I guess before I start with today I should finish up my trip to AZ and the days in between. Niko's day was pretty good. Some of it was pretty funny. We were in the Sketchers store and a lady commented on how our kids were the best behaved kids she had seen in the store (it could be true, it may have been her first day). Then S tells her that it's Niko's birthday and so of course the girl asks if we sang to him. S responded very frankly, "Um... he's dead." Poor salesgirl. She just smiled. I mumbled something about our funky shoe tradition. But all five kids got shoes. M got these very blingish shoes that are enormous. I had no idea that girls' sizes and women's' sizes didn't line up. It was a frightening jump to see a big size in her shoe. T got the pair of 'rhinos' that he has been wanting for over a year. D then wanted the same shoes but luckily found some others when I told him that there weren't any in his size. S got some wide boots at Striderite because regular boots just didn't accommodate her broad foot. And C, she got the true Niko shoes. They are the cutest furry boots.
We went to the park with my friend Heather that day. She saw how S was a bit edgy. It didn't really matter because all the kids had fun there. C added to her battle wounds. M did some homemade exfoliation with sand. Heather's friend came too and she was pretty dang funny. I had the hardest time figuring out her accent. It turns out that she has lived in so many places that she just has her own sound. I always have a great time with their family.
We went to DH's extended family party that night. Things have really changed there. All of DH's cousins are really occupied with their own families and as a result there is less mingling. Still, it was fun to see them. I was especially excited for one of his cousins that had a baby boy with her that we hadn't heard about.
The ride home was less than ideal because we hit a bad storm. It seemed that there were cars that had slid off everywhere. One time this one car started to slow down and then got stuck right in front of another car that had slid off the road. DH just kept saying, "Don't stop. Don't stop." Of course, that was because a big giant truck was coming from the opposite direction and was going to hit us if we didn't hurry. We arrived home frazzled but safe.
Since then things have just been busy busy busy. There was much to do and never enough time to do anything. So we'll just leave that time at that and skip to today.
We finished last night after midnight. We were all tired from wrapping gifts and were eager to go to bed. Guess who was the first up? That would be M at just after 2:30 this morning. The kids had really bright flashlights in their stockings. It was not a brilliant idea for Santa. Imagine shortly after 2:30 when there are FIVE little kids with flashlights running around the house. The kids never went back to sleep and at six we all had to get up. The unlucky little kids didn't get to open presents too quickly though because C spilled foundation all over my brand spanking new carpet and it took about 30 minutes to clean it up.
The kids were thrilled with their presents. I would say M's favorite was her Project Runway projector. T's was his race track with cars from another gift. D's was his King Arthur castle, S's favorite would probably be her bit My Pretty Pony. And C loved her vacuum. I loved my gift from dh but we are going to take it back and change how we buy it. The cheap person in me is still tempted to just say I don't need such a great camera. DH liked his surprise from me and it was so fun giving it to him.
Overall it wasn't too bad. C is asleep on Jason's chest now and I think she has the right idea.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Making up for a lack of posts
I'll add a little bit more tonight. At my parents' house the kids are all over and we pretty much have to disappear to get everyone to fall asleep. I'm choosing the computer. Now, let me add that I am not alone as D was messing around in the bathroom playing in the water and now has a spot on the floor by me where he is still trying to stay awake.
I had fun at my friend's house. The girls played Pollys for hours and the boys did boy things. We figured out which kids bring out the worst in each other and which ones make good matches. Oh, and I played the Wii. I love that thing and would really like to have one. T played boxing until he was sweaty. That's a great kind of EWWWWW!
S is a bit on the out of control side. It got worse and there is only so much I can do about it other than hop in the car and drive home. She was still wearing a pull up because she is in that I will show you mode and I am so glad. We finally got home tonight (and this is after a trip to the potty before we got in the car) and she flippantly tells us that she peed her pants. She didn't even tell us she needed to go or anything. We came back to my parents' house and told her to get in her jammies because my dad had brought dinner home and she just started ordering us around. Hmmm.... that doesn't fly really well. In fact, it doesn't fly at all. When she didn't get her way she pulled out all the stops. She told us she wouldn't eat dinner and so will most likely wake up hungry. DH took her back so she could lay down. She has a spot on the floor in our room. I told him she couldn't sleep where she was because I was afraid she might get stepped on. He asked her to move over and she did and then stared us down and went right back to where she had been. In the end she stood in the hallway by choice. That's a miserable place to be when you are tired. I hope she decides to be happy for tomorrow.
