Naughty, not nice

It was an interesting day in our household. I had so much to do. I realized that Christmas was only 9 days away and I had to wrap and ship all of my family's gifts. Luckily I only needed to buy one last thing for their package, but I was running short on time. I decided that today would be the day to get that stuff taken care of. So I set Mackenzie in front of the TV, watching her favorite show of the moment, Spongebob. I was wrapping away in my bedroom, getting a lot done, when I realized that Spongebob was now over, but Mackenzie was still quiet. So I went to see what she was doing, and this was what I found:

She had taken off her underwear (yes, we are working on some potty training, it is going OK) and had put diaper rash cream on herself because she has had a rash, and decided she wanted to cover the rest of her body with it as well. Especially her hair! Yuck! So she immediately went into the bath tub:

Even after lots of scrubbing, it wasn't coming out! Oh well, I had things to do. So I tried to comb it out of her hair and this was the result:


I decided to give up. It wasn't too bad for around the house, but when we went out I was sure glad it was 25 degrees so she had a reason to wear a hat!

Later on, we had a little fun with her hair for a change. We gave her a mowhawk!



What a day. And the diaper cream isn't all the way out of Mackenzie's hair, although it is way better than it was. The secret is if you ever get anything greasy anywhere, use Dawn dishwashing soap. I am sure she will need another bath tomorrow, but at least I find it funny. Now.

L-A-Z-Y

Yup, that's me. LAZY. I have been too lazy to blog these days. Of course I have a million ideas of what I could write about, but that takes too much effort. So because of my laziness you will not get to read a post about everything I am thankful for, you will not hear about what I ate for Thanksgiving or what I bought on Black Friday. Aren't you lucky? Instead, you will be happy to read this:

Things I am Proud of.

1. Bailey is doing well in school. He is no genius, but I can accept that. His reading level is where it should be at the end of second grade, so he is doing very well in that aspect. He is a wonderful friend to everyone in his class which is so nice to hear. His teacher even said she wished she had 15 Bailey's in her class. A nice compliment, I think. (Now I know I am talking about things I am proud of, but I wanted to add the only "negative" thing the teacher said was about his handwriting. Oh, it isn't pretty. It is bad enough he is a boy, but he is also a lefty. Maybe he will be a doctor someday!!)

2. The binky is gone and is never mentioned!! Mackenzie just seems to be growing up before my eyes.

3. A couple weeks ago, I went to Walgreens to buy some razors that I had heard was a fabulous deal after coupons. I also bought 4 bags of holiday candy because they had a $5 rebate on them. When the cashier rung up my purchases and ran my coupons through, he was shocked. The register said that Walgreens owed me $1.16. He called the manager, and I was a bit worried about what would happen, but the manager told the kid to give me the money since that is what the register said!! I walked out of Walgreens with 4 Soleil razors and 4 bags of candy and $1.16! Crazy! And I applied for the $5 rebate. It was my proudest moment as a couponer!

4. Tonight we put up our Christmas tree, and there was no fighting!! It was actually one of those nice happy family moments. Mackenzie loved putting the ornaments on the tree. We are trying to tell her not to take them off, but oh well.

5. I have 2 really great sister in laws. They have always been so good to me and have treated me like family since the beginning. I love them both so much and think of them as sisters. Even though our lives have been crazy, I think all of the stuff going on has made us closer and appreciate what we have!

6. My husband has been trying so hard to be a better dad and husband. He isn't perfect, but I know he is trying, which helps me to try to be a better mom and wife.

7. I have really been trying to not worry about things that aren't important. If I can't change it, then I try not to worry about it. Because of this, I have felt so much happier, like a weight of perfection has been lifted from me. I can't be perfect, because it isn't possible.

A Blessing In Disguise

Yesterday my car was in the shop, getting a few things worked on. My husband called later on in the afternoon and said that his car broke. The car he drives for work is the car my parents gave me when I was 18. It is a little blue Neon, and I know it is a bit embarrassing for my husband to work around cars and drive this little thing around. But it is the best thing for us to do financially, so he bares with the teasing. He had the car towed and I had to go and pick him up.

My very first thoughts were "why is this happening? This is not the best time of year for car repairs!!!" At this time I had no idea how much it would cost us, and it got me feeling down. But I just had a feeling that we would be blessed for our faithfulness (or at least, our attempt at faithfulness). So I prayed that we will be able to handle the financial aspect of it.

This morning my husband gave me an update on the car. He said it needed a new gear shifter, which was about $200 or so. Not bad, I thought. But when they looked at the car, they saw the tie rod (which holds the shocks to the wheel or something like that, they are important) were so close to breaking that they would have him sign a waiver if he didn't let them do the work. To fix this will be another $300 or so.

I got off the phone, felt sad for a minute about the money we were about to spend, but had an epiphany. If the gear shifter hadn't broken, the car wouldn't have gone into the shop. The tie rod could have broken while my husband was driving, and he could have been seriously injured. Instead of feeling like the broken car was a burden, it felt more like a blessing! As soon as I realized this blessing in disguised, I thanked God. I feel so lucky that our prayers of safety have been heard.

Bye Bye Binkie, Take 2!

Mackenzie went to her 2 year doctor appointment on Thursday. I knew exactly what the doctor would ask me "How is she sleeping at night?" Lately, she has been waking up 1 or 2 times a night, usually in search of the darn binkie. This has gone on for about a month, so I figured it was time to get rid of it. But I needed the doctor to give me the advice to get rid of it, so in my mind I could think "the doctor said we had to get rid of the binkie".

I decided Friday was the night. Mackenzie asked for the binkie, like always, and I told her they were all gone. I threw the binkies away, so I wouldn't give in to a moment of weakness. I showed her the spot they are usually kept, and once she saw they were gone, she was pretty much OK with it. No crying when going to bed, which is good. But naptime hasn't been as easy of a transition. There has been crying and throwing things out of the bed during naps. I am just trying to be patient about it, because she definitely needs a nap on most days.

Last night was the first night in over a month that she didn't wake up at night. Sort of. She did wake up at 10, but we were still awake so it didn't disrupt our sleep.

The doctor said it should take about 4 days for her to be over it. Tomorrow is day #4, so I guess things will only get better! Right?

Much Anticipated

Here are pictures from Bailey's baptism. I didn't get to take quite as many as I would have liked, but oh well. I got enough to remember the day.








And here are from Halloween. Gotta love my cuties. The poodle is my niece Alyssa, and the dragon is my nephew Taj. They are all so cute!! I had pictures of my other niece Victoria, but for some reason they are not on the computer.







(Maybe I am doing it wrong, but it is hard to tell from the little thumbnail pictures which ones are the good ones and which ones have people with their eyes closed or looking dumb. And rarely do the pictures stay in their intended order. Sometimes I hate technology for making me feel stupid.)

