ON THE ROAD AGAIN

After Chapel Hill, we hit Interstate 95 and made our way to Danielle's house in Silver Spring, Maryland. We were hoping to strike out early so that we could by pass the infamous DC traffic. We stopped at a rest stop right on the Virginia border and after that headed straight up to Maryland.

Everyone was getting pretty tired with the drive, but this leg was a little shorter. Everything was fine until we hit bumper to bumper traffic. It literally took us 45 minutes to go 3 miles. It was the absolute worst. To top it off, Kielle is not a fan of the car seat anyway so she was hollering like a banshee. I had to keep my left middle finger in her mouth so she could calm down - poor thing. It was stressful but we were looking forward to getting to Maryland. I was especially excited because Khyri's Godmother Ukindra was gonna come out and visit us.




When we pulled to the house, we once again, unloaded and set up in the basement down stairs. Danielle's sister Daria has two girls Amaya and Alisa. Poor Khyri was outnumbered. ahahhahaha good thing Daria's husband Greg was there to throw a little more testosterone into the mix hahahah.

The little ones got a lot of attention in Maryland. Danielle's nieces LOVED the babies! hahaah I think Amaya wanted to keep Kielle. While the kids ran around in the living room, the babies got some much needed personal attention.

We only spent one night in Maryland and then we were back on the road the next afternoon around 2pm. Khyri and Cadence both seemed to know that this was the last leg and soon we would have a 'home base' in New Jersey. So with excitement we road on...

In four short hours, we were pulling off the New Jersey Turnpike and pulling into Danielle's driveway. We made it! We made it! We made it! Cadence jumped right into her routine and she and Khyri played hard core! The toy of the day was the Dora tunnel. ahahah

Even Kielle looked relieved that there would be no more driving for awhile. We had a nice setup at Dani's a crib, changing table, even soft night time music. It felt just like home. Kielle and Khyri fell right into place. We had a fun filled week ahead of us, but at least we had one place to come back to every night.

6 UNDER 6

The drive went smoother than expected! We cruised up Interstate 85 pretty quickly. There was no traffic. After hearing 'cracker, cracker' 8 million times and having to make sure Khyri wasn't touching Cadence's car seat in the back, we made our first pit stop right outside of Charlotte. According to the GPS we were 2.5 hours away from our first stop in Chapel Hill - my friends from undergrad Amy and Alex's house.

Here's video of the 'carseat squabble' (Still learning this blog stuff - I don't know how to rotate the video)

 
We pulled over to eat, nurse, and use the restroom at a small Wendy's. This was a good choice, because the toddlers were able to run around and stretch their legs while Danielle and I nursed. The folks at Wendy's even gave the little ones a balloon  It must have been senior citizen hour or something, because the place only had old people eating -it was weird. The good thing though - old people love children. After Wendy's we filled up the MDX and were back on the road.


 
We pulled down the dirt road (yes dirt road, this is country Chapel Hill, like no cell phone signal country...) in front of Amy's house around 6ish. Now, let me state that Amy is all mom :-) Yes she has a PhD, yes she's a professor at a NC college - but her true expertise is children! Besides having two children of their own Elijah and Eden, Amy and Alex also foster children from time to time. Amy's awesome.

Anyway, before Danielle and I could blink, Amy had scooped up the two youngest and brought them in the house.

The kids of course went straight to the toys. Danielle and I caught our breath and relaxed for half a minute. That night we ordered pizza and everybody got settled in. There was no rush or anything, since we planned on staying in Chapel Hill for a full day and heading out on Friday morning. Right and I mean right after the kids went to bed, I hit the pillow. I was ti-red.

The next morning Khyri woke up and tried grits for the first time. I think he liked them - or maybe he was just hungry. You can't tell at this age, everything is in flux hahhahaa.

All day, the kids played in the house and outside. Seriously it was like Christmas for the kids. Trampolines, play kitchens, musical instruments there was so much to get into!

Cadence kept calling the backyard the playground... I can totally see the confusion. This was kiddie paradise.

We got a nice surprise when one of my Besties Nia stopped by to visit with us!

I think she's fallen in love with Kielle. With 6 kids running around, I wonder if Nia caught the mommy bug haaha there were kids everywhere.

 



 
Khyri continued to test me by playing on the steps so... he had to go to the naughty corner. (side note: I love the naughty corner idea. You can do it anywhere - in a restaurant, in a store - anywhere! there's no shortage of corners hahaha). He has to stay in the corner 1 minute for each year of his life. He never lasts for 2 whole minutes though.. I'm a softee :-) But boy doesn't he get DEEP in that corner. hahaha


  

After a restful play day Friday, we all loaded into cars and went out to eat sushi. Yup - ALL OF US! We went around 5pm which was good because the place wasn't packed yet and Elijah happily asked for a table of 10! We enjoyed sushi and noodles and a surprisingly no fuss dinner. We did a lot of rotating taking people to the restrooms but other than that we had a peaceful meal.

table for 10 please

We stayed in Chapel Hill for two days. It was fantastic and I think gave me and Danielle a little bit of confidence to keep on rolling... If we could handle 6 under 6: Elijah 5, Eden 2, Khyri 2, Kielle 2mo, Cadence 23mo, and Aria 4mo. We could handle anything! We got this! hahahahah. Next stop - Silver Spring, Maryland.

