Putting Peyton down for a nap can make me so angry sometimes. She hasn't been getting one recently because she was waking up around 8:30 and not taking a nap until 1. By the time she's awake again she doesn't have enough time to get tired again and it was taking her upwards of an hour to go to bed at night. I moved her bedtime back thinking it would help but it didn't. So I took away the naps. It was fine for awhile because she was up for 11-12 hours a day and she would pass out within 5 minutes of laying down at night. In the past two weeks she has been waking up around 7 or 7:30 in the morning and getting way way over tired around 4:30 in the afternoon. It was a struggle to keep her up and she would just be in a grumpy mood through dinner.
She was falling asleep randomly throughout the afternoons and waking up so grumpy. If we went anywhere, forget about keeping her awake on the way home. It didn't bother me too much if she fell asleep in the car because once I got her out of her carseat she would wake up and be fine. But the past few times she has stayed asleep for 3 hours after I bring her inside. Two nights ago she was literally falling asleep while chewing her food at dinner (we eat at 6). It was sad to see her eyes so sleepy, but I didn't want to sit in her room for an hour waiting for her to finally fall asleep.
SO! We started up with naps again. This is day 3 and it took her 30 minutes to fall asleep. While that isn't really a long time, it is so completely frustrating when she's rolling around and playing instead of trying to sleep. I lay her down in my bed for naps because she goes to sleep faster that way. She was very kicky and hyper today and I was afraid she was going to kick my stomach. I told her to lay down a 2 separate times and said that if I had to tell her again she was going to her big girl bed. Of course it came down to that and she threw a fit. She kicks and screams and tries to get out of her bed. It makes me so mad. Why doesn't she just sleep? I know she's tired. She knows she's tired. I know I'm tired, but she wants to play in the blankets and sing songs.
Hello? She's 2 1/2. I hate that it makes me so mad. It's my "fault" for letting her co sleep so long, but it was so much easier than trying to make her sleep alone and cry. I don't regret it, it worked for us. But now that I'm about to pop with Little Sister, I need Pey to sleep in her bed and be an easy sleeper.
It's times like today I wish I wasn't pregnant because I really need to get out my frustration. All I want to do is get on my elliptical for an hour, turn up my ipod and sweat. Instead, I made cookies and blogged. I should nap too, because I'm freaking exhausted and the times for me to get sleep are about to be gone.
I'm due tomorrow. I say we've got at least another week. Baby girl is low in my tummy, but not in the birth canal. Cervix is still high and I'm not dilated or effaced at all. At least I wasn't last Wednesday. I have my next appointment on Thursday so we'll see! I'm not having any contractions though so I feel like it's going to be a long wait for this little bean.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
It's A.....
We're having another little girl! We don't have a name picked out yet but we have a list to choose from :)
Peyton is very excited about the balloons and her big sister shirt. She keeps saying, "Eester! Balloon!"
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Terribly Two
She is getting very independent with her movies. She wants to choose which one to watch. Most of the time it's The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. I don't mind that, I'll watch it 3 times a day. (And we do) It's the Baby Einsteins that drive me nuts because they're only 30 minutes long. Once it goes back to the menu screen she says, "Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!" and has to pick another one. Herself. I can't pick it, because obviously I'm just dumb ol' mommy who doesn't know how to pick good movies. If she's eating I'll get up and get one. Yesterday once I put the new movie in she said, "Yay! Good job!"
She is quite the character. She does this shoulder dance that cracks us up. Her dancing used to consist of just bouncing up and down, but now she wiggles. I haven't been able to get it on video because she normally doesn't do it for very long. I'll get it one of these days. She does sing along with things a lot more now. Here she is singing "I See The Light" from Tangled.
Her ability to match pitch is getting a lot better. She nailed the end of the first verse, but I didn't get my phone up until the second verse.
So aside from being grumpy and opinionated and kicky, she's really not so terrible. She goes to bed pretty well in her "big girl bed." Her crib is in the toddler bed position and my bed is pushed up against it so she's not sleeping with me, but near enough that she doesn't feel abandoned, yet. She gets in bed with me around 5:30 every morning. It's not so bad because the past couple of days she's been sleeping later and lord knows I can use all the sleep I can get!
We haven't really started any potty training yet. She has a potty and she knows how to sit on it. But she also has the desire to stand in it most of the time. She isn't really giving me any signs of being ready. She doesn't tell me when she is wet and doesn't mind when she is. She'll sometimes go big potty in another room but most times does it where ever she is when inspiration strikes. She has brought us her diapers and wipes twice when she needed a change, but other than that nothing points to being ready. Oh well. I've got 5 more months to get her out of diapers!
Monday, August 27, 2012
A Baby!
Since I've finally broken the news of Facebook, I can blog about Baby #2!
The test was positive so fast I didn't even have time to pull my pants up. Needless to say I wasn't emotionally prepared for that result so the first thing out of my mouth was, "Holy s**t." I hadn't been feeling very good the past couple days but we had been snacking on chili queso so I figured my sensitive stomach just didn't like it. That was partly true.
I sent this picture to Hubs with the message "I guess it's not the queso." to which he responded, "Um what?" and then "Well that complicates things."
We decided around our anniversary trip to Oregon in April that it was a good time to start trying. We tried for about 2-3 weeks and then found out that our health insurance was going up by a lot starting in July so we stopped. I got my period on time so I figured we were good to go! Negative.
We are at 14 weeks right now and I'm feeling much better than I was. I was nauseous all the time and was having a problem with my throat feeling closed up and it made me gag so I constantly felt like I was about to throw up. I had a dizziness problem when I was pregnant with Peyton. It would just hit me suddenly and I would almost pass out. My head would cloud up and go black and spotty and I would get hot and have tunnel hearing. It sat me out of a few concerts while I was still in school. I'm having that problem again but it seems to be more frequent. It's worse when I don't get enough sleep so I'm trying to go to bed by 10 since Peyton wakes up around 7. I also try to nap with her most days.
I have had two appointments with my fabulous midwife Nancy Spencer. I'm thrilled to be delivering with her again. My experience with Peyton was so amazing! My "Guess Date" is February 22nd. The funniest thing is that the day I found out, my friend Lara in Texas sent me a message with a picture of a positive pregnancy test and said, "Here we go again!" I sent her mine in response. We are due the same day! Of course it probably wont happen the same day, but how funny!
Apparently I'm not allowed to be pregnant alone. Soon after I announced my pregnancy with Peyton, my younger brother called me saying he and his girlfriend were expecting too. We ended up delivering the same day. Twin cousins :)
Here are the two ultrasounds I've had so far:
8 weeks
12 weeks
It didn't feel real until recently. I've started to feel little movements, but once you've had a baby every little gas bubble feels like baby kicks. And I've had a lot of little gas bubbles. Ugh.
Hopefully this will give me cause to update more often!
Saturday, June 16, 2012
The Girls
Have you ever had a bra fitting?
I hadn't until a little over a month ago. I assumed when my boobs got bigger during pregnancy and nursing that my band size went right along with them.
False.
My 36 C is way too big in the cup now, but feels super tight in the band. So I finally went and got fitted at Victoria's Secret. Quick and painless, did it over my shirt. Turns out I'm a 32B. 32? That's nuts. If a 36 feels tight, how am I a 32? Well, it's because the cups are in different places for different band sizes, and if your band is too big, the underwire digs in where it should be supporting a breasticle.
Instead of paying upwards of $Yikes for a bra at VS, I saved my brassiere shopping for Target. After a fun time at our little Farmer's Market, my mom and I went to Target and began the most annoying bra shopping excursion EVER.
Either everyone in the world is a 32B and bought all of the normal bras, or they just don't make regular bras in that size. Every single one we found in my size had enough padding to provide flotation to an elephant at sea. We searched and searched and searched. While there were several really cute and very pretty bras in my size, I don't need padding! It's the whole chip bag scenario. When I told Steven about the padding issue and the chip bag thing he asked who I was trying to impress. Uh... No one, that's why I don't need a padded bra to make my boobs look 2 cup sizes bigger. And foamy.
I finally found normal, unpadded T-shirt bras but they were all really bright colors and patterns. I settled on a teal one and figured I'd go to WalMart eventually and probably be able to find something. As we were starting to walk away from the neon slingshots, I saw that we were in the junior bra section.