Tying up some loose ends

I assume that you have noticed my absence. I did go to Vegas, the children (and my mom) did survive, and I am happy with my choice. One of the best things about my trip is I got to see my awesome friend Barbara and her family. She is such a great friend!! It has been 3 years since the last time we saw each other, and instantly when we saw each other it was as if no time had passed. I love those kinds of friends! She and I were college roommates (I guess apartmentmates would be closer to the truth). Barbara was the girl who brought the guys to our apartment. Not on purpose though! They all thought she was great and she could care less about them all! Good thing she found her match so she could stop teasing all the boys! Barbara and I lived together so we saw each other often, but I remember times that we would run into each other on campus and would miss our classes because we were so busy talking. That's a great friend! Her kids are so cute, little perfect mixes of her and her husband. And they got along with each other so great!

Another one of the great things about my trip was how rejuvinating it was. I spent a lot of time reading and knitting and just spending time by myself. I know, to a lot of people that doesn't sound fun, but I loved it. Coming home I have so much more patience with my kids.

Mackenzie did GREAT with her first long time away from mom. In fact, she didn't even mention me the whole time I was gone. She did cry when my mom went home today though. Poor thing.

So now my life will be back to normal. What is that? The house we have been working on for about 7 weeks is now finished. Hopefully it will sell soon so my in laws can have their furniture back (it is busy acting as staging furniture). Tomorrow I think I am going to just run errands and spend time at my house.

Yes, Halloween was a long time ago, but we had fun. Mackenzie was a giraffe and Bailey was Anakin Skywalker, I think. Mackenzie LOVED trick or treating. Not surprising since she loves candy, especially lollypops. If people left their candy bowls down too long, she would pick more than one piece!

Pictures will be coming soon. I promise. Really.

Oh, and Barbara? Thanks so much for dinner last week! I don't feel like we thanked you enough. And you really should start a blog. I would even comment on it!

I Feel BAD!

My husband and I are going to Las Vegas for the week. My mom was nice enough to fly in to watch the kids for us. But I am now thinking twice about going. Bailey isn't feeling well. I know, he is old enought to fake me out on being sick, but I know that he isn't feeling good. It's just probably a cold, but still. What if Mackenzie gets sick too? What if something worse happens? I know I can't just stay home forever because something bad might happen to my kids, but I can't help but worry.

Am I alone in worrying about this?

Phighting Phils!

My first true love is baseball. Yes, I will admit it. It is the best! Now I understand how it is boring to some people, but not to me. I have even listened to countless games on the radio. When I was 15 I really got interested in the Philadelphia Phillies. I watched games all the time and was a big fan of all the players. Baseball helped keep my mind off the fact that my life was boring and I didn't have many friends. Baseball was my friend and kept me entertained 162 games a year. This particular year (1992 to be exact) the Phillies stunk, and weren't very popular, so we had a lot in common.

1993 is when I really got crazy. The Phillies were good, and that made me happy. I also had a huge, huge crush on one of the players. I had many fantasies of him falling in love with me. There was an 11 1/2 year age difference (and 2 weeks, if you want to know the exact difference) but I didn't care. There was no boys at my school who would even look twice at me, and at least that baseball player couldn't break my heart because we would never meet.

In 1993 the Phillies went to the World Series. It was huge! The stuff dreams were made of. We were so close to winning, but my crush ended up losing the Series for the team. I was so sad. I did cry tears of sadness over baseball! I also found out that my crush was getting married in the winter, so that also broke my heart.

Life was hard for awhile, but I was able to move on. But I still love baseball. Now that I live in St Louis, the Cardinals are my favorite team. But the Phillies will always be the team I cheer for. The Phillies and I have history. First true loves never fade away, at least not for me.

This postseason the Cardinals didn't make it in, but the Phillies did. So I did what I always do, cheer for the Phils. Bailey joined me, and now says the Phillies are his favorite team. And tonight I saw them win the World Series!! Ah, the joy! It has been a long time coming, 28 years since the last time the Phillies won the World Series. Although I wish it could have happened in 1993, I am happy for my Phillies, for they will always have a piece of my heart!

Bailey's Special Day!

In our church, we baptize children when they turn 8. We baptize by immersion, like Jesus Christ was baptized by John the Baptist. Ever since the doctor laid Bailey in my arms, I thought about how it would be when he was 8 and would be baptized and officially a member of our church.

Today, that day arrived. It seemed unreal that my little boy, my baby, could actually be old enough to be baptized. It was a wonderful experience for him. Bailey had so many friends and family come to see him be baptized. That made me realize how special Bailey is. We had 4 month old babies there and a 104 year old friend there. All to show their love and support for my son. What more could warm a mother's heart?

The only thing that went "wrong" was I had a picture slideshow that I had spent hours working on, and I couldn't get it to copy onto the DVD right so I could show it. That is what happens when I am barely computer literate.

My church means so much to me. My Savior means so much to me. To see Bailey begin to go down the road that leads to happiness in life makes me so happy as well. Even when life is tough, I know that God knows me and loves me and can help me through the tough times. He has so many times already, and I am sure He will do it again!

Bailey, I hope you will remember the day you were baptized as a special day. You are so loved, and I am proud of you for who you are!

Happy Birthday Bailey!!!!

I can't believe I have an 8 year old! How the time has flown by! There are times I still think of him as a little kid, but he's growing up!

Bailey has been such a wonderful blessing to our lives and to the lives of many others. I didn't feel ready to have a baby when I was pregnant with Bailey. I thought I would finish school and get a "real" job and support Jared while he finished school and then think about having children, but God had other plans for us. And I am so glad he did! I remember holding Bailey in my arms for the first time, knowing my life had changed forever. Once a mother, always a mother, and he is the one who made me a mother.

I just love him dearly. He is so special, and I just feel that he will do great things with his life. I love how much he loves his little sister. He has told me a few times that he wants our family to have another baby girl someday! I am so proud that he is my son, and I hope this year of his life I can be a better mother to him!

Nanny, I love you!

My mom's mom we called Nanny. We were close from the beginning, although she hated my name, at least at first. There was a cat down the street named Samantha, so I guess she didn't find it to be an appropriate granddaughter name. She babysat me while my mom worked. Nanny lived in town where there were sidewalks and next door neighbors (we didn't have either), but she had a huge backyard with a metal swingset just for the grandkids. She also had air conditioning (the window kind, but it still worked great compared to no AC at home) and cable. Oh, how we loved to watch Nanny's cable tv! Nickelodeon and game show reruns (before the days of the game show network!). Nanny would always play games with me, like Dominoes or cards. She had this game Triominoes that were little triangle dominoes. I won EVERY game I played against her! I loved spending the night at Nanny's. Her bathroom smelled so good and she always had lots of bubble bath and lotion. Many summer evenings we would go and get an ice cream cone (custard).

Nanny's birthday was 2 days after mine, so we always shared a party. She didn't mind. I always felt special to her. I remember around Christmas when Nanny (and Grandpop too) would put bags and bags of presents into our car. Now I know that you can't buy love, but I'm one of those people where gifts make me feel extra special. When I didn't get along with my family, I would envision myself running away to live with Nanny.

Many summer vacations were spent at the beach with her and Grandpop. It doesn't feel like a real vacation to me if extended family isn't around. Going to the beach during the day and playing board games at night. A few times I went with Nanny and Grandpop up to my aunt's in Vermont. One particular time I can remember is we stayed at a motel (I think it was either a Howard Johnson's or Holiday Inn). I hadn't stayed at a motel often, not like Bailey has! The motel was having hot air balloon rides. Although we didn't go for a ride, I had never been that close to a hot air balloon and I took half a roll of film of this balloon.