3 middle aged moms *wink wink*  and 6 kids under 6

NORTHEAST BOUND

I try to get back to NYC at least once every year. Normally I fly, but no-no not this year! This year I planned a whole northeast tour with the munchkins. It all started because my friend Danielle drove down to GA to visit her mom. I had the bright idea to ride back to NYC with her and fly home with the kids 11 days later.

One more thing... Danielle has two kids of her own: Cadence and Aria 

Keep in mind Danielle and her children had been in Georgia for 3 weeks - so they had a lot of luggage. We all had to squeeze into her Acura MDX (One time for 3rd row seating!). I had to pack bare bones. No frills, no extras. I basically packed for half of the trip knowing that I would have the opportunity to wash clothes once we got to Danielle's house in Jersey. I managed to get all of our stuff into one - yes one large rolling suitcase. I was impressed with my packing skill.

Khyri was all ready with his GT book bag filled with books and snacks. Kielle had on her travel outfit complete with a headband and everything. Me?!!? I already looked a hot mess with a teal bandanna on my head. 

Khyri is New Jersey bound

The plan was to get on the road at 10:00am. All we needed to do was pack up the car and get everyone settled. Everything was packed the night before so surely it shouldn't take that long right?!?! wrong. We had to install car seats, do a quick snack check, and make sure our luggage could fit. Everything was in -- except the double stroller. Strike one. Decision time. I decided that we wouldn't take the double stroller that we would just take the small umbrella stroller for Khyri and I would carry Kielle in my maya wrap. Nope. The Umbrella stroller wouldn't fit either. Strike two. what to do... what to do... what to do??? We hit the road with no stroller. That's right  - no stroller. Our thinking "Danielle has an umbrella stroller in Jersey. We'll be ok." So on Wednesday March 16, 2011, all piled and strapped in, we hit the road around 11:15am.

Packed like sardines

Little Miss Cadence is ready to roll

The MDX backed out of the driveway loaded down with Me, Danielle, Khyri (2 years), Cadence (23 months), Kielle (2 months), and Aria (4 months) on the way to New Jersey. I started the drive. First stop: Chapel Hill, NC.

THANK GOODNESS FOR FRIENDS

"Friends are the most important ingredient in this recipe of life." 
I found this friendship quote on the internet and I started thinking about how much friendship means to the Mosley family.  

Being only children, Keith and I were always surrounded by friends growing up. For me, my friends and my cousins were close to me like sisters. Even now I view friendship as an extension of sisterhood. Keith and I both have our core group of friends that we can count on for any and everything. They are the crew that listens when you cry, laugh with, and heaven forbid if I'm wrong (which hardly ever happens for the record) they'll tell me I'm out of order. hahaha

Living in Georgia away from our family forces us - in a good way - to rely a lot on friends for support, laughter, airport runs, furniture pick up, holiday meals, and now babysitting :-) We are really thankful for the wonderful group of people that we have surrounded ourselves with. I was talking with my friend Danena during one of our "mommy's gotta get rid of this baby weight walks" about how great my friends are and how lucky Keith and I are to have great support here and she said "You guys have great friends because you are great friends" *CHEESE* We really do put a lot of time and effort into cultivating and maintaining friendships, so I gotta admit - its nice to hear that comment and know our friendship to others is appreciated.

Here's my motto: Once a friend, always a friend. My "big sister" from Tufts tried to get rid of me (graduate schmaduate...hmph), but I didn't let her go and we are still tight as ever. My "Smyrna sister's" father was my father's best friend in college. We've literally known each other all of our lives. My "2-time pregnancy pal" has been my friend since middle school. My "I don't deal with foolishness and I don't succumb to peer pressure" high school homie always has my back and gives me great advice. And then there are my exciting new friendships: My "Maid of Honor road dog", Khyri's "#1 Auntie", My "stay at home mom sidekick", and  My "follow your dream inspiration" are just a few good friends that I have been blessed to meet while here in Georgia.

I look at Khyri and Kielle and I think about the great friendships that they will have. As they go to school, join teams, and go to summer camp they will meet a lot of people and make a lot of friends. Just like mine, some of those friendships will last a lifetime.  I'm excited to see these little people develop - its going to be a great ride...

Master Khyri and Little Miss Cadence

3 months

8 months

Master Khyri with Master Alex and Little Miss Syndey

Master Khyri and Master Aziz

Master Khyri and Little Miss Gabi

Khyri 2 yrs old and Kielle 2 months old

And of course... 
The best friendship of all.

