What We Have Been Up To

We left for the inlaws on Friday, Nov. 19. We left around 11 am, and drove about 11 hours. Then, Saturday, we had "6" hours left (except there was snow, so it was about 7 hours plus we stopped for about 2 hours at family for lunch - you get the picture). We stayed until Saturday (the 27th). We did the same driving - 11 hours the first day and 6 the second - and again there was snow.

The kids did fairly well in the car. We quickly realized AJU5 could actually hold it when there wasn't a potty to stop at. We just rationed her drinking, and we didn't have to stop too much for her. AJU6 had a few fussy times, but in general he was happy sitting next to me in his car seat.

While we were at the inlaws, the kids got to play in the snow a tiny bit. It was VERY cold (below 0 on morning, and it never got over 32), so we didn't stay out long. But, I think they enjoyed it a little bit. The snow was too dry to do much with it though.

Of course we celebrated Thanksgiving while we were there. None of the "extras" came, so there were only 10 of us. AJU5 fell asleep in my lap just before dinner was served, but she woke up before everyone was done (and dessert was served). AJU6 went down for a nap before dessert was over. It was "fun" trying to deal with their nap needs for sure.

Thanksgiving night we let AJU6 have his cake. We knew Friday would be crazy, and since he was born on Thanksgiving, we thought it was appropriate. I baked a banana cake, cut it in the shape of a tractor (with two extra square cakes for the kids), and then frosted with cream cheese frosting. It looked okay and tasted pretty good. We gave AJU6 his square whole, and he picked it up and destroyed the frosting. Then, we cut it, and he ate some. He definitely made a mess and consumed some of it!

The inlaws got the kids a tricycle for birthdays/Christmas, so we let them see that Thanksgiving too. AJU5 was in love, and AJU6 enjoyed it too, even after he hurt himself on the trailer hitch and drew blood. It will be a hit for years to come at their place I bet, as AJU5 can't totally reach the pedals at the shortest seat setting and the uncles enjoyed "riding" it too.

Since then I have been trying to keep my head above water. The term is drawing to a close, so I have had work work to do. Then there is AJU5's actual birthday and their party. Oh, and Christmas cards and Christmas shopping. It is a busy time of year for us!

Big FAIL!

So, I haven't blogged in almost a week. And I was supposed to blog daily.

Life just got busy. I couldn't think of what to review Friday morning, and then I didn't get online again until Saturday night. Since then, I have only been on for short periods until today. I blame Thanksgiving and AJU6's birthday. It just has made the end of the month too busy to keep up. Maybe next year.

I haven't read any of your blogs either. Maybe in little bit I can read some. But, I may not get to commenting. Too much to do before tomorrow when we celebrate AJU6's birthday AND Thanksgiving - all in one...

Thankful Thursday - Medical Advances

Probably about 6 or 7 years ago I was diagnosed with keratoconus. At first, there wasn't anything big about it. I just needed lenses for astigmatism. Then, probably about 4 years ago, we tried a hard lens in my left eye. It was (and is) the worse eye, and disposable contacts couldn't get me to 20/20. But, I couldn't handle the lens. I couldn't stop blinking even to open my eye and see if it worked with the lens. So, I just dealt with slightly impaired vision in that eye (with both eyes I could see just fine). Then, recently I started noticing I couldn't see well out of my left eye even with my contact in. Glasses made me see slightly better, but it was still not good. So, at my appointment in September, I mentioned it (not that they wouldn't have figured it out though). It turns out the cornea has gotten worse - to the point normal disposables can't do much of anything. So, I have to deal with a hard lens.

Luckily, there are now hybrid lenses. They aren't as easy or comfortable as disposables, but I can at least wear it for a few hours without any problem. If I keep them in for a long time, my eye gets dry. This is why a week ago I had such a hard time getting my lens out. I live where there is little humidity, so that doesn't help. I am hoping to get used to the new lens over the next few weeks so I can wear it full time. But, until then, I do a mix of old contact, glasses, and new lens. It works.

I know in the future cornea transplant is likely. I am still in my thirties, and with how bad my left eye has gotten in less then 10 years, I am fairly certain at some point it will bulge too much even where a hybrid lens. And that is when I will have to have surgery. But, if you read about the surgery, it is a year before your eye totally recovers. So, I want to be done having kids for sure. And I don't think that will be an issue. I hope/pray/believe it will be at least 10 years before it gets that bad.

Have you been thankful for medical advances for yourself or loved ones? Share!