Tomorrow is our Niko day. The kids all get their new shoes tomorrow. Of course, the bargainer in me has a coupon to use so even if they do get to choose any pair in the store I can still save a few dollars. We'll go get flowers and go to the cemetery earlier tomorrow because it's the last Saturday for shopping before Christmas and the mall will be really busy. 10 years ago exactly we went for a walk at the Arizona Temple and looked at all the Christmas lights. We had just gone to DH's extended family Christmas party (something we will do tomorrow night). I remember I wore my favorite blue striped maternity shirt and navy overalls. Yep and I was pregnant enough that they were getting floody. (I may end up writing this type of thing over and over year after year. You know... it's the limited amount of memories thing. There is only so much to go around unless we fudge the details which doesn't work for the rule follower in me.) And then the next day we became parents. And for a year I parented by making sure there were decent flowers at the cemetery. Instead of dreaming about play dates I would make sure I stashed a couple of flowers in the 'neighbors' vases before their birthdays so their parents would be thrilled that someone else was stopping by and their child wasn't forgotten. I would look at his picture each day to make sure that I hadn't forgotten details, little skinny monkey boy features in a body that was really long for his 34 weeks. And now I don't have to try so hard. I see his little picture each day. It's on the mantle. But I am too busy forgetting my keys or where I am headed to worry about other things I might forget. Yet there was a funny feeling when we drove into town and in the distance I could see the tall trees that line the rows of the cemetery. I couldn't help but think, "Hey little buddy, I'll be there to visit in a few days." A decade ago I wouldn't have been able to pass without driving through at least. And now I can pass and feel a longing but not feel like I have to stop. His spirit, along with Joshua's, is with me daily. It made the trip to another state. And I know that in reality it's his body that is here. But for me his body is important too since I never got to see his spirit in it. I have a little idea now as C looks so much like him.
So tomorrow we'll go and celebrate his role in our family. We'll spend slightly frivolously (if you call buying whatever shoes you want that). I'll hope that M picks something that can be worn to church as I thought she was bringing tall brown boots that could also be worn to church and she brought black ankle boots with a heel as her only shoes. T will tease S who will beg for the teasing. D will want some hugs each time anyone else is getting any. C will throw a huge tantrum but then will charm us all with her funny sayings. And S, I hate to even speculate. That'll be life tomorrow. Hopefully we will have good memories and everyone will be on their best behavior. Okay, we'll settle on pretty okay behavior. And we'll continue our family traditions of that day which will help bind our family together. As our lives have gotten busier and busier it has become increasingly difficult to stop and pause. On Niko's day we pause and listen. We think of what is most important to us. We reflect on our Saviour and His sacrifice for us. We remember how important family is and how we are part of a bigger plan. What a gift that is from Niko.
I had fun at my friend's house. The girls played Pollys for hours and the boys did boy things. We figured out which kids bring out the worst in each other and which ones make good matches. Oh, and I played the Wii. I love that thing and would really like to have one. T played boxing until he was sweaty. That's a great kind of EWWWWW!
S is a bit on the out of control side. It got worse and there is only so much I can do about it other than hop in the car and drive home. She was still wearing a pull up because she is in that I will show you mode and I am so glad. We finally got home tonight (and this is after a trip to the potty before we got in the car) and she flippantly tells us that she peed her pants. She didn't even tell us she needed to go or anything. We came back to my parents' house and told her to get in her jammies because my dad had brought dinner home and she just started ordering us around. Hmmm.... that doesn't fly really well. In fact, it doesn't fly at all. When she didn't get her way she pulled out all the stops. She told us she wouldn't eat dinner and so will most likely wake up hungry. DH took her back so she could lay down. She has a spot on the floor in our room. I told him she couldn't sleep where she was because I was afraid she might get stepped on. He asked her to move over and she did and then stared us down and went right back to where she had been. In the end she stood in the hallway by choice. That's a miserable place to be when you are tired. I hope she decides to be happy for tomorrow.
Tomorrow is our Niko day. The kids all get their new shoes tomorrow. Of course, the bargainer in me has a coupon to use so even if they do get to choose any pair in the store I can still save a few dollars. We'll go get flowers and go to the cemetery earlier tomorrow because it's the last Saturday for shopping before Christmas and the mall will be really busy. 10 years ago exactly we went for a walk at the Arizona Temple and looked at all the Christmas lights. We had just gone to DH's extended family Christmas party (something we will do tomorrow night). I remember I wore my favorite blue striped maternity shirt and navy overalls. Yep and I was pregnant enough that they were getting floody. (I may end up writing this type of thing over and over year after year. You know... it's the limited amount of memories thing. There is only so much to go around unless we fudge the details which doesn't work for the rule follower in me.) And then the next day we became parents. And for a year I parented by making sure there were decent flowers at the cemetery. Instead of dreaming about play dates I would make sure I stashed a couple of flowers in the 'neighbors' vases before their birthdays so their parents would be thrilled that someone else was stopping by and their child wasn't forgotten. I would look at his picture each day to make sure that I hadn't forgotten details, little skinny monkey boy features in a body that was really long for his 34 weeks. And now I don't have to try so hard. I see his little picture each day. It's on the mantle. But I am too busy forgetting my keys or where I am headed to worry about other things I might forget. Yet there was a funny feeling when we drove into town and in the distance I could see the tall trees that line the rows of the cemetery. I couldn't help but think, "Hey little buddy, I'll be there to visit in a few days." A decade ago I wouldn't have been able to pass without driving through at least. And now I can pass and feel a longing but not feel like I have to stop. His spirit, along with Joshua's, is with me daily. It made the trip to another state. And I know that in reality it's his body that is here. But for me his body is important too since I never got to see his spirit in it. I have a little idea now as C looks so much like him.
