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Tuesday, October 21, 2014

A book for every child

It's ironic but Bub is not a reader. You'd think a librarian's child would have more interested but his reading ability is not strong. He's getting there but it seems to be taking a lot to keep him on level. The school is doing its best to resolve the situation by putting him in reading remediation. He is also in speech therapy because his speech is lacking too and I'm sure there is a connection between the two and also the ADHD. But we do a lot of reading at home too. We've always read to him at bedtime and now he reads to us. Also I've always listened to audio books in the car but most of the time he is not with me, well, up until late in the school year last year. I started taking him to school as a way to offset his time on the bus and relieve the nighttime stress of homework which was driving me a breaking point almost every night. So he has been coming to work with me in the mornings, eating his breakfast and doing his homework in my office and then I've been taking him to school. It's working out quite nicely. One of the rules though is that I still get to listen to a book in the car. Most of the time he barely seems to pay attention but my line of thinking goes along that even if he is not outright listening, he is still hearing it and that can't be bad. I just finished the Enola Holmes series on Thursday and I don't think he liked the one because it is a bit on the violent side for a 7 year old. I put in Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier and at the end of the car ride to work, he said "I like this one," something I can't recall him every saying. Normally I continue on with a book even when he is not with me. But this time I decided we can listen to the whole thing together. So the next morning, we got in the car but had to drop Button off at daycare so I didn't put on the book. He was playing on his Nintendo DS and when I got back from bringing in her. I put the book on. He put down the DS and started listening and THAT really has never happened before. Over the weekend we didn't get a chance to really listen to it. But Monday morning as we were driving off the radio was on. He said, "We can listen to music later tonight. We should listen to the book" and my heart sang. I had finally found his book.

There's a great quote by Holly Black (I think) about there is the right book for every child and I've been searching for something that will click with him. He loves nonfiction but even that didn't seem to interest him. It's like reading is a chore and that is not an attitude that I am familiar with. I've always loved reading. I don't know what it is about Peter Nimble that has captured him but I'm hoping to pick books out now that he will want to listen to. He seemed a little interested in the Percy Jackson books when I had those so maybe I will go back with those. Maybe he would be interested in the  Peter and the Starcatchers series. I hope so. I'm going to try at least.

Monday, October 13, 2014

Pat on the back

I feel like giving myself a high five these days. I have successfully been meal planning and weekly grocery shopping since April. That's a long time for me since I tend to lack follow-through on my grand plans (see also: exercising, limiting electronic use, cleaning out the cabinets, homemade baby food, etc.).  Plus I've been using my reusable grocery bags at every trip and even have BT doing the same when he goes. It cuts down on the amount of plastic bags we have AND is very environmentally conscious.  We tend to eat the same things a lot but I've developed enough of a menu so that it's not the same thing every week. Plus when BT is off on weekdays he can do the cooking and that saves me some time and energy.

The other thing I managed to do was clean out Bub's room. His birthday and Christmas are coming up and so he is going to get more toys so I wanted to start parring down what he has now. He was away overnight this past weekend so I gathered all of the toys that were spread out all over the floor and under the bed and put them into garbage bags so that, soon, the two of us can go through them and decide what to keep and what to get rid of and find places for the stuff he wants. He has a lot of toys and quite of few of them are in pieces or half together or kind of babyish for his age. I'm really terrible at getting rid of things. I weeded his bookcase and pulled out quite a few "baby" books and put them in Button's room. I rearranged his room and put the little couch from Button's room into his room so now he has a sitting area and she has more room for a new bed that we will get in the next few months (hopefully). I'm going to go through her room and get it back into shape next weekend.

The other plan I have to is take one cabinet a weekend and go through it and organize it. It seems like every cabinet in the place is chockablock full of just stuff and I need to neaten it up. This is a more ambitious plan since it requires quite a bit of follow-through so we'll see. I'm going to try.

Monday, September 22, 2014

This and that

I didn't realize it had been so long since I've been on this blog until I looked my book blog and realized I hadn't been over there in a while too. Things at work have been super busy between interviews, presentation preparations, and meeting, meetings, meetings, among other things. At least this week is looking like I might get a breather. Plus, at home, school and soccer have started and BT has moved into a weekend rotation at work. But that feels like more of the same.

I was thinking about what I wanted to write about. That Bub got marked as failure to thrive too at his last check-up so he had blood work done too and he is fine though was thoroughly traumatized by the needle, something that was sad and then later super funny.  He is so dramatic. I'm still struggling to help my kids gain weight but they are both doing well. That some kid in Bub's class broke his glasses and so he went about a month with no glasses but he is getting his new super cool pair today. Also I've develop an intense dislike of an 8 year in Bub's class.

I could write about how Button is the twoest two year old that ever was a 2 year old and I have abandoned the idea of putting her dance class and instead think she is definitely going to gymnastics. Her willingness to FLING herself at surfaces and hope she sticks the landing is both interesting and heart stopping to watch. And her new favorite song to sing "Twinkle twinkle little star" but she fuses the ABC song with it so she sounds like a drunken sailor especially when she lays on the floor and sings "Twinktle Twinktle little ABCD STAAAARRR" and counts "1, 2, 3, 5, 9, 10." And that potty training is still hit or miss with the misses being the higher percentage but that it's a slow and steady thing. I'm thinking of taking an upcoming weekend break from soccer and doing a boot camp to see if I can't get her where I want her to be. She's interested in the the wiping and flushing and the prizes but the actual action is where she is stalling.

But that's generally the whole story of those stories. So I'll just leave it at those anecdotes and try to find a full topic soon. Meanwhile it's the first day of autumn and the weather is not that hot and, dare I say, even a little pleasant and I had a giant chocolate donut courtesy of the Cataloging Department and the first song that came up on my playlist was "Shake It Off" so I'm going to take that as a sign that this week might be one of the better ones I've had in a while.

Monday, August 18, 2014

A post about coffee

I can't pretend to be some kind of coffee connoisseur. That would be my husband, but I like coffee. For a long time I added a little milk and some Ovaltine to my coffee every morning since I'm not up to drinking it black. Then I started getting flavored coffee pods when we got our Keuring and it escalated from there. I found a caramel macchiato flavor at Target and that was extra good with some condensed milk added it.

Lately, though,  I've been buying flavored coffee creamer to add to my Community Coffee Breakfast Blend. Community Coffee is a Louisiana based coffee company and it's the brand
my parents have always use and, consequently, so do I (also BT worked for them for 3 years). I've tried Salted Caramel Mocha, Caramel Macchiato and Southern Butter Pecan and have enjoyed them all. The last couple of weeks I've been buying the International Delight iced coffees and, inspired by the Internet, adding frozen coffee cubes to it. My mom gave me a whole bunch of french vanilla coffee pods that I didn't really like. But I started freezing them and it turns out that the internet is right. They make good ice for cold coffee drinks. I just add 2 of those and then pour the iced coffee over it and go and it doesn't get watered down. It's a good summer morning drink. 