Wordless Wednesday - Spinning!

Topic Tuesday - Traveling

My husband and I had to laugh at our friends and how the do road trips. Let's just say they are different than us.

AJU1 and I both grew up taking long road trips. We learned to get in the car and go. We don't stop for long meals. We try to minimize our stops by getting food and gas at the same exit (if not same parking lot). We rarely have to make extra potty stops (well, before we had a potty trained child). So, if the GPS says we will be there in 10 hours, we will be there in about 10 hours. We make up for our few stops with our driving about 5 miles per hour over the speed limit.

Our friends are different. They stopped and had a 2 hour dinner before leaving town because they tried to leave at rush hour. Then, they stopped on the other side of our town for breakfast - which lasted an hour. Now, they claim they didn't want to wake us (because it was 6am) and they were hungry. But if it would have been us we would have either just went to and grab and go place or texted/called (and as you may know, we don't sleep past 6 because our kids don't let us). On their way home, they planned to stop again for at least an hour for lunch.

How do you travel? Do you rush to your destination or make lots of stops?

We know our next trip will be a little different with AJU5 potty trained, but we still are going to conserve stops as best as possible. And maybe when the kids are school-aged we will start stopping at landmarks along the way (when they can appreciate them)...

Munchkin Monday - Fuss Alert!

Today has been a day of fuss. AJU5 has fussed when she hasn't gotten her way. AJU6 has fussed because he hasn't felt great. And I wanted to fuss because I didn't get much time to breathe.

AJU5 was over-stimulated this weekend I think. We didn't give into her every whim, but she got to play so much that she didn't need to ask for much. Daddy was home to play with her when she wanted him to. I didn't have to balance two children and keep them from attacking each other. So, she did not like having to play on her own. She didn't like that AJU6 was taking my attention or attacking her. So she threw tantrums. And she doesn't get over it quickly.

AJU6 had belly issues last night. And I think he was still getting over it today. So, he was very clingy. And food - a normal love and "pacifier" - wasn't wanted. So, it meant I had to hold him or listen to him cry. And it was a long day as a result.

But, they are both in bed now. AJU6 seems to be asleep, and AJU5 probably is "reading" before she sleeps. And they are sharing a room without much fuss still. So, all is not lost.

Hopefully tomorrow will be less fussy!

Sweet Sunday

So, last week I talked about my favorite edible sweets. Today I will talk about my sweet boy.

AJU6 loves to snuggle. He will bury his head into your chest when you pick him up. He seeks out cuddles regularly. We even wants them from people other than mommy and daddy. He walks to an older lady in our church and asks to be picked up. Once she picks him up, he just cuddles right into her.

Now, of course he doesn't want to cuddle forever. He has to go, go, go a lot of the time. But, he does love to be with us in our arms.

I don't remember AJU5 being that snuggly at this age. Now she wants to sit with me and watch shows, etc. But, I don't think she was as snuggly as a 1 year old.

Oh, and on that note. I can't believe that in 12 days AJU6 will be a year old and in 1 month AJU5 will be 3 years old. How did the get that old???

Silly Saturday

Yesterday we took the kids to Target for a quick trip. The two 2 year olds were in one shopping cart, each with a wooden toy helicopter from the $1 bin. Those two played and pushed and laughed and giggled for over 30 minutes. It was funny to watch them play. Of course there were a few moments of "get him/her off of me" but those never lasted long. I pushed them all over the store playing and giggling. It was a hoot to watch.

I can't wait to see these four kids grow up. L is 4 months younger than AJU5, and D is 7 months younger than AJU6. As long as the military doesn't send our friends overseas again, I have a feeling the kids will be closer than they are to their cousins (who live just as far or farther away).

Product Review Friday - Dapper Snappers

If you have skinny kids like me, you probably have a hard time keeping their pants up. You can find adjustable waist pants sometimes, but they aren't always the easiest to get. And they normally cost more. Oh, and I don't find them as often in shorts. So, there are things called Dapper Snappers. If the pants have belt loops, these "belts" will help keep the bottoms up. They snap over two belt loops (one on each side) and are elastic. There are 3 adjustments, so you can cinch in a few different amounts. So far they are working on one pair of pants for AJU5.

"Luckily" AJU5 can still fit into some 18M pants and most of her others are knit (i.e. lots f elastic), but she has a few shorts she couldn't wear after potty training because she was to skinny. That is the main reason I bought them. And I know they will work for many years - as I don't think either kid will be chubby (it just isn't in the genes around here). So, I will get more use out of them later too.