When I was in high school, I spent the week at Nanny's house. I don't think we had big plans to do anything. I just loved spending time with them. One of the nights I was there Nanny woke me at 1 in the morning. Grandpop had fallen and couldn't speak and so an ambulance was called. I was so scared, but I was glad to be there, that way Nanny wasn't alone. Over the next month while Grandpop was in the hospital recovering from a stroke, I stayed with Nanny often so she wouldn't be lonely. A few months after Grandpop came home, he had another stroke in the middle of the night, and I happened to be there again. He passed away the next year, and I really felt like Nanny and I were close.

Nanny would always send cards for holidays, even when I was in college, and once I had kids she would send cards to them. When I moved away from NJ, I called Nanny often, and she called me. I tried to send her pictures of Bailey, and she would always call me to thank me for them. I NEVER doubted her love for me. When I was a kid and felt like my parents didn't love me, I knew that Nanny did.

About 2 years before Mackenzie was born, Nanny started to not be herself. Her cousin who was like a sister to her died in a car accident which made Nanny afraid to drive (Nanny didn't even learn to drive until she was 35!). She had trouble remembering things, and we worried about dementia. The doctor said she was OK. When Mackenzie was born, Nanny was the first member of my family that I was able to talk to. It was the last time I talked to her. 3 weeks exactly after Mackenzie's birth, Nanny passed away. October 18, 2006.

This is why I write of my Nanny today. I still miss her terribly, even after 2 years. I didn't get to go to her funeral because we live far away and Mackenzie was a newborn. I wish I could have gone. Maybe I wouldn't miss her so much if I had gotten a chance to say goodbye, since her passing was a surprise. Every time I see an older lady with gray/white permed hair, I think of Nanny. Birdfeeders make me think of her, since she loved birds. I am sad she never got to hold Mackenzie, although she did see pictures.

Nanny, I love you. I hope you are happy. I am. I have faith that we will see each other again. Please come visit me in my dreams again.

Life as a mom

One puking child - one husband away for business = a mom who is sick of doing laundry and getting puked on

Don't husbands always pick the best times to be away? OK, so he didn't pick this time to go away, he didn't have a choice. But the timing ended up good for him! Not so good for me.

Hi. Did you miss me?

Sorry about the blogging break. I was just super busy and didn't have the energy to post anything. Plus I am sure you did not want to hear how busy I felt and how I was a single parent most of the time. Still busy working at the in law's other house to get it ready to sell. My husband has been out of town a bunch lately for work, and when he was home he was working late. Mackenzie is still loving the movie Pollyanna. Bailey is awaiting his 8th birthday, which is next week.

****Just a pause in my train of thought, I put Mackenzie to bed almost an hour ago and she is still awake, talking and playing. As long as she is happy, I don't care what she is doing. Wait, I don't really mean that. But I do hope she will go to bed soon so she can wake up at 7 so we can take Bailey to school.*****

Where was I? Oh, I think I was boring everyone with details of what has been going on at my house. Well, for one thing, it is dirty. I haven't had the energy for cleaning. Maybe next week.

Today is my father in law's birthday. He is old. But he is great, even when he isn't perfect.

*****Sorry, interrupting again. The happy noises from the crib don't sound so happy. It sounds like she is calling Daddy. That is funny. Last week Daddy put her to bed, and he got her out of her crib 10 minutes later because she was in there playing. So she now knows he is the sucker to call for to attempt to get out. She doesn't realize Daddy isn't coming home tonight!*****

Well, hopefully in the next few days I will find something semi-interesting to blog about. Maybe.

Overwhelmed

Ever feel like you have too much going on and zero energy to do anything? Yeah, I am having one of those days. My house is messy, the kids are out of control and I just don't have the energy to deal with it at the moment. Thank goodness tomorrow is Sunday. I am just going to have a relaxing day. No worries about anything. Spend time with the kids and show them I love them. Be outside and enjoy the beautiful day. Be spiritually edified with church. And just not stress. Here's hoping my great plan of relaxing works!

Pollyanna

Have you ever played the Glad Game or had a fear of falling from a tree to get to your 3rd floor attic bedroom? Then you must have watched Pollyanna as a kid. In the past 2 weeks I have listened to Pollyanna at least 5 times, if not more. I have the whole thing memorized, almost. This is because it is now Mackenzie's favorite movie. That's right, it is a 2 year old's favorite movie!!! I don't understand what the appeal is to her. But she sits down for almost the whole 2 hours. Usually she takes a few breaks, but I can't believe how much she is mesmerized by this movie!!

It has been a tremendous help to me. I have been helping my in laws get a house ready to sell, so I have been doing a lot of painting and wallpaper scraping and many other backbreaking jobs. In a house that is practically empty there isn't much for a 2 year old to do. My mother in law brought over a tv that has a vcr attached. I don't have many vcr tapes, but MIL brought over some of what she had. We thought Mackenzie would be interested in 101 Dalmations since she loves dogs. Nope. Scooby doo? Forget it. Bailey put in Pollyanna and there was silence for the first 30 minutes!! Finally, I could get things done!!

I think I might need to get a copy for myself. Only on dvd this time!

First Timer

I've been tagged! Don't worry, I won't tag anyone! Here it goes:

5 fears, 5 joys, 5 obsessions/collections, 5 surprising facts about you. Tag 5 people.

5 fears:

The typical one: my family dying. Especially the kids dying in their sleep. I always worry when they sleep in!

Calling people on the phone

Crying uncontrollably in front of a big group of people

Having no money

Losing my wallet

5 joys:
My kiddos

My husband

Getting a good deal

Being at the beach

My cats when I am sad, they always seem to know!

5 obsessions/collections:

Coupons

Going to Walgreens and Target

The darn internet

Cool TV shows like The Hills and America's Next Top Model and Dancing With the Stars

I collect the US state quarters. I think I need 7 more for all 50 states!


5 surprising facts:

I am a pack rat, but I also purge my pack. So it is hard to tell that I am a pack rat. There are things that I wish I hadn't thrown away, though.

I was in the marching band in high school. I played the flute. I sucked.

I grew up on a farm in Southern New Jersey. When I went away to college at BYU, I was made fun of (in a playful way, of course) for having an accent. I had NO idea that I had an accent, and worked hard to get rid of it. Now I pretty much have a non-accent, and no one can tell that I spent the first 20 years of my life in NJ.

My husband and I eloped after only knowing each other for 2 months. And 9 1/2 years later we are still together. I would not recommend it to ANYONE. We are the lucky ones.

When I was 2, I had an operation on my hip (I had hip dysplasia). I was in a body cast for 6 weeks and had braces on my legs for awhile. Because of this, I was in a special gym class in school with a boy in my grade who was in a wheelchair. My family still jokes about me being in "dumb gym". This is the reason why I never tried out for sports.