It's starting to feel more like fall lately especially since Bub started 2nd grade last week so I'm looking forward to some Pumpkin Spice lattes and going back to hot coffee drinks. I've found the older I get the more I look forward to a cup of coffee in the morning.

Friday, August 8, 2014

Pregnancy nostalgia

It seems to be baby time or at least it is on my Facebook feed. Several people have announced pregnancies for late this year or early 2015. I got a little sentimental thinking about being newly pregnant with my kids. I never did an elaborate announcement like Pinterest shows. I was pregnant with Bub before Facebook was the thing that it is now. So that was mostly a word of mouth type thing.

I remember sitting at my desk and feeling woozy. We weren't really trying for a baby yet (the time was set for a few months from then) but it was still a possibility and as soon as I felt that I began to suspect. I stopped and bought 1 pregnancy test and as soon as I got home I took it. When I saw those 2 lines, I freaked out. I ran back to the store and bought more tests and took 2 more. All came back positive almost immediately. I called my BFF-cousin because I knew that out of everyone she would be level-headed about it and I certainly didn't want to tell BT over the phone. She reassured me and I called the doctor. The nurse had me come in and do a pregnancy test, basically what I had just done 3 of at home and she confirmed it. We were leaving that afternoon to go to BT's grandfather's funeral so I had to pick BT up at work. On the way to do that I was trying to figure out how to tell him but, in the end, he got in the car, I burst into tears and told him I was pregnant. He was very happy about it. It was almost time anyway. We told BT's parents that night by bascially saying "You know how you just became grandparents? You ready to do it again?"(the Nephew had just been born) and then my parents when we got home. Nothing very clever. Well except my whole life anytime I wanted to talk to my mom, she'd start the conversation with "You're not pregnant, are you?" So I sat down and said "Hey, remember how anytime I wanted to talk to you, you'd say 'You're not pregnant, are you?' Well I want to talk to you." She got it and my parents were super happy.

For Button, I had this feeling that I wanted to keep it to myself for just a little bit. Bub belong to everyone almost right away and I wanted this one for myself. She was definitely planned so it was not surprising. Since we were trying, I bought some pregnancy tests and had them at the house. One Friday before I was suppose to start my period, I took one and it came back with the faintest line but I knew. So the next day I went out and bought a pack of newborn diapers and made a card that said "You ready to do this again?" and tied a positive pregnancy test to the diapers with the note and put it on the table. I thought BT would see it right away but, I swear, the man has some sort of tunnel vision. I sent him to the kitchen at least 3 times thinking he would see it. But no, finally, I had to tell him to go look on the table. It was a little anticlimactic. We told my parents a few weeks later by putting a Big Brother t-shirt on Bub. My mom was home alone and I had to direct her to look at his shirt and then my sister and dad when they got home. We put the same shirt on Bub a few weeks after that when we went to the beach for Labor Day with BT's family. They saw it right away so that was gratifying.

I look at my kids and it's funny to think about before I had them, when I just found out I was pregnant and now here they are such amazing little people.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Potty training {Part TMI}

So I've been trying on and off since January to potty train Button. Well, I say that but I've only made one serious effort during Memorial Day weekend to actually potty train, discovering then that she wasn't quite ready. Mostly I've been pestering her with questions about using the potty and telling her that big girls use the potty, reading her books (these are her favorites), things of that nature. Also I've been changing her diapers in the bathroom and, if it's #2, putting the poop into the potty and telling her that it is where poop goes so she sees where it is suppose to be. Then she says eww, yuck and tries to wipe herself and flushed the toilet. I feel like we skipped step 1 somewhere along the way and jumped to step 2-4.

But last night randomly she came back to step 1. For a while now she will tell me when she needs to be changed and will sometimes try to change herself. Hence why I thought she was ready in May. But it is always after the fact. Last night she came to tell me "Potty" and pointed at her bottom. So I took her into the bathroom and helped her onto the toilet. She doesn't like using the baby potty that Bub trained on, a symptom of being a second child maybe, but at any rate she does like the attached potty seat on the regular toilet. I sat her down and, boom, she went. It was so awesome. I got super excited and made a big deal and then told Bub who also got excited and made a big deal and she enjoyed it all immensely.  Unfortunately I had no rewards handy, no stickers or the like, so she had to settle for her mother clapping and dancing with her. But she definitely got the idea that this was a good idea.

Now I am unsure of what to do. I've potty trained before so you'd think I'd know what I am doing but it's been a while and every kid is different. I guess the next step is to get what the daycare needs (training pants and covers mostly) and have them start over there while I take care of it at home. I'm trying not to build it up to THIS IS IT status. But maybe this is it? I sincerely hope so.

Friday, July 11, 2014

Repainting complete

I mentioned in May that I was redoing the master bedroom and bathroom. The bedroom is a soft calm bluish green while the bathroom is a bright yellow. I finished up about mid-June and I love how it turned out. It was a lot of work. The bathroom required a coat of mildew/mold killing primer on the walls and ceiling and then 2 coats of paint. We are eventually going to repaint the trim in the bathroom to a darker brown to bring the color down a little. But I'm super happy with it. The bedroom went a little quicker with only 1 coat of paint needed on the walls and ceiling. It's just that our furniture is big so it had to be done in 2 days to deal with that. But the ceiling went rather quickly since I just painted the inside of the tray.

My new bedspread looks nice and we cleaned out a lot of junk that was cluttering up the room. I haven't got any pictures for the bedroom though I have plans to print out a few of BT's photographs to hang. I did get something for the bathroom however. I wanted something to fill the wall space over the tub and eventually decided on a wall decal. I bought a rather large dandelion decal from an Etsy store and it looks great. I got new towels to tie the two colors together and I have a few other ideas to tie the rooms together even more.



Master bedroom




Master bath


Thursday, July 3, 2014

The second time around

Bub has been away for 11 days visiting BT's parents and playing with his older cousin (8). I reached my limit on him being gone on day 9 but I get him back tonight so we made it through. His cousin left but BT's younger sister came with her 1 year old daughter so he still got to spend time with them. My SiL said something on Twitter yesterday to the effect of after spending the day with him and her own daughter she knows she could not handle 2 kids right now. And I chuckled because it reminded me of back before I had Button and how I felt when I got pregnant with her.