MASTER KHYRI TURNS 2!

 

Khyri is 2 years old! I can't believe it!

Time is going toooo fast. I still remember the first time Keith and I held him, the first time he smiled, the first laugh, the first step... all his firsts... and now we're on his second year! Where did the time go? How can I slow it down!??!? hahaha



THURSDAY 3.3.11
We started off the celebration with a Happy Birthday dance session at home. I don't think he understood what was going on until maybe the 3rd of 4th time I played the happy birthday song :-) Then he got this sly look on his face like "I think something special is going to happen today" hahahahah.

Keith took him to daycare as usual and at 4:00pm we were allowed to have a mini celebration at snack time. Khyri was completely surprised when I walked into the daycare bearing cupcakes and gifts.

Now mind you, I had a whole nice birthday planned. I was gonna have cup cakes, we'd sing  a few songs, he'd have a birthday hat - all the birthday hoopla. Not so much.

Lesson #1
Make sure your munchkin understands that you will be having the party AT the daycare
Normally if Keith or I show up at the daycare in the afternoon, its to take Khyri home. No chit chatting... Just grab his coat and diaper bag and head on out. Khyri usually grabs our hand and leads us to the door. So clearly Khyri was NOT feeling staying at the table to celebrate. He didn't even want to sit down so we could sing happy birthday.

The kids wait for Khyri to sit down to eat their cupcakes

Then he started crying and he had THE NERVE to throw his yellow cupcake on the floor! All Bad. It wasn't until we all started singing Happy Birthday that he decided to sit for awhile and join in the fun.

Lesson #2
Do not offer choices
For the goody gift I had an assortment of bath books. They all were Sesame Street - Cookie Monster, Elmo, and Big Bird. After we sang to Khryi and finished our cupcakes, I handed out the goodies. All was well until one little boy asked to switch his Big Bird book for a Cookie Monster book. Well... all types of chaos ensued. "I want Cookie Monster" "Can I have Cookie Monster?" " Do you have a Cookie Monster book for me too?" All of a sudden everyone in the room wants Cookie Monster. Really!?!? I thought for sure Big Bird would be the big draw. nope. I swear though had that boy asked for Elmo they all would have wanted Elmo... sheep I tell you.. sheep. hahahah But I learned - next time same book for everybody.

 
 

Lesson #3
Allow plenty of time for Happy Birthday hugs
Normally, Khyri runs quickly towards the door when we leave the daycare. Usually the kids will all say together "Bye bye Khyri". Well since it was a special day, everyone wanted to give Khyri a hug. So I had to stand there with Kielle in the sling, camera in hand, holding onto a leftover cupcakes, and a diaper bag slung over my shoulder waiting as all 9 kids came and gave Khyri a hug. hahahahha I looked like a psycho bag lady but we had a good time and it was nice to see them showing Khyri some love.

After daycare, we went to one of Khyri's favorite parks. We played 'catch Khyri' by the fountain, relaxed on the bench swing and went down the slide.

Just hanging out with the family

FRIDAY 3.4.11
We had grand plans to go to the Atlanta Children's Museum, but Khyri's allergies were really acting up. Oops I guess we should have skipped the playground on Thursday. So we stayed inside and Khyri played his favorite game of hide and seek with Kielle (who has now moved out of the bassinet into the pack n play)

SATURDAY 3.5.11
We continued our tradition of taking Khyri to make his annual birthday bank deposit. We're regulars in the bank and when we walked in, everyone said hello and happy birthday. Throughout the year Keith and I put our loose change into Khyri's piggy bank for him. Soon we will start giving him the coins to put into the piggy bank. You're never too young to start saving!

We thought that Khyri would have maybe $30 or $40 dollars. We would never have guessed...

Khyri needs to start his own bank. Mom needs a loan!

SUNDAY 3.6.11
We really wanted to have an outdoor party, but since the weather was horrible we opted to have a small birthday playdate at the house instead. Three of Khyri's friends came over to join in on the fun. Shout out to Timothy, Cadence, and Aziz!

Khyri was decked out in his custom Happy Birthday Khyri Elmo shirt (Thanks Auntie Netta) and new Levis jeans (One time for the Macy's one day sale). It was the perfect outfit for continuing the Sesame Street themed celebration.

 

Who needs a structured party!?!? The kiddos will make their own fun. Take a kitty cat tike, an Elmo camera, and a Thomas the Train bath toy add a long hallway and presto - loads of fun!

There were a couple of bumps and a few falls, but there was also a boat load of laughs, giggles and wiggles.  Its great to see the kiddos having fun. Finally they're starting to actually play with each other. Funny thing - every other word you heard was "Share". hahahaha

March 3, 2009 was a day that changed Keith and I forever. Our 'kingly' Khyri was born! We continue to enjoy watching him grown and develop. Two years have passed and everyday we still can't believe how lucky we are to be his parents!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KHYRI!