So tomorrow we'll go and celebrate his role in our family. We'll spend slightly frivolously (if you call buying whatever shoes you want that). I'll hope that M picks something that can be worn to church as I thought she was bringing tall brown boots that could also be worn to church and she brought black ankle boots with a heel as her only shoes. T will tease S who will beg for the teasing. D will want some hugs each time anyone else is getting any. C will throw a huge tantrum but then will charm us all with her funny sayings. And S, I hate to even speculate. That'll be life tomorrow. Hopefully we will have good memories and everyone will be on their best behavior. Okay, we'll settle on pretty okay behavior. And we'll continue our family traditions of that day which will help bind our family together. As our lives have gotten busier and busier it has become increasingly difficult to stop and pause. On Niko's day we pause and listen. We think of what is most important to us. We reflect on our Saviour and His sacrifice for us. We remember how important family is and how we are part of a bigger plan. What a gift that is from Niko.
It was good while it lasted
S has had a pretty good run lately. In fact, we talked about how she must have an S on the front of her shirt for super S. She had labeled herself the 'choose the right girl'.
I told dh I was worried about travelling with her because she doesn't do well when her environment is adjusted. It happened. She has gone back to controlaholic mode. I explained to my sister that it's tricky because adults fall for her thing like crazy. And she pretty much is thinking, "Your weak and I can't believe you are falling for this." And in turn, it makes her feel like adults really just aren't good at this and that she has to be MORE controlling. It happens everywhere. At church people try to offer things if she is good. We can't beg her to be good. We lose if we do. I am grateful though that we had around 3 weeks without her most favorite negative behavior. Luckily last night I sensed that she was off kilter and I bought some overpriced pullups at the drugstore. We ended up putting them on her because she was having the kind of rage that usually has her going on the floor in anger. I'm hoping this trip doesn't just sabotage our efforts. I'm excited for the day when I can go out of town or heck, even on a date, and not have to think that maybe a bunch of work will be undone. (Although I do know another really GREAT sitter now so I'm not quite as worried but eventually she will be old enough to date and then I'll be in trouble.)
So good news here. I am NOT pregnant. What you say. Yep, I have been a bit worried. Okay, I have been a lot worried. My tubes should be all tied and twisted and whatever but I still had cause to worry. My good friend joked around that we couldn't be friends if I had another kid and I thought that I would be too busy to have any friends. It made me realize though that I'm not in charge and buying a car with 5 seats for small kids will not necessarily stop whatever the plan is for me. But this time, I'm A-OK. After trying to have kids for so many years it's funny (not ha ha funny but funny just the same) to be so relieved. And well, we make crap cords and I just can't imagine passing off five kids to people for weeks at a time. Anyway... I am much less worried now.
And lastly, because I need to go and watch my kiddos... I have to admit that I really did Spark yesterday. When I spark everyday I do better. I managed to even stay in my range, (just barely thanks to these deliciously greasy jack in the box tacos... why don't they disgust me?). I think I am going to go and fork over the dinero for the Cho Pat double knee stabilizer braces today and start wearing them on both knees and see if I can start exercising again. My theory is that if my knees are down to bone on bone because of maltracking then good tracking should cause them to not rub there. It's worth a try.
(And S, who is hanging out with me, just screamed, "You are MY mean mommy!" Hey at least she still claims me.)
Oh and lastly (but this time for real) can I say that I am feeling like super shopper of the year for Christmas. I managed to get the kids their really great stuff for under 200 bucks (that all five combined). You have to remember that I start shopping in January of the previous year and also have my SIL in AZ look out for things when Target has their happiest day of the year (75% off toys). I paid SIL for the last few things yesterday.
Yipeee... off we go to hang out with friends today. I appears that the sun is going to shine on us. I am anticipating a trip to the park as well as to my favorite Mexican place (oh how will I spark that?).
I told dh I was worried about travelling with her because she doesn't do well when her environment is adjusted. It happened. She has gone back to controlaholic mode. I explained to my sister that it's tricky because adults fall for her thing like crazy. And she pretty much is thinking, "Your weak and I can't believe you are falling for this." And in turn, it makes her feel like adults really just aren't good at this and that she has to be MORE controlling. It happens everywhere. At church people try to offer things if she is good. We can't beg her to be good. We lose if we do. I am grateful though that we had around 3 weeks without her most favorite negative behavior. Luckily last night I sensed that she was off kilter and I bought some overpriced pullups at the drugstore. We ended up putting them on her because she was having the kind of rage that usually has her going on the floor in anger. I'm hoping this trip doesn't just sabotage our efforts. I'm excited for the day when I can go out of town or heck, even on a date, and not have to think that maybe a bunch of work will be undone. (Although I do know another really GREAT sitter now so I'm not quite as worried but eventually she will be old enough to date and then I'll be in trouble.)
