As a parent I expected it to be difficult. I knew there would be challenges. I know there are worse things I will have to over come as a Mom later down the line. But, I must say that right now, Bedtime is the Battle at the Home front these days.
My son was a dream to put to bed. My mother was astonished when she came to visit in March. Then In-laws were amazed when they were here in December. Me, I just assumed all kids did this. I would take my bounding bundle of joy upstairs and we would follow our nightly routine. Teeth brushed, puppy in hand, blanket tag in hand (whole other blog, but basically my son rubs the tag in between his two fingers as he sleeps), pick out a book for me to read and a book for him, halfway through the story we would switch books leading me to paraphrase the new book as he always picks out a Disney book that is about 30 pages long and takes 20-30 minutes to get through. We would say our good nights, give each other a kiss, he would wave bye bye, I would shut the light out and that would be all I would hear of him till 4 or 5 am, at which point it is too late to battle and I would just put him in bed with me for the remaining time I had to sleep before work.
It was great. Blissful even. Like a clock where the arms go round everyday just the same as the day before.
Then, as the Big Steel Stick known as CVN-71 pulled up pier side in Norfolk, unbeknown to me, a gust of wind blew past my little man and took with him the ability to go to bed without a tragic fight.
It all began about 2 weeks before my husband return. K wouldn’t go to sleep with the lights off anymore. I had talked to his sitter about one of the older boys telling him scary stories and about monsters and asked for her to watch out for that. A child who has no fear all of a sudden telling me that Dragondaurs (yes Dragon + Dinosaur) lives under his bed. Seeing as we have no books and/or toys and/or movies about either of these beings I can only assume that it is another lovely thing he picked up at Day Care, along with a cold or a new knot on his head.
As much as I disliked it, I could handle the light thing. Kids go through stages and we have the light dimmers, so I would just dim the light all the way down and when I went to bed shut it off. The rest of the routine stayed the same.
Well until Daddy entered the equation again.
It is partly my fault for humoring a 2 year old. And I am hoping partly the fault of the US Navy for taking my husband away for 222 days to protect the rights of a seemingly unappreciative American population. Whatever the reason, K no longer wanted to go to bed alone. I humored him by sitting at the end of the bed while he drifted to sleep. It gave me some quite time as well and gave me an opportunity to read my book (Twilight…not sure if I am hooked yet, but it is a good read). After about 15-20 minutes I could exit the room with no resistance. I should have never honored this request. I should have known it would be my ultimate doom.
After two weeks of this edge of the bed sitting he was no longer falling asleep. Rather every attempt you would make to get up he was wide eyed and bushy tailed like he hadn’t been laying down, seemingly snoring for the past 20 minutes. It was frustrating and tiring. I should have known that he would see how much more he could get away with. So the battle begins…
Saturday night was the 1st official battle. I pronounced myself to him as the winner before things really even go going. Up and down, back and fourth to bed. Over the baby gate to the hallway the little feet would run every 10 minutes or so. I resolved myself to sit just outside the door. Made it quicker to get him to bed. Then as the furry within me started to boil over after 2 hours of this, spanking was introduced. Up and down, back and fourth, crying, screaming, telling me to get my book and sit with him. Then I decided I couldn’t spank him anymore. My heart was no longer able to stand it…so to time out we went. He would cry in the corner then come and say he was sorry. I would ask if he was ready to go to bed and he would say yes. We would get upstairs and he would ask me to get the book and sit with him. No I would say you have to go to bed, do you want to go back to the corner? The response was always yes. Finally at 2 am he fell asleep in the corner. This was a bad idea on my part. The second I took him upstairs he was awake and wanted me to stay. I laid him down and fell asleep on the floor in his room. The little stinker won!!
More to tell…stay tuned!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
2 Mom’s, a restaurant + 2 kids x 2 years old + an infant =’s???
A very short dinner and now I know why carry out was invented!
I am not sure if you could always call a restaurant and order from the menu and pick it up to go. I don’t know if this is a relatively new development, or if you have always been able to do it, my family just never did. I will say however, that it was a development of PURE GENIUS and whoever came up with it deserves a Nobel Peace Prize, because not having crazy kids in restaurants is a plus for EVERYONE involved!
I have never frowned or huffed at people with kids that get loud while you are dinning out. Maybe that was because for a good part of my life I was sitting at the table making all the noise, as the one thing my parents seem to be able to communicate on is the ability to procreate. Or maybe it was because I knew one day I would be that person. That person with the fleeting look on their face who just left work, is exhausted, just wanted to catch up with an old friend and yet their child is being a complete pain. Whatever the reason, I am glad I never made snighed remarks because I am 110% that person now!
Last night I meet up with A at the local watering whole (Chili’s). Bar/Grills are by far the best place to take small kids because they are already loud and serve alcohol to the patrons who despise the kids that are there. Her 2 girls M & A were with as well as my little Kaje, so already we were out numbered. Dinner started off great. We caught up. Her hubby is in DC, she is penciled for a ship in VA, worst case they go to Cali for a few years but she is close to her fam, but they won’t know for sure for a year. I chat about the BIG secrets we have going on at home (there are 2 yes I said 2). The drinks arrive, the kids enjoy coloring, we order dinner and continue conversation in between the constant dropping of the crayons which has me doing more squats then I did the night before at the gym. We both agree secret 1 will more then likely be a non issue. If it is it will be ok and there is still enough time to come up with plans. Secret 2 will be squeaking out any day now. It still needs to stay under wraps for at least another 4 weeks. Only 2 people besides family know what is going on and as long as the hubby can keep his mouth shut it should stay that way until the official announcement has been made. Kids burgers are at the table, enjoy their fries with some ketchup and ranch, the crayon dropping has stopped thank goodness! However baby A (the infant) does not want to sit in her seat and now would like her mom to hold her. Chatter resumes about pig flu, how we feel about pig flu, inside jokes about the pig flu. Politics and our disgust with them, our hubbies leave time, Busch Garden tickets, meeting up this weekend and cooking out with the kids and the hubbies.
