Friday, February 27, 2009
A New Puppy
It seems I have a new puppy in my life. He is super cute, cuddly, loves water, and gives me puppy kisses. And did I mention he is adorable?
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Dear God
Help me to be a better mother. Help me to focus my time and energy on my boys, and enjoy every little minute I get to spend with them. Help me to read that extra bedtime story, and make them stand in the corner when they have been bad, build forts and watch Sesame Street.
And Lord?
Help me to not loose my temper when Little Dude decides to TAKE OFF HIS DIAPER AND POOP ON THE FLOOR AND SMEAR IT AROUND INTO THE CARPET.
Amen
And Lord?
Help me to not loose my temper when Little Dude decides to TAKE OFF HIS DIAPER AND POOP ON THE FLOOR AND SMEAR IT AROUND INTO THE CARPET.
Amen
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Happy Lent
Today is the start of Lent, and this year I am going to do something different: I am planning on reading part of the bible every night. For valentine's I got my husband and I a Marriage Bible, that has notes and reflections on the passages as they relate to your marriage. I also got us a good Catholic family bible and a book of Parables to go over together.
I haven't been a Christian for long (I was baptised right before Bill and I got married) and I really want to study together as a family and make reading the bible (even though Catholics are notorious for not reading the Bible)a part of our daily lives.
My dream is to have family reading time, at least once a week, even when the boys get bigger. How great would it be to have us all reading together in the living room at night before bed? Ahhh, I can hope.
Anyways, this Lent, I am going to read some of the Bible every night with my hubby AND I am going to get my Friday meat free meals a bit up a re-vamp.
How? This is what is working for me this Wed. and all of Lent.
www.foodnetwork.com and www.kraftfoodandfamily.com
You can search for recipes by ingredients you have,or don't want, like meatless!
So, this Lent, I am going to be visiting these websites a lot so we don't get tired of going meatless AND so we can have healthy, protein packed meals that I wouldn't otherwise know how to make.
What are some of you giving up or adding in your dainly lives for the next 40 days?
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Fat Tuesday
Happy Mardi Gras, everyone!!!
Well, we had so much fun experiencing the Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) celebrations down here in Alabama! The moonpies, the beads, the parades, purple yellow and green everywhere; I will miss all that when we move back home.
I found a cute Mardi Gras Fleur de Lis ornament that we will be adding to our Christmas Tree next year-figured that was the one time I could get away with a glittering Mardi Gras item fitting in around my home back in NC.
Well, we had so much fun experiencing the Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) celebrations down here in Alabama! The moonpies, the beads, the parades, purple yellow and green everywhere; I will miss all that when we move back home.
I found a cute Mardi Gras Fleur de Lis ornament that we will be adding to our Christmas Tree next year-figured that was the one time I could get away with a glittering Mardi Gras item fitting in around my home back in NC.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Loyal Order of Firetrucks
When hunting around the Mardi Gras parades going on all month long down here in Mobile, AL, I had a few rules:
*Had to take place in the daylight hours (figured there would be less chance of drunken debauchery)
*Had to include families on the floats (figured there would be less chance of drunken debauchery)
*Had to have a route near some free place to park (figured we'd save money where we could)
*Had to NOT be on Canal Street, the route of most of the Mobile Paraded. I had already been warned that Canal Street hosted all the bars, and I would be guaranteed to see stripping, flashing, and overall drunken debauchery.
So, when I found the Loyal Order of Firetrucks parade, hosted by the local firefighters and their families, taking place at 2pm on a Sunday, I knew that was the parade for us to try out.
Well, my rules held true, and we didn't encounter any drunken debauchery. Yay!We lucked out too that the firetruck parade, since it is more family oriented, isn't usually very crowded, so we actually had a lot of space on a nice grassy area for the kids to play before the parade came by.
And even though the parade ran so late that we (and a lot of others around us) wondered if it had been canceled (some parades had been due to budget cuts and such), it was SO FUN and SO WONDERFUL to see Little Dude enjoy his first moonpie.(Don't ask why they throw moonpies, I have no idea, and all the locals I asked had no idea either). Little Dude wasn't as into beads, but loved the firetrucks AND we got to see a really old-timey firetruck; THAT was cool!