Hello, my name is Mandy and I have to buy bras in the juniors department.
I still haven't checked WalMart. Somehow, my 34A's from high school and college fit more comfortably than the teeny bopper bra that's the right size. Le sigh.
I hadn't until a little over a month ago. I assumed when my boobs got bigger during pregnancy and nursing that my band size went right along with them.
False.
My 36 C is way too big in the cup now, but feels super tight in the band. So I finally went and got fitted at Victoria's Secret. Quick and painless, did it over my shirt. Turns out I'm a 32B. 32? That's nuts. If a 36 feels tight, how am I a 32? Well, it's because the cups are in different places for different band sizes, and if your band is too big, the underwire digs in where it should be supporting a breasticle.
Instead of paying upwards of $Yikes for a bra at VS, I saved my brassiere shopping for Target. After a fun time at our little Farmer's Market, my mom and I went to Target and began the most annoying bra shopping excursion EVER.
Either everyone in the world is a 32B and bought all of the normal bras, or they just don't make regular bras in that size. Every single one we found in my size had enough padding to provide flotation to an elephant at sea. We searched and searched and searched. While there were several really cute and very pretty bras in my size, I don't need padding! It's the whole chip bag scenario. When I told Steven about the padding issue and the chip bag thing he asked who I was trying to impress. Uh... No one, that's why I don't need a padded bra to make my boobs look 2 cup sizes bigger. And foamy.
I finally found normal, unpadded T-shirt bras but they were all really bright colors and patterns. I settled on a teal one and figured I'd go to WalMart eventually and probably be able to find something. As we were starting to walk away from the neon slingshots, I saw that we were in the junior bra section.
Hello, my name is Mandy and I have to buy bras in the juniors department.
I still haven't checked WalMart. Somehow, my 34A's from high school and college fit more comfortably than the teeny bopper bra that's the right size. Le sigh.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Urpderting
I have a post for Ciabatta bread in the works. I need to actually make it the way I want to post it first. It's time consuming waiting for the bread to double in size and what not, so I haven't really had a chance.
Let's see... What's new.. Well, I've been babysitting my nieces since December. That's been fun. Peyton loves playing with them! I've been dieting and exercising since November and I've lost 12 pounds! Woohoo! I've still got my baby kangaroo pouch, but it's not as prominent. Especially when I stand up straight! I'm comfortably fitting in the smallest jeans I own (size 8!) and I'm proud of myself :)
We took a family vacation to Cannon Beach, OR for our 2 year anniversary and it was fantastic! You really don't realize how much you need a vacation until you take a real one. Not a "vacation" where you have time commitments and plans or are visiting family. (Love you all, seriously, but it's so nice to just be with your little fam) The day we got there was sunny and a little warm so we went to the beach and just took it all in.
Peyton didn't like the feeling of sand on her hands but she thoroughly enjoyed playing in the freezing cold water with her ball. She loves being outside so much. It makes me feel bad when it's so cold and rainy here and she can't go out. Maybe one day we'll be closer to the equator and she can go out anytime. After playing at the beach we went to the grocery store and made a nice dinner at our hotel. Ecola Creek Lodge is where we stayed (big kudos to Mom for sending us there!) and our room had a fully equipped kitchen. It was like a little one bedroom apartment. I LOVED IT! The living room had a gas fireplace that we kept going anytime we were in the living room. (Ambiance and heat!) It was so lovely to just hang out with Pedro and Esteban (yes, I've given my family Hispanic names). Steven was really good about not sitting online the whole time. He was the happiest I've seen him in a long time! We watched baseball, drank wine and actually talked!
The next day was very rainy and windy so we couldn't spend any time playing outside. I checked the weather before we left so I knew what we were getting into before we left. I found the aquarium in Seaside and decided we would spend part of our rainy day there. It's very small but they have 3 HUGE octopi! They're kind creepy when they're awake. Watching an octopus walk on its tentacles is so weird. Peyton enjoyed looking at all the "sh" (fish). And she pointed out many "cars" (stars/starfish) in the tanks. Once we finished looking at the aquarium tanks we went to feed the seals. They performed a variety of tricks including clapping, splashing Steven and doing the "what's up?" head nod. They were very cute. When we were out of fish for the seals we checked out the gift shop and Peyton got a book about the animals we saw while we were there.
We decided to go out to eat that night and found a lovely place called The Driftwood. It wasn't fancy or divey. Just a lovely little place with the 2nd best fish and chips I've ever eaten! (The first being in London.) Peyton had a very healthy dinner of fruit snacks, graham crackers, croutons and french fries... As we were leaving the couple next to us smiled at us and said we were great parents! I don't think they saw the meal Pey consumed, but appreciated that we were attentive and kept her quiet haha! After dinner we went back to our room and watched some more baseball before Peyton went to bed. Then it was wine and conversation again! We left around 11 the next morning and had a good drive home.
One of the best vacations I've ever been on! And we didn't have to do a bunch of stuff! We just enjoyed being us together and being away from our "world" for a couple of days. Since we've been back we've really been taking the time to get off the computer and away from the tv. We've been going up to the park when it's nice outside. We are all eating dinner together at the table. I've deleted several series recordings from the DVR because I just don't have the time or desire to watch those shows. (PS- the stupid DVR has been deleting/not recording things and it's driving me NUTS!)
Peyton is doing a lot of amazing things. She loves her floor puzzle and matches the pieces like a pro! She can now put the pieces into the spaces without help. She recognizes and says the letters "o, b, and y." She says "meow, meow" when she sees a cat or any other feline. If it's a bigger animal she says "rawr." She says, "puh puh puh" for penguin, "sh" for fish and "ya yo yi" for violin. Her favorite thing in the world is a ball. If she sees one, she says "Ball!" and wants it. She recognizes them on tv and in books. At the grocery store she was calling all the fruit in the produce section "ball!" She also apparently knows the word "bra." She said it over and over when we were in Victoria's Secret the other day. She says, "no," "help," "yessss" and "dee dee dee dee doh." (that last one is a fun little thing she repeats after we say it) She calls Elmo "o" when she brings him over to me. She matches objects of the same color and sorts her toys that way.
Lately she wants to snack all day and not sit down for a meal. It's tough at dinner time because if she's not in her chair at the table she wants us to play with her. I'm trying to get her to understand that if she doesn't eat her dinner, she has to wait for mommy and daddy to finish before we play with her.
I think that's pretty well updated for now! I'll try to get the ciabatta thing done in the next couple days. It's pretty tasty, I just want to make it into loaves for the post :)
Until next time!
Let's see... What's new.. Well, I've been babysitting my nieces since December. That's been fun. Peyton loves playing with them! I've been dieting and exercising since November and I've lost 12 pounds! Woohoo! I've still got my baby kangaroo pouch, but it's not as prominent. Especially when I stand up straight! I'm comfortably fitting in the smallest jeans I own (size 8!) and I'm proud of myself :)
We took a family vacation to Cannon Beach, OR for our 2 year anniversary and it was fantastic! You really don't realize how much you need a vacation until you take a real one. Not a "vacation" where you have time commitments and plans or are visiting family. (Love you all, seriously, but it's so nice to just be with your little fam) The day we got there was sunny and a little warm so we went to the beach and just took it all in.
Peyton didn't like the feeling of sand on her hands but she thoroughly enjoyed playing in the freezing cold water with her ball. She loves being outside so much. It makes me feel bad when it's so cold and rainy here and she can't go out. Maybe one day we'll be closer to the equator and she can go out anytime. After playing at the beach we went to the grocery store and made a nice dinner at our hotel. Ecola Creek Lodge is where we stayed (big kudos to Mom for sending us there!) and our room had a fully equipped kitchen. It was like a little one bedroom apartment. I LOVED IT! The living room had a gas fireplace that we kept going anytime we were in the living room. (Ambiance and heat!) It was so lovely to just hang out with Pedro and Esteban (yes, I've given my family Hispanic names). Steven was really good about not sitting online the whole time. He was the happiest I've seen him in a long time! We watched baseball, drank wine and actually talked!
