I can't sleep tonight. Eric's on his last shift of intern year (!!) and my brain is going 80 miles an hour. Here are a few things I keep recounting from today that make me chuckle.
At VBS this morning, with 4 year olds:
Me to a boy and girl who came in together: "are you guys brother and sister, cousins, or just friends?
Boy:" she plays at my house sometimes."
Girl: "he's my boyfriend!"
Sounds like a healthy relationship.
Next girl comes in...
"HI! I'M SAMANTHA AND I'M SHY!"
Clearly.
And tonight, as Eric is preparing to go to work.
E: "ugggh I don't want to go to work.
Me (teasing): "You know Gary Chapman spoke Sunday about the verse in Philippians, "do everything without grumbling."
E: Well that may be true, but Gary Chapman never had to do a pelvic exam.
Touché.
Family Pic
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Dresser ReFurb.
There are so many things I need to do right now, but blogging seems like fun. :-) I am so grateful to be feeling sooo much better these days. The last month I've been back to having a crazy schedule (thanks to Eric's long month of night shifts and my needing to keep myself entertained) and having my brain run a million miles an hour and my to-do list be 10 pages long. I love it. I feel like I'm getting things accomplished and learning and growing and that's a very very good thing!
One of my "accomplishments" the last month has been my fabulous dresser re-do! Our bedroom furniture is a mish-mash of things that Eric inherited from his grandma, some other relatives, and one nightstand I got from Wal-Mart right after we got married. Our bedroom is gray and purple and all the furniture is some shade of brown soo... yeah. Not the most attractive, even for an eclectic look. The dresser has been bugging me for ages. After four moves and a lot of wear and tear, that poor thing looked awful. We couldn't really notice it at our old place because it was so dark in our room, but here it was BLATANTLY obvious.
It took me quite a while to convince Eric to let me re-do it, and then even longer to agree on a color. I finally talked him into letting me do it black, though, and I'm SO glad I did!
It wasn't the easiest process in the world, especially during a month where I was essentially a single mom (we saw Eric approx. 20-30 minutes per day). It took me a week or so of sanding the drawers down during nap time, a day of Samuel being at preschool to sand down the body of the dresser, and another preschool day and nap time to actually stain the thing.
We also don't have a garage or any really good place to do these things, so I had to haul the thing outside and down the stairs to the driveway to sand and backyard to paint.
Because of it's age, the holes for the drawer pulls were not standard size, so I had to special order them. It was almost a full month before everything was done and put together, but I think it turned out great!
Now that the dresser is black, I'm itching to do the headboard too.... I think I may have found a new hobby. ;-)
One of my "accomplishments" the last month has been my fabulous dresser re-do! Our bedroom furniture is a mish-mash of things that Eric inherited from his grandma, some other relatives, and one nightstand I got from Wal-Mart right after we got married. Our bedroom is gray and purple and all the furniture is some shade of brown soo... yeah. Not the most attractive, even for an eclectic look. The dresser has been bugging me for ages. After four moves and a lot of wear and tear, that poor thing looked awful. We couldn't really notice it at our old place because it was so dark in our room, but here it was BLATANTLY obvious.
(Notice the scratches on the bottom drawer. Those weren't from me!)
It wasn't the easiest process in the world, especially during a month where I was essentially a single mom (we saw Eric approx. 20-30 minutes per day). It took me a week or so of sanding the drawers down during nap time, a day of Samuel being at preschool to sand down the body of the dresser, and another preschool day and nap time to actually stain the thing.
We also don't have a garage or any really good place to do these things, so I had to haul the thing outside and down the stairs to the driveway to sand and backyard to paint.
Because of it's age, the holes for the drawer pulls were not standard size, so I had to special order them. It was almost a full month before everything was done and put together, but I think it turned out great!
Now that the dresser is black, I'm itching to do the headboard too.... I think I may have found a new hobby. ;-)
Friday, June 6, 2014
Bye-Bye, Pacifier!
I've been dreading trying to get rid of Samuel's pacifier for a while now. I knew he was getting to the point where he really shouldn't have it any more. That became even more evident when his top teeth came in spaced out and crooked, most likely from all the paci-ness that'd been going on for the previous 15 months. He carried that thing around everywhere. In a way it was nice, because it did it's job - it pacified him. Any time he wanted to throw a fit or if he woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't self-sooth, there it was, his little attachment and, for so long, the key to our sanity. But he was relying on it so much, and would go nuts any time we took it away.
