Adding to the mix

Reese not looking too thrilled about becoming a big sister

It's official, we are adding to our family! That's right, Reese is going to be a big sister come January 2012. We're thrilled to be expecting again and almost equally thrilled I'm now in my 2nd trimester. I know it could have been worse, but it's a different ball game altogether when you have a toddler to chase around all day while dealing with nausea and fatigue. In any case, that phase is hopefully behind me and I'm starting to feel like myself again.

We saw baby bean #2 a couple weeks ago and that's always such an amazing sight. It makes it feel more real, especially when I'm not feeling too different at this early stage.

We hope to find out the end of July whether it's a girl bean or boy bean, but that could be wishful thinking. We may need to wait until we get to France to have our 2nd ultrasound.

It's hard to imagine life with two little ones but a prospect we couldn't be more excited about!

Happy Father's Day!

"Any man can be a father but it takes someone special to be a Dad. " -Anne Geddes

Reese Lately

Looking like such a big girl

Having fun with her ear protectors for the hockey games

Reese is growing up so quickly we can hardly keep up. She’s really showing her independence in everything she does these days. However, there are definitely some times when she still wants Mommy or Daddy. She is so friendly and outgoing with just about anyone but if she spots a fly near her, watch out. She is running straight into our arms. A car horn? I don’t know if she could move any faster. A loud truck driving by on the road? ‘Up, up, up, up!’ It’s so funny to see the things that startle her, especially for such a feisty little thing.

She went to the daycare at the gym for an hour the other day, while I snuck in a quick workout. I was a little nervous because we haven’t left her in such a long time. It couldn’t have gone any smoother. I don’t think she could get out of my arms fast enough when we walked into the room. She ran right over to the toys and babies and immediately started playing. It was such a relief for me to see but also a little sad to see my baby growing up so fast. It has reaffirmed our thoughts of finding a daycare next year in France. We need to make it a priority, even if it’s just a couple days a week. I know she will love it, and she needs the interaction with other kids.

One new development is she’s terrified of Scott on the ice and skating in general. Terrified. After the daycare and gym workout, we walked over to the rink where Scott was skating. He was going to take her around a couple times on the ice but she had other plans. She wanted nothing to do with Scott while he was in his gear. She didn’t even want to ‘walk’ on the ice with me. Scott ended up taking her from my arms for a couple minutes to see if she would loosen up once they were skating around. No such luck, instead she was screaming, ‘mama, mama, mama’ and reaching for me the entire time. Such a change from when we first arrived. The ironic part about it is she absolutely LOVES her hockey book. In fact, she always requests it before naps and bedtime referring to it as the ‘dada’ book. She points to a player on each page and says ‘dada’ quite matter-of-factly. Hopefully she changes her tune about skating soon. If not, we always have skiing. After all, Scott was on skies before he was on skates. And we’ll be in the perfect spot for skiing next year.

The cost of the job is big but so are its rewards.

Hockey is a different game altogether when you think of it in terms of work. Of course there is so much it has allowed us to do that no typical job ever could. There are also some things we've given up in order to live this life. But all in all, the good outweighs the bad in my book.

There are many things hockey has provided for our family that I’m truly grateful for. We’ve traveled the world and have seen places I never would have imagined I’d see. We’re able to enjoy our summers off at home relaxing with our friends and family and not worrying about earning in the off the season. Most importantly though, I’ve been able to be home with Reese and essentially Scott has too. If we were at home, I’d most likely be back to work after 8-12 weeks, just like every other working mom. No other job could ever allow that kind of flexibility for both of us. So we’re willing to make a few sacrifices.

There are, however, a few things I’ve never really given much thought to that are unique to this job. Of course I knew the players wear equipment to protect themselves, I’m not that clueless. I just never thought of where all that comes from and how much it costs. When you think of a typical job, employers aren’t exactly providing thousands of dollars worth of necessary gear to each worker. In hockey though, that’s a must. A few weeks ago, Scott was busy making lists for all different types of equipment for next season. Next year, he’s been given a budget but has to supply all his equipment himself. We’re talking thousands of dollars worth of stuff. I had no clue a stick retails for $200. When you think of how many sticks one player may go through in a season, multiply that number by 24 or so. And that’s just one player on a team of up to 20! Skates, well that figure is even more outrageous. Top-quality professional custom skates retail from $700-$900 a pop. Players usually go through about 2 per season. That’s not even mentioning all the other equipment like elbow pads, shoulder pads, shin pads, gloves, socks, under gear, etc.