The next day was very rainy and windy so we couldn't spend any time playing outside. I checked the weather before we left so I knew what we were getting into before we left. I found the aquarium in Seaside and decided we would spend part of our rainy day there. It's very small but they have 3 HUGE octopi! They're kind creepy when they're awake. Watching an octopus walk on its tentacles is so weird. Peyton enjoyed looking at all the "sh" (fish). And she pointed out many "cars" (stars/starfish) in the tanks. Once we finished looking at the aquarium tanks we went to feed the seals. They performed a variety of tricks including clapping, splashing Steven and doing the "what's up?" head nod. They were very cute. When we were out of fish for the seals we checked out the gift shop and Peyton got a book about the animals we saw while we were there.
We decided to go out to eat that night and found a lovely place called The Driftwood. It wasn't fancy or divey. Just a lovely little place with the 2nd best fish and chips I've ever eaten! (The first being in London.) Peyton had a very healthy dinner of fruit snacks, graham crackers, croutons and french fries... As we were leaving the couple next to us smiled at us and said we were great parents! I don't think they saw the meal Pey consumed, but appreciated that we were attentive and kept her quiet haha! After dinner we went back to our room and watched some more baseball before Peyton went to bed. Then it was wine and conversation again! We left around 11 the next morning and had a good drive home.
One of the best vacations I've ever been on! And we didn't have to do a bunch of stuff! We just enjoyed being us together and being away from our "world" for a couple of days. Since we've been back we've really been taking the time to get off the computer and away from the tv. We've been going up to the park when it's nice outside. We are all eating dinner together at the table. I've deleted several series recordings from the DVR because I just don't have the time or desire to watch those shows. (PS- the stupid DVR has been deleting/not recording things and it's driving me NUTS!)
Peyton is doing a lot of amazing things. She loves her floor puzzle and matches the pieces like a pro! She can now put the pieces into the spaces without help. She recognizes and says the letters "o, b, and y." She says "meow, meow" when she sees a cat or any other feline. If it's a bigger animal she says "rawr." She says, "puh puh puh" for penguin, "sh" for fish and "ya yo yi" for violin. Her favorite thing in the world is a ball. If she sees one, she says "Ball!" and wants it. She recognizes them on tv and in books. At the grocery store she was calling all the fruit in the produce section "ball!" She also apparently knows the word "bra." She said it over and over when we were in Victoria's Secret the other day. She says, "no," "help," "yessss" and "dee dee dee dee doh." (that last one is a fun little thing she repeats after we say it) She calls Elmo "o" when she brings him over to me. She matches objects of the same color and sorts her toys that way.
Lately she wants to snack all day and not sit down for a meal. It's tough at dinner time because if she's not in her chair at the table she wants us to play with her. I'm trying to get her to understand that if she doesn't eat her dinner, she has to wait for mommy and daddy to finish before we play with her.
I think that's pretty well updated for now! I'll try to get the ciabatta thing done in the next couple days. It's pretty tasty, I just want to make it into loaves for the post :)
Until next time!
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Yikes Bikes..
I'm not very good at updating this. Mostly it's because I don't have much down time. The rest is because I don't really have anything interesting to write about.
Well, I was thinking about my marriage and decided I should write about that! I don't feel married. I don't know that anyone actually feels "married." I've never asked anyone. I guess it's because we've been together for over 5 years and we've lived together for a lot of that time. Nothing new came with being married other than taking his name and the comfort of knowing we'll be together "until death parts us." (Assuming all goes well haha)
We have an interesting relationship. He works all day 5 days a week and I'm home with Peyton. I cook and clean and take care of everyone and Steven brings home the bacon. He leaves for work 45 minutes after he gets up. That's about an hour after Peyton and I get up in the morning. He gets home from work about an hour before dinner and two hours before Peyton goes to bed. Once she's asleep, he's on the computer and I'm on my phone playing games and the tv is on. We don't talk much. I don't really have much to talk about. My day consists of Mickey Mouse, exercising, cleaning, diapers, Baby Einsteins, silly songs and pretend picnics. He doesn't have much to talk about other than what goes on at work.
We try to make small talk about the goings on in the world, (read- what pops up on Yahoo! News or Facebook) but those conversations don't last long. Part of my problem is that I don't have an interest in much of what goes on in the world. Politics are SO not my thing. I don't pay enough attention to the news. Most of the things I see are related to pop culture. Even that doesn't interest me much. I'm more interested in articles about healthy foods or baby stuff. I like looking up recipes and crafts. That's what I spend most of my free time doing. When Steven's online, he's reading posts on Reddit or watching two basketball games or playing a computer game or a combination of all three. We usually watch a show or two together on the couch every night.
As boring and sad as this all sounds, it kind of works for us! Or at least it has been. I'm feeling ready to turn off the technology for a little bit. We watch so many shows we can hardly keep up. There are shows on our DVR, shows on NetFlix, shows on his computer and random shows that we watch when we aren't watching shows together. It's a little much. After Peyton goes to bed is OUR time, but we're not spending quality time together.
Having time for intimacy when you have a child is hard enough, but if neither of us is making a real effort it's happening maybe twice a month. I'm proposing (when he gets home) we turn off the tv and the computer for at least 2 hours after Pey's in bed. We can read together or Heaven forbid we actually talk to each other haha! And we both need to try much harder. Most people would probably suggest a night without Peyton. I'll go ahead and stop you right there. It's impossible. I've spoiled her (and I don't regret it!) to the point where I am the only one who can put her to bed and get her back to sleep. Not only that, we would miss her and worry about her too much. We're a happy little tricycle :)
So there's a post! And it's weird and contradictory I'm sure. But ya know? My mom and sister are the only people who read this. So :-P
Well, I was thinking about my marriage and decided I should write about that! I don't feel married. I don't know that anyone actually feels "married." I've never asked anyone. I guess it's because we've been together for over 5 years and we've lived together for a lot of that time. Nothing new came with being married other than taking his name and the comfort of knowing we'll be together "until death parts us." (Assuming all goes well haha)
We have an interesting relationship. He works all day 5 days a week and I'm home with Peyton. I cook and clean and take care of everyone and Steven brings home the bacon. He leaves for work 45 minutes after he gets up. That's about an hour after Peyton and I get up in the morning. He gets home from work about an hour before dinner and two hours before Peyton goes to bed. Once she's asleep, he's on the computer and I'm on my phone playing games and the tv is on. We don't talk much. I don't really have much to talk about. My day consists of Mickey Mouse, exercising, cleaning, diapers, Baby Einsteins, silly songs and pretend picnics. He doesn't have much to talk about other than what goes on at work.
We try to make small talk about the goings on in the world, (read- what pops up on Yahoo! News or Facebook) but those conversations don't last long. Part of my problem is that I don't have an interest in much of what goes on in the world. Politics are SO not my thing. I don't pay enough attention to the news. Most of the things I see are related to pop culture. Even that doesn't interest me much. I'm more interested in articles about healthy foods or baby stuff. I like looking up recipes and crafts. That's what I spend most of my free time doing. When Steven's online, he's reading posts on Reddit or watching two basketball games or playing a computer game or a combination of all three. We usually watch a show or two together on the couch every night.
As boring and sad as this all sounds, it kind of works for us! Or at least it has been. I'm feeling ready to turn off the technology for a little bit. We watch so many shows we can hardly keep up. There are shows on our DVR, shows on NetFlix, shows on his computer and random shows that we watch when we aren't watching shows together. It's a little much. After Peyton goes to bed is OUR time, but we're not spending quality time together.
Having time for intimacy when you have a child is hard enough, but if neither of us is making a real effort it's happening maybe twice a month. I'm proposing (when he gets home) we turn off the tv and the computer for at least 2 hours after Pey's in bed. We can read together or Heaven forbid we actually talk to each other haha! And we both need to try much harder. Most people would probably suggest a night without Peyton. I'll go ahead and stop you right there. It's impossible. I've spoiled her (and I don't regret it!) to the point where I am the only one who can put her to bed and get her back to sleep. Not only that, we would miss her and worry about her too much. We're a happy little tricycle :)
So there's a post! And it's weird and contradictory I'm sure. But ya know? My mom and sister are the only people who read this. So :-P
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Thanks!
