Neither one of my children are graceful. Unfortunately, they get their clumsiness from me. Also inherited from me, the ability to be overly dramatic (Kaitlyn), and hyperactivity/attention deficit (Tyler). I seriously don't know how I survived my childhood from all the stories my mother and aunts love to tell me over and over again. I also remember being hurt A LOT when I was little.
Anyway, Kaitlyn has luckily survived her (almost) four years on this planet relatively unscathed. (I am sooooooooo knocking on wood right now.) Of course she has suffered from her fair share of falls, cuts, scrapes and bruises, but nothing a little cute band-aid or ice pack can't fix.
Tyler, on the other hand, received his first trip to the urgent care doctor and got three stitches on the left temporal side of his noggin. I am quite certain that this will not be the last time he will get stitches and I fear this will not be his worst injury either.
The back story....Kaitlyn and Tyler were playing with a leftover mylar balloon from their pirate party. I tied on to a toy watch and let the other float off. Of course they both wanted to play with the one they could actually get their hands on. Tyler, never wanting anything until his sister has it, went after that balloon like it was the buried treasured he had been waiting for all his life! Katilyn thought it was funny that Tyler kept missing the balloon every time he reached for it; of course she was yanking it away at the last second and kept on doing it. The last time she yanked, he must have lost his balance and took a header into the corner of the wall. Had he just hit the wall, we would have heard some wailing, but he had to go and hit the corner and split his head open. I jumped up from the couch, literally within arms reach while Kaitlyn was profusely apologizing and turned him around to give him some TLC. (I clearly did not know how badly or how hard he hit his head.) All I saw was blood dripping down his head when I turned him around. Kaitlyn instantly burst in to tears and I began to cry as well. I jumped up trying to grab a towel and immediately felt ill. Thank God Jerry is not bothered by the sight of blood and he quickly scoop Tyler up and took him to the kitchen. I was trying to help both Tyler and Kaitlyn, who of course was hysterical at this point, and was running around like a chicken with their head cut off. Jerry was yelling for the alcohol so he could clean Tyler up and assess how deep the cut was, I knew better and grabbed the peroxide. He had a pretty deep gash on his head so we decided to drop Kaitlyn off with my mom and take Tyler to the urgent care. Let me tell you that boy is a trooper. He occasionally complained about his "ouch" on his bonked head, but he never cried once after the initial pain of going head first in to the wall. He also never once flinched or pulled away when he got his anesthetic shot to numb the area or when he was getting his stitches. Both nurses were so impressed with him. I was super proud of him and am very thankful that his injury was much worse.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
To Craft or Not to Craft
So I get bit by the crafting bug every now and again where I'll want to craft like mad. I got a sewing machine for my birthday, per my request, and once I learned how to load the bobbin and top thread, I wanted to sew everything in site. I have so many ruffled headbands you would not believe. So that lead me to "pin" projects on headband holders because OMG I have sooooooooo many. Then I see other projects that I want to do and I go buy the materials for them but I can't get all my supplies at once because I don't want to drop a Benjamin at Joann's and Michael's doesn't have everything I need and the closest Hobby Lobby is over an hour away! Thus I have about 20 unfinished projects laying around my house and then the craft bug that bit me in the first place goes in to hibernation.
My craft area looks like a category 5 hurricane ripped through it and the aftermath is a pile of empty canvases, fabric scraps, pins strewn about, scrap paper all over the floor, thread everywhere mess. I try to keep my area clean and organized but it doesn't help that A) my craft area is in the playroom and therefore Tyler has made it his sole mission to touch every.single.thing. on, in, or around my craft table and move it to where he sees fit and B) I have no proper storage for my craft area and am not willing to spend any money on more storage. Now, I have a different craft dilemma. I start "pinning" craft storage ideas which means I need more supplies, which means I have about 10 unfinished craft storage projects lying around my house. It's truly a vicious, viscous, cycle.