Break in silence is loud and daunting. Kids are no longer happy, adult food has still not arrived. Waiter returns with adult food, kids are again satisfied with eating my dinner instead of their own. A is having a difficult time balancing baby and easting Buffalo Mini Sandwiches. I am scarffing down my salad as I know it is only a matter of minutes before the kids are dissatisfied with being here and there is no consoling them. Waiter asks “how is everything”, our response in unison, Great! Can we get 2 to go boxes and the checks? His utter confusion confirms our suspicions that he is new to the service industry…Welcome to what is fashionably known as the mommy get away! Be prepared next time you see us coming! M is content, Kaje wants out of the high chair! Fat chance of that happening. This boots may have been made for walking, but chasing is not part of their job description tonight. Bills are paid. Food is packed. Kids are loaded and out the door in 5.0 minutes…..ahh peace and quiet in the restaurant!!! It will not last long as we passed a new group of mom’s on their way in with more toddlers then parental hands.
Conversation continues on facebook. You know, the grownup way to communicate! Next time we will order the food and meet at one the houses =) Plans are set for this weekend, have a great night!
I am not sure if you could always call a restaurant and order from the menu and pick it up to go. I don’t know if this is a relatively new development, or if you have always been able to do it, my family just never did. I will say however, that it was a development of PURE GENIUS and whoever came up with it deserves a Nobel Peace Prize, because not having crazy kids in restaurants is a plus for EVERYONE involved!
I have never frowned or huffed at people with kids that get loud while you are dinning out. Maybe that was because for a good part of my life I was sitting at the table making all the noise, as the one thing my parents seem to be able to communicate on is the ability to procreate. Or maybe it was because I knew one day I would be that person. That person with the fleeting look on their face who just left work, is exhausted, just wanted to catch up with an old friend and yet their child is being a complete pain. Whatever the reason, I am glad I never made snighed remarks because I am 110% that person now!
Last night I meet up with A at the local watering whole (Chili’s). Bar/Grills are by far the best place to take small kids because they are already loud and serve alcohol to the patrons who despise the kids that are there. Her 2 girls M & A were with as well as my little Kaje, so already we were out numbered. Dinner started off great. We caught up. Her hubby is in DC, she is penciled for a ship in VA, worst case they go to Cali for a few years but she is close to her fam, but they won’t know for sure for a year. I chat about the BIG secrets we have going on at home (there are 2 yes I said 2). The drinks arrive, the kids enjoy coloring, we order dinner and continue conversation in between the constant dropping of the crayons which has me doing more squats then I did the night before at the gym. We both agree secret 1 will more then likely be a non issue. If it is it will be ok and there is still enough time to come up with plans. Secret 2 will be squeaking out any day now. It still needs to stay under wraps for at least another 4 weeks. Only 2 people besides family know what is going on and as long as the hubby can keep his mouth shut it should stay that way until the official announcement has been made. Kids burgers are at the table, enjoy their fries with some ketchup and ranch, the crayon dropping has stopped thank goodness! However baby A (the infant) does not want to sit in her seat and now would like her mom to hold her. Chatter resumes about pig flu, how we feel about pig flu, inside jokes about the pig flu. Politics and our disgust with them, our hubbies leave time, Busch Garden tickets, meeting up this weekend and cooking out with the kids and the hubbies.
Break in silence is loud and daunting. Kids are no longer happy, adult food has still not arrived. Waiter returns with adult food, kids are again satisfied with eating my dinner instead of their own. A is having a difficult time balancing baby and easting Buffalo Mini Sandwiches. I am scarffing down my salad as I know it is only a matter of minutes before the kids are dissatisfied with being here and there is no consoling them. Waiter asks “how is everything”, our response in unison, Great! Can we get 2 to go boxes and the checks? His utter confusion confirms our suspicions that he is new to the service industry…Welcome to what is fashionably known as the mommy get away! Be prepared next time you see us coming! M is content, Kaje wants out of the high chair! Fat chance of that happening. This boots may have been made for walking, but chasing is not part of their job description tonight. Bills are paid. Food is packed. Kids are loaded and out the door in 5.0 minutes…..ahh peace and quiet in the restaurant!!! It will not last long as we passed a new group of mom’s on their way in with more toddlers then parental hands.
Conversation continues on facebook. You know, the grownup way to communicate! Next time we will order the food and meet at one the houses =) Plans are set for this weekend, have a great night!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Keep your Own 2 cents!
If there is one thing that I have learned as a mother, it is that everyone has their opinion. I am one to talk! I probably have more opinions than just about anyone else I know! However, it seems to me that more people feel the “need” to share their opinion after you have a child.
I get that everyone “knows a trick” that always worked for their kids. Key word being their kids. Everyone child is different. Heck, my mother had 4 you would think she would know exactly what to do. I was 10 when my brother came along, and trust me, she didn’t always know exactly what to do even though she had already done in 3 times.
One of my best friends just had her first baby last week. Trust me, I worry about it her. Love her to death, but I worry about her a lot. She is kind of one of those people who you try to explain things to, but at the same time you know it goes in one ear and out the other. But, since you care about them you keep telling them anyway. That being said, I definitely still tell her my opinions and give her advice, but at the same time I know how stressful it is to be a new mom. Scared that everything you do is going to screw up your child for the rest of their life. That if they have food too soon they will be allergic, or if they have trouble with milk they will be lactose intolerant, or that if the pull up or stand on their feet when you are holding them they will be bow legged, and about a million other fears out there that every new mom experiences.
