Wine lovers unite!

Do you love wine? Do you dislike cancer? I don't know anyone who would not agree with at least ONE of those statements. So whoever is driving distance, should come by Mineral Hills Winery this weekend for a fundraising, wine tasting, extravaganza!

On Friday, September 23, we will be having a fundraiser weekend kick-off party! There will be snacks, a 50/50 raffle, freshly pressed cider available for purchase, and 100% of wine tasting costs will go to the Eileen Diemand Foundation!

10% of sales from the entire weekend will also go to the foundation, so you should come by and buy some apples and wine if you were thinking about it. Now's a great time!

Friday's event will be happening from 5-8pm so swing by if you can! Contact info and directions on their website if you need it. And see the attached flyer here as well for more details (you can click on it to view it larger, or download it as well!)! Spread the word!

p.s. if you are not driving distance, but still are interested, you can order via phone as well or simply make a donation online HERE Thank you all for your support! :)

Busy, busy!

That is how my day was. Woke up way too early, showered, got Joshua up and dressed, dropped him at day care, went to work, meeting about Friday's fundraiser (which I will post more on later!) Dinner, Joshua to bed, Washed about 20 bushels of cider apples. (phew!) That was how my day went, how was yours?!

Tomorrow is the first cider pressing day of the year. So tonight we were washing and sorting many apples. But it will all be worth it for a delicious glass of fresh pressed cider, or cider with spiced rum... mmm... so many adult cider based beverages to choose from. but I digress.

Today was Joshua's first day back at day care after a week off in New Hampshire. He is getting better and better every time at the drop off it seems. He still definitely does NOT want me to leave, and certainly knows where we are when he sees the house and even the general direction we are driving in. but once I drop him off and am out of sight, I am told he is quite the charmer, which I don't doubt. And today I was told he cried for no more than 10 minutes or so after I left then was ready to play with the other kids and enjoy the day. And when I went to pick him up he was playing nicely still and was all smiles and being his normal goofy self, which is awesome, because last time I went to pick him up I was told he would start crying every time one of the other kids got picked up and he was still there. :(

I am trying to be tough for him through it all, though I understand his pain a bit, I think. Joshua and I were home together for a year and a half all the time. I was lucky enough to work the majority of the time from home after I had him. and I feel very lucky that I didn't have to rush into day care (or paying for day care.... OY!) But part of me thinks day care may be easier on the little ones when you start them young. I feel like it can never really be easy on the parents. It is that constant battle between not wanting to need someone else to raise your children and not wanting to miss a single second of their lives as they grow and change so quickly vs. knowing how awesome the right day care can be, and how much kids really do get out of having a good place to learn and play with children around their own age. I did tear up at the first drop-off, I admit. I told myself I wouldn't, and really believed that until I actually had to hand my child who was crying for Mama to another woman for the first time *tear.* But all in all, I am feeling very happy with our decision to do part time day care, and I am very glad I stumbled upon the day care I found. It is about five minutes from where I work and right on the way. And the women who work there are awesome! I was also very lucky to find someone who is very familiar with allergies in children as her own have been through many of the same experiences as Joshua has. This was a big plus for me!

That's all for now. Sorry for the lack of pictures. I promise there will be a cute photo shoot happening in the near future! If you have read this far without pictures, I thank you.

Ok... maybe a few pictures... these are pictures of Joshua from about one year ago... aweee

Distance makes the heart grow fonder?

I dunno about that. But I do know that I am missing my boys like crazy right about now! This week my brother-in-law who lives across the country is back visiting, so my husband took the week off from work to hang out with family since no one has seen him in a few years. SO, because he was home, he also took Joshua back to New Hampshire with him for the week. (Boo for me!) Though, I know it is only fair since I have him with me most of the time for the time being.

I have to say though. It was sort of a nice break to not need to wonder about day care, or babysitters for a bit. I ended up working a fair amount of overtime, which is always good for the paycheck. Got to see some friends and catch up over wine. All-in-all, not so bad. I'm thankful to have a busy job and great friends and family down here to keep me occupied and same when my baby is gone for a week!

I'm sure as he gets older, I won't be so sad when he's gone, and people may not be so quick to want to borrow him haha (especially when he's not the only one anymore someday!)

I also can't believe that in three short days Joshua will be turning 19 months old. Where did that year and a half go?! I feel like I missed something! I promise, next week I am going to make a valiant effort to take some new photos and upload them to all of the usual spots. I am also sincerely hoping that my life settles down somewhat in the near future, and my whole family can be in the same place (and state) at the same time for more than two days in a row! Which will also mean that I can blog more, take more photos, and get back to freelancing, and maybe remembering things for more than three seconds at a time!

