Snyder Central

Long weekend

2011-05-02T10:20:00.001-07:00

We had a long, enjoyable weekend. On Saturday, Mikayla set up a lemonade stand at a friend's house (by request no less) as part of National Lemonade day. She didn't make much, but had a bunch of fun. Then on Sunday, she had her stand set up at HEB for two hours. She made a considerable amount of money there. Mikayla has decided to donate a portion of her proceeds to her Girl Scout troop and part to her school.

I'll be picking out new running shoes today so that I can start back running again. I've been out for a week, and I really miss it. I just hope the shoes solve the problem. You'd think a week with no running and sore knees would be feeling better. If shoes don't fix it, I'll have to make a doctor appointment and that's just no fun.

Running on hold

2011-04-28T20:04:00.001-07:00

It seems my knees do not agree with my shoes. So, I've had to take a break to allow my knees to recover and to pick my new shoes. I go shopping tomorrow! I can't wait to get back to running. I was really enjoying that energy surge after the run.

Couch to 5k

2011-04-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

It's been a very long time since I posted. I guess I need to be more on the ball with these things. Oh well, such is life. You can only keep trying.

My sister challenged me to run a 5k with her. If you know me, you know how funny it is to think of me running. Previously, I only ran if someone was chasing me with a knife or if my children were about to be run over/bitten/hurt. Very short sprints and then I thought I would die afterwards.

The Couch to 5k program is a wonderful thing for a person like me. You start very slow. You make slow improvements in stamina and speed along with distance. And at the end of 8 weeks, you're running a solid 30 minutes and building your way to a full 5k (that's 3 miles folks).

When Mikayla (now 8) heard me discussing the program with Brad, she decided she wanted to run as well. So, I have a local running partner. Someone to encourage me and help me through the tough parts. Or so I thought. The first two weeks were full of complaining and more complaining from her. After a quick chat about how staying positive makes it easier, she has turned the corner and is now a good little running partner.

I do have to be flexible with child care for the boys. They're too young to run the program with me, and I can't trust David (2.5) to stay on the playground while I run circles around the park. Thank goodness for neighbors, in-laws, and nephews! With Brad's night schedule, there is at least 1 day a week where Mikayla and I need to run, but Brad isn't here and available to watch the boys.

So far, thanks to wonderful neighbors and an encouraging sister and daughter, I've been able to keep up my every other day pace and work my way through the program. We completed Week 3 day 1 today. The workout is as follows: brisk walk 5 minutes, run 90 seconds, walk 90 seconds, run 3 minutes, walk 3 minutes, run 90 seconds, walk 90 seconds, run 3 minutes, walk 5 minutes. The last 30 seconds of the final 3 minute run were difficult, but I could have done another 30 seconds without dying. And I wasn't huffing and puffing for breath.

With the heat of summer upon us - even though it's only late April- I'm going to have to start getting more creative on my running times. Previously, it's worked out best to run right after cleaning up the kitchen from dinner. However, that's not much fun if it's 90+ outside. I think during the hottest parts of the summer, I'll be running either very early or very late to avoid the worst of the heat and I think I'll time my run so I end at the community pool and can jump in to cool off before walking home to shower!

The stats from today's run: 3,393 steps. 1.5 miles. 28:34 minutes. Average speed of 3.2 mph. Burned 113.3 calories.

Cocoa Snowflakes

2010-12-05T20:35:00.001-08:00

Snow Flurries Cocoa Christmas Card

Make a statement with Shutterfly Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

The story of how I named my babies

2010-07-27T21:06:00.000-07:00

Mikayla. My first baby. I so very much wanted to name her Adeline Grace. Brad despised the name. After much debate, we finally decided on Mikayla. With an I not an A. And not Michaela either. But we could NOT decide on a middle name. Brad's step dad finally picked a winner for us. And Mikayla Paige was born at 37 weeks. She has so many nick names it's not even funny. From Kayla, to Mickey, to Crayola. Even Kayla Mae (from Grandpa).

A one month old Mikayla with her G-mom (great-great Grandmother)

Bryson. My first boy! And I so knew he was a boy from the beginning. We weren't really even discussing names seriously as I was only around 16 weeks, but I had the baby name books out and was thumbing through them. One evening while I was in the bathroom (bathing, not going!) I was making fun of the names. Telling Brad we should name our boy Napoleon or Chevy or after some Greek god. And then, I found it. BRYSON. staring at me from the baby book. I KNEW that was his name. And his middle name had to be Lee after his father, his grand mother and several great grandmothers as well. Bryson also has several wonderful nick names. The most interesting of which is Baby Bart.

Bryson in the potty...after attempting to climb it with the lid up!

And then there was David. Our surprise boy whom we were told was a girl. My mother in law had been re-diagnosed with cancer. We knew it would be her last fight. And my grandmother had recently passed away. I wanted to honor both of them in some way, but didn't want to name baby Sally or Lillian. So I worked with just the initials and came up with Lilah Shane. I loved it. My extended family loved it. My husband was coming around. And then, I gave birth to a boy! A at first very healthy little boy, but then a very very sick little boy in need of Life Flight. I was NOT having my unnamed baby fly away from me. I felt the push to give him a name before he flew away. Brad and I settled on David Shane. And even though I did not like David at the time and felt for the first year that David was not his name, he's settling into David nicely. I call him David Shane about 90% of the time. The kids call him David, and my dad, my dad calls him Virgil!

My almost two year old, mischievous David!

Just so you know...

2010-07-13T20:12:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it is easier to bribe a 23 month old with cake at 8:30am that it is to pack him up to run the older kids to vacation Bible school.

Tempered glass WILL shatter into roughly a million tiny little pieces at the hands of a 23 month old.

Getting up at 5am leads to a cranky 7 year old around 5pm.

My niece is a LUCKY LUCKY LUCKY girl. She's leaving for a two week educational trip to AUSTRALIA tomorrow!

Sour cream also works as hair gel. See?

Four year old boys derive immense joy from sending themselves to the moon.

And even though she's seven and knows everything there ever was, is or will be to know.. she still plays with her food.

Black Friday Contests at Vanilla Joy

2009-11-27T10:08:00.001-08:00

There are lots of Black Friday giveaways at Vanilla Joy. I get lots of extra entries for cool prizes when I do a blog post. Of course, I'm a sucker for all things free. So you get to read my "coming out of blogger blackhole" post about this free prize.

Vanilla Joy posts about topics like Craft Room Organization and Creative Date Ideas. She features Obaji Skin Care and Scrapbooking Furniture. She even talks about Teaching Baby Sign Language!

Vanilla Joy! Lots of cool ideas. Awesome Black Friday prizes!

just updating...

2009-07-25T19:17:00.001-07:00

Well I finished the half-finished pants in my previous post last week. I started a new pair today. Let's all guess how long it takes me to finish them...

On other subjects: I've got a meeting set up with Early Childhood Intervention for an "intake meeting" for David. Basically, the first meeting is a bunch of paperwork. After that meeting, they'll process the paperwork and set up another meeting where several therapists will come and test David in lots of different areas to see if he needs or qualifies for any services. I'm mostly concerned about his lack of eating skills and just want to make sure nothing is wrong.

