Becoming a New Englander...NOT ;)

I have wanted to write a blog for quite some time but in all honesty, I've been in a negative slump. We have had some great moments that I really want to share, but we have also gone through a rough patch that I pray is coming to an end. I want to make this post somewhat light-hearted, so won't go into anything negative just yet. I have been thinking of the great experiences I will take away from this journey, and thought it would be best to put it in a top 10 things I will do differently after leaving. :)

1. I will recycle everything I can and be more proactive in preserving our earth. That's huge here and I love it

2. I will always shop with reusable bags (hence #1)

3. I will force myself to WALK to the super market, pharmacy, etc. at least once a week. I might look a little strange doing this in an Austin/Houston suburb (yes, one of those will more than likely be the city we move to), or maybe I will start a new trend. ;)

4. I will pretend I have the right-of-way when turning left at a green light, clench my teeth, and turn RIGHT in front of on-coming traffic...just kidding!!! ;) But man...it is definitely something I have watched and learned how to do here. :) But I WILL drive more aggressively :)

5. I will be a better neighbor by randomly bringing them baked goodies, inviting them over for game nights, etc. Living in a dorm with other families is actually really great (I have probably had more than 8 special deliveries in the last 4 months from people who just wanted to be friendly and been invited to more social events to count)

6. I will read more books. I always say that, but I have met the most fabulous women here and they all read so much (and are very intelligent). It's such a no brainer really!

7. I will not be so paranoid about every little thing when it comes to parenting. Kids get hurt. They get sick. They do things that drive us crazy knowing that it drives us crazy. Kids need to be kids. No one is perfect and no one has the perfect kid. As long as I teach them life lessons, be the best role-model I can be, and love them unconditionally, they will turn out just fine. ;)

8. Always have quarters (just in case I need to park at a meter, pay at a toll booth, or do a load of laundry). :) Again..may not be as important after I leave.

9. We will try to participate in as many "seasonal activities" (wreath-making, apple picking, leaf peeping, etc) as possible. Because life gets busy and you never know if the opportunity to do those things will ever come up again!

10. I will make more frozen meals to have on those nights when I just don't feel like cooking. After participating in frozen dinner exchanges here, I don't have an aversion to frozen food anymore! :) And I've actually come up with some fantastic meals to freeze and they're still great (could write a whole other blog on that one).

I should really write a book about the experiences we have had here. I have so many things I want to write about after our journey is over. Just not yet. I would hate to be whiney, and would rather write about it as something " I can laugh/smile about later." Until then, I will see Texas in just 3 days and am over the moon!! I know I will miss my friends here in New England, but I'm ready to have a taste of southern love and hospitality back home (and definitely some good 'ole Tex-Mex)!! :)

Honey Pot Orchard

This weekend has turned out to be quite a busy one. Last night, we went to this cute patio area on top of a dorm and had a picnic for Todd's program. Andrew ran around the roof with Sky and Bennett (Shelley's kids), dancing and falling all over the place while Todd and I enjoyed some adult conversation and beverages. ;) Afterward, I had a "non-slumber slumber party" with the ladies at the dorm. It turned out to be a really fun night full of junk food, laughing, and fun stories from our high school and college days. It's kind of fun to live in a dorm again. :)

And today was an experience that you can't get in Texas: Apple picking. Such a New Englandish thing to do in the fall. :) It's slowly cooling down lately, but luckily, today was the perfect day to spend outside in an apple orchard. We enjoyed apple cider donuts, apple cider, and of course fresh picked apples. There were so many types of apples: Macintosh, Honey Crisp, Galla, Empire, Red delicious...and more! I had never even seen an apple tree, so this was such an experience. My poor little man actually got stung by a bee, but other than that we had a fantastic day.

I have so many pictures on our camera, but I wanted to type this blog before I forgot about all the fun we had this weekend. So, here are a few pictures I took on my phone. I had to add the one with my precious baby girl in her jammies (taken by daddy).

Stay-at-home mom VS. "home-maker"

I have been quite busy with my current job as a stay at home mom, so again lost track of my blog. Ours days really stay busy and quite eventful. I was thinking about tonight while cleaning up dinner and HAND WASHING re fabulous dishes (yes...I'm slowly getting used to it).