So good news here. I am NOT pregnant. What you say. Yep, I have been a bit worried. Okay, I have been a lot worried. My tubes should be all tied and twisted and whatever but I still had cause to worry. My good friend joked around that we couldn't be friends if I had another kid and I thought that I would be too busy to have any friends. It made me realize though that I'm not in charge and buying a car with 5 seats for small kids will not necessarily stop whatever the plan is for me. But this time, I'm A-OK. After trying to have kids for so many years it's funny (not ha ha funny but funny just the same) to be so relieved. And well, we make crap cords and I just can't imagine passing off five kids to people for weeks at a time. Anyway... I am much less worried now.
And lastly, because I need to go and watch my kiddos... I have to admit that I really did Spark yesterday. When I spark everyday I do better. I managed to even stay in my range, (just barely thanks to these deliciously greasy jack in the box tacos... why don't they disgust me?). I think I am going to go and fork over the dinero for the Cho Pat double knee stabilizer braces today and start wearing them on both knees and see if I can start exercising again. My theory is that if my knees are down to bone on bone because of maltracking then good tracking should cause them to not rub there. It's worth a try.
(And S, who is hanging out with me, just screamed, "You are MY mean mommy!" Hey at least she still claims me.)
Oh and lastly (but this time for real) can I say that I am feeling like super shopper of the year for Christmas. I managed to get the kids their really great stuff for under 200 bucks (that all five combined). You have to remember that I start shopping in January of the previous year and also have my SIL in AZ look out for things when Target has their happiest day of the year (75% off toys). I paid SIL for the last few things yesterday.
Yipeee... off we go to hang out with friends today. I appears that the sun is going to shine on us. I am anticipating a trip to the park as well as to my favorite Mexican place (oh how will I spark that?).
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Wowsers, 200 posts
I have to say I love this blogging thing. This is more than I have recorded in pretty much my entire life.
We are visiting family for a couple of days. Wouldn't you know that we would have a throw up incident. D got sick but managed to make it to the bathroom. He didn't make it to the toilet but he did make it to the bathroom which made clean up a little easier. I saw him standing in the bathroom later and realized why it's always such a mess. I guess no one told him to kneel down when he was sick. Now I understand why the bathroom was such a disaster last time.
We ended up still visiting cousins today. It's always a highlight of a trip. And it was great for me to be able to let my guard down and just relax a bit (or 'chillax' as Polly Pocket would say in the movie that I have heard over and over).
And with that I go to bed. Last night was sleepless to some extent and hopefully tonight will be better and S won't turn on the light in our room in the middle of the night and the bed won't break (and that is from just plain ol' sleeping by golly.)
We are visiting family for a couple of days. Wouldn't you know that we would have a throw up incident. D got sick but managed to make it to the bathroom. He didn't make it to the toilet but he did make it to the bathroom which made clean up a little easier. I saw him standing in the bathroom later and realized why it's always such a mess. I guess no one told him to kneel down when he was sick. Now I understand why the bathroom was such a disaster last time.
We ended up still visiting cousins today. It's always a highlight of a trip. And it was great for me to be able to let my guard down and just relax a bit (or 'chillax' as Polly Pocket would say in the movie that I have heard over and over).
And with that I go to bed. Last night was sleepless to some extent and hopefully tonight will be better and S won't turn on the light in our room in the middle of the night and the bed won't break (and that is from just plain ol' sleeping by golly.)
Monday, December 15, 2008
So the other topics... continued from yesterday
I have been decluttering. That has me sending a bunch of my stuff to the thrift store. Why oh why is it that I really want to send my socks and shoes that have no match? I am not even kidding when I write that I was thinking that maybe there was some foundation for kids that only have one leg. What in the heck? Socks are cheap. Foundations could just send entire packs and divide them up. So I gave away a bunch of my other stuff and I still have the growing basket of mismatched socks.
What else? My friend's friend has rabies. It's the first confirmed case in something like 70 years in Northern Ireland. I still find it hard to believe that she knows someone that has something so rare. And how horrible for her family. I had to read up on it and I guess they have managed to help a few people survive (they meaning I don't know who). It makes me sick for that family.
I managed to get a few things accomplished today. It was frigid here (as most everywhere in North America... at least my mom says it was frigid in Arizona where it was in something like the 50's). I got a chip in my windshield replaced. I have been meaning to do it for something like a half a year and finally decided to get a move on it since the cold will cause it to run quickly.
My carpet is done in my house except my stairs. That leaves a bunch of work in putting everything back together. Did I mention we don't even have a Christmas tree up yet? There just hasn't been the time to do it or the place to put it.
I finally put pics up on the blog I do for the bioparents. I have been wanting to get around to it but that blog has suffered just as this one has. And I still don't have more pics posted on the other blog. I am pokey!