David also has a dental appointment the first week of August. He has some severe decay on his top four teeth. I have no idea where it came from. Two months ago, there was a little discolored area on one of his top teeth. Today, that tooth is very obviously diseased and the other three are as well. I just hope we'll be able to work out some sort of payment plan with the dentist as I know this is not going to be a cheap fix. More than likely, it will require all 4 teeth being capped while under general anesthesia at the local hospital. And since David is not yet one, I'll probably spring for WHITE caps instead of the ugly silver ones. I mean, he'll have these darn things for up to 6 years!

Mikayla is bored out of her mind with summer break. All of her friends are gone on vacations and she does not enjoy playing with her brothers!

Bryson is a busy little boy. Growing, exploring and destroying.

Well, David is up. Off again.

Half-Finished Cable Longies

2009-07-19T08:36:00.001-07:00

Cable Longies Shipwrecked, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

My first pair of cable pants for David! These are pair one of a planned six-pair wardrobe for winter. Currently, only one leg is complete. Of course, they are unwashed, and unblocked, so they look a bit wonky, but I couldn't wait to share!

Thanks so much to Kine from Norway (a lady I know from a private message board) for sending me the wool for these! I knew right away that THESE were the pants for this wool. I'm so glad that they're turning out just the way I visioned!

I'm a photo of the day failure..

2009-07-16T08:14:00.000-07:00

Well. It didn't last long. I tried. I did. But honestly, by the end of the day (that's around midnight for me), I've realized I haven't taken pictures for like the past 3 days. Sad, isn't it. I hope you all enjoyed all the pictures though. I'll try to keep up once a week posts. I can probably handle that.

Hubs POTD 14

2009-07-14T12:39:00.003-07:00

Hubs POTD 14, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

The man who picked POTD 13. Yup. That's him.

Cake Wreck POTD 13

2009-07-14T12:39:00.001-07:00

Cake Wreck POTD 13, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

The Birthday cake my husband willingly picked out. And he didn't get why I laughed the ENTIRE time. Talk about cake wreckage, my dears! The cracked icing. The bleeding food color. The random pick placement!

Riding with the Dog POTD 12

2009-07-14T12:38:00.001-07:00

Riding with the Dog POTD 12, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

Sometimes the mistakes are better POTD 11

2009-07-14T12:37:00.001-07:00

Sometimes the mistakes are better POTD 11, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

POTD Day 10

2009-07-07T10:11:00.003-07:00

IMG_3106, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

Clearly avocado is delicious!

POTD Day 9

2009-07-07T10:11:00.001-07:00

IMG_3101, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

Well.. This is the time I remembered to take the photo of the day. Whoops!

I hate toilets [POTD Day 8]

2009-07-04T14:50:00.001-07:00

Ugh. Toilets.., originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

I hate toilets. They stink if there are any men in the house. No matter how much you clean, urine seeps into the little crevices and makes them reek. Borrowed my sister-in-laws steam cleaner thingy to try to salvage said toilet. It's better, but still reeks. If only I could convince the men to use the toilet sitting down.

Driving to my sisters [POTD Day 7]

2009-07-04T14:49:00.001-07:00

Driving, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

Driving my kids to my sister's house. She actually volunteered to watch my older two for FOUR consecutive nights! God bless her!

A dirty little addiction [POTD Day 6]

2009-07-04T14:47:00.001-07:00

The Shoe Chewer, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

She wishes her brother was a sister! [POTD DAY 5]

2009-07-04T14:46:00.001-07:00

Bryson, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

but sometimes just dressing him up like one will do. Mikayla "pinked" Bryson up. Complete with pink Webkinz poodle and polka dot high heels. Bryson loved it as much as Mikayla did!

My 3.5 year old [POTD Day 4]

2009-06-30T19:30:00.001-07:00

Bryson, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

I've made it to day 4. Woot! This evening, we were enjoying the cooler weather after a week in the 100s. Thanks to a front coming in, it was only like 90 this evening. Bryson was really enjoying the time outdoors, as were the rest of us.

POTD - Day 3

2009-06-30T19:28:00.001-07:00

Mikayla playing with goo, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

A very happy Mikayla for you. Normally, at this time of the morning, Mikayla is NOT happy. This morning, she got to play with her goo. We made goo the evening before. How do you make goo you ask. Why.. let me tell you!

First - take a roll of toilet paper. The cheap stuff. Don't waste the Charmin on this folks.

Second - Have child rip toilet paper to shreds and deposit it in a large rubbermaid.

Third - Grate a little bit of soap over the top of the toilet paper.

Fourth - Get a spray bottle. Fill with water and add a bit of food coloring. Spray paper. Really turn it around and get it good and wet.

Fifth - Squish everything around. REALLY REALLY squish it. You might need to add a bit more water. The more you squish, the more fun it gets.

Then, parents, just sit back and watch your kids have fun. If you're a really awesome parent, you'll let the kid do ALL of the above steps while you just sit and watch.

This project kept Bryson busy for TWO HOURS the first day. That's a record. He only sleeps for longer than that!

POTD - Day 2

2009-06-30T19:25:00.001-07:00

David Trying to Escape, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

Look! A baby trying to escape!

photo of the Day - Day 1

2009-06-30T19:23:00.001-07:00

David's Towel, originally uploaded by amandassnyder.

I'm starting a new blog challenge. Namely.. post a photo a day. Sometimes you'll get lucky and have a story too. Sometimes, it'll just be the picture. Enjoy!

Look a Squeaky clean baby!

Vacation Bible School

2009-06-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

Has started! Yippee! I tried sending Bryson this year. His first day (yesterday) went great. He took a nap before he went even. Since the preacher's family lives on my block, they always take my kiddos back and forth for me since I always have a sleeping baby at times I need to get them back/forth. It's such a blessing for them to do that. However, last night that particular blessing meant my 3.5 year old and 6 year old went to bed at 10pm instead of 7:30pm. Today was a DISASTER. Neither one of them had enough sleep. So Bryson missed out on VBS today. He fell fast asleep at 7pm. He would have went to bed even earlier, but he was waiting for dinner.

Mikayla has a weird little rash, but no other symptoms. Lots of tiny little bug bite looking bumps. Weird, I tell ya. She says they don't itch and they haven't spread since they first showed up. I can't think of anything new she might be reacting to, so I'm just going to say it's a mystery.

It's been a LONG time!

2009-06-07T11:45:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been about 4 months since my last post. A busy four months filled with joy, sadness, and lots of kids.

My mother-in-law, Sally, lost her battle with cancer on the morning of April 29th. We went to see her the night before and are very glad we got one last chance to sit by her bed and let her know we loved her. Everyone is coping very well. I think in part due to the fact that we had already come to terms with the fact we were going to lose her. Her memorial service was very moving and exactly what she would have wanted.

Mikayla has finished her first year of school. She is a kindergarten graduate and will move to first grade in the fall. She already misses school, her friends, and most of all her teacher, Mrs. B.

Bryson is still the loving, trouble-making 3.5 year old he was 4 months ago. He'll come up to us and give us kisses and hugs and let us know he misses us. He is constantly coming up with new things that make us laugh.