Every time I see someone posting what they're thankful for I wanna jump on that gravy train! (Get it? Gravy? Thankful? Thanksgiving? *nudge nudge*)
SO here are 9 things since I'm 9 days in to November and have yet to run through the barrier to platform 11/24 (That's Thanksgiving this year, in case you didn't know).
Day 1: Being alive! Woo! If I wasn't alive I wouldn't be here and wouldn't have so many many things to be thankful for!
Day 2: My husband. Without whom I would be living a completely different life.
Day 3: My baby! She is so fabulous. She's adorable, funny, smart and just wonderful. I cannot imagine my life without her. When I do, I cry.
Day 4: Our dog. Maddie is the most amazing dog ever. She is quiet, small and so gentle. She lets Peyton play with her and plays tug-of-war with her too! She has never bitten anyone and when she gets annoyed she just licks.
Day 5: Cold weather. This summer (up here) was by no means unbearable, but I love wearing sweaters, hoodies, socks and boots! And I ADORE dressing Peyton up in her hot pink pea coat :)
Day 6: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I wouldn't be able to make dinner without something to distract Peyton. So thank you, Disney Jr! (and DVR so there's always an episode ready!)
Day 7: The internet. I wouldn't have as many good recipes, cleaning tips, exercise routines or creative craft ideas without you!
Day 8: Steven's job. If he didn't have such a good job we wouldn't have medical insurance, dental insurance or enough of a paycheck for me to stay home! If I had to work it would probably only pay for day care and then our apartment would always be messy because I would have zero time to clean.
Day 9: Nap time. It used to last longer, but now I do an hour long workout video. By the time I've worked out, showered and gotten dressed I have about 10 minutes before Peyton wakes up. Not so bad though. At least I'm not just sitting on my chubby buttocks watching my stories.
Look at me! 9 things I'm thankful for AND a blog post. Get. That.
SO here are 9 things since I'm 9 days in to November and have yet to run through the barrier to platform 11/24 (That's Thanksgiving this year, in case you didn't know).
Day 1: Being alive! Woo! If I wasn't alive I wouldn't be here and wouldn't have so many many things to be thankful for!
Day 2: My husband. Without whom I would be living a completely different life.
Day 3: My baby! She is so fabulous. She's adorable, funny, smart and just wonderful. I cannot imagine my life without her. When I do, I cry.
Day 4: Our dog. Maddie is the most amazing dog ever. She is quiet, small and so gentle. She lets Peyton play with her and plays tug-of-war with her too! She has never bitten anyone and when she gets annoyed she just licks.
Day 5: Cold weather. This summer (up here) was by no means unbearable, but I love wearing sweaters, hoodies, socks and boots! And I ADORE dressing Peyton up in her hot pink pea coat :)
Day 6: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I wouldn't be able to make dinner without something to distract Peyton. So thank you, Disney Jr! (and DVR so there's always an episode ready!)
Day 7: The internet. I wouldn't have as many good recipes, cleaning tips, exercise routines or creative craft ideas without you!
Day 8: Steven's job. If he didn't have such a good job we wouldn't have medical insurance, dental insurance or enough of a paycheck for me to stay home! If I had to work it would probably only pay for day care and then our apartment would always be messy because I would have zero time to clean.
Day 9: Nap time. It used to last longer, but now I do an hour long workout video. By the time I've worked out, showered and gotten dressed I have about 10 minutes before Peyton wakes up. Not so bad though. At least I'm not just sitting on my chubby buttocks watching my stories.
Look at me! 9 things I'm thankful for AND a blog post. Get. That.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Raindrops On Roses and Whiskers On Kittens
These are a few of my favorite things:
5. Peyton's nap is so easy! We change her diaper, brush her teeth, turn on Rockabye Baby! (Coldplay), turn on the fan, turn off the light, lay down and within 3 minutes she's asleep! (for 2 1/2 to 3 hours)
4. She's so happy when she wakes up from that nap. She'll make some noise so I know she's awake, but doesn't cry. As soon as I open the door I see her sitting at the end of the bed with the biggest "cheese" grin on her face and she waves to me.
3. After the dishes are done. The sink is empty. The counters are clean and I have room to do stuff! Or just enjoy the fact that I had time to clean.
2. Watching Peyton pick up her blocks and put them away. She figured this out on her own. She doesn't build with them, and if we build towers she knocks them down. She'll walk around with one in each hand and bang them together. I just love when she puts them away because she picks up one at a time and puts it gently into a bucket. She then looks around for the perfect one to go next. She'll walk all the way across the room to get a different one if the closer one isn't right. When she gets one she sits down in front of the bucket to put it in. She's so smart. :)
and my #1 favorite thing right now...........
1. My life! I cannot imagine being any happier than I am right now. I have an amazing husband who works 50 hour weeks to pay the bills so that I can stay home and raise our incredible daughter. I have the perfect little family. My immediate family is very close and I can visit them all the time (not that I do since I never have the car, and even when I do I can't seem to make plans BUT it's not impossible haha). If I ever need anything I can call/text/facebook one of my siblings and they will help however they can. (And hopefully they know I would do the same)
So there we are. A few favs :)
Now I gotta go put Pey down for that awesome nap!
5. Peyton's nap is so easy! We change her diaper, brush her teeth, turn on Rockabye Baby! (Coldplay), turn on the fan, turn off the light, lay down and within 3 minutes she's asleep! (for 2 1/2 to 3 hours)
4. She's so happy when she wakes up from that nap. She'll make some noise so I know she's awake, but doesn't cry. As soon as I open the door I see her sitting at the end of the bed with the biggest "cheese" grin on her face and she waves to me.
3. After the dishes are done. The sink is empty. The counters are clean and I have room to do stuff! Or just enjoy the fact that I had time to clean.
2. Watching Peyton pick up her blocks and put them away. She figured this out on her own. She doesn't build with them, and if we build towers she knocks them down. She'll walk around with one in each hand and bang them together. I just love when she puts them away because she picks up one at a time and puts it gently into a bucket. She then looks around for the perfect one to go next. She'll walk all the way across the room to get a different one if the closer one isn't right. When she gets one she sits down in front of the bucket to put it in. She's so smart. :)
and my #1 favorite thing right now...........
1. My life! I cannot imagine being any happier than I am right now. I have an amazing husband who works 50 hour weeks to pay the bills so that I can stay home and raise our incredible daughter. I have the perfect little family. My immediate family is very close and I can visit them all the time (not that I do since I never have the car, and even when I do I can't seem to make plans BUT it's not impossible haha). If I ever need anything I can call/text/facebook one of my siblings and they will help however they can. (And hopefully they know I would do the same)
So there we are. A few favs :)
Now I gotta go put Pey down for that awesome nap!
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Mean People
We've all been mean at some point in our lives. But, for most of us, there comes a time when we get off our high horse and stop saying unnecessary and hurtful things. The internet is viewed a place where it's "ok" to be a jerk. Newsflash: It's never OK to be a jerk. If no one is a jerk, no one else needs to be a jerk.
Nice guys finish last because jerks push them out of the way and call them names.
I admit I haven't done any sort of research into cyberbullying (nor did I watch the ABC Family movie *gag*), but who is raising these people to think this is right? It sounds dumb when people talk about it. Kids commenting on their peers' facebook and myspace stuff telling them to go kill themselves. If someone told me to kill myself I would laugh. But these kids are serious!
I'm not a saint by any means, but I would never be so hurtful to someone. (Ok Kate, I know I was a pretty mean big sister, but you were *and still can be* a jerk too!) I just don't understand the need for snarky comments on things people post. Keep it to yourself, dude! Haven't you people seen Bambi? If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all.
People correcting grammar and spelling on Twitter is absurd. This isn't high brow literature. It's not literature at all! Leave Simon Pegg alone for using the wrong "your/you're!" He has more important things to do than proofread his tweets. You don't have to tweet Rainn Wilson that you're not following him any more because he's not funny or he says something offensive. He's an actor. He's not Dwight Schrute. And he is funny, just don't take everything he says seriously. It's obvious when he's kidding.
I read HelloGiggles (you should too) and people are usually very positive and supportive! But sometimes the jerks comment. I hate jerks. I think negative things about the posts sometimes, but I would never EVER comment something hurtful or rude.
