Checking In

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Checking In-Twins at Sweet Sixteen Months

Posted by cafevic
September 29, 2014 Checking In, Life Leave a Comment

Reading:  Driving Lessons, a novel by Zoe Fishman

Watching: The twins go everywhere! I don’t think an hour goes by where you don’t hear my husband or myself say, “Where’s the other one?”

Listening to: Praise. Earlier today, I was at my local Starbucks getting some Me/writing time in. Near me was a teenage being tutored. I happen to hear her say to her tutor that she never thought she could be tutored or really enjoy it. Now she does.

Looking forward to: Every day. It kind of goes with my black board quote photo: “Endless Possibilities”. Each day offers us something new to learn. To experience. To love. If you get the chance, every day offers something to look forward to. If you think about it, children bring you endless possibilities because you never know where they will take you, where they will want to go, or what they will be become. At the same time, you too have endless possibilities. I never thought I would have twins or would marry a man from Germany and be able to travel there! We set the sails but it is the wind that takes us.

Sam Update: Joined his first club. Drum role..it’s the Lego Club! He even has the Lego Club schedule flyer handing on his wall above his bed. He also loves to tell me his plans. He likes to tell me what is suppose to happen tomorrow, the upcoming weekend, what we need to do, who will be there, etc. Like mother, like son.

Twin Update: Sweet Sixteen Months. This month the girls turned the Sweet Sixteen Months and it has been living up to its name. The girls are so sweet, funny, and caring. They love to eat. They love to hold their stuff animal while they explore the backyard. They love to dance, play with water, and play together. They also love to take things from each other. When they are both hungry or thirsty, they both love coming at me, pulling at me, trying to tell me what they want. Then once I give them something to eat or drink, they calm down, laugh and run off to play. It reminds me of the endless things I can and need to teach them while I’m still home with them.

Meaning of home: Decorative Pillows. Do you have that one thing you do that adds something to your home? That brightens up a room or makes a chair or couch come alive? OR maybe it is a new piece of art or new flower out front? For me it is a new decorative pillow. It seems so small, yet it makes a huge difference to me and to our home. There is something about being able to go to a place in your home and relax. Or for your kids to climb and play. This week, I added a couple new pillows to our couch and before I knew it,  I was watching the kids have the time of their life throwing themselves on the pillows. For me, as I snuggled in for my evening T.V. watching, I lean my head back on the pillows and knew I was home :)

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Checking In

Posted by cafevic
June 12, 2014 Checking In Leave a Comment

Reading: Bill Bryson “A Walk in the Woods” and about to finish “deliberate motherhood 12 Powers of peace, purpose, order and joy” Compiled by Power of Moms.
Watching: My husband paint our front entry way.
Listening to: Carole King and James Taylor perform at the Troubadour.flv 2011, on Youtube.

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Checking In

Posted by cafevic
March 26, 2014 Checking In Leave a Comment

Reading: Going back and forth between “Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead” by Brene Brown and “Labor Day” by Joyce Maynard. Both are really heavy reads. Thinking I might need to find a fun light hearted read.
Watching: March Madness College Basketball while following along with our bracket picks. I’ve got a team from the East for sure in the Final Four. Plus the final weeks of How I Met Your Mother. Good stuff!
Listening to: The rain :)
Thankful for: Post-it notes, baby wipes, and fresh clean sheets.
Looking forward to: Girls Weekend in San Luis Obispo. A week and 1/2 away!
Sam Update: We now live on a street with kids his age and it is awesome to see them run back and forth from each other’s house. Best part, the moms area texting back and forth letting each other know where their kid is.
Twin lesson: This month, the girls have taught me how to smile. One look from them and you light up. They remind you to stop making life so hard. It is meant to be explored, enjoyed and when you are tired, you rest.
Meaning of Home: Whatever you do, even if you have only 5 minutes in the day, take those to give thanks for having a place to call home. Wherever it may be. It is yours. And if there is laundry on the couch or dirty bottles in the sink or maybe one more wall that needs to be painted, who cares. I know you care. And I know I care. But for those five minutes think about how it shows that someone is living here.  And all that stuff will get done. It always does. :)

