Life at the Zoo

Happy Thanksgiving...and a reminder

2010-11-23T13:00:00.002-05:00

Take the time this week to focus on friends, family and the blessings in your life!

And, if you have a child with autism or another special need, check out the Autism Speaks website for tips on helping your child cope with the added stress and change that the holiday season brings.

Counting Down...

2010-09-13T01:52:00.002-04:00

...to a lot of different things! So much is going to be happening around here soon and we're starting to get really excited!

First, there's only a few more weeks until Emily's arrival and then we've got all those wonderful holidays to anticipate - Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas! We can't wait for Christmas this year as my dad and stepmom will be coming to visit from Texas. This will be the first time that they have seen us since Anthony was 3 months old. I'm sure they'll notice he's grown quite a bit and this will be their first time meeting our little curly-haired sweetie Matthew.

There's so much I need to catch you up on that if I can get the time to type this week, there should be a few more posts!

As Time Goes By

2010-08-18T09:46:00.002-04:00

Happy 4th Anniversary to the most wonderful husband and father ever! I love you!!!

Emily Update!

2010-08-15T03:07:00.002-04:00

We've had a pretty good week here at the zoo. The boys have been playing and getting along so nicely with only a few new scars to show from their sibling wars. We've been swimming and eaten tacos and had a visit from mawmaw, cleaned the apartment and done some decorating and made yummy Butter Rolls.

We're still gearing up for Anthony to start pre-school in a few weeks. He, of course, has no idea even though I've explained it quite often and driven past the school several times. I am so excited about the opportunities this will create for him and his speech and occupational therapists as well as his behavioral pediatrician hope to see some improvements. His pre-school seems wonderful and has gotten rave reviews from everyone I've talked to, so I'm not worried. I know he'll do just fine without me, but this mama will still probably shed a few tears the first time I have to drop him off in the circle (the first day, Andy and I get to walk him in and stay for an hour in the classroom with him and then go upstairs for an orientation meeting and to fill out paperwork, so we never actually leave the building without him that first day.)

Last weekend, Mom and I went shopping up in Chattanooga. I had nooooooo idea, but it was not only the last weekend before school started up there, but it was also the tax-free weekend. It was so incredibly crowded, although I did score some pretty sweet deals on fall clothes for the boys (psst...check out Carters and Old Navy).

Matthew is just amazing me this week. He is getting to be such a big boy and although it makes me sad to see him at the same developmental level as his big brother, I am so proud of all of his progress! He has started imitating us and is so good about listening when we tell him "no." He is also starting to follow very simple commands and let me just tell you that his curly hair melts hearts wherever we go! Andy and I so often are surprised when Matthew starts doing something new because we don't expect him to be doing it at his age. I suppose that comes from Anthony not following the 'normal' developmental time line but it is so fun for us to see Matthew master all these new skills and he is so proud of himself every time Mommy and Daddy clap for him and say "yay!"

We are now going to OB appointments on pretty much a weekly basis. Emily is measuring an estimated 4.2 pounds (WOW!!!) and her amniotic fluid is looking incredible at 17.19. At this point with both the boys, the fluid had already started decreasing and becoming a problem so it is exciting and a relief that hers is still looking well. The doctors are a little concerned because she is measuring so far along (exactly two weeks ahead) but it is due to my gestational diabetes. We will just continue to keep a close watch on her and are still looking at welcoming her into this world around the 37 week mark.

So that is what's happening in our neck of the woods - how are you and yours going to spend the last few weeks of August?

Fall is Almost Here!

2010-08-10T11:03:00.003-04:00

Well, technically, there's still about a month and a half before fall officially starts! But the schools here start back on Friday and the school supplies are flying off the shelves, the tax-free weekend in Tennessee was this past weekend and walking by the Yankee Candle store in the mall on Saturday, I couldn't help but notice that they already had Halloween things featured in their window display. And that's good enough for me to say that my favorite season is just around the corner!

I've got so many fun things planned for us to do this fall - now let's just see how well Emily cooperates with her arrival!

What are your family's favorite fall activities?

Limbo

2010-07-12T12:43:00.002-04:00

Do you ever feel like you are in limbo? Like you are just waiting for your life to start moving forward? About this time in each of my pregnancies, I always start to get impatient and restless. I am so ready for the baby to get here so life can be "normal" again.