David has EIGHT teeth now. Four came in in one week. He is also in the process of cutting 4 more. Four at a time seems to be his normal. He is army crawling around the house. His giggle is more like a cough than a laugh. David saves ALL of his talking for after the big kids go to bed. His favorite crawling target is the cat. Of course, the cat is a moving target and he rarely actually reaches her! David refuses to eat real food, baby food, or anything other than my milk. He refuses cups, sippies, straws, bottles, spoons, syringes. Basically unless it comes straight from me, he's not having it. It's starting to get a bit frustrating, but I'm hopeful that soon, he'll figure it out!

I am enjoying, for the most part, being my kids' mom. Working to keep the house from looking like a disaster zone. I've started knitting even more. Hardly a week goes by that I don't finish something knitted--shorts, diaper covers, dish cloths, coffee cozies.

Brad is working away. Plugging along babysitting adults. Well, not really, but basically, that's what he does!

A new look!

2009-01-11T13:16:00.000-08:00

Decided I needed a new look for the new year! Let me know if anything looks funky on your end.

Nothing too exciting happening for us here. David is growing by leaps and bounds and is now solidly in his 12 month clothing. 5 months old and this boy is HUGE. Bryson has decided to give up naps much to my dismay. He's finally figured it out though and his new bedtime is anywhere between 6:30p and 7p depending on his moods. Mikayla is still going strong in Kindergarten. She's not enjoying it much right now because she says "I'm the last one to read" (in her drama queen voice) when I know for a fact only about half of the class is reading. I have a meeting with her teacher to discuss how I can help her.

Work is really slow this time of year, so I'm already using vacation to cover those hours that just aren't there. Thankfully, I have three weeks of vacation, so I still have two weeks left. I've been blessed with several free lance jobs as well, so that's extremely helpful.

Brad has been pulling a lot of overtime at a unit about an hour and a half away to help us get out of the hole and ahead a bit. Hopefully, we'll achieve that goal before it gets hot and riots are more likely.

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!

2008-12-15T20:24:00.003-08:00

Who would have thought my five year old could sing that this Christmas and really mean it!

Saturday Mikayla was bouncing on her bouncey ball and fell face first onto the laundry room floor. There was amazingly no blood. However, both her top center teeth got pushed in all sorts of funny ways. Funny enough that I called and we made an emergency visit to the dentist.

We went back in bright and early this morning. After X-rays and another exam, both top center teeth were pulled. The dentist also pulled one of her lower teeth that refused to come out on its own and already had an adult tooth growing in behind it. Mikayla did amazingly well throughout it all. 99% of her crying was just from being nervous. The one time she did feel a bit of pain, the dentist was very caring and gave her another injection to numb her gum up a bit more.

She's doing awesome tonight and not complaining at all about sore gums. I'm so thankful that it was her baby teeth that got injured and not her adult teeth. We do need to go back in 6 months so he can examine her adult teeth that take place of the pulled baby teeth. He wants to make sure there have been no injuries to them. Nothing showed up on the x-ray, but we won't know for sure until they come in.

A Texas Sized Snowman

2008-12-10T07:26:00.000-08:00

We woke up to snow this morning! So of course, we start yelling "It's SNOWING" which makes Mikayla wake up and get dressed in a flash! Out we went to make our very own Texas Sized snowman.

Yeah, I know it is very small, but not EVERYTHING is bigger in Texas. The kids had lots of fun playing in the snow. Nice big fat flakes for about 20 minutes. Then it stopped. By the time we headed in to school the snow had turned to sleet. And of course, the snow is now melting away.

Man all the roofs sure did look nice and pretty this morning though.

Great Giveaway chance

2008-12-06T18:54:00.000-08:00

All you baby wearing Mamas, visit Simple Finds before the 6th for a chance to win a Sleepy Baby Wrap Carrier! Looks like a great product, and I get an extra chance for telling you all about it!

Well, he's growing!

2008-12-01T18:00:00.000-08:00

Today was David's four month well check. He weighs 18 pounds and 15 ounces! He has gained 8 ounces since last week! David is now 26" long, an amazing 6" growth in length in 4 short months. The doctor was very impressed with his bright eyes following everyone around and how much he smiled. He got his rotavirus oral vax and THREE other vaxes as well. He wasn't very happy about that, but overall he's done much better this go around than last round.

And for pictures...

Here's David on his birthday

Sick baby :(

Skinny baby getting his first tub bath!

And my big boy now!

We've come a LONG way from the tiny preemie that had a helicopter ride to Temple! Praise God he's healthy!

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T16:09:00.000-08:00

This past year has been rough for us. We have a lot to be thankful for in spite of that. First, we have three amazing healthy children. Mikayla is in school, Bryson is a typical toddler boy, and David, well he's an amazing little baby. Thank God we made it through David's birth.

I'm thankful that we have a roof over our heads and food on the table. We have clothes to wear and lights in our house. I'm thankful that we have a large, loving family. Thankful that we have great friends who really care. And thankful that we both have decent jobs.

Apparently, Bryson is thankful for Pumpkin Pie!

(Don't worry folks, that's a butter knife!)

Chatting away

2008-11-26T11:43:00.000-08:00

David is garnering a lot of attenion lately by talking to us.

Oh.. and just in case you were wondering what my now almost 4 month old, once very ill preemie baby now weighs.... EIGHTEEN POUNDS 7 ounces. YIKES! He is less than one pound away from TRIPLING his birth weight. Yeah. That's supposed to happen around the time they turn a year old!

Comments Please!

2008-11-25T20:18:00.001-08:00

Because I fear I'm doing all this blogging and no one is reading.. Please oh please oh please, post a comment if you visit. I just feel like no one loves me (yeah pitiful me) and I want to know who's visiting. I added a nifty tracker so I can see where people are coming from, and it's changing every time I visit, so I *know* people are visiting, I just want to know who!

So who does he look like?

2008-11-25T20:07:00.000-08:00

I get that question all the time about David. When he was first born, he was the spitting image of Bryson. Now, I think he looks like Mikayla. You try to figure it out. I'm not going to tell you who is who, you get to guess. And no girly clothing to give anything away either!

On other news, we're having Thanksgiving with my sister in law and my husband's side of the family on Thursday. Brad will be working, so we're also going to have a small family Thanksgiving at home on Sunday. Yummy turkey for a whole week!

Today, I folded and stacked ALL the clean clothes. My new laundry rule is IF YOU CAN REACH THE PLACE IT BELONGS, YOU'RE OLD ENOUGH TO PUT IT AWAY. So Mikayla can manage to put away ALL of her clothes because she can reach all of the drawers. Bryson can only manage his pants because that's the only drawer he can reach. And guess what, Brad can reach all of his drawers as well, so I'm no longer responsible for putting away his laundry.

My stress levels have risen to an all time high trying to do everything. Therefor, in addition to my new laundry rule, I also have a "stuff" rule. It goes like this I WILL ASK YOU ONE TIME TO PUT SOMETHING AWAY. AFTER THAT, I PUT IT AWAY. IN THE TRASH. AND IT STAYS THERE.

I'm also planning on using the long Thanksgiving weekend to go through the kids clothing and get rid of things that no longer fit (over half of their clothes) and things that are the wrong season (about a quarter of it) and that should leave 1/4 of the clothes currently in their drawers. I'm also going to go through all toys. If it hasn't seen the light of day and the love of kiddos hands in the past two weeks, it's leaving the house. What's left must fit in their toy drawer (each kid has one). I figure less toys will equal less stress. It worked in the past, but kids accumulate stuff.

I just don't understand...

