I'm Still Here

Just very busy and very sleep deprived. I'll be back soon...I promise.

This is the Last One...I Promise

Ok, I know, videos are getting kind of old and boring, but this one is too cute so I will post it anyway. This child can EAT!


I'd like to be able to sit down and write a good blog sometime soon. I have lots of ideas in my head, just not alot of time for blogging. I should bring the computer into Ollie's room in the middle of the night while I am sitting there waiting for him to fall back asleep. I sat in there for an hour last night at 3 am waiting for him to fall back asleep and he still cried when I left the room and ended up in our bed. At the moment, he is curled up in the beanbag chair in the living room sound asleep. Joel said he crawled in there when they got home at 6 and fell asleep and then he woke him up to put his PJs on and transfer him to the crib, but he cried (surprise!) and went right back onto the beanbag. I'm thinking of leaving him there for the night. Whatever works at this point.
So, I want to do product reviews on my blog, and maybe bring back Memory Monday. Here's today's: Remember those suncatchers that were a big hit in the 80's? You put little glass beads in the wire frame and then baked it in the oven. We found some of those kits at work the other day. Man, I loved those. I can still remember the acrid smell of them baking. Fun times.

HELP!

Ok, anyone with toddler experience, I need your help. I mentioned before that Oliver has been having a hard time sleeping. I think I have reached the end of my rope with it. I was fine with sitting in there for a little while until he was asleep, but tonight he wanted me to rock him to sleep. He finally fell asleep and I put him in his crib and he woke up and cried all over again. So, I left the room and told him I'd be back (hoping that he would fall asleep in the meantime...) and he cried and screamed so loud that he scared Morgan. It was definitely a angry scream rather than a scared or sad one, so I finally threatened to spank him if he keeps it up. It is so hard to tell if this is a naughty, power struggle thing or if he is genuinely scared. I don't want to punish him for being afraid, but I do want to punish him for being demanding and controlling and down right naughty. Last night was awful, too. I went out for a while and he was asleep, thankfully, when I got home, but he woke up at about midnight and ended up in our bed at 1:30 and then he and I ended up on the couch at about 2:oo and he was awake at 6!!! Not only could I not leave him alone, but he had to be physically touching me somehow in order to fall asleep. I was hoping this would be a quick phase because of the no-binky transition, but it is seeming like more. Should I call the doctor? Is she going to just tell me that it is a phase and it will pass and I should just let him cry it out? Because that is tough when he shares a room with a peacefully sleeping baby.
He went through this before when Morgan was an infant. I actually ended up sleeping on the floor in his room a few times. It was almost exactly the same thing, now that I think about it, I would stay in there until I was sure he was asleep and then I would tip toe out and as soon as I did that he would wake up and scream hysterically.
From a purely selfish standpoint, I am getting so annoyed at "wasting" my whole evening sitting in there waiting for him to fall asleep. (I put it in quotes, because I know in the long run, it is not a waste - it's my job for right now.) I can't really get anything accomplished around the house unless I want to stay up super late or get up super early before the kids do. I also don't want to spend any free minute that I do have working on housework. I think I would go crazy. Which is why I'm blogging right now instead of finishing up the dishes or cleaning up the last few toys laying around.
So, faithful readers, what is your advice???

New Profile Picture

It has been brought to my attention that there are no family pictures on this blog. So, my mission is to get a nice family photo of us at some point soon. Until then, I give you this:

What Do I Do With Myself?

The children are gone with Grammie for the morning... where do I begin? I have quite a list of to-do's for the morning before I head to work. Here they are in order:
1. Write a real blog. It's been a while.
2. Switch summer and winter clothes and try to bring as many bins as possible back over to our inconvenient-yet-large-so-it's-worth-it storage closet.
3. Get a hair cut. Oh man, I am psyched for this one. I think I'm going to go pretty short. I'm ready for a change.
4. Head over to my parents' house to finish the laundry and watch some TV (shhh...don't tell Joel!) before I go to work.
I also should do the dishes and clean the bathroom and wash the kitchen floor, but who has time for that???
I've been neglecting all my chores recently, including blogging, because I have not really had much of a break these days. I mentioned in my last entry that Oliver doesn't have his binky anymore. Well, since then, he doesn't have a nap anymore either. Ugh, it is almost worth giving him his binky back just for those few hours of sanity. Plus, he is miserable by 3:00. He's a smart little bugger, too. Says he'll nap if he can have his binky. But, we've already made the break and I don't want to do it all over again. He's also been giving me a hard time at night going to bed. He doesn't want to be alone anymore so I have to sit in his room and read until he goes to sleep. Actually, that has been kind of nice. I get to do my bible study homework in peace while they fall asleep. It forces me to get it done. (Way to see the bright side, Becka!)
So, that has been my life in a nutshell these days. Morgan has been napping and sleeping just fine. Thank goodness, because if it was both of them....whew.
Oh, here's a funny thing Ollie said the other night: He was telling me that I needed to sleep in his room and that he was going to make me a new bed in there. So I told him I needed to go and sleep with Daddy so he wouldn't be lonely. Of course Oliver asked why so I told him that I belong to Daddy, too, and that Oliver needs to share me with him and with Morgan. Then Oliver said, "Me get Daddy a new Mommy." Sorry, bud, it doesn't work that way!