I'm ready to move forward with weight loss plans, vacation plans, ready to start living life as a family of five. It seems like there is so much that Andy and I want to do with the kids that has to wait until they are older - places to go and do and see, events to attend, etc. and it just seems like we'll never get there sometimes.

I'm an impatient person to begin with and waiting for things I can't control seems like it is driving me bonkers! Do you ever feel like this?

Shopping Excursion

2010-06-25T13:40:00.005-04:00

I had to go shopping this past weekend and pick up a few things for the new little one. You see, after we had Matthew, we gave away EVERYTHING - clothes, blankets, gear, because we were done for a while.
Well, somebody must have a sense of humor because about three weeks later, we found out we were pregnant with #3! Of course, we weren't sure what to buy, since I'm firmly in the boys get blue, girls get pink camp. Yeah, I know, it's gender stereotyping at its worst, but I just can't help it.

So we've had an ultrasound or two (I never really believe the first one that tells us the gender, for some reason) and I can now feel confidant in shopping to my heart's content. What are we having, you ask? Just take a look at some of my purchases below...

In case you didn't guess - we are having a GIRL!!! We can't wait to welcome our little Emily Marie to our family this fall!

Ack!

2010-06-08T13:15:00.002-04:00

So as I was snuggling in bed with Anthony a few minutes ago, trying to get him to take a nap (which worked, thank goodness!), I suddenly realized that I only have a week and a half left before Matthew's birthday party! And I haven't done anything!

Somebody kick me because for whatever reason, I thought I still had plenty of time to get everything together. Andy must be really proud of me, thinking that I'm completely zen about the whole thing because normally, I'm usually starting to be a hyper little ball of nerves when we're this close to party day! Yeah, wait until he reads this post and realizes that nope, I'm not zen, just suffering from a major case of preggo brain.

I totally want Matthew to have a rockin' first birthday party, even if he won't remember it. Sometimes it feels like he is rarely ever the center of attention, what with Anthony's therapy appointments, etc. and the new baby on the way. I don't think that one party or even many parties could ever make up for that but I really want this day to be special and all about him.

Which means this mama better get hopping!!! One Sesame Street party, coming right up!

Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!

2010-06-02T00:00:00.001-04:00

Happy 1st Birthday Matthew!!!

We love you!!!

Did you know?

2010-05-26T14:46:00.003-04:00

Did you know...

2 small boys +
One bag of marshmallows sitting open on the counter in preparation for making Rice Krispy treats +
One mommy who is taking a much needed potty break =

No Rice Krispy treats and baths for two incredibly sticky little boys!

One of those days...

2010-05-25T11:36:00.004-04:00

Pshew! Y'all, it is one of those days in our house today. Not for everybody - Matthew seems to be having a perfectly wonderful day, giggling, chasing balls around the living room, devouring an alarmingly large breakfast, and a snack, and a brunch...

No, it's Anthony that's having the no good, very bad day. For some reason, he has been nothing but 100% cranky since he woke up this morning. He had a really difficult time transitioning from sleep to awake, something that hasn't happened for at least a couple of weeks. His day has just seemed to go downhill from there.

I just can't seem to make him happy and everything is sending him running for his room and slamming the door behind him. The screaming and tantrums that have ensued this morning alone make me fearful that our neighbors are going to think I'm torturing him.

Of course, Anthony's tantrums mean that Matthew hasn't been able to take a nap yet today and now he's starting to get fussy too. Let's hope some warm milk, a cosy bed and a little nap will improve everyone's outlook!

Public Service Announcement

2010-05-21T15:49:00.002-04:00

Just a reminder to all mothers that if your vacuum's upholstery attachment seems to no longer be working, please remember to remove the Hot Wheels cars that your two year old has placed in the hosey thingy.

Thank you.

2010-05-09T04:45:00.002-04:00

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-04-29T12:45:00.002-04:00

It seems hard to believe that almost an entire month has passed by without a new post! And it's not like a lot hasn't happened, so let me fill you in!

1. Morning sickness has kicked my butt - BIG TIME! Thankfully we'll be 15 weeks tomorrow and it's starting to fade. Unfortunately, the urge to fall asleep and stay that way for a very long time is still with me. Thank goodness I have a husband who takes over on the weekends and lets me sleep as much as I want! In other exciting baby news - IF the little bean cooperates, we may find out the baby's gender next Wednesday!

