by dee on February 1, 2010
A few little reminders that were sent my way this weekend:
- Praise for a job well done will encourage you to work harder.
- Exercise is good for the heart and soul.
- Cranking up the music and clearing your mind of all stress, even for a few minutes, is freeing.
- When you go to the grocery store in sweats and a hat to cover the rat’s nest on your head, you will run into someone you know.
- Letting down friends is heartbreaking, and will weigh on you until you make amends.
- Watching old videos of your kids as babies will bring about four things – tears, laughter, desire for a new video camera, and an overwhelming urge to have more babies.
by dee on January 27, 2010
This weekend, as usual, we were on the go. Friday and Saturday we spent shopping, errand running, and doing just general household stuff. Sunday, we headed up North for church, then spent the rest of the day at my sister’s house hanging out and watching football. I took advantage of the downtime and played around with my camera a bit. My nephews seem to be getting a bit tired of me always having a camera in their faces, but they did allow me to get a few good shots.
This little guy is so photogenic! He tries to play shy, but he really loves the camera.
Ryan is Zachary’s best friend and a total goofball.
Dylan is 10 years old now, which totally blows my mind. I rarely get a good shot of him because he’s always hiding from the camera, but I love this one!
When bath time rolled around, Evie insisted that she get in the tub with Brayden. They had so much fun playing together! I love these photos because you can see on their faces just how much they were enjoying it.
by dee on January 21, 2010
One of the dangers of being the Mom of this household is that I rarely get a moment to myself. Well, that’s not entirely true. I get about 15 minutes to myself to shower in the mornings as long as the kids don’t wake up early. Plus, if I time it just right, I can escape to the bathroom for a minute or two at a time before the kids start banging on the door. Other than that, I’m pretty much out of luck unless everyone (including hubby) goes to bed before me.
To combat this lack of alone time, I’ve started staying up later and later at night. About the only time I can accomplish anything is after the kids are put to bed. This usually doesn’t happen until around 9:00, and then I have to balance the remaining time with the hubby, household chores, meal planning, bill paying, reading, web design, blogging, photo editing, knitting, and all of the millions of other things I enjoy doing. Oh, and don’t forget keeping up with my favorite shows! It’s all quite exhausting just thinking about it.
Recently I’ve been working on building a new web site for the church we’ve been attending. It has taken up pretty much every free moment I can find over the last few weeks between communicating with team members, updating information, troubleshooting, editing, and creating new content. The only way I can feel like I’m accomplishing anything is to spend a couple of hours a night on it and it still has a long way to go to become the site I want it to be.
While I’m definitely enjoying the challenge of creating this web site, it is wearing on me quickly. Each night seems to get later and later as I strive to get just one more little thing done. Then, when I finally give up for the night, my head is still racing so I need a distraction before I can fall asleep. So I go to bed, pick up my book, and read until I’m ready to fall asleep. Before I know it, it’s 1:30 a.m. and I have yet to turn out the lights.
This would all be just fine if I could sleep in until 9:30 or 10:00 the next morning, but unfortunately, the alarm goes off at 6:30 and it’s time to start another day. As much as I wish it was, five hours of sleep just isn’t enough. Somehow, I need to teach myself to shut down a little earlier. My body is going to give out sooner or later.
The good news is that tonight is my TV night. I plan to leave the computer turned off, settle in my chair with my knitting and watch three entire hours of good shows. With a little luck, I may even get to bed an hour or two earlier.
by dee on January 20, 2010
Dear Evie,
Oh my little monkey, here you are at 22 months old and already I’m seeing visions of your pre-teen years. You’ve always had a little sass to you, but recently the sassiness has escalated to levels I was not prepared for. Rest assured, I am not the only one that has noticed this. You suddenly seem to think that you control the world. Though I hate to burst your bubble, I have to tell you that it just is not so.
All of this attitude came along with a huge speech explosion. It seemed like overnight you went from saying single words to speaking in sentences and making demands. You tell us what you want, when you want it (NOW!), and how you want it. When we don’t comply with your wishes, you let us know just how unhappy you are by screaming like a banshee and repeating yourself over and over again. Maybe you’re trying to make us understand your words, but yeah, WE GOT IT.
You have also discovered the fact that humans were blessed with free will and you apparently think that makes all things in life optional. So now, when Mommy says things like, “Evie, it’s time to take a bath.” you respond with, “NO, I NOT!” It was charming and rather funny the first few times, but it got old really fast. Even the things you like to do (like take a bath) usually get a “NO, I NOT!” these days until you figure out that you really do want to do it. I know you’re only trying to assert your new found independence, but I still dream of the day when “yes” becomes your favorite word.
While it may sound like I’m complaining about all the talking, I absolutely love it! I finally get to know what’s going on in your head. We have actual conversations now which just amazes me. You are one smart little girl. You have a great memory and surprise me constantly with all the words you know. The best part though, is when I tuck you into bed at night. Every night we say a bed time prayer and then sing a couple of songs to help you settle down. You can almost recite the entire prayer with me now and you always request “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” and sing along with me to the words you know. It’s a sweet way to end a busy day and I enjoy it every time.
Your brother, on the other hand, does not like you talking so much. You see, before you started talking, he was under the impression that he controlled the world because he was the only child in the room that spoke. He assumed that his demands were the only ones that existed, simply because we heard no others. Now things have changed and he’s having a hard time getting used to it. He gets really upset when we allow you to make a choice before him (even though we generally alternate) but I suppose it is just something we all have to get used to. I remember arguing about the same things with my brother and sister.
You are becoming so much more independent all of a sudden that I have to remind myself to just let you do things yourself. You are getting really good at using your fork and spoon and actually getting the food to your mouth. You have also started using a regular cup when we’re at the table. You usually still request a sippy cup full of milk when we’re finished eating, but it is nice to see that you can use a regular cup without spilling too much.
The other thing we’ve been really working on is potty training. You know exactly what to do when we get you to the potty at the right time, but you aren’t really telling us when you need to go. I think you’ll be there soon. You’re brain has just been busy focusing on other things. You definitely have the right idea. You do love wearing your pull-ups during the day and can even pull them up and down by yourself now.
A few weeks ago, your day care provider started watching a new baby. I was a little afraid of how you would react at first because you and your BFF had been the babies there for so long. You seemed to adjust just fine though. At home, you started carrying your baby dolls around with you constantly. You tell us when they are hungry, feed them bottles, change their diapers, and tuck them into bed when they are sleepy. I love watching you take care of them. You’ll be a great mama some day.
Each month seems like it goes by faster and faster as I watch you growing up so fast. Two is less than two months away now. As you inch towards it, I feel myself relaxing in some ways. Even though I still call you a baby, you really aren’t any more. I see more and more glimpses of the big girl you are quickly becoming and I am so proud.
Love always,
Mama
by dee on January 19, 2010
A week sure does go by fast, eh? That means it’s time for another iheartfaces photo challenge. This week’s theme is “We Are Family” which means you get to see my face for a change!
As usual, I wasn’t prepared for this challenge, so I scrambled around last night trying to get my husband and kids to cooperate while I played with my new wireless remote trigger. They were much more interested in playing Mario Bros. on the Wii than they were in a photo shoot, so I snapped a few and figured I’d take what I could get. It certainly won’t win any rewards, but I can say I participated and well, it’s pretty typical of my family!
Head over to iheartfaces and check out some of the other (much more amazing) We Are Family Photos!