The cost of the job is a big one but so are its rewards.

Mealtime Favorites, Skinnygirl style

I don’t know about you, but I am a Bethenny fan. I’ve watched the entire season and am thoroughly entertained each episode. She is a bit neurotic but she makes me laugh. She’s smart too. She turned an idea for a low-cal margarita into $120M, according to ‘insiders’. Not too shabby if you ask me. And who wouldn’t want to at least try a margarita with only 100 calories. Um, yes please.

Let’s not forget she started out as a Natural Food Chef so it got me thinking she must have some good recipes out there. I was browsing her website, and stumbled upon this winner, Goat Cheese Sundried Tomato Chicken Breasts. It was a surprising hit and definitely one of our new favorite go-to recipes. We’ll be visiting her website for more dinner inspiration soon. Whether you love her or hate her, this recipe is a must try.

I hate the unknown.

I was trying to hold in all of my concerns about next season and really try to go with the flow. The only problem is I’m really not the ‘fly by the seat of your pants’ kind of girl. I need to plan things out. Something that is near impossible in this hockey life we live. That feeling is even stronger now with Reese in our lives. It’s not just the two of us who can make do, we have to think about Reese’s needs too.

There are way too many unknowns in our hockey adventures and I tend to stress about all of them, big and small. Is the team reliable? What is the town/city like? Am I going to be stranded halfway up a ski mountain without a car? Will there be other people I can talk to (read: that speak English)? What will our apartment be like? Will there be other kids Reese can play with? Will there be other wives/girlfriends? I really believe the other girls you’re with make a big difference in your experience. We all need friends, someone to talk to or vent to, and these girls understand exactly what it’s like to live this life. I would love to know the answer to any of those questions before we leave but am sure I’ll still be wondering after we arrive.

One of the biggest things is where we will live. We have seen the gamut on this one over the years. From our own places to friends’ places and friends of friends’ places. Let’s just say I’ve seen some less than ideal places to live. We’ve been fortunate enough to have pretty good apartments wherever we’ve been, (minus one little hiccup in Finland but let’s not even go there) but it’s definitely not a guarantee. We need two bedrooms. Not two in European standards, which often means one bedroom plus one ‘living’ room. If you have a toddler, you know the importance of this one. We can’t sleep in the same room as Reese for an entire season. Well not if we actually want to sleep. Prime example, we just spent a night in London and it was like sleeping with a jumping bean the entire night. I mean literally jumping from one side to the other and walking around the bed with a blanket over her head at 3a.m. Almost funny but then I remembered it was 3a.m. Definitely not funny.

We are hoping to get some of these things worked out with the team before we leave. We’re crossing our fingers anyway. Maybe our toes too.

And in the meantime, I’m making a goal for myself to try not and stress about all these little things. Instead, try and focus on the positive things I can control. Like what kinds of candy I should pack.

I love you to the moon and back.

Me and my girl

My Mom and hers

With Mother’s Day just around the corner, I find myself feeling a little conflicted. On one hand, I’m overjoyed to be celebrating motherhood as a mother myself. It’s a gift I’m so grateful for. One that has brought on this all-consuming love for my child since the moment she was born. I’m proud to be a mother. To be her mother.

On the other hand, I can’t help but be overcome with this deep sense of sadness and longing for my own mother. Simply, I miss her. It breaks my heart knowing my daughter will never know her but through the stories I share with her. That she won’t feel her love. A love I know so well.

Although I know I will forever miss her, I don’t want to be sad when I think of her; I want to be happy. I want to celebrate the woman she was. I want to celebrate the woman I am, because of her. She guided me through life with an unfailing love and support. The kind of love and support I want to show my children. I can only hope to be the kind of mother she was to me.

So this Mother’s Day, I will celebrate being a Mom and honor my own mother, knowing she was the best example.

To you, Mom, I love you to the moon and back. Always.