BBQs and Littles

Tonight we had a little BBQ for my baby brother that goes back to Hawaii to return to duty for the Army (I'm totally jealous too). It was a nice little crowd with lots of kids running around creating a ruckus. 

As the sun set, the energy level of the Littles rose. It was entertaining, to say the least. 

I love seeing the kids play together. What always gets me are the flashes of the future. The rough and tumble of some and the watchful eye of others. {{I'll let you decide which was my kid.}} The way they play and interact with each other seemed like a direct scene into their futures. It couldn't have been sweeter. Or scarier. You pick. ;)

By 945, we were down to The Sichley and Wolterman Clans. The all boy, all the time crews. The never-loud-enough gangs. These boys know how to take a hit, give a tackle and wrestle (naked) in the grass. I caught a glimpse of my sweaty boy's filthy legs and offered the big guys baths. They ran down the hall excited beyond belief to be bathing together. After a quick scrub, things got out of control. QUICKLY. 

But in my heart of hearts, I didn't have it in me to stop it. As I sat next to one of my very best friends, each of us holding our sweet babies, our big guys splashed water EVERY.WHERE. Really, it was everywhere. 

And, we laughed. I can still feel it in my stomach an hour later. My face hurts from smiling so hard. My belly hurts from the deep laugh that came out. But, my heart. Oh, my heart. It really couldn't be fuller. 

Sometimes, friends are busy. And sometimes, it's hard to know you LITERALLY live 15 minutes away from each other and some how still miss crossing paths with each other. But best friends? They don't care. They know you think about them. That you love them and their busy life. That you're proud of them and all they do.

 And that there's no one else you'd rather sit on a bathroom floor with, wet from head to toe. 

Love you Mama. 

Continue Reading...

Thirsty Thursday||BlogHop Giveaway||

Welcome to the first oily blogHOP!

We are so excited to have you here! 

Make sure you keep your eyes peeled for little bottles of lemon as you read through the blog posts. At the end tally them up and you can enter a fun giveaway to win the Gentle Babies book by Debra Raybern, a total must have for Mom's with little ones.

If you have gone the whole way around the blog and found your way back here, go to   http://www.theoilycrunchymama.com/blog/2014/8/28/lets-talk-allergies  to enter the number of lemon bottles you counted on the whole blogHOP.

Entries will be accepted until 9AM (PST) on 8/29 winner will be selected at random on Sept 1st!

_____________________________

Oh, Thursday. You used to be Thirsty Thursday. We would press through "long" college days (ha, I find that humorous now...) to make it to Thursday so we could throw a few back and dance into the night. Good.times. 

Noawdays, Thirsty Thursday comes in the form of copius amounts of coffee and a glass of wine at the end of the day. The only dancing that happens involves swaying to a baby's rhythm and crazy booty shaking toddlers pretty darn adorable, I must say!). And this guy gets all crazy-like all.day.e'ry.day. Not just on Thursday.

Thank goodness I've got Lemon and Joy in the diffuser already this morning. Because let's be honest. I'm not 19 anymore and I can't keep up with this kid without a little extra help. ;) 

_____________________________

To continue on the blogHOP, visit my friend Andrea Rosenbohm over at  http://www.andrearosenbohm.blogspot.com/2014/08/time-for-giveaway.html?m=1 and keep your eyes peeled for the little bottles of lemon!

Continue Reading...

::honesty::

It's time for a post about truths. Straight up truths. Some crappy. Some happy. But, just truths.

~Having a newborn is hard. It's not all cute outfits and sleeping babies. Where are the newborn pictures of new babies that are sleeping while mama is haggard looking and chugging the coffee to keep up with her toddler wearing the same pajamas she wore yesterday (and the night before and night before that)?

~Having women in our life that go above and beyond to support my family and myself is so amazing; I'll never have the words or means to thank them.

~Breast feeding can be really really REALLY shitty. Why do moms that breast feed feel so proud? Because a lot of times it sucks. It's heart breaking. It hurts. And you have no control. None. So when you come out on the other side with a nursling and both your breasts intact, it feels like a goddamn accomplishment. And sometimes, a miracle.

~Having a 2.5 year old love on his new brother is adorably sweet. There are far cuter, more adorable, things.

~Having a 2.5 year old and newborn sucks. It's hard. It's challenging. My house looks like a tornado came through and left crumbles of chips/egg/bread/crackers/whatever THAT is, on every inch of our carpet and in our beds.

~Having permission to just hate this time is priceless. It's not squishy newborn and cuddling on the couch. I love my kids but this time is HARD.  (I feel like someone just needs to say this "publicly.")

~ Having a safe place to say these things is worth...worth more than I know what to compare it to. Judge me if you'd like, but honestly, very few people tell you how hard it is. How you should probably just hire a live-in nanny and expect things to just suck for awhile.

~Having a husband that is there for me through it all has no comparison, either. Through the emotional up and downs of pregnancy and birth, to his steadfast support when it comes to breast feeding and raising our boys gently. That man deserves a case of his favorite beer and steak for dinner every night.

~Tandem nursing isn't all "Sweet big brother holds hands with newborn as they nurse happily." It's hard. And there's crying involved. And being needed all day long. It's sad and it's happy. I love it and I hate it. But, mostly, I like it.

~It's ok to daydream about trips to Mexico, or running away with your newborn to Breitenbush. It's ok to dream the day away while you survive. It's ok to just be surviving. And for sneaking in that chocolate bar when your toddler isn't looking.

I don't remember much about this time with Jack either. I expect it to be similar. I kind of mourn that "having a newborn is so awesome; we just cuddle and nurse; look at my squishy newborn gaining weight; I'm not struggling everyday to not lose my shit on everyone at any given moment" feeling. I'll never have it, and that's hard. I think I'll always have some sad feelings about this time in baby-ness.

Please know that if you are struggling with Postpartum Depression, there are so many women that can relate. Seek the help you need. It takes a village to help each other. <3 p="">

Continue Reading...