What Kind Of Idiot Flushes Her Cell Phone Down the Toilet?

Umm...yeah that would be me. I was over at my parents' house on Saturday visiting with some family friends from New Zealand. I went to the bathroom accompanied by my two little monkeys, as usual. Now that Oliver can open doors, having him in the bathroom with me is rough. He usually tries to open it while I am mid-pee. So, as I was going, he started opening the door, so I jumped up, flushed the toilet and pulled up my pants all at once. All of a sudden, my cell phone flew out of my pocket and into the toilet and instantly disappeared into the abyss like a little silver poop. The timing was just perfect. I had no chance of even trying to grab it. So, since my dad is out of the country at the moment, we called one of his friends from church who is pretty handy and he came over and took the toilet off and was able to dislodge my phone from the bend in the pipe. We took it apart and blow dried it and when I tried it this morning it worked!!! The display is a little messed up, but I made a call! Ahhh... the wonders of technology. I'm going to go and disinfect it now.


PS. No more binky for Oliver. That will be the next entry.

Please leave a message at the tone...

Unfortunately, Oliver has discovered fear. He has had a few nightmares recently (none that have to do with 911, though) and it seems like at night the strangest things scare him. I've had to remove piggy banks, blankets, stuffed animals, turn the light on, turn the light off, all sorts of things. Well, tonight he woke up crying about an hour after we put him down and was saying that Morgan's piggy bank scared him. So, I rocked him for a few minutes and decided that it is time for a lesson about trusting God when we are afraid. So, I told him that God keeps us safe all the time and that when we are afraid we can ask Him to help us not to be afraid anymore. Then I asked him if he wanted me to pray and ask God to keep him safe. He said yes, so I prayed a simple prayer and said Amen. Oliver said, "God's not home, Mommy. He's with Noah." So much for that...
After stifling my laughter, I did tell him that God is always with us and always hears us. What a funny boy.

Dream Analysis

Do you have or have you ever had a recurring dream/nightmare? I think this is so interesting. Some dreams are easy to interpret but, I think, others are kind of hard to figure out. I have this recurring dream where I am in some situation where I need to call 911. I make the call and they either don't show up or the phone doesn't work, or, and this was the best one, it was the wrong number. Why do I have this dream all the time?? Sometimes it is pretty scary and I wake up all scared-like and other times it is just a normal dream. Most of the time in my dream I am waiting and waiting and they never show up. I've never had to call 911 in real life, so it's not like I am reliving a traumatic experience. Anyway, just thought I'd share that with you. What's your theory?

Ollie's Turn

This is a sideways video (I was thinking of taking pictures, not videos...duh.) of Oliver singing my favorite song of his..Happy Birthday. Though, Ring around the Rosie is a close second.




This is Ollie talking about the "Up-and-down Horseys" which is the carousel at the beach. I absolutely love the way he says horseys. Enjoy the cuteness and I promise I will do a real blog soon.

This is Only a Test...

So, let's see how this video thing works. This is a bad quality video of Morgan drinking the water at the beach. Excuse my obnoxious laughter.