So when the pediatrician confirmed at our 15 month appointment that it was time for the paci to say "adios", I started formulating a plan. I knew we would be traveling to Arkansas the last week of May, so I detailed week by week when he would be able to have it/not have it starting the first week of June. I geared up for a miserable month or so, imagining the constant screaming and crying and tantrum-throwing that was sure to occur.
Then we got the most terrible/wonderful blessing in disguise. Samuel got Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (or in his case, just mouth). It was the saddest. thing. ever. I thought he was just teething until I looked in his mouth and saw approximately 30 little ulcers on his tongue and gums and palate. Poor, poor baby. He would try to eat then spit his food out and cry and cry. He would try to put that paci in, but it hurt him so badly that he would spit it out, then just carry it around for an hour or so. He'd wake in the middle of the night and remember his sores and scream some more. The worst part was that, outside of the sores, he felt fine. No fever, no hand/foot rashes, no general malaise. He wanted to play and romp, but he couldn't be around other kids lest they get the dreaded disease. So we were confined to our house and yard and the stroller for days. NOT a fun time.
The blessing part of this miserable experience? Samuel got so disgusted by the pain his paci was causing him through all of this that he gave it up, cold turkey. All my plans went out the window. I was planning on waiting until after our trip to give it up so I could have it handy to help him chill out while traveling. That plan went out the window too (but that's a story for another day). One day it was just gone.
He's now gone two weeks without a pacifier AT ALL. It's seriously a miracle. He couldn't go an hour without one before, couldn't sleep without one. We kept one in every room, both cars, every bag. Now, nothing. I won't say he isn't a little more fussy than normal, but I'm SO thankful to not have to fight with him about it. It's a little sad that my baby is too grown up for a paci now... Eric was especially bummed when he came home one day and I told him it was gone for good. Still, I know it's for the best, and I'm SO thankful it was such a short process! God works in mysterious ways, right?
So when the pediatrician confirmed at our 15 month appointment that it was time for the paci to say "adios", I started formulating a plan. I knew we would be traveling to Arkansas the last week of May, so I detailed week by week when he would be able to have it/not have it starting the first week of June. I geared up for a miserable month or so, imagining the constant screaming and crying and tantrum-throwing that was sure to occur.
Then we got the most terrible/wonderful blessing in disguise. Samuel got Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (or in his case, just mouth). It was the saddest. thing. ever. I thought he was just teething until I looked in his mouth and saw approximately 30 little ulcers on his tongue and gums and palate. Poor, poor baby. He would try to eat then spit his food out and cry and cry. He would try to put that paci in, but it hurt him so badly that he would spit it out, then just carry it around for an hour or so. He'd wake in the middle of the night and remember his sores and scream some more. The worst part was that, outside of the sores, he felt fine. No fever, no hand/foot rashes, no general malaise. He wanted to play and romp, but he couldn't be around other kids lest they get the dreaded disease. So we were confined to our house and yard and the stroller for days. NOT a fun time.
The blessing part of this miserable experience? Samuel got so disgusted by the pain his paci was causing him through all of this that he gave it up, cold turkey. All my plans went out the window. I was planning on waiting until after our trip to give it up so I could have it handy to help him chill out while traveling. That plan went out the window too (but that's a story for another day). One day it was just gone.
He's now gone two weeks without a pacifier AT ALL. It's seriously a miracle. He couldn't go an hour without one before, couldn't sleep without one. We kept one in every room, both cars, every bag. Now, nothing. I won't say he isn't a little more fussy than normal, but I'm SO thankful to not have to fight with him about it. It's a little sad that my baby is too grown up for a paci now... Eric was especially bummed when he came home one day and I told him it was gone for good. Still, I know it's for the best, and I'm SO thankful it was such a short process! God works in mysterious ways, right?