An interesting day

Today my fabulous sister in law Denae (don't worry Melanie, you are fabulous too, even without a brain!) called to see if I wanted to go for a walk with her in her neighborhood. Mackenzie loves spending time with her cousin Taj, so off we went. We had a great walk in beautiful walking weather. We got back to Denae's house and let the kids play outside. While we were chasing the kids around, Denae heard something. It sort of sounded like kids playing, or a cat crying. It sort of sounded like someone crying for help, but I just couldn't be sure. Denae decided to check it out. The kids went inside and busied themselves with some toys and I went back outside. Denae called to me to come, so I did. An elderly neighbor across the cul-de-sac had fallen outside her front door into some bushes. No broken bones, so Denae and I were able to pull her out of the bushes and get her back inside. We made sure she was OK and that she called her doctor and we were on our way.

I share this story not to say how great I am, because I played a small role in helping the neighbor. But I have been praying the last few days that I can be the answer to the prayers of others. An apostle in our church, Elder Utchdorf, gave a talk the other night at the General Relief Society meeting. I didn't get to hear it because of Mackenzie's birthday, but a few friends told me about it. Elder Utchdorf said in his talk that we should pray to be the answer to other people's prayers. After all, Heavenly Father answers our prayers most of the time through the actions of others. I decided to start praying for that. Then this happens today. I wasn't planning on being at Denae's. She called me to help her be motivated to walk. If I hadn't come, she wouldn't have been outside (most likely) to hear her calling. When I had this realization, I felt so blessed to have had the opportunity to help someone in need. I felt my prayers had been heard.

Through small and simple things, Heavenly Father reminds me that He loves me and knows me.

Birthday Pictures

Playing with my new water and sand table


Jumping in my little bounce house with Bailey


Present opening with Dad and Bailey



Blowing out my candles



I love cake!

Happy Birthday Mackenzie!!!

My sweet little girl. I can hardly believe you are 2!! The past 2 years have been such a blessing for our family to have you in our lives. You are so special to us, and especially to me. Bailey loves you dearly. He was super excited for your party and all your presents.

It took me a long time to decide I could handle another child. I suffered from depression for a long time and sometimes it was tough to handle day to day life. Bailey has always been a special blessing to me, but he has been a special blessing to everyone. People just seem to gravitate to him. You, Mackenzie, have been my blessing. Ever since I got pregnant with you, the depression has lifted. Not to say I don't have rough moments, I still get down sometimes, but my life is just so much lighter with you in it.

I wish I could find the words to describe you. You are full of energy and life, but at the same time observant of the world around you. You are huggable and sweet. You love to play outside and get into things. You are independent and want to dress yourself. You have the cutest little voice. You love to say prayers. You insist on praying before going to sleep and you love to just randomly turn off the tv during the day so we can say a prayer together. You like to draw and are always trying to draw a doggie! Taj is your buddy and you get so excited when you are together. You hate to sit in a shopping cart and you aren't very obedient at times, but I love you.

Mackenzie, you are so special to me. I can't wait to share many more years with you in my life!

A past memory

With all the thinking time I have had lately, I had an old memory pop into my head today.

I have a crazy aunt. Thank goodness she isn't my blood relative. I think most people have a few nuts in their family tree. She was one of ours. When I was younger I would spend time with their family. I even went on a few family vacations with them.

One day, when I was probably 11, we went to K Mart together. She let my cousin, sister and I go off on our own. We told her specifically where we were going to be, in the book section. True to our word, we were in the book section, waiting for my aunt to be done with her shopping and come and find us. This never happens. To my absolute horror, I hear over the intercom "Will Samantha, Jared and Adrienne please come to the service desk. Their mother is waiting for them." I felt so humiliated. When you are shy you don't want someone calling your name over the intercom like you were lost. We weren't lost. My aunt was too darn lazy to go to the book section and find us. Plus, she was NOT my mother. At this time I suspected something wasn't right with her and I really didn't want to be linked to her in this way.

It is funny how some memories are still so vivid in your mind. There are so many more important things that I could remember about my life and childhood, and this is what I remember. Some days I think I would like to watch a movie of my life so I can see all the things I have forgotten, but I might be too embarrassed of myself!

So many great ideas, so little time

As I mentioned earlier, I have been super busy lately. But I have all these things that I want to do that I never seem to get a chance to do. And usually when I get a chance to do them, I have lost the motivation to do it.

Here's my first great idea. Mackenzie has a headband that is made of ribbon and has an elastic in the back. It is really nice because it actually fits her head and wasn't made for a newborn. Here's a picture of her wearing it a few months ago:

I thought I could make this myself with ribbon and some elastic. I bought the supplies. Now all I need to do try it out.

I also want to make Mackenzie a tutu for her birthday. Since her birthday is on Saturday and I don't have much free time between now and then, it probably won't happen (although Thursday is looking promising, but we will see). I don't know why I have suddenly felt like making her a tutu, but I can't get it out of my head.

Knitting. I still love doing it. I feel like I need a bazillion baby hats for all the people having babies in the next few months. Not to mention my friends who have had babies for months that I still need presents for. Yes, I am a bad friend (sorry Carin and Kelly, I need to get on the ball). I will say it is easier to knit in the winter when there is less going on.

I need to have no more great ideas until I finish all of these.

Why Mackenzie will have a broken bone before the age of 5

I Have Failed

I was doing so well blogging every day. Then it all fell apart. I got busy. Life happened. All those excuses that everyone has heard. And now I am giving them.

But I was busy. For real. Usually I lead a fairly simple life, not a whole lot of busyness. But both Friday and Saturday were spent working on flipping a house. Just like those reality shows. In fact, we thought we would make a good reality show. All we needed was the camera crew following us around. I know, we were probably only funny to ourselves. Melanie, some day we might just have a reality show!

Yesterday was Sunday. The day of rest. Sort of. At church we had the Primary program where I helped tame kids to sit still long enough to sing and do their speaking parts. Bailey got many compliments from people on his singing voice which always makes a mother proud! He did get his singing abilities from me, you know. Ask anyone who has ever sat next to his dad at church! Actually, he carries a tune ok, just doesn't love singing. The program was really good. Of course I cried during some of it. Music just touches my heart sometimes. Plus I am sad that my work in Primary is almost officially done. I love those kids with all my heart.

This week I am trying out the single parent gig since my husband is gone for work. That means after the kids are in bed I will have more time for blogging!

The Hills are alive

I just love the Sound of Music! As a kid when it was on tv, I was never able to watch the whole thing. I would always fall asleep. In fact I thought the movie was over the first time they sang the "So long, Farewell" song. It wasn't until I was in college (or maybe later!) when I watched the whole thing and realized I missed out on more than an hour of the movie! I had the record, so I knew all the songs. Ah, the good old days of the record player! My mom still has one at her house.

Anyway, the hills of the Sound of Music wasn't what I was referring to. That darn MTV show The Hills is so darn addicting! I am 32 years old, I shouldn't be interested in watching a bunch of rich 20somethings run around, go to clubs, and fight with their friends. But I just can't stop watching. Maybe part of it is I would love to be 20 something again, and of course I would love to be rich. Being young and free sounds so nice when you can't even go to the store because you know your almost 2 year old won't sit in the cart for longer than 2 seconds. On The Hills, they get to shop whenever they want (you never see them wear the same outfit twice) and they are always going out to eat at cute little bistros for lunch or fancy reservations needed dinners.