Let The Cuteness Speak for Itself

Infidelity

Blogger, I have a confession... I've been cheating on you. See, someone introduced me to an evil tempter called Facebook and I just can't seem to do anything else these days. In my few and far between "downtimes" I've been sucked into the Facebook world rather than writing on you, my dear Blog. I miss you and soon the excitement of Facebook will wear off and I will return to you. But in the meantime, I am finding long lost friends, old college buddies, kids that were in the Haven while I worked there (One of whom is married and has step kids and step GRANDKIDS! Yikes!), learning new things about people I already know, playing games, sending "stickies" , oh the fun that can be had (read: time that can be wasted).
But, I know my fun time will end soon. Work started this week. That means no more time to waste. I am so sad. Not only for the end to my facebook affair, but also for the end of my relaxed time with my kids everyday. I enjoy the break from them for a while, but mostly I miss them and wonder what funny new trick I am missing out on. This week's new trick? Oliver does "cooking shows" which equals him banging on his pots and pans with a spoon and singing songs. Then he takes a bow and cracks up laughing.

I'll return to you soon, my blog.

Memory Monday...I almost forgot to remember!

This past weekend we went to one of my favorite places in the whole, wide world. Even if I got to travel the world and got to see every cool and beautiful place, I think this place would still be one of my favorites. It's a lighthouse and jetty in Scituate. There's something about it that just seems so peaceful and beautiful to me. Anyway, we took the kids there to play at the beach and so the boys could try to catch hermit crabs. It got me to thinking about the first time I took Joel there. It was the summer we met - 2001, perhaps. We were on a weekend off from camp and we had just started our official relationship. We walked all the way out to the end of the jetty and sat for a while. The whole time I am wondering when he is going to hold my hand, perfect opportunity with the rough footing and all. Anyway, we talked as only newly dating couples talk - telling stories of our past, sharing deep thoughts, etc. Then, on our walk back I finally bit the bullet and grabbed his hand. We got our picture taken in front of the lighthouse, our arms draped awkwardly around each other. I look back at that picture and think how young we were - my hair was still completely brown, for heaven's sake - and how far we have come since then, also how far we have strayed since then. Not from each other, but from that excitement of falling in love. Sometimes it just seems so mundane, now. I know that is normal, but it's a shame that we can't keep that excitement of just holding hands and talking. On the other hand, it is wonderful to think how much more we know about each other now, how much we can communicate without saying anything and how much we have gotten to experience together. How amazing it was to return to this place with our children. Something I only dreamed of before. I remember Joel telling me that day that he was going to marry me, and I thought he was crazy to be so sure, so soon. Little did I know...
To my readers with spouses: Take some time tonight to think about your first date or special time with your hubby. Remember that feeling of excitement and nervousness and share it with him. You'll both enjoy the memory.

Introducing...Memory Monday

Ok, in an effort to cure my blogger's block, I am starting a new Monday theme. Maybe this will force me to sit down and write at least every Monday. So, I bring you Memory Monday. Come. Take a trip with me down memory lane...
One of my favorite memories of childhood is camping. We would usually go to Minuteman KOA (which seemed so far away back then) in Littleton, MA and a place called Papoose Pond Resort in Maine. We had an old pop-up trailer and I remember getting it all packed and ready for our trip. I loved the excitement of loading up the cooler and the car and staking out my place in the "way back" of the station wagon. The momentary stress and anxiety as my parents tried working together to get the camper hitched up to the car. ("To the left more. No your other left!" ) Then the trip in the car which I usually slept through unless I had a friend with me. Then, I'm sure we drove my parents nuts the whole way. Upon arrival at the campground I would immediately begin exploring the area. Are things the same as they were last year? Anything changed? Anyone else here yet? (We would usually go with a bunch of other families) Our camper was the best. I can still smell the sweet, musty, piney odor. I can hear the door squeak and bang shut. I can feel the warm coziness of my sleeping bag. I can still see my parents in the big bed on the other side of the camper. I loved when it rained .The plip plop of the drops on the canvas roof was like a lullaby.
The joy of being outside all day and able to get dirty without anyone caring. Swimming and playing in the water for hours. Eating fried dough that my mom made and hot dogs and marshmallows cooked on the fire. Sitting around the fire in the evening, smelling the smoke, hearing the pop and crackle, seeing the sparks float up and then disappear. When I was really little, I was passed around from lap to lap around the fire. Then I got my own chair and would sit out until I could no longer keep my eyes open.
I am blessed to have had such a great childhood. I hope we can give our kids such great memories like this one. Though, I'm not sure they are ready for camping...yet.