It was always agreed that we would have two kids, always. We had Bub and he is a pretty awesome kid but a handful with all his energy and talking and the constantness of just him. But still I knew I wanted another one for multiple reasons but a big one was so that he would never be alone and he would have a sibling to relate to. So after he was potty trained and we enjoyed that for a while, it was decided it was time. The thing about having a second kid is you know exactly what you are looking forward, the highs and the lows and I always said that when I forgot just how bone-crushingly exhausted I was then we could have another baby. I don't know if you ever entirely forget that but the memory wears thin enough. But still after I found out I was pregnant again I had a few moments of pure panic. What if this ruined everything? I mean we had a good thing going just the three of us. We were a happy little family and you just never know who you are going to get or what is going to happen. Luckily it all turned out wonderfully but I did a lot of praying.

Thinking about all of this reminded me of a mommy blogger who I follow who, when she brought home her 2nd child, remarked that it was all going smoothly and that having 2 wasn't going to be so hard. And then I laughed because I was that person too. The first days of most newborns are sleepy. They sleep a lot. (Bub didn't but that's a different story.) Button was a sleeper for about 2 weeks and in those two weeks I thought, this isn't too bad. He's five so he's old enough to do things for himself and to get things I might need. And then she woke up and started paying attention to the world and the dynamic shifted. The hardest thing was the lack of time for my son. For 5 years he was the only one we had and so we got to focus on him for so long that I had overwhelming guilt when I could no longer just do what he wanted to do. Yes, there are lessons in there for patience and waiting your turn and not being selfish or needy or clingy. But still he went from Mom whenever he wanted to Wait till I'm done with the baby. Luckily he is an easy enough child that he wasn't overly phased. I had to work to let go of the way we were and get to use to the idea of the way we are. That I can't provide the same mommying that I could before. The worst thing was that he was cooped up in the house for quite a bit of time during my maternity leave but my mom and my sister did their best to entertain him and pay attention to him. So we were lucky in that way. It also helped that he took to the idea of being a big brother and loves her so much. They entertain each other and so he is a big helper for me.

Every change can be hard and I still couldn't say for certain which was a bigger change for us, becoming first time parents or having a second child. Becoming first time parents was definitely the harder change on us as a couple but adding another kid to the mix was, while not the most difficult, made a huge impact on our family dynamic. It lead to BT working nights so he could care for her so that lead to me caring for two kids alone almost every night with one starting school (and that was incredibly hard (also a different story)) and us hardly ever seeing each other for 2 years. But we made it through and now our dynamic is settling down into something more comfortable for everyone and both kids get to see both parents everyday.

I will say I'm happy that we waited till he was older*. I'm not sure how I would have handled two babies or a newborn and a toddler. That, to me, seems like it would be the hardest thing of all.


*I have more to say on spacing but this thing has gotten super long so I'll save it.

Friday, June 27, 2014

A little less

Every now and then someone on one of my social media feeds decides to take a break from it all. I have one Facebook acquaintance who is taking 6 months off of personal social media. I'm not inclined to taking a full out break but I am occasionally tempted. What I think I might do though is do less. Sadly the goal I'm having the hardest time with is being on my electronics less. I know what I'm teaching my kids by example but I always think well let me check X really quick and then I stay looking at links to articles and blog posts instead of just putting the phone, tablet, whatever done almost right away. In other words, it's never really quick. So I'm turning notifications off. I'm limiting myself how much I get to check. Maybe 3 times a day to start, I'm not sure. Basically I'm thinking that no electronics from when I get home till they are in bed (this does not count my Nook for reading). When I'm with my family, I want to be with my family. Maybe a slackening in my own usage will help change some of the habits that my son has picked up. All in all, a little less plug-in can't be a bad thing.

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Baby Doll (1956)

Yesterday the big news in entertainment was the death of Eli Wallach. As much as I enjoy old movies, I didn't know the name off hand so I went looking and that lead me to his first movie, Baby Doll. Eli Wallach is known for The Magnificent Seven and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly among other things and was never considered a heartthrob, possibly because he was primarily a character actor.

Based on a Tennesse Williams' play, Baby Doll is about a 19 year old girl who was married off to an older husband because her dying father wanted her taken care of. A deal was struck with the husband that the marriage will not be consummated till Baby Doll's 20th birthday which is just a few days away. Baby Doll actually sleeps in a crib (much like a current toddler bed) and behaves rather childishly. I personally interpret all of this as mechanisms to keep her husband, Archie Lee, away as she finds him unattractive and old and seems to look for reasons to break the deal. Her husband, frustrated with his wife and his failing business, burns down a neighboring cotton gin. The owner vows revenge and visits the next day obstinately to have Archie Lee gin his cotton but really to find proof that he committed the arson. After meeting Baby Doll, he begins a seduction of her in effort to get her to admit Archie Lee's guilt.

Baby Doll is a movie known for being denounced and banned for its sexual themes. I read a few things yesterday that dealt with the theme of adultery but mostly it was the idea of feminine sexuality that upsets its critics. That a girl might want to have sex for her own pleasure was a radical idea at the time. But there is no actual sex shown in the movie rather it is implied and the scene that so upset people, albeit slightly creepy and outdated by today's standards, actually had little to do with sex. But there is something about the way Wallach's character, Vacarro, speaks to Baby Doll and the way he carcasses her that is sexy as hell. The touching and the whispering and the way the camera closes in on them makes it one of the most intimate moments I've seen. And this is, I believe, where Baby Doll begins to experience a sexual awakening. Her experience thus far as been boys and men trying to force themselves on her and now there is a man telling her she is delicate and soft and caressing her. The scene alone comes off creepy but somehow arousing on its own. Viewed in context of the whole movie, it really brings together that this is the moment that Baby Doll first experiences the idea of sex for pleasure.


I've seen it mentioned in several comments that Baby Doll is just a pawn for these two men and that is despicable. And yes it is but the thing is even once she knows that Vacarro is just using her to find out Archie Lee's guilt, she still asks him to stay and take a "nap." Now the nap can be taken as an actual nap or it can be seen as a "nap." It's claimed by Vacarro himself to just be a nap but certainly something has changed in Baby Doll. She exhibits a more grown up style afterwards and, in fact, dresses to mimic Vacarro's dark clothing. She also somehow becomes a bit more sensible though still prone to immaturity.



 The crib itself can be taken as a symbol of her growth. In the beginning she is clinging to her virginity more out of disgust for her husband and as a weapon to get what she wants. She uses the nursery as a means to that end. But suddenly, with Vaccaro, she is offering it to him as a place to lay down and she cares for him in a tender fashion. Afterwards, he seems more caring of her than before. Before he was ruthless in his seduction and treating her like a child in order to gain proof of Archie Lee's crime. After he tries to save her from her increasingly unhinged husband as well as maintain some semblance of normalcy in face of an angry man. The characters are all once sympathetic and gross as most people are, but Archie Lee seems to be the foulest of them all. And while Baby Doll is saved from consummating the marriage she is ultimately also left alone by the two men who wanted to use her for their own separate gains.
(Interestingly the ending of the movie came out of the idea that an adulteress must be punished in some fashion as was dictated by the Motion Picture Production Code of the time. Since a case could be made that Baby Doll did not commit adultery, she was allowed to survive as it were but not with a completely happy ending. The play ends more happily for the lovers than the movie.)