With all of the change with in your marriage, the addition of a new baby, all the new frustration and sleepless nights, why I ask, why does anyone feel that they have the right to tell a new mother what to do unless it is detrimental to the babies health and it is a MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL telling you what to do?
My BF’s SIL (sister in law) is a b*tch. If they had an Olympic sport for b*tchyness she would win the gold medal every year. I have never cared for this woman. Not one bit! She knows everything! No one else knows how to do things, and the way she does them is the only way to do them. Well, I got news for her, after this past week she had better never run into me in a dark ally because I am sick of the way she makes my BF feel. BF is too sweet and non-confrontational to say anything, and unfortunately seems to be a trait she and her husband share so that poor little kid is going to be one of two things, either the same way they are, or exactly 180 degrees different which will be a major shocker!
BF’s baby is slightly jaundice. No big deal, no need for lights or anything, just a few extra Dr visits and some sitting in front of the window at home. Heck a little Vitamin D from the Sun light is good for everyone. Well, the poor little thing has lost over a pound since she was born, and her jaundice levels didn’t seem to be dropping as quickly as the pediatrician would like, so they asked my BF to supplement with formula. Now given the horrendous experience my hubby and I had in the hospital I was too stressed to breast feed and my son was supplemented with formula his whole 1st 6 months. I breast feed and he had formula just fine. I am a firm believer that breast feeding is what is best for your child, however it doesn't work for everyone and sometimes your child may need more food then you can produce. I actually feel as though nwe are lucky to have such a safe and wonderful option!
1 hour after getting home from the hospital with their new baby, my BF’s SIL and family show up. 1 hour people! They probably hadn’t even unloaded the car. BF went to the nursery to feed the baby and she did just as the Dr told her. She breast feed for 10-15 minutes and then pulled out some formula and made sure she drank at least an oz. You would have thought the world was coming to an end! Her SIL stormed out of the room and right up to her husband and told her what a terrible thing she was doing! How BF was going to ruin her child and that this was just a terrible terrible thing and he needed to make it stop! Remember, this is the same woman that opted to have a c-section both times…seems a little hypocritical doesn’t it? Forget the fact that the following day when they went into the Dr office the baby has gained 4 1/2 oz's and her jaundice levels seem to be going down. The pediatrician would like them to continue breast feeding and the formula, all the while the know-it-all SIL says "Well I disagree and think you 2 are making a big mistake!" Then she and her husband preceded to walk out to their vehicle and undo the car seat from the middle of the car and latch it up behind the drives seat! Now, you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that this is not the best place for your child. A left side impact to the car could be devastating, so could a right side, which is why they tell you (and this is even in the instructions when you hook up a car seat) to put the rear facing car seat in the MIDDLE!!!! The SIL said that because she only have 4 latches in the back seat that she was only to set the child on one of the two sides. I found this very interesting seeing as I am the one who hooked up the car seat in the first place. I hooked it up the same way the Fire Chief in Virginia Beach Virginia hooked it into my truck, where I too only have 4 latches. I guess all of us out there who put 3 children in the back of SUV's are breaking the law becasuse there are only 4 latches in teh back seat, forget the fact that there are 3 child retraint ancors behind ever head rest for the forward facing car seat...which oh by the way would use the same latches in the seat! But I guess her SIL who is a stay at home mom, has recently graduated Med School and become a pediatrician as well as become a child safety seat inspector un be known to anyone.
Just as an FYI there is nothing wrong with offering a new mom advice. You never know, it may help. Just keep in mind that your advise should always be just that, advice. You should never scold someone or tell them they are “ruining” their child because what they decide to do is different from what you decide to do. Remember even Dr. Spock who everyone thought was the expert on raising children didn’t get everything right, which would be why no one reads his books anymore =) Being a parent is all about trial and error and their is already enough stress involved without your 2 cents!
I get that everyone “knows a trick” that always worked for their kids. Key word being their kids. Everyone child is different. Heck, my mother had 4 you would think she would know exactly what to do. I was 10 when my brother came along, and trust me, she didn’t always know exactly what to do even though she had already done in 3 times.
One of my best friends just had her first baby last week. Trust me, I worry about it her. Love her to death, but I worry about her a lot. She is kind of one of those people who you try to explain things to, but at the same time you know it goes in one ear and out the other. But, since you care about them you keep telling them anyway. That being said, I definitely still tell her my opinions and give her advice, but at the same time I know how stressful it is to be a new mom. Scared that everything you do is going to screw up your child for the rest of their life. That if they have food too soon they will be allergic, or if they have trouble with milk they will be lactose intolerant, or that if the pull up or stand on their feet when you are holding them they will be bow legged, and about a million other fears out there that every new mom experiences.
With all of the change with in your marriage, the addition of a new baby, all the new frustration and sleepless nights, why I ask, why does anyone feel that they have the right to tell a new mother what to do unless it is detrimental to the babies health and it is a MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL telling you what to do?
My BF’s SIL (sister in law) is a b*tch. If they had an Olympic sport for b*tchyness she would win the gold medal every year. I have never cared for this woman. Not one bit! She knows everything! No one else knows how to do things, and the way she does them is the only way to do them. Well, I got news for her, after this past week she had better never run into me in a dark ally because I am sick of the way she makes my BF feel. BF is too sweet and non-confrontational to say anything, and unfortunately seems to be a trait she and her husband share so that poor little kid is going to be one of two things, either the same way they are, or exactly 180 degrees different which will be a major shocker!