She Strikes Again

My oversharing co-worker is at it again. This time she informed me that she recently found out that her 18 year old son is having sex with a 16 year old. AND that he told his father that he couldn't "get it up". I'm sure the kid would be thrilled to know that his mother is sharing all of this with her co workers. The conversation went on and on into many details, but I will not repeat the oversharing this time, lest I, too, become guilty.
Thank goodness this is the last week of summer school. I can't say that I have really loved it. It was a nice change of pace to be back in the classroom doing academic stuff with the kids, but these kids(and the teacher) really tried my patience. No offense to anyone who ever had to go to summer school, but these aren't the most motivated students, if you know what I mean. Trying to get them to do anything is like pulling teeth and it is even more frustrating when they can't grasp most of the concepts we are talking about. In our case, phonics, reading, writing, naming the letters, etc. It makes me totally motivated to start talking about letters and their sounds with Oliver now. Not to pressure him or force him to be some sort of reading prodigy, but just to familiarize him with it now so it is not so difficult when he goes to school.
The big question now is what to do with my month of August. I will have tons of time and not tons of money. I am actually kind of looking forward to just chilling out with the kids, going to the beach and maybe getting my house clean! Then school starts up again after Labor Day.

Hubby got a new job. Have I mentioned that yet? Oh, he is like a new man. He loves the job and it totally makes him a much happier person. Money is not much better, but it is worth it for a happy hubby. He is a head custodian at a small private school. He loves taking care of the lawns and doing all the little fix-it projects. Funny, I can't picture it. He doesn't even replace toilet paper at our house. Maybe if I made him wear a uniform and gave him a to-do list he would help out a little more around here.

Funnest Thing Ever

Took the kids to a Family Fun Day yesterday. Lots of fire trucks, police cars, etc. which were a big hit with Oliver, but the best part was the FOAM! The fire dept. set up their foam machine with soap bubbles and sprayed the entire field with foam. I thought it would be cool, but I had no idea how cool! Then they sprayed water from the big ladder truck. Oliver was in heaven. Morgan, not so much. Thank goodness for Grammie so she could watch happily from the sidelines. Here are some pictures:

Too Much Information Defined

I'm working for the summer school program this month and one of the women I work with is a complete over-sharer. Every day she has some sort of story or complaint to share and it is always of a very personal and very uncomfortable nature. Today her story was about how heavy her period is. Oh my gosh, what do you say in response to that?! Yesterday, it was her woes of finding shirts that fit her because her boobs are so huge. "Well, the tighter the better according to my husband, you know." Ick. Menopause, hormones, arthritis, extreme sweating - the list goes on.
So, my internet friends, how do I respond to this woman? So far my response has been along the lines of smiling and nodding on the outside and squirming and gagging on the inside. I just want to put my fingers in my ears and hum.

Weaning Made Simple

Morgan is officially done nursing as of Tuesday night. Recently, I have only been nursing her at night before she goes to bed. It's kind of our special time together. Well, Tuesday night she decided to make that time even more "special" by biting my nipples repeatedly. Ummm...ouch! The first time she did it, I gently took her off my breast, said "All done" and put her in her crib. She wanted none of that - screamed until I gave her another try. She took a little nip at me to see if that was what caused me to take her away and I did it again. Convinced that that was the cause of her problems she proceeded to nurse properly for a few minutes. I gave myself a little pat on the back for handling it the right way thinking the problem was solved and then she CHOMPED down. I screamed "NO!" and put her in her bed again. I thought I was going to have blood gushing down my chest - it hurt that bad. Thus the nursing is done. She whined for it tonight while I was putting them down for bed and I told her Mommy's milk is all gone. I was kind of sad. Not sad enough to put my nipples in danger again, though.
After almost two years straight of nursing, it feels kind of strange. Maybe it's time for another baby....

Birthday Party

It seems like the kids' birthday party was ages ago and I am finally getting around to blogging about it. Both kids are taking a morning nap right now. A rare and greatly treasured treat for me. So, rather than clean house and wash dishes I am spending my time with you, faithful blog readers. (I do have faithful blog readers, right?) Anyway, the b-day was pretty good. The cakes came out great:

Our sweet little Morgan gave her guests the unwelcome gift of throwing up all over the place during the party. She was really not feeling well and slept most of the day. Oliver was psyched to get all of the attention. Other than that we had a good time and the kids got completely spoiled. Here are some more pictures:Here's Oliver opening his new bike from Nana and Papa.


Blowing out the candles.

And, our Morgan in happier times after the party. Enjoying Oliver's truck and her new baby. Love the pigtails!!!

