Archive | Life RSS feed for this section

How I’m Different

18 Feb

Before staying at home with the kids I:

  • Went to sleep at a reasonable hour (now I’m glued to the tube through the night trying to get my fix of tv shows and movies)
  • Ate fast food Monday through Friday (now I’m happy (and hungry) to say I’ve only bought it once since we lived here!)
  • Rarely cooked dinner on weeknights (now it’s a struggle to decide what I should make – it’s like the one big decision I have every day and sometimes it really stresses me out)
  • Took a shower EVERY day (I know this sounds gross but I mean what do I do?  I hardly ever leave the house so it’s not like I’m schtanky or anything – I swear the most I went without a de-schtanking was one day)
  • Only wore jeans 3 or 4 days a week (now they are all I wear – although the other day I decided to wear pants and put on some fancy jewelry just because – it would figure that I lost an earring though!  Luckily, since I don’t leave the house it didn’t go far and the little man (who of course finds every tiny, dangerous object he shouldn’t) found it for me later in the day!)
  • Super stressed about taking time off from work when the kids were sick
  • Knew about the latest news headlines (now I’m lucky to catch any blurbs on tv or even know what day of the week it is)

Overall, I think I’ve changed for the better.  I feel less stressed and enjoy simple things (like getting the mail) more than I ever would have thought.

Tags: , ,

You’re My Favorite

14 Feb

He's All Mine

He makes me laugh and laughs with (at) me. He puts up with me and my moodiness. He spoils me. He makes me feel safe and comfortable, always putting his family first. He likes my cooking. He tells me I’m smart even though we both know I can be very flighty (Me – “Oh, look at all those dogs in that field!” Him – “Those are goats!  Didn’t the grazing and ‘goat’ees give it away?”).  He always says “I love you” on the phone even if other people are around him.  He is my best friend – He is my sexy – He is my FAVORITE and he is all mine.

I usually kid with Andrew about being “all mine” whenever he does something gross (like farts or picks his nose) but I really am so very happy and lucky that he is “all mine” and I am so thankful he chose me to be his lady.

Step Aside Ladies...

Happy Valentine’s Day Andrew – I love you bunches…

Tags: , ,

In Case You Ever Ask…

11 Feb

Notes to Nia about what she was like as a 3 and a half year old:

You are a wonderful big sister.  When Nate cries you try to do things to make him stop (either by giving him toys or his bottle or by yelling “NATE! BE QUIET!”  (The yelling usually works best!)  You also try to soothe him.  When he got his shots the other day you gently touched his head and told him it was going to be OK.  On the flip-side though – you are definitely making him tougher.  You are constantly chasing him around the house and that usually ends with him falling on the floor and you falling on him.  Amazingly, he hasn’t been hurt yet.  He actually seems to think it’s fun – in fact, that’s what you tell me when I tell you to stop…”But he likes it.”

You have a GREAT sense of humor and love to make others laugh.  You make me laugh a lot – sometimes you make funny faces and sounds to be silly and other times you say something you think is silly and then you ask me with a smile, “That was silly huh Momma?”

You love books and are super perceptive – always pointing out the little things in the pictures and which picture matches the one on the cover.  I still am amazed at how you do that and how you can read the books by memorization and looking at the pictures.

You are extremely particular.  Whether you are playing or getting ready to go to sleep, you like things a certain way and you will not let it slide.  For example, for night-night time I have to read you books in bed and then you have to drop a purple crayon on the floor like “Harold” does.  You wait to hear the sound of it hitting the floor and if the sound is different than it hitting carpet you want to know what it hit. (It seems like you really like it when it hits something.)  I then have to wind up three music boxes and you will sometimes tell me one is playing just to keep me in the room longer.

You love laying on the arm of the couch as you watch your nightly fix of “Harold.” You are so tiny that you fit perfectly on it – you lay on your belly and let your arms hang down on either side of the arm.  You make it look so comfy.

When you want to make me happy or show me you love me you give me what we call an “extra special” hug where you hug me so tight that I can let go and you don’t budge.  We call it “extra special” because I tell you all of your hugs are special but that one is my very favorite.

Tags: , ,

Doctor Appointment Agony

9 Feb

Two freaking hours!  That’s how long Nia, Nate and I were held hostage at our new pediatrician’s office today.  I can understand that if the waiting rooms were packed or something but there were only a few of us in there.  What’s worse is there were no toys/books to entertain the kids, there were signs everywhere that said “No food or drink” and “Take your soiled diapers home,” the fluorescent light was flickering and the boy had to spend an hour walking back and forth on the examining table in nothing but his diaper only to win 3 shots at the end of the torture!

I was losing it!  Nia even said (twice) “This is taking FOREVER!” (Wonder what bad-attitude adult put that phrase in her vocabulary?)

It was so hard picking a new doctor for the kids – we all really like the doctor we had in Savannah.  I mean, sometimes we wondered about a diagnosis or two but overall we never had a horrible experience with him.  This one makes me want to send him a thank you card or something.