Please excuse my rambling blog tonight, just wanted to do a quick catch up on life! And share these two cell phone pictures of my boy being silly at the fair. :) I can't wait to bring him to the Big-E!

A summer in pictures . . . of Joshua.

Joshua looking serious on Memorial Day

So, I'm a bit behind.

It's been about, hmmmm . . . FOREVER since I wrote in this, and I apologize!

Things have been a little bit nutty in my world. I think last time I was writing about how I got a job in Western, MA, yes? Well, for those who didn't get that, or don't know. I did. I am now working as a graphic artist in the Whole Foods Market in Hadley, MA. It's a pretty awesome job. I am also still freelancing, though sparingly at the moment because of all the crazy. By crazy I mean, during the week Joshua and I live in MA at my parents' house (who live very near my new job) and on the weekends we are back in NH to see Jay and my pets and house (which we need to sell/rent...anyone?) The driving is nuts, and I can't wait until we can all be in one place again on all the days of the week!

Joshua has probably learned a ton since I posted last. So, in an attempt to keep this pretty short and sweet, I am going to just summarize the last like... 6 months? haha. (maybe not that long but you catch my drift) I will follow this post with a post full of pictures to catch you up on his cuteness. :)

15 Month Checkup

This is another catch-up post!

Joshua had his 15 month check-up last week and here is what we got from it.

Height: 31 inches

Weight: 24.5 lbs

He is right in the 50th percentile for everything except for his head, which was in the 75th or something (that means he's smart, right?)

We are still keeping him off of dairy for another 3 months because of his extreme reaction, though she told us we can give him tastes of whatever we are eating. We just need to keep a close on on him and his skin and mood, etc. and always have the benadryl handy just in case. Today he had a couple bites of my cheese stick, and he loved it, and did not get hives, or any other ill reaction, so I'm hopeful he will outgrow this fully, eventually.

Other than that, he's a strong healthy, and curious little boy who is always on the go and feels the need to taste everything he can fit into his mouth (still) Here are some 15 month pictures for ya. Enjoy!

How could anyone not love this face?!

He is such a goof. 

loves his marvin.

Big change is a-comin'

So, for those of you who do not know. Our little family is going to be moving in the near future! 

Recently I had been working freelance while hunting for a full-time job either here or down near the town where I grew up. We have always known that we wanted to end up back in that area (Western, MA) by the time Joshua was school age, because we aren't big fans of the area we live in here, for one, and because of the school systems in our area, which is a biggie.

Job hunting has been tough, and slow-going. It seemed like I'd get a couple bites, and an interview here and there, that I always though went great, only to find out they eliminated the position, filled it from within, or decided to go with someone who's experience matched more closely to what they wanted. So, earlier this week I had a short phone interview with the people down at Whole Foods Market about a graphic design/ in store sign maker position they had open. I was on the fence about it, because it's a big move, a big change, different that what I'm used to, but I felt like I could not afford to not at least go in for the live interview and see what they had to offer, and see if I'd be a good fit.

Long story short. I left that interview, pretty sure that it was the worst interview I had ever had in my life.  I went out to lunch with a friend, grabbed a beer, and, beer in hand, got a call asking me if I wanted the job. (WHAT?!) I knew I was the last one being interviewed and that they were calling that afternoon, just didn't think it would be that soon!

So I drove back up North to my boys, and we thought long and hard, and weighed out the pros and cons, and ultimately ended up deciding the best thing for our family right now would be for me to take the job. Jay should be able to transfer to a position down there, and we can live with my parents while we work on selling our condo and getting settled into our new lives down there.

I am so, so happy, to be able to get out of the city, especially the area we are in. Joshua loves being outside, and there just isn't anywhere really safe for him to play outside where we are without driving him to a park or something. It will be good timing, because my mom will be done with school for the summer soon and can provide some live-in day care for the summer too :) That said . . . I am SO SAD thinking about all the friends and family we can't take with us! Seriously. Can't everyone I know and love just move within a half hour driving radius of my parents house? I have such an amazing group of friends, and fellow moms, and family that have been so amazing to us, and such an amazing help when we've needed it. It's hard to imagine being so far from them. Though, on the same note, I have great amazing friends down there too! And now we will be driving distance to some more of my family! Which is awesome! Besides, we aren't moving across the country, just a couple hours away, so we can visit all the time! Plus, you can all use winery tours, and wine tastings as an excuse to come visit us. Plus the Big-E is coming back in the fall... who doesn't love that?! (If you haven't been, and enjoy fairs, you must go!)

So I'm sorry for the long post. But I just wanted to update everyone, and also thank everyone for the support and love you've shown us with this decision, I truly have the best people in my life a girl could ask for! And in return for your constant awesomeness. A cute video of Joshua jumping on the bed (sorry it's dark, it was nap time).