All that "mean people suck" stuff aside, we as a culture or also super sensitive to things. People are so easily offended nowadays it's ridiculous. "Don't hate on my president!" "Don't say morbidly obese kids have bad parents!"
I don't know what else to write on this topic. Why can't everybody just knock of the dumb stuff and be happy? It's not hard...
I remembered what else I was going to say! Why are people so judgmental of how people became famous? Like the Kardashians and Paris Hilton. They are making money. Leave them alone! They are famous because we watch them. We watch them go on vacations, we watch them get married and get jobs and buy houses and get divorced and have babies. It's not their fault they don't have some amazing talents. They are pretty people and we like to look at pretty things.
While I do agree that there are some pretty ridiculous "famous" people *see the entire "cast" of Jersey Shore*, people watch it. So, leave it be. You're not going to change anything by being a jerk. You're just jealous.
Nice guys finish last because jerks push them out of the way and call them names.
I admit I haven't done any sort of research into cyberbullying (nor did I watch the ABC Family movie *gag*), but who is raising these people to think this is right? It sounds dumb when people talk about it. Kids commenting on their peers' facebook and myspace stuff telling them to go kill themselves. If someone told me to kill myself I would laugh. But these kids are serious!
I'm not a saint by any means, but I would never be so hurtful to someone. (Ok Kate, I know I was a pretty mean big sister, but you were *and still can be* a jerk too!) I just don't understand the need for snarky comments on things people post. Keep it to yourself, dude! Haven't you people seen Bambi? If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all.
People correcting grammar and spelling on Twitter is absurd. This isn't high brow literature. It's not literature at all! Leave Simon Pegg alone for using the wrong "your/you're!" He has more important things to do than proofread his tweets. You don't have to tweet Rainn Wilson that you're not following him any more because he's not funny or he says something offensive. He's an actor. He's not Dwight Schrute. And he is funny, just don't take everything he says seriously. It's obvious when he's kidding.
I read HelloGiggles (you should too) and people are usually very positive and supportive! But sometimes the jerks comment. I hate jerks. I think negative things about the posts sometimes, but I would never EVER comment something hurtful or rude.
All that "mean people suck" stuff aside, we as a culture or also super sensitive to things. People are so easily offended nowadays it's ridiculous. "Don't hate on my president!" "Don't say morbidly obese kids have bad parents!"
I don't know what else to write on this topic. Why can't everybody just knock of the dumb stuff and be happy? It's not hard...
I remembered what else I was going to say! Why are people so judgmental of how people became famous? Like the Kardashians and Paris Hilton. They are making money. Leave them alone! They are famous because we watch them. We watch them go on vacations, we watch them get married and get jobs and buy houses and get divorced and have babies. It's not their fault they don't have some amazing talents. They are pretty people and we like to look at pretty things.
While I do agree that there are some pretty ridiculous "famous" people *see the entire "cast" of Jersey Shore*, people watch it. So, leave it be. You're not going to change anything by being a jerk. You're just jealous.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
The sound of...
Baby!
Every little noise warms my heart. (Or breaks it if it's relentless crying because she's teething in the middle of the night)
One of my favorites is the papery swish of her diaper as she toddles around the apartment. Her little diapered bum is the cutest thing ever! She runs around the apartment all day just finding things to do. I love to watch her when she's on a mission. She remembers where she left the book she wants and takes off, head tilted down and leading with her chin.
I also love hearing her little foot steps coming down the hall. The slap slap slap of tiny baby feet could melt a stone cold heart. When I hear her coming I can't wait to see how many articles of clothing she's carrying. She loves to walk around with her clothes. That or two big stuffed animals.
Right now most things are "buh!" When she's eating and wants to feed the dog she says, "Buh! Buh!" and looks around for Maddie. When she wants another bite she says, "Baaaa! Mmmm!" When we get up in the morning, as soon as I open the door she says, "Da!" because she knows Daddy is up. When she watches Baby Einsteins and recognizes the hippo she says, "guh!" because I called it her guy. And when I'm trying to make something to eat and she's hungry or wants to be held it's "Maaammmmmmmmaaaa" into my legs.
She has a great sense of humor and laughs a lot. She has a nasally cackle and I absolutely love it. It makes me laugh every time! The other day she thought my crunching into an apple was hilarious. I could hardly chew I was laughing so much.
So... Basically I love my child. A whole whole whole lot.
Monday, August 15, 2011
ANTS
I hate 'em.
For serious.
I'd post a picture or something for a visual impact, but I don't want to google "ants." I'd vomit.
We are in a ground floor apartment by the pool so apparently we're prime housing for the nasty little buggers. Luckily it's only the tiny sugar ants. They don't bite or strike the fear chord like big fatty or fire ants do. They're still driving me bonkers. I had seen a few here and there a few weeks ago and then one day I went to do the laundry and they had COMPLETELY infested the dirty clothes pile. Laundry, who knew? So I shook out all the clothes and vacuumed all the ones I saw into my dust buster, after following the trail of course. I sprayed any stragglers with Fantastik and sprayed the wall where they were coming in as well.
I saw another trail of them coming out of our coat closet. No exterior walls, but it backs up to the bathroom so we assumed they were coming in for the water. I went to the apartment office and told them and they brought me some spray for inside. We sprayed those areas and around the living room and thought. Hoorah!
No hoorah. I kept finding them in the bathroom and then by the fireplace. Bleh.. I sprinkled baby powder in several locations because they don't like the smell. But it doesn't kill them so they just scatter and find a new entrance. The exterminator guy comes like, every second Tuesday or Thursday or something ridiculous like that so they haven't sprayed outside.
Tuesday is taco night and I was gearing up to make some tortillas. I opened the baking cabinet to grab the flour, baking powder and shortening and low and behold: ANTS IN MY FRIGGIN' CABINET!!! They wanted mah sugah. So I cleaned out the cabinet and put my marshmallows and brown sugar in a ziploc baggie. I was putting things back into the cabinet when I kept finding the bastards on the counter around the honey. Ya, in the cap. That went in the trash...
They were in the stove too. I have to thoroughly clean the stove every time I use it. How fun is that? YAY? No Yay. I mean, don't get me wrong, having a clean house isn't a bad thing! But I don't have a messy house! They are going looking for things. I don't leave my sugar out all over the place, they went into the cabinet to the closed bag. Jerks.
Steven thought I was crazy for freaking out about it until last night. I went to change into my pajamas when I noticed a mound of moving black on my panties in the dirty clothes. Seriously? I don't know whether to be flattered or disgusted that the ants were attracted to my dirty underwear. (I don't have disgusting dirty underwear, just normal every day underwear)
It was so gross.... And it was late so I couldn't vacuum them up! We sprayed them with Fantastik, Steven squished them and I followed the trail and dumped some vinegar into the entrance... I hate ants.
I was also randomly finding them on the couch. (On an interior wall) So this morning I moved the couch to see where they were coming from behind the couch. The interior wall corners with an exterior wall so they were coming in at the corner. This time they had a lookout, though. A spider. (These ants are finding my weaknesses and using them against me) I squealed repeatedly as the spider began to run around hibbety jibbety when I sprayed him with Fantastik. I had to make my squeals of fear sound like fun so that I wouldn't scare Peyton who was staring at me with that, "Mama? You've got issues" look. Spider finally stopped running so I sprayed the line of ants and then went for the baby powder. Spider was playing possum! He started running like a spider with Fantastik on his eyes so I soaked him in it. And he died. But to be sure I squished him with a mound of Kleenex.
For now I've found a few stragglers here and there. It usually takes a day for them to form a line again which leads me to the following question:
Why are ants so stupid? I mean, if I sent out some scout ants to find food and/or water and they didn't return I wouldn't think, "Hey! ANTdrew didn't come back! Wait... Neither did SamANTtha, BrANTdon, ANTthony or Fred. They must have found something great and want us to come too!" I would think, "Uh, ya. They died. We shouldn't go back in there. Ever."
Exterminator comes Thursday. It better work, or I'm raising hell. I don't want ants. I pay $865 a month for an apartment for me, Steven, Peyton and Maddie. If they wanna live here, I better see some compensation for sharing my quarters.
For serious.
I'd post a picture or something for a visual impact, but I don't want to google "ants." I'd vomit.
