Joelle's Journal-A Mom Amongst Men

Party of Five

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Mon, 28 May 2012 01:17:00 +0000

Well, things sure have changed since I last wrote. The past two years have flown by and realizing that I haven't blogged at all is disappointing. The biggest highlight has been this guy...

Ryan Matthew Folian 9-20-11

He takes my breath away every time I look at him, it's unbelievable to think that I'm the mom to THREE BOYS! I want to remember all of this, the good and challenging things that shaped my life and my family's. I may not be a consistent blogger, but I want to be better at remembering the moments that I'll look back on and wonder where the time went. A mom amongst men...and I couldn't be happier!

Photo by Robb Shirey Photography

Another season in the books!

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 23:28:00 +0000

Well, we've made it through another season of baseball and soccer and I'm still alive! Lately, I find myself realizing more and more how much my parents went through when both my brother and I played multiple sports. Between practices and games we've been busy 4 out of 5 days running back and forth between activities since mid-August! Both boys played really well (as any proud Mom would say) in their respective sports (Carter-soccer and Logan-baseball) and I like that it keeps them active.

Here are a few pictures from the fall seasons

I really enjoy watching them play and develop their ability to function as part of a team. We get about a month and a half of rest before basketball starts up for them both, it will be alot of fun watching Carter play this sport for the first time. In my heart of hearts, I secretly desire for at least one of my kids to enjoy/excel at their Mom's favorite sport! March madness will take on a whole new meaning, LOL!

I had the best of intentions...

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 18:51:00 +0000

I really did but life just gets in the way. Between my real job, the boys, sports, volunteering and keeping the house managable, there just doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day to blog. I think I spend more time reading other blogs as I think "yeah, I should be writing something inspiring/insightful right now" and then reality (aka laundry, cooking, playing referee) rears its ugly head.

So, here I am with a moment to myself and I decided that I just needed to let my one reader know that I am still here! It's been a very busy fall filled with sports, school volunteering and work so I'm keeping this brief but I will continue to try and remain "social" in this social media driven world.

Happy Fall Y'all, it seems to be going by way too fast!

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 09:00:00 +0000

Boys of Summer

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 00:31:00 +0000

Well, as usual, I have the best of intentions with keeping up with my blogging but this summer has simply flown by! I just realized that with the start of Logan's fall baseball season, that I, in fact, never posted photos from both Carter and Logan's spring/summer baseball season. UGH!

This was the year of sports for Carter as he is now old enough to play baseball as well (yeah, this is starting to cost us a small fortune in fees and uniforms, lol!) However, totally worth it after watching Carter play T-ball for the first time and Logan moving up in the league's, playing A Major. I just can't believe that I have two boys who are big enough to play sports. I love sports (almost all of them) and so with this new season of our lives...comes a very competitive Mama! I know, I know, they're too young to really care about winning or losing, but it's never too early to teach fundamentals and the importance of being a team player. They both had great seasons, even with the crazy hot weather.

Here are my guys in action...

And here's big brother...

The Catch

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 02:00:00 +0000

Kids sports under the age of 10 have few moments where the game can get really exciting, most times we're simply trying to keep the team on the field, rather than running to the Port-A-Potty every ten minutes. This game was no exception. We were in the bottom of the fifth inning (they only play six innings) and we were losing by a run. Logan typically plays infield but coach had decided to rotate Logan over to Right Field for this inning (the kids are only allowed to play two innings at one position before they have to rotate elsewhere.) Most times, when kids are placed in the outfield, boredom ensues. They no longer focus, some twirl around, others start picking at the grass and a few simply sit down until a coach yells at them to stand up!

Logan tends to wander when he plays the outfield by looking up at the clouds or repeatedly giving us the "thumbs up" signal to make sure that we are completely focused on him. The Rays (his team) had gotten two outs and the batter at the plate had a full count. The next pitch comes in and we hear him "ping" it off the bat (no one uses wood bats in the younger leagues) high into the sky and heading right for Logan's area. For that moment, Logan was actually watching the ball and we saw him extend his glove into the air and everyone's yelling for him to catch it. The next thing we know, his glove comes down, he turns and opens it to see the ball sitting in his glove and he whips his glove around for all to see. It wasn't the catch where his moment came but immediately afterward when he realized that he had caught the ball. Logan's face was beaming and he threw his hands in the air "Rocky" style and squealed "woooo-hoooo" with delight while jumping up and down. That was his moment. Pure.Sweet.Joy.

And of course, I didn't get it on tape or film. I'm the Mom who always has my camera (big or small) just in case those moments happen and of course, the one night I didn't bring anything, I missed capturing it. But the fact that remains that we were there. I will always remember the look on his face and how proud he was and that he immediately ran to me for our ritual "fist bump" (hugs are no longer permitted he tells me) to make sure that I saw him. He then proceeded to the bench for a round of high fives and way to go's from his teammates and coaches. That's when the game changed for Logan, that's when the game changed for me too.

I learned something that evening, that it's not important whether your kid is the star of the team but rather that your kid is there trying and participating and more importantly that we, as his parents, are there to support him. The look on his face is something that I will always remember but I will cherish the fact that he was more excited to share his moment with us afterwards. Thank you Logan.

The Queen has been Dethroned...

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 10:00:00 +0000

It's funny how living with all my "men" that I don't realize from time to time how "ungirly" I truly am. I've never considered myself a girly girl, but I do enjoy my guilty pleasures (shopping, pedi's, reality TV, etc.) Lately, watching my boys grow from "babies" to young boys, it's amazing how their personalities have shaped who I am as a Mom.

I've always heard my girlfriend say that she loves being "Queen" of her family (she has a husband and three boys) and that she wouldn't trade it for the world. Although I've never considered myself to be the Queen, I do find that I was able to guilt my husband into feeling "sorry" for me that everything around us is "boy" equipped. However, in the past few weeks, I've noticed an oh so subtle change. Carter asks me almost daily if I want to go upstairs and have "alone time", to which I typically say no and then the sighs and hanging heads in disappointment commence. My "alone time" typically came when I had a rough day at work or I couldn't stand to hear the off key singing of the Star Wars theme one more time.

I finally asked Carter the other day why he's so concerned about my alone time, to which he quickly replied, "Mommy, when you go upstairs Daddy puts on a "guy" movie and we can watch it and eat snacks in the family room!" Then he continued, "But when you're here, we have to pick up our toys and we're not allowed to watch cool movies." I mean really, how many times can one watch Star Wars Episode I? I know I've been subjected to it at least 1,000 times.

Another sign of being dethroned is that my little men no longer want me to tuck them in at night. I think that this is the hardest thing to accept in the fact that I'm the Mom and that's always been my job. Don't get me wrong, Daddy has also tucked them in, but he has typically been the first "good night" and then I follow with hugs, kisses, and of course the professional blanket tucker-inner. Now, I'm lucky if I get a pat on the back before they bellow for Daddy to secure them for the night. I know that this has been great for Dave's ego but it's still a tough pill to swallow.

My boys are growing up and I'm so happy to see their independent sides and know that they will never be "Momma's boys", but it's also bittersweet in the fact that long gone are the days of cuddling on the couch listening to sweet little "secrets" that neither one will tell to anyone else but Mommy. Ok, so maybe I haven't been dethroned quite yet, but I feel that the subjects are making their move...sigh.

Soccer Super Star!

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Mon, 31 May 2010 01:07:00 +0000

This spring has been an exciting time for Carter as he has reached the age where he can begin playing organized sports! He has been chomping at the bit for the past year to play something, anything and finally he has been granted his wish by the GSA!

Carter has enjoyed his first soccer season and we've enjoyed being there cheering him on! At the end of the season, every member received a medal for their effort...needless to say Carter was so proud! Here are a few pictures that I took of medal man over the past few weeks...