I'm thrilled the garbage man came so I can get rid of some of this stuff. (Not the socks of course though.....)
M had a really rough night. She just wouldn't budge. We took away a ton of things when she wouldn't obey. (For throwing fits she got to clean the hall and the bathroom.) Finally we told her we weren't going to pay for ballet lessons if she was going to act like this. It would kill me to take them away but in reality it's a luxury and one that we all have to sacrifice for. She finally started doing her work. Then later she cried about how she had a rough day at school and that she and her friend were having a few issues with bossing each other. I'm so glad we didn't take ballet away. She did, however, lose her chance to buy treats at gas stations on our 'vacation'. That hits pretty hard when you are dying for a treat. We told her we also might have to take away Souper Salad in Arizona (yes, laugh away). It's her favorite place to eat there. She cried and said, "But I remember Joshua and Nikolas when we go there." I didn't know if I should cry or laugh. If it were S I would think she was pulling out all the stops. With M I am not sure. I've read that they reprocess grief at around 8 and that is where she is at. Maybe she is a little bit sad that she gets to celebrate her dead brother's birthday before Christmas. And maybe she was just trying to get her way. But in the end, the hall and bathroom are clean and she no longer hates us.
Tomorrow I have too many things to do. I am supposed to take the two youngest to violin lessons. (D switched from viola to violin and I am glad. Not only does it cost less but it's less confusing because we sing all the violin songs already.) I also have a dentist appointment to get my crown on and then 45 minutes later I am supposed to be in T's class to share a tradition (and no I can't talk about the dead brother traditions... that just wouldn't go over so well in first grade). And I need to pack everything for our trip and work on putting our house back together.
So what am I doing now? Blogging. It doesn't make much sense.
Oh and I ordered J's Christmas present today. I am so excited to give it to him.
What else? My friend's friend has rabies. It's the first confirmed case in something like 70 years in Northern Ireland. I still find it hard to believe that she knows someone that has something so rare. And how horrible for her family. I had to read up on it and I guess they have managed to help a few people survive (they meaning I don't know who). It makes me sick for that family.
I managed to get a few things accomplished today. It was frigid here (as most everywhere in North America... at least my mom says it was frigid in Arizona where it was in something like the 50's). I got a chip in my windshield replaced. I have been meaning to do it for something like a half a year and finally decided to get a move on it since the cold will cause it to run quickly.
My carpet is done in my house except my stairs. That leaves a bunch of work in putting everything back together. Did I mention we don't even have a Christmas tree up yet? There just hasn't been the time to do it or the place to put it.
I finally put pics up on the blog I do for the bioparents. I have been wanting to get around to it but that blog has suffered just as this one has. And I still don't have more pics posted on the other blog. I am pokey!
I'm thrilled the garbage man came so I can get rid of some of this stuff. (Not the socks of course though.....)
M had a really rough night. She just wouldn't budge. We took away a ton of things when she wouldn't obey. (For throwing fits she got to clean the hall and the bathroom.) Finally we told her we weren't going to pay for ballet lessons if she was going to act like this. It would kill me to take them away but in reality it's a luxury and one that we all have to sacrifice for. She finally started doing her work. Then later she cried about how she had a rough day at school and that she and her friend were having a few issues with bossing each other. I'm so glad we didn't take ballet away. She did, however, lose her chance to buy treats at gas stations on our 'vacation'. That hits pretty hard when you are dying for a treat. We told her we also might have to take away Souper Salad in Arizona (yes, laugh away). It's her favorite place to eat there. She cried and said, "But I remember Joshua and Nikolas when we go there." I didn't know if I should cry or laugh. If it were S I would think she was pulling out all the stops. With M I am not sure. I've read that they reprocess grief at around 8 and that is where she is at. Maybe she is a little bit sad that she gets to celebrate her dead brother's birthday before Christmas. And maybe she was just trying to get her way. But in the end, the hall and bathroom are clean and she no longer hates us.
Tomorrow I have too many things to do. I am supposed to take the two youngest to violin lessons. (D switched from viola to violin and I am glad. Not only does it cost less but it's less confusing because we sing all the violin songs already.) I also have a dentist appointment to get my crown on and then 45 minutes later I am supposed to be in T's class to share a tradition (and no I can't talk about the dead brother traditions... that just wouldn't go over so well in first grade). And I need to pack everything for our trip and work on putting our house back together.
So what am I doing now? Blogging. It doesn't make much sense.
Oh and I ordered J's Christmas present today. I am so excited to give it to him.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Dang, two weeks has passed!
I have thought over and over that I needed to park my behind in front of this computer and jot a few things down. But there just hasn't been enough time.
