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Thursday, May 27, 2010

Highs and Lows

thought I might do an update post of sorts- but with highs and lows of our trip and my birthday.

Highs:
  • Stopping several times on the way up to Michigan. Twice at zoos, and once over night in a hotel.
  • Spending awesome time with my family.
  • Going to a wedding with E, with just Zeke, and it almost felt like a date!
  • I had a perfect margarita at said wedding reception. ah. So. yummy!
  • I got a chance to visit with one of my cousins. Its always wonderful to catch up with her. I love family!
  • Seeing my baby brother.
  • Going to some garage sales with my parents. Fun times, indeed!
  • I was SO good! At church, at the wedding and reception, with my parents, etc.
  • Getting a $30 hr long massage from someone who goes to my parent's church. Awesome!
  • Walking along the Detroit river. Its nice to be around water. :)
  • Opening birthday gifts from my parents and brother. I got a waffle maker, a griddle, and sheets. I see some breakfast making in my future.
  • My MIL rode back to Alabama with us (she hitched a ride up a few days before us). She got to be the referee instead of me!
  • My birthday yesterday was wonderful. E brought home a chocolate cake from Costco, diet coke, and flowers. *swoon* he knows the way to my heart.
  • Opening my gifts from my IL's. A gift card to Clarks to buy some new shoes! woot!
  • Zeke has been sleeping so well since we got back.


Lows:
  • O getting sick, coughing like crazy, and almost having to take her to urgent care for ear pain.
  • I'm still sick. Going on almost 2 weeks.
  • Getting very little sleep due to little mister sleeping on my chest all night, almost every night.
  • A didn't nap well, and was very sleep deprived. He doesn't handle sleep-deprived well.
  • The trip seemed so short. I hate that.
  • I already miss my parents.
  • Zeke cried almost the entire way home on Tuesday. Fun times were NOT had by all.
  • I gained weight on my trip. Ugh.
  • I started my period yesterday. First one since having I. On my birthday. Kind of sucks.
  • I'm 28. I know its not "old", but it feels old to think that I graduated from high school 10 years ago.

Well, that concludes this past week's highs and lows. Thankfully, I thought of a lot more highs than lows. I like weeks like that. :)

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Sleep begets sleep

If I ever doubted that over-tired babies wake up more often at night, I was a PER-fect example last night.

E and I went to a wedding and reception yesterday. The wedding started at 2, with the reception not scheduled to start until 6 pm. Since the wedding was an hour away from my parents (where we are currently staying right now) we opted to take the little mister with us. I didn't feel like pumping, etc on vacation, (and you just can't pump in public as discretely as you can nurse. :) ) The little mister was FABulous! He was SO good. So sweet, and just about the life of the party. All of the ladies were loving on him (most of them at our table don't have kids, yet) and gushing over him.

I does okay with sleeping in public. Not great, but he will still go to sleep in my pocket sling or other carriers if we need him too. Of course, he doesn't sleep for long periods of time, though. He took a few naps yesterday in the pocket sling. Maybe 6 or 7 cat naps.

Last night was, well, miserable. Absolutely miserable. We got in around 12 (for a nursing mother who's baby still gets up in the middle of the night, it was TOO late!) he woke up at least 10 times. At least. Not to mention the crying jag between 4-5 am where I couldn't get him back to sleep.

So, lesson learned. Even an even-keeled baby gets cranky and wakes up a lot in the middle of the night when he misses all of his naps. I'm hoping his 4 hr nap today will help him get back on track tonight. especially since its probably going to be another late night. (you know... LOST i s on..)

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

My little cowgirl

Here is a video from O's pre-K graduation last week. She's the last child in. (and, wow, can you see a size difference!)

Friday, May 14, 2010

opinions?

I'm having a heck of a time finding a dress for an upcoming wedding that we're going to soon. We're bringing I, (but leaving the other kids) so it needs to be something I can nurse in. (more specifically, something I don't have to unzip down the side, or lift up from the complete bottom. I hear they frown on showing your undergarments at weddings...)
Here's what I need:
  1. something sort of dressy, but not too dressy
  2. something I can nurse in
  3. something that isn't too short
  4. something that doesn't make me look pregnant
I've tried on at least 20 dresses. Its really not fun anymore. *sigh* I found one that sort of fit the criteria. It was only $10, too. However, E seems to think that it makes my, um, bust, look too big. I had a few friends over today, and they suggested making it into a v-neck. What do you all think?
Pre v-neck (see my new glasses? I got them for $8!)