Before we got to Boston (Cambridge), everyone kept re-iterating how difficult this would be. Moving to a place thousands of miles from Texas, where we knew not one person, Todd would be busy so I would be raising the kids basically like a single mom...yes there have been some moments where I went to the car, called my mom or sister and blubbered like crazy (it's only necessary). But I was thinking about how much I get accomplished everyday with two kids in tow. Just the other day, I was going to do laundry and a little girl saw me pulling Andrew in the wagon (my secret tactic to prevent him from running onto the park), and wanted to jump on in. Now, this little girl's dad just so happened to be the guy who saved the day when my car wouldn't start, I was kicked out of my apartment for the entire day, and it was pouring rain. So, how could I turn her down? ;) So here I was: pulling two toddlers in a wagon, pulling my laundry basket (with wheels), with the other hand, whilst carrying my 6 month old in my boba baby carrier. Did I make it through the high rise building, down the elevator, and to the basement to retrieve my laundry? I sure did. Talk about a super woman moment. :) Hence the title of the blog: I AM a stay at home mom...NOT a home-maker (Todd told someone from AT&T I was a "home-maker" and it might have hit a little nerve). ;)

I am trying to live in the moment in every instance rather than thinking about how much of a challenge it has been and will continue to be. We stay busy everyday playing on the playground, going on play date outings, toddler time, (or I just text my new friend Shelley and tell her to meet me somewhere stat because I NEED adult time). We have had doctor appointments (need to write a whole other blog for those things) and we take care of daily chores and go about our routine. I know I will really miss all the fantastic people we have met, the environment, and the beautiful weather (for now). So, I am going to try to forget about all the difficult times and live in the moment.

Cape Cod

I FINALLY got the new software on my phone and uploaded the blogger app. Yay!! Now let's see if I can actually post some pics to my blog. :)

This Labor Day weekend was probably the best one I have ever experienced. Not having to go back to work helps boost the ranking quite a bit. ;) But spending the weekend with Todd and my 2 babies was the icing on the cake. :)

We ventured to Cape Cod and stayed in West Yarmouth. It was so relaxing. We drove in Friday night after Todd was done with classes and stayed at an old but cute little hotel in town, Cape Cod Inn. I felt like I stepped back several years to my childhood when my family would travel to Colorado and stay in a local hotel that was not your ordinary Best Western or Marriott. Not fancy, but so inviting.

Food is always a big make or break on my vacations. :) We had some fantastic food for all meals! We ate dinner at a local restaurant (recommended by the hotel), called The Skipper. I normally do not like sea food, but they had the BEST clam chowder in the world! Andrew's fish was also the most delicious fish plank I have ever tasted (strangely, my son prefers fish over any kind of chicken). We also had fabulous breakfasts at 2 cute little restaurants and strangely ran into the same sweet family at both places! That gave me a warm sense of small-town-feel. :)

We planned on taking a ferry over to Martha's Vinyard or Nantucket, but decided the best plan with a 6 month old and 2 year old was to stay close the the hotel. Ironically, there had been shark sightings the DAY before, so no swimming was allowed (which honestly didn't change our plans at all). Sadly, I do not have the pics from what we saw (we took them with our camera and they aren't on my phone), but we saw seals jumping out of the water right by the beach! It was so incredible! Andrew really loves being outside so this trip was perfect for him. He threw a frisbee with a new friend, built sand tunnels/hills, ran wild on the beach, and ate some good old junk food (yummy fried calamari, ice cream, and their version of a Hurricane which was basically a tropical milkshake). It was a perfect day.