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Snapshot (Almost 16 months)
I have about 1800 other things I should be doing right now... with Eric on nights, I've gotten *really* good at keeping myself insanely busy. But I have been a terrible blogger, and I wanted to take a few minutes to write down a few of Samuel's fun almost-16-month-old habits. :-)
Talking: All the time! I still am not always sure what he is saying as his enunciation is terrible, but he repeats SO MUCH of what I say now. He also started signing (and sometimes saying) "all done" in the last few weeks, nodding yes and shaking his head no (usually discriminately!) and (sort of) signing and saying "thank you." (He points his finger to his cheek and says "Day doo"). Some of his favorites lately (other than "banana" "dada" and "cat") are "Cracker," "Teddy," "Car," "Down," and "go". I've also randomly heard "out" "Cheerio" "yes" "please" and "phone." These are not regulars though.
He also seems to understand so much more the last few weeks. He will bring me shoes if I say it's time to go, will go grab the remote if I ask if he wants to watch Clifford, will run to his chair if I say it's time to eat, etc. etc. It's crazy how quickly he catches on to things!
Eating: A little less I think, but still chows down pretty good. He had hand, foot and mouth virus last week, which was TORTURE. He wanted to eat but couldn't stand to because of all the sores in his mouth. It was so sad! He's better now, thankfully, and he's back to eating a banana for breakfast, some chicken or a sandwich for lunch, and whatever I'm having for dinner + 2 snacks a day. He likes to throw things down, but usually chows down at least once a day. I let him try Chick Fil A sauce last night, which may have been a mistake. He LOVED it. I also let him have ice cream while he was sick since he couldn't chew anything. Hopefully that doesn't turn him off to vegetables for life.
Reading: He's obsessed with Goodnight Moon right now! And is still pretty into Mr. Brown Says Moo and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. There's also a shape book he really likes that literally has 8 words in the whole thing. Not very extensive reading there!!
Playing: Stacking blocks and pushing them over; Putting milk caps in and out of a wipes box; He's starting to like his little twisty block thing (I don't know what you call it - those things they have in doctors offices for kids!), and he loves to sing and dance with his little puppy. He also really loves his cars and his activity table. His FAVORITE way to play, though, is to take EVERYTHING out of the kitchen cabinets/drawers and then run back and forth between the living room and kitchen putting things in different rooms. SO much for toys! Oh, and he love love loves being outside. I think he'd stay out there all day if I'd let him!
Sleeping: We had a few rough days while he was sick, but Sam-man is a champion sleeper - 11-12 hours at night and a 1 1/2 - 3 hour nap in the afternoon. AND the one good thing about having his mouth be so sore is that seems to have broken him of his pacifier! Last night he slept ALL night without it, and he is currently asleep in his crib without one. I was dreading having to take it away from him next month, but *fingers crossed* he may have given it up on his own. Woo-hoo! The best part about it is that now I can see his sweet smile so much more! I love it!
So that should curb my guilt for a little while anyway. Now back to chores. :-)
Talking: All the time! I still am not always sure what he is saying as his enunciation is terrible, but he repeats SO MUCH of what I say now. He also started signing (and sometimes saying) "all done" in the last few weeks, nodding yes and shaking his head no (usually discriminately!) and (sort of) signing and saying "thank you." (He points his finger to his cheek and says "Day doo"). Some of his favorites lately (other than "banana" "dada" and "cat") are "Cracker," "Teddy," "Car," "Down," and "go". I've also randomly heard "out" "Cheerio" "yes" "please" and "phone." These are not regulars though.
He also seems to understand so much more the last few weeks. He will bring me shoes if I say it's time to go, will go grab the remote if I ask if he wants to watch Clifford, will run to his chair if I say it's time to eat, etc. etc. It's crazy how quickly he catches on to things!
Eating: A little less I think, but still chows down pretty good. He had hand, foot and mouth virus last week, which was TORTURE. He wanted to eat but couldn't stand to because of all the sores in his mouth. It was so sad! He's better now, thankfully, and he's back to eating a banana for breakfast, some chicken or a sandwich for lunch, and whatever I'm having for dinner + 2 snacks a day. He likes to throw things down, but usually chows down at least once a day. I let him try Chick Fil A sauce last night, which may have been a mistake. He LOVED it. I also let him have ice cream while he was sick since he couldn't chew anything. Hopefully that doesn't turn him off to vegetables for life.