2008-11-24T18:43:00.001-08:00

How taking a nap can be so bad that you make yourself throw up TWELVE times. Yes folks. TWELVE times I cleaned up puke. Twice off the floor, the other ten times out of a bucket. Bryson absolutely refused his nap today, as shown by the puking. I made him spend the rest of the day as a "sick" kid. NO going outside to play. NO good snacks, only crackers and water. NO fun TV shows. Man I was mean!

Good thing I love them..

2008-11-12T20:33:00.000-08:00

Because otherwise, I'd have to kick all the kids out of the house. Today was a bit trying with the two boys.

Today Bryson:
-peed in the trashcan just because he could.

-filled a toy bin with water and dumped it on the floor. VERY Sneaky cuz he had the water barely turned on so I couldn't hear it.

-Figured out how to open the chest freezer, take a step stool and dig around in the baskets for stuff (corn dogs and popsicles).

-poured his koolaid from his sports top bottle over every window sill in the kitchen.

-poured his koolaid from a different straw cup into a bowl full of sliced apples.

-spit chewed up apples into my hair brush (YUCK!)

However, in order to redeem himself he:

-learned how to sweep the kitchen floor because he said "It very dirty in here"

-asked for (and received) a cuddle at bed time.

David was pretty much a typical 3 month old today. Nursed all morning. Fought sleep much of the afternoon. Smiled and GIGGLED during bath time.

In other house events... Mikayla's school is having a 50s sing along on Friday and there is no way I'll be able to go with both boys and no sitters. She hasn't asked if I"m going yet though, so I'm just praying she doesn't ask so I don't have to disappoint her. Going to school has made her sassy mouth even worse. It was so bad yesterday I had to send her friends home and send her to bed early and without her TV show. Tonight was only slightly better.

As for me, I've just been doing normal keeping house sort of things (laundry, cooking, cleaning). I've also started knitting another pair of pants for David. They might be done sooner than the last pair!

Knitting~

2008-11-10T06:58:00.000-08:00

I finally finished David's knitted pants. These pants seemed to be cursed at the beginning. I cast on the wrong number of stitches and had a pair of pants that could have fit Mikayla. So I ripped it out and started over. Forgot to use smaller needles when doing the ribbing, so I ripped again and started for the third time. The body went quickly. The legs took forever. But they're finished, and they fit, and they're fully functional!

Then I was going to do another pair of pants for David, but Mikayla complained. So, on went a hat for her. I finished the entire thing last night. She woke me up this morning with a smile on her face and a hat on her head.

Next up.. A hat for Bryson. Off to find a pattern.

My own little Al Bundy

2008-11-05T07:51:00.000-08:00

It seems that even though my boy has NEVER seen Married...With Children, he somehow has picked up on Al Bundy's bad habits. He sleeps with his hand in his pants. Yup. Every night. Totally funny. And do NOT attempt to remove said hand from said boys pants. It will wake him up. I guess he likes to make sure nothing sneaks away in the night.

We have Pictures!

2008-11-05T07:40:00.000-08:00

First Up... Our chunky three month old sucking on his fist

Then.. Same chunky month old less than impressed with his Halloween costume.

What said three month old actually wore on the trick-or-treat tirade.

What the other two wore. A black cat (whose ears refuse to show up in this picture) and a frog.. Again..

What happens when 2.5 year olds play in the laundry room.

And what happens when 2.5 year olds dress themselves.

Promise we're still alive!

2008-11-04T10:47:00.000-08:00

I promise we're still alive over here. It's just been crazy busy. I've got lots of pictures to upload. Lots of things to say. The kids are growing (too fast!) and doing well. I'm crazy with paying work and regular house work. Hubby is back to the job after being off on FMLA. Cat is insane-o.

I'll try to get those pics up for everyone soon!

An open letter to solicitors

2008-09-02T19:37:00.000-07:00

Dear Solicitor (that means YOU who ring my doorbell while knocking incessantly),

I work full time from home. I have a newborn and a toddler as well as a Kinder student who has to be picked up daily. I don’t want the steaks from your truck freezer, no matter how cheap they are. Any newspapers go straight to recycling. I’ve already found Jesus. He lives in my heart, my children’s hearts and my husband’s heart. He also talks to the preacher two doors down. I don’t want you to do my yardwork, housework, or paint my house. I don’t have the money to buy from your child’s fundraiser. I don’t want Girl Scout cookies or a subscription to a magazine I’ll never have a chance to read. I’m lucky I can read the can I grab from the pantry for dinner.

Now. If you still feel like your product, service, or charity requires you to knock on my door. Go ahead. But be warned, I probably won’t be very chatty. You’ll be lucky if I’m civil and not downright rude. Better yet. Don’t knock. Call me and make an appointment! What, you don’t have my number? Then you really don’t need to talk to me huh?

School & Growing Babies

2008-09-01T18:09:00.000-07:00

Mikayla's first week of Kindergarten has gone amazingly well. Her first day she was practically kicking me out of the classroom after the first minute. The second day didn't go quite as smoothly, but there were no tears and there was no major drama. By the end of the week, she had the process down. Starting tomorrow, the girl goes in on her own! Amazing ain't it!

David is growing! I was looking at his sweet face today while he was nursing and noticed that his head has gotten bigger! I'm sure it's not by much, but it was enough for me to notice. His cheeks are chubbier. His arms aren't quite as stickly, and his little chicken legs are FINALLY starting to fill out. Thank Goodness! I was getting tired of pee and poo seeping out of the leg holes of EVERY diaper I own (both cloth and disposable!) He does still have a frog look to him though. BIG ole belly and tiny little heiny. I know it will change and when it does, I'll be sad!

Diapers for Two

2008-08-24T10:55:00.000-07:00

Doing diapers for two is, well, exhausting. And I'm using disposables part time on Bryson. I don't want to push him, but I can't wait until that boy learns how to use the potty. The above picture is ONE DAY worth of laundry. For Bryson there are 3 pockets, 1 all in one, and 4 fitteds for a total of 8 diapers. For David, there are 7 fitteds, 4 prefolds and 2 all in ones for a total of 13 diapers. And then there is the pile of wipes, extra doublers, and random pile of momma cloth on the floor. When you go through 21 diapers in one day, you have to wash diapers EVERY DAY. Just no way around it. The pail gets full and if you delayed it (because you know you have enough diapers) you'd just wind up doing two loads of diapers in one day, which would be worse.

However, with all of that said, I'll just say, Man I'm glad we use cloth diapers. I can't imagine the fortune we'd be throwing away every day if we used disposables. If you figure 17 cents per diaper (on the low end), we'd be throwing away $3.57 every day. That's $24.99 per week, $1299.48 per year. And that's if the kids don't get sick and burn through say, 15 diapers in one day with explosive poo. Knowing I've only spent something like $400 on the diapers I have in my house, I'm happy we use cloth!

Pictures for you.. Finally!

2008-08-23T14:40:00.001-07:00

David likes his fingers!

Proud Big Brother Bryson (complete with Impetigo sores under his nose)

Big sister Mikayla holding baby brother for the first time.

David all wrapped up in my knock off Moby wrap

All three of my guys together.