BF’s baby is slightly jaundice. No big deal, no need for lights or anything, just a few extra Dr visits and some sitting in front of the window at home. Heck a little Vitamin D from the Sun light is good for everyone. Well, the poor little thing has lost over a pound since she was born, and her jaundice levels didn’t seem to be dropping as quickly as the pediatrician would like, so they asked my BF to supplement with formula. Now given the horrendous experience my hubby and I had in the hospital I was too stressed to breast feed and my son was supplemented with formula his whole 1st 6 months. I breast feed and he had formula just fine. I am a firm believer that breast feeding is what is best for your child, however it doesn't work for everyone and sometimes your child may need more food then you can produce. I actually feel as though nwe are lucky to have such a safe and wonderful option!
1 hour after getting home from the hospital with their new baby, my BF’s SIL and family show up. 1 hour people! They probably hadn’t even unloaded the car. BF went to the nursery to feed the baby and she did just as the Dr told her. She breast feed for 10-15 minutes and then pulled out some formula and made sure she drank at least an oz. You would have thought the world was coming to an end! Her SIL stormed out of the room and right up to her husband and told her what a terrible thing she was doing! How BF was going to ruin her child and that this was just a terrible terrible thing and he needed to make it stop! Remember, this is the same woman that opted to have a c-section both times…seems a little hypocritical doesn’t it? Forget the fact that the following day when they went into the Dr office the baby has gained 4 1/2 oz's and her jaundice levels seem to be going down. The pediatrician would like them to continue breast feeding and the formula, all the while the know-it-all SIL says "Well I disagree and think you 2 are making a big mistake!" Then she and her husband preceded to walk out to their vehicle and undo the car seat from the middle of the car and latch it up behind the drives seat! Now, you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that this is not the best place for your child. A left side impact to the car could be devastating, so could a right side, which is why they tell you (and this is even in the instructions when you hook up a car seat) to put the rear facing car seat in the MIDDLE!!!! The SIL said that because she only have 4 latches in the back seat that she was only to set the child on one of the two sides. I found this very interesting seeing as I am the one who hooked up the car seat in the first place. I hooked it up the same way the Fire Chief in Virginia Beach Virginia hooked it into my truck, where I too only have 4 latches. I guess all of us out there who put 3 children in the back of SUV's are breaking the law becasuse there are only 4 latches in teh back seat, forget the fact that there are 3 child retraint ancors behind ever head rest for the forward facing car seat...which oh by the way would use the same latches in the seat! But I guess her SIL who is a stay at home mom, has recently graduated Med School and become a pediatrician as well as become a child safety seat inspector un be known to anyone.
Just as an FYI there is nothing wrong with offering a new mom advice. You never know, it may help. Just keep in mind that your advise should always be just that, advice. You should never scold someone or tell them they are “ruining” their child because what they decide to do is different from what you decide to do. Remember even Dr. Spock who everyone thought was the expert on raising children didn’t get everything right, which would be why no one reads his books anymore =) Being a parent is all about trial and error and their is already enough stress involved without your 2 cents!
Friday, April 10, 2009
Eeewwwo Bugs!
Boys are great! They love their mommy’s. They can get hurt and don’t care. Blood is a cool thing. And they don’t mind getting dirty (well as long as it isn’t his hands anyway). But Bugs, the whole bug thing, just grosses me out.
Last week Kaje made a Bug Jar at the babysitter. Now you would think a 2 year old would not quite understand what to do with a bug jar. You would be mistaken.
Last weekend we filled it with whatever he dug up. Huge earthworms, a few rolly pollies, a bug I am pretty sure was dead when he picked it up, but whatever. I got a lot of yard work done, and he was continent.
The jar is not the problem. I can handle the jar. You simply wait till the child isn’t looking, walk to the back of the garden, and dump the jar out. The problem is everything in between. Some worms he will get himself, sometimes I have to do it. Some bugs he will scoop in to the jar himself, but then he wants to touch it again, guess who has to dig in and pull it back out? That would be me!
I am not scared of bugs, nor do they make me shriek and I know they will not hurt me. Thing is, they give me the heebie geebies. You know that hair raising feeling you get when someone takes their nails across a chalkboard? That feeling. Ugk. Its just Ugk.
Oh well, for now I will just have to “get it Mommy” as the little voice next to me says, and be thankful that he didn’t run in the street while I was doing yard work.
Last week Kaje made a Bug Jar at the babysitter. Now you would think a 2 year old would not quite understand what to do with a bug jar. You would be mistaken.
Last weekend we filled it with whatever he dug up. Huge earthworms, a few rolly pollies, a bug I am pretty sure was dead when he picked it up, but whatever. I got a lot of yard work done, and he was continent.
The jar is not the problem. I can handle the jar. You simply wait till the child isn’t looking, walk to the back of the garden, and dump the jar out. The problem is everything in between. Some worms he will get himself, sometimes I have to do it. Some bugs he will scoop in to the jar himself, but then he wants to touch it again, guess who has to dig in and pull it back out? That would be me!
I am not scared of bugs, nor do they make me shriek and I know they will not hurt me. Thing is, they give me the heebie geebies. You know that hair raising feeling you get when someone takes their nails across a chalkboard? That feeling. Ugk. Its just Ugk.
Oh well, for now I will just have to “get it Mommy” as the little voice next to me says, and be thankful that he didn’t run in the street while I was doing yard work.
Monday, March 30, 2009
I Believe in God/Christ/Jesus…and pretty much any other name.