There are also supposedly similar things out there with alligator clips on the ends too. These would work for knit pants, but luckily we don't have a problem with those.

Okay... that was pretty bad writing. Oh well. It is what you get today as I dn't know if I will get another chance to write :)

Thankful Thursday (A Few Hours Late)

I am definitely thankful for friends. We have friends our ours in town for the weekend, and it is great to spend time with them. The daddy in the family basically lived with use for about 6 months almost 4 years ago. Since then, they have been stationed in the UK for three years and are now back in the States. We saw them in July on our road trip, but before that we had only seen them once in over three years.

They have two kids close in age to ours (4 and 7 months younger than our two), so it will be fun to watch them grow up together. AJU5 and the older boy already have had a blast playing together. AJU6 has tried to play with the 4.5 mo, but that little guy is nt sure about AJU6 - probably because he is fairly defenseless!

And of course I am thankful for my other friends. There are those in town that I love to talk to. We share our hard times and our blessings together. We unload our burdens on each other, and they are lifted up in prayer. I don't know what I would do without them.

And of course there are my blogging friends that I love tp "talk" to. We get to share the silly and little things in life with each other - and there is normally at least someone who can sympathize with during the crazy times of motherhood.

And as to why this is late: I got a new contact for my left eye this week. It is a hybrid lens meaning there is a hard contact wrapped in a soft contact. It definitely is taking time to get used to. Last night I went to take it out, and it was stuck. It took a long time, and by the end of it my left eye was on fire and I had a headache. So I took Advil. On an empty stomach. That led to almost throwing up. So, I just went to bed!

Word Wednesday - Sleep

Ahh, what sleep will do for you!

Last night was an adventure. We put both kids in the same room for the first time. AJU6 went down just fine, but then AJU5 woke him up protesting the removal of her dress (in another room). So, we got him up while we got AJU5 to bed. Then, we went back to bed about 20 minutes later (after dirtying a diaper), and AJU5 was still awake but quiet. It took AJU6 a few minutes of fuss,a nd he was out (fuss is not his mad cry, it is just him complaining). He woke up twice through the night (like he has the past three nights), and both slept until 5:30ish this morning. It was wonderful to sleep in almost a full hour more. It is also nice to have the guest bedroom available since we have company coming tomorrow morning.

Now here is to praying we have another good night tonight!

Topic Tuesday - Daylight Savings Time

I will make this short.

I hate it.

I am tired.

AJU5 has been the first one up the last two days - at 4:45 am.

Goodnight.

Munchkin Monday

Hi there! It is AJU5 writing today. Mommy thought I should update you on a few things from my perspective.

First, I find it very annoying that Mommy and Daddy make me take my dresses off. They make me look pretty! I wish I could wear them all the time. But, they say I have to wear jammies to bed. And sometimes they make me take them off because they got dirty. I don't mind them being dirty - I still look pretty in them! Oh, and some times Mommy says I have to put a shirt or pants on under them. I hate that too. I want to just wear my dress! I love my blue one, and my red one, and my pink one. The others I don't care for. They don't have ties on the front and back...

Also, I no longer were diapers at all. Well, at least almost never. Mommy puts them on me every once in a while if I drink a lot before bed. But, normally I get to wear my undies with no diaper (I insist on keeping the undies on even if I am wearing a diaper). This is because I almost never wet my bed. If I have an accident at night, I normally am out of bed before I can't hold it any more. So, Mommy just has to help me change clothes.

Well, I think that is about it. Time to go watch a show before bed. Have a good night!

Sweet Sunday

What is your favorite sweet? I have a few, as I can rarely pass up sweets.

1. Ice Cream. I love Blue Bell ones with vanilla ice cream and them some chocolate "embellishments" like candy. Happy Tracks is one of those, but there are others (and they rotate the flavors each month to keep you guessing and trying new ones).
2. Chocolate Candy. I love the ones with caramel in them, or toffee. I am not a fan on fruit in mine those. Cadbury makes fingers, and those are GREAT! I love all three flavors (white, milk, and dark). And of course I also like the "standard" ones - Twix, Butterfinger, Reeses and KitKats are the best of those.
3. Cookies. Of course I go to the chocolate variety. Well, not completely chocolate (although I wouldn't pass one of those up). I like the ones with chips/chunks. I make oatmeal chocolate chip for my husband, and I normally eat way too many of those!

