two

Dear Henry,

Every single age, I've thought: "This is my favorite, don't let him grow too fast." But you do grow, and then the next stage becomes my favorite. Two has been magical.

You repeat everything we say, even when we don't know you're listening. We can apply logical reasoning to get you to go to sleep, and you clearly state your preferences on what to wear, eat or play with.

Choo-choo!

Your ability to remember things is one of my favorite parts about this age. As we pull into the church parking lot you start yelling the names of your friends, Piper and Hudson. You know two names that make up a couple like your friends Todd and Laura or Nonnie and Grandpa. You once tried on one of Daddy's t-shirts, and now every time he wears it, you yell out "my shirt!" When daddy comes home with his workout bag, you point to it and yell "Daddy RUN!"

Plotting big things with mixing bowls.

You love playing with your choo-choos, your kitchen and grill and anything to do with outside. Your stuffed animals talk to each other and you serve them food and then tuck them in for night-night. When we run in the jogging stroller, you yell at me to run every time I start walking, like a free personal trainer.

This summer we've been at the library several times a week picking out books or attending family fun nights with puppet shows or drum concerts. You picked peaches, admired the model trains at Union Station, waded in the pool, went on evening "runs" and went on a big weekend trip to St. Louis to see the zoo, Grant's Farm and a Cardinals game.

Hugs for friends.

We celebrated your second birthday Lowly Worm style, and for the first time, you really understood opening presents and the greatness of cake.

You have a goofy personality and love teasing with Daddy and yelling "watch" followed by a silly action. You have a very kind heart, constantly taking care of your family, human and stuffed alike. You hug, kiss and give high-fives frequently.

When you fall asleep, we still collapse on the couch with a sigh. You are super exhausting and challenging but even more than that you are funny, surprising, sweet and the light of our lives.

We love you so much Henry.

Mama and Daddy

sedan love

Last week Shea called me while driving a minivan.

"It's beautiful. So ridiculously cool! It has a center console where you can set things."

Then he came home two days later, still swooning about this beautiful ride while I rolled my eyes so hard I thought they'd fall out.

The minivan turned 30 this year.  I'll admit, the van-car style come along away since the 1984 Dodge Caravan (half car half van, get it?) with its boxy design and and fake wood paneling.

It's not that I don't want a van. I mean, I guess the leg room would be nice. Changing diapers without hunching over would definitely be an improvement. A door that opened on its own would probably change my grocery store with toddler stress mess.

But, then I look at my backseat and see the chaos of cracker crumbs and trains. Imagine when we actually had more room to spread out and get comfortable. Do car detailing shops have monthly memberships?

Plus it's just so big. I can barely fit my car in the garage now between all the storage, sand toys, lawn mower and Christmas decorations. And the horrid gas mileage.

We fit in our cars. Henry is still in his infant carrier seat at 2 years old. We're small, mighty and suited for sedans.

And guess what? They even have consoles where we can set things with built-in cup holders!

new blogging adventures

Photo shoot - Riverside, Mo.

Last night I got to meet the ladies of the Kansas City Mom's Blog, where I will be a regular contributor starting July 29.

The blog is a part of a national network of moms blogging about the cities where they are raising kids and helping to connect moms both online and offline. For a great example of what we'll be doing, visit the flagship - Scottsdale Moms Blog.

If you are in Kansas City and want to offer a giveaway, become a sponsor or have a mom review your product, let me know!

I'm excited about this new adventure - getting to know other moms, keeping up on my writing and exploring even more about KC.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter and be sure to check out the blog after July 29!

for your dairy needs

We switched to Shatto Milk for our dairy needs a few months ago, which means much tastier milk that also makes me feel good about buying locally (and in glass bottles, eee!). It also means I shop for milk three times a week and have to drop off bottles for deposit every two weeks.

But seriously worth it.

Saturday we got to touch the cows our milk comes from at Family Day on the Farm. We drove forever through Missouri backroads and arrived at a very unassuming farm with a small cluster of cows.

We got to see the milking process up close, pet baby calves, shop in the general store and taste flavored milk. My favorite is definitely limited edition cookies and cream and root beer milk. Oh, and cotton candy. I don't even like cotton candy but in milk form, yum.

 
Today, I stopped by after work to get the new limited edition apple pie milk. Nothing says 'Merica like an iconic dessert in milk form.

Most grocery stores in the KC area offer Shatto products, but to be sure, check out this list.

so long, google reader

 
In case you haven't heard, Google Reader is no more. Mass hysteria!

I have switched all my blog accounts to Feedly, which allows you to easily bring in your Google Reader subscriptions. But you only have today to do it.

This switch, however, is really encouraging me to thin out my reading list. Gone are the quarter life crisis blogs (past that), the chic nursery blogs (the first thing you're going to see is trains and cars anyway), and anyone that just is giving away more free junk that I will have to haul to Goodwill next year.

But really, if you want to keep finding your favorite blogs (like this one) and haven't memorized the URLs, make your move today!

Here's some tips for Lifehacker on how to survive the shutdown.

picture update

First haircut

Four generations at the zoo - Sunset Zoo

First ride on a real train at Day Out with Thomas - Baldwin City, Kan.

Cousin concert time

the paper trail

Today I am the proud owner of a mortgage I've already been paying for a condo I don't want that's more than $70,000 upside down.




Winner.

We closed on our refinance today for our Minnesota condo (Shea bought pre-Sarah), locking in a super low rate (thank you, recession) for a 15-year loan. We haven't been able to do this previously because the condo is the victim of the housing crash, and we didn't qualify for the special programs because it's not our primary residence. But, the programs got less ridiculous, and we got a HARP loan. It only cost us $6,000 in fees and $600 for an appraisal. A steal, people...

The good part is this fits into our master financial plan, which we are quite proud of.  Even though our mortgage payment will almost triple once the closing is processed.

The even better news is we don't  have to deal with processors, underwriters or really anyone at a bank except the teller at the drive thru for another couple of years.

Seriously. We had to provide more documentation than I even knew we had including a written statement that the $1,000 check deposit on our bank statement was not a gift. Because that matters when you owe six figures. In case you're wondering, it's not a gift but ironically, our renter's payment.

We also learned that some of my parents' credit shows up on my report including a Bergner's credit card that was opened in the 1970s. Before my birth and my social security number even existed. Also their home equity loan for remodeling which fortunately they have paid off. It only helps my score until you have an underwriter asking questions about why I am remodeling a house I don't own. Fixing that hot mess is on my summer projects list.

I'm a first-time homeowner! I don't know whether to cry or celebrate.