But really, I watch The Hills to see Spencer Pratt. Now if you don't know who Spencer is, you really need to know. No, he is not hot or anything. In fact, he is slimy pond scum, and I just have to watch to hear what horrible thing he says next. Ugh, I just can't stand the guy! He is controlling and rude and yucky. And I have to watch him!

Haven't seen The Hills? Oh, you are missing out! It is one of those shows that my husband can't believe that I watch. Yeah, the majority of the audience is a teenager, but I am sure I am not the only regular adult who watches. At least I hope not!

(By the way, Mackenzie is back to running and being a wild child. No broken toe!)

It was almost "trip to the doctor, part 2"

My kids have to be practically dying before I take them to the doctor. The idea of wasting money just to hear the doctor say "(s)he's fine, or just has a virus, or just wait it out" is just beyond my sensibilities. Plus I think of all the germs that are at the doctor's office. I don't even want to think about going to the doctor, being told all is well, and then having contracted some deadly disease that warrents a real trip to the doctor. I'm sure it is a conspiracy, that is how doctors stay in business.

Anyway, getting back to my story (actually, starting it, I suppose). This morning, Mackenzie fell off the couch while playing. As I helplessly watched her fall, I saw her land on her arm in a slightly awkward way. She cried for a minute, then went on her merry way to see what mess she could make next. The kitchen is a great place to get into stuff! In attempting to take every can out of the lazy susan, she drops one on her toe. Lots of screaming and crying this time. I look at her toe, and there is a bruise under the nail and it is a little red and barely swollen, so I don't worry. But all morning she refuses to walk. She just sat in my lap looking sad. If she did walk she would cry after a few steps. I started to worry that maybe she hurt more than just her toe. I figured I would put her down for a nap and reevaluate her after her nap.

When she woke from her nap, I found her standing on one leg. Not a good sign. She was limping around a bit, better than before. I touched her foot and she didn't have any reaction to my touch. After awhile she was running again, but more cautiously. Whew! Doctor's visit averted. And I look like a smart parent.

Tonight, I caught her in the lazy susan again. Will this girl ever learn?

I am really proud of myself so far for blogging this long. I am proud of anyone who has read the whole time! I am short on time and thoughts for now, but I didn't want to not blog today, you know?

Just wait, tomorrow's entry will be fabulous!

And the password is....

I hate having passwords to everything. As if I don't have enough to remember. And it seems as soon as I figure out a good password that isn't obvious that I have to change it. You can no longer have a numeric only password, it must include letters. The newest criteria is you also have to include some sort of capitalization as well.

And don't get me started on user names. They are just as bad. I especially hate it when I sign up for something new and I have a great user name that I also use for other things and it has already been taken! So I have to come up with something else, which really just means I am going to forget my user name. And have you ever tried to log in to some account or website and you aren't sure whether your user name is wrong or your password? This has happened to me countless times.

I know, I should just get smart and write all of this down on actual paper! But it is hard to find a pen around here...

Sunday

At church I help run the children's Sunday School, which we call the Primary. I am actually the secretary and have been almost 3 years. The jobs at our church are called callings where the bishop and his counselors decide who would be a good fit where. I know the time at my secretary calling is almost up, which I am sort of glad about. I am not exactly the most organized secretary ever, or very neat. But I do love the kids and enjoy getting to know them.

Today we were practicing for the program that we do once a year for the congregation. They practiced last week too, but we were out of town and missed it. The kids each have a speaking part and sing a bunch of songs they have learned throughout the year, and there are a few group singers too. My heart was really touched today by a group of kids singing a song. These kids are all 5 and in kindergarten and the song is called "I'll Walk With You". It is a really sweet song about kids who are not afraid to be friends with kids who are different because "Jesus walked away from none, he gave his love to everyone". Just to watch these pure hearted kids sing just reminded me of the love and innocence of children. Much of the bad behavior they learn is through the modeling of selfish adults.

I wasn't looking forward to going to church today, but those kids made it worth it to me!

Am I the only one?

Who dislikes the weekends? Monday through Friday seem so much more natural to me. They are predictable and have that safe feeling, because I do go through them 5 days a week. When Saturday comes, there seems to be more chaos, more arguments. A case of too many chiefs and not enough indians. Sunday is a whole different day altogether.

Today was just one of those days where I just look forward to Monday again. The dog got out of the yard and almost got hit by a car, and I mean almost! Mackenzie figured out how to open the gate, the stinker. She is too smart for her own good sometimes. Bailey was a motor mouth all day, which can be maddening.

I am hoping for a better day tomorrow.

A Love Affair

The other day, all was quiet at our house. Which meant Mackenzie was up to something. When I went to check it out, I found the door to her room shut. Not a good sign. I open it and don't see her. She has pulled her crib away from the wall but she isn't behind it. I call her name a few times and she finally replies. She is in the closet with the doors shut.

This is what she was doing:



She was hiding in the closet with her binkies!! You can't see it from that picture, but she also has one in her hand. She knows that binkies are for sleeping only. I have had to put them out of reach so she doesn't get creative finding ways to reach them. Sometimes they fall out of her crib while she sleeps and I forget to put them up.

This is what she looked like after I took them away:



Imagine ear piercing screams, and it is almost as if you are here!

Oh, it is going to be tough to give up the binkies 100%!!!

The Tick!!

This evening we were busy doing yard work for the inlaws. Mackenzie was her usual "let's see how much trouble I can get into" self, and Bailey was actually very helpful for a change. We were all hot and sweaty when we came home, so it was showers for all. When we took off Mackenzie's clothes, we discovered she had a tiny seed tick on her!! Ew! So we searched for the tweezers to remove it. I had actually been meaning to buy new tweezers this week because we have somehow misplaced the two pairs we have. No luck finding the tweezers. So we called MIL to bring over some tweezers to help.

I have never used tweezers to pull off ticks. Growing up in the country, finding ticks on you or the animals isn't unusual. But I have never taken a tiny one off of a squirmy almost 2 year old. Of course when I remove it, the head of the tick stayed on her. We try and try and try to get the head out. She screams bloody murder because we have to hold her still. We probably worked on it for over an hour. No luck. So we gave up. I am hoping that we dislodged it enough that it will come out on its own, although I suppose that is wishful thinking. I will most likely be calling the doctor tomorrow on it though. I just wish it could have been me instead of her!

ETA: I took her to the doctor this morning. He was able to pull the head out. It was so tiny you could hardly see it! And Mackenzie screamed the whole time. She hates being pinned down! The doctor did say that the tick's head would absorb into her system, but it would have taken longer for it to heal. So $25 copay later...I guess it is worth the piece of mind!

I'm a geek

I just read over the post below and I realized I sound like a geek. So now you know. I am a geek. I was a band geek in high school, and now I am just a geek without the band.

Oh well. Good thing I like being a geek!

DO U WAG ?