* Though I've included key scenes it really is a movie worth watching but be warned that racism is pretty prevalent throughout the film.

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Qualifications

I've decided to quit qualifying what I say. It's sort of instinctual, something girls are taught mostly. As a reference librarian, I find most of the time when I hear "can I ask a stupid question" it's from a girl. The other morning I read something on a blog about confidence and girls and then I was commenting on a Facebook post about motherhood and I realized that I wanted to qualify my statements with "of course I love my kids." That's when I realized I don't want to do that anymore. I was chosen by the associate dean as a representative of my rank to help with a project. My first instinct was to think that she had made a mistake and then to say "well I don't know why she chose me." But the truth is I know why she chose me. Out of the all the instructors I tend to be less emotional, more rationale, and pretty level-headed. So I can definitely see why I was chosen. All of these things together made me realize how much I qualify my statements or opinions.

"Of course I love my kids," "maybe it's just me," "I have a maybe dumb question"

Anyone who knows me knows I love my kids and I shouldn't feel like I have to end any statement, even one in which I am complaining about them, with how much I love them. I see that on blogs all the time. Moms complain or talk about how hard mothering can be, and it is, but then always end the post with something sappy about how much they love them (I'm guilty of this as well). I rarely see daddy blogs do this. Kids are hard work and it's not a bad thing to feel overwhelmed with them. We get overwhelmed with paid work and most people will complain about it from time to time. And last I checked more money went out of my wallet than in because I have children.

It's funny because after I made this decision I was writing up a presentation proposal with a co-worker and she asked my opinion on something. I started to say "No offense but" then I stopped myself. I explained to her how I am not qualifying my statements anymore and then said "So I guess what I mean is I don't care if I offend you?" She laughed but said it was a good goal. The thing is if I want my kids to model good and confident behavior I need to start exhibiting it. And this is just one way I want them to see that their opinions matter, no qualifications necessary.

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Potty Training {Part it doesn't matter}

I took the Friday before Memorial Day as planned in order to start laying a foundation and to get this kid out of diapers once and for all. I forgot that she is so very much like me and that nothing will persuade her to do what she doesn't want to do. Normally I'm not about making my kids grow up faster than they want but I know she's ready or so I thought. She's almost ready, like on the edge but she's not willing to tip over the edge and so we reached an impasse the second day in. Optimally potty training happens after age 2. I know this. And I know from experience that training (a boy at least) after 3 is even hardener. I also know she's barely 2. But still I try. I tried. The first day she thought it was fun but never gave an indication of needing to go and never actually went in the potty.  She enjoyed the rewards though and tried all day for me to just give them to her rather than earning them. But by the 2nd day she was over it. She was tired of me making her sit on the toilet and she just did not want to. While I hate to use the word "quit" frankly I quit at the end of the second day. We weren't getting anywhere and she was tired of me and vice versa. I'm honestly not trying to push this on her but it's just she seems so ready and I'm so afraid to lose my window. Lately she wants to sit on the potty before her bath and sometimes she will try to change herself but she will not tell me before she goes.  It's so weird. I'm getting mixed signals. So now I'm wondering if I should take the last weekend of June and try again. I guess I'll try to suss out the situation over the next couple of weeks and see where we stand.

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Game on

Sometime this baseball season it dawned on me that we are a sports family. I know that should have occurred to me at some point before but I think it was the immediate switch from soccer to baseball that did it. See, I'm not a sports person per se. I've only recently gotten into watching football and I was never interested/good at sports as a child so they were never really my thing. BT, on the other hand, has played his whole life and was a great track runner in high school. So when Bub turned 3 and I noticed a sign that said a local club started soccer at 3 years old I texted BT and asked if I should sign him up. Hell, yeah was the answer I received. So Bub has been playing soccer in the fall since he was 3. Then t-ball started at the age of 4. He missed playing when he was 5 since it started right after I had Button and I couldn't handle a newborn and baseball at the same time (weak, I know). So it's been 3 years of baseball and 6 seasons of soccer. He seems to enjoy playing and we all like going and watching. It can be a lot of shuttling around with practices and such but I know that it will get to be more and more as he gets older.

Eventually, I'm sure, Button will want to do as her older brother does and she will start soccer too. I'm thinking I will sign her up for the 3 year old soccer even though Bub doesn't play with that club anymore. His current one starts at age 5 but the 3 year old soccer is the cutest thing ever so I want to see her do that. If she wants to play ball too when she is old enough than I will sign her up for that too. But part of me hopes she takes after me and wants to do dance as I did for so long. I would love that so much. Whatever she wants to do, we will make it happen. I think it's important for kids to do at least one other thing outside of school and I think team sports are great. And I may not understand everything that happens out on the field but I sure enjoying watching the kids get out there and play!


Friday, May 30, 2014

Repainting

We've lived in our house a little over 6 years. When we moved in all the rooms were painted with a flat green or beige paint which is terrible when you have a toddler like we did at the time. Slowly over the years each room has been repainted to a prettier and more kid-friendly finish with the exception being the master bedroom. Finally though we are getting a bedroom redo. I got a new bedspread set for my birthday and then the next day I picked out some samples to go with it and painted a few swatches on the walls to live with for a while to see how I feel about them. Pretty good as it turns out. The bedroom is going to be sort of a dark teal and the bathroom a yellow. What's amazing about this is how much research I've put into finish.

Everyone, it seems, has a different opinion of what should go where. I usually go for a satin or a semi-gloss because both are easy to clean but I have to paint the ceiling in the bathroom because of mildew issues. I don't want it to be too shiny up there. I also had to make a decision of color. I think I'm going to paint the ceiling in the bathroom the same color as the walls and see how I like that. I'm nervous that it might be too much but what the hay, right? It's just paint. My cousin said satin would be fine up there and she's painted more rooms than I have so I think I will go with that. I'm excited to finally have my bedroom and bath have some color and look pretty. I've already starting priming the bathroom with a mold and mildew resistant priming and I'm looking forward to getting the paint on the walls.

A sham and the paint samples

Friday, May 2, 2014

Potty training {Part Ready}

I get the feeling that potty training is different with every child. Or maybe that's just me because I'm going from a child who was basically forced to potty train to one who is incredibly interested in the whole thing. Still it's weird for me. It feels like it's been a long time since I've done this but it's only been 4 years. Yet I'm not entirely sure where to start especially with a barely 2 year old.