Smorgasbord

Is that how you spell that? I don' t know, but you know what I mean. I have alot to share today and none of it is really related. I'll start with this -I think I have a prediction for the last Harry Potter book. I have been rereading all of the books since Joel got them for me for my birthday and I can't wait to read the next one. I've been doing alot of thinking about Snape. Is he good or evil? He certainly seems to hate Harry, that is for sure, but he is always saving his butt somehow. I think that it is possible that Snape may sacrifice himself for Harry in the next book. I am pretty sure that someone has to die in order to defeat Voldemort and it is supposed to be Harry, but I think Snape is somehow going to save him again and end up sacrificing his own life. I don't know, I'm not fully convinced, but it is a theory. You heard it here first...
I also have a couple funny Oliver stories. I bought some Pirate's Booty at the grocery store thinking that it would be a good, healthier snack for the kids. Oliver loves it and calls it "booby" which is funny in itself. But, even funnier was that he was sitting at the table having his booty the other day and I was puttering around the apartment not really paying attention to him when I heard him saying "shake, shake, shake". I asked him what he was doing and he said "shake booby" . The kid was shaking his booty!!! How he made the connection between that booty and his other booty that gets shaken, I don't know, but it was funny. Funny enough for me to get the video camera out and get some footage of the booty shaking. While I had the camera out I decided to try and get him to say some of his funniest words so I did a little interview with him. I was asking him all sorts of questions and then I asked him what daddy's name is. He replied, "Joel." Then I asked, "What is mommy's name?" He replied, "Mommy". I rephrased it this way, "How does daddy call mommy?" His response?? "HEY!" The kid is too much!
We have the big birthday bash coming up this weekend. Should be fun. I feel like I should go through the toys and purge now so that we have room for all the other toys that will be coming our way. I'm curious to see how Miss Morgan will handle the singing and presents and general chaos that will be the day. I know Oliver will love it! We got Morgan a Cabbage Patch Kid. When we were at the store buying it, I kept thinking back to how hard it was to get one when I was a kid. We had to wait in lines and get numbers and go into the special back room at Bradlee's which was stacked floor to ceiling with CPKs. Now, there are barely any on the shelf and if you ask me, they aren't nearly as cute as the old school ones. We got Morgan a baby one so it is cute.
Pictures of the party should be posted next week - if I can get my act together and do it!! Oh, and by the way, it is 8:10 am and I still haven't heard a peep from the kids. I have already showered, done my quiet time, taken out the trash and blogged! How sweet it is.

Too Early

I have been trying to wake up with Joel at 5:30/6:00 each morning so that I can get some stuff done while the kids are still sleeping. Most of the time it works out great. I have just enough time to take a shower and sometimes even get my Bible study/quiet time done. It is so frustrating though when they wake up early, too. Then I am up early AND not getting anything done which is a bummer. Today they are cooperating nicely. I am glad to get the chance to blog in peace - though it is a bit too early for me to put my thoughts together coherently.
I wish I could make a recording of Oliver and put it on here so those of you who don't get to see him can hear him talking. Oh man, is it the cutest. I love, love, love that we can have a conversation now. And hearing him say "I love you" (roo roo) melts my heart. Even though I have to ask him to say it. It's still meaningful even though it is totally prompted. He is such a good boy. He asks to go down for his nap, he shares with his sister...he is just full of goodness. Fear not, he does have his two year old moments, lest anyone with kids feels jealous. (Does that sentence make sense? My 6:30 am brain can't quite grasp it.) His sister on the other hand is full of something else. I love her to bits and pieces, but wow, she is a princess through and through. She wants her way or no way. And she'll let you know loud and clear. Her latest thing is that she no longer wants to eat baby food. My baby no longer wants to eat baby food. If she even sees me with the jar and spoon in hand she starts crying and shaking her head. I have tried to trick her by putting the food in a bowl and she takes one bite and then screams and shakes her head. Ok, I get it, no more baby food. The problem is, though, that she won't eat much other food either. Don't even try to give her anything slightly mooshy or cold. She picks it up and promptly throws it on the floor. She loves toast and bread, but put a little jelly on it and off to the floor it goes. I feel like I am wasting more food than ever. Wish I could make a little care package for all those starving kids in China that I have heard so much about in my lifetime. But, all of that stuff aside, you should see this girl. She is the most beautiful little thing. She was sleeping on the couch at my mom's yesterday and all I could do was just look at her and admire her. She is so tiny and perfect. Her eye lashes are about a mile long (just like her brother's) and her eyes are so blue. I don't know how anyone can have a child and doubt that God exists. Only God can create something so miraculous. And, she loves to play. She can be in mid-tantrum and if I start doing "This Little Piggy" she instantly stops and smiles. She could do that all day, I think. She loves Oliver and I think has a bit of separation anxiety with him. She crawls as fast as her little arms and legs will let her just to keep up with him. I just love my kids. I don't know why I am feeling so sentimental about them just now. I think it is because of this massacre at Virginia Tech and the reminder that it has given me that life is precious and it could end anytime. Man, I was so emotional watching that memorial service yesterday. I couldn't figure out why. But then it hit me - it could've been me. That could have happened any where to anyone. It was completely random. I just kept thinking, What if that had happened at Wheaton? College seems like such a safe place to me (At least it did to me inside the Wheaton Bubble), a place where you can test out your wings, so to speak. And the relationships that are made there are some of the closest you will have. What if all of that was shattered? What if one of my closest friends died? Ugh, I just feel for those students and families. What a tragedy. And the family of the shooter, how must they feel? It's not their fault, but they must feel tremendous guilt and feel like literally the whole country hates them. I hope someone reaches out to them - they lost a kid, too.
Whew, I guess I am rather verbose at this hour of the morning. Hope you are not totally bored.