Reading: He's obsessed with Goodnight Moon right now! And is still pretty into Mr. Brown Says Moo and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. There's also a shape book he really likes that literally has 8 words in the whole thing. Not very extensive reading there!!
Playing: Stacking blocks and pushing them over; Putting milk caps in and out of a wipes box; He's starting to like his little twisty block thing (I don't know what you call it - those things they have in doctors offices for kids!), and he loves to sing and dance with his little puppy. He also really loves his cars and his activity table. His FAVORITE way to play, though, is to take EVERYTHING out of the kitchen cabinets/drawers and then run back and forth between the living room and kitchen putting things in different rooms. SO much for toys! Oh, and he love love loves being outside. I think he'd stay out there all day if I'd let him!
Sleeping: We had a few rough days while he was sick, but Sam-man is a champion sleeper - 11-12 hours at night and a 1 1/2 - 3 hour nap in the afternoon. AND the one good thing about having his mouth be so sore is that seems to have broken him of his pacifier! Last night he slept ALL night without it, and he is currently asleep in his crib without one. I was dreading having to take it away from him next month, but *fingers crossed* he may have given it up on his own. Woo-hoo! The best part about it is that now I can see his sweet smile so much more! I love it!
So that should curb my guilt for a little while anyway. Now back to chores. :-)
Thursday, May 1, 2014
15 Month Stats
We went for baby boy's 15 months check up this past Tuesday. It's hard to believe he's getting so old! I would say he's getting big, but apparently he's not.. haha. All of his stats were below average this time around (although I'm not quite sure they got his height right -- he was pretty wiggly!).
At 15 months, Samuel weighs only 22 lbs. 5 oz.- about 40th percentile.
They measured him to be 31" tall - I still think he may be slightly above that, but that puts him around 45%.
And, of course, his teeny little head was somewhere between 17 1/2" and 17 3/4" - exactly the same as last time, putting him around 5-10% (there were multiple measurements going on here).
The doctor said she wasn't particularly surprised at his smallness and lack of weight gain, partially because of his age, and partially because he's about as wild as they come and he burns off everything he eats in like five seconds.
It made me feel really good to have her acknowledge his wildness and commend my dealing-with-it skills. I've had a lot of mom-guilt lately... well, maybe not mom-guilt so much as not knowing how to react to mom-judgment... I'm perfectly happy with how I'm raising my child, but other moms (mostly ones I don't know very well) with far more docile children have made comments about his craziness, and it's hard not to take it personally. So I really really appreciated having a kid professional tell me that allowing him to be nuts in a safe space is the best thing for him and, as long as he's alive at the end of the day, I'm doing great. That's hard enough some days! haha. I love his spirit and energy and wouldn't trade it for anything, it just make him a little harder to manage than most. ;-)
Anyway, all in all, it was a great shot-free visit. Samuel loved playing with the toys there, was mesmerized by the 10 minutes we got to watch of Frozen (are there subliminal messages in there or something?? My kid is NEVER still!), and only threw one tantrum, so I consider that a success! haha. I went ahead and took him out for a little snack afterwards even though he didn't get shots. I remember getting treats after doctor visits when I was a kid, so I figure I'll do the same for my children, shots or not. Anyway, hopefully we will stay doctor free until his 18 month check up! Fingers crossed...
At 15 months, Samuel weighs only 22 lbs. 5 oz.- about 40th percentile.
They measured him to be 31" tall - I still think he may be slightly above that, but that puts him around 45%.
And, of course, his teeny little head was somewhere between 17 1/2" and 17 3/4" - exactly the same as last time, putting him around 5-10% (there were multiple measurements going on here).
The doctor said she wasn't particularly surprised at his smallness and lack of weight gain, partially because of his age, and partially because he's about as wild as they come and he burns off everything he eats in like five seconds.