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Checking in

Posted by cafevic
January 30, 2014 Checking In Leave a Comment

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Reading: “Momma Zen walking the crooked path of motherhood” by Karen Maezen Miller
Watching: Downton Abbey!!
Listening to: Taylor Swift album “Red”. If you really enjoyed her performance at the Grammys of “All Too Well” you can find that song and many more awesome break up songs on “Red”. I think I’m not the only one out there that remembers how crazy falling in love was in your 20’s.
Thankful for: So much! From being near family, to having my husband working so close, to our twin girls being healthy, to being able to write this blog.
Looking forward to: Attending the retirement party for my Student Activities Advisor Bruce Berkowitz. He is retiring from Sonoma State University after 30+ years. I’m just part of one group of students that he made an impact with. I can’t imagine how many others will be there. He made a real impact.
Sam Update: “When I’m four, I will do (file in the blank)”. He is very aware that he turns 4 next month. He is also in the stage where he tells us what his toys are feeling. A few weeks ago, he called himself Mario and my husband was Luigi. Reminds us all to keep imagining!
Twin lesson: This month, the girls have taught me so much about focusing on what is in front of you. The girls are sitting up, taking each other’s toys, and practically doing something new every day. Whatever is happening in your life, make sure you slow down at some point in the day to take it all in. There are blessings all around. Keep focusing on them.
Meaning of Home: When I was working, there would be times I would have a leadership quote up in our office. I even went through a time when I would include quotes as part of my email signature. Now with being home with the twins, I use Twitter and Facebook to share my House Quotes of the Day. It has become part of my morning ritual and I like the feeling of sharing something with others even though I don’t get to see them in person. The quote above is our current quote. I use a black board my sister gave me for Christmas 2 years ago. It hangs outside our front door. We call it our “Cline Sign” similar to the sign at the Cline Winery off Hwy 121 in Sonoma County, CA. I usually come up with a quote in the morning.  If you would like to follow along my Twitter account is “cafevic”.

 

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Checking In

Posted by cafevic
November 18, 2013 Checking In Leave a Comment

A Monday MidDay Check in

Reading: During the day: Facebook. Sometimes, I will find myself getting lost in the articles friends post. At night: Jane Porter’s ‘The Good Wife” the last of the Brennan Sisters trilogy and “Mommy’s Rescue Guide Getting Your Baby to Sleep” by Cynthia MacGregor.
Watching: My husband running around the house fixing things during his lunch hour.
Listening to: My father in-law singing to the girls.
Thankful for: The scent of Olive Oil and Balsam (sweet smelling ointment) used to bless the girls yesterday at their baptism. I love that I can still smell it on them and on my scarf.
Looking forward to: Cooking my first Thanksgiving Dinner. I will miss my sister’s cooking though. She really knows how to cook an amazing Thanksgiving meal. And she does it all from scratch.
Sam Update: If Sam was home right now and not at school, I would be hearing his latest mantra “I need a friend”. He is at that stage where he knows what it is like to enjoy others company. A few weeks ago, I even had him Skype with an old classmate.
Twin lesson: Keep walking. I had much house work to do this morning, but instead, I layered the girls up and went for a walk. So glad I did.
Meaning of Home: Gatherings. Our new home has such great energy and comes alive when family and friends are here. This past weekend, I had my husband moved our living room furniture around to open up the space for our baptism party and it worked.  When you create space for others to gather great memories will form. And the best part was we created chairs out of the most random things so everyone could be at the table.

Feel so much calmer when I get a chance to write. Now, I can start on that house work :)

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Checking In From Our New Home

Posted by cafevic
October 4, 2013 1 to 3 Motherhood, Checking In, Meaning of Home Leave a Comment

Reading: About to finish Jane Porter’s˜The Good Daughter” part of the Brennan Sisters trilogy. Next one up is her latest “The Good Wife”. Last night, I found a few minutes to read while waiting for a girl friend for dinner. You know you have found your comfort zone when you can bring a book with you as you wait for a friend.
Watching: Sam run around in our new backyard. This is something that has been missing from this little guys life. You can tell by the huge smile he has when he is out there.

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Checking in

Posted by cafevic
August 16, 2013 1 to 3 Motherhood, Checking In, Meaning of Home Leave a Comment

Slowing down to check in. As I write, I can see the load of laundry and the baby bottles that need to be washed. It can wait. The girls are both asleep. This morning I want to write.

Reading: Remembered an author I enjoyed, Jane Porter who wrote ‘The Good Woman’. I looked her up and found that she had two other novels that are part of her Brennan Sisters trilogy. I’m reading the second one called: ‘The Good Daughter’. I love how the story takes place in the Bay Area mentioning places such as; Oakland, Santa Rosa and the coastal town of Capitola. Plus, this sister who is single living in a small old house that as she describes it reminds me of how before I was married, I would dream about living in an old house with hardwood floors and a front porch located where I could walk to the local cafe.

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Checking in

Posted by cafevic
July 22, 2013 Checking In, Twin Motherhood Leave a Comment

Reading: Loved!“Wild From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail” by Cheryl Strayed, paperback. Still searching for the next book. Going to see it if the library has a copy of “Sisterland”..keep reading reviews about this book.
Watching: Anytime now, the Royal Baby will be here.
Listening to: Sam playing his Nintendo DS.
Thankful for:  everything. I’m learning every day.
Looking forward to: more blog writing. Have some new categories going to be launching soon.
Sam Update: Potty trained, check!
Twin lesson: Girls are 2 months old! Latest lesson, invest in 2 Graco Swings! We have one from Sam when he was a baby and now I am in search of another one. They are life savers!

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