(By the way – the boy is fine – just a well visit – it confirmed he’s healthy, small and angry. And if you were wondering – I did have to take a “soiled” diaper home with me since their trash cans were apparently too good for a little baby poo.)

Tags: ,

Pre-K Pressure

7 Feb

This fall our baby girl will be prekindergarten age.  It’s something that has me stressed out beyond belief.

I just can’t believe how hard this is!  I mean, when/where I grew up there was really only one place where every kid went to “nursery” school and after that there was really only one private school so it was pretty much a given that I would just get educated at the school that served my address.  With Nia, there are several choices – from religious to public to private – from half-day schedules to full-day schedules – how am I supposed to know what’s best?

I’ve heard great things about the one religious school and the person in charge of it has been super nice to me on the phone (but like Andrew says – everyone’s nice in this town).  At that school your child can either attend 3 days a week or 5 and the school days only last for 3 hours.  In comparison, the public school pre-k is (of course) 5 days a week and those school days last for about 6 hours.  The other difference – we’ll have to pay a tuition for the religious school but because the public school pre-k is state funded your child is not guaranteed a spot.

So far, the plan is to apply for both schools and see what happens. I just filled out the religious school application and got a little dizzy and nervous when I was asked to describe my child’s personality and abilities.  What the heck do most parents write there?  My son throws a tantrum when he doesn’t get his way – has a tendency to put food in his mouth, chew it and then spit it out – he picks his nose and eats it and continually tries to play with poop.

I just think Nia is such a remarkable little girl and I think she is so super smart – but don’t most parents think that of their kids?  I tried to be as proud and descriptive as I could be without sounding like I was just bragging about my genius 3-year-old.

I hate to think what I’ll be like when her brain really depends on what school we pick.

Tags: ,

Feelings I Feel

7 Feb
Every day the kids make me experience so many different feelings – it’s amazing how I can go from insanely happy to insanely angry with the toss of a toy.

What Makes Me Happy: (here’s where I sound sappy)

  • Making them laugh
  • Teaching them something new
  • Cooking for them
  • When they eat what I cook for them
  • When they actually like what I cook for them and they say “mmmm”
  • If I can get through a day without the boy hitting his head on something hard (although his skull is like steal)
  • If I can get through a day without Nia having a meltdown (her latest one involved not getting to watch her nightly dose of Harold and the Purple Crayon before bedtime)
  • Nia being a loving big sister by giving Nate hugs and kisses and getting toys for him that he can’t reach
  • Being able to make them comfortable/safe/cared for – just the simplest of things like putting clean sheets on Nia’s bed – knowing she loved the way they smelled – something about that made me so happy to be a mom

What Makes Me Angry: (here’s where I sound psycho and mean)

  • Having to repeat myself over and over and over again – example – Nate’s taking a nap and I finally have some time to get stuff done – I choose to use the opportunity to take a shower – I tell Nia, “Momma’s going to take a shower” –  she replies, “And then you play with me?”  (please know I’ve already played with her and read quite a few books to her by this point) – I say “Of course” – well I’m not even out of the shower yet and she peaks her head in the bathroom and says, “Now you gonna play with me?”  This continues as I get dressed and dry my hair.  I know it doesn’t seem that bad but after repeating the obvious over and over again everyday – it just wears on me.
  • “Come Momma!”  I hear this ALL DAY LONG.  She’s constantly telling me to come and see something.  I feel awful for getting upset about it – I mean she just wants Momma to see all the stuff she’s doing (her latest is dressing Prince Eric up in Ariel’s clothing).  It’s just – I have to stop whatever it is I’m doing to “Come Momma!”  At least I’m burning calories I guess.
  • Trying to teach Nate not to do something – I mean how many times do I have to pick him up, take him away from the dangerous/yucky activity and try to distract him?  He thinks it’s funny – I think it’s making me lose my mind.  The latest thing he did was tip over the garbage can – now every time he’s in the kitchen I have to keep the can from crashing down on the floor.

There are so many feelings I feel – it’s hard to write about them all.  I’m glad to say I experience more happy ones than mad – but then again, these examples were just from one day!

Tags: , ,

Day Care Isn’t Always the Bad Guy

31 Jan

We have not even driven in the parking lot of a day care since November and Nate has been sick twice.  There was that one fever a few weeks ago and now he has the worst case of yucky yellow-green snot nose he’s ever had and I’m feeling a case of it coming on too. Where did he get it?  I have no clue and I think that’s worse than knowing he caught it from day care – at least then you have an idea of what your kid could have because chances are they know what the culprit had!

As if it’s not bad enough that the boy has all that gook draining out of him all day and night – there I am CONSTANTLY wiping his nose.  To him it probably feels like I’m going to rip it off (even though I swear I’m being as gentle as I can!). I really think he hates me right now but I can’t help it – I just CANNOT stand it when kids have snot pouring out of their nose.  To help counteract my obsessive wiping I’ve loaded up his nose with Vaseline – I guess I’ve just traded one yucky looking thing for another but at least this one doesn’t run into his mouth or get smeared all over his face/toys/clothes.