We are in a ground floor apartment by the pool so apparently we're prime housing for the nasty little buggers. Luckily it's only the tiny sugar ants. They don't bite or strike the fear chord like big fatty or fire ants do. They're still driving me bonkers. I had seen a few here and there a few weeks ago and then one day I went to do the laundry and they had COMPLETELY infested the dirty clothes pile. Laundry, who knew? So I shook out all the clothes and vacuumed all the ones I saw into my dust buster, after following the trail of course. I sprayed any stragglers with Fantastik and sprayed the wall where they were coming in as well.
I saw another trail of them coming out of our coat closet. No exterior walls, but it backs up to the bathroom so we assumed they were coming in for the water. I went to the apartment office and told them and they brought me some spray for inside. We sprayed those areas and around the living room and thought. Hoorah!
No hoorah. I kept finding them in the bathroom and then by the fireplace. Bleh.. I sprinkled baby powder in several locations because they don't like the smell. But it doesn't kill them so they just scatter and find a new entrance. The exterminator guy comes like, every second Tuesday or Thursday or something ridiculous like that so they haven't sprayed outside.
Tuesday is taco night and I was gearing up to make some tortillas. I opened the baking cabinet to grab the flour, baking powder and shortening and low and behold: ANTS IN MY FRIGGIN' CABINET!!! They wanted mah sugah. So I cleaned out the cabinet and put my marshmallows and brown sugar in a ziploc baggie. I was putting things back into the cabinet when I kept finding the bastards on the counter around the honey. Ya, in the cap. That went in the trash...
They were in the stove too. I have to thoroughly clean the stove every time I use it. How fun is that? YAY? No Yay. I mean, don't get me wrong, having a clean house isn't a bad thing! But I don't have a messy house! They are going looking for things. I don't leave my sugar out all over the place, they went into the cabinet to the closed bag. Jerks.
Steven thought I was crazy for freaking out about it until last night. I went to change into my pajamas when I noticed a mound of moving black on my panties in the dirty clothes. Seriously? I don't know whether to be flattered or disgusted that the ants were attracted to my dirty underwear. (I don't have disgusting dirty underwear, just normal every day underwear)
It was so gross.... And it was late so I couldn't vacuum them up! We sprayed them with Fantastik, Steven squished them and I followed the trail and dumped some vinegar into the entrance... I hate ants.
I was also randomly finding them on the couch. (On an interior wall) So this morning I moved the couch to see where they were coming from behind the couch. The interior wall corners with an exterior wall so they were coming in at the corner. This time they had a lookout, though. A spider. (These ants are finding my weaknesses and using them against me) I squealed repeatedly as the spider began to run around hibbety jibbety when I sprayed him with Fantastik. I had to make my squeals of fear sound like fun so that I wouldn't scare Peyton who was staring at me with that, "Mama? You've got issues" look. Spider finally stopped running so I sprayed the line of ants and then went for the baby powder. Spider was playing possum! He started running like a spider with Fantastik on his eyes so I soaked him in it. And he died. But to be sure I squished him with a mound of Kleenex.
For now I've found a few stragglers here and there. It usually takes a day for them to form a line again which leads me to the following question:
Why are ants so stupid? I mean, if I sent out some scout ants to find food and/or water and they didn't return I wouldn't think, "Hey! ANTdrew didn't come back! Wait... Neither did SamANTtha, BrANTdon, ANTthony or Fred. They must have found something great and want us to come too!" I would think, "Uh, ya. They died. We shouldn't go back in there. Ever."
Exterminator comes Thursday. It better work, or I'm raising hell. I don't want ants. I pay $865 a month for an apartment for me, Steven, Peyton and Maddie. If they wanna live here, I better see some compensation for sharing my quarters.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Finding Nemo
I've been watching at least the first 40 minutes of this movie three times a day for the past 4 months. It's Pey's sleepy time movie. You would think I'd be so sick of it by now, but sometimes I finish watching it when she falls asleep. I still adore it. I don't believe it will ever get old.
I've had some time to think about the goings on in the film and have come to the conclusion that it's all Marlin's fault.
Each major thing that goes wrong can be attributed to Marlin. From the beginning, Marlin chose the anemone at the drop off. He then chased Coral around causing her swim outside and be eaten by the barracuda. Nemo gets stuck in the reef thing because Marlin wouldn't wake up on the first day of school. If Marlin hadn't come chasing after Nemo at school and make a big deal of him being at the drop off he wouldn't have felt the need to swim out to touch the boat.
Moving on to when he meets Dori. Nothing unfortunate there until he wont let the sharks read the mask. Had he done that Dori wouldn't have had a nosebleed and Bruce wouldn't have gone all Jack Nicholson on them. They probably would have told them how to get to the EAC real quick. Had that happened there would be no freaky electric fish chase and no jelly fish jungle. Had that still happened if he had trusted Dori and gone through the trench no jelly fish. Had that still happened if he hadn't distracted Dori by asking if she was hungry they would have made it safely out of the jellies. Marlin would probably still have met Crush and the other sea turtles seeing as they needed to get to the current anyhow. Without all the previous stuff he wouldn't have his heroic story, of course, but he would still be on his way to save Nemo.
On to Nemo in the tank. He gets stuck in the tube. How is that Marlin's fault? Getting stuck is not his fault, but had he allowed Nemo to get out of the reef thing on the first day of school, Nemo would have the courage and knowledge to get out of the fish tank tube easily. Now, Nemo almost getting pureed was Gill's fault, he should have given him a bigger pebble.
Marlin's big problem is trust. If he had trusted Dori and let her guide him with her crazy ways things would have been a lot smoother for the two of them. Once they do finally make it to Sydney and get spit out by the first pelican Marlin only needed to trust Nigel and he would have taken him straight to Nemo. But alas, he flipped out and the seagulls went wild.
All of this would have happened much faster without the Shining Bruce, the freaky electric fish, and the jelly fish jungle. That being said, Darla probably would not have arrived yet and Nigel could have shown up with Marlin and Dori without seeing Nemo "belly up." It would then just be a matter of getting Nemo out of the tank. Those fishies are smart and could have figured it out. Marlin is the one who goes to the fishing grounds out of depression, so it's his fault that Dori gets trapped in the fishing net.
I think that pretty much sums it up!
That being said, I still adore the movie in all its convoluted Disney goodness. I enjoy watching it over and over and finding new things. I notice the little details in the background and what the other characters are doing when the action is focused on one or two characters. And what else is amazing is that nothing every stops moving. The fish are constantly in motion and so is the water. It's beautiful.
I'm hungry. It's time for some breakfast!
I've had some time to think about the goings on in the film and have come to the conclusion that it's all Marlin's fault.
Each major thing that goes wrong can be attributed to Marlin. From the beginning, Marlin chose the anemone at the drop off. He then chased Coral around causing her swim outside and be eaten by the barracuda. Nemo gets stuck in the reef thing because Marlin wouldn't wake up on the first day of school. If Marlin hadn't come chasing after Nemo at school and make a big deal of him being at the drop off he wouldn't have felt the need to swim out to touch the boat.
Moving on to when he meets Dori. Nothing unfortunate there until he wont let the sharks read the mask. Had he done that Dori wouldn't have had a nosebleed and Bruce wouldn't have gone all Jack Nicholson on them. They probably would have told them how to get to the EAC real quick. Had that happened there would be no freaky electric fish chase and no jelly fish jungle. Had that still happened if he had trusted Dori and gone through the trench no jelly fish. Had that still happened if he hadn't distracted Dori by asking if she was hungry they would have made it safely out of the jellies. Marlin would probably still have met Crush and the other sea turtles seeing as they needed to get to the current anyhow. Without all the previous stuff he wouldn't have his heroic story, of course, but he would still be on his way to save Nemo.
On to Nemo in the tank. He gets stuck in the tube. How is that Marlin's fault? Getting stuck is not his fault, but had he allowed Nemo to get out of the reef thing on the first day of school, Nemo would have the courage and knowledge to get out of the fish tank tube easily. Now, Nemo almost getting pureed was Gill's fault, he should have given him a bigger pebble.
Marlin's big problem is trust. If he had trusted Dori and let her guide him with her crazy ways things would have been a lot smoother for the two of them. Once they do finally make it to Sydney and get spit out by the first pelican Marlin only needed to trust Nigel and he would have taken him straight to Nemo. But alas, he flipped out and the seagulls went wild.
