Laboring, picturing, and a little deep thinking

I'm a huge fan of long car trips. This has less do to with the actual driving and more about the conversations Luke and I have as we pass miles of cornfields with two babies snoozing contentedly in the back seat. Anyway, there's been a lot of talk in our house about our next steps when it comes to housing, working, budgeting, family planning, and so on, so this was a perfect time to jump into those topics a little more in-depth. I don't want to derail from the actual point of this post, which is to share photos from our lovely three-day weekend, but I do want to plant some seeds for myself in terms of future entries. For now, I can tell you that:

• We want to move again before Kara starts kindergarten, if not sooner
• We need to meet our eight-month emergency fund goal first
• We want to take our first family vacation as a reward for meeting that goal
• The idea of moving back to the Chicago area isn't as strong as it once was
• The time to declutter our house (and our lives!) is now, baby
• Speaking of babies, I might be OK (again) with not getting pregnant again
• Adoption or foster parenting is on the table
• In keeping with our overall goal of putting our energies in the right place, we need to make a more concerted effort to spend time with the people we love most

That last bullet point serves as the perfect segue for the rest of this post, as Luke and I made a special trip up north to attend a joint birthday party for our very own Sock family's KJ and Marin. And we had a blast.

 

The birthday supastars, with a little Kara and Nathan profiling for good measure.

 

This picture documents at least two potential Christmas gifts for my kids. Not only were they mesmerized by the shiny red fire truck, which had Kara singing "Woo woo!" the entire afternoon (a throwback to Curious George and the Firefighters), they were also all over the miniature kitchen set. Nathan highly recommends the lettuce and the plates.

 

Meeting of the minds, right here.

 

Because Kara falls right in the middle of Jack and Marin, she has things in common with both of them. This weekend she was especially enamored with Jack, as he was able to run up and down the sidewalk and they could laugh their crazy heads off together.

 

Our babies.

 

Our hostess, who along with her husband was gracious enough to give their bedroom to us for the night.

 

The Three Stooges: Hoosier Edition.

 

One of the best group shots we could manage under the circumstances, with the circumstances being five children under seven and three under two. Bonus points to Marin for being the only one to actually make eye contact with the camera.

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After our overnight, we paid a visit to Luke's parents at their new house.

 

Grandma and Nathan showing off the landscaping.

 

Grandpa and Kara having their own meeting of the minds.

 

Nathan testing out the guest bedroom.

 

Kara receiving her first golf lesson of sorts.

 

Frameworthy. 

 

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And now, some random favorites of the kids from the last week or two.

 

Kara and Nathan love congregating around this end table. Nathan is still just small enough that he can sit straight up right underneath.

 

Luke took this shot of Kara, and she looks so sweet it makes me want to cry.

  

Nathan making his newest trademark expression, the duck face.

 

Kara took to her booster seat quickly; so quickly, in fact, that when she's hungry, she will climb inside and attempt to buckle herself in.

 

Nathan is still catching on to the whole solids thing--sometimes I think he forgets it's food we're giving him, not deadly poison--but he still manages to make a fantastic mess.

 

Doesn't Kara look so very adult here? Like she's taking her senior portrait for high school? Good God, my baby's in high school! Wah wah wah.

Hope you had a great weekend!

Comments

[blooot]

They are so cute. They both look so much like you and your husband...a fabulous blend of you guys.

*sigh* Babies.

[Sasha]

so I just recently had to be ok with my family being complete. Which was ok with me, then not ok, then ok, well you get the picture. But I realized in the past month or so that I am ok & haven't teetered on that. Maybe because I've gotten the bathroom cleaned ALONE for the past 2 months or so. Oh I can shower while the kids are awake too! Awesome huh?!
We have a similar kitchen set which has been in full use for about 5 years, which I consider a good investment! I have a almost 6 year old daughter & 2 1/2 year old son, they both love it & play with it daily.

[Trilby]

We've been having the "are we or aren't we done having children" talk too. I'm pretty sure we're done for the next 5 years or so. Then maybe we'll decide what to do about a more permanent birth control solution/or have another baby... whatev. lol

Kara and Nathan are absolutely beautiful!

[Molly]

I would first like to slug you in the arm for putting a first-thing-in-the-morning picture of me on the internet. But then I will be nice to you again, because you're great. We had tons of fun with you guys this weekend. Can't wait to do it again.

[Jen L.]

Them's some purty young'uns you got there! (That's Alabama talk for "Your kids are gorgeous!") Kara looks SO grown-up in that last picture. She is such a beauty.
Great pics--looks like you had a fun weekend! Love the shots with the Lost A Sock gang.

[rkmama]

I have to say the wooden kitchen we got for Rowan when she was 2 has been an invaluable toy. Both kids LOVE it! They "make" me eggs and pancakes every morning.
Kara DOES look more grown-up and that picture of Nathan sleeping? Oh my goodness, so sweet.

[Jenny]

That one of Kara looking out the window is amazing, especially with the reflection in the window - so deep in thought.

Great to see all of you this weekend!

[Jenny]

And I wondered what Molly would say about that picture...I just now read comments above!

[Cookie]

Can't believe how big Nathan is getting! Didn't you have him just yesterday? And Kara! She is so cute. So tempted to have a third just for the chance to have a girl.

My husband and I are debating on all the big-kid transitions for Nick - he's almost 18-months and a booster seat and toddler bed are among the transitions were considering. I'm just not ready.

[AJU5's Mom]

Kara does look so grown up in the last picture! When did she stop being a little baby and go to really big girl?

[daddyd]

Super time was had by all. Kara and Nathan are moving right all with their lives. Such joy.