What Have I Done?

Oliver is now in the stage of being able to repeat almost anything you ask him to say. Some things he catches on to pretty quickly and others he will repeat and forget unless prompted to say them again. Some things he comes up with on his own - completely shocking all of us. One of these shockers is "pot holder" - what other almost two year old says that on a regular basis? Looking for a great gift for his birthday? He LOVES potholders; uses them correctly, too. Anyway, a while back I was playing with him and grabbing his cute little baby bum as he was running away. I told him I was getting his butt cheeks, which he quickly repeated. Word to the wise, if your child repeats something that you do not want him to say to other people, don't laugh!! No matter how cute it is! I made the mistake of laughing and having him say it to daddy, grammie ,aunts, uncles, you name it...now when I am on the phone, he thinks it is hilarious to put his mouth up to the receiver and say butt cheek repeatedly. I am just praying that he doesn't do it to his Nana. She won't laugh. Also, I had to spank him the other day while I was changing him because he was kicking and squirming. So, I swatted him on the butt and he starts laughing saying, "Butt cheek, spank, spank. Butt cheek, spank, spank." I had to turn away and laugh. So, now I am trying to teach him not to say it all the time, especially on the phone!

On a completely unrelated note, here are a few recent pictures:

Anal or Just Organized?

So, I told you I'd write about my "issues" with putting toys away... just before Christmas we got a bin shelf ( I don't really know what it is called officially, but it is a shelf with little plastic bins on it) and I am obsessed with making sure that the toys go in the proper bins. The Weebles are in one, the Little People in another, the play food takes up two bins, etc. Anyway, it drives me NUTS when the toys are mixed in with each other or when they are just in a big pile on the play mat. I'm not sure why. I am not really like this with anything else in the house, I mean, things do have their places and I try to keep them there, but I don't get as annoyed when other things are out of place. I don't know, I think it makes it easier for the babes to find the toys they want and to know where to put them away if we can convince them to do that. But, even in the midst of playtime I find myself putting things back in their proper bins. Morgan likes to take things out and put them back in, so she is constantly taking the Weebles out and putting them in with the Little People. So, I find myself compelled to put them back in with the rest of the Weebles. Am I teaching my children racism? ("Weebles and Little People cannot live in harmony with each other in the same bin!") Oh, and another thing that I was doing (that has since stopped - must have been a phase) was putting away the Little People zoo animals in alphabetical order. You see, there is one animal for each letter and I did it the first time just to make sure we had them all and then I found that I had to do it that way every time. I agree, that is pretty anal. I'm glad I have stopped that.
Now that I am thinking of it, I must go and make sure the Weebles and the Little People are not mixed!

Are You Kidding Me??

So, I have been holed up in my bedroom for about 45 minutes for some "alone time". Joel thought I was napping, but I have been online for a while, just enjoying the peace and uninterruption. I had just started this blog when Joel opened the bedroom door and asked me to change Oliver's diaper! Keep in mind, he thought I was sleeping! Ummm....sometimes I wonder about that man... Now both babies are crying for me, the peace is over. And I was just getting psyched to write a big old Blog entry. I guess now it will have to wait again. Sorry.

Florida

We had a fantastic time in Florida! Despite cool weather and various illnesses (mine, mostly) we ended up enjoying ourselves and feeling rested. The highlight of the trip for me was getting to spend time with my college roommate and her family. We had not seen each other in almost four years! Again, the weather wasn't ideal, but we had a great time catching up and getting to know each other's kids. We mostly spent time at the beach, not in the water, though, and in the pool at the house we were at. It was heated, so it was nice while you were in it, but getting out was pure torture!

I have decided that vacations are great, but getting ready to leave and coming home at the end of the trip are too stressful for me. Almost not worth the vacation itself. We always have some sort of catastrophe upon our arrival home. Last time we went to Florida, we came home to a house that had problems with the heat while we were gone and many of Joel's pet frogs ( yes, frogs) were dead! Oh, and our rent check had bounced because Joel's work didn't pay him for his vacation time. This year we were greeted with a flat tire! Nothing better than a flat tire after a long day of traveling with two children under two! We ended up having to get two new tires put on the car in order for it to pass inspection. Sweet! And, I ended up sick again when we got home. I had a major ear infection before we left and now I have bronchitis. The joys of working in the school system. I hope all these things run their course quickly. I am so done with being sick! I just don't have time for it. Here's me the last time we were in Florida. Preggers with Oliver. Look at us now!
Anyway, that was our trip. Next time I will tell you about how anal I have become about putting away my children's toys. Oh, and about how Joel has mentioned twice in the last few days about wanting child number three...

I'm Still Here

Ok, first off, my apologies to my readers (do I have any readers?) for my lack of blogging lately. It's not that I have nothing to say, I guess I just have not been able to find the time to write. One would think that having Joel around would make it easier for me to find some time for myself. Well, one would be WRONG! It's more like having 3 kids to take care of. I've decided that it is not appropriate to whine about my husband on this blog - but if it was, whew, this would be a long blog. This winter layoff thing is killing us. OK, enough about that. Ok, one little whine...why can't he replace the toilet paper roll?
We're gearing up for our trip to Florida next week. Can't hardly wait for that. I am beyond excited to play with Oliver and Morgan at the beach and in the pool. It is going to be a blast. I will try to post some pictures when we get back - or maybe while we are there if we decide to bring the computer. I bought a bathing suit the other day. Holy expensive, Batman. But, I guess it was worth it. Hopefully I won't need to buy one again for a long time.
I watched Morgan fall asleep lastnight. There is nothing cuter than that. She was fighting it so hard. Her little eyes would flutter shut and then pop back open to make sure I was still standing there. Finally she succumbed to her tiredness. Ahhhh...peace for a while. She did pretty well lastnight. Only woke up twice. Once at 12:30 and once at 4:00. Especially good since I am battling a cold and need as much rest as I can get. Hopefully our trip won't throw her off again.

Time Flies When You're Having Kids

I was looking through all the pictures we have stored on our computer tonight. I can't believe how much the babies have changed in such a short time! When you have a baby, people always say to cherish every moment because it goes by so fast. When you are in the moment you think that it can't go that fast, but then you look back and you think, where did the time go ? Wasn't it just yesterday that I was cradling my little Oliver in my arms and rocking him to sleep? Now we are playing pretend and having conversations! And isn't Morgan still supposed to be a tiny newborn? Now she is crawling, and teething and pulling herself up. Next thing you know they'll be talking on the phone and getting their licenses! Oh man... So really, when people tell you to cherish every moment, do it! It really does go so fast. Sometimes I want to freeze time and keep them just the way the are now (minus the waking up during the night). On the other hand, I can't wait to see the next stages and how my babies will be when they grow up.

Back To Life...Back To Reality

So, I'm working now. First week under my belt. I still haven't come to terms with the fact that I have to go there every day. Working sucks. The job is fine, it's the leaving my babies that is the hard part.
Christmas was great. Oliver got so many gifts from the assorted grandparents that he actually got to the point where he refused to open any more. He loved his play food and has been cooking up a storm. Morgan has become completely mobile in the past month. She is scooting all over the apartment. Still no teeth, though. I remember waiting a while for Oliver's teeth to appear, too.
We have this new laptop and I am having a hard time adjusting to it. I don't like typing on it at all. And, the pictures from christmas are all on the other computer. So, I'll try to get them up here sometime soon!