The other day, we went to the Vans store.  In seconds, Jack had found a hat and was choosing his custom wheels.  Like a fish in water, people.

He got a pair of shoes, which are now his Favorite Shoes Ever.  He wears them every day, except the days we can sneakily convince him to wear other shoes, which we acknowledge are infinitely less cool.

I see glimpses of my future.

We'll start building the ramp soon.  

Hope your day is full of cool shoes and hip lifestyle choices.

Talk soon,

Heather

PS:  Sorry about that Avril Lavigne earworm that I threw out there with the title to this post.  It had to be done.

roots

I grew up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.  If you haven't been there, you should go.  It's stunning. 

(In fact, I am going there this weekend.  Pictures to come!)

One of the best things about growing up in a rural part of the Mid-Atlantic is all of the agricultural goodies.  To be specific, no summer in Maryland is complete without tomatoes so fresh that you could eat them like an apple; sweet corn from a mile up the road, and a bushel of steamed crabs.

So, you know, it's important for Jack to eat corn on the cob in the summertime.  To understand his roots and all.

Looks like he got the memo.

Hope your day has lots of corn and not a lot of memos.

Talk soon,

Heather

ice cream juice

The other day was a sick day at our house.

We started by sharing a blanket on the couch.  Jack had Bunny and his thumb.  I had my coffee and my phone.  Our feet were warm.  

Note:  Bunny is pillow.  See tail sticking out from under head.

The day was downgraded to a real sick day when the fever rose.  His need for proximity to Momma grows in pace with his temperature.  Of course, I love this, because I don't get tons of cuddles anymore.  He's far too busy running around.   Always, the running.  

Note:  Bunny is best friend.  See head being held in Toddler Death Grip.

The day got downgraded again when he started feeling really bad.  This is when I had the brilliant idea to give him a milkshake, since he wouldn't eat and hadn't all day.

Note: Bunny is lifeline.  He's bottoms up at this point, but still in Death Grip.

The problem?  He had never tried a milkshake before, so when we enthusiastically offered him one, he interpreted it literally and rejected the idea with scorn.

Us:     Jack, do you want a milkshake?

Jack:  [confused look] NO MILKSHAKE!!!!!!

Me:    Jack, but it's a milkshake!  Milkshakes are "ice cream juice"!

Jack:  [angry but intrigued]  ... Ice cream juice??

And with that, victory was ours.  He's still on the mend, but damn did he drink that ice cream juice like nobody's business.

I hope your day has ice cream juice in it.  Because, why not?

Talk soon,

Heather

birthday songs

Yesterday, we took Jack to his first parade.

In the car, Durel said to him, "Jack, say, Happy birthday, America!"

For a moment, there was silence.  And then, he started singing.

"Happy birthday, to you.........."

That was awesome.

Happy birthday, America, indeed.

Talk soon,
Heather

Running shoes

Jack came with me the other day to get a new pair of running shoes.  

I needed new running shoes because I've actually been running.  (Victory.)

I have struggled with finding making time to exercise for a while.  Being a working mom is hard, yes.  But there are plenty of working moms who work out, and I'd like I need to be one.  I've read that if you schedule your exercise time like a meeting, you won't cancel it or skip it.  Because it's a meeting. 

So, I have been running on my lunch break.  It's a meeting that I have scheduled with myself.  As luck would have it, we've been having totally awesome 100+ degree temperatures.  This makes my plan pretty nuts.  But, it's working, so I'm not asking questions.

Anyway, shoes.  I brought Jack along to make sure I picked the right pair.  His research was diligent.

He decided the pink socks were good, but the blue shoes were not.  (I agreed.)

He took a strong liking to the pink shoes.  

Once he had tried them on and examined them from every angle, it was a go.

They are the Brooks PureCadence.  Jack tested, Momma approved.

Here's to, you know, *meetings.*

Talk soon,

Heather