Today I read a Blog on Foxnews.com, that I loved. Although not directly associated to my life as a mother, God and Christ do play a big part in our life and the way we chose to raise our family. I am not a bible beater, never have been. I have never been one of those who shoves my Christianity in others faces. I believe. I have always believed in a greater power, and that someone else was responsible for everything we have here on earth.
When I read this blog, I just fell in love with it. The writer possesses the ability to explain things that many Christians think and feel about all the time in an eloquent way. Because of this, I have posted his blog below.
Whatever your positions or feeling are I urge everyone to seek their beliefs for themselves. You may find that what you did, or didn’t believe in may or may not be what you thought it was. I know for me, I studied many religions for several years at the urging of my parents. I always came back to Christianity.
But for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.
Ten Reasons I Believe In God
By Bill ShulerPastor, Capital Life Church, Arlington, Virginia
1. An innate sense of right and wrong came from somewhere.
2. The universe is far too organized and intricate to have come about by chance.
3. Seeing chimps doesn’t compel me to organize a family reunion.
4. Anyone who has witnessed a baby’s birth will attest to miracles.
5. He has appeared in history.
6. There must be a reason the heart hungers for truth.
7. People since ancient times have sought Him.
8. People since ancient times have found Him.
9. I see Him in the lives of those who forgive.
10. I spoke with Him this morning.
The major questions of life demand a verdict. Where did I come from? Is there more to life than what I am experiencing? Does God exist? The Bible says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
When I read this blog, I just fell in love with it. The writer possesses the ability to explain things that many Christians think and feel about all the time in an eloquent way. Because of this, I have posted his blog below.
Whatever your positions or feeling are I urge everyone to seek their beliefs for themselves. You may find that what you did, or didn’t believe in may or may not be what you thought it was. I know for me, I studied many religions for several years at the urging of my parents. I always came back to Christianity.
But for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.
Ten Reasons I Believe In God
By Bill ShulerPastor, Capital Life Church, Arlington, Virginia
1. An innate sense of right and wrong came from somewhere.
2. The universe is far too organized and intricate to have come about by chance.
3. Seeing chimps doesn’t compel me to organize a family reunion.
4. Anyone who has witnessed a baby’s birth will attest to miracles.
5. He has appeared in history.
6. There must be a reason the heart hungers for truth.
7. People since ancient times have sought Him.
8. People since ancient times have found Him.
9. I see Him in the lives of those who forgive.
10. I spoke with Him this morning.
The major questions of life demand a verdict. Where did I come from? Is there more to life than what I am experiencing? Does God exist? The Bible says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
The Joys of Motherhood
When you are pregnant, everyone tells you all the great stuff that will happen to you when the baby comes! How full of love you will be and the overwhelming since of happiness that will follow the birth of your child. How exciting life will become. And all kinds of other wonderful sediments.
For some reason, everyone leaves out the CRAP! Latterly the crap that comes with motherhood.
Take away the fact that no one tells you what REALLY happens when you get pregnant or have a baby. For some reason everyone who gave birth before the year 2000 LOVED being pregnant. I don’t think until we entered the new century people were allowed to dislike pregnancy. Don’t get me wrong, it was amazing to feel my son move, to know that part of my husband and my myself was being made by the miracle of God. But take that away and that was pretty much all I liked! I literally threw up from 7-7 for 9 months, my son dropped in the 4th month and sat head down on my pelvic bone causes major back spasms and emins pain just to walk. For some unknown reason, several of my best friends decided to get married in my last trimester, one I was in the wedding and looked like a Giant piece of brown dog poo, and the other I stepped out sort of last minute, but still went to the wedding. 14 hours in the car 4 weeks before you give birth is HELL on your ankles.
Take pregnancy aside and forgive everyone who lied to you about how wonderful it was or how easy labor was. Because in all fairness, it is totally worth all the pain and suffering. However, I will still cry and call my mom after days like the following.
On Saturday, after a wonderful week long visit from my mom and narnia (which is apparently Kaje’s new name for Aunt Natalee) we drove to the other side of the water to drop them at the airport. Earlier in the day when he woke up he told my mom and I he was sick. Well seeing as he is 2, we just shrugged it off. Kids his age learn new words and want to use them all the time, yet don’t always use them in the right context. Case-n-point this week his thing has been to tell you “I not done” yet he will hand you and empty yogurt, or not have been doing anything at all. So, I head off to work that morning and my sister and mom pack up, straighten the house, and get ready for me to get home. We are going to take Kaje to the new Jumping place by the house (one of those indoor inflatable play parks, super fun). They had taken him earlier in the week and wanted to take him one more time before they left, and since their flight wasn’t till late we figured we would go on over. He played, but not as hard as he usually does. After about 45 minutes he came up and climbed in my lap and put his head on my chest, something my child NEVER does. We figured he was just tired from a long week of playing hard all day with my sister and staying up till 10 pm. So off to the airport we went.