Let's see.... here's the quick review of things I may wish to remember someday in the future. S made it an entire week on pretty good behavior. We then went somewhere and she felt worried (enough to express it to me) that T wasn't safe due to some roughhousing and has since been more of a turkey. I finally put it together that she wasn't trusting that adults could keep them safe and she is back to asserting her own version of control. It was a great week though. She was joyful, cheerful, pleasant and optimistic. The good news is that she isn't resorting to her final stick it to you behavior. It shows she is trying. But she has gotten crazy with her food again trying to shovel it in faster than you can imagine. One day she said she was just going to go in the bathroom and throw up to make her tummy feel better. This may sound so cruel but when she does that we have to tell her to sit on the tile and that if she has to throw up she can do it there and it will still be cleanable. We can't have her thinking she can overeat and throw up to make herself feel better when she is only three. How we'll undo that thinking when she is really sick I do not know. I'm a little worried about a trip we are going to take and how the change in routine will affect her. She is just so wonderful when she is acting like a kid instead of trying to control the universe.
We had a cute moment with D and T. I was telling D that there were some things he was doing at school that would make it hard for him to have friends (just being pesty and well acting like you were going to get someone). I was telling him the standard thing about how I want other kids to know how great he is but that they won't give him a chance if he doesn't leave them alone sometimes. T went up to him and said, "You'll always have one friend." Then he got a huge grin on his face and pointed to himself. I'm glad he said that. (Now I am not so thrilled with his high pitched fits when he isn't getting Poptropica to work... he's not a perfect kid by any means.) D has been doing better in school it seems. More importantly he is telling the truth more frequently and that is great for our relationship. He still blames just about everything on someone else if he can get a chance but he is learning and I have to hand it to him. I think it helps him when he knows that other people will tell me what has happened and he might as well fess up. I had a sitter over a week ago... a super cute girl (you can beam mom if you are reading) and she was awesome. She just didn't take any crap. And he really liked her. I hope he feels that way about me someday.
I went and did gingerbread houses at the school with M's group. It was fun to finally get a chance to be with her. I was uber worried about the raw egg whites in the frosting. Each time a kid would lick a finger I would cringe. There was one little girl that I told M she needs to befriend. I hope she takes my advice. The gingerbread house is going in the garbage tomorrow though because it is killing S to not be able to gobble the whole thing up.
Speaking of garbage, mine is FULL and that is because I have a bunch of old carpet pad in mine. My basement is carpeted as is part of the upstairs. Our carpet guy is coming tomorrow to finish the upstairs. He got really sick and couldn't come on Saturday. Our mattress is in our main room. It's a little weird to sleep there but the rest is take apart and so we were out of luck. I did mange to get all the areas with carpet painted. It's so nice to get rid of the flat paint! The kids are loving the basement and I am loving them playing down there. I also love not having a tv upstairs.
We had playgroup at our house on Friday and I was thrilled to send them down. To be honest, I had forgotten it was my turn. But we made do. The kids helped me make some homemade bread and they each made little loaves to take home. Then we ate little roles for snacks. They also loved the jumping castle in the basement. It's a little old and worn out and only one kid can go on it at a time. But heck, they need to learn to share.
C turned two. All day she kept talking about her birthday cake. She liked the presents but she LOVED the cake. She is as two as can be. She does this funny growl thing when she is angry. She also scratches and screams. But she is adorable as well. I love it when I hold her and she reaches under my neck and strokes my cheek as she holds my face close to hers. She is a miracle. To think she was in the same predicament as Joshua and made it because of close monitoring is such a blessing. My friend sent her a shirt for her birthday and she keeps saying, "my birthday cake shirt." What a hit!
And I'll have to post about the Nutcracker, my DI stuff and random thought for donating things, and my friend's friend who has rabies tomorrow.
And off to bed (or to the living room) while I can.
Let's see.... here's the quick review of things I may wish to remember someday in the future. S made it an entire week on pretty good behavior. We then went somewhere and she felt worried (enough to express it to me) that T wasn't safe due to some roughhousing and has since been more of a turkey. I finally put it together that she wasn't trusting that adults could keep them safe and she is back to asserting her own version of control. It was a great week though. She was joyful, cheerful, pleasant and optimistic. The good news is that she isn't resorting to her final stick it to you behavior. It shows she is trying. But she has gotten crazy with her food again trying to shovel it in faster than you can imagine. One day she said she was just going to go in the bathroom and throw up to make her tummy feel better. This may sound so cruel but when she does that we have to tell her to sit on the tile and that if she has to throw up she can do it there and it will still be cleanable. We can't have her thinking she can overeat and throw up to make herself feel better when she is only three. How we'll undo that thinking when she is really sick I do not know. I'm a little worried about a trip we are going to take and how the change in routine will affect her. She is just so wonderful when she is acting like a kid instead of trying to control the universe.
We had a cute moment with D and T. I was telling D that there were some things he was doing at school that would make it hard for him to have friends (just being pesty and well acting like you were going to get someone). I was telling him the standard thing about how I want other kids to know how great he is but that they won't give him a chance if he doesn't leave them alone sometimes. T went up to him and said, "You'll always have one friend." Then he got a huge grin on his face and pointed to himself. I'm glad he said that. (Now I am not so thrilled with his high pitched fits when he isn't getting Poptropica to work... he's not a perfect kid by any means.) D has been doing better in school it seems. More importantly he is telling the truth more frequently and that is great for our relationship. He still blames just about everything on someone else if he can get a chance but he is learning and I have to hand it to him. I think it helps him when he knows that other people will tell me what has happened and he might as well fess up. I had a sitter over a week ago... a super cute girl (you can beam mom if you are reading) and she was awesome. She just didn't take any crap. And he really liked her. I hope he feels that way about me someday.
