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“So, can you see yourself being quarantined here?” That's the joke for what realtors ask you when looking at houses now.

We haven’t officially owned our house for five years, but at the time we bought it, the answer would have been a firm “No.” I had actually completely forgotten the depths of how much I disliked the aesthetics of our house until I came across some photos while cleaning my phone. 

Cue rabbit trail. 

As another child is forever entering our lives, I need to massively figure out a way to clean our my phone. My phone is always running out of storage and reminds me almost daily.  I’d always go to my storage usage and check it, and I’d be so confused as to why the memory in my Messages took up more space than the memory in my Photos. I would delete text threads that weren’t important and clear as many photos and videos off of chat threads I could without killing my love of sentimentality. 

Well, today I found the culprit; all along, it has been my text message thread with my husband. Somehow amidst all the cleaning, I never thought to look at the attachments and photos in our chat. It was over 900 photos and dated all the way back to photos of engagement rings we had looked at before getting engaged! Talk about outdated...

So now, in my free time, I will hopefully be clearing out enough space so I can successfully take photos of our newest addition without being told my phone has insufficient storage space to take another photo. 

End rabbit trail. 

While cleaning out these outdated photos from the last six years, I came across some renovation photos of our house, what our kitchen used to look like, the color of tile that used to be in our master bathroom, etc. And to be completely honest, I had really forgotten most of it. We haven’t done any major interior changes in the last two years because any task is much harder to complete when you have a tiny human running around at will who may or may not listen to your instructions. But there’s not really much left to do on the inside. 

During this time of being an extreme introvert, which I really don’t mind, I’d have to say I have not minded being home all day. I don’t get tired of looking at the walls.  The paint colors don’t bother me. And I have no problems with our countertops or shower tile or bathtubs. Sure, it’s not the top of the line luxury, but I’m ok with that, because it feels like home. Even with the blocks scattered all over the floor, the books pulled off the shelves, and random stuffed animals lying around the couch. 

Yup, that’s home. 

Valentine's Day 2020

We don’t do big celebrations for Valentine’s Day normally. In the past, we’ve gotten BOGO Cane’s for dinner, a gift here and there, but mostly just spending time together. We’re not really the couple who “has to get the other something for Valentine’s Day.”

I went grocery shopping this morning with my daughter. As we were checking out in the self check out section, I got some glances at the customer behind me as I loaded our bags one by one from the bagging area to my cart. He had scanned a card, a small box of chocolates, and a small plush toy. They were all sweet gestures and I’m sure his significant other is going to find them adorably cute and be happy to receive them, but that’s not what our Valentine’s look like for the most part.

After five and a half years of marriage and one (nearly two) kids, there’s hardly time to make a dedicated trip to the store to buy a card, chocolate, and a plush. Most of the time, I can’t even leave the store with everything I need anymore unless I write down a full list AND remember to bring it with me. (Yes, you won’t believe how many times I make the list and then fail to bring the list.) Also, between the two of us, we have a giant stash of plush already and really don’t need or have the space for more. Here's a few glimpses of what our plushies do on a day-to-day basis.

They make great sound proofing for door crevices because all parents know how desperate we are for our children to sleep so we can get stuff done, rest, or simply have some coveted silence in the house for a bit. This was my attempt at practicing piano without waking her. 

Back in the day when our little munchkin fit right in with the plushies. 

So instead of focusing on gifts, chocolate, flowers, or stuffed animals, my favorite part of holidays is the card. I don’t remember when it started, but I began making holiday/special occasion cards for my husband by hand probably 2-3 years ago. I’ve always had a creative crafting side beneath the rest of my academia focus, and certain people make fun of me for my (liberal [arts) and crafts] degree. Of course there have been exceptions when I’ve gone out and bought cards because it was the easier and faster choice, but I actually have a lot of fun making them as well. It has gotten exponentially harder to find time to sit and make a card that involves paper, cutting, and gluing without a toddler wanting to touch and be a part of everything.

This Valentine’s Day was the first time where our card making actually coincided with each other. I was putting mine together while hubby put our daughter to sleep. I didn’t hear him leave her room so the next thing I know he’s walking through my studio and I’m frantically hoping he hasn’t seen the design of the card. We both had a good laugh about it and then discussed our plan to continue working in two separate rooms of the house while sharing access to the craft closet to gather supplies as needed. We both finished our cards and then went to sleep for the night.

I’ve made some extravagant cards for him in the past which I am very proud of, but I have to say, he has outdone me this holiday.

I'm glad jokes from our dating days have weaved their way into our marriage.

Dinner was not romantic this year. We ordered takeout pizza (which was delicious!) and ate it listening to our needy toddler and appeasing her needs (translated to English for ease of understanding here)

Pizza! Eat pizza!