2. Matthew's first tooth finally came in! I'm so excited - I really thought he'd never get any. He's also crawling like a pro and is walking along holding on to the couch. Not much longer and my baby will be walking, sniff. All the extra activity means he has one heck of an appetite! I swear he eats more than Anthony! At least somebody likes my cooking!

3. Anthony's therapy is going really well. We've seen a lot of good progress in speech and OT and with his behavior as well. He seems a lot calmer and is making lots of good eye contact. We had a follow-up with his behavior pediatrician this week and she is very pleased by everything she saw. So we're cleared for another three months until our next visit with her!

So that's what's going on in our neck of the woods. If only the weather could decide between spring and summer, we'd be set!

World Autism Day

2010-04-02T07:50:00.002-04:00

Today is the third annual United Nations World Autism Awareness Day. Please consider wearing an article of blue clothing so we can Shine a Light on Autism!

Tomorrow! Tomorrow!

2010-04-01T12:06:00.002-04:00

Tomorrow is the start of Easter weekend for us. Andy is lucky to work for a company that gives him Good Friday off so we will be able to enjoy the awesome weather we've been having, provided the weather forecast is actually correct (81 and sunny). A trip to the park has been planned with, perhaps, a picnic lunch. Anthony will be able to run off excess energy before spending the night with my mom and step-dad and Matthew will enjoy swinging and being held by Daddy to go down the slide.

Saturday is our annual Easter Egg Party where we'll dye eggs in funky colors and have millions of egg hunts and our family's Easter dinner. Sunday we're headed over to our best friends' house for more egg hunts and some fun.

What are you doing this holiday weekend?

P.S. Christy over at Southern Plate has posted a ton of nifty Easter recipes. Head over and check them out - the Sweet and Sour Green Beans and Macaroni Salad will be on our table for Easter dinner on Saturday!

Personality Switching

2010-03-31T12:19:00.004-04:00

Have you noticed that your kids' personalities do a complete switch when they're sick?

I just realized this yesterday afternoon when Matthew woke up from his nap with a runny, stuffy nose, sneezing and red watery eyes. Yep, the kid got my allergies. But the real shocker is that my sweet, quiet little munchkin morphed into a loud, easily irritated, hard to handle little boy.

I probably shouldn't be too surprised. After all, I'd seen the same phenomenon with Anthony, who becomes quiet and docile when he's ill. But for some reason, it finally sank in this time.

So, tell me, do your kids completely change personalities on you when they're not feeling good? Or am I alone in my boat?

And the Calm Descends

2010-03-26T14:58:00.003-04:00

There is a point, every afternoon, when a peace descends upon our home. All that can be heard is the soft snoring of two tired little boys, dreaming dreams in sleepy land.

It is at that point when I take a deep breath, exhale, and contemplate the carnage that is our apartment. Crushed cheerios litter the floor and GI Joe's lay as fallen heroes, not having survived their brushes with dinosaurs. A stuffed dragon is riding on the ladder of the fire truck and cars and trucks are cleverly strewn about making our floor a walking death trap.

Goodness, but I love our life, even if, at times, I feel like my brain might explode.

Party Planning 101 - Part Three

2010-03-26T00:01:00.002-04:00

Today's the last day of our party planning extravaganza. I've had such an awesome time sharing these tips with you! I love doing this and I hope that if you ever need help with a party,you'll e-mail me and let me help out with the fun.

Before we start, I want to go ahead and answer the question that Amy left for me on Wednesday:
Q. Do we play any games at the parties?
A. We haven't yet. It has mostly been due to the age of the kids involved as they have been younger. I'm a big advocate of the "classics" though - musical chairs, pin the tail on the donkey, bean bag toss, relay races. The simpler, the better, I think. I will definitely have games at parties as the boys get older and I'll probably try to tailor the games to fit in with my theme. Like if I did a Star Wars party, we might play Pin the Light Saber to the Jedi's (or Sith's!) hand.

So without further ado, saving money and choosing a party space. Let's get started...

I think one of the best ways to save money is to make most of the decorations, maybe even the cake as well, and certainly the food, yourself. Let me be really super clear on this: for this to work you have got to plan things out well in advance and you must be willing to put in the time that it will require.

You will not be able to roll out of bed the morning before the party, drive to the party store, purchase your supplies, stop for a latte, hit the grocery store to pick up the cake and head home to start decorating.

