ok i'll be honest.

i am HUGE FAIL at c25k.

quit judging. and let me explain why.

it was the end of june, mid 80's in the evenings... glorious. "omg i could totally run in this." and it was true.

after week 1 and 2, it rained. a lot. and the last thing i felt like doing was running in it.

then it turned into mid-july and, well, bottom line, i am not running in 95 degree weather lol that sucks. its hot and i dont want to do it. ::shrug:: i should have thought about the july/aug temperature shift when i started, but i didnt - so now i am just a failure. ;)

listen, i am so ready to go back to my gym classes that its ridiculous. i miss my step, my dance music, my friends, my gym childcare (lol), and all the rest that comes with it. gaaaahhhh. but only another 2 weeks (max) and we will be back there (reese has to be 12 weeks or 3 months - i have to find that out).

so, for all you c25k-ers or just those who TRIED - running blows. LOL i will take my circuit class/aerobics over running in a texas summer any day.

so there.

words aidan says wrong.

that i just love. part 1 of lots i'm sure.

"louder" instead of "ladder".

ie: look momma! i climbed up my louder!

"hairy" instead of "heavy".

ie: (struggling while carrying something) oh this is SO HAIRY!!

"a 'dea" instead of "an idea".

ie: oooh i having a dea!

"race" instead of "line".

ie: you put those cups/books/etc in a race?

things in sawyer's crib.

i took inventory this afternoon.



it seems as if she has:

1. four blankets - 2 that are hers, 1 is reese's, and 1 that is aidan's.
2. her lamb lovey.
3. a chicken little soft book.
4. sesame street counting book.
5. a blackberry.
6. a garmin GPS.
7. five mega blocks.
8. an incredible hulk action figure.

pick your battles ;)

you know youre a parent when...

i think im going to do this every saturday. my stellar friend amanda (here and here) made me a button for this ;) so JOIN ME on your own blog!





(convo last night after sawyer had a HUGE "two year molars coming in and cant make a solid poop" blowout.)

EJ: ugh i hope sawyer is okay.

me: yeah she's really red. poor baby. hopefully the cream helps.

EJ: yeah we need to check on her before bed so she doesn't sit in another poop all night.

me: sounds good. but i mean, her room stinks from the last one still. how will we know if she pooped?

EJ: oh, you'll know if its a fresh one.


ew. gross.

things that annoy me about other moms.

while i am an outgoing person by nature - i am not always friendly. i try to be (sometimes), but sometimes my eyes glaze over and i just think "well. moving on." in my head. you would know this though - so please, if you are one of my friends, dont think that im talking about you.

im more so talking about the randoms. the ones in the playgroup you went to once. the mom at the park. the moms in the pediatricians waiting room. THOSE moms.

1. the show-offs. i was at the pedi's office the other day and this mom kept asking her 3ish-year old "what is an 8 sided shape?" he ignored her. she asked again. he shouted "CIRCLE!" i giggled. mainly bc im certain be probably knew it was octagon, but she was trying to be a showoff, and too bad it didnt work out for her ;) sit down, read a magazine, let your kid play. what is the purpose of quizzing him in the dr's office waiting room? nada.

2. those who talk to my kids. and expect a massive response. my kids don't know you, dude. so quit looking at me awkwardly when my 2 talkative toddlers become silent when you ask them a question. and, please, STOP talking to them after you notice "hey. these kids dont want to chat." bc otherwise i have to sit there and say "oh. sorry. yes she is 3. and she is 2.... oh i know! we've been busy!.... well, my husband has dark auburn hair. haha yep! im blonde (as you can see)...." etc etc. its annoying.

3. the ones who don't wrangle their children. i dont mind if your kid wants to oogle my baby. truly. but if your kid pushes or hits one of mine - i will rail. and by rail i mean kindly tell him/her to please not hit my child. along the same lines, when you, as a parent, see a sign like this:



(ripped from google images)

it truly means that your 13 year old wild ass child cannot play on the f'in slides. they cannot push through the toddlers and preschoolers to jump around on a play structure that is not MEANT for them. and, as you might guess, i have no problem telling a tween to get the hell off the play area.

4. one-uppers. please refer to my last post about "things i dont care about". its likely, when you (as a one-upper) speaks - i zone out and think "omg. i dont care about what youre telling me". bc honestly, whatever age your child PT'd. or sang his ABCs. or memorized 1-10... i.don't.care. so if you are asking me "when did your child ______" to simply "out do" me. save it. i am not impressed.