Monkey, we're so proud of you!

Another Carter Conversation...

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Thu, 20 May 2010 00:42:00 +0000

One of my last posts was about a typical Carter conversation that happens between myself and my fiercely independent five year old. The conversation that took place last week is just too precious not to share...

NOTE: The conversation takes place at 4:00am on Monday morning, the day after Mother's Day...

Carter: "Mommy?" (poking me as I'm asleep in my bed)

Me: "Carter, please go back to sleep, it's too early to be getting up now."

Carter: "But Mommy, I have something important to tell you."

Me: "Carter, PLEASE go back to bed, Mommy's very tired and I have to get up in a little while to go into work."

Carter: "Mommy, I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry that it's no longer your Happy Mother's Day...I love you."

Me: Now feeling incredibly guilty...Aw buddy, thank you for telling me this, I love you too.

He truly amazes me...literally 24/7.

Logan's First Communion

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Sun, 16 May 2010 10:00:00 +0000

Although Logan has had many "first's" in his life, this was a very special one for our family. On Mother's Day weekend, we celebrated Logan's first step in his faith journey by watching him participate in First Communion. It was so nice to see all of his friends dressed up in ties and jackets, I hardly recognized them!

After Mass, we enjoyed a nice celebration back at home with all of our family. One of the most special memories I will have of this day is that I had made Logan's Rosary and presented it to him, which he really loved it and thought he was special because I had made it for him.

We are so proud of you Logan, it's hard to believe that you've almost completed second grade and have already taken your first sacrament. We love you!

Bad Blogger...

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Sun, 16 May 2010 00:34:00 +0000

It's hard to believe that nearly eleven months have passed since my last entry, I know, bad blogger! My goal in starting this blog was to document my family events and the simple things that happen daily. However, being a working mom with two VERY active boys, I found less and less time to document because I wanted to participate more rather than reflecting. For the one person who read my blog, who is long gone by now, I'm sorry for not being better at this...but I'm back and I hope to be more consistent.

A lot has happened to my little family, both good and sad but I've decided to simply start anew with things that have happened recently. I can't wait to share pictures and stories as we head in to summer, a time of year that always keeps me on my toes!

I forgot how much I missed doing this and I want to make more of an effort to share the little musings of being a Mom Amongst Men.

One Brave Boy

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 17:18:00 +0000

I just have to get this off my chest, it's been a rough few weeks at the Folian house, I must admit that I'm glad to see summer ending! Between my health issues (saving for another post) and Daredevil's (aka Carter) recent activity, it's enough to drive a Mom crazy!

About three weeks ago, we had just finished up dinner on a Friday night and we're trying to figure out what to do next. Dave decides to take the boys out back to play until I could clean up the dishes. Not even ten minutes after they closed the back door, I'm at my kitchen window watching my youngest soar high in the air on the fantastic tree swing that Dave made for the boys earlier this summer. All of the sudden, I see our Daredevil let go of said swing in mid air, only to fall squarely to the ground horizontally. This can't be good. Carter is screaming bloody murder which sends Dave and Logan into a panic as I rush to the back door. No sooner had I opened the door, Dave was rushing in with Carter screaming not to touch him. It was very easy to see that he had severely broken his left arm and a hospital trip would be our "fun" Friday evening activity.

After explaining to Carter that if he didn't let me take off his Indiana Jones costume shirt, that he had put on prior to going outside, the nurses would have to cut it off of him. He finally agreed through a stream of tears and it was an excruciating two minutes while I manuvered his shirt off so we could make our way to the hospital. Poor Logan sat in the back seat blaming himself for Carter's fall because he ran in front of the swing right before Carter let go. I explained to Logan that it wasn't his fault and that the doctor's would take excellent care of Carter. Thankfully, Grandma was able to meet us at the hospital and take Logan home so he didn't have to stay at the hospital with us. The next eight hours were some of the worst time I've spent as a Mom in my life. I won't go in to all the details but suffice it to say, my heart was breaking for my son who was such a brave boy as he laid on the bed, watching Spongebob Squarepants, waiting for his arm to be cast. Thank goodness for those TV's in the rooms, it really helped pass the time for us and keep our brave boy calm...most of the time.

At around 1:30am on Saturday, Carter was taken to the Ortho room, where they put patients under to set their bones before putting on the cast. Yes, his brake was so severe that he had to be put under to re-set it in two places. You would have thought that my child was having major surgery with seven different doctor's and nurses around us all working to get this little guy home and to his bed! After an hour, we were on our way home (at 2:30am on Saturday) with a very sedated little boy and our sanity still in tact. And yes, being the photographer in the family, I did take pictures, but I promise to only show the final cast;

Here he is waiting in the Ortho room to get his "sleepy medicine" to fix his other arm:

Here is the finished product, one sleepy but cool, blue casted boy!

Carter conversation...

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 00:05:00 +0000

It always makes me smile when I hear how my four year old interprets our conversations;

Carter: "Mommy, can we stay up tonight?"

Me: "That's up to Daddy, he's in charge."

Carter runs downstairs to announce to his big brother...

Carter: "Logan, Mommy didn't say NO, and she says Daddy's in charge, piece of cake!"

Um...sounds like Daddy isn't in charge after all.

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 09:00:00 +0000

I ♥ Faces - Week 27 Sports in Action

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 00:30:00 +0000

Well, it's amazing in just three short years since Logan started playing sports how many images I've taken! It's another fun week of photo entries at I ♥ Faces Photography blog, and I'm happy to have found the shot I was looking for.

This summer is Logan's first year of coach pitch baseball and it's amazing how much he's changed in just how he stands at the plate. I captured this shot during his first "at bat" of the season, he was very excited!

Be sure to head over to I ♥ Faces and check out other amazing shots!

He's Growing Up!

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 01:30:00 +0000

Well, I knew that this day would come, however, I expected it to happen two years from now. I love to go and shop for school supplies (a crazy trait I inherited from my mom!) and this year is no exception.

As soon as we saw the Target ad yesterday showing backpacks and school supply goodies on sale, I promptly ~~pushed~~ persuaded everyone to get in the car for a short trip. Off to Target we went, I was really looking forward to helping Logan pick out supplies. I know, it's the middle of July and I'm already trying to fast forward to the end of June! I really want the boys to enjoy their summer vacation but I also remember the fun I used to have with my mom going on excursions to find deals on fun items for school.

Alas, we maneuver our way around to the aisle of backpacks and I couldn't wait to see Logan's face as he tried to contemplate what to purchase; Transformers, GI Joe, or perhaps Batman. After about a minute in the aisle, my darling seven year old looked at me and stated "Mommy, I'm going to be a big second grader, I don't want these kind of backpacks, I want a plain colored one." WHAT...did my ears deceive me, did my little man ask for a regular backpack? Oh the sadness, the disappointment...yes it took me a few moments to compose myself. To hear Dave say it, you would've thought I'd been punched in the stomach, the look of dejection on my face. My little man no longer wanted a fun character backpack, he wanted a ~~yucky~~ old plain backpack.

As I stood in the aisle, not knowing what to say, I hugged my husband and said "what happened to my baby, first a plain backpack, next shaving!" Ok, so I took this pretty hard but I still have Carter yelling at me that he wants three different backpacks for pre-school...he knew just how to make his Mommy feel better!

It just continues to amaze me how quickly they grow up...

A League of His Own...

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 10:00:00 +0000

Well, another season of little league baseball has come and gone...but what fun we had! This was the first season that Logan played "coach pitch" and actually had to work on connecting with the ball. At the beginning of the season it was pretty rough for all of the kids (ages 5-7) to figure out that the "tee" no longer exists and they have to play by the actual rules.

But what a difference a few short weeks can make! By tournament time, Logan and his entire team looked like they had been playing for an entire year together. And most importantly, they really seemed to "get" baseball and how much fun it is to play. It was great to see Logan actually looking forward to game days and wanting to play the entire game.

Logan took on the nickname "catch" towards the end of the season and it suits him perfectly! The funny thing about the nickname is that at the beginning of the season, he wanted nothing to do with being catcher but slowly he realized that his size/build is perfect for this position.

I decided to put together a little video of Logan so that our family that doesn't live in Ohio can still experience the "catch" in action. We're very proud of him for sticking with this and making such great progress, way to go Logan!

I ♥ Faces-especially the ones I know best!

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:51:00 +0000

So, as I wrote about last week, I entered my first photo contest at I ♥ Faces. This photography blog is not only fun to participate in but you can also learn valuable tricks of the trade. I happened to go back to the blog last night to read a post about Photoshop Elements and as I'm scrolling down through the blog, what did I see, but my oldest son's smiling face amongst a lot of other great photos! For me, this was as much fun as if I had actually won the contest! To simply have a photo that I adore make it into one of their collages amongst hundreds of other entries...it truly made me smile. Here's the collage that Logan was in:

As you can see, there were a lot of other great photos and they have weekly entries that I would highly recommend people check out! There's a listing on the blog with upcoming dates for various submissions and who knows, maybe you'll see a face you recognize!

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:00:00 +0000

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:00:00 +0000

Let's Hear It For the Boys! Photo Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:00:00 +0000

I've been following this site for awhile now because I LOVE looking at photos and taking them as well! At the I ♥ Faces Photography blog, they are celebrating Father's Day this week by celebrating everything boy! It was really hard for me to decide between my two boys but my first born is just such a ham when the camera comes out.

Be sure to check out the I ♥ Faces blog to see other fun and amazing photos!

Have a great day!

Swinging from the trees...

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 02:25:00 +0000

It's Friday night and this is what happens when I let the boys create their own fun...

That's right, my little monkeys are now swinging from one of the huge trees in our backyard. But as Dave says, as long as they're having fun, that's all that matters. I hope our boys understand someday how cool their dad truly is!

TGIF!

ONE...singular sensation of a musical!

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 10:00:00 +0000

I got such a great surprise yesterday! My husband called mid-afternoon and wanted to know if I wanted to go see A Chorus Line. At first I said "no, we've got stuff to do around the house" to which he replied "come on, you love musicals, we'll have a good time." So, I decided to go and I'm so glad I did! This was my first time seeing a Broadway production and we had fantastic seats!

Outside the theatre

We don't get very many date nights, as of late, let alone during the work week but it was soooo worth going to see.

Here we are, waiting for the performance to begin (terrible lighting!)

I truly enjoy musicals and I hope someday to actually go to Broadway to see a performance. Thanks to my hubby, I had a great evening and got to see the revival of a classic show!

TGIF!

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 10:00:00 +0000

Soccer send off

noreply@blogger.com (Joelle) — Thu, 28 May 2009 00:45:00 +0000

Well, tonight was Logan's final soccer game as he has decided to try fall baseball since he seems to prefer baseball over soccer (at least right now.) Logan definately went out with a bang as he scored two goals and worked as hard as he could to help out his team.

Fortunately, Logan has had a great coach for the past two years as he has learned how to play the game and more importanly learned how to be part of a team. Thanks to Coach Dad for always being patient and supportive, even when he was trying to score on his own net! This has been something that both father and son have shared together and I know that they both have enjoyed the experience.

Although I personally am very competitive when it comes to sports, I'm just glad that Logan is able to experience different things and decide for himself what he wants to spend his time doing. I'm so proud of Logan and how much effort he gives each and every time. My hope is that he tries a variety of things besides sports so that he can see how much variety he truly can have in his life.

Great job Logan, your hard work definately paid off!