I bet a lot of you were like me in the past. Walgreens (AKA WAGS) was an expensive drug store where you go when you needed to pick something up, like Tylenol, and you would get sucked into buying a bunch of other expensive junk that you really didn't need. Well, my eyes have been opened to the world of WAGGING, shopping at Walgreens where they are practically paying you to take home their inventory.

Sounds too good to be true? It isn't, if you are smart about it. I have been doing this for about 6 weeks now. It takes some money to get started with it, but once you get started you can pay very little out of pocket. I have learned most of my WAGGING tricks and tips from two places: www.slickdeals.net and www.moneysavingmom.com. Both of these sites have more than just Walgreens info on them. Slickdeals is my favorite. This is where I find out about freebies, great internet deals, Target couponing, and Walgreens shopping. Oh, and also survey taking.

Explaining how Walgreens works is a little complex. The more I do it, the more I understand. Plus it seems that different individual stores have different policies on things. If you want to learn more about how Walgreens works, go here.

Another great thing about Walgreens for me is that there is one within walking distance to my house. There is another one pretty close by, but I don't think I would walk there. Because I am a little lazy, you know. Anyway, Mackenzie and I walked up there this morning. We have become friendly with one of the cashiers, which is helpful when you are having coupon trouble.

So here is a picture of what I bought today:


I spent $14.31 out of my pocket and got all this stuff. But that isn't even the best part of it all. If you look closely, I bought 3 Robitussins. I am not expecting some great outbreak of the flu at my house. Walgreens was running a deal this week that if you buy 3 Robitussin for $3.99 each you get a $10 register reward. A register reward is a coupon good for your next visit at Walgreens with a two week expiration date. What made this a fabulous deal is I had 3 coupons for $3 off 1 Robitussin. So I paid $3 for 3 Robitussin and got a $10 coupon for my next purchase! In essence I made $7 on the deal! The mouthwash was pretty much the same thing, although this time I had to buy 1 Crest Prohealth Mouthwash and I got $4.50 back in register rewards. Crest Prohealth mouthwash is $4.49, so I pretty much got it free! The toothpaste is a free after rebate item, so I will be getting that for free too (and if you have your rebate money put on a Walgreens gift card, they give you an extra 10%!!).

There are just so many deals going on each week. I get excited thinking about it! Walgreens is slowly becoming my favorite store!

A "promotion"

Money sucks. I could complain about money every day, but I won't bore you. I wish I was rich. Sort of. I guess I just wish I could be comfortable.

Anyway, my darling husband came home today and said "Guess what? I got a promotion at work today. I am now the new territory sales manager." I instantly get excited and start thinking about what great timing this promotion is. Making ends meet and saving money has just gotten harder and harder it seems and a pay raise is just what we need. But wait. He didn't mention anything about a pay raise. It seems that his wonderful company gave him a promotion WITHOUT a pay raise. What garbage!!! I am so mad. Oh well. What can I do?

I don't like money. Or being an adult.

Some Updates

1. The washed ipod is now working! At least it is charging and you can see the screen. Sort of. The screen is scratched so you couldn't see it before it was washed.

2. I can't remember whether I mentioned this or not, but I did write an email to Target about not being able to use internet coupons. I got a response which had their coupon policy on it. They of course, are supposed to accept both Target and manufacture coupons. They left a phone number to call, and I think I will. I lost $4.50 out of the deal because they wouldn't take my coupons. So today I went to the other Target with coupons printed from the internet, with the full intent of fighting to use them. I didn't have to. I used them with no problem. Everything I bought today (except for one thing) was either on sale or I used coupons or both. I won't be going back to the new Target any time soon. Actually, I will, I lied. I have a coupon there for a free smoothie and it can only be used there (one of those new store promotionals).

3. I overdrew from our bank account AGAIN. Ugh, I am frustrated for many reasons. My stupidity and general lack of money, just to name a few. Luckily last month's fees were only $13. I think I have learned my lesson this time. I promise.

4. Bailey is doing well in school. Last year he had a really hard time the first month of school, but this year hasn't been a problem at all. His reading is just improving all the time.

5. While we were on our vacation to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, we went to Nascar Speedpark. We went on the big track there, and of course I had the lamest car out of the bunch. You aren't supposed to bump people, but whoever was behind me kept bumping me. He could have easily gone around me, but no. He ended up crashing me into the wall. I was stuck and couldn't move the car (there is no reverse). The kids who work there are supposed to help you when you are stuck. 6 laps later, the kid finally comes to help me. Oh, I was mad. I already felt dumb being that girl who crashes. Later we went on another track that was fun because I didn't get stuck. I don't know why I wrote down that story!

6. At Nascar Speedpark, Mackenzie was too small to ride any of the rides. She wasn't even big enough to ride the merry-go-round!!! What a rip off!

7. Here is a picture of our cabin, or at least outside the cabin! Our cabin even had a hot tub!

Home at last!

We are home, tired and happy. We had a really fun time, and now are just exhausted. You know how vacations are, when you come home you need a vacation from the vacation! Anyway, I will be short on the details today so I can have something to share tomorrow!

But here is my one tidbit from our trip. I got confirmation that Mackenzie does get carsick. Nice. I had no idea that the carsick gene was dominant. I have never actually gotten carsick, just felt yucky, but my lovely husband is well known for his carsickness. Bailey gets carsick too, but he has gotten so he knows what triggers it and how to get the bag ready!

The carsickness was the only negative to the trip, and it only lasted a little while. So hooray for a great trip!

Super Saturday

What better way to spend a Saturday than look at my little cutie?

Cutest thing EVER!

I have to preface this by saying: you know that great post about Mackenzie giving up her binkies? I need to delete it. I was a horrible mother and gave them back to her and now she loves them more than ever.

Anyway, on to the reason for this post. The other day Bailey was upset about something (who can remember what, it was one of those days where the fact that the sky is blue made him cry). Mackenzie came up to him and lovingly touched his arm and the tears on his cheek. She said "Bay cry?" I told her he was sad right now, and she looked sad for him. It was very sweet. She left the room for a few minutes and came back with her binkies. We leave them out of reach on her window sill, but she pushed something over to the window just to reach the binkies and she gave one to Bailey to help him feel better. Isn't that so sweet? It just melted my heart to see her try to console her big brother whom she loves so much. Or maybe she was trying to tell him he was being a big baby that day, who knows!

Leaving in a minivan....

Off we go on another exciting family adventure! Yeah right, we are just going to another car show! Since I am lame and do not own a laptop and my husband fears he will get fired if his work laptop has anything that is non work, I am not sure how I am going to do this every day blogging thing. I'm sure there is some way to write a bunch of posts and set them to post at different times, but I can't quite wrap my brain around it. Never mind, I figured it out. Maybe I am smarter than I think!

Keep up all the great blogging!

A Big Oops

I am doing the wash today. I really don't mind doing the wash. It's the folding and putting away that I hate. Maybe if the drawers weren't stuffed to the gills it wouldn't be so bad. Anyway, as I was moving one pile from the washer to the dryer I discovered an oops. I washed my husband's i-pod!!! I feel horrible. I don't know whether he left it in his pocket or I had accidentally scooped it up with a pile of clothes on the dresser. I am hoping that once it dries out that it will work again. He could always use my i-pod, but mine is pink and he is a nonpink type of guy.