That night we went out on the town of West Yarmouth and found a Brazilian restaurant with a live band. Todd and I had wine on the patio and listened to some music while Andrew danced and Abby eventually fell asleep in her little car seat. It was a much needed "date night" even with the kiddos. :)

There are many other new adventures we have experienced since I last wrote a blog (Toddler Times, Davis farm trip, baby-sitting night, traveling to Good Harbor Beach). This one was an experience I didn't want to forget. So even though it was a week ago, I just had to share the best Labor Day of my life! :)

Life in Boston

Well, it's been 2 weeks since we moved to Boston and a whirlwind of new has flooded our lives! Not all bad, but very different. I don't even know where to begin,

I will start off by saying it's REALLY not as bad as I thought it would be. The dorm life with kids has actually been a lot of fun. The dorm we are living in is strictly for families, so there are SOOOO many kids, toys, and a HUGE playground! And you should see all the preggo women! It is SO cute! It's like a little mommy sorority where they all plan to be pregnant at the EXACT same time! :) I shouldn't make fun because my friend Laura and I were pregnant with BOTH our kids at the same time. Anyway, I have met so many wonderful ladies that have been so nice. It's just crazy because westgate has been their home for 2-5 years (no lie), so they are all really close and share so many stories from the past few years about each other being pregnant, going into labor, birthday parties...etc. It kinda makes it sad that our time here will go by so quickly (9 months).

Now...about the Bostonians when I have been out and about the big city:  I hate to generalize all people from Boston because I have had some friendly interactions with people, but for the most part, I have learned that they DO NOT respect personal space!!  The first time I was in the grocery store and the man behind me was basically breathing down my neck and handed the lady his 1 item to purchase before I had even paid for my items, I thought maybe it was just him. The exact thing happened this week.  NO patience and literally pushed me out of the way as soon as the receipt was in my hand. And customer service here...nothing like my neighborhood Tom Thumb where they always left you with, "Thank you Mrs. Templeton. Would you like help out to your car today?" HAHAHA!! No kidding....the second time I was shoved out of the way by the man behind me at the store, I almost forgot my 1 bag of items (I was pushing the stroller and instinctively thought it was my shopping cart), the checker said, "Don't you want your bag??!" Really? I seriously should have responded with, "No, I just walked a mile to the grocery store pushing my 70+ LB stroller with 2 sleeping children only to purchase a bag of groceries to donate to the next pushy, rude customer behind me!"  Same thing in Walgreens...man shoves his 2 boxes of condoms (no kidding), practically right in my face before I can finish discussing my new insurance with the pharmacist. And she seriously made me wait behind that man before helping me because it was going to take a minute....ARGGG!!! I guess I will get used to it. I just hope I'm not influenced by their "rush through life" kind of attitude.

Right now, I'm pretty home sick. There is such potential for happiness here in Boston, but I miss Texas. I really do. I am meeting with the ladies here for "Toddler Times" on Monday, and I hope I fit in. I hope Andrew has fun and that we can start feeling completely comfortable. Because right now, it can be pretty lonely. Until next time, I hope anyone who reads my blog enjoys our adventures. And please pray for us...we have a long road ahead.

And no pictures...I can't figure out where Todd saved them and he's not here...oh computer illiteracy... :)

learning curve

Wow...it sure has been a while since I've blogged! Maybe that's because my only way to access the internet is on my iPhone (not real easy to blog on an iPhone), and I even tried downloading the app for blogger, but I didn't have the updated software on my phone...yatta yatta yatta. Anyway, a lot has happened since I have written, so it is going to take me a while to get back into the groove of things.

As far as my blogger template/background/title....it's having some technical difficulties and I have already spent my "Mommy Time" AKA: when BOTH kids are napping messing with this CRAZY MAC laptop. It's nice, don't get me wrong, but man it makes me feel like I am way behind in technology.

My baby girl Abigail is almost 4 months old and Andrew just turned 2 in April. There have been many BIG events and lots of BIG news in the Templeton household, and I'm hoping I can catch up on the past few months and then get into a habit of writing about all that is going on with our family. As a little spoiler, here are a few of my favorite pictures that give a little timeline of the past year. :)  I am also looking forward to catching up on my reading of other blogs because I really do benefit from hearing all the other mommy stories and tidbits of advice I get on blogs!

About a month before I was pregnant with Abby: 2nd half marathon complete 

10 year High School Reunion: 1 week before pregnant with Abby :) 

School Baby Shower: 5 days before Abby was born :) 

                                                    The incredible moment I met my Angel Abby

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