So, that was our very first experience with Mardi Gras down here on the Gulf Coast, and it was really fun. Apparently 90,000 people go to The Joe Cain Parade in downtown Mobile; I've heard that was THE first parade, and that the big Mardi Gras tradition started in Mobile because of a man named Joe Cain, and then it spread out to most of the Gulf Coast cities, like New Orleans.
I'll have some video up soon.
*Had to take place in the daylight hours (figured there would be less chance of drunken debauchery)
*Had to include families on the floats (figured there would be less chance of drunken debauchery)
*Had to have a route near some free place to park (figured we'd save money where we could)
*Had to NOT be on Canal Street, the route of most of the Mobile Paraded. I had already been warned that Canal Street hosted all the bars, and I would be guaranteed to see stripping, flashing, and overall drunken debauchery.
So, when I found the Loyal Order of Firetrucks parade, hosted by the local firefighters and their families, taking place at 2pm on a Sunday, I knew that was the parade for us to try out.
Well, my rules held true, and we didn't encounter any drunken debauchery. Yay!We lucked out too that the firetruck parade, since it is more family oriented, isn't usually very crowded, so we actually had a lot of space on a nice grassy area for the kids to play before the parade came by.
And even though the parade ran so late that we (and a lot of others around us) wondered if it had been canceled (some parades had been due to budget cuts and such), it was SO FUN and SO WONDERFUL to see Little Dude enjoy his first moonpie.(Don't ask why they throw moonpies, I have no idea, and all the locals I asked had no idea either). Little Dude wasn't as into beads, but loved the firetrucks AND we got to see a really old-timey firetruck; THAT was cool!
So, that was our very first experience with Mardi Gras down here on the Gulf Coast, and it was really fun. Apparently 90,000 people go to The Joe Cain Parade in downtown Mobile; I've heard that was THE first parade, and that the big Mardi Gras tradition started in Mobile because of a man named Joe Cain, and then it spread out to most of the Gulf Coast cities, like New Orleans.
I'll have some video up soon.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Pooping Uh Oh
Oh yea, I have gone there. This post is about poop, my friend.
Currently we are still sorta working on potty training our toddler. He pees really well in it. On a rare occasion will poop, but mostly it is false alarms, and he is still not getting so good at telling me he has to go until it is too late. Honestly, since I really do have germ-a-phobic tendencies and I am REALLY dreading having to let him sit on a public toilet (while somehow keeping JR from touching ANYTHING)I haven't been pushing too hard. I figure that when he is ready, he will start wanting to do it.
We have the little potty, and the seat for the big toilet, so he can even choose which he likes best when the time comes.
But until then, we have a slight problem we have to overcome. You see, my Little Dude does not like to poop, and it has gotten really bad since this past summer. For some reason, he holds his poop in, then, when he does finally poop, it hurts, causing him to not want to poop, holding it in...and, well, you see.
So, under the orders and directions of Little Dude's pediatrician, we are giving Little Dude laxatives every so often to make it easier for him to go, and to encourage painless pooping (which will later lead to him wanting to poop all the time in his potty).
Where am I going with this?
Well, since he had gone three days without pooping, it was time to give him a laxative.
All I'm going to share of the rest of the story is:
madly rising water, panicked call to hubby, emergency water shutoff, hubby rushing home,stopped up toilet, many towels, kids barricaded in the living room, hubby manning a shop vac, spraying disinfectant everywhere, and the feeling that I needed to scrub my body with bleach but settled for hot water and soap.
Oh yea, it was a big poop uh oh.
Currently we are still sorta working on potty training our toddler. He pees really well in it. On a rare occasion will poop, but mostly it is false alarms, and he is still not getting so good at telling me he has to go until it is too late. Honestly, since I really do have germ-a-phobic tendencies and I am REALLY dreading having to let him sit on a public toilet (while somehow keeping JR from touching ANYTHING)I haven't been pushing too hard. I figure that when he is ready, he will start wanting to do it.