You'll need to start a few weeks in advance of the party by figuring out what exactly you're going to make. Then brainstorm with your most creative friends and family on the best way to make things work. Once that's accomplished, purchase your supplies and get to crafting!

(I like to keep all my supplies in a large plastic tub near the dining room table, aka my craft space. I have a separate tub that holds finished decorations.)

You can choose to make it all yourself or you could invite friends over for an afternoon of crafty fun. Let the kids play while you make decorations. Or, if you're like us, let the kids play while you try to make decorations but are interrupted by screaming, the sound of bodies hitting walls and multiple requests of "juice" and "up."

If this route isn't for you, then there are still ways to save money. One of the best ways is to purchase solid-color tableware instead of the themed stuff. Seriously, a pack of 8 Spongebob paper plates was going to cost me $3.29. A pack of 24 yellow paper plates would have cost me $4.49. Okay, yes, that's more money, but I would have gotten 16 more plates!

Also, the food would have tasted just as good on the plain plates as it would have on the character plates and no one would have run screaming from our apartment complaining of our miserliness. At least, as far as I know!

Don't just stop at the plates either. Remember yesterday when I talked about your party colors? This is where that comes into play. For our Spongebob party, we used yellow, ocean blue and lime green. The few paper products that we purchased were in those colors and everything came together like a charm.

This brings me to another money-saving tip: Raid your cabinets, your storage building, your attic and your friends' houses! Three or four summers ago, I spotted some really cute melamine plates at our local dollar store. I REALLY liked them - they were so cute and summer-y. White with blue and lime green hibiscus flowers (see where this is going?). I bought a lot. Too many. Andy was mad. Especially since I also bought 2 matching pitchers, the matching tray, the matching three-bowl condiment holder, the matching wicker cutlery basket and three large matching bowls suitable in size for holding entire bags of chips, several gallons of punch or for bathing a small dog.

But guess what? The only paper products I purchased for Anthony's Spongebob party were streamers, napkins, cups and a tablecloth - booyah! PLUS, I was totally able to splurge and get two dozen balloons blown up! All because I thought to raid my closet. I was only looking for a couple of plastic trays I knew I had but because I took the time to look, I majorly lucked out and saved a lot of money. If your friends are like mine (and I hope they are because I have awesome friends) they aren't going to mind lending you a few trays or a bowl for dip. So don't be afraid to ask!

And another thing - going the mostly home-made road, you are going to need help and you are going to have to be grateful for the help you get. This is a really hard one for me. I like things done a certain way - my way. I tend to micromanage. I am so glad that I am learning how though because, specifically, my husband is so much more creative than I knew or gave him credit for. And we had so much fun decorating and setting up the party when we worked as a team. Were things perfect? No, but they wouldn't have been if I had done it all by myself either. But things got done more quickly and I was a much happier, less stressed out mommy.

Okay, finally, if you're still with me: choosing a party space. Here's the pros and cons...

Your house:
Pros: free, you can start setting up whenever you want (this is a major one, especially if you love to decorate), your kids may feel more comfortable in their own space (this is more of a consideration for kids who may have special needs)
Cons: You have to clean before and after, you may not have a big enough space for the event, your kids may freak out having people in their own space (see, it goes both ways)

A rented space (a clubhouse, hotel meeting room):
Pros: clean when you get there (hopefully), not a lot of decorations may be needed
Cons: cost, you will only have a certain amount of time to set up, party and clean-up, there may be restrictions on how you can decorate the space, you may be required to use a certain caterer and/or not allowed to bring in outside food, you will have to have your party at a time and date that is available

Your third option is someplace that does kids' birthday parties: Chuck E. Cheese, Build-A-Bear, Gymboree, a children's museum, zoo or aquarium, etc. This is probably the most expensive option, but also one of the easiest. Most party packages are going to include your food and paper products, and you can usually add pre-made loot bags for an added fee. There's usually several packages to choose from and the entertainment factor can't be beat. They are going to do all your set-up and clean-up. The downside is you are going to have to follow their rules and make sure your guests do as well and you'll be at the mercy of their availability for your party date and time, but OH, the ease and convenience!!!