Pinterest and the internet tells me I can potty train her in 3 days. But those methods rarely say at what age to start. Button has been showing interest in a big way lately though. The other day when I was changing her she spotted a pair of Hello Kitty undies in her drawer and wanted to put them on. I told her panties were for big girls who use the potty and so she decided she wanted to sit on the potty so she could wear her underwear. This was a big step because up until that point she was telling us when she was wet but when I would ask her if she wanted to use the potty she'd tell me no. Now she was wanting to at least sit on it. This is certainly the right direction. So now this week twice in a row she's sat on the potty, never actually using it, but at least sitting there. She has no interest in the baby potty that Bub use instead she wants to use the big toilet. Luckily we still have the seat with the built in potty seat and that thing is the best.

At her 2 year check-up, I mentioned all this to her doctor and he basically said I needed to jump on this as soon as possible. I talked to her daycare and they told me just to let them know and they will work on it at school too. She's still in the 1 year room, waiting for space to open with the 2 year olds but there is a little bathroom off of that room so she's good to go there. Now it's a matter of finding the time. I'm thinking I'll give it a try Memorial Day weekend. I can take the Friday off so it's just the 2 of us the first day and then we will have 3 more days after that with her brother around but then that might not be a bad thing. He will encourage her and she loves it when he pays attention to her. So I'm excited and cautiously optimistic about this. I think she is, for real, ready and not just because I want her to be. I'm mean, she tells us when she needs to be changed and will lead us to the changing table. This child is more than ready to get going on this and so am I.

This came up on Timehop the other day. The more things change...


Friday, April 4, 2014

Flamingo party {2 year old}

 Last Sunday we had Button's 2nd birthday party. I did a flamingo theme because, for some reason, I've developed a liking for flamingos for her. So last summer when I saw that the Dollar Tree had flamingo party stuff, I spent about $10 on plates, napkins, cups, an inflatable flamingo and a few other small decorations. I didn't know what I was going to do with them but, hey, it was cheap and why not?  I bought a scrapbook kit from Sweet Shoppe Designs called Coconut Grove to make invitations and whatever I needed. I gathered ideas from Pinterest and around the web and got started mid-February/early March. I found a few ideas for invitations and, in the end, this is what I came up with.

The invitations
I made a matching banner using the kit and strung it up on blue ribbon across our entrance way to the kitchen. I hung the inflatable flamingo from the chandler and we blew up pastel balloons for the tray ceiling. I had a giant wall hanging that had 2 flamingos on it from the dollar store (no picture) that I hung over the front door and I hung a few cut out flamingos on the mantle under which we put the gifts.

A few decorations

I decided on triple coconut cupcakes and chocolate cupcakes. The coconut cupcakes were completely from scratch while the chocolate cupcakes were from a box. The chocolate fudge cupcakes ended up having strawberry icing with dark Lindor truffles in the center. I halved each recipe so I'd only have 12 of each instead of 24. I made 2 different cupcake wrapper in two of the patterns from the invitation, one with 2 flamingos and one with the number 2. I made water bottle labels with either a 2 or a L (her first initial) with a flamingo overlay (this was a great tutorial on it).


The party turned out great, in my opinion, despite me having been super sick the day before. Everything looked nice and all our guests had a good time.  She got quite a few things, though mostly clothes which she needed. Among other things, my mom bought her an InnoTab 3 Baby and some shoes and BT's mom got her a balance bike and a helmet. The helmet she loves, the bike we are working on. My sister got her a water table which she and Bub played with that afternoon and we got her a grocery cart that she now careens around the house pushing. We also got her a Curious George tea set and we have been treated to several tea parties already. 


I feel like I did a few less decorative things for this party than I did for her 1st party. I enjoy making these things so much. I practically need another kid  (haha NO) so I can make more party things. So another party in the books.

Even her dress and hair clip were flamingo themed

Thursday, April 3, 2014

Still in the right direction

So we are at the beginning of April and I'm still walking and doing Weight Watchers. I feel like a pat on the back is in order. I'm losing weight very slowly at about a 1/2 a week. I know the desire to see a more rapid weight loss but I'm feeling like slow and steady is going to win this race. Having co-workers who want to walk is helpful as is meal planning. Meal planning is not one of my favorite things especially right now when the temptation is to grab something to go with all of the sports practices we have right now. But that's not good for anyone's health or my wallet. The weekly meal planning and grocery shopping is good though. I can plan healthy meals and, it's nice, every night to know what we are eating. And, yes, sometimes we have a frozen pizza but we are not eating out and that's a good thing.

It's frustrating sometimes to just not do everything I want to do or eat whatever I want. But it's not that I can't have fast food, in fact the other day I was tired and he had baseball practice so we got McDonald's. Not the best choice but sometimes I think it's okay. It's the all the time that matters. It's the all the time that is not okay. So it's a work in progress as are most things in life. And I'm trying to keep in mind that it's about the health and feeling better and maybe not so yucky that I'm looking for, the weight loss is a factor in that but it's not the complete endgame. The goal is good health.

Friday, March 28, 2014

Two is the new thing

So Button is finally officially a 2 year old! I was looking at pictures of her from when she was a baby and it is simply amazing to me how big she is now. She can follow directions and she is a helper girl. She talks so much and says so many words and short sentences. She is completely enamored of her big brother and follows him around doing whatever he is doing or trying to. She really thinks she is as big as him. She loves the dogs and will stand in the middle of a room calling out their names wanting them to come to her. Unfortunately for her they are unlikely to do that but still she tries. She is such a sweet girl, very curious and demanding but her nature is so loving and determined.

We are celebrating Sunday with a small family party (Flamingo themed!) but I have plans for her actual birthday today. I wanted to spend the day with her but a library conference got in my way so after work I'm going to go get her and bring to Build-a-Bear. I'm pretty excited to get to do this with her. It's going to be so fun.

I know from experience that trouble is about to begin because age 2 to 4 is insanity for toddlers (and parents) but I also know from experience that we can make it through to the other side. But right now we are getting sweet baby kisses and lot of hugs and cuddles. And it is so fun watching her discovery new things and learn everything.

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Getting through it

Between soccer ending and baseball beginning, I feel like the stress had doubled down on me. BT is still out with training so I'm running around being primary for both kids. She's not so much a problem. Just a drop-off at daycare and that's it (so far). Thank God for my mom because I would have collapsed in a puddle of tears by now. She's the one who picks them up and watches them after school and has been watching them on Saturdays while I do the grocery shopping. But Bub has soccer practice on Mondays and now is going to have baseball practice on Tuesdays and Sundays, something I just found out on this past Sunday. So this week has become soccer practice Monday, baseball practice Tuesday, parent/teacher conference Thursday night, soccer games on Friday AND Saturday, Button's birthday on Friday with her party on Sunday, PLUS I have a library conference Thursday and Friday (thankfully in my city) at which I'm presenting. I have a plan to get through it all but mostly I'm trying to take it one day at a time. Thankfully BT will be home this weekend to help with the cleaning. Soccer is almost over. One more practice and then a tournament at the first of April and then we can concentrate solely on baseball. Next week doesn't look nearly this bad. I feel like I've done a good job keeping it together this month but it's like everything converged onto this one week.