No pizza. Don't want pizza.

Bread! *eats a few bites of a bagel*

Don't want bread. Give mommy bread. 

Cheese! Cheese! 

*we give her a cheese stick* *she starts crying*

No cheese. Don't want cheese. *crying profusely until we take the cheese away*

*Crawls up the counter stools to sit between us and crawls into my lap*

Pizza! Pizza! *grabs at plates and knives and cups on the counter* *eats a few bites of pizza*

End dinner. I don't think there was much exchange of any other dialogue.

Now that she's asleep, perhaps hubby and I can get some much needed alone time and sit in bed, eat some chips and salsa/guac, and watch some TV.

That sounds like a lovely way to end this evening. :)

”Tradition”

We have some strange “traditions” in our family it seems. In December of 2017, before our daughter was born, we discovered a leak in the bathroom we renovated two years prior. Luckily, we could go through the wall from behind to take a look at the pipes instead of having to tear down the tile from the front. We could only conclude that the pipe to the shower head was not screwed on tightly or had somehow come loose. That was the end of that leak and after a few days of repatching the drywall and retexturing, life resumed.

“Turns white when dry” isn’t just for
elementary gluesticks!

This DIY fix was easily completed by my husband as we did not have to monitor a toddler on the move and keep her from touching the construction materials or getting paint on her clothes.

Two days before she was born, which also happened to be Easter Sunday, we found a leak in our water heater. We did not DIY the water heater. Paying for installation was well worth the cost because a.) it had to be done fast. Like within two days fast. And b.) our water heater sits in a closet in our garage about 3 feet up from the ground. Hoisting a 50 gallon water heater up into the closet and properly connecting the gas line, AND with drainage up to code under a time constraint was just too much to process mentally when a new baby was coming.

In the last two years, things around the house have been quiet when it came to construction. We replaced some windows here and there but no unplanned home maintenance to undertake.



We call it “tradition” because lo and behold, the same bathroom leaked again recently, and what do you know...we have another little one coming soon. But this time we did not DIY it. We called a plumber and he came out three hours later, and another three hours after that, the leak was gone, and our valve was straightened. That was not part of the leak but it was a nice positive benefit.

That evening my husband had replaced the drywall and the next day he started to mud.

Thankfully, besides the cost of the plumber, no extra repair costs were incurred because over the last five years, we’ve done enough construction to accrue a good selection of wood scraps, drywall pieces, plumbing supplies, tools, and paint to cover a good number of household maintenance around here. Great hint for keeping drywall mud from drying out: put plastic wrap directly on top of the mud, touching the top layer, before putting the lid back on. 

After this repair gets wrapped up and put behind us, we’ll have to start thinking about putting together a bedroom for our second child. Oh, and did I mention all this leak-fixing was in his future room? Yea, poor kid. The stories we will tell him later...

Here’s to hoping “tradition” doesn’t hold up too true and our water heater doesn’t die again in a few months. But it is under warranty this time!

Or we need to be done having babies. 😝

For the Love of Penguins

Friends celebrated its 25th anniversary last summer and there was huge hype over a reunion. They made a special Central Perk Lego set to commemorate this milestone and had an orange couch tour across the world. No, I didn't go visit the orange couch, but yes, I did buy the Lego set.

It really wasn't a bad price for genuine Legos with that many pieces.

The Friends anniversary didn't mean much to me because I'm not the biggest fan out there, but all the hype and video clips being circulated online made me curious to look up some facts about each of the six main actors in real life. A couple facts I learned:

1. Lisa Kudrow is the only actor to be married and stay married to the same person.
2. Lisa Kudrow was actually pregnant when her character was pregnant.
3. Courteney Cox was pregnant in the end of the last season but it was not written into the script.
4. They served really good food on set.

Coincidentally, I've proved an aspect of Friends to be accurate to real life, which most of the show is not in all honesty. 

In season 9, Joey's beloved penguin, Hugsy, makes his appearance again when Emma finds him and enjoys playing with him. Joey becomes jealous and wants his penguin back. He buys a second Hugsy in an attempt to give the newer penguin to Emma and take his original one back. Emma doesn't want the new Hugsy and Joey is left disappointedly taking the new Hugsy.

Hugsy

If you've watched the show or just simply read the quick synopsis, you might have wondered, can children really tell the difference between two identical stuffed animals?

The answer is yes. I've proved it. 

After my brother got married, he returned from his honeymoon and gifted me a stuffed penguin. It was a very cute stuffed penguin and he has received lots of love from me over the last 6 years. 

Meet Chilly Willy!