We have the little potty, and the seat for the big toilet, so he can even choose which he likes best when the time comes.
But until then, we have a slight problem we have to overcome. You see, my Little Dude does not like to poop, and it has gotten really bad since this past summer. For some reason, he holds his poop in, then, when he does finally poop, it hurts, causing him to not want to poop, holding it in...and, well, you see.
So, under the orders and directions of Little Dude's pediatrician, we are giving Little Dude laxatives every so often to make it easier for him to go, and to encourage painless pooping (which will later lead to him wanting to poop all the time in his potty).
Where am I going with this?
Well, since he had gone three days without pooping, it was time to give him a laxative.
All I'm going to share of the rest of the story is:
madly rising water, panicked call to hubby, emergency water shutoff, hubby rushing home,stopped up toilet, many towels, kids barricaded in the living room, hubby manning a shop vac, spraying disinfectant everywhere, and the feeling that I needed to scrub my body with bleach but settled for hot water and soap.
Oh yea, it was a big poop uh oh.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
25 Things
Nell over at Casual Friday Everyday tagged me to share 25 things about myself, so here goes:
1. I love the colors blue and green, and I'm obsessed with Shamrocks. I spend a lot of my summer time gardening and searching for a four leaf clover-haven't found one yet, but surely my odds are getting better...
2. I have never had a good relationship with my parents, and that makes me sad. My mom hasn't spoken to me since Christmas.
3. There are things in my life I wish I could go back and "re-do"; however, there are not any outcomes I would change. I love where my life is, how it has turned out, all the things I have gotten to experience, and I am so excited about my future with my hubby and children.
4. I started working at the age of 14 with a worker's permit, and beyond being at home with my first son, I have never been without a job (or two..or three). In high school I saved up money for over a year to go to Italy. It was totally worth it.
5. I try my hardest to be really dependable, and it kills me if I let anyone down.
6. I really struggled in high school and have a hard time learning and remembering new things. (I swear my cal. teacher, Mr. Smith, wanted to strangle me for all the times he had so show me functions...) I'm also a defeated perfectionist, so if I can't get something perfect I get really upset and quit. That is a trait I am fighting hard to fix
7. I have two little sisters that I adore, two brother in laws that are wonderful, 4 sister in laws that are super fun, 3 cute nephews, 2 beautiful nieces, 2 loving father in laws, 1 amazing mother in law, 1 wonderful aunt, 1 terrific uncle, 2 great cousins, and a first cousin once removed lovely little baby angel in heaven.
8. I play the French horn, flute and taught myself a little piano, but really wish I had time to practice. With two kids and working from home, time just disappears... but I'll always be a band geek.
9. My sister in law taught me to knit, and I am pretty good at making scarves. I'd love to try something harder, but haven't had the time to look into classes
10. I was an extra in the movie "My Fellow Americans". I was in one of the gay parade marching bands and during shooting one day James Garner ran me down. He was super nice and came back after the "take" to apologize and make sure I was OK. The band I was in caused a horse to freak out when we started playing and it stepped on Jack Lemmon. It was super hot, but also super fun to skip school with my high school friends to be in a movie! My parents didn't know I skipped school to do it.
11. I worked my way through college with three jobs and got out in 4 years with very little loan debt. I had it all paid off within a few years of graduating too. I get really annoyed with people who say they can't afford school.
12. I have a degree in English from NC State University. My concentration was in Medieval English and I would LOVE to someday teach it at the college level. I'm hoping to finish a Master's in English after the kids start school
13. I have played with the idea of homeschooling, simply because of the horror stories of public education all my teacher friends share with me.
14. I love seeing how cheap I can get our groceries to be yet still get healthy items. I will sit and plan out from the grocery sale fliers what meals to have for a few weeks, then search for coupons online. Yea, I'm a housewife, that's what I do.