What are your favorites?

Silly Saturday

Yesterday we were outside playing before dinner. AJU5 took the little push car up the hill for a ride down (as usual), and then got bored. She wanted her "button" - the motorized four wheeler my parents got her last year for her birthday. So, we got it out. But, AJU6 took the opportunity to take the push car for a spin. He pushed it all the way up the hill, and then we let him ride down. And he did it again. Then, he tried to push the car down the hill. Unfortunately, they ended badly with a bump/scrape on the head. Luckily he got his hands down first, and then tumbled head first. But, once he had a little snuggle, he was ready to go again. By this point, AJU5 was driving her four wheeler around. AJU1 was trying to teach her to turn at the end of the sidewalk area and come back on the grass. It was taking lots of coaching, but eventually she got it. So, AJU6 decided to copy his sister - he tried to push his car in the grass. He didn't get very far though. Then AJU5 drove her vehicle to the door (after AJU1 tried to tell her to turn to go back for nother loop). At this point, AJU6 was in my arms, abandoning the car after not being able to push it through the grass. He saw the four wheeler "available" and tried to jump out of my arms. I told AJU1 he wanted to ride. AJU1 didn't believe him. But, I put him down, and he crawled/toddled over to it and tried to climb on. AJU1 took him for a loop, and he was ready to get down (tired and hungry I think). He almost is big enough to climb off on his own - if only his little feet would move a little easier when turning to get off.

Okay... that might not have been that silly. But, I am tired. AJU6 was up at 10, 11:30, 12:30, 1:30, 2:00, 2:30. At 2:30 I was done, so AJU1 tried to get him back to sleep. After a few failed attempts, we decided to just let him cry it out. It took almost an hour from AJU1s last attempt until he was completely out. And of course all that screaming woke AJU5 up. So, she came and joined us in our bed, using me as a kicking bag part of the night (well, morning since it was 4am when she joined us). But, they both let us stay in bed until 7 this morning, and we "get" another hour tonight. Hopefully he will do better tonight. At almost a year old, he shouldn't be waking every hour or two at night. I could deal with one or two wakings, but the every hour is not cool. So, we aren't going to allow it. But it is hard to listen to him cry. AJU1 tried to rock him to sleep. He rocked for about 20 minutes, and he was completely out. But, as soon as he put him in bed, he was awake and crying again in minutes. I tried nursing, but that only gave us 30 minutes. And I don't feel comfortable co-sleeping because he moves a lot (and might crawl out of bed). So, we are somewhat stuck with the cry-it-out method even if he screams...

Project Review Friday - Mimi the Sardine Bibs

AJU6, as you might guess, is not a clean eater. And a regular bib just didn't cut it for him. First, most of them are velcro, and he is strong enough to pull them off. Second, his sleeves got MESSY, and I would have to change him anyways. So, I knew I needed to get some new bibs for him. I had used his sister's sleeveless bib with pocket a few times on him, and the pocket really helped keep his lap and the chair cleaner. So, when I saw these on BabySteals, I snatched a pair. And they have worked great - well, as long as I put them on him.

First, they have a tie closure. This takes a tiny bit more time to fasten, but it means he can't take it off. Second, the sleeves work great. Occasionally the cuff of his shirt gets slightly soiled, but I am working on remembering to roll or pull them up a little before he eats. Then, there is the pocket that keeps the mess off the chair and floor - a big plus for me! And they do clean easy - I can rinse them off if they are bad, and I throw them in the laundry about once a month to get really clean.

Supposedly IKEA has a similar bib, but there aren't any around here. I haven't seen anything like these at Babies R Us, Target, or Wal-Mart, so I was willing to pay a little extra for these. I am normally not huge on all the green things (which is why these are more expensive), but I do understand why that raises the price.

Overall, I think it was a good buy. It is definitely saving some laundry. It will come in handy when we travel and don't want to bring a ton of clothes. And they are big enough for AJU5 if she would let me put them on her, so I know we have a long time before he outgrows them. Oh, and it might come in real handy for his birthday with cake!

Thankful Thursday - The Kids

I am definitely thankful for my kids. There are definitely times where I wish I could get a "day off" from them, but I wouldn't trade them for the world. And it is funny since neither of them was planned. God definitely knew better.

I also thank God for the one we lost almost two years ago. It is hard to believe that at about this point two years ago we found out we were pregnant again. Then I saw the baby on ultrasound 23 months ago, and about 22 months ago the baby wasn't with us any more. But, God had a better plan - for AJU6. Although I sometimes wonder what would have been with Junior #2, I know without losing him we wouldn't have AJU6. And I am definitely thankful for AJU6.