We made it through the tunnel in record time and decided to get some dinner before heading to the airport. We drove around for a few minuets to see what was in the area before deciding to eat at Ruby Tuesday. Maybe not the best food, but there is never a wait and we could get in and out pretty quickly. Just as we u-turned (yes that is legal here in VA) to head back to the restaurant I see projectile vomit spewing from my child. All over my sister, all over himself, all over the truck. I am in the far left lane of a 5 lane road. I am screaming at my sister to get him out of the car seat. My son has a record of chocking on everything and I can see his face is turning the purply red color it gets when he is chocking (yes this is a regular occurrence which is why when we have baby sitters he is not allowed to eat anything while we are gone). My sister is screaming that she can’t because the car seat buckles are too tight, well hello I don’t want him flying out of the seat if we get in an accident. Like any normal mother with a chocking child in the back seat I am rolling down widows flagging people to get out of may way, honking the horn, slamming across 5 lanes of traffic as quickly as I can. Pull in the 1st parking lot I can get the vehicle in, slam it in to park and have me kid out of the car seat, flipped upside down, in a matter of minuets. Forget the fact that I too am now covered in vomit. Once we are breathing again, we are vomiting again. Just our luck we are in a Target parking lot. Natalee runs in to get herself and my son some new clothes, my mom goes into the Taco Bell for some garbage bags ( to bag all the clothes up), I strip my kid and his car seat of pretty much everything they have on and get to whipping things down with whatever I can find, plus wipes. Oh the joys. After everyone is cleaned up and changed we of course decide against dinner and head to the airport. Since we still have over an hour and a half till their flight leaves we decide we will grab something to eat at the dinner inside. I drop mom and Natalee at the door to get checked in and Kaje and head to park. Once we get in and order he turns to me and says, Mommy I pee pee. Ok, I say back. We are potty training so he likes to tell you a lot he has gone to the potty when he hasn’t or when he doesn’t need to, plus we are in a diaper so I am not too concerned. Well, I should have been. Then he looks and me and says, Mommy I yucky. Well this means poo, yes all the crap I was telling you about =) Well, lucky for me my mom forgot to put the wipes should used to clean his tennis shoes back into the diaper bag, then my child gets up ( he was playing on the side of the table that had a little bench in it and looking at all the airplanes) and he is socked. The new clothes are covered in pee, and what I guess is poo, but is defiantly yucky. So off the the bathroom we go.
Thank God for the new Family restrooms. At least when you are un prepared you can hid yourself from rolling eyes of others. I basically stood my child in a sink in the bathroom and washed him down. Put on a clean diaper and sat him in the stroller with his blankest wrapped around his legs so you didn’t know he wasn’t wearing any pants. Lucky for me we made it home before any more vomiting or explosive diapers, but the weekend was full of them.
On a side note. I will say that this was the 1st time EVER I was not fully prepared! My friend Amy has always made fun of me and my diaper bag which is usually loaded down with extra everything! I will now be going back to that. Even though it is bulky and annoying, at least I will have supplies!
For some reason, everyone leaves out the CRAP! Latterly the crap that comes with motherhood.
Take away the fact that no one tells you what REALLY happens when you get pregnant or have a baby. For some reason everyone who gave birth before the year 2000 LOVED being pregnant. I don’t think until we entered the new century people were allowed to dislike pregnancy. Don’t get me wrong, it was amazing to feel my son move, to know that part of my husband and my myself was being made by the miracle of God. But take that away and that was pretty much all I liked! I literally threw up from 7-7 for 9 months, my son dropped in the 4th month and sat head down on my pelvic bone causes major back spasms and emins pain just to walk. For some unknown reason, several of my best friends decided to get married in my last trimester, one I was in the wedding and looked like a Giant piece of brown dog poo, and the other I stepped out sort of last minute, but still went to the wedding. 14 hours in the car 4 weeks before you give birth is HELL on your ankles.
Take pregnancy aside and forgive everyone who lied to you about how wonderful it was or how easy labor was. Because in all fairness, it is totally worth all the pain and suffering. However, I will still cry and call my mom after days like the following.
On Saturday, after a wonderful week long visit from my mom and narnia (which is apparently Kaje’s new name for Aunt Natalee) we drove to the other side of the water to drop them at the airport. Earlier in the day when he woke up he told my mom and I he was sick. Well seeing as he is 2, we just shrugged it off. Kids his age learn new words and want to use them all the time, yet don’t always use them in the right context. Case-n-point this week his thing has been to tell you “I not done” yet he will hand you and empty yogurt, or not have been doing anything at all. So, I head off to work that morning and my sister and mom pack up, straighten the house, and get ready for me to get home. We are going to take Kaje to the new Jumping place by the house (one of those indoor inflatable play parks, super fun). They had taken him earlier in the week and wanted to take him one more time before they left, and since their flight wasn’t till late we figured we would go on over. He played, but not as hard as he usually does. After about 45 minutes he came up and climbed in my lap and put his head on my chest, something my child NEVER does. We figured he was just tired from a long week of playing hard all day with my sister and staying up till 10 pm. So off to the airport we went.
We made it through the tunnel in record time and decided to get some dinner before heading to the airport. We drove around for a few minuets to see what was in the area before deciding to eat at Ruby Tuesday. Maybe not the best food, but there is never a wait and we could get in and out pretty quickly. Just as we u-turned (yes that is legal here in VA) to head back to the restaurant I see projectile vomit spewing from my child. All over my sister, all over himself, all over the truck. I am in the far left lane of a 5 lane road. I am screaming at my sister to get him out of the car seat. My son has a record of chocking on everything and I can see his face is turning the purply red color it gets when he is chocking (yes this is a regular occurrence which is why when we have baby sitters he is not allowed to eat anything while we are gone). My sister is screaming that she can’t because the car seat buckles are too tight, well hello I don’t want him flying out of the seat if we get in an accident. Like any normal mother with a chocking child in the back seat I am rolling down widows flagging people to get out of may way, honking the horn, slamming across 5 lanes of traffic as quickly as I can. Pull in the 1st parking lot I can get the vehicle in, slam it in to park and have me kid out of the car seat, flipped upside down, in a matter of minuets. Forget the fact that I too am now covered in vomit. Once we are breathing again, we are vomiting again. Just our luck we are in a Target parking lot. Natalee runs in to get herself and my son some new clothes, my mom goes into the Taco Bell for some garbage bags ( to bag all the clothes up), I strip my kid and his car seat of pretty much everything they have on and get to whipping things down with whatever I can find, plus wipes. Oh the joys. After everyone is cleaned up and changed we of course decide against dinner and head to the airport. Since we still have over an hour and a half till their flight leaves we decide we will grab something to eat at the dinner inside. I drop mom and Natalee at the door to get checked in and Kaje and head to park. Once we get in and order he turns to me and says, Mommy I pee pee. Ok, I say back. We are potty training so he likes to tell you a lot he has gone to the potty when he hasn’t or when he doesn’t need to, plus we are in a diaper so I am not too concerned. Well, I should have been. Then he looks and me and says, Mommy I yucky. Well this means poo, yes all the crap I was telling you about =) Well, lucky for me my mom forgot to put the wipes should used to clean his tennis shoes back into the diaper bag, then my child gets up ( he was playing on the side of the table that had a little bench in it and looking at all the airplanes) and he is socked. The new clothes are covered in pee, and what I guess is poo, but is defiantly yucky. So off the the bathroom we go.