I went and did gingerbread houses at the school with M's group. It was fun to finally get a chance to be with her. I was uber worried about the raw egg whites in the frosting. Each time a kid would lick a finger I would cringe. There was one little girl that I told M she needs to befriend. I hope she takes my advice. The gingerbread house is going in the garbage tomorrow though because it is killing S to not be able to gobble the whole thing up.
Speaking of garbage, mine is FULL and that is because I have a bunch of old carpet pad in mine. My basement is carpeted as is part of the upstairs. Our carpet guy is coming tomorrow to finish the upstairs. He got really sick and couldn't come on Saturday. Our mattress is in our main room. It's a little weird to sleep there but the rest is take apart and so we were out of luck. I did mange to get all the areas with carpet painted. It's so nice to get rid of the flat paint! The kids are loving the basement and I am loving them playing down there. I also love not having a tv upstairs.
We had playgroup at our house on Friday and I was thrilled to send them down. To be honest, I had forgotten it was my turn. But we made do. The kids helped me make some homemade bread and they each made little loaves to take home. Then we ate little roles for snacks. They also loved the jumping castle in the basement. It's a little old and worn out and only one kid can go on it at a time. But heck, they need to learn to share.
C turned two. All day she kept talking about her birthday cake. She liked the presents but she LOVED the cake. She is as two as can be. She does this funny growl thing when she is angry. She also scratches and screams. But she is adorable as well. I love it when I hold her and she reaches under my neck and strokes my cheek as she holds my face close to hers. She is a miracle. To think she was in the same predicament as Joshua and made it because of close monitoring is such a blessing. My friend sent her a shirt for her birthday and she keeps saying, "my birthday cake shirt." What a hit!
And I'll have to post about the Nutcracker, my DI stuff and random thought for donating things, and my friend's friend who has rabies tomorrow.
And off to bed (or to the living room) while I can.
Monday, December 1, 2008
A Little Break
It's been a bit of a crazy month here. I totally lucked out and had DH home to help me out for the last week. He took a day off to watch the kids while I went to the dentist (which turned out to be an almost FIVE hour appointment if you can believe it... it was so heavenly to only hear drilling instead of fighting and tattling. I really mean it. It wasn't quite and MRI but it wasn't too bad at all.) DH pretty much kept S as his 'buddy' for around six days. And finally on Saturday she decided she wanted to choose the right. I was getting a little hopeless and well, just flat out tired when DH stepped in and helped out. I'm so grateful. I feel like I can keep going now because it wasn't constant tension all day every day.
We are on night 3 of her trying to do what is right. I'm just so glad. I went in her room to check on her and you could tell she was trying so hard to make good decisions. And... well, she hasn't peed on my floor for 3 days now either when she has been mad. That in itself is something to scream from the rooftops.
I sent DH to S's class at church on Sunday. I told him I was worried she would start to get her way and would try controlling people and all of our work would be for nothing. He was really glad he went. He said he did catch her trying to control other people and was able to intervene.
Tomorrow we will continue to try. I have to take S to D's kindergarten class. Somehow I ended up signed up to help. It's not that I mind helping. I really like helping. It fills that teacher need in me. But, I didn't sign up on purpose because I just never know from day to day. And now, I can't leave S with anyone because she starts trying to get away with bossing them around (yep, adults included). It doesn't help her to let her get away with it and it's often hard to spot if you don't know what you are looking for. I figure the K teacher will be okay with it or she'll send me home. I just can't let her stay home with someone that might not keep things consistent.
My basement is close to being ready to carpet. I am a bit worried though as there is still so much touchup work to do. I went down to paint today and realized I had missed some spots with the painters putty. I am hoping to paint tomorrow but it is crazy Tuesday. I'm not sure if the carpet is going in on Wednesday or not. I tried calling our carpet guy and didn't get a hold of him. I want it in but on the other hand, I am feeling a little pressed for time. Oh well, I'll do my best.
We got a new TV on Thanksgiving. It's actually the exercise room television but it will have to do for now. DH wants an enormous one in the new family room and I'm not quite ready to fork over that kind of cash. Anything looks big compared to our old 21 inch one if you ask me.
Speaking of getting rid of stuff, I cleaned out my closet today (okay, so not all of the shelves but I clean the entire floor). I have more stuff to donate that you can imagine. How did I get so many sweaters that are so short. I swear they weren't that short when I bought them. That's one more thing for me to do tomorrow.