5. the judgers and know-it-alls. i am a part of this group. i wont deny that. but that doesn't mean im not allowed to be annoyed when other people do it ;) that is my prerogative, my friends. the moms at the park who look at me with a stink eye bc my kid had a sip of my beverage. or who cringe bc i brought pretzels for a snack and not carrot sticks. if youre going to judge - make it good. those things are not good. also, if you have a 10 month old and you are judging something that i do as a mother for my 3.5 year old - i will only, truly, snicker in yo' face.

6. the over-sharing mom. listen. i am a nice person. i will always smile and listen to what you have to say. but please - dont tell me about sex with your husband, the type of shit your kid had, or the huge fight you got into with your mom unless we are actually, um, friends. then in that case... pleeeassee do tell! :) but all your jibber jabber at the park is going to do is leave me empty since i'll likely never hear how your drama turned out or i'll see you again and have to think about "that time you told me ______." just don't do it to me.

so. that is that. :) add your own "THAT MOM" you despise.

things i don't care or stress about.

when reading things online sometimes, i wonder how more mothers around the U.S. arent dying of heart attacks or having stress hernias or something. the questions seem like the answer should be "don't worry/stress about it", but i understand there is comfort in knowing "someone else has been there. it will be okay".

and, as we all know, i DO get riled up about a few things. but this post isn't for that.

these are the things i really don't care about or simply cannot stress about.

1. my kid not eating a meal. please refer to this post about food consumption in this household. i truly do not care if they are not hungry. if i make their fave meal and they still won't eat? ok then - i will bet you they'll eat breakfast... or lunch the next day. they will not forfeit food for the rest of their lives and slowly starve. its just not the case. relax - if your kid only eats 1 meal a day or only grazes the rest of the time - he'll likely make up for later.

2. most fevers. unless it is absolutely ridiculously high OR my kid is acting lethargic/not their normal sick type self - then motrin and baths are my friend. and letting them sleep. there's only been one time where i truly worried about a 103 fever and thats bc aidan was just not acting normal. we went to the hospital *just in case*. of course she was fine, and i have no qualms about doing whats necessary, BUT i see a lot of times people getting VERY stressed over 101. and, in my experience, that needs nothing more than hugs, kisses, and motrin ;)

3. what size other kids are wearing. this is the strangest q to me online. why do i care that your kid wears a size 10 shoe and mine wears a 6 or 7? why do i care that your kid wears 2T pants and 3T shirts? oh. right. i dont'. and ironically enough, i still answer those threads. i mean you *must* care what MY child is wearing, right? lol

4. how many words my kid has. unless they are 18 months and it is ZERO. its just not something i stress about. yes, sawyer is a good talker. i rarely do not understand her. she has a word for everything and says 2-3 word sentences.

but aidan was not like that. aidan had words. but she had her own language til 2 and slightly after. and SHE knew what she was saying bc if i said "what?" she'd repeat it all over again. total gibberish with a few real words thrown in. lol then between 2 and 2.5 that gibberish turned into words! ta-da! that was it! :)

before people rail on the fact that EI is important (which i dont disagree with) - im hardly saying that all situations are unstress-worthy, but for me they are. but i think sometimes when parents of one year olds FREAK OUT bc their kid "only has 3 words!!" or "my 18 month old has x amount of words and the pedi said she should have x + 5!!! what do i do?!" i think its slightly ridiculous.

5. bottles and pacis gone at a year. we all know that i JUST got rid of sawyer's paci. and as for bottles - i see them no different than as a device to drink liquid from. i think its downright mean to tell a kid whose had bottles for a year "hey, you had your birthday - i'll be taking that!!" some kids get attached and a bottle becomes their lovey - you don't have to put milk in it - put water in it! lol no kid will go to kindy with a bottle.

6. bumps, bruises, vaccines, etc. maybe im a cold, heartless mom, but i do not cry when my kids bump their heads or have to get a shot. i dont cry if they trip outside. i give lots of hugs and smooches, maybe some special treat, a sweet band-aid and we get back up and play some more. when we're at the dr's office and my kid has to get a vax or something like that - i feel bad, but tears? no.

oh and let me add an addendum to the tears concept. i also dont cry on birthdays.

