Night out

I had my first evening (well, two hours) out without Captain. Who managed to lure me out, I hear you ask? Was it Hubby, with all his talk of needing time away from the kids? Was it old pals?

No. It was Mr. Buttons.
Yesterday, out of the blue, he asked me to go and listen to his school's choir. Me, specifically. Even saying Hubby would need to stay and mind Captain. He told me they sang a song that made him feel calm.

I felt honoured to be the chosen one, so I arranged Captain's oddfather to come over and babysit (he's the only one I would've trusted) and asked nana to give us a lift there to shorten the time a bit.

It was strange to be out in the evening without a sling, holding a -wait for it... a HANDBAG! This is the first time in two years such a thing has been seen on my arm. My backpack is now sulking in a corner, we'll have to sort things out tomorrow. I had a fabulous time, leaky eyes as the children sang and felt like I had shared something special with Mr. Buttons.

Mr. Buttons enjoyed some songs, "hated" one and used his program as a fan lots, which was great entertainment.

Captain had stuffed herself with peanut butter-pear porridge, made a video of saying "No!" in varying firmness of tone to everything Netflix has to offer (except Sponge Bob) and practised wrapping her oddfather around her little finger.

All in all, great night was had by all.

Happy Father's Day!

It's beginning to look a lot like...

...KITCHEN!

We bought our appliances today.
It's funny; I've been living with someone else's taste in everything for the last ten years or so. The landlord had picked everything many tenants ago, with us just living amongst it all.

I haven't minded too much.

Then I was let loose to pick my own kettle, toaster, microwave and co.
And I realised just how particular I am.
Gone was the "Ah-sure-it'll-do-isn't-it-all-temporary" -girl.
Firmly replaced by "Oh...-the-buttons-are-definitely-not-right-and-will-the colour-even-match-the-microwave?" -beast.

A lean, mean, kettle-buying machine. That's me.
For a girl who feels spending over three euro on mascara for myself, I sure can spend money quickly when it's for a toaster that I hopefully won't have to curse at every day...

I'm tired after all the excitement. The kids are asleep. Hubby is working on the house.
Anyone for a celebratory cuppa and a bowl of ice cream?

Today I had an unexpected hour to myself.
I tried on a ridiculously expensive skirt, just for fun.
Had a hot cup of coffee. Was alarmed to have such hot liquid touch my lips. Didn't burn myself.

I also went to an assessment for therapy.
It was a big deal for me, because this is the first time I chose to ask for help.
Now I wait for an appointment.

Later Hubby brought us to the house and gave me my birthday present early.
He had gone to my favourite art gallery and bought the piece I have been visiting for months.
He hung it on the wall and there it was, waiting for me when I turned around.
Such a thoughtful thing to do...

Strange kind of a day.
Hubby asked if I felt good strange or bad strange, but I haven't found the answer quite yet.

Happiness is...

...roaming around town with the kids.

Mr. Buttons has been off from school and I'm delighted to spend time with my two buddies.
Today we went to the park and spend ages just playing and climbing. He taught Captain how to go down the slide on her belly. This had us in stitches laughing, because in her attempt to slow down Captain ended up nearly crawling down like a little snail. (If snails were extremely cute and wore summer dresses)

I was also extra proud of my bigger pal for two reasons today. Both are related to social aspect.
In the park he found a new friend. He and the boy tried all the different things in the park, and Mr. Buttons really pushed his own comfort levels by climbing things that scared him a little. Instead of panicking, he explained to the boy that he was feeling a bit worried about climbing up ropes with two people on them at the same time. He got up and the fun continued. The boy got frustrated when Captain messed up a game they were playing, and sighed: "I hate her!" Mr. Buttons looked at him rather sternly and said: "You can't hate her. She's my sister." He wasn't angry, he wasn't scared to express his feelings and he solved the situation very well. Then they continued playing.

Eventually we went to get lunch. As we left the restaurant, Mr. Buttons spotted the boy and they were cheerfully waving at each other. He even knew the boys name. (Sometimes little things like introductions are completely skipped) We then went to get him some summer clothes, which he picked himself. He even went and tried them on in the fitting room. This was his first time doing any of this and I'm happy I encouraged him to do it. He was quite pleased with himself for being a big man, especially when I later told Hubby about our adventures.

I was also delighted after skyping my dad and stepmom today.
Captain woke up from her nap during the call and climbed up for milk.
My dad asked me, how long I was planning to nurse her. I replied that we were both happy, with no plans to stop. He then enquired how long kids nursed for. I started saying, that it depended on the child, when my stepmom piped up from the background "Until five anyway!"
My dad just said "Okay" and we continued our chat.
So, for breastfeeding mothers, happiness is also supportive grandparents!

And breathe...

We are all in good mood following the parent-teacher meeting yesterday.
I finally got to go to one, because Bio-Mom is on holidays.
We met up with Mr. Buttons' two teachers, who both had great things to say about his progress. I got to ask questions and actually hear everything first hand for once.
I'm so happy I could cry.

Today was a great day.
I stayed at home with Captain in the morning.
We cleaned up a little, but mostly we snuggled and made bubbles outside.
She enjoyed trying to burst them before I had finished blowing them and watched them fly up to the sky. Just watching her little eyes light up with mischief was entertainment enough for me.

All this fun made her so tired, we only made it ten houses down the street before she wanted up into the wrap. She had some milk and a nap, which she woke up from after I'd already had most of my coffee. After lunch it was time to pick up Mr. Buttons.

He was in great form, because he had no homework and he was going to be off from school the following day. We had also had the chance to do food shopping the day before, so we could just enjoy the walk. So we picked up leaves, feathers and stones. Took a "shortcut" and climbed on top of a funny tree. Rolled down a hill and picked flowers.

Mr. Buttons had Beavers this evening and we walked there.
We took a different route and enjoyed the sunshine.
He got to try something new and Captain was the only toddler at the soft play.
She took full advantage of all the space, running down mini slides and over bridges, falling down everything on purpose. She reminds me of myself as a child so much...

The last two days have really recharged my batteries.
The house is progressing really nicely too and that alone would put a smile on anyone's face.
We're going to get our kitchen next week, so it really is getting close now!