I will say this is better than washing a cell phone. We have done that twice, and those need to be replaced quickly. An i-pod can wait.

Target Practice

I took my much anticipated trip to Target yesterday. All by myself! And I came home highly disappointed. See, I have really tried hard lately to save money, and isn't it even better if someone pays you to use their product? At Target this week they have Pop Tarts, Cheez-its, Keebler cookies, and Rice Crispy treats on sale 4 for $9. When you buy 4, they give you a $5 Target gift card (who doesn't love a Target gift card? If you don't, you can send any you receive to me, OK?). That makes the deal in essence 4 for $4, which is pretty good if you ask me. But I have coupons!! I had $1 off 2 rice crispy treats, $1 off 2 keebler cookies, and $1 off 2 pop tarts. With those coupons it would make the deal 4 for $1. Good deal, right? Well, I could make it even better! All those products are Kellogg's products and they are offering a $10 mail in rebate when you buy 10 Kellogg's products. And to make this great deal even better is I found Target coupons online for 50 cents off pop tarts. I had it figured out to where I was going to make money and take home 12 boxes of assorted junky treats.

I was excited for my great deal. I even printed out a couple of other Target coupons. I go to the store, happy that I could devote my full attention to my shopping. I loaded up my cart with more pop tarts than anyone should own in their lifetime, but they were more than free so I couldn't resist. I have a super nice girl checking me out. She even asks me if I have any coupons. I hand her my huge stack of coupons and guess what she says? "We do not accept any internet coupons, including Target coupons." What?!?! I wasted all that time on the Target website searching for coupons, printing them out and I can't even use them? The nice girl tells me that it has to do with them not paying taxes on the coupons or something that sounded lame to me. I couldn't fault the girl, she was friendly and in fact didn't like the policy either.

I came home, not very happy. My hopes of a moneymaking deal was dashed. But my kids can build a fort out of pop tart boxes. I did write an email to Target. I can understand if they do not want to accept internet coupons, but they should at least accept their own internet coupons! In fact I used their internet coupons just last week.

This is a brand new Target less than 2 miles from my house. I think I will go back to my old Target, which is also less than 2 miles from my house. In fact, they are both almost the same distance from my house. Hopefully the old Target accepts their own internet coupons.

Happy Labor Day!

So far, this has been a labor-ful day. Lots of fun work around the house. Not much of a holiday, but I did get to sleep in until 8 am. In fact, it was the 3rd day in a row that I got to sleep in!

My mom called a little while ago. I know she called just to make me jealous. She and my dad are at the beach. I wish I was there! Where we live would be the perfect place if it was by the beach.

Anyone doing anything fun for Labor Day? I think in a little while I am going to Target. That counts as fun, right? Because I will be going by myself!

30 Days of Blogging

My friend Melissa was lamenting the other day about how disappointed she gets when she checks the blogs she loves to read and finds the same old boring update from 2 weeks ago. I don't like that either, so I can imagine that everyone (all 4 of you) who reads my blog feels the same way.

Well, my friends, you are in for a treat. I am going to blog every day for the next 30 days. No kidding. Even when I am on vacation I am going to make it happen. My topics will probably be as boring as my life sometimes, but that's just the way it is. You can't be funny and inspiring all the time.

This would be much easier if I could only connect the computer to my head so I wouldn't have to type all the great ideas I think of in a day. (Will someone invent that please?)

Day #1, complete!

The Dog Days of Summer

I am sad that summer is almost over. But really we have been lucky that it has been a nice summer. Not super hot or humid and we have gotten enough rain so we haven't had to water the grass.

So even though we haven't had too many of those "dog days", at our house there have been MANY dog days. Since the beginning of June, we have dog sat for 5 different dogs for a little over 7 weeks. Luckily our dog Snickers is a good sport about other dogs because she has had to put up with a lot! Little yippy dogs, friendly (but slightly scary) pit bulls, overly playful teenage dogs, and lazy easygoing dogs.

It was actually enjoyable to have other dogs around. Mackenzie especially loves it. She is a dog lover, and they all seemed to enjoy her as well.



The worst part of it has been the early bird dogs. We are actually watching a dog now and she thought 5:30 was a good time to bark to get up. And we all know how much of a morning person I am.

On a different note, the car I have had since I turned 18 is broken. I am praying that is a cheap and easy fix. I need something to go my way!

An early trip to Gambler's Anonymous

I have never played the lottery. The only slot machines I ever played were the nickel slots, so maybe I have blown $3 tops on gambling in my whole life. Our religion teaches us that gambling isn't good and can lead to addiction and can ruin lives.

Two weeks ago Bailey went with his grandpa to Iowa for some races. To get to the races they ride a shuttle. On this shuttle they have sort of a roulette game on one of the wheels. When the shuttle arrives at the destination, the person who has the number that was landed on wins the money in the pot. Of course, you have to pay $5 to play. Bailey's grandpa gave each of the kids $5 to do what they wanted. He was trying to teach them a lesson that they would have more money by not playing than by playing and losing. He just didn't count on one of them winning.

Bailey is so into money these days. I think it is the age. He wants money, and lots of it. He doesn't want to necessarily work very hard for his money, but he is very willing to spend it. Bailey decides to play his $5 instead of keeping it. He loses. Lesson learned, right? Wrong. His grandpa also decides to play and he wins the pot of money. Next day, same thing. Bailey has $5 and plays it. He wins!!! $70!!!! His typical 7 year old mind is spending more than it even was worth. Ipod, cell phone, you name it, he wanted to buy it.

The lesson that I learned? Don't rely on grandpas to teach the important lessons about money. They are just too fun for that!

In case you were wondering, I told Bailey that he could spend some of the money and the rest had to be put in his savings account. So he bought a skateboard with it and will be putting $40 in the bank! So maybe something good came out of this after all!

First day of 2nd Grade!

How did I get a 2nd grader already? I can hardly believe it. My little boy was sent off to school today, and I think he will have a good day. He has a lot of friends in his class and his teacher seemed nice. She's a sports fan too, so they will definitely get along.

Bye Bye Binky!

Mackenzie has always loved her binky. Bailey never took one, but used me as a human pacifier. After she turned one, I realized we needed to ease up on the binky use. I think she would have had it in her mouth at all moments except for eating. We let her have her binky only during naptime and nighttime. During the last visit to the doctor, I was advised to wean her from the binky sooner rather than later. At the time, she wasn't quite sleeping through the night every night, so I thought "once she sleeps through the night consistently, I will take the binky away". When she started sleeping through the night, it was close to when we were going on vacation, so I said "when we get home from vacation, I will take the binky away". We got home, and she got sick. You can guess what I said! It was surprising to me how hard it was to take something away from her that reminded me so much of her being a baby.

Just a few days ago, Mackenzie decided that she loved blankets. This past winter she wouldn't sleep with a blanket on, and suddenly she wanted to be wrapped in a blanket, even when it was 100 degrees outside. A lightbulb went off in my head that it would be the perfect time to take the binky away. Last night I put her to bed without it, and she went to bed with no problems! Today's nap and nighttime haven't been as easy, but it will take a few days of adjustment!