After my daughter was born, and even when we were preparing for kids and her arrival, I knew there were special stuffed animals I didn't want my children to mess with because they were special to me and I wanted them to last as long as they possibly could. If you know children and stuffed animals, there's a lot of abuse to be had: drool, food residue, puke, dirt, and overall abusive love. It's just simply how they play with them. I did not want Chilly Willy to experience any of this, so he stayed out of reach on our bed or hidden under the blankets.

Well...babies grow up and become mobile and get smart, and before you knew it she could climb onto our bed and locate Chilly Willy. So I did the best thing I could. I went online, located an identical version of my penguin, and bought it.

She was pretty excited when we got Chilly Billy...but I think I was more excited.

She definitely likes her penguin and holds onto him tightly. But you know what? If she ever catches a glimpse of Chilly Willy, she wants him. Put the two side by side? Chilly Billy is left behind every time.

I'm not sure why this is, but they know. Oh, they know.

Two Zero Two Zero

14 years ago on New Year's Eve, I started writing predictions. It was what I thought the next year would bring in my life and some notes on teenage thoughts regarding those around me. Mostly who was dating whom and the drama of high school. The following year on New Year's Eve, I would read what I had written the year before and then write a new one for the next year.

Props if you know what television series I got this idea from.

I kept up this tradition for the next 9 years and then stopped after that. I stopped partly because I simply forgot to write a new one on NYE and partly because it lost its meaning and purpose. As I reread ones from the early years, they mostly sound like a teenage girl writing about high school drama. Later, I became more sophisticated and they were more appropriately categorized as "predictions".

In the last few years, especially since having children, I've found myself being envious of others for their accomplishments, successes, and adventures. I see my friends with their doctorate degrees, friends who travel the world whether alone or with significant others, friends who design and execute their own DIY projects, and friends who simply just look like they have it all together. I know social media tends to glamorize only the positive aspects and paints an extremely skewed image of real life, but this is just how I feel.

Is anyone out there envious of me in my part-time working full-time motherhood lifestyle of craziness? I count a day when there's food to eat, clean laundry, a presentable house to teach out of, and keeping my daughter alive as a huge success for a day's work.

I don't make predictions anymore and I don't really have resolutions, but there are things I'd like to get done and accomplish without trying to be too ambitious or unrealistic.

1. Finish my cross stitch.

Now if you've kept up with my blog, you may remember a post from 3 years ago about a different cross stitch which I completed. This is another one I started a few months after completing that one. The image is the silhouettes of two children blowing bubbles between two trees. I bought it before I left China in the summer of 2013...and well, here we are nearly 7 years later. I've made some progress on it but the time to sit and focus on my cross stitch is few and far between now. Ironically, the two children pictured are a girl and a boy, and how appropriate it would be if I could have this completed and hung up in my house....soon.

2. Find a new work life balance.

When I career changed 3.5 years ago, it was the scariest and best decision I'd ever made in my life. Yes, people must've thought I was crazy, and even I thought I was crazy. There was a lot of learning in the beginning and finding my way, but I've been incredibly blessed in being able to build up my own business from nothing. I'll never forget that first month when I made less than $300. It was terrifying, exciting, and humbling.

After having my daughter, I thought I'd have to reset and start over to some extent. To my surprise, I was busier than even before I had her. This last year and a half of work has been the busiest and most enjoyable. Having to take another maternity leave really stresses me out to think about. And I haven't wrapped my head around how continuing to work untraditional hours with two kids will be feasible.

3. Keep my sanity.

When I think about last year, I don't remember a lot. It's not that I didn't do anything or that I didn't keep my sanity, but it was a tough year.

• we took an international trip with a 1 year old
• I mentored a college freshman for a summer
• morning sickness round 2
• lots of sleepless nights with the toddler
• new retaining wall and fence (not DIY, thank goodness)
• new windows for the house (not DIY either)
• 2 road trips

Kids change daily so much when they're young so you never truly feel like you have things figured out for more than about a week or two before something changes again. And my daughter, as cute as she is, is a handful. Keeping my sanity? Not easy.

But there are still moments when she'll actually cuddle next to me and stay calm and not squirm, and her face is of peaceful wonder, and I just watch her and think to myself, wow, you're beautiful. I can't believe you're mine, even for just a little while. 

So if you've got it all together and things are going great, maybe stop once in a while to help me keep things partially together? Taped? A little?

I'll go put a few stitches into my cross stitch now.

One Child Productivity

I'm back after a long hiatus and a new domain. It's been an interesting second half of 2019 to say the least. More on this later, maybe, if I ever feel like backtracking.

Anyway.

It's amazing what you can get done as a stay-at-home-working-mom of one.

After getting my daughter up in the morning, getting us both fed (mostly her, not me), and getting us both dressed, we made it to Costco for gas and a quick grocery run.