7. how long my kids sleep. the "is this normal? my kid slept til 10!" questions are so funny. be happy your kid likes to sleep. unless my kids are sleeping something ridiculous like 20 hours a day - they are welcome to be lazy as long as we aren't going anywhere. but sawyer goes to bed at like 730 and sometimes wakes up at 9 or later. AND she takes a nap. ;) some kids like sleep!

ok. so there's 7. seven things i dont care/stress about. :) im sure there's more. what is on your list?

dear paci.

dearest soothie,

your green (and later, blue and pink) translucent sheen has covered my middle child's face for long enough. her teeth and palette have grown fond of you - and even made a nice comfy form fitting home for your rubber (is that what it is? lol) shape.

my deepest apologies for cutting a large hole in your tip on saturday, but its tuesday now and it seems sawyer has forgotten about you.

through the tears, sawyer conning to come "downstairs" for a "nack" or to try to play in the "gameroom, peeeese!", and lack of naptimes - i can safely say that im 95% sure we dont need you anymore.

it was hard. it was. sawyer told me you were "broken. need new paci!" at first. but since sawyer has gone to bed without her beloved paci for 2 nights now without a fight, i am confident that naps will continue to go back to normal and that life will resume without you.

sincerely yours,
amanda.



now. for the *how*.

i was tickling sawyer and playing around in our bedroom on sat. she was laughing hard and i look into her mouth and see exactly what that bastard of a paci has done. so that was it :) i had EJ cut a whole in the top of one and only let her have that at bedtime.

it was rough going on sat/sunday nights. we'd have to bring her down and wear her out a bit more (she is not a very good self soother. never has been. she's just the type of kid to settle down MORE if she could have a few mins of time with us alone... then she's good to go back to bed).

monday/tues nights she went to bed perfect. :) so we'll see how it goes. the only things we have to do now is be on the look out for stashed pacis ;) who knows where she has them! lol so i have to catch them before she does!

what are your great paci transition stories? do tell!

in case you needed some more convincing.

of why 2 under 2 is fabulous.

watch the girls here.

singing my AB's.

no. not ABC's. my kids say AB's.

i went into sawyer's room tonight bc she was crying. we go and sit in her rocking chair.

sawyer: AB's?

me: ok. (singing) A B C D -

sawyer: NO!! (long pause) AB's? (sad face)

me: A B C -

sawyer: NO!! (long pause) YES!!! AB's? (sad)

(this goes on for many many minutes)

me: A B C D -

sawyer: NO!! (stares at me) where your ear!?

LOL kids get so distracted.

2under2. twice.

aidan and sawyer are 19.5 months apart.

sawyer and reese are 21.5 months apart.

perfect, in my opinion. and i would not have it any other way :)

some days are crazy. some days i want to curl up and sleep. some days are filled with 100% fun. some days are lazy. some days are busy with errand after errand. but EVERY day is filled with sisterly love.

its amazing to watch, really. aidan and sawyer are the best of friends.


they love reese. if you were at my house and said goodbye to A and S and didnt say goodbye to reese - they would remind you.

they kiss and hug each other for no reason. or just walk up to reese and tickle her. i love having close in age sisters (well right now at least. talk to me when they are 13, almost 15, and 16.5 haha)

anyway, there a few things that i've learned in the past few years that helped me transition into life with 2 under 2. twice.

1. chinese fire drill. well, thats what it sort of seems like getting kids in and out of the car. now i put reese in, aidan gets in and does her chest clip, i get sawyer in, then i reach and finish aidan's buckle. phew. but getting OUT is a different story. i grab reese's bucket and unhook aidan. then they both come with me to sawyer's side. aidan has been taught to "hold the car". always. i started doing this so long ago and now it is 2nd nature).

2. one thing that i always tried to remember when having a toddler and a newborn is: if both kids are sad - grab the toddler first. your newborn wont remember that it took you 5 seconds to hug your toddler. but your toddler WILL remember that you picked the new baby first.

3. when feeding the baby, have a box or bag or something new and fun for your toddler. something that you bring out only when you are feeding the baby so your toddler has something fun to do! new markers, paper, fun stickers, etc... it will distract them from the fact that you have to take a few mins to tend to someone else (when, i mean, theyve never had that before lol).

4. give your oldest jobs for the baby. my kids love to help pick out clothes, get diapers and even FEED reese :)


and its worth it to let them try to do all of those things - bc then they feel so wanted. when i was BFing reese, i gave aidan the job to tickle her feet so reese would stay awake! lol something simple, but she felt a "part" of it all.

5. prepare. and prepare early enough so your older kid has no idea things are related to the new baby. if youre gonna switch rooms, switch beds, take away the bottle or paci (thats for another post though lol) then do it long before your due date.