Getting ready (for school)

2008-08-19T12:28:00.000-07:00

We've really been struggling the past two days trying to get our household on a school time frame. In order for Mikayla to be ready for school on time, we have to get up at 6:30am. That hasn't happened yet. Do you know how hard it is to get up at 6:30 when your newborn fell asleep like 20 minutes before that?

David is growing well. At his checkup on Friday, he had gained 11oz since discharge from Temple and grew 1/4". The doctor was very impressed with how well he was doing considering his rough start.

I had a checkup the same day. Turns out my Super Secret Weight Loss Plan is in action again. For those who don't know, my Super Secret Weight Loss Plan is called Pregnancy followed by Nursing. For me, it leads to massive weight loss in the first 6 weeks. So far, I've lost 30 pounds. I'm down to 190! Go me!

SURPRISE! We got a boy!

2008-08-15T07:47:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most everyone is aware by now, but David Shane was born August 1st at 6:14pm. He weighed 6lb 7oz and was 20 inches long. After a few hours of observation, it was obvious the little guy was in trouble. He wound up with a chest tube, lines in his umbilical cord and lots of monitors. After a day, he still wasn't better, so he was flown to Scott & White in Temple where he could be watched better. He recovered well and was released on Tuesday August 12.

I had a really good experience with my immediate c-section care. The spinal worked REALLY well and I can't remember ever feeling as good as I did after this section. Brad and I sat and laughed so hard in the recovery room about our little BOY who was supposed to be a girl!

Shortly after they moved me back to L&D (I was on magnesium for my blood pressure so had to be monitored closer), I was feeling great and just wanted to rest, so I sent Brad home to get himself a good night's sleep. Right around 1am on Saturday morning, things spiraled out of control for me. My blood pressure went from around 190/100 to 70/30 in less than 5 minutes. There was a code called and about 20 people swarmed into my room. I have no idea how close I was to actually dying, but I'm sure I was pretty darn close with all those people acting like they did. I rebounded after several bags of fluid (thanks to an additional IV) and stabilized for a few hours. THEN, it happened AGAIN! Throughout the entire ordeal, I never lost consciousness. It's even more scary when you see how concerned the doctors and nurses are! I was once again stabilized.

The doctors (because at that point there were at least 3 involved in my care) decided I was having some post-surgical bleeding and debated sending me back to surgery. I can't tell you how scared I was of that! Thankfully, after four, YES FOUR, units of blood and about 13 bags of saline, they decided I was stable enough to just be watched for signs of more bleeding. After several hours, and lots of blood draws, they decided I was still bleeding, but not enough to send to surgery. PRAISE GOD! I did get two more units of blood though, for a total of SIX units!

Overall, I spent from Friday afternoon until Wednesday morning in the hospital recovering from my section. I was discharged Wednesday and headed to Temple to see my little guy. I had only seen him for a few minutes during all my time at St. Joe because I was not stable enough to go to him and he was too sick to come to me.

We are all home now, and have been since Tuesday evening. I can't tell you how blessed I am to still be here to be a mother to my children and to watch them grow and learn. I'm so lucky that David and I were not any sicker than we were. It could have been SOOO much worse. Spending a week in the NICU makes you well aware of what can happen with sick babies!

I'll be back to post pictures later. I've got THREE kids to get ready for a visit to the doctor. Only one is going with us, but the other two have to be dressed to go to the neighbor's!

Today is Baby Day!

2008-08-01T11:30:00.000-07:00

Well, baby will be arriving today! I'm 34 weeks and 6 days, so she's early, but hopefully will be very healthy. My section is scheduled for 5, but I have to be at the hospital at 3:30. Prayers for a healthy baby please:)

Feeling like Cr*p

2008-07-23T08:47:00.000-07:00

Well today, I'm sitting around (well trying to lay around) feeling like cr*p. My blood pressure is up a bit, my head hurts like heck and I've been running to the potty like no one's business. This is crazy!

C-section Date

2008-07-21T17:13:00.000-07:00

Well, the date is set. If nothing changes from now to then, I'll be holding Lilah on August 26th. Time is currently set for 7:30am, so I'll be holding her shortly after that. They wanted to do the section on August 25, but that happens to be Mikayla's first day of school. And I want to be there for that, so I had them change it :)

33 weeks, 2 days

2008-07-21T10:01:00.000-07:00

I'm on modified bedrest now. Went in for a regular appointment this morning and my pressures were higher than the doctor was comfortable with. So I left on modified bedrest, instructions to call if swelling or blood pressures got worse, and a prescription for a blood pressure med. I'm having no other problems other than the high blood pressure, so I guess that's my silver lining.

Sewing from the past few days

2008-07-17T08:50:00.000-07:00

So I joined a contest on one of my boards to encourage me to use all the fabric I have sitting around! So far, I've sewn a skirt and a jumper for Mikayla and made myself 25 points! WTG me! Today, I'm going to try to get some Pajamas and undies for Bryson made. I just need to trace those darn Otto patterns!

So the first thing I made was an Ottobre dress that I modified into a jumper. I had to remove the sleeves, increase the size of the sleeve holes slightly and add facings. It was a VERY quick project. I completed it from cut to finish during nap time. The fabric is a clearance lightweight cordouroy I got at Walmart. I even have enough left to make a skirt from the same fabric.

Next, I made her a quick skirt from the Twirly Skirt Tutorial. I used more material I had leftover from another project. I edited the tutorial to remove the drawstrings and add racing stripes to the side. Mikayla LOVES this skirt. And I think I have enough to make another coordinating skirt.

YUMMY fabrics...

2008-07-16T08:57:00.001-07:00

I am in love with realistic print fabrics. I can only imagine what I would do with any one of these. I think with about a yard of each one, I could get dresses, diapers, napkins and who knows what else!

General Updates

2008-07-11T19:15:00.000-07:00

Not a whole lot going on that's exciting over here. Mikayla is sassy as ever. I'm counting the days (well almost) until school starts. Bryson is talking SO much more. He's having little conversations with us now and it's just so sweet. Baby Lilah is growing and stealing more and more room in my body. My blood pressure is holding out. I'm starting to get a little swelling toward the end of the day, but nothing worrisome.

I've decided to quit sewing newborn diapers for Lilah and focus my sewing time on Mikayla and Bryson instead. Because.. well.. I have a LOT of newborn diapers. Now I'd LIKE some nice orange edge prefolds from Green Mountain Diapers.

We're growing a GIRL!

2008-07-01T14:18:00.000-07:00

Well, our baby finally decided to cooperate and tell us that she was indeed a SHE. Just like I suspected all along. So now, I get to get busy making girly diapers and going through my niece's girly clothes. Thankfully, I have a dear friend who has two little girls as well and I'm sure I can sweet talk her enough to let me borrow some girly cloth diapers. I do have a list of stuff to start on though now that I know gender. And I could have as few as 4 weeks before our little girl decides to make her appearance. I do hope it is closer to the full 9 weeks she deserves though!

In case anyone is wondering.. Here's what I still need for our new girly addition.

-Two dozen newborn sized cloth diapers
-Two dozen infant sized (or yellow edge) cloth diapers
-4 newborn and 4 small diaper covers
-Nursing bras (I only have two left from Bryson that no longer fit correctly, imagine that!)
-A few simple summer dresses (newborn and 0-3 month sizes)
-A Moby Wrap (or a knock off home made one)
-And I'd LOVE LOVE LOVE an Ergo (or similar), but highly doubt I'll ever get one due to the cost

Thankfully, we have all the big stuff (carseat, crib, high chair, etc). And most of the stuff I need are things that are easy to get (as long as I'm shopping online!)