So, what am I thankful for? I love the hugs and cuddles and snuggles. I love that AJU5 wants me to sit with her and sleep with her some times. I love watching her sing and dance and just learn. I love watching AJU6 toddle around. I love watching him giggle and crack up - he has a great smile and laugh. I love seeing the look of accomplishment on his face when he does something. I am even thankful for their tantrums and fussiness - as they are times when I can grow and reflect as a parent.

Are we done? I don't think so. I have a feeling there will be a #3 before too long. We aren't big on preventing pregnancies for a variety of reasons, so it is bound to happen. I would prefer to wait until at least summer if not fall to get pregnant again though. I don't want another holiday baby. And I want to be "free" to visit family this summer. But, we had a little "scare" when my cycle was 48 days, as compared to the 33 days before (only three cycles since AJU6 was born). I was very close to testing when Aunt Flo finally arrived on Halloween.

Wordless Wednesday - Little Pumpkins

And for comparison - AJU5 two years ago...

Topic Tuesday - Voting

I think voting is a right, but I also think it is a duty. It isn't something we should take lightly. Before going to the voting location, I think people should at least see what they are going to be voting for. The big races are easy. It is almost impossible not to know who is running for congress in your area. The same goes for the governor races this year and the president other years. But there are other things on the ballot that I think people should study before voting.

Where we live, we vote on judges. It is a retain/don't retain vote for each judge. Of course the average person has no clue about any of these people. Luckily, there is a group that polls the people regularly at the court house (attorneys, court workers, etc), interviews the judges, and then makes recommendations. They then publish the results with their suggested vote. The first year we voted here we had no clue how to vote, but now we make sure to read the report and remember who to vote to not retain.

Then there are the bond measures. Normally we vote no for all of them. Although I know places like the community college I work at would use the extra money well, I don't think the increase to our taxes is necessary. The money for the bonds can only be used on capital improvements, and that is not the place where money is needed (with severe budget cuts everywhere else because our state can't balance a budget to save their lives). Also, we are for limited government, so that plays a roll in our decision to vote no on all of those. But, it normally doesn't matter. They almost always pass because people don't think about the fact that they are going to be paying for these projects via taxes... (and it is evident that this is not even publicized based on advertisements I have seen - it is shown as the groups getting money and not as a tax vote).

And lastly, there are the state amendments. These are the hardest some times because of the wording. It would be very easy to think you are voting one way and in actuality vote another way. And the wording on the ballot is only part of the amendment. So, this is another spot where at least a little research is necessary. There was one measure on our ballot this year that I wasn't 100% sure about even after a little study. It was about government appointees and who was eligible. I could see the pros and cons to both sides of the measure, and I just voted with my gut. But, it is definitely something I wish I had studied even more.

Did you read up on the ballot before voting? Do you print out a sample ballot and fill it out first? Do you vote early? Or do you not vote...

NaBloMoPo Day 1 - Munchkin Monday

Today is the first day of November. And November is National (Na) Blog (Blo) Posting (Po) Month. The idea is to post every day for the month. I did it two years ago on both blogs. Last year I didn't even try because I know with AJU6's birth it would be almost impossible. This year, I am trying again, at least on this blog. My other blog (well, that is attached to this account) should be posted on some this month hopefully, but I don't think I can get 60 posts done this month with two kids.

As for the kids, they are a handful now. AJU6 hates sitting in the shopping carts. At places like Target, I often let him stand in the main part since we do a lot of stopping and looking. I let him down last week once, and he went all over the place. It was crazy1 He even crawled on the lowers shelf of a display. Luckily we don't do that shopping too often. At this age, AJU5 loved to push the cart (since she wasn't walking independently), so it wasn't so hard. AJU6 of course has no desire to even stay with me. At Costco, I normally leave him in his infant seat so he can't escape...

AJU5 is better, but the girl has to go potties ALL THE TIME! There are days she will go 5 times in three hours. So, of course I have had to find the potty in most stores already. Living in this town for 8 years, I think I might have visited a couple of the restrooms at stores once or twice, but that is it... Luckily she is basically completely trained now. We still put a training pant on her at night just to be careful, but she wasn't used it in a week.

Hopefully I can get a post done each day. Tomorrow is Topic Tuesday - and I think I will post about voting in general. We will see...