M and T had great violin lessons today. M passed off 3 songs and is on her way to a beautiful Brahms piece. Her teacher is going to get the 2nd violin part for hit. At choir on Sunday I realized that there is just no way we can sing one part. It is just too hard. What in the world was I thinking? Okay, I know what I was thinking. I thought how I loved Vaughan Williams and how I had access to this one arrangement of Greensleeves. Well, this arrangement is hard! I asked a friend to play the harp and don't know if she will be able. It's just so hard. M told me that if H couldn't play the harp that she would learn the part. I laughed and loved her confidence. She wasn't worried at all. In fact, she thought playing in church was great. I adore her but don't want her to play along this time.
DH saw the tornado in all her fury. C tagged our walls with marker for the first time. She got the wall in the bathroom. She also hunts for bubble gum and will get it out of any garbage. She comes up first thing and asks for bubbu gum. Today she opened the oven while I was cooking and burned her hand a bit. I couldn't believe she could get into trouble so quickly. She also was throwing a fit today and called me "mean mommy". I guess I am doing my job.
S also had an accident. I have been telling her for weeks to not climb. I even told her specifically to not climb on her dresser because she could get hurt. We did the whole, "Who is the boss? Mom. Why? To keep you safe." thing. So what did she do last night? She climbed on her dresser and pulled the hutch off. It clipped her in the face in two spots and then she hurt her knee falling. She lucked out because she really didn't get hurt but could have gotten so hurt. She told me after that she could have gotten squished like a bug just like I said. I'm so grateful she wasn't hurt more.
And off to bed I go. I feel better having something in my little blog here.
We are on night 3 of her trying to do what is right. I'm just so glad. I went in her room to check on her and you could tell she was trying so hard to make good decisions. And... well, she hasn't peed on my floor for 3 days now either when she has been mad. That in itself is something to scream from the rooftops.
I sent DH to S's class at church on Sunday. I told him I was worried she would start to get her way and would try controlling people and all of our work would be for nothing. He was really glad he went. He said he did catch her trying to control other people and was able to intervene.
Tomorrow we will continue to try. I have to take S to D's kindergarten class. Somehow I ended up signed up to help. It's not that I mind helping. I really like helping. It fills that teacher need in me. But, I didn't sign up on purpose because I just never know from day to day. And now, I can't leave S with anyone because she starts trying to get away with bossing them around (yep, adults included). It doesn't help her to let her get away with it and it's often hard to spot if you don't know what you are looking for. I figure the K teacher will be okay with it or she'll send me home. I just can't let her stay home with someone that might not keep things consistent.
My basement is close to being ready to carpet. I am a bit worried though as there is still so much touchup work to do. I went down to paint today and realized I had missed some spots with the painters putty. I am hoping to paint tomorrow but it is crazy Tuesday. I'm not sure if the carpet is going in on Wednesday or not. I tried calling our carpet guy and didn't get a hold of him. I want it in but on the other hand, I am feeling a little pressed for time. Oh well, I'll do my best.
We got a new TV on Thanksgiving. It's actually the exercise room television but it will have to do for now. DH wants an enormous one in the new family room and I'm not quite ready to fork over that kind of cash. Anything looks big compared to our old 21 inch one if you ask me.
Speaking of getting rid of stuff, I cleaned out my closet today (okay, so not all of the shelves but I clean the entire floor). I have more stuff to donate that you can imagine. How did I get so many sweaters that are so short. I swear they weren't that short when I bought them. That's one more thing for me to do tomorrow.
M and T had great violin lessons today. M passed off 3 songs and is on her way to a beautiful Brahms piece. Her teacher is going to get the 2nd violin part for hit. At choir on Sunday I realized that there is just no way we can sing one part. It is just too hard. What in the world was I thinking? Okay, I know what I was thinking. I thought how I loved Vaughan Williams and how I had access to this one arrangement of Greensleeves. Well, this arrangement is hard! I asked a friend to play the harp and don't know if she will be able. It's just so hard. M told me that if H couldn't play the harp that she would learn the part. I laughed and loved her confidence. She wasn't worried at all. In fact, she thought playing in church was great. I adore her but don't want her to play along this time.
DH saw the tornado in all her fury. C tagged our walls with marker for the first time. She got the wall in the bathroom. She also hunts for bubble gum and will get it out of any garbage. She comes up first thing and asks for bubbu gum. Today she opened the oven while I was cooking and burned her hand a bit. I couldn't believe she could get into trouble so quickly. She also was throwing a fit today and called me "mean mommy". I guess I am doing my job.
S also had an accident. I have been telling her for weeks to not climb. I even told her specifically to not climb on her dresser because she could get hurt. We did the whole, "Who is the boss? Mom. Why? To keep you safe." thing. So what did she do last night? She climbed on her dresser and pulled the hutch off. It clipped her in the face in two spots and then she hurt her knee falling. She lucked out because she really didn't get hurt but could have gotten so hurt. She told me after that she could have gotten squished like a bug just like I said. I'm so grateful she wasn't hurt more.
And off to bed I go. I feel better having something in my little blog here.
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