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Sick and tired, tired of sick

I just realized that I've barely posted this month despite having the occasional topic to write about. I've been sick for 3 weeks now which unhappily coincided with BT leaving for training for his new job and leaving me to care for the 2 hooligans. I thought I was getting better but then I relapsed or something because this weekend I ended up feeling worse. I ended up at the doctor on Monday where I got a shot of cortisone and an antibiotic.  I also swung by the aromatherapy place for some thieves oil. Both of these things seem to have helped and technically I can breathe through my nose but I'm still congested. I thought I'd be well by now. I don't know what this cold is but it hangs on, that's for sure. I'm just hoping, at this point, to be well for Button's birthday next week (!) and all that is going to be going on for that.

Friday, March 7, 2014

Losing a cousin

While we were in Oklahoma for Mardi Gras one of my older cousins died. It's a sad thing as he was only 43 and had (has) 3 kids, 2 of which are about graduated from high school. I hadn't seen him in quite a long time so I have very little personal grief but I do feel sad for my aunt (and his brothers, not to mention his wife and kids, of course). I can't imagine losing a child at all. I don't even want to try.

I was thinking about losing a cousin though. It's a strange thing. Some people you just expect to exist in the world. A few years ago one of my older cousins on my dad's side died. I forget sometimes in my cousin count that she is gone. And I'm sure that the same will happen here. When you rarely see someone that you are related to it's hard to remember they are gone. But still family is family and the loss is a terrible thing.

Monday, February 24, 2014

Into the fray

The good news is that BT got a new job. A day time job in fact so that's pretty awesome. The bad news is that he has to go for training and won't be around for a while. The worst new is that Button has to go to daycare now. Yeah, maybe that's not the worst news but it feels like it. It feels like it because I've enjoyed knowing she was home with her dad and I knew for certain how her day was going and that she was happy. But all the research I did in the past on daycares paid off because I was able to call up a few that we saw and find her a spot almost right away. My first choice had a tentative spot in 2-4 weeks. Eh, I was hesitate to take it because what if the spot hadn't opened up when we needed it? I can only take so much work off and I've been doing a lot of that lately. Plus soon it will just be down to me to take care of them. So I called my second choice and they had 2 spots available right then. It was decided to take the sure thing. Plus this place has the bonus of holiday care so Bub will have a place to go on the days that he is off and I am not. Heck I might even make him go on a few of those days so I can get a few things done in peace. And it has a summer camp so he will be able to go to that. He went there a few years ago and had a good time so I know that he will enjoy it this summer too. This way they will be at the same place and it will be easier to drop off/pick up whenever they need to go at the same time. So that makes things a bit easier on me. And because she is enrolled there, he has first choice at a summer camp spot.

All in all, I think it's going to work out fine. She is becoming more and more interested in other kids and wants to play with them. She seems to be craving some socialization. I'm not sure if 40 hours a week is what she necessarily wants but it's what she is getting. They will teach her things and it will be a good learning experience. I know she's only 2 but it's probably a good time for her to get out of the house and start hanging out with others. And if nothing else it's probably only for a couple of years anyway if I can get her into the preschool at Bub's school. There is a sense of accomplishment not putting her in daycare for almost the first 2 years of her life, but I am also afraid it will make it harder. I've seen kids starting daycare after years at home with mom (or dad) and it can be sad. I'm sure we will have our ups and downs but once she gets use to it, I think she is going to like it.

Friday, February 21, 2014

The differences between

I have few opportunities to observe Button in social settings. Mostly because she is home all of the time and I am at work or it could be the fact that we don't socialize a whole lot anyway. Generally I find her to be much more reserved with people she doesn't know. Thanksgiving 2012 when she was 8 months old we went to Oklahoma and she didn't deal well with all the people around sticking their faces in hers. She wants to play when she wants to play and not otherwise. And she's not comfortable dealing with people she doesn't know. She had a better time at my cousin's house where it was just us and my cousin and her husband. I was not use to this with Bub. My son has never met a stranger and will join right in the kids or talk to whoever will listen. He reminds of BT's father in that respect. Just a friendliness and an assumption that, of course, everyone wants to talk to him. Having a shyer child is not something I've dealt with up to that point.

So we went to a party at the beginning of the month for my friend's 2 year old. We got there a few minutes late and they had already started opening gifts so everyone was already there. Bub came along and he walked in and started holding a conversation with a lady there. I had to call him back since she was trying to watch what was going on. He sat down and started playing a game. Meanwhile, Button went and hid behind the chair because everyone was looking at her. And then I had to hold her. She perked up a bit when everyone started moving around and no one focused on her. She reminds me so much of me. Being the center of attention is the worst. And then the toys began to come out of their boxes and she got to play with some cars and trucks and that made her happy. Plus her big brother was playing with her and then my friend's son. And they went outside and that is one of her happy places.

It's interesting having two kids with such different dispositions. Not that I expected her to be like him in every way but I am occasionally surprised. Having a friendly child and then having a shy child takes some getting use to. People say how serious she is but I've never found her to be that way. But then she is my child and has never been that way with me. For him, everything he says is important and he expects everyone to want to listen. I don't think she is going to be that way though I'm trying to encourage her to go play. I won't be far away for now.

Thursday, February 20, 2014

The Walking Club

It's amazing that it's mid-February and I'm still working on this healthy goal. Amazing because there's always a good chance of me just quitting. I ended up joining Weight Watchers after all. I like their program even though I have to get use to this Points Plus thing. So I am once again learning how to eat healthy but, more than that, think about what I am eating and whether an entire chocolate bar is worth the points. Case in point, the other day BT bought mini chocolate donuts for dessert. But I only had a few points left. So I could have one mini donut or I could have some of the Ready to Go Sno-ball I bought the other day for the same amount of points. I went with the thing that gave me more for the same amount of points. I think that is what Weight Watchers teaches (or it should) more than anything. To think about what you are eating and make healthy choices. One day I won't even have to think about brown rice over white and I hope my kids will do the same. I'd like to teach them now about healthy choices so hopefully they won't have this struggle too. Because sure they are small now and a bit underweight (or at least him. She's got a pretty round little belly right now) but that might not always be the case.

And, in the second burst of healthy choices, I joined the university Walking Club. It's part of a study by one of the Allied Health professors but I thought it might be a good motivator. It's a 6 month study so I am obligated to do this walking thing 3 times a week at minimum for 6 months. We have to record our steps and send them in weekly. It hasn't been a full week yet but so far I've done alright. Two of my co-workers signed up and that is going to helpful. It always helps me to have someone telling me that we have to get up and walk around. So now I am a member of a walking club. Look at me, making good choices!