Thank God for the new Family restrooms. At least when you are un prepared you can hid yourself from rolling eyes of others. I basically stood my child in a sink in the bathroom and washed him down. Put on a clean diaper and sat him in the stroller with his blankest wrapped around his legs so you didn’t know he wasn’t wearing any pants. Lucky for me we made it home before any more vomiting or explosive diapers, but the weekend was full of them.
On a side note. I will say that this was the 1st time EVER I was not fully prepared! My friend Amy has always made fun of me and my diaper bag which is usually loaded down with extra everything! I will now be going back to that. Even though it is bulky and annoying, at least I will have supplies!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
MIA
So I apologize to all of you who I am sure are just DYING to know what Kaje and I have been up too. Life has been busy to say the least. And I seem to have had a tremendous amount of bad news in the past few months and think that my mind has been mostly per occupied with that.
We have been doing well though! 30 days and counting for Wes to get home! Lots and lots of work going on at the house in just the past 5 days! One upside to a down economy is that home improvement guys offer better rates for cash =) The past weekend I FINALLY got the hallway painted and all of the trim work done (we have only lived in the house for 3 years), the guest bath and guest bedroom have been repainted and all of the trim work has been finished in their as well and it looks AMAZING! My mom and I emptied out closets, cabinets, extra furniture, and took pictures off the wall, got it all packed up and moved into a storage unit to have the house look more staged and less personal. In this market it is all about the buyer. Last night we got the entry way and dinning room completely primed and the painter will be back on Saturday to pain it the same neutral color as the hall, guest room and bath which will help neutralize the house and make it feel larger. As much as I hated to paint over the green (which I am in LOVE with) I knew it would make the house feel lighter and larger, and it isn’t about what I want anymore. Not sure why people can’t see past paint colors but that seems to be an issue, so the more basic I am the better off we will be. Kaje’s room will stay green, the master bed and bath are a deeper tan then the hallway color, the den is a darker brown as well, so those will stay, and then you will just have the yellow in the kitchen. Hopefully all this work will be worth it! On Sunday I am getting a light in the Den! Not sure whose idea it was in the 70’s and 80’s to build houses without central lighting, but I feel strongly that they should be shot! Last summer we added central lighting to all the bedrooms and this will be the last room that needs it! So a HUGE advantage over other homes in the neighborhood and surprisingly enough, not that expensive to add =) The most exciting thing to come is that the last weekend in March I am paying someone to lay the rest of the hardwood floor in the master bedroom! Wes and I can do it for sure, but it takes a while, and what would take us all day, will take a professional 3-4 hours…and for $220 you just can’t beat it! $1 a sq ft! They will also be taking the carpet in the master bedroom and laying it on the stairs and hallway. For those of you who don’t know, I so graciously dumped a gallon of paint down my stairs about a year and half ago, so it will be nice to have that fixed! Then the 1st weekend in April the painter will be back doing some carpentry work. Wes’s carpentry skills have proven to be GREAT if you want your cabinets to withstand a hurricane, but not so great if you do not want to lift a 50 lbs drawer every time you need a fork. So I am going to have Harry put new bottoms in bottom cabinets and re-build that drawer for us as well as finish laying all the rest of the quarter round Wes didn’t get done before he deployed! It will be amazing! The only thing Wes and I should have left to do when he gets home is sod the backyard, and replace the sub floor and tile the guest bath. Sounds like a big job, but Harry told me if we had everything ripped out before he got there (which I am excitant at demolition) he could get the new sub floor down in about 2 hours costing me a whopping $40! And though I will NEVER tile a Kitchen again in my life! Bathrooms are not so bad, so I will be laying the last room of tile needed and we will be officially ready to be on the market!
It is amazing how much you can get accomplished with someone watching your 2 year old and a little money!
All about Kaje
I am not sure where he has learned it, or why it is just now coming about. But he has officially learned how to sass his mother. Not quite with words, but more with gestures and grunting noises that have proven to escalate over the past few weeks and reached a point of no return this week with BB and Aunt Nene in town. It should be fun to get that back in order when they leave here on Saturday. They say whatever you did to your parents you will get back twice as much with your children, I wish I had been a better kid, because we are in for some major attitude issues ( I am sure no one saw that coming LOL). Using the potty has again officially ceased to exist. We only want to use the potty for standing on and filling with water from the bathtub, both options I am not a fan of. Full force potty training will be taking place as soon as daddy is home to assist as well as must come about during daddy’s leave time as we must be fairly close to potty trained to start our new school in August. I love the new babysitter he has been at since December, however think he needs more structure now, so he will be attending full time preschool this fall with an extend hour program. So just half day of school and the rest will be free time, but I think 3-4 hours of solid structure will be good for him as he seems to flourish more in that environment.