15. I hate driving places I don't know, but I'm really good with maps-there is always one in my car along with emergency supplies of water, food, clothes and blankets in case the car breaks down. I'm a little OCD because as a kid our cars were always breaking down. I stole the Garmin from my husband a few weeks ago and hope he doesn't ask for it back...I think I love Garmin :)
16. I worked as an Intern for Disney when I didn't have money for one semester of school; it was the greatest. I worked all over the park doing all kinds of jobs and loved every min. Later I worked during school as a recruiter for the program. Bill and I spent our honeymoon there almost for free because of all the discounts and free tickets I had earned. I can't wait to take my kids there. I am a huge Disney freak and I would totally work there for free if I could. I loved it.
17. I would love to adopt a child someday, and I think it would be wonderful to go to my husband's family's home country of Lithuania for him/her.
18. I volunteered at Give Kids The World while I lived in Florida; that was such an eye opening experience. I would love to do that again.I would love to nurse children with terminal illnesses, but I don't think I would be able to keep my emotions in check. I would probably cry all the time.
19. I LOVE yoga, it is such a great "time out" for me. And it gets me to the gym, so I feel obligated to run and work out more, too. (and there is "day care" for the kids!) It is also a great way to focus on what is important in life; I really believe that only you can determine the level of your happiness.
20. I'm pretty good at making friends and staying in touch, though I tend to be shy in the beginning. Even with meeting all the awesome moms I've met online, I tended to "lurk" for awhile, just reading their posts before I started commenting and carrying on conversations.
21. I always wanted to be a cheerleader, but never made the team.
22. I took ballet up through high school; I loved it and was in the nutcracker a few times.
23. In high school I lettered in soccer all four years, was on the math team, in band and in the winter guard (yes, I can twirl a flag).
24. I LOVE camping and am really good at building a fire. I got lots of practice growing up in a house with a wood burning stove as the source of heat for winter.
25. I love the beach and want to live near the water someday. I hate being cold and really despise more than a couple of days of snow.
At first this list seemed a little hard, but once I got going I found I had a pretty long list of things about me to share! In the future, I will have to do another one; it was pretty fun reflecting on the top 25 things I'd like for all of you to know about me. Some of them are things that I no longer do but am proud I once had the skills to do (like math team...last time I multiplied I messed up the zeros, much to the amusement of my husband and brother in law; I am blaming being preggo with JR for that glitch in my brain....)
Anyways, I am going to tag some people I haven't tagged before, all great reads that I have finally stopped lurking at: Mostly Natural Momma, Musings of a Mommy Bee, and Mom 4 Life. And one friend that I love dearly (and know in real life) but would love to learn more about: Miss Priss Does A Blog
1. I love the colors blue and green, and I'm obsessed with Shamrocks. I spend a lot of my summer time gardening and searching for a four leaf clover-haven't found one yet, but surely my odds are getting better...
2. I have never had a good relationship with my parents, and that makes me sad. My mom hasn't spoken to me since Christmas.
3. There are things in my life I wish I could go back and "re-do"; however, there are not any outcomes I would change. I love where my life is, how it has turned out, all the things I have gotten to experience, and I am so excited about my future with my hubby and children.
4. I started working at the age of 14 with a worker's permit, and beyond being at home with my first son, I have never been without a job (or two..or three). In high school I saved up money for over a year to go to Italy. It was totally worth it.
5. I try my hardest to be really dependable, and it kills me if I let anyone down.
6. I really struggled in high school and have a hard time learning and remembering new things. (I swear my cal. teacher, Mr. Smith, wanted to strangle me for all the times he had so show me functions...) I'm also a defeated perfectionist, so if I can't get something perfect I get really upset and quit. That is a trait I am fighting hard to fix
7. I have two little sisters that I adore, two brother in laws that are wonderful, 4 sister in laws that are super fun, 3 cute nephews, 2 beautiful nieces, 2 loving father in laws, 1 amazing mother in law, 1 wonderful aunt, 1 terrific uncle, 2 great cousins, and a first cousin once removed lovely little baby angel in heaven.