I just hope this sickiness ends soon – what makes it even worse is that I had scheduled a “well-baby” check up for tomorrow.  I think I might have to change that now.

Tags: ,

Unusual Feeling

30 Jan

Today, I experienced probably one of the most unusual, disturbing feelings during my morning breakfast.

I was eating some cereal – Special K to be exact – and was about half way finished when I’m not sure what happened – but the bowl tipped over and landed squaw in my lady area.  Now, you may think well you say you were half finished so there couldn’t have been that much in the bowl – well see, I’m a BIG eater so I use a BIG bowl so it was almost like it was a small full bowl.

I wasn’t quite sure what to do when it happened – I sat there for way too long trying to figure out – should I try to gather up all that soggy cereal and put it back in the bowl or should I try to get off the counter height stool I was sitting in without standing up all the way (pretty impossible being that my feet don’t touch the ground when I’m sitting).  Well, instead of those choices I decided to take my pants off and gather them in a ball so I wouldn’t make an even bigger mess.  As if having all that yuck spilled on me wasn’t bad enough – now I undressed at the breakfast table! Nia and Nate both looking at me like “why’s mom stripping?”

BLAH – that’s all I have to say is BLAH.  Nia, being the sweetie she is, made it all better though by saying, “that’s ok Momma – you can clean it.”  Thanks kiddo.

Man of a few words

23 Jan

He does not speak but yet he still finds a way to talk back to his mother. How in the world I’m I ever supposed to scold this little angry man when he is so hilariously adorable?!?!

Today, I caught him eating a cardboard block.

Block Buffet

When I saw him chewing it I gasped and said “NO SIR!”

He laughed.

That obviously didn’t get through to him so I lowered my eyebrows and pointed at him (like this was going to be less funny) “NO SIR! NO EATING BLOCKS!”

He pointed at me and said “SHA!”

I held my hand open so he would bring me the block.  (Can you believe he did?!?!)  I pointed at the part now missing color and said again, “No eating blocks! YUCK!”

Nate's Snack

He again pointed at me and said “SHA!”

This continued for some time – I think I just wanted to see how many times he would keep pointing and “SHA”ing.  It was so funny.  At one point I hid my face behind Nia because I couldn’t keep from laughing.  He was so serious and so determined to tell me how he was feeling,  Even when I hid the block behind my back he squatted down to try to see it and again pointed at it and said “SHA!”

I guess he told me, huh?

Block Eater

Tags: ,

But I Don’t Wanna Play Princesses!

22 Jan

From the sound of the title you might think I’m going to write about Nia throwing a fit but nope – that is my whine and the guilt of feeling this way is eating me alive.

It’s just , from where I look at it, I play PLENTY of princesses during the day.  If you put a time limit on it, I would say I  sit down and enter princess world for like 10 minutes of every hour.  In fact, I just had to put a ponytail in Ariel’s hair.  I know, it sounds awful – I mean all Nia wants to do is play with me and I love to play with her – I just want to play something other than princesses!

Sometimes I can’t believe this is what I complain about now.  I used to complain about reporters going over their allotted time for a story or about others who didn’t want to do their story.  Now I find myself acting like a 3-year-old when I’m asked to play princess. I’ve actually BEGGED Nia to play something else.  “Please can we play blocks or color or how about we read a book?” I haven’t resorted to the really tempting stuff yet like eating cookies or drawing on walls.  Honestly, I don’t think those will work either.

I guess it’s my own fault.  I’m the one who kept letting her watch all those princess movies and I’m the one who sang all the songs to her over and over again.  I just feel so bad for feeling this way.  I know she’s going through a big change now – she used to have kids to play with everyday – now it’s just mom and her little brother who destroys her toys at playtime.  It’s actually kind of funny, especially when it happens while we’re playing princesses – I pretend Nate is a monster and everyone must run for their lives to get out before the castle is tossed on the floor.  Nia thinks it’s hilarious – we all do – but I can see how that could become very frustrating to a little girl who is serious about her princess playing.

Princess Player

By the way, so far during this blog entry not only have I had to fix Ariel’s hair but I also had to change her clothes and tell Nia how beautiful she looks.  I think it’s so awesome how Nia can play pretend by herself – she’ll sit there and make Ariel and Snow White go shopping or have dinner – she makes Ariel’s mom sit at a little computer and “pay bills” and Ariel’s daddy is usually taking a nap and there’s always a little brother around. When I was little I loved playing pretend with Barbies – now I’m so terrible at it.

I know this time will pass and then I will be sad because she won’t want me to play with her anymore – she might not even want me to talk to her.  I know I should cherish this time and make the most of it – I am trying – I just hope we can break into another playtime phase sooner than later!

Loves Her Princesses

Tags:

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →