But, you know. Not in the Jesus rises from the dead way. Just, hey there! Haven't used this blog in quite some time and thought it might be fun to get back into blogging-kind of way.
Anyway, I'm back and have a slew of posts brewing. I'll update the tickers ::side eyes the long overdue birthday tickers::
I'm going to be making a new attempt at some weekly features including the 1001 Things project, Disney Planning, Cooking, and of course the crazy antics of 2 adorable kids.
So, grab some popcorn and see you real soon! (No, really. I promise I'll be back)
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Friday, April 15, 2011
Jump. Laugh. Climb. Rinse and Repeat.
Couch cushions and storage ottomans have provided HOURS of jumping entertainment for the girls over the past couple of days.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
A+ in Geometry?
Mini Me just turned 4. So, this week she had her annual check up. They did all the usual stuff, and part of her exam was an eye test. The eye chart they use has symbols/shapes instead of letters. The nurse went through all the shapes with her to make sure she knew what they were and then they started.
Mini Me stood there and read off the shapes.
It wasn't a moon, it was a crescent. . It wasn't just a flag, it was a striped flag. As the shapes got smaller, Mini Me struggled a little.
When she got to the hand picture, she couldn't quite tell what it was, so she went with her best guess: It looks like a rectangle.
Even better, when she got to a picture of a tea cup on a saucer: Well, I'm not sure exactly, but it kind of looks like a trapezoid.
The nurse didn't really know how to respond to that one. I just smiled. That's our girl.
Mini Me stood there and read off the shapes.
It wasn't a moon, it was a crescent. . It wasn't just a flag, it was a striped flag. As the shapes got smaller, Mini Me struggled a little.
When she got to the hand picture, she couldn't quite tell what it was, so she went with her best guess: It looks like a rectangle.
Even better, when she got to a picture of a tea cup on a saucer: Well, I'm not sure exactly, but it kind of looks like a trapezoid.
The nurse didn't really know how to respond to that one. I just smiled. That's our girl.
Friday, February 25, 2011
The day his bum got smaller...
I know I've been horrible about updating this blog. But, today I have a story that I really want to remember in 15 years, so I'm going to blog about it in case I ever have my memory erased by aliens or something equally as likely.
Yesterday, we went to a playdate. It was a breakfast playdate where the kids all wore their PJ's and the organizer made pancakes for everyone. The older kids has run off to play, and then this is what happened:
One of the boys, around 3 years old, comes running out-followed by the other kids, including Mini Me. He has his PJ's unzipped down to his waist, with his penis out, yelling that "it's smaller now!".
Thankfully, all the moms there were really cool, and we all just laughed hysterically while the host/mom told her son to keep his PJ's on for the rest of the playdate.
When hubby got home last night, Mini Me informed him that her friends "bum gets smaller". Well, let's stick with that for now. Yeah....it's his bum that got smaller.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Seeing Red
I'll say it upfront: we are not the crunchy organic types. We don't go out of our way to avoid any and all additives and the like. But, we're not junk food junkies either. Our kids very rarely get juice, treats, candy, etc. (I reserve that stuff for bribes/rewards for good behavior when I really need them to behave)
However, we recently discovered something that may change our habits, at least a little bit. I am not the type to buy into all the hype about the latest thing that is bad for you. So, while I had heard that the dyes used to color food were "bad" and linked to behavior issues in some children, I never really gave it much thought. I really wish I had.
Since Mini Me was around 2, her life has been in an almost constant state of chaos. I'll spare the rundown, but suffice it to say, its been a little hard on us all. So, naturally, when Mini Me's tantrums and behavior progressively got worse, we blamed it on age (three is so much harder than 2, we said) and blamed it on the constant state of change we were living in.
Mini Me was the center of my universe. Up until around 2 years old, I couldn't take my eyes off of her. Not because she was getting into trouble, but because I was so in love with the sweet little miracle she was. But, then, things started to change. At times, she was that same sweet little girl. Then, other times....well, it was different. She was aggressive, bossy, mean, and just horrible to be around. There were times when she has been sitting with me, playing a game, laughing and happy and in an instant, it was as if someone flipped a switch and she would start screaming, stomp out of the room, slam doors, hit.... Who was this kid??? What happened to my angel?
She ended up in time outs and getting punished for this behavior more than I even want to think about. I hate to admit this, but most days I just plain out didn't like her. Of course she's my kid, and I love her. But, I didn't like her. I avoided spending time with her because she could just be so horrible to be around. It broke my heart and I know that she suffered too. Something just wasn't right.
Recently, while away for Christmas, we forgot to give her the Flintstones vitamins that she usually gets every morning. We noticed that her behavior was different. More even. Sure she still had her moments, but they were more 'normal'. Thinking that maybe something in the vitamins were making her stomach hurt or something, we stopped giving them to her. All seemed well. Until....snack time came around one day. In a hurry, I grabbed a blueberry Nutrigrain bar. About 10 minutes later, all hell broke loose. Mini Me came running into the room, yelled at me because I was doing the Wiggles dance wrong, hit me, and was carried kicking and screaming to time out, where she proceeded to scream. She continued this stomping, yelling craziness through dinner time, then just like it started, it was over. And, everything was calm again.
On a whim, I got out the box, and noticed Red #40 as one of the ingredients. I checked the Flintstones vitamins. Guess what? Red #40. A quick google search turned up hundreds of descriptions by other parents of behavior that was almost identical to what we have been going through with Mini Me. How could we have missed this? Why didn't we see it sooner? It explains why she would wake up in a good mood, have her vitamin and by the time breakfast was over, I'd have a monster on my hands. Thankfully, other than the vitamin that she was getting daily, there isn't much else that I routinely give her that has Red #40. I've searched the house and only came up with the cereal bars and the colored marshmallows in the hot cocoa.
She is a completely different child. I am starting to enjoy spending time with her again. I think even she knows she's feeling better. She's saying "I love you" randomly. She's happy. She's more independent and cooperative. It breaks my heart that all this time, she has been miserable because of something as simple as her daily vitamin and unable to express what she was going through. But, I am happy that we are on the right path. I certainly still expect tantrums and stuff. She is still a kid, after all. However, what I have seen in the past couple of weeks and what I've read, has made me a believer. Bye-Bye Dye.
However, we recently discovered something that may change our habits, at least a little bit. I am not the type to buy into all the hype about the latest thing that is bad for you. So, while I had heard that the dyes used to color food were "bad" and linked to behavior issues in some children, I never really gave it much thought. I really wish I had.
Since Mini Me was around 2, her life has been in an almost constant state of chaos. I'll spare the rundown, but suffice it to say, its been a little hard on us all. So, naturally, when Mini Me's tantrums and behavior progressively got worse, we blamed it on age (three is so much harder than 2, we said) and blamed it on the constant state of change we were living in.
Mini Me was the center of my universe. Up until around 2 years old, I couldn't take my eyes off of her. Not because she was getting into trouble, but because I was so in love with the sweet little miracle she was. But, then, things started to change. At times, she was that same sweet little girl. Then, other times....well, it was different. She was aggressive, bossy, mean, and just horrible to be around. There were times when she has been sitting with me, playing a game, laughing and happy and in an instant, it was as if someone flipped a switch and she would start screaming, stomp out of the room, slam doors, hit.... Who was this kid??? What happened to my angel?
She ended up in time outs and getting punished for this behavior more than I even want to think about. I hate to admit this, but most days I just plain out didn't like her. Of course she's my kid, and I love her. But, I didn't like her. I avoided spending time with her because she could just be so horrible to be around. It broke my heart and I know that she suffered too. Something just wasn't right.
Recently, while away for Christmas, we forgot to give her the Flintstones vitamins that she usually gets every morning. We noticed that her behavior was different. More even. Sure she still had her moments, but they were more 'normal'. Thinking that maybe something in the vitamins were making her stomach hurt or something, we stopped giving them to her. All seemed well. Until....snack time came around one day. In a hurry, I grabbed a blueberry Nutrigrain bar. About 10 minutes later, all hell broke loose. Mini Me came running into the room, yelled at me because I was doing the Wiggles dance wrong, hit me, and was carried kicking and screaming to time out, where she proceeded to scream. She continued this stomping, yelling craziness through dinner time, then just like it started, it was over. And, everything was calm again.
On a whim, I got out the box, and noticed Red #40 as one of the ingredients. I checked the Flintstones vitamins. Guess what? Red #40. A quick google search turned up hundreds of descriptions by other parents of behavior that was almost identical to what we have been going through with Mini Me. How could we have missed this? Why didn't we see it sooner? It explains why she would wake up in a good mood, have her vitamin and by the time breakfast was over, I'd have a monster on my hands. Thankfully, other than the vitamin that she was getting daily, there isn't much else that I routinely give her that has Red #40. I've searched the house and only came up with the cereal bars and the colored marshmallows in the hot cocoa.
She is a completely different child. I am starting to enjoy spending time with her again. I think even she knows she's feeling better. She's saying "I love you" randomly. She's happy. She's more independent and cooperative. It breaks my heart that all this time, she has been miserable because of something as simple as her daily vitamin and unable to express what she was going through. But, I am happy that we are on the right path. I certainly still expect tantrums and stuff. She is still a kid, after all. However, what I have seen in the past couple of weeks and what I've read, has made me a believer. Bye-Bye Dye.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Monday, December 13, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Canadian for a day
As you may know, my husband is Canadian...I am not, nor have I ever lived there.
Last week, I took our dog (along with our 2 kids in the pouring rain) to the vet to get his shots. (Don't even get me started about them charging me for an ANNUAL exam all 3 times he's been there in the past 7 months JUST for SHOTS....)
Anyway, the vet comes in and is giving him the shots and then says, "So...you're Canadian?"
:: me looking very confused as to why our nationalities would have been in our dogs medical records::
Vet: "I can tell by your accent."
LOL Um, OK. So, I got to be Canadian for a day. :-)
Last week, I took our dog (along with our 2 kids in the pouring rain) to the vet to get his shots. (Don't even get me started about them charging me for an ANNUAL exam all 3 times he's been there in the past 7 months JUST for SHOTS....)
Anyway, the vet comes in and is giving him the shots and then says, "So...you're Canadian?"
:: me looking very confused as to why our nationalities would have been in our dogs medical records::
Vet: "I can tell by your accent."
LOL Um, OK. So, I got to be Canadian for a day. :-)
Monday, November 22, 2010
House
Wow, so the past 6 weeks have been busy. At the beginning of October, we formally started the home buying process. Early on, we found a house that was acceptable, in a neighborhood we LOVED. We decided that even though the house would need renovations, we'd put an offer in on it.
The sellers were not willing to sell for what we were willing to pay, considering the renovations. So, we moved on. A couple of weeks later, I fell in love with a house, but we weren't crazy about the location at first. By the time we decided the location was acceptable (3 days later) the house was already under contract. We put in a backup offer, just in case. I was heartbroken. I LOVED that house.
The foundation is in, and we met with the builder yesterday to discuss our choices. We've picked an exterior color, and are picking flooring this week. The plan is that they will begin framing it Dec. 1. So, let's hope for a mild winter so they are able to stay on schedule. Here's what it looks like right now:
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