How did my little baby girl get so big? Her favorite phrase is "I want that". Already demanding the world!

Things could be better....

But I guess they could be worse too. At least that is what I keep telling myself.

A UTI and overdrawing the checking account aren't the worst things that could happen. I could have cancer or some other disease or disorder. Instead, I just felt like I had to pee for 24 hours straight before I was able to get some medicine.

At least when I overdrew the bank account, I had money to put in it. I had just forgotten that $450 + $600 = more than I had at that moment and that I needed to move money from savings. That was so frustrating to me, because it was the first time I had EVER overdrawn our account. I almost did when I was in college by a penny. My bank was in NJ and I was in Utah so thank goodness my mom put some money in my account so I didn't have to pay any fees because of a penny.

The overdrawn account is so frustrating to me. My job in our household is to take care of the money. I am always on time with payments and I always have money for those payments. I felt like I failed at my job. Plus I have been trying super hard not to spend any unneccesary money. I have been clipping coupons and looking for good deals on stuff I already buy. I hate money, and it is harder when I don't really supply it to our family.

Anyway, on to happier news, Mackenzie pooped on the potty AGAIN this morning! I was so proud! Let's hope this is an every day occurrence!

You know your life is boring when...

Poop is the highlight of your day. To be more specific, poop that lands in the right place.

So the last couple weeks or so we have been encouraging Mackenzie to go to the bathroom on her little potty. She has gotten to the point where she goes probably 97% of the time that she sits on it. But she has to want to. This is one of the hurdles we are facing. She just doesn't want to sit on the potty every time she has to go. I don't blame her, really. She hasn't learned to hold it, so really she pees every 10-30 minutes. She has pooped on the potty a few times, but they were mostly about being at the right place at the right time.

Today we were playing in the backyard in the blow up pool. It has a cute little slide to go down, and today was the first day that Mackenzie was actually going down it and having fun. She came over to where I was sitting and said "Side". I asked her if she wanted to go down the slide again, she nodded, then shook her head. She then says "side poo". Oh, you want to slide in the pool? Nods again, then shakes her head. About a minute of further conversation with her and I finally figured out that she was really saying "Inside poop". I asked her if she had to poop, and she says yes and heads towards the door. Sure enough, she sits on her little throne and poops! I was so proud! I am so happy that she realized what the sensation was and was able to hold it until I figured out what she was talking about. I put her in underwear after this, and 15 minutes later, she pees on my couch.

Yes, I guess the little gross things in life make me happy today!

I did it!!

I am very proud of myself. I started knitting a dress for Mackenzie about 6 weeks ago, and I was able to finish it last night! Correction, it is 99% finished, I have to get a button for the back, but besides that it is finished. And the best part is that is actually fits Mackenzie! She is going to wear it to church on Sunday where I am going to tell everyone that I made it myself.

It's a No-Go

Every year at this time (ever since 2002) our family has gone to Louisville, KY to the Hot Rod Nationals. I personally am not a hot rod lover, but my husband works the show with his dad and spend special time together. I enjoy going because we stay at the Hilton (which has the most comfortable beds ever!), we go out to dinner every night, and see friends that we don't usually get to see. This is probably the last year we will be able to go, with my father in law retiring in the near future so we wouldn't get the free hotel room or dinner or gas there.

Yesterday, Mackenzie woke up feeling warm. It was close to a million degrees when she woke up, so I thought she was just hot. Then she was acting crabbier than usual and didn't have much fun at the pool. I knew she just wasn't herself. Sure enough, she has a temperature. She was up in the night with her fever and crabby again this morning, so I had to say goodbye to Bailey and my husband. I let them take the trip without us.

It was a hard choice, especially knowing we probably won't do this again. But I figured I would have more regret if I took her and she was sick the whole time, or even part of the time, than if I stayed home and she was all better tomorrow.

I hope that Bailey has a lot of fun though. This show has always been one of the highlights of his summer. He likes "working" (especially when our friends give him money for his work!) and just being around the whole car scene.

I am hoping that my time at home minus husband and 7 year old will yield some productivity in me. My house needs some cleaning and I have a knitting project that I am ALMOST finished with. I can't wait to share it!

Remember the good ol' days?

When back to school shopping was fun? When it meant getting new fall clothes and a new pair of shoes, a new lunch box because the old one smelled from being closed all summer (and because you left a half eaten salami sandwich in it), and of course, a new Trapper Keeper. The new Trapper Keeper is a must because last year's model was covered with "I Heart Mark" and this school year I am sure to heart at least 3 different boys.

Now that I am grown with a school aged child of my own, back to school shopping is no longer fun. This is mostly because of what I have to buy. I own a house, so I pay taxes that go to fund the schools. So why do I have to buy paper, crayons, markers, colored pencils, 8 glue sticks, scizzors, tissues, and hand sanitizer that will all turn into community property? It just doesn't make sense to me. And I have wondered what would happen if I didn't supply these community supplies. Would they charge me for them? Or not let Bailey color the book he is writing? He wouldn't mind that at all, since he hates to color. He isn't a very artistic child, but not everyone can be.

When we went shopping for supplies in kindergarten and first grade, it wasn't a very fun experience. I somehow picked the same time as a thousand other moms and their 3 kids trying to get 100 different things off their list. Not a fun time. I am not a fan of big crowds. This year had been lots easier. Target at 8 pm on the Saturday before the sales tax holiday is a great time to shop for school supplies. Not a crowd at all!

I am excited. Only two more things on the list: very specific pens (for the teacher I think, and I can't find them) and 1 gallon sized ziploc bags.

Summer Fun

I just love this time of year, can't you tell? Although it is hard to believe that 3 weeks from today Bailey will be back in school. How did the summer go by so fast? Maybe because summer will still be going on for 6 weeks after he is back in school.

I am very excited. Because I think Mackenzie is going to be one of those "swimming kids". You know, the ones who stay in the water all day only coming out to eat. Bailey enjoys the pool in moderation but doesn't like water up his nose. Yesterday Mackenzie was sticking her whole face in the water, eyes and all and she loved it. Maybe she will be a future lifeguard?

An Outdoor Shower

Since it is summer, my favorite time of year, I have been thinking about some of my favorite things in summer. Something I LOVE is to take a shower outside. Now stop your dirty minds. I don't mean like that. At the Jersey shore where I have taken many a summer vacation, most of the houses have outdoor showers so you don't track sand all over the house after the beach. They are usually attached to the house by one wall and look like a shed. They aren't the fanciest of accomodations, but I love them.

There is something about showering after a long day at the beach and feeling the cool breeze as you are getting clean that is so invigorating. I love still being able to smell the salt of the ocean while smelling the sweet smell of shampoo and soap. It is one of those things that all people should have a chance to try out! Showering in my own back yard just wouldn't cut it, besides, I don't have a good spot for a shower, and during the winter it would be a bit underused.

By the way, my favorite movie of all time is Ferris Bueller's Day Off, 2nd place is Sixteen Candles. They just don't make movies like they did in the 80's!