Kaje has also grown his vocabulary by leaps and bounds over the past month. Almost always speaking in full phrases and sentences. Although grammar is not always used properly I am still often amazed and that words he puts together as well as how many he will use together to talk to you. I am hesitant to say he is advanced, because all parents think their kids are advanced, however according to most of what I have read it is not until you are 3 that you are speaking in phrase 80-90% of the time and at 4 your sentences should sound like an adult. I have been told by 2 speech pathologist that his articulation is definitely advanced, but I think most of his vocabulary and speaking in phrase has a lot to do with the fact that he is the only one at home with me, so I talk to him a lot more then I think the average toddle talks to their parent =)
Other then that we are great! Just looking forward to Daddy getting home, selling the house, finding a new job, and relocating to Charleston SC.
We have been doing well though! 30 days and counting for Wes to get home! Lots and lots of work going on at the house in just the past 5 days! One upside to a down economy is that home improvement guys offer better rates for cash =) The past weekend I FINALLY got the hallway painted and all of the trim work done (we have only lived in the house for 3 years), the guest bath and guest bedroom have been repainted and all of the trim work has been finished in their as well and it looks AMAZING! My mom and I emptied out closets, cabinets, extra furniture, and took pictures off the wall, got it all packed up and moved into a storage unit to have the house look more staged and less personal. In this market it is all about the buyer. Last night we got the entry way and dinning room completely primed and the painter will be back on Saturday to pain it the same neutral color as the hall, guest room and bath which will help neutralize the house and make it feel larger. As much as I hated to paint over the green (which I am in LOVE with) I knew it would make the house feel lighter and larger, and it isn’t about what I want anymore. Not sure why people can’t see past paint colors but that seems to be an issue, so the more basic I am the better off we will be. Kaje’s room will stay green, the master bed and bath are a deeper tan then the hallway color, the den is a darker brown as well, so those will stay, and then you will just have the yellow in the kitchen. Hopefully all this work will be worth it! On Sunday I am getting a light in the Den! Not sure whose idea it was in the 70’s and 80’s to build houses without central lighting, but I feel strongly that they should be shot! Last summer we added central lighting to all the bedrooms and this will be the last room that needs it! So a HUGE advantage over other homes in the neighborhood and surprisingly enough, not that expensive to add =) The most exciting thing to come is that the last weekend in March I am paying someone to lay the rest of the hardwood floor in the master bedroom! Wes and I can do it for sure, but it takes a while, and what would take us all day, will take a professional 3-4 hours…and for $220 you just can’t beat it! $1 a sq ft! They will also be taking the carpet in the master bedroom and laying it on the stairs and hallway. For those of you who don’t know, I so graciously dumped a gallon of paint down my stairs about a year and half ago, so it will be nice to have that fixed! Then the 1st weekend in April the painter will be back doing some carpentry work. Wes’s carpentry skills have proven to be GREAT if you want your cabinets to withstand a hurricane, but not so great if you do not want to lift a 50 lbs drawer every time you need a fork. So I am going to have Harry put new bottoms in bottom cabinets and re-build that drawer for us as well as finish laying all the rest of the quarter round Wes didn’t get done before he deployed! It will be amazing! The only thing Wes and I should have left to do when he gets home is sod the backyard, and replace the sub floor and tile the guest bath. Sounds like a big job, but Harry told me if we had everything ripped out before he got there (which I am excitant at demolition) he could get the new sub floor down in about 2 hours costing me a whopping $40! And though I will NEVER tile a Kitchen again in my life! Bathrooms are not so bad, so I will be laying the last room of tile needed and we will be officially ready to be on the market!
It is amazing how much you can get accomplished with someone watching your 2 year old and a little money!
All about Kaje
I am not sure where he has learned it, or why it is just now coming about. But he has officially learned how to sass his mother. Not quite with words, but more with gestures and grunting noises that have proven to escalate over the past few weeks and reached a point of no return this week with BB and Aunt Nene in town. It should be fun to get that back in order when they leave here on Saturday. They say whatever you did to your parents you will get back twice as much with your children, I wish I had been a better kid, because we are in for some major attitude issues ( I am sure no one saw that coming LOL). Using the potty has again officially ceased to exist. We only want to use the potty for standing on and filling with water from the bathtub, both options I am not a fan of. Full force potty training will be taking place as soon as daddy is home to assist as well as must come about during daddy’s leave time as we must be fairly close to potty trained to start our new school in August. I love the new babysitter he has been at since December, however think he needs more structure now, so he will be attending full time preschool this fall with an extend hour program. So just half day of school and the rest will be free time, but I think 3-4 hours of solid structure will be good for him as he seems to flourish more in that environment.
Kaje has also grown his vocabulary by leaps and bounds over the past month. Almost always speaking in full phrases and sentences. Although grammar is not always used properly I am still often amazed and that words he puts together as well as how many he will use together to talk to you. I am hesitant to say he is advanced, because all parents think their kids are advanced, however according to most of what I have read it is not until you are 3 that you are speaking in phrase 80-90% of the time and at 4 your sentences should sound like an adult. I have been told by 2 speech pathologist that his articulation is definitely advanced, but I think most of his vocabulary and speaking in phrase has a lot to do with the fact that he is the only one at home with me, so I talk to him a lot more then I think the average toddle talks to their parent =)
Other then that we are great! Just looking forward to Daddy getting home, selling the house, finding a new job, and relocating to Charleston SC.
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