was incredible!! Our central vac still works, but we needed something a little more heavy-duty. I highly recommend it! We got the one without the ball (Casey read better ratings on it) and so far, so good. Woot woot.
What else, what else... I guess I should attempt to remember things we did in Topeka. Actually, I'll do it with pictures, since it's been FOREVER since I posted them on here. Here you go!
We also went out to the lake on the 4th, and Casey got to ski. Keaton and I got to swim in the lake, which was fun. Speaking of Keaton, he is awake now... and it's after 6! Yay! Happy weekend, everyone!
-Ashley
I got a haircut last night. I decided to switch is up a little and had my stylist part it on the opposite side. We'll see if I can tolerate the change... I just needed something different. Casey didn't even notice, which kind of cracked me up. I looked at him, pointed at my hair, and said, "... nothing?" Then he looked me over and couldn't figure out what was new. LOL... I think that must be a mean joke to play on a man...not many guys I know would have noticed, either. I think it's drastic, but I also analyze myself in the mirror on a pretty regular basis, so I shouldn't expect him to know what's different right away. It's not like I dyed my hair blue or shaved it off... I think he would notice then. I think. ;) (Just kidding, babe... if you ever happen to read this.)
In other news, we just got back Tuesday from another quick trip to Topeka. We had a lot of fun- maybe too much- because it went so fast that I barely remember we were there. Keaton absolutely LOVED all the attention from everyone, and has take the rest of the week since we've been back to kind of 'detox' from all the attention. He's also getting at least one, maybe two of his canine teeth, which has actually not gone well at all. He has been probably the moodiest he has ever been, and super clingy. Needless to say, I am very thankful today is Friday. I am ready for a weekend without many plans. I am ready for Casey to be home and to help mellow Keaton out a little. I also think I will finally cash in my massage that the boys bought me for Mother's Day last year. I have never made time to go, which is sad. Oh well... hopefully it'll work out.
I also have a dentist appointment in the morning... yay.
In other (good) news, we got a Dyson vacuum a few weeks ago, but didn't actually get to use it until last night. Boy, was it worth the money!! I just did a once-over in the living room and hallway, and the amount of crud the thing sucked up was incredible!! Our central vac still works, but we needed something a little more heavy-duty. I highly recommend it! We got the one without the ball (Casey read better ratings on it) and so far, so good. Woot woot.
What else, what else... I guess I should attempt to remember things we did in Topeka. Actually, I'll do it with pictures, since it's been FOREVER since I posted them on here. Here you go!
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| Surprised De at the lake for her 50th birthday! |
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| Keaton and Evelyn had a play date! |
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| Spent quality time with family! |
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| Look at this boy... growing up so fast... |
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| Quality time celebrating July 4th with the fam |
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| Fun with Fireworks (and photography) |
-Ashley
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