Good News!

2008-06-05T14:15:00.001-07:00

We just got some wonderful news! My MIL's blood work came back from her cancer testing. Her initial cancer marker level was an 80. Her levels as of last week were 30! Her brain tumors have shrunk significantly as well and her sight is improving due to the release of pressure. Praise God! Prayer is working. Please, please, please keep Sally in your prayers. She's still weak and very tired.

Recent Sewing!

2008-06-05T14:08:00.000-07:00

I've sewn up a bunch of new diapers lately. 5 for a friend having a baby next week, and one for Bryson. Bryson LOVES his new orange diaper. Now for pics!

Summer Movies!

2008-06-03T12:08:00.001-07:00

Cinemark, one of our local theatres, has $1 movies for the kids once a week during the summer. I loaded up my two kiddos and two neighbors and we went off to go see "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything." So $5 got us into the movie, $15 got us all snacks. $20 bucks for an entire morning's entertainment. Not real bad considering I could have dropped much more by going to Wal-Mart or Target. All the kids except for the shortest one (a.k.a. Bryson) were pretty good. Short dude kept tormenting the family in front of us. He was kicking their seats, trying to pull hair, all sorts of generally annoying things. We did get through the movie okay though! We ran into several friends there as well. Amazing how you seem to find everyone you now in the same places you are, especially when you're not in a small town (not that B/CS is a large city or anything).

So, now Mikayla is with a friend we saw at the movies. She won't be home until time to go to VBS. Bryson is napping. And me.. I'm trying to get work done, blog, do laundry, and everything else on my list before said Short Dude wakes up!

Well.. It's today..

2008-06-02T13:43:00.000-07:00

Nothing really of note. Just wanted to update everyone on all the goings-on.

My MIL (who is undergoing treatment for cancer) is slightly better. Better meaning that her brain tumors have shrunk, but her lung tumors have not. She's still on oxygen, still getting chemo and getting steroids once a week. The steroids help her feel better for a day or two before she starts spiraling down again.

The belly bean is growing, kicking and causing heartburn for me. Baby refuses to share gender, so we will be having a surprise baby. Hopefully, gender will become painfully obvious at birth :)

Mikayla starts Vacation Bible School tonight. And man oh man is Bryson upset that he isn't old enough to go yet. He really, really wants to go.

We got about 15 tadpoles from a friend. They are currently living in a rubbermaid container on my kitchen counter. I've gotta figure out what to feed them before they die!

26 week OB checkup

2008-05-30T20:14:00.000-07:00

Today I had my 26 week checkup. This involved a LOVELY gestational diabetes test. So the entire family (toddler, preschooler, hubby and I) get up early to make the first lab appointment at 8:30 so I can chug that miserable orange drink. I chug said drink and we head down the road to get breakfast for the kiddos and hubby. They eat, I get mine to go and we head out.

My toddler trips over the curb. Guess what. I was holding his hand. Guess who tripped over him? Yup. Me! Full on, no way to save myself or avoid the belly, I plow into the concrete driveway. After about a minute when I catch my breath, I realize I'm okay and we head back to the doctor.

Less than 5 minutes down the road, said toddler then proceeds to throw up his 3 donut holes and his sausage and cheese kolache. Great. Now I have a carseat filled with puke, a bleeding knee, and a growling tummy!

We get back to doctor, strip said icky toddler and go in. Toddler has on tennis shoes, socks and a diaper. Because we had used his spare change of clothes over the weekend and I FORGOT to pack another set.

On to the regular checkup (after the blood draw). My blood pressure was high - yeah big surprise there! It went down after about 10 minutes though. We took a quick peek at the baby to try to determine sex. Baby refused to share. Doctor sends me to the hospital to make sure baby is okay after the fall.

Get to the hospital, and baby refuses to share a good view of 1) kidneys 2) umbilical cord insert 3) spine & 4) gender. First tech calls in another tech to get the 4 pictures the first tech couldn't. We got good shots of everything but #3 & 4.

So.. after an exciting morning, a toddler covered in puke and not one, but two ultrasounds, we know both the baby and I are okay. We also do NOT know the baby's gender.

Swimmer and the Kids

2008-05-16T20:47:00.001-07:00

Busy Week

2008-04-07T14:08:00.000-07:00

I've been very busy "producing" things lately. Things like.. a clean chair (see previous post), a dress or two, a pair of leggings. A dozen newborn diapers. I am not producing dinner. I must admit, it's kinda embarrasing how much we have eaten out as of late. I'm just not feeling like cooking and my very understanding husband doesn't mind paying for very $$$$ takeout! Tonight will be dedicated to sewing a bunch of crayon rolls I received an order for. I'm going to try to get half of them done (ten!). We'll see how that goes!

If you thought I was a domestic goddess..

2008-04-04T13:50:00.000-07:00

You're sadly mistaken. This post is to dispel any lingering thoughts any of you may have had. I had to take pictures it was so bad. So, in an effort to let the truth be known, here are the pictures.

This is the laundry in the laundry room. Two loads worth of jeans. A small load of whites. A small load of colors. A small load of delicates and three loads of sheets and towels. Eight loads.

Here is the pile of sheets and random blankets that will take two loads. We're up to 10 loads of dirty laundry folks!

And here is the clean laundry that needs to be folded. That is my oversized chair it is living on. There are:
-Three loads of cloth diapers
-Three loads of towels
-Two loads of whites
-At least two loads of colors, maybe three
-And I'm sure there is a load there that I"m missing
So eleven loads of clean clothes to be folded.

Anyone still think I"m a domestic goddess? I'm not even going to show you the horror that is the bathroom!

Rants from the Pregnant Lady

2008-04-02T10:41:00.000-07:00

Today's little experiment in blogging.. Every time I have a mini- rant, I'm going to come post it along with the time. Should be fun!

-12:40 pm: I really want a stuffed pizza slice and a watermelon smoothie from Taste of the Tropics. But I don't want to go to the mall to get it.

-1:10pm: I settled for a Totonio's supreme pizza we had in the freezer. I still want the stuffed pizza though! And Bryson just wanted to play with his cars in bed. Not sleep. Being the mean mom I am, I took the cars away and made him scream.

-2:01 pm: My neck hurts.. and I'm still thirsty, but I just finished a 20 oz cup of lemonade!

Bluebonnets

2008-04-01T18:18:00.001-07:00

It's time for bluebonnet pictures again. After a lackluster year last year, this year's blooms are GREAT! I found the perfect spot and managed to catch a really good shot just by constantly pushing the shutter button.

Mikayla still doesn't really like tee ball, but she is going and participating most of the time. I think the part she dislikes the most is the baseball pants. See the problem is.. they're not pink and they don't sparkle and they itch. I just don't think tee ball is going to be her thing.

Strawberries!

2008-03-15T19:10:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the lovely spring weather, we met up with some friends and went to pick berries in Lexington. We had a GREAT time. The kids have eaten about a pound and a half of the 6 pounds we picked. Bryson keep trying to pick the over ripe berries. And Mikayla was so happy to be out there, she kept skipping the good ones!

Do I have to have a title?