It made me feel really good to have her acknowledge his wildness and commend my dealing-with-it skills. I've had a lot of mom-guilt lately... well, maybe not mom-guilt so much as not knowing how to react to mom-judgment... I'm perfectly happy with how I'm raising my child, but other moms (mostly ones I don't know very well) with far more docile children have made comments about his craziness, and it's hard not to take it personally. So I really really appreciated having a kid professional tell me that allowing him to be nuts in a safe space is the best thing for him and, as long as he's alive at the end of the day, I'm doing great. That's hard enough some days! haha. I love his spirit and energy and wouldn't trade it for anything, it just make him a little harder to manage than most. ;-)
Anyway, all in all, it was a great shot-free visit. Samuel loved playing with the toys there, was mesmerized by the 10 minutes we got to watch of Frozen (are there subliminal messages in there or something?? My kid is NEVER still!), and only threw one tantrum, so I consider that a success! haha. I went ahead and took him out for a little snack afterwards even though he didn't get shots. I remember getting treats after doctor visits when I was a kid, so I figure I'll do the same for my children, shots or not. Anyway, hopefully we will stay doctor free until his 18 month check up! Fingers crossed...
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
African Geography (and other nerdy confessions)
I've been playing this jeopardy game on the iPad a lot at night lately. I know, nerdy. (I've also been reading one of my old estate planning books during nap time. I think that trumps the game for nerdiness). In doing so, I have come to realize something: I have no clue where any African country is. Like, if you gave me a map, I could locate Morocco, Egypt, Madagascar, and South Africa. And Djibouti, but that's just because it's pretty much the funniest country in the world (seriously, it's pronounced juh- booty. You know you just giggled inside).
I guess I can't be too disappointed in myself. I know all my state capitals and central and South American countries/capitals and the majority of Europe. That's not bad considering it's been 8 years since I've had a geography class.
But at any rate, I've decided to be a more responsible world citizen and learn my countries already. I've got about a third of them down so far... Mostly the big ones. The small ones might take a little longer to learn.
I guess I figure if I blog about it (at 11 pm) maybe it will keep me motivated - I have to finish something I start if I tell others about it, right? Perhaps I'll even get all those crazy Asian countries down too... If I'm feeling particularly ambitious. ;)
I guess I can't be too disappointed in myself. I know all my state capitals and central and South American countries/capitals and the majority of Europe. That's not bad considering it's been 8 years since I've had a geography class.
But at any rate, I've decided to be a more responsible world citizen and learn my countries already. I've got about a third of them down so far... Mostly the big ones. The small ones might take a little longer to learn.
I guess I figure if I blog about it (at 11 pm) maybe it will keep me motivated - I have to finish something I start if I tell others about it, right? Perhaps I'll even get all those crazy Asian countries down too... If I'm feeling particularly ambitious. ;)
Friday, April 18, 2014
Baby Easter Party!
When we bought our house last year, I was so excited to finally have a nice, flat back yard and a deck - an outdoor space we can actually enjoy! I LOVE being outside in the spring! The first several months we lived here we didn't do much outdoors except grill occasionally. Now that Samuel's older and loves being outside as much as I do, though, we have been playing back there almost every day.
When the weather started warming up, I got really pumped up and decided it would be fun to throw an Easter egg hunt in our backyard just for young walkers - you know, the ones like my child who would rather chase butterflies and eat rocks than actually hunt for Easter eggs. So yesterday afternoon I put out about 150 puff and goldfish-filled eggs (in plain view, of course), and whipped up a few springy desserts (it was hard to limit myself to just a few!), brought out some bubbles, put on some kiddo tunes, and Samuel and a few of his baby friends partied it up.
Okay, actually, they just figured out that opening the eggs meant getting food, so then they just sat there and ate. But that's okay. It was still adorbs! Hopefully we can do it again next year! (Maybe then the kids will enjoy it as much as the moms!)
[Excuse the blurry pictures - someone decided to smudge up my lens.]
When the weather started warming up, I got really pumped up and decided it would be fun to throw an Easter egg hunt in our backyard just for young walkers - you know, the ones like my child who would rather chase butterflies and eat rocks than actually hunt for Easter eggs. So yesterday afternoon I put out about 150 puff and goldfish-filled eggs (in plain view, of course), and whipped up a few springy desserts (it was hard to limit myself to just a few!), brought out some bubbles, put on some kiddo tunes, and Samuel and a few of his baby friends partied it up.
Okay, actually, they just figured out that opening the eggs meant getting food, so then they just sat there and ate. But that's okay. It was still adorbs! Hopefully we can do it again next year! (Maybe then the kids will enjoy it as much as the moms!)
[Excuse the blurry pictures - someone decided to smudge up my lens.]
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