I really need to get my butt in gear and go through the unfinished craft piles I have and buy the rest of the materials to finish those before I try to start new projects. My only problem with that is Valentine's Day is fast approaching and I have already bought most of the supplies to craft both Tyler's and Kaitlyn's Valentines for their daycare classes. Yes I am that mom who has to show her undying love for her children through the creations that shestole off of Pinterest and is taking all the credit for created in her own beautiful, crafty mind. The good news is that I have plenty of time to pick everything up and finish them. The bad news is that I have to order the sticker paper online and wait for it to arrive, drive to iParty to pick up enough shovels for all the kids in Tyler's class, buy a small paper punch to make the stickers for Kaitlyn's treat bags, buy said treat bags from Joann's, grab a paper punch while I'm there and make some gift tags on my Cricut. Easy right?
Oh yeah, did I mention that Kaitlyn is doing ice cream sundaes for her party at daycare? Oy vey.
My craft area looks like a category 5 hurricane ripped through it and the aftermath is a pile of empty canvases, fabric scraps, pins strewn about, scrap paper all over the floor, thread everywhere mess. I try to keep my area clean and organized but it doesn't help that A) my craft area is in the playroom and therefore Tyler has made it his sole mission to touch every.single.thing. on, in, or around my craft table and move it to where he sees fit and B) I have no proper storage for my craft area and am not willing to spend any money on more storage. Now, I have a different craft dilemma. I start "pinning" craft storage ideas which means I need more supplies, which means I have about 10 unfinished craft storage projects lying around my house. It's truly a vicious, viscous, cycle.
I really need to get my butt in gear and go through the unfinished craft piles I have and buy the rest of the materials to finish those before I try to start new projects. My only problem with that is Valentine's Day is fast approaching and I have already bought most of the supplies to craft both Tyler's and Kaitlyn's Valentines for their daycare classes. Yes I am that mom who has to show her undying love for her children through the creations that she
Oh yeah, did I mention that Kaitlyn is doing ice cream sundaes for her party at daycare? Oy vey.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Third baby...Maybe
So it is no secret in my family that I want another child. Mostly because I love my children to death and would love to have a whole gaggle of them. (Not really, three is plenty. I'm not Michelle Duggard.) A little part of me would like to give Tyler a little brother. He's the only boy out of 7 little cousins and I feel bad that he doesn't have another little rough and tumble boy to play with at family gathering. Right now the girls don't care that he's a boy and they let him play, but soon they won't. I don't know when little boys and girls learn that they can't play with each other because girls play house and with dolls and boys play army and with trucks, but they do eventually learn that somewhere. I try really hard not to push gender stereotypes onto my children, but right now they are a little young to get all philosophical with so simple and easy usually wins in our house. For example when Kaitlyn says "Boys don't wear makeup" I just say "Well the boys in our family don't." Later when she's older and able to understand it's ok to be different, then we can get into more details. I also don't mind that Tyler is constantly walking around in my high heels or that he prefers to wear the skirts in the dress up clothes.
Anyway, I really want a third child and I think I just convinced my husband to have one. He's been hemming and hawing about the idea and trying to skip over the conversation or just burst my bubble completely. Of course all his arguments are rational, we can't afford to pay for three daycare tuitions and we can't afford for me not to work right now. (Unless of course we dramatically change our spending habits.) We already have two perfect children, one boy, one girl. We just bought a house and it only has three bedrooms; where would the new baby sleep? All rational arguments and I'll admit we probably should not have another baby right now, but it doesn't mean that we can't EVER have another baby.
And then there are my own arguments with myself that make me rethink my desire for another child. Silly little things like what if the new baby's birthday is not in January like Kaitlyn and Tyler? We are very close to start potty training Tyler, do I really want to go through the whole changing diapers stage? Both my kids are sleeping well, do I really have it in me to wake up 3-4 times a night? Do I want to go through the whole washing bottles/breast pump ordeal? It's so easy to stick sippy cups in the dishwasher or just throw them away and buy new ones if they get too icky. Can I handle another pregnancy while working full-time with two kids? Luckily both of my pregnancies were easy and problem free but it was very difficult being pregnant and working full-time. I'm exhausted right now and I'm not even pregnant.
And then I see them, my sweet, beautiful children and I forget about everything except that I would LOVE to have another. So, do we go for it or not? We will make that decision when Tyler turns 3, which by the way is next year. Kaitlyn will be out of day care that year and Tyler will get another reduction in his fees. Who knows, maybe by then this feeling of needing another child will diminish completely. Only time will tell.