Friday, February 7, 2014

Sleep tight

Apparently 2 year sleep regression is a real thing and I was unaware of it until now. Time has provided enough distance between Bub's 2 year phases that I've forgotten some of the things he did. Was he as destructive as her? Endless energetic? Dramatic? I'm sure the answer was yes or mostly yes. I feel like she is next level toddler.  He's a pretty chill dude all around and she is so... determined. Anyway. Sleeping.

Recently she stopped wanting to go to bed and just started screaming bloody murder when she was put down. I thought it was her 2 year molars but then nothing happened back there so now I'm not sure if they are coming or not right now. But Google tells me that there is something called 2 year sleep regression. Basically around this age is when they start exerting even more independence (that's possible?) and want to control their circumstances even more. It was suggested to letting her control as much of her nightly routine. We already let her pick her books and I'll let her "brush" her teeth after I do it first. She wanted to go to bed with a book and turn on her flashlight friend to "read" by. Fine, that's fine. Then she didn't want to do that and screamed when her flashlight was turned on. And then screamed when it was off. And then screamed when her butterfly was on and then off and she has way too many nighttime toys but she loves them all. She was stalling. I'm not a fan of the cry it out method but I use it. I hate hearing her crying but there are only so many times I can go in there before it becomes her crying to get me into the room. And she's almost 2 so it's not biological necessity bringing it on. It's her own manipulations.

We've been discussing transitioning to a toddler bed for a few months now and in the end we decided to wait til she was at least 2. But with her recent sleeping issues it was decided to convert her bed to a toddler bed. It was pretty easily done since it only required removing one side of the crib and lowering her mattress all the way down. Since we didn't get the toddler railing I put a pool noodle under her sheet and mattress pad to prevent her falling out (a Pinterest idea that has worked really well so far). Lo and behold, she's been pretty happy about it. She climbs happily in bed which is pretty adorable and lays down and covers up. There is still some protestations when I leave the room but nowhere near the seemingly endless wailing that were occurring. So far she's been happy and that makes me happy. This is not a girl who is going to wait to grow up. She's going to do it her own way.

Big girl bed now

Friday, January 24, 2014

Sneaux Day

We are having an actual snow day today. There isn't very much snow, mostly freezing rain and sleet and lots of ice but there's been a little bit of snow fall and that's always exciting down here. I know most of the folks up north are sick of snow but it's not something that happens often around here. I think the last time might have been when Bub was 2 or 3. At any rate it's freezing outside and I'm glad that both are schools are closed and I don't have to drive out in this. If one thing can be counted on it's that people in southern Louisiana cannot handle too much cold and ice and snow are out of our range. Still it's nice to get a day home with my kids even if we are going to be watching TV most of the day.

Our "snow" day

Thursday, January 16, 2014

A lesson in responsibility

I have a tendency to just do for Bub. I cajole him every morning into getting out of bed, into eating his breakfast, into getting dressed, into getting him into the car. Basically most of my morning is spent saying "Now you need to do this and then this and then this" over and over again. It was easier when he was a baby/toddler. I had to dress him and feed him. It was easier when he was a preschooler because even though he could dress himself I still felt like it was okay to do as much as I could for him to smooth the morning over. I spoiled him and it shows. But I'm tired now and he's at the age where he knows how the morning should go. He knows the routine. It's the same routine since he started school, since he started daycare actually. So I told him yesterday after getting fed up with repeating myself 5 times in a row. From now on he is responsible for his morning routine. I'll still get him up and give him his medicine and I'll give him time warnings but I'm not going to tell him what to do. He knows what to do. I expect him to do it.

This morning didn't go so well. First he refused to get out of bed till I dragged him out. Then he laid on the sofa till I gave a 10 minute warning and that's when he finally got dressed. And this was where I made a mistake. He wanted cereal and I gave it to him. Now I know how long it takes that child to eat a bowl of cereal and sure enough the time came and he had barely gotten into it. But I took it away and then went and found his glasses (on the floor *sigh*). I told him I was going out to the car. All he had to do was put on his shoes, grab a jacket, and his backpack and get out of the door. I waited a good while. He finally came out messing with the zipper. He'd been in the house finding a jacket and then trying to get it zipped. Great. Now we were really late and all on account of a zipper. We might have made it to the bus stop on time if there hadn't been a line of traffic and someone who refused to take a right turn out even when it was clear. I'm not sure what was happening in that car but it took forever to move and so we missed the bus. I followed the bus to the next stop but he missed it there too (despite getting out of the car and running, the driver didn't see him) so I sort of blindly followed the bus and he got it at the next stop. All of this making me 30 minutes late to work. In the meantime, I noticed Bub was not wearing his glasses. Where are the glasses? He forgot them. And that's when I lost it. I was already following the damn bus around town. I handed him his glasses. He put them down to get a jacket. Why didn't he put them on his face!? He didn't know. I told him I was really angry at him. First the bus, now the glasses. I expect better of him tomorrow.

So really who was at fault? Me for expecting a smooth morning the first time I put this much responsibility for his morning routine on him? Him for ignoring me all this time? Both probably. Tomorrow I will put a jacket out for him so he sees it right away. I will make sure his glasses are on his face and I will either make him eat in the car or get breakfast at school if there is only 5 minutes left. But I will again leave the rest up to him. I won't be able to do it all for him forever and it's time he learned to handle this.


Wednesday, January 15, 2014

One Word

Last year I choose "optimism/acceptance" as my word for the year. I don't know if I entirely succeeded in living out that word. I always have a desire for things to be better or easier or at least not as hard. But I tried my best and I feel like I'm in a decent place with work and home and the balance between. It also helped having one of the more negative influences at work move on and be replaced with a positive and fun person. I didn't realize how much she was bringing me down until she was gone.

But recently I read a book called We Were Liars by E. Lockhart and in it a supporting character tells the main character to be a little kinder than you have to and I have been thinking about that ever since. And when I googled that this quote from J.M. Barrie came up:
“Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.” So true.

So my word for this year is Kinder. I would like to be kinder. By nature I am generous. I liked making and giving and helping. But am I kind enough? I don't feel like I am. I can be so judgmental and harsh. Not about everything and not about everyone and not all the time but I have so many little moments that I wish I had been a different person, kinder in my attitude and my actions. I would like to be kinder to my co-workers especially the ones that give me the most trouble, and kinder to my kids and my husband especially when they are driving me crazy, and kinder to myself especially when I make mistakes. Personally I think the world could use a little more kindness and I am going to try to put that thought into action.