6. dont give too much freedom too early. i know a lot of people think "oh yay! i'll let my 18 month old stand in the cart!!" ok, well great, now what are you going to do when you dont want to wear your newborn and you want to put the bucket in there? or "woohoo! my 16 mo old can walk next to me at the store!" ok, cool - so how exactly are you going to chase him when he decides to walk the other way when you have a newborn sitting right there?

but then again, im of the vein "if it ain't broken - dont fix it". i keep my kids in carts until they straight up can step out themselves. lol my kids stay in cribs until they want to have a bed. ::shrug::

7. when walking into a store or somewhere, every kid has to be touching me or part of the group while walking. right now, i carry sawyer AND the bucket and aidan holds on to reese's seat. but if i wanted sawyer to walk then she'd be holding my hand while i held the bucket and aidan held that. i get twitchy when i see toddlers just putzing along without hold on to anyone.

8. make sure you make time for yourself. shower every day. get ready and GO OUT! 2u2 will make your head spin if you sit at home every day. put on some makeup - even if youre not in the mood to. go get a mani/pedi during naptime when your dh is home. SOMETHING for yourself.

im lucky bc i get to do things pretty much whenever i want to. of course i dont always want to ;) but if a friend asked me out for drinks one night - then likliness would be high that i could/would go. at least for a little bit. if i didnt have relaxation time - i would go nuts. even when friends come over, its such a fun nice release :)

9. schedule your day. essentially, 2u2 is no different than 1 (routine wise) if you have a rough schedule. youre just adding one more body. 1 more kid to feed. 1 more to change and get dressed. 1 more kid to bathe and put to bed. its a lot easier to take in if you look at it that way. our routine is crucial to our day. it can be as lax as "craft or store in the mornings" but something IS more or less "planned". we aren't just putzing around (most of the time) all willy nilly ;)

10. have fun. just relax. if you need to do housework - do it as a game. fold laundry together and talk about colors. have a ball mopping the floor and giggling. whatever it takes - have fun :)

missing daddy.

(when i went up to get aidan after nap)

me: guess what we're doing this evening?

aidan: (excited) gonna go pick up daddy at the airport?!

me: yep! are you gonna hug him?

aidan: yes. i loves him.

me: me too. he is my best friend.

aidan: you want to kissss him?

me: mmhmmm.

aidan: you want to hug him?

me: oh yes.

aidan: me too. we all want to kiss him.

clones. or not.

so now is the time (well, the first time) we try to figure out if Reese looks like Aidan or Sawyer :)

so. here is reese now.




here is aidan's first 2 years :)

http://thisyearslovewilllast.blogspot.com/2008/12/birthday-number-2.html

and here are a couple links from when sawyer was about the same age as reese is now!

http://thisyearslovewilllast.blogspot.com/2008/10/sneaky-sawyer.html


http://thisyearslovewilllast.blogspot.com/2008/10/what-day.html


im laughing my butt off at the funny faces sawyer made as a baby. lol

holiday in which 2 out of 3 kids cry.

EJ and i had a great time on saturday july 3rd with our friends out in the country.

you can see all the pics here.

and july 4th day was great too :) ate at my parents house when we went to pick up the girls, came home for nap time, ate dinner and then went outside for popscicles.

EJ was excited to show aidan and sawyer sparklers and fun popping type holiday stuff.

he stood over here.


while the girls were over here.


aidan hates them.


later that night she wouldnt even watch them out of an upstairs window. lol

anyway, i decided to take sawyer to the city's fireworks. she loved the sparklers and such! well, by the time she was out at least an hour past her bedtime, she went from this


to this


in a matter of a minute or 2. lol

at least i tried, right? she only wanted to be on my shoulders (while i pushed the stroller through mud. haha) so we packed up and went home and that was that.

and little reese. sigh. she slept all evening. it was too hot to take her out and she'd sleep through it all anyway. 2 months old must be glorious.

if you can't laugh at yourself...

oh dear heavens.

so we are dropping the kids off saturday morning at my parents' house and heading out to "somewhere in the country" texas for a fun 4th (well 3rd) of july party.

EJ and i used to tan. we loved it. the quiet 20 mins, the hot bed... heaven.

but since i dont feel like risking that anymore, we decided to versa (spray tan, but undertones of beet instead of orange, like mystic). anyway. i am pale we know this. so i was excited. who wants to be in a bathing suit where people can see right through you ;)

so EJ goes first. he had some great tan place employee explain everything to him. i did not.

EJ did tell me a few things before i left to go, but in the end he just said "oh, they'll tell you".

nope.

so you have to put this cream on your hands. its basically JUST for your palms. so that way they dont get sprayed. yeah, okay, i did that. but i got it BETWEEN my fingers as well.

so long story (semi) short - my hands look like this:





lmao. sigh.

i am thinking/hoping it will fade by tomo after a shower or 2. the rest of my body looks great. and im debating going tonight again to even things out. lol

spray tan (for me) = FAIL.