2008-03-12T07:23:00.000-07:00

The hardest part of the posts for me is coming up with a title. I don't like them!

Sally is back in the hospital. She's feeling very weak and can't make it to the potty by herself. The doctors suspect that it is the cancer on her spine that is causing pressure on her spinal cord thereby making her legs weak. She's slowly losing her ability to form coherent thoughts and is having trouble finding the right words to express her thoughts.

Spring Break is half over and honestly, I hadn't known it had begun. With all the Sally stuff going on, there isn't much time for anything else. I've decided the kids and I are getting out today, even if it's only to the local park for some running around time!

Ahh.. Children.

2008-03-09T21:06:00.000-07:00

Bryson loves to sleep. Unless he's anyplace that isn't home where he is without his crib. He can be dead tired, but WILL NOT sleep. He doesn't fuss. He doesn't cry. He will play nicely in a pack-n-play for two hours, but he will not sleep. At least mama got some time without said kid stuffing elbows into overly sensitive nipples.

Mikayla hears everything you think she can't. And nothing you think she can. Aren't all 5 year olds that way. Whisper something to your husband across the room from said child, with the water running and the TV blaring, and she'll manage to hear it. IF however, you say the same thing, directly to her face, in a quiet room, while she's looking right at you, and she'll pretend she didn't hear a thing. DRIVES ME NUTS!

Independence is a wonderful thing. I realized yesterday, that if I died, my children wouldn't starve. Mikayla decided it was time for her and her brother to have a sandwich. What type of sandwich you ask? Why a peanut butter, raisin and marshmallow sandwich of course. And she even cut it in half so they could share. They would, however, only have water from the bathroom sink to drink. She's not allowed in the fridge by herself and she chooses to observe that rule!

Where did the day go?

2008-03-07T19:07:00.000-08:00

We woke up around 8, had breakfast and I started work around 8:30. What seemed a short time later, I looked at the clock and it was 11! What the heck! Sat on the couch with the kids and I fell asleep. For TWO hours! When I woke up, Brad had fed the kids and put Bryson to bed (ain't it grand!) I had lunch and worked a bit more. Then it was FOUR! Got Bryson up and we went to run pre-birthday party errands. Man, we got home after seven. The day went by way too fast! My how time flies when you're consumed with mundane tasks!

Positive note: We did a 15 minute cleanup after dinner and now the house looks like we live here, but a tornado does not. For those who do not know what a 15 minute clean up is..You set a timer for 15 minutes and clean until it beeps. When it beeps. You're done. That's it. No more! Now that's my style of cleaning!

Baby, Cancer and Life

2008-03-05T18:36:00.000-08:00

I had my second OB appointment today. I've gained SEVEN pounds since the last appointment! This is crazy for me. I normally lose weight up until the last two months (months 7 and 8 for me). Oh well, maybe it means I won't spend the last half of this pregnancy in bed (one can dream right?). My blood pressure was normal. What a relief! I'm supposed to start taking it twice a week just to make sure it isn't starting to creep up. Like loading up two kids and traipsing off to the local WM or Kroger isn't going to make my BP rise. Anyway. Then it's time to listen for baby. Baby isn't cooperating. Mikayla wants to "see" the baby and asks for an ultrasound. Dr. Anna says that she has lots of patients to see and not much time. I say, "Well, I want to look anyway" and explain the situation w/ my MIL. Dr. Anna quickly puts the doppler away and says "Well, we can't find the baby. Guess we get to look!" Off we go for a quick US. Baby is doing fine. Heartbeat is good and strong. This little bean is all curled up with arms and legs tucked under in the classic fetal position already. Baby's legs/arms are facing down and back is facing up. EXACT same way I carried Mikayla the ENTIRE pregnancy, up until they pulled her unwillingly from my body. I'd scan in the pic, but I can't figure out how to make our OOOOLLLLDDDD scanner (like pre-baby) work on the new Mac!

In other news, my mother-in-law was released from the hospital on Monday. She also began her cancer treatment the same day. I really feel for the lady. She's undergoing weekly chemo and daily radiation right now. She's got radiation focused on her brain and upper spine. The cancer doctor told her today that the cancer in her spine is growing very rapidly and he's concerned she may become paralyzed from it. The doctors do not normally do chemo and radiation at the same time, but due to the type of aggressive cancer Sally has, it is her only hope of remission. And even then, the hope is only a tiny little glimmer in a vast ocean of bad news. Keep her in your prayers!

In life here.. I am so thankful that Bryson loves to sleep. Honestly, I don't know may 2 year olds that LIKE going to bed. You tell him it's bed time, he says "Night Night" and runs off to his room ready to climb into the crib. He loves his crib. Really, he loves it. I've tried converting it to a toddler bed, but he just cries that he wants the side back on!

Bryson has really started talking more now! He's in the middle of a verbal explosion. Just tonight at the store, I told him not to hit me cuz it hurt and then called him a "mean little monkey" and he repeated it back to me. I've started calling him George just because. Now everybody is George. Sissy George. Mama George. DaDa George. It's really quite funny!

Mikayla is her normal self. One minute she's all smiles and laughter, the next it's DRAMA time! Any little thing can set her off, at any time. Normally, she comes right back out of it though. Her birthday party is Saturday. My baby girl is going to be FIVE! Where did the time go? I remember bringing her home from the hospital wondering how in the world spring managed to happen while I was in there with her. I remember having to keep her in a onesie, a sleeper, two knit hats, a pair of socks on her hands and feet AND wrapped in two blankets to keep her temp constant (she was 4 weeks early after all!) I remember how big she was at her first birthday party. She was already a little girl. Baby hood was WAAAYYY behind that little girl. Sentences were coming from that precious tiny mouth. She was running up and down the halls. She was the size of a two year old! Now, she's turning 5. She'll start school in the fall. And I'm excited and anxious and scared of letting go!

Wow! It's been a while.

2008-02-12T17:44:00.000-08:00

I'm a forgetful blogger. Forgive me. Or not. Totally up to you! We've been busy. Bryson turned two, Mikayla is counting down to her birthday and we have exciting news we aren't quite ready to share.

Bryson's birthday went well. There were a LOT of people crammed in the living room and I made all the kids go out in the backyard. He got lots of toys and his very first remote controlled car.

Bryson had his two year well check today. He weighs 30 pounds and is 32 inches tall. He's at 70% for weight and about 80% for height. Not as big as his sister was, but still quite the big boy. And now he has a big boy haircut to match. I got tired of the "beauty" salons messing up his hair so I took him to a barber. Turns out the barber was one of my parent's old neighbors, so not only did Bryson get an AWESOME cut, but we (the barber and I) got all caught up with family gossip. If anyone needs a good barber, go see Theresa at Cutter's on Wellborn right next to Potato Shack.

Christmas Sewing Mania

2007-12-13T20:56:00.000-08:00

I've been busy with Christmas sewing. Lately it's been crayon rolls, diaper covers and diapers. Today, I made a mini diaper bag to go with the dolls Mikayla is getting for Christmas. Overall, the pattern was easy, but I made a goof. The pockets are tall enough, in my opinion. Well, at least I know for next time, right? Anyway.. on to the details. The bag is made from two layers of plain cotton quilting fabric. Two Tinkerbell prints. It has pockets on both the inside and outside. If I wouldn't have added the snap, the bag would be totally reversible. I wanted Mikayla to have the closure ability though, and I just couldn't figure out the reversible snap thing!

