Thursday, April 3, 2008

March: A Summary

Well, March certainly came in like a lion this year, and a beastly one at that, in the form of sickness. On March 2nd, a Sunday morning, Peter and I both woke up totally sick with one of those bugs that makes you feel just miserable all day long and weak for days after. Fortunately John never got sick with it, but it ended up canceling my plans to head up to my mother's house in Mass. for a few days while our kitchen got remodeled. We ended up being stuck at home and living upstairs for about two days instead. FUN! But the end result was worth it and the kitchen looks great now.

As you probably already know, John turned 3 on the 8th and we had a nice family party for him. Two days later he went for his 3-year check-up with the doctor (I love our pediatrician, by the way--she's the best!) and everything looks good. She said that the things he can do at his age are unusual, that he is very likely gifted, and that putting him into a Montessori school is one of the best things we can do for him at this stage, so that made me feel even better about doing that. He's still loving the preschool, by the way. (And so am I! I get about eight free hours a week now to run errands and get things done!)

Other March happenings

  • I got invisible braces this month on my upper and lower teeth. It's called "Invisalign" and it's really cool. You can't even tell they're on my teeth! They are a little bit of a pain though (sometimes literally). I can't stand the feeling of the bottom one and I've only been wearing it at night. And I have to take them out every time I eat or drink, which is difficult since I tend to eat and drink throughout the day. But again, the inconveniences should be worth it when at year's end I'll hopefully have a beautiful new smile.

  • We finally joined Costco. Yeah!! They've got some really good food and lots of other stuff there. I don't think it will be able to replace Target as my favorite store though.

  • Easter was nice, but Peter had to go to Salt Lake City, Utah (his first time ever going to Utah) for a business trip that weekend, so John and I headed up to Mass. to be with my family. We had a nice time there, but we missed Petechuck.

  • I went to the New England Family History Conference in Franklin, Mass. last Saturday, and it was excellent. I'm excited to delve into family history work this summer.

March's best discoveries


  • The Body Shop's Blue Corn 3-in-1 Deep Cleansing Mask

  • Ann Taylor Loft jeans (I will be writing more about this soon. Yes, it deserves its own post!)

  • Word World, a very clever and fun show on PBS that helps teach kids to read.

  • These tiny Ben & Jerry's ice cream cups that are just the right size for satisfying an ice cream craving without making you go anywhere close to overboard. You can buy them individually at Stop & Shop.

  • Clorox Green Works housecleaning supplies. I've been reading all this research about the potentially harmful effect of chemicals in regular household cleaners, and it's been making me want to find something better to use. I found it! Clorox Green Works works just as well as what I used to use and there is no price difference.

  • Debbie Meyer's Green Bags. They do what they say they'll do--they keep fruits and vegetables fresh for a lot longer. These are a lifesaver! (for my poor fruits and veggies!)

Things I'm excited about for April
1) Red Sox baseball is BACK!
2) Warmer temps coming to stay and spring really starting to pop and bloom (any day now would be nice!).
3) General Conference, one of my favorite things. This will be the first one with our new prophet and First Presidency, and a new Apostle will be called.
4) Two fun trips: 1) A two-day trip to Philadelphia with Peter and John. 2) A week-long trip to the Cayman Islands at the end of the month for the three of us and my mother. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to these trips!
5) My beloved niece Hayley turns 16 on April 29th. 16! That happened so fast. She's gone from an adorable little girl to a beautiful teenager. I love you Hayley!

These are my favorite photos from March that I haven't posted yet on the blog.

John's last day as a two-year-old (sigh). This picture reminds me so much of when he was a baby and a toddler. I have pictures of him doing this exact same thing at the same camera angle when he was younger.
We like to goof off and have fun!
I like this picture because of the expression on my sister's face as she talks to our Dad. It brings me right back to our teenage years. (Although we still use this expression a lot when talking with Dad!)
A snapshot in the family room on a rainy afternoon.
We decided this month that enough was enough and that John absolutely needed to start feeding himself with a spoon instead of us still doing it for him. It's been a battle, and when he started doing it he would only hold on to Peter's finger as he fed himself. He wanted nothing to do with me! (Mommies get so dissed sometimes.)
Isn't this chair cute? It's the perfect size for him to cuddle up on. I ordered it online this month at Land of Nod.
Johnny on Easter Sunday with some of his loot.
John's evil twin! Or, is he just really narcissistic? In any case, this is a cool picture! I caught him doing this and I thought it was so funny.
At the end of the month, there was a day when it was finally mild enough to go outside and play again. Hooray! The winter-long exile to the not-so-great indoors will soon be over.

I had to take a few pictures of him having a tantrum so that he can see them when he's a bit older and know how silly it looks to get angry and throw fits!
I love my doggy and kitties!