Friday Things
1. For the past three nights, Isabelle has slept for 12 hours STRAIGHT. I’m still assuming it’s some kind of growth spurt or otherwise fluke and will not last, but still! The first night I woke up at 4am and realized she hadn’t woken up and then proceeded to barely sleep, waking up every 30-45 minutes to check the monitor and make sure I could see her breathing. Ahhhhh #momlife.
2. Dominic just continues to seem to grow by leaps and bounds every single day. He’s talking almost exclusively in two to three-word phrases, Joseph has started teaching him how to count to 10 when we’re sitting and eating at the table (so cute!), and he’s still our fearless monkey of a child. I see gymnastics/tumbling in his near future!
3. Joseph has been enjoying “reading” and singing to me at bedtime instead of the other way around. It is so adorable, he repeats things he remembers on the pages of his favorite books (and has actually almost completely memorized brown bear brown bear from me reading it to Isabelle at a few nap times), and he likes to sit on the bed and go through itsy bitsy spider, twinkle twinkle little star, the ABCs and jingle bells before going to bed. He’s getting so big and smart, and it’s so much fun to watch.
4. And because things here are NOT always rainbows and butterflies, and there are tantrums, not listening, threenager attitudes, not sharing, pushing, hitting, and some days we just barely make it to bedtime, THIS >> To my child, when I forget to feel lucky.
5. I have the hardest time finding jeans that fit Joseph well, and usually these Gap ones are a safe bet, but I’m looking for other options too. I want something that doesn’t have a zipper/button so it’s easy for him to get them up and down when using the potty at school and skinny or super slim jeans just don’t fit him well, and I feel like that’s ALL that’s out there with elastic waistbands!
6. A lot of you have asked what vehicle we ended up getting after initially asking for your input wayyyyy back last November when I was freshly pregnant with Isabelle and trying to figure out the car seat situation with one forward-facing convertible seat and two rear-facing seats. It took hours upon hours of scouring The Car Seat Lady and tons of car research (99% of which was done by my husband), and we finally did it… this week we picked up a… Honda Odyssey. It is basically one thousand percent awesome. But now that I drive a minivan, I feel like I need special mom pin or something, lol!
7. I think your weekend needs some fresh buttermilk biscuits.
8. Three weeks after my Mohs surgery, and the surgical glue FINALLY fell off this week. It was my first real look at the scar, and I was definitely pleasantly surprised. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it basically just looks like a scratch under my eye.
9. Pittsburgh was ranked #2 in the list of most livable cities in the U.S. by The Economist. Love my city!
10. TGIF! I hope you have a warm and sunny weekend!
I have a comment, but can’t post here. Â Friday post. Â Take a close look. Â Long time reader. Â Posted when Einstein died. Â I live in Virginia. Â
Shelby
I also am recommending Kohl’s Jumping Bean jeans/pants for boys. My son is tall, thin, and active. Â It’s a challenge to find anything that doesn’t fall off of him. I prefer the khaki or grey pants over the jeans, but the jeans fit well.Â
Isabelle is adorable!!
Oh, Honey! The Odyssey is your mom pin!!
Have you checked mini Boden for jeans? Â I haven’t looked recently, but they used to have great jeans with elastic waistbands. And they last so both boys can get use out of them!Â
We had a Honda Odyssey Van when our son was little and it’s truly the ultimate Momma Van.  It had all the wonderful and useful conveniences when you have little kids., automatic doors, pull down sunscreens and pop down mirror so you can spy on all your kids without turning your head, lol.  Enjoy the weekend!
My husband and I are looking at the Honda Odyssey right now. We have two little ones and are hoping to add one or two more to our family and have only heard wonderful things about the Honda Odyssey. We are hoping to purchase one this winter and I could not be more excited!
#3 – For my son it was Dr. Seuss’ Go Dog Go that he basically memorized. My parents came up for a visit and he sat there and “read” the book to my dad when he was between 3 and 4.. My dad was amazed that he could already read and I had to explain that he just had the words memorized based on the pictures. haha Gotta love these kiddos though, and all the new stuff they soak up like a sponge! It’s always fun to see them learn new things.
These aren’t jeans but they’re denim joggers for boys and they look pretty comfy at Lands End.
We had an Odyssey minivan during the kids’ school years and I’m forever grateful for the room and the automatic sliding doors. Â We also like Honda’s quality and reliability. Â I’d been a never-minivan mom and we no longer have it but glad we did!
Hi Michelle,
Maybe try these? They are a little pricey for little kid jeans, but Lands End often offers 40 and 50 percent off one item promotions. Their clothes also hold up better than cheap jeans/pants, so maybe Dominic will be able to wear them when he grows into that size.Â
https://www.landsend.com/products/boys-iron-knee-stretch-pull-on-jeans/id_325626?sku_0=::Y9W
These Tucker and Tate jeans were always awesome for my little guy:
https://shop.nordstrom.com/s/tucker-tate-flex-pull-on-jeans-toddler-boys-little-boys/4839126?origin=keywordsearch-personalizedsort&breadcrumb=Home%2FAll%20Results&color=granby%20wash
I still wake up all the time and my kids are 18 and 20. Â And I just replaced my 2001 odyssey with a 2015. I love that thing and they last forever.Â
We also have a Honda Odyssey and we LOVE it! If you decide to change later on, the resale value is so much higher than other vehicles. About the toddler jeans, I really liked these elastic waisted jeans from Children’s Place! https://www.childrensplace.com They are looser and different shades of denim. My son was super comfy in them and had no problem pulling them on or off.
Gymboree also makes soft top elastic waist jeans. I always called them my son’s “maternity jeans.” They wore well, even in the knees.
https://www.gymboree.com/item/baby-boys-soft-pull-on-jeans-140168208.html?lang=en_US&mrkgcl=906&mrkgadid=3193200922&adpos=1o1&creative=187244130149&device=m&matchtype=&network=g&gclid=CjwKCAjwzqPcBRAnEiwAzKRgSz5lc65ESVfpaInHMXHzKf4Tqsld60KbKdey-JiRjq8GNY_B9lvhMBoCgmsQAvD_BwE
Hi Michelle – I love these posts on Friday! I just read through the link about “to my child, feeling lucky” and it was beautiful and so true. I just dropped my third child off for her senior year of college. At 27, 25, and 21 it feels like I was just up at night (like you) checking on their breathing. We do the best we can as parents; hope and  pray that they will live happy and healthy lives. Someone told me once, “the days are long and the years are short.” Enjoy your weekend with your little ones.
My weekend DOES need fresh buttermilk biscuits thank you very much!! :-)
Rebecca | http://www.peppermintdolly.com
Oh how well I remember those nights when my daughter was an infant, checking on her every 30-45 minutes. Now I have little grandchildren. But I remember those sweet times. Loved reading this!
For the jeans for Joseph…have you tried Jumping Beans brand from Kohl’s?  They are on sale right now for $10!
https://m.kohls.com/product/prd-3269665/toddler-boy-jumping-beans-pull-on-jeans.jsp?prdPV=2&userPFM=non-search&diestoreid=101&selectShip=true
I live over in Europe and it’s even harder to find relaxed fit jeans for little boys over here. On my last trip to the US I bought a couple of pairs of these for my 4 year old son from Old Navy: https://oldnavy.gap.com/browse/product.do?cid=70155&pcid=37255&vid=1&pid=285963002