Go to the Diaper Bag tutorial to figure out how to make one for yourself!

Potty Training and a New Diaper

2007-12-12T21:21:00.000-08:00

So.. Bryson decided to throw a fit at changing time today. Arching his back and crying. I finally figured out that he was saying "Wet, Wet" through the sobs. He wanted to go on the potty. So we ran to the potty. He peed and was very excited. He helped empty the little potty and was so proud of himself. We went back to the little potty to re-assemble and he decided to play around. I left him with the potty and went about picking up toys. I look back and the boy had missed the potty and pooped on the floor RIGHT NEXT to the potty. Finally got that cleaned up. I don't think he liked the poop IN the potty. He kept saying "EWWWW, EWWWW".

So despite our slow attempts at potty training, I'm still sewing diapers. Here's my latest. A fitted from the FattyCakes pattern. It's a flannel outer. Has two hidden layers of hemp jersey and an inner of suedecloth. The flip out soaker is suedecloth topped, has a hidden layer of microfiber and two layers of hemp jersey. I get to try it out on Bryson tomorrow!

Been busy crafting

2007-12-11T10:15:00.000-08:00

I've been very busy crafting for Christmas. Here are some of my projects.

A newborn set for my nephew

Soft soled shoes, hat, bib and burp cloth. All made with a Micheal Miller cowboy print fabric.

Some aprons for Mikayla and my neice.

Pull-on Fleece diaper covers for Bryson.

I've also sewn up a bunch of crayon rolls, but haven't uploaded the pictures yet.

And here are links so you can be crafty too!
Soft Soled Shoes, Bib, Crayon Roll, Pull on Fleece Diaper Covers,
Dishtowel Apron

Of free turkeys, bad starters, and crayons

2007-11-16T20:38:00.000-08:00

Today overall was okay. I woke up early. Bryson played well. Mikayla woke up in a good mood. We had to run and get cat food. All well and good. The cat was so glad to eat again (and no I hadn't been starving her, she's just used to access 24/7.)

Every year, my job gives free Thanksgiving turkeys. I made arrangements with a friend to watch Bryson since my idea of fun is not taking a 21 month old into a busy, dangerous warehouse. Dropped of the boy, drove all the way across town. Stopped and visited with all my co-workers before getting the turkey. I go pick up large, free turkey. Say good bye to everyone and go to the car to leave.

The car wouldn't start. I figured it was the battery since we'd been having some problems with it. Nope, a jump did nothing for it and all the electronics in the car were working fine (clock, radio, etc.) So the next logical choice, the starter is bad. Not like I can get that replaced right now. So..

The car is across town at my job. Sitting there locked. Sad and cold and not starting. I'm home with a free turkey, a boy and a dog. Mikayla is at Grandma's and I've got to figure out how to get her and get back before Brad needs to go to work tomorrow (and at the same time manage to leave him enough gas to get to work!) Boy this is fun.

To help make the day better, I started sewing up Christmas presents. Didn't get as much done as I wanted to, but it's a start! I'm sewing crayon rolls for all the little people I know. This should be fun. I only have like 10 left to go!

New diapers from Old Stuff

2007-11-14T21:08:00.000-08:00

I found a new diaper pattern to try. I think I like it. Very quick to sew. Looks like it will fit right. I haven't tried it on Bryson yet though. And the best part is, I've made them all from stuff laying around the house. This batch was made from some flannel a neighbor gave me and some old shirts given to me by a fellow mom!

The fronts are kinda boring.

But, Boy, oh Boy... check out the backs!

If you want to try your hand at sewing cloth diapers, here's a link to the pattern I was using. Rita's Rump Pockets, a one size pocket fitted made with long wings so you can use one pin!

Toilet Training

2007-11-14T08:06:00.000-08:00

Bryson knows when he is wet. He knows when he is dirty. He demands to be changed and will even scale the climbing table and willingly lay down for a change. He likes the potty. Likes to sit on it and get paper. Likes to splash in the water. You'd think these would all be signs of being ready to potty train. That's what I thought too. I bought him a potty. I let him play with it. He hasn't peed in it yet and we've had it a month. This is what he does with it.
You mean I'm supposed to pee in it? I like the stool effect. I can reach all the buttons and tick off my sister by totally blocking the TV.

Real Moms

2007-11-14T08:02:00.000-08:00

Real moms don't go to bed until midnight. Real moms then get up at 6am when their toddler thinks it's 7am (thanks to the time change). Real moms cook breakfast before their eyes can focus. Can anyone say pancakes? Real moms don't have time to sweep their floor.

These are the days

2007-11-06T18:25:00.000-08:00

Two kids. One mom and one dad. Add a dog and a cat and you have CHAOS! It gets crazy around here around 10:30 and around 3:30. I have no idea what my kids think they're doing, but in reality, they're just driving me crazy. Mikayla is screaming for candy. Bryson is trying to flush pieces of toilet paper so tiny I can't see them. Then the dog is chasing everyone and nipping at their heels. The cat can't keep her head out of our drinks and then there is the fish that we always forget to feed!

Oh.. and then it rains and you realize that your car windows are down
just enough to let the rain in and soak your seats. So you throw on some shorts and go running out there to roll the windows up. Whoops! You sit on the wet seat and your windows refuse to roll up. I swear these are they days no one tells you about.

All in all though, I thank God that I have been so blessed. I have a wonderful husband who cooks dinner when he's home (nothing gourmet, but it keeps us fed!) and two beautiful children who love me. I have a house and food and gas for the car. We're healthy and happy. God is Great!

Halloween

2007-11-05T11:08:00.001-08:00

Halloween was a hit around here. Mikayla was a pink princess and Bryson was the frog prince. Bryson got so many comments on his costume.

I really loved it for sure! They had little trick or treat bags from First Convenience Bank that we got at Kroger's earlier that day. Those little 8x12 bags were FULL to the top of candy. Honestly, I don't think the kids will eat it all before next Halloween. We JUST finished the candy that Mikayla got last year. Now we have twice as much to eat this year. That said, both Mikayla and Bryson are candy monsters and it should go fast.

We went to story time at the library on Halloween day. I figured they would so some sort of Halloween program. WRONG! It was a fire safety program. Both kids enjoyed it and we got to take pictures in the fire truck. Added bonus: They were in costume!

Mikayla has been in the fire truck about 5 times already so is a PRO at the pictures. Bryson LOVED the fire truck and wanted to push all the buttons on the computer you see in the background. I had to bribe him with candy to get him to look at the camera. I'm really glad I had my camera with me for the picture.

Finally.. A dog!

2007-10-29T12:22:00.000-07:00

We finally got a dog. Through connections at work, I found out that I could get a beagle puppy for free! I jumped at that since I LOVE beagles. Yes. I know they bark. Yes. I know they dig. But I also know they are loyal, great with kids, and very affectionate!

Our little girl beagle, Nella Blue, went on her first trailride over the weekend as well. Actually, she stayed behind to guard the dog pen. The biggest problem there was keeping all the kids out of the pen with her.

Bryson and Mikayla are in love with her. She's already walking well on the least at 7 weeks old! She's had no accidents in the house, goes potty on command and has the cat totally freaked out!