8. I play the French horn, flute and taught myself a little piano, but really wish I had time to practice. With two kids and working from home, time just disappears... but I'll always be a band geek.
9. My sister in law taught me to knit, and I am pretty good at making scarves. I'd love to try something harder, but haven't had the time to look into classes
10. I was an extra in the movie "My Fellow Americans". I was in one of the gay parade marching bands and during shooting one day James Garner ran me down. He was super nice and came back after the "take" to apologize and make sure I was OK. The band I was in caused a horse to freak out when we started playing and it stepped on Jack Lemmon. It was super hot, but also super fun to skip school with my high school friends to be in a movie! My parents didn't know I skipped school to do it.
11. I worked my way through college with three jobs and got out in 4 years with very little loan debt. I had it all paid off within a few years of graduating too. I get really annoyed with people who say they can't afford school.
12. I have a degree in English from NC State University. My concentration was in Medieval English and I would LOVE to someday teach it at the college level. I'm hoping to finish a Master's in English after the kids start school
13. I have played with the idea of homeschooling, simply because of the horror stories of public education all my teacher friends share with me.
14. I love seeing how cheap I can get our groceries to be yet still get healthy items. I will sit and plan out from the grocery sale fliers what meals to have for a few weeks, then search for coupons online. Yea, I'm a housewife, that's what I do.
15. I hate driving places I don't know, but I'm really good with maps-there is always one in my car along with emergency supplies of water, food, clothes and blankets in case the car breaks down. I'm a little OCD because as a kid our cars were always breaking down. I stole the Garmin from my husband a few weeks ago and hope he doesn't ask for it back...I think I love Garmin :)
16. I worked as an Intern for Disney when I didn't have money for one semester of school; it was the greatest. I worked all over the park doing all kinds of jobs and loved every min. Later I worked during school as a recruiter for the program. Bill and I spent our honeymoon there almost for free because of all the discounts and free tickets I had earned. I can't wait to take my kids there. I am a huge Disney freak and I would totally work there for free if I could. I loved it.
17. I would love to adopt a child someday, and I think it would be wonderful to go to my husband's family's home country of Lithuania for him/her.
18. I volunteered at Give Kids The World while I lived in Florida; that was such an eye opening experience. I would love to do that again.I would love to nurse children with terminal illnesses, but I don't think I would be able to keep my emotions in check. I would probably cry all the time.
19. I LOVE yoga, it is such a great "time out" for me. And it gets me to the gym, so I feel obligated to run and work out more, too. (and there is "day care" for the kids!) It is also a great way to focus on what is important in life; I really believe that only you can determine the level of your happiness.
20. I'm pretty good at making friends and staying in touch, though I tend to be shy in the beginning. Even with meeting all the awesome moms I've met online, I tended to "lurk" for awhile, just reading their posts before I started commenting and carrying on conversations.
21. I always wanted to be a cheerleader, but never made the team.
22. I took ballet up through high school; I loved it and was in the nutcracker a few times.
23. In high school I lettered in soccer all four years, was on the math team, in band and in the winter guard (yes, I can twirl a flag).
24. I LOVE camping and am really good at building a fire. I got lots of practice growing up in a house with a wood burning stove as the source of heat for winter.
25. I love the beach and want to live near the water someday. I hate being cold and really despise more than a couple of days of snow.
At first this list seemed a little hard, but once I got going I found I had a pretty long list of things about me to share! In the future, I will have to do another one; it was pretty fun reflecting on the top 25 things I'd like for all of you to know about me. Some of them are things that I no longer do but am proud I once had the skills to do (like math team...last time I multiplied I messed up the zeros, much to the amusement of my husband and brother in law; I am blaming being preggo with JR for that glitch in my brain....)
Anyways, I am going to tag some people I haven't tagged before, all great reads that I have finally stopped lurking at: Mostly Natural Momma, Musings of a Mommy Bee, and Mom 4 Life. And one friend that I love dearly (and know in real life) but would love to learn more about: Miss Priss Does A Blog
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
