Winding Down

It hit me this week. My days are numbered when it comes to my maternity leave and I'm not sure I'm mentally prepared. Next week is my last full week at home with the babes and just the thought makes my eyes watery. 

Over the last 7 weeks I've grown accustom to waking up to Harper's cute little voice yelling, "Mommy! Mommy!! Good morning!" Cooking pancakes with sweet Emmett cuddled on my chest in the carrier. Doing puzzle after puzzle with Harper while Emmett supervises in his bouncer. The past month and a half have been pure bliss. I can easily look past the sleepless nights, 2 year old tantrums, countless poopy diapers and a disastrous house because in the end spending every day with my kiddos has been incredible. I do miss my co-workers and actual work itself, but I am sure going to miss being with Harper and Emmett during the day. Ready or not, as of the 20th - it's back to reality for this girl.

While we can, we're still having fun throughout the week. Last Friday Deb had the day off and told me about "toddler time" at SkyZone Indoor Trampoline Park in Plymouth. With nothing on the agenda, we decided to give it a try. For $4 per hour (per jumper) it's a great deal! Harper had a blast bouncing around and Deb and I enjoyed watching. She was in her own little world and loving every minute of it. It was such a fun outing, we've added it to our list of regular places to visit (even once I get back to work!). 

As the holiday aisles continue to increase at every store we visit (for goodness sakes - I've seen Christmas trees!), we've jumped on the bandwagon. Harper was excited to decorate her bedroom window with the fall window clings she picked out at Fleet Farm. She insists on changing their location and re-decorating on a daily basis. Their stickiness will most likely only last a few more days.

Thanks to a recent magazine article, I got the idea for chocolate dipped pretzels that resemble ghosts. Since Halloween is just weeks away (say what?), it seemed like a fitting fun activity to do with Harper. Plus it involves chocolate, which is one of her favorite things. They turned out super cute and Harper was pretty proud of her creations!  

Little Miss Mom brought her motherly duties to a whole new level this week - she got to feed Emmett! She was so excited to give him the bottle, he was like her personal baby doll. What little girl wouldn't love that? Emmett gets his fair share of hugs and kisses from his big sister. We're still working with Harper when it comes to personal space. She always thinks she has to be right up in his face, but he takes it like a champ. :)

Emmett hit the 6 week mark on Monday and was all smiles. I managed to capture a series of giggles and grins from him and they melted this Mama's heart. He's chunking up and growing like a weed. People will ask, "Oh, how old is your baby?" I reply with, "He's 6 weeks." I often get "Oh he looks so big for 6 weeks!" We have his 2 month check up on the 27th and I'm eager to hear his stats!

 

This week we decided to go to Toddler Tuesday at Mall of America one last time before I head back to work. The mall's website mentioned there would be a pirate party as this weeks event which seemed perfect since that's one of Harper's latest obsessions. We pulled into the parking lot right as the mall opened ready to meet the mateys. Unfortunately the party was a bust, so we went on to the next activity - Nickelodeon Universe. Harper enjoyed riding as many rides as she could and even tried a couple by herself. As usual, it was another great MOA visit.

 

This weekend is a busy one with lots of celebrating. Tomorrow night we're having a "going away party" for Nick before he heads to Oklahoma City to start his air traffic control career. Saturday we're driving to Fargo to celebrate Austin's 20th birthday - we may be a little late, but we're still looking forward to it!

Cheers to a great weekend!

Until next time…

The Helleen's