All of this would have happened much faster without the Shining Bruce, the freaky electric fish, and the jelly fish jungle. That being said, Darla probably would not have arrived yet and Nigel could have shown up with Marlin and Dori without seeing Nemo "belly up." It would then just be a matter of getting Nemo out of the tank. Those fishies are smart and could have figured it out. Marlin is the one who goes to the fishing grounds out of depression, so it's his fault that Dori gets trapped in the fishing net.
I think that pretty much sums it up!
That being said, I still adore the movie in all its convoluted Disney goodness. I enjoy watching it over and over and finding new things. I notice the little details in the background and what the other characters are doing when the action is focused on one or two characters. And what else is amazing is that nothing every stops moving. The fish are constantly in motion and so is the water. It's beautiful.
I'm hungry. It's time for some breakfast!
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
And how does that make you feel?
Do you ever hear a phrase or think about one and it makes you feel all warm and fuzzy? I don't mean the first time he/she says "I love you," or your baby saying, "mama" for the first time. I mean, normal every day phrases.
One that gets my imagery gears turnin' is "Crack open a bottle."
I love the word "crack." Not like, cocaine or butt or in the ground. But the onomatopoeia. If feels heavy on the back of my tongue and makes my heart warm. I picture a roaring fire in a log cabin somewhere on a snowy mountain. Two glasses pleading to be filled with a plum red wine twinkling by the glow of the fire.
Person one says to person two, "Let's crack open a bottle of wine."
Warm, inviting, cozy. Crack.
One that gets my imagery gears turnin' is "Crack open a bottle."
I love the word "crack." Not like, cocaine or butt or in the ground. But the onomatopoeia. If feels heavy on the back of my tongue and makes my heart warm. I picture a roaring fire in a log cabin somewhere on a snowy mountain. Two glasses pleading to be filled with a plum red wine twinkling by the glow of the fire.
Person one says to person two, "Let's crack open a bottle of wine."
Warm, inviting, cozy. Crack.
Monday, July 11, 2011
That's Wassup!
People often ask me, "Mandy, what's your latest obsession?" And to those people I made up simply for the sake of having a creative blog opening I respond, "Food blogs!"
I am subscribed to one that is by a woman I used to babysit for in Nacogdoches. La Dolce Vita
She owns her own catering and cake company and makes such delicious food. I have made several things off of her site and they usually turn out. I used regular salt in the stroganoff and it was uber salty, but that was my bad.
I think my favorite thing about food blogs is when your finished product turns out just like the picture! I make Andrea's Shrimp Carbonara all the time and it always looks like hers. A couple days ago I went searching for food blogs and found this one. She has some super yummy looking stuff!
I decided to start simple and do her No Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies this morning. They look like hers! Hooray! And they haven't completely cooled yet, but I had to snack on one before nap time. They're delicious! The oatmeal doesn't cook long so it stays a little crunchy/chewy and makes the cookies yumtastic.
Speaking of nap time, it's now. I'll post more when I find more and do more.
I'll also maybe eventually finish the 30 day blog challenge that has turned into a million day challenge.
I am subscribed to one that is by a woman I used to babysit for in Nacogdoches. La Dolce Vita
She owns her own catering and cake company and makes such delicious food. I have made several things off of her site and they usually turn out. I used regular salt in the stroganoff and it was uber salty, but that was my bad.
I think my favorite thing about food blogs is when your finished product turns out just like the picture! I make Andrea's Shrimp Carbonara all the time and it always looks like hers. A couple days ago I went searching for food blogs and found this one. She has some super yummy looking stuff!
I decided to start simple and do her No Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies this morning. They look like hers! Hooray! And they haven't completely cooled yet, but I had to snack on one before nap time. They're delicious! The oatmeal doesn't cook long so it stays a little crunchy/chewy and makes the cookies yumtastic.
Speaking of nap time, it's now. I'll post more when I find more and do more.
I'll also maybe eventually finish the 30 day blog challenge that has turned into a million day challenge.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Day 10- What You Wore Today
I'd been putting this one off for a day that I actually changed out of my pajamas! Well then I went to Idaho and didn't bring my computer.
It's still kind of early today and I'm still in jammies so I'll say what I wore yesterday!
I wore jeans and a white tank top under a wide neck grey t-shirt. Pretty swanky, I know. Haha!
Now I shall rant.
I love Peyton to death, but yesterday I reached my breaking point. She has been so whiny and clingy that I can't get anything done. I'll give her credit for playing in her playpen for an hour watching Baby Mozart while I made tortillas for dinner. But after that I took her out to feed her lunch and she fussed through half of it. Once she finished I went to make myself lunch and she would not leave me alone. She stood up holding onto my jeans and screamed into them until I picked her up. I hadn't eaten since 8 am and was so hungry, so I had to let her cry while I cooked. I felt bad, but she was driving me nuts. Once I came back into the living room she was fine. She didn't want to sit or play with me, just wanted me in the room with her.
When Steven got home he played with her so I could finish getting dinner ready. While he was eating I made her dinner. He offered to feed her while I ate but she screamed. So I put my food down (not even a bite taken yet) and fed her. She started screaming halfway through and hitting the spoon and I had had enough. I took her out of her chair, put everything away, wiped her face and gave her to Steven. I said, "I'm going to take a shower. She's going to scream and I don't care." And with that I took a much needed LONG hot shower. I shaved my legs! Woohoo! And after that I blow dried my hair. It was lovely. I didn't hear her cry at all while I was in there. She started to fuss a little when I was almost done drying my hair.
So, she can be without me if Steven distracts her. But it was a grand total of about 20 minutes. I wish he could be here more to spend time with her so that she would be fine with him anytime and for longer periods.
Oh well! Time for diaper change and nap! I may take one with her. She woke up several times crying last night. Normally she wakes up twice quietly and I can nurse her back so sleep right away, but not last night... I'm exhausted!
It's still kind of early today and I'm still in jammies so I'll say what I wore yesterday!
I wore jeans and a white tank top under a wide neck grey t-shirt. Pretty swanky, I know. Haha!
Now I shall rant.
I love Peyton to death, but yesterday I reached my breaking point. She has been so whiny and clingy that I can't get anything done. I'll give her credit for playing in her playpen for an hour watching Baby Mozart while I made tortillas for dinner. But after that I took her out to feed her lunch and she fussed through half of it. Once she finished I went to make myself lunch and she would not leave me alone. She stood up holding onto my jeans and screamed into them until I picked her up. I hadn't eaten since 8 am and was so hungry, so I had to let her cry while I cooked. I felt bad, but she was driving me nuts. Once I came back into the living room she was fine. She didn't want to sit or play with me, just wanted me in the room with her.
When Steven got home he played with her so I could finish getting dinner ready. While he was eating I made her dinner. He offered to feed her while I ate but she screamed. So I put my food down (not even a bite taken yet) and fed her. She started screaming halfway through and hitting the spoon and I had had enough. I took her out of her chair, put everything away, wiped her face and gave her to Steven. I said, "I'm going to take a shower. She's going to scream and I don't care." And with that I took a much needed LONG hot shower. I shaved my legs! Woohoo! And after that I blow dried my hair. It was lovely. I didn't hear her cry at all while I was in there. She started to fuss a little when I was almost done drying my hair.
So, she can be without me if Steven distracts her. But it was a grand total of about 20 minutes. I wish he could be here more to spend time with her so that she would be fine with him anytime and for longer periods.
Oh well! Time for diaper change and nap! I may take one with her. She woke up several times crying last night. Normally she wakes up twice quietly and I can nurse her back so sleep right away, but not last night... I'm exhausted!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Where Have I Been?
Idaho. And before that chasing my 8 month old around the apartment. It's hard to find time to blog! Right now she is entertaining herself with diapers. Whatever floats her boat!
She's is growing up so much! She is a professional crawler. If she wants to get somewhere quickly she does this Spiderman crawl. She spreads her arms wider and "runs." It's pretty much adorable. She is standing on her own now too. She'll just stand up in the middle of the room and keep her balance. She can do it through a sneeze and through waving her arms maniacally. She can say "mama" but normally only does it when she's upset. She'll string it into some "baba"s too.