Anyway, I really want a third child and I think I just convinced my husband to have one. He's been hemming and hawing about the idea and trying to skip over the conversation or just burst my bubble completely. Of course all his arguments are rational, we can't afford to pay for three daycare tuitions and we can't afford for me not to work right now. (Unless of course we dramatically change our spending habits.) We already have two perfect children, one boy, one girl. We just bought a house and it only has three bedrooms; where would the new baby sleep? All rational arguments and I'll admit we probably should not have another baby right now, but it doesn't mean that we can't EVER have another baby.
And then there are my own arguments with myself that make me rethink my desire for another child. Silly little things like what if the new baby's birthday is not in January like Kaitlyn and Tyler? We are very close to start potty training Tyler, do I really want to go through the whole changing diapers stage? Both my kids are sleeping well, do I really have it in me to wake up 3-4 times a night? Do I want to go through the whole washing bottles/breast pump ordeal? It's so easy to stick sippy cups in the dishwasher or just throw them away and buy new ones if they get too icky. Can I handle another pregnancy while working full-time with two kids? Luckily both of my pregnancies were easy and problem free but it was very difficult being pregnant and working full-time. I'm exhausted right now and I'm not even pregnant.
And then I see them, my sweet, beautiful children and I forget about everything except that I would LOVE to have another. So, do we go for it or not? We will make that decision when Tyler turns 3, which by the way is next year. Kaitlyn will be out of day care that year and Tyler will get another reduction in his fees. Who knows, maybe by then this feeling of needing another child will diminish completely. Only time will tell.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
2012
Wow, another year over. I can't believe that it's already 2012, and it's the third day of the new year already! 2011 was a good year with a little heartache mixed in. I watched my babies turn 1 and 3, welcomed a new family member, lost another, celebrated lots of little birthdays and holidays, kept my coaching position in a new school, traveled a little bit with my husband, and watched my sister graduate from college. All-in-all a pretty good year.
I'm excited to see what 2012 will bring for my family. Will we add some more new littles to our already big family? Will I have to go back into the classroom once this year is over? How are my babies 2 and 4 already????? How will my brother do as a starter this year for his college baseball team? What new things will my children amaze me with? So many questions just waiting to be answered.
One thing I am committed to continue working on is to better my health. Jerry and I are going to start the fat flush diet, beginning phase one the middle of this month and then continuing on with phase two until we hit our second goal. The diet is definitely not something I can do long term, but I am confident it will help propel us to eating better and for Jerry exercising more. (I already do the couch to 5K program and will run in this year's Turkey Trot.) I'm ready to detox my body and get my liver functioning right even if that means I have to torture myself for two weeks. Two weeks doesn't seem like a long time right now, but I'm sure when I'm having my caffeine withdrawal, it'll feel like an eternity. It will be worth it though if I reach my first goal.
So, first goal of the fat flush with the two week cleanse is to drop one pant size. (I'm already there, but I would like to be a little more comfortable in that size.)
*Reward: Nice pair of blue jeans, not just the cheapy ones I get from Target that never fit right.
The second goal of the fat flush on phase two will to be to drop 40 pounds. I'll have to stay in phase two until I meet that goal and that may take some time.
*Reward: I think I'll do a reward system with every 10 pounds I drop.
-10 lbs: deluxe pedicure
-20 lbs: new outfit
-30 lbs: spa treatment
-40 lbs: coach purse
I do have more than 40 pounds to lose, but I think that's a good amount to lose while doing this diet. The rest of the weight is going to have to come off with healthy eating habits, lots of water and exercise. Like I said, I can't do this diet forever, it's just too strict for me, but it's a step in the right direction. Hopefully I can be successful in this and not give up before I reach the end goal of this diet.
Cheers to another new year!
I'm excited to see what 2012 will bring for my family. Will we add some more new littles to our already big family? Will I have to go back into the classroom once this year is over? How are my babies 2 and 4 already????? How will my brother do as a starter this year for his college baseball team? What new things will my children amaze me with? So many questions just waiting to be answered.
One thing I am committed to continue working on is to better my health. Jerry and I are going to start the fat flush diet, beginning phase one the middle of this month and then continuing on with phase two until we hit our second goal. The diet is definitely not something I can do long term, but I am confident it will help propel us to eating better and for Jerry exercising more. (I already do the couch to 5K program and will run in this year's Turkey Trot.) I'm ready to detox my body and get my liver functioning right even if that means I have to torture myself for two weeks. Two weeks doesn't seem like a long time right now, but I'm sure when I'm having my caffeine withdrawal, it'll feel like an eternity. It will be worth it though if I reach my first goal.
So, first goal of the fat flush with the two week cleanse is to drop one pant size. (I'm already there, but I would like to be a little more comfortable in that size.)
*Reward: Nice pair of blue jeans, not just the cheapy ones I get from Target that never fit right.
The second goal of the fat flush on phase two will to be to drop 40 pounds. I'll have to stay in phase two until I meet that goal and that may take some time.
*Reward: I think I'll do a reward system with every 10 pounds I drop.
-10 lbs: deluxe pedicure
-20 lbs: new outfit
-30 lbs: spa treatment
-40 lbs: coach purse
I do have more than 40 pounds to lose, but I think that's a good amount to lose while doing this diet. The rest of the weight is going to have to come off with healthy eating habits, lots of water and exercise. Like I said, I can't do this diet forever, it's just too strict for me, but it's a step in the right direction. Hopefully I can be successful in this and not give up before I reach the end goal of this diet.
Cheers to another new year!
Friday, December 2, 2011
2nd Child
I realize that I don't work with Tyler as much as I did with Kaitlyn. It was a whole lot easier with Kaitlyn because I could focus all my attention on her with no interruptions. I always sang the ABC's with her in the car on the ride home from daycare. I always counted with her. I always told her the color of whatever toy she was playing with. We read books all.the.time. We practiced shapes & animal sounds with all the puzzles we put together. With Tyler, I do half as much. Sometimes it's hard to work with him because Kaitlyn is eager to please and loves to show off and will jump in and answer my questions. Poor boy doesn't get a word in edgewise. He's also ALWAYS.ON.THE.GO! He never sits still enough to do anything. If we try working on a shapes puzzle, he'll do it once and then want to move on to another puzzle. So then we will move on to an animal puzzle and then he'll want to build with blocks. So then we'll move on to blocks and he starts throwing them all over the place. Then he'll want to get out his cars, all five hundred of them. On and on and on.
I am thankful that we are able to pay for the daycare he does go to. I have said it before and I'll say it again, I love our daycare. I know that he gets the stimulation that he needs and the structure he craves. He just moved up to the older 1's room and he's already shown that he's benefiting from it. He's now more willing to sit down a read a book with me and point to the objects or animals in the book and say what they are. I can now sit and build block towers with him and not be afraid that he's going to sling one of the blocks at my head...most of the time. His speech really blossomed this summer when he stayed at home with me but it really seems like now he's in the mood to never stop talking. That one really surprised me because NONE of the other kids in his class say even one word. I figured he would stop talking as well, but he seems to have started talking more. Maybe he feels like he needs to make up for his nonverbal classmates. Even my mom commented on how he seems to be talking a lot more.
We'll be taking the kids out of daycare for two weeks over my Christmas break so I hope that I am really able to focus on him and give his the extra stimulation that I was able to give Kaitlyn. I need to do some research on how to involve Kaitlyn as well in helping me teach him. I definitely see the impact it has on student achievement when parents do little to nothing to stimulate their children in their early years and I do not want my children to have to struggle through school. I'm not looking to raise future brain surgeons, but I do want my children to be productive members of society and will do everything in my power to see they are.
I am thankful that we are able to pay for the daycare he does go to. I have said it before and I'll say it again, I love our daycare. I know that he gets the stimulation that he needs and the structure he craves. He just moved up to the older 1's room and he's already shown that he's benefiting from it. He's now more willing to sit down a read a book with me and point to the objects or animals in the book and say what they are. I can now sit and build block towers with him and not be afraid that he's going to sling one of the blocks at my head...most of the time. His speech really blossomed this summer when he stayed at home with me but it really seems like now he's in the mood to never stop talking. That one really surprised me because NONE of the other kids in his class say even one word. I figured he would stop talking as well, but he seems to have started talking more. Maybe he feels like he needs to make up for his nonverbal classmates. Even my mom commented on how he seems to be talking a lot more.
We'll be taking the kids out of daycare for two weeks over my Christmas break so I hope that I am really able to focus on him and give his the extra stimulation that I was able to give Kaitlyn. I need to do some research on how to involve Kaitlyn as well in helping me teach him. I definitely see the impact it has on student achievement when parents do little to nothing to stimulate their children in their early years and I do not want my children to have to struggle through school. I'm not looking to raise future brain surgeons, but I do want my children to be productive members of society and will do everything in my power to see they are.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant
I'm sorry, but I don't believe for one moment that a woman can't tell she's pregnant. I can see how they could hide it from others, but how the hell can you not know you're pregnant, especially if it's your third pregnancy? I will give you the "I didn't have morning sickness" excuse because I didn't have morning sickness with either of my children. The weight gain excuse is debatable, but not a strong one that I give much credit to. The one thing that completely baffles me is how the HELL do you explain the movement in your stomach? You can freaking see it from the outside when the baby gets a certain size! Tyler constantly got hiccups in utero and Kaitlyn loved to tap dance on my bladder. What the hell else could move your entire stomach like the movement of a baby? Unless you are severely an idiot unaware of your body, there is no way in hell that you could make it through an entire pregnancy without knowing that you are pregnant. Also, labor feels NOTHING like appendicitis or an ovarian cyst or any other health issue that I've heard women use to try and convince people she didn't know she was pregnant until a baby came out of her. I think that women who say that are just attention seekers, although I don't know why you would want to be known as one of the dumbest people on the planet. I know there are some really dumb people, but I just can't fathom someone being that dumb. As sad and unfortunate as it is, even my high schoolers know when they're pregnant.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Thanksgiving Hostess
For the second year in a row, I hosted Thanksgiving dinner. I definitely felt a little more pressure to cook the perfect dinner this year than I did last and I'm not sure why. We really only added one more person...I don't count the little people that tag along :) I know I was way more stressed out about it because I got a migraine on Saturday of all was said and done. (I'm still suffering from the after affects.)
We had a great dinner and the food was delicious. I didn't get much in the leftover department because my mom stole most of the leftovers. I didn't fight too hard because my family does not do leftovers and hers does. The kids had a blast playing with their cousins even though poor Tyler was once again surrounded by girls.
I didn't do any Black Friday shopping, mostly because I'm not crazy and not willing to be out there with some real psychos just to save a few bucks. I did look to see if Toys R Us was having a deal on Power Wheels because that is what "Santa" is bringing for the kids, but I didn't find any worth the trouble. I'm not against saving money, but trust me, deals stick around through New Years so why fight traffic and seriously crazy people the day after I've experience the worst food coma in the history of the world.
I've mad a commitment to myself that next year I'll be running in our local Turkey Trot so I have to start training now. I'm on week 4 of the couch to 5K program so it shouldn't be too hard. I have suddenly developed a strong like to running. I wouldn't say I love it yet, but I do really like it and try to get out everyday and I never look for excuses to miss a day of running, so that's in my favor.
All-in-all it was great to feast with family and get rave reviews about my cooking.
We had a great dinner and the food was delicious. I didn't get much in the leftover department because my mom stole most of the leftovers. I didn't fight too hard because my family does not do leftovers and hers does. The kids had a blast playing with their cousins even though poor Tyler was once again surrounded by girls.
I didn't do any Black Friday shopping, mostly because I'm not crazy and not willing to be out there with some real psychos just to save a few bucks. I did look to see if Toys R Us was having a deal on Power Wheels because that is what "Santa" is bringing for the kids, but I didn't find any worth the trouble. I'm not against saving money, but trust me, deals stick around through New Years so why fight traffic and seriously crazy people the day after I've experience the worst food coma in the history of the world.
I've mad a commitment to myself that next year I'll be running in our local Turkey Trot so I have to start training now. I'm on week 4 of the couch to 5K program so it shouldn't be too hard. I have suddenly developed a strong like to running. I wouldn't say I love it yet, but I do really like it and try to get out everyday and I never look for excuses to miss a day of running, so that's in my favor.
All-in-all it was great to feast with family and get rave reviews about my cooking.
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