Post v-neck




My only concern now is that it sort of looks maternity-ish. Thoughts?



Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Its not nice to stick your tongue out


Sorry I haven't actually written a post in a while. I always think of things to write about, but then I get busy and don't get a chance to type it all out. At least you can see cute pictures, right? :)

Thursday, May 6, 2010

A smashed loaf of bread is the least of my concerns

We've been having a hard time with our middle child lately. (If you're a real life friend of mine, this is probably no secret to you. In fact, if you're just a facebook friend, its probably not a secret to you.) He's been extremely defiant, and just generally naughty.

We, at first, thought it was an attention thing. So, I started carving out more time for him, just the two of us. We cook together almost every day, leaving baby Zeke and O with daddy. E started working outside with him more, leaving the other two with me. Grandma and Grandpa have taken him over there house, just him, a few times, too.

While somethings have gotten better, (i.e. pooping in the pants or on the floor. thank GOODNESS that is over!) the defiance has gotten so much worse.

Take today for an example.

O's at preschool, so I just have A and I. We head to Target to get groceries.

I tell A the "rules" of Target before we get in. He's a peach (well, mostly. as much of a peach as a 3.5 yr old boy can be.)

We get to Costco.

He's pretty good for the first 10 minutes or so. It starts to go south fast when I don't let him have his own sample of "cup of noodles" because its burning hot. I ask him to share with me. He does his little fit business, but, eventually gets over it.

We go to the fudge sample area to buy some for E for our anniversary on Sunday (shhhh. don't tell!) I ask to try some. A wants some, too. I tell him that we will have to share since we already had a sample of fudge earlier and I just wanted to taste the kind that I was buying. He doesn't want to share with me. He wants his own. I ask him if he wants a bite of mine, he says no. I eat said sample. A starts the hysterics, saying he wanted a bite, etc.

I realize we need to leave, and quickly. I calm him down and we head to the check out. Its our turn now, but he wants to get out. He says he's scared of the man who is unloading our groceries. (it is kind of scary when you're 3 and they take you away from your mom.) I take him out of the cart.

I now realize that taking him out was a bad idea as he's trying to squirt a bottle of vinegar and water that they have hanging on side of the conveyor belt. I tell him to stop. He does, but then proceeds to put his fingers up near the belt. We talk about why that isn't good, etc.

I'm paying now. A is crawling underneath the cart, on the bottom area. I ask him at least 3 times not to do this because the worker is trying to load our groceries.

I still have my contacts to pick up at the vision center, BUT...

Get me out of here, now!!!

Run by the trash can to throw our trash away. I ask A if he wants his water. He says "no". I say, "are you sure?" He says "yes." I throw water into trash. Guess who starts crying about me throwing his water away? he's so upset that he tries to get it out of the trash can (ew!) I drag him away and tell him he can show the worker at the door our receipts.

He takes the receipts, but is clearly still mad about the water. I'm thinking, at this point, that he'll get over it when the lady at the door draws a smiley face on the receipts. He normally loves that.

He walks all the way up to the worker, and as she extends her hands to take the receipts, he throws them on the ground! I make him pick up the receipts.

Let me add here, just in case you forgot, baby I is NOT a car seat baby. So, through out this whole ordeal, I have a baby in a wrap on my hip. Making a 3.5 year old pick up something off the floor when he doesn't want to is hard enough. Not to mention with a 4mth old attached to you.

So, back to A. I make him pick up the receipts, then I hand them to the worker. A then throws himself on the ground, screaming and crying. I have to pick him up and put him in the cart. He pretty much lands on my bread. The worker says "ma'am, he's smashing your bread".

I'm so embarrassed/frustrated/angry/mortified that I say, "thanks. I know." She then says "well, you might want to get him off of it."

Honestly, I think at this point in our fiasco, we have more to worry about than smashed bread. Like how to tame your 3.5 year old. Is there a movie out like that, yet?

As I drive home, I become more and more embarrassed and angry. Now, though, I'm just at a complete loss. I did everything "right". Everything that I feel I should have done was done. So, what's his deal? When is he going to learn that his decisions have consequences?

Please don't tell me its not until he's 21.