Then after she went down for her nap, I was able to pay some bills online, prepare my students' Christmas gifts, clean up her toys, make my daughter's overnight oats breakfast for the next 3 days, deposit some checks, and start preparing dinner.

It's now just before 1:00 pm. If I'm lucky I'll be able to finish my lunch in peace and quiet and still have some extra down time before she decides to wake up.

One child productivity...it's pretty amazing how efficient you can be if you want to. Well, I better enjoy it. It's going to change in a few months.

:)

DIY Play Dough

Often times, the only two classifications given are “working mother” and “stay-at-home mom” but what about those of us who watch our own kids for part of the time (or a whole 8-hour day) and then proceed to work in the afternoons or evenings or whenever we get a chance to for a few hours to another 4-8 hours? What if you do both?

As a working mother I feel pressure to do my job well and prepare. This involves knowing my lesson schedule, having books on hand for when students need new ones, and knowing what piece they’re working on so I know what to teach or have an idea of what to teach for the day. As a stay-at-home mom, I feel pressure to take my daughter out on play dates to socialize her as well as let her see the world and explore.

Because of this conundrum, I often find myself at a catch-22. If I choose to practice piano for 1-2 hours during her nap, I don’t get much else done during the day before I switch gears and teach for a few hours.  If I don’t practice during her nap, I can prep dinner, clean the house, do laundry, or even take a nap myself, but sometimes I’m left winging it and thinking fast during my lessons. If I take her out on a play date, which I both should and want to, she won’t get a good nap in unless our play date, including the drive, is not more than 2.5 hours and she can return home to nap at the proper time. 

So instead, much of my life looks like fast thinking, crying toddler fighting naps, being overtired and stressed out, and eating frozen corn dogs (or frozen something) for dinner more than occasionally. 

But sometimes, I feel like I actually have my life together and can do a multitude of things. Hence why we made play dough today. 

While cleaning out her toy bin, I found an unopened package of model magic from our trip to Crayola a few months ago. I hadn’t opened it yet because I wasn’t sure if she was ready to play with something moldable and not put it in her mouth. The model magic reminded me of play dough, so during her breakfast, I looked up a quick recipe for homemade play dough. It involved some ingredients I didn’t have on hand at home, but nothing a quick trip to the neighborhood store wouldn’t solve. 

So after breakfast, I loaded her up, and we went to the store to pick up the remaining ingredients I didn’t have. Being that I was only going to pick up two things, I decided to simply use my stroller instead of putting her in a shopping cart and just hold what I needed. Well, I ended up with seven items in my arms totaling just over 13 pounds. Actually, I take that back. I ended up with five of the items in my arms, and I gave my daughter two to be entertained. Don’t worry, I still held over 13 pounds with five items. Ask me if you’re curious. 

We left the store and returned home where I commenced to make play dough while she played in the living room. She was doing fine and I was at the final steps when she started crawling away. I wasn’t in the mood to shut the door and have her start a tantrum on me so I picked her up and put her in her high chair to watch me finish making play dough. (yes, she does that now. If you hinder her idea even before she gets to proceed with the idea, ie: shutting a door she wants to go through even though, she’s three feet away, she will start to cry and it does get annoying). 

I finished making the play dough and it actually turned out pretty well. I gave her a little ball to play with and practiced my dough kneading skills on the remaining ball. She wasn’t very interested to be honest. She touched it a few times and tried eating a small piece stuck to her finger, but that was about it. After a short lived time with the play dough that clearly wasn’t entertaining her like it was entertaining me, I put it away.

Compared to store bought play dough, I like the homemade version because:

• It’s soft and has the texture of real play dough
• I know what’s in it so if my daughter does try eating it or gets it in her mouth, I know she’s not eating chemicals. 

But, at the same time, I also don’t like the homemade version because:

• It’s greasier than the store bought ones. Not in a gross, runny way, but we played on a glass table and I had to wipe it after. To be fair I haven’t played with real play dough in many many years so maybe it has the same issue. 
• It’s got a starch/dough smell. I realize that the kind you buy also has a strong smell and I remember disliking it as a child, but I think having played with it for many years, I got used to it. 

When I get some more time or feel like it again, I’ll probably make another batch and maybe add some tweaks to experiment myself. If you’re interested, this is the recipe I used. It makes about 2 cups worth of play dough.

Airtight storage for my play dough. Next challenge: see how long it stays soft.

In short, it’s simply flour, water, salt, oil, cream of tartar, and food coloring.

Maybe my husband will be just as entertained with this as I was, even for a little bit. And now my daughter is awake, and I practiced piano for an hour before writing this blog, so I will now get ready to feed her, feed myself some leftovers or something frozen, and then teach for 2.5 hours nonstop this evening.

That's a normal day for us. :)