We just got back from a week vacation to visit my sister and her family in Rexburg, ID. It was a nice trip. She got to play with her cousins Allie and Adam and went swimming for the first time. I'll get that video up later.
My mom and I took her to Rexburg in January and she did pretty well in the car. This time we had my grandma with us so we stopped a lot more and did the drive in two days. It worked much better for baby's stress and comfort levels. She never got too upset in the car. She would whine when she was getting tired and I had to discover a way to get her to sleep.
She has entered the separation anxiety stage. Yay? No yay. I know it's my fault for never leaving her side, but holy cow... She's driving me nuts! I tried to take a shower yesterday and kept having to stick my head out and make faces at her. Doesn't she know I'll be out faster if I don't have to do that? It started at my sister's house. I was staying in the hotel with mom and gran, but gran snores. REALLY LOUD. So I decided Peyton and I would stay at Kate's. Mom and I ran to the hotel to get some stuff I would need for the night and were gone all of 10 minutes. When we drove back up I saw my 88-year-old grandmother carrying my 18 lb baby outside (heart attack!). I could see Pey's face was red so I got to her quickly. Poor thing had cried pretty much the entire time we were gone. Not a big deal for most babies, but that's the first time she's cried like that. I felt horrible.
I know she needs to get used to the fact that if I go I will be back, but when you're a stay at home mom who never goes anywhere, it's hard to teach her that. She's not really used to be being with anyone else either. It's always her and me. Daddy sees her for about 3 hours a day when he works. When he's off we see him all day so hopefully she'll start realizing that he can take care of her too!
Well, she's done with the diapers and is ready for breakfast. I'll get some pics and videos up later!
She's is growing up so much! She is a professional crawler. If she wants to get somewhere quickly she does this Spiderman crawl. She spreads her arms wider and "runs." It's pretty much adorable. She is standing on her own now too. She'll just stand up in the middle of the room and keep her balance. She can do it through a sneeze and through waving her arms maniacally. She can say "mama" but normally only does it when she's upset. She'll string it into some "baba"s too.
We just got back from a week vacation to visit my sister and her family in Rexburg, ID. It was a nice trip. She got to play with her cousins Allie and Adam and went swimming for the first time. I'll get that video up later.
My mom and I took her to Rexburg in January and she did pretty well in the car. This time we had my grandma with us so we stopped a lot more and did the drive in two days. It worked much better for baby's stress and comfort levels. She never got too upset in the car. She would whine when she was getting tired and I had to discover a way to get her to sleep.
She has entered the separation anxiety stage. Yay? No yay. I know it's my fault for never leaving her side, but holy cow... She's driving me nuts! I tried to take a shower yesterday and kept having to stick my head out and make faces at her. Doesn't she know I'll be out faster if I don't have to do that? It started at my sister's house. I was staying in the hotel with mom and gran, but gran snores. REALLY LOUD. So I decided Peyton and I would stay at Kate's. Mom and I ran to the hotel to get some stuff I would need for the night and were gone all of 10 minutes. When we drove back up I saw my 88-year-old grandmother carrying my 18 lb baby outside (heart attack!). I could see Pey's face was red so I got to her quickly. Poor thing had cried pretty much the entire time we were gone. Not a big deal for most babies, but that's the first time she's cried like that. I felt horrible.
I know she needs to get used to the fact that if I go I will be back, but when you're a stay at home mom who never goes anywhere, it's hard to teach her that. She's not really used to be being with anyone else either. It's always her and me. Daddy sees her for about 3 hours a day when he works. When he's off we see him all day so hopefully she'll start realizing that he can take care of her too!
Well, she's done with the diapers and is ready for breakfast. I'll get some pics and videos up later!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Day 09- Your Beliefs
I believe in God and Jesus and all that jazz.
I don't go to church partly because Steven worked every Sunday. He doesn't anymore, but we still don't go haha
I don't want to trivialize it by saying "all that jazz," but I wouldn't relegate myself into a specific "religion." I have found things I don't like about almost every church I've ever been to. The most important to me is the idea of original sin. I understand the idea but children are the purest, most innocent of all God's creations, so why do they need to be washed of the sins of their parents? Not for me. I also don't like the idea of baptizing before a child understand the concept. Do a dedication, but let them make a sound decision of when they are baptized.
We will eventually go to church I'm sure. If nothing else to expose Peyton to a religious community so that she can make her own religious choices when she's ready.
I still pray and every once in awhile I'll pull out my devotional book and do one when I have a second to breathe during the day.
I guess you could call me a Stay-At-Home-Believer.
I don't go to church partly because Steven worked every Sunday. He doesn't anymore, but we still don't go haha
I don't want to trivialize it by saying "all that jazz," but I wouldn't relegate myself into a specific "religion." I have found things I don't like about almost every church I've ever been to. The most important to me is the idea of original sin. I understand the idea but children are the purest, most innocent of all God's creations, so why do they need to be washed of the sins of their parents? Not for me. I also don't like the idea of baptizing before a child understand the concept. Do a dedication, but let them make a sound decision of when they are baptized.
We will eventually go to church I'm sure. If nothing else to expose Peyton to a religious community so that she can make her own religious choices when she's ready.
I still pray and every once in awhile I'll pull out my devotional book and do one when I have a second to breathe during the day.
I guess you could call me a Stay-At-Home-Believer.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Jeez Louise.
Peyton likes to play with wires and cords. She pulled on my laptop charger a few too many times and it stopped working. SO we had to order a new one and it finally got here today! Woohoo!
She is into everything these days. I seriously have to stop her from getting into stuff every two minutes. Like just now, I had to stop her from eating a Game Informer. Since she's starting crawling I think I've lost some weight and some hair. She pulls up on absolutely everything. She has a special place in her heart for a stool that is next to the couch. She is better about getting down from standing though. She used to just fall onto her tush. Now she slowly sinks down.
She is very curious about what's going on the world. Well, in our world anyway (the apartment). If someone is blowing their nose she stares in wonder. She laughs at me and claps when I brush my teeth. If I'm in the kitchen she thinks she's about to get food and starts smacking her lips. She'll also come into the kitchen and climb up my leg and stand there holding on to my pants for dear life.
She isn't saying anything yet but when I tell her to say "mama" she starts whispering "papapa" so I guess she's associating that? Who knows.
She eats well. She doesn't like stuff with a lot of flavor. We've tried spaghetti and chicken and pasta. She made yuck faces and started to fuss. I've figured out that I have to add oatmeal and apple juice to those foods and she'll eat them just fine. Except for recently. I assume her teeth are starting to hurt. She's felt a little warm to me lately and she starts fussing a couple minutes into some of her meals. I don't feel or see any teeth yet, but when she opens her mouth to eat I can see that her front gums are a little swollen.
I'll try to catch up on my blog challenge. Just for you Kate, because I'm pretty sure you're the only one who reads this.
She is into everything these days. I seriously have to stop her from getting into stuff every two minutes. Like just now, I had to stop her from eating a Game Informer. Since she's starting crawling I think I've lost some weight and some hair. She pulls up on absolutely everything. She has a special place in her heart for a stool that is next to the couch. She is better about getting down from standing though. She used to just fall onto her tush. Now she slowly sinks down.
She is very curious about what's going on the world. Well, in our world anyway (the apartment). If someone is blowing their nose she stares in wonder. She laughs at me and claps when I brush my teeth. If I'm in the kitchen she thinks she's about to get food and starts smacking her lips. She'll also come into the kitchen and climb up my leg and stand there holding on to my pants for dear life.
She isn't saying anything yet but when I tell her to say "mama" she starts whispering "papapa" so I guess she's associating that? Who knows.
She eats well. She doesn't like stuff with a lot of flavor. We've tried spaghetti and chicken and pasta. She made yuck faces and started to fuss. I've figured out that I have to add oatmeal and apple juice to those foods and she'll eat them just fine. Except for recently. I assume her teeth are starting to hurt. She's felt a little warm to me lately and she starts fussing a couple minutes into some of her meals. I don't feel or see any teeth yet, but when she opens her mouth to eat I can see that her front gums are a little swollen.
I'll try to catch up on my blog challenge. Just for you Kate, because I'm pretty sure you're the only one who reads this.
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