Thursday, January 9, 2014

The Dinner Goal

Growing up we didn't have family dinner for a variety of reasons but we didn't eat many meals together.  My childhood home had a living room and a den. It also had a dining area off the kitchen that didn't see much use as near as I can remember. On the whole I ate alone in the living room especially once my sister got her own TV in her room. We all kind of went our own separate ways for dinner. It's sounds terrible but it wasn't. It was actually fine. It was when I meet my husband and ate at his parent's house that I realized that families do, in fact, eat dinner together at a table and not in front of the TV. It was something new for me. So dinner time became a much more together time. We've almost always had dinner time together and with no TV since we've lived together. There are always exceptions but as a rule.

Somehow lately I've let dinners take a downward turn. It began when BT started working nights as a special now and again thing that Bub and I did. Then it very slowly wound down into him where he could see the TV and then ended up with him eating at a TV tray while I ate dinner with Button at the table. GASP! I know, such poor parenting. I realized late last year what was happening and that I was letting it happen because it is just easier. But I let the year play out since he was vacation and all. But I explained to him what was going to happen when school started again. He was going to eat dinner with us at the table with no TV and no electronics. The same would go for me. Because along with letting him eat in front of the TV I was playing on my phone while I ate.

School started on Tuesday. He was not happy. He was doubly not happy to find me making him sit at the table and eat with me and his sister with nothing to entertain me. And you know what? It was fine. He talked to me and told me about school and his friends. It was really nice. Last night BT was home and so we all sat down at the table. Bub wanted to play on his new tablet but I told him no. He pouted but it was good. I think once he realizes that this is a permanent thing he will be cool with it. He's a fairly adaptable child. And eating in the living room can go back to being a special treat instead of the norm. This might turn out to be the easiest goal of them all.


Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Seven times (The Healthy Goal)

How many times have I written this post? About being healthy, losing weight, doing something to feel better about me. I'm afraid, to be honest, that I will keep writing this post which means I will keep starting over rather than sticking to it. But I said that a goal of mine this year is to get healthy and part of that is losing weight and becoming more active. I was going to join Weight Watchers to start but if I'm being honest right now I don't want to spend that money. Can you put a price on your own health? No, but I can refrain from spending $50 right now that I could use for something else like dinner or gas or dentistry for my child. Instead I downloaded My Fitness Pal, a free app that lets put in your goals and keep track of all that you eat, drink, exercise, etc. You can put in how much weight you want to lose (1 lb a week for me) and it will calculate how many calories to consume in a day. It also factors in any exercise that you do. It reminds me of the Weight Watchers online but there are no points. Frankly I like points. It's easier for me to keep track of points in my head but until I decided to put down the money on that system, this will have to do. I decided to start on my first day back at work because I can only eat what I bring in contrast to being at home where I have all that food (haha like we have food in our house) available. So how's that working out? Not too bad. But it's only day 2 and I'm fighting the urge to be negative about the whole thing and just try.

I did get up yesterday and do a 30 minute walking workout video and I'm proud of that. I was going to get up again this morning for Pilates but last night was the coldest night we are probably going to have all year and I was loathed to drag myself out of my warm bed plus I somehow hurt my foot. But my plan is to definitely do cardio (like a walking video) at least 3 times a week and then intersperse Pilates or yoga in the days in between. If I don't do the Pilates or yoga then it's whatever because right now I'm viewing them as bonus and the cardio is really what I am looking for.

Right now I am cautiously hopeful about this whole thing. I went for a long time with excercising everyday and I know that I can do it again. I just have to believe in myself and get some stick-to-itness in my attitude

Monday, January 6, 2014

Adventures in Potty Training

So here's what I learned on the preliminary potty training day with Button. She's not ready. She not only refused to sit on the potty but managed to hold it from 8:30 to 11:30 til I put a diaper on her for her nap. At that point I don't want to say I gave up but I figure out that she wasn't ready yet. I think she is on her way and I really wanted to give her an idea of what it feels like to go. I know that it is hard for them when they are use to diapers. She did enjoy wearing the underwear and had absolutely no trouble peeing in them and then getting me to change her. She enjoyed running away from me and being half naked even more. Toddlers, the original nudists. So I will revisit the potty training another day. Maybe closer to her 2nd birthday.

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Preliminary Potty Training

So today begins Day 1 of potty training for Button. I'm honestly not expecting to come out of this with a fully potty trained 21 month old. But I'm home and it's seems like a good time to introduce her to the concept. I'm fully armed with 9 pairs of training pants and a willingness to spend a lot of time cleaning up messes. We took down the potty from the attic about 2 weeks ago and she was very interested, spending some time sitting on it and even accidentally peeing once. But since then she's grown use to it so I don't know how this is going to go. The internet tells me that I can potty train a child in 3 days. I think the internet is working with a child who is on the other side of 2. But my mom tells me that I was around this age when I potty trained and I am slightly hopeful because she is always interested in doing what her brother is doing. At the very least she will start to learn when she is "going" and maybe making her aware will be helpful down the line. I think that there is a window of opportunity with kids to get this done. We waited too long for Bub looking for all the signs they tell you to look for, starting closer to 3, and he was 3 1/2 when he was finally fully potty trained. Maybe if we had tried sooner, it would have happened sooner. Who knows? But I am willing to keep trying with Button starting now in order to find that window a whole lot sooner than 3 1/2.

But how awesome would it be to not have to deal with diapers ever again? If she was fully potty trained by her 2nd birthday... a mother can dream.

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Happy New Year (playing catchup)

Happy 2014! I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season. Ours has been pretty busy but fun. Christmas we spent with my family and everyone enjoyed all their presents. Bub and I received archery sets but we've only got to shoot a few times, mostly because of the rain. Button's been enjoying her new barn and dollhouse and Bub's favorite present is the Kindle Fire my sister got him (she spoils him). 

Yesterday for New Year's Eve we took the kids to the local childrens museum to their New Year's Noon party. It was super crowded but they had fun. At noon, the museum does a countdown and then confetti and toys fall out of balls hanging from the ceiling. They have outdoor carnival games and then all the regular museum exhibits too. This is the 3rd time we've gone and Bub likes it. Then last night the kids and I went to dinner with my parents and sister and had some seafood. It was a long wait but the food was good. We made it home early and not one of the three of us saw the new year come in. I think BT was the only one awake.

Today we had lunch with my parents and spent some more time over there since my sister is going back home this afternoon. It's been a fairly quiet day. We watched LSU play and then we left before she did since Button was desperately in need of a nap. My plans for the rest of the day include doing nothing. It's been a whirlwind of activity since winter break started and I think we need some downtime at home. And anyway I think we need to rest up since tomorrow starts day 1 of a preliminary attempt at potty training. I have a feeling tomorrow is going to involve a lot of cleaning up.