Obviously, not every party place is right for every child. This is especially true for kids with special needs. Anthony is not going to have a good time in a noisy, music-blaring, light-flashing, million kids screaming kind of place (sorry Chuck E.). He will however have an awesome time at the site of his next birthday (yeah, yes, I've already got it picked out and booked 9 months in advance - I'm a dork) - a large warehouse filled with inflatables with a special under-3 section. We'll have two hours for a private party which means we'll be able to control the number of people, and thus hopefully, the amount of noise. He and his guests will have plenty of space to run and jump and eat pizza and ice cream and mommy will get to just show up with the cake and a check. They'll even send my invites for me.

Yes, it's a cop-out. Especially since I've spent the last three days telling you how home-made parties are awesome! And they are. But I'll have a 3-year old, an 19-month old and an under 3-monther at the time. Plus, I'm getting an amazing deal and Andy said it was okay :) But if I hadn't found this place and if we weren't lucky enough to be getting back enough tax money to do this, you can bet your sweet patooties you'd find me cutting out dinosaurs from posterboard a week before our party.

The main thing I want you all to take away from this is that you will always need to do what is best for you and your family at the time. Sometimes, this means going hand-made. Sometimes, you'll be able to splurge (and make no mistake I do consider this a huge splurge and even though I know Anthony is going to be super excited and have such a good time, I am feeling sooooo guilty about doing this because of the cost).

In the end, you are doing this for your child. And keeping that in mind will make all the difference.

Party Planning 101 - Part Deux

2010-03-25T00:01:00.001-04:00

Today is Part Two in our three-part planning "workshop," so let's talk about how I put my parties together. Obviously, this is the way that works best for me, but it may not work for you, so just experiment until you find a way that does! Here are, in my opinion, the first things you should do when planning your party.

About three months before the big day, I start my planning by looking at the calendar. I find the Saturday that is directly after my child's birthday. Voila, I now have a party date. And my time is always from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. (except for Anthony's first birthday when Andy had to work during the day so I moved the time).

The exception to this would be if you decided to rent a space. They may have limitations on times and dates so if you have a space in mind, be sure to check with them first to verify your party's date and time is available! (More on the home vs. rented space debate tomorrow!)

Because you're three months out, you've got time to call people or send e-mails to ask them to save the date. Now, some people like to send fancy schmancy paper save the dates. I do not feel that a child's birthday party warrants this, especially not among my friends in our neck of the woods. We're not fancy folks, ya'll. But if you're so inclined and want to spend the money or you move in the kind of circles where this is expected and in vogue, go for it.

Second, I think about the birthday child. Crazy, I know! But I have this insane thing about always picking the theme based on his interests at the time! So, when Anthony was little, he loved his dump trucks (still does!) and as he got older, he fell in love with Spongebob. Right now, he is crazy into dinosaurs. So if this dinosaur madness continues, you can guess what the theme will be for his third birthday! Matthew LOVES Elmo and Sesame Street, so we've chosen that as the theme for his first birthday party in June.

Once you've got your theme, stick to it like glue! You can use it to decide on everything from your color scheme to your decorations to your goody bags and games, even your food!

Third, talk to whoever is involved in the planning and figure out exactly how much money you've got to work with. When we get our tax money each year, we set aside a certain amount for birthday parties, Christmas, etc. so we know going in to each party how much we get to spend. If you know your budget, it's easier to prioritize. And if you've got your heart set on having an inflatable or an entertainer you should call to check on prices ASAP so you'll know if you're going to have to cut back in other areas or make some things yourself.

The next part is my favorite part. I sit down with a notebook and I brainstorm. I check out party sites. I research the theme to find certain details that will make my child (and all the other kids who are in the know) smile. I plan out the ideal, if I had all the money in the world this is what I'd do, party.

From there, it's easy to start scratching off ideas - too extravagant, not practical given the climate, etc. and then work with the ones that remain. I do a lot of revising to this list as ideas come and are dismissed or kept. Once I'm happy (or no later than a month prior to the party) the list gets finalized into different categories and I've got my game plan. To give you an example, I'll walk you through the list I'm working on for Matthew's party right now (it's not done yet, so don't get confused if something seems incomplete):

Matthew's 1st Birthday
Theme: Elmo/Sesame Street
Colors: Rainbow

Invitations: I'm going to use E-vite to send out the save-the-dates to those that have e-mail and I'll call the ones who don't. The actual invites will probably NOT be in keeping with the Elmo theme. Even though I like to do home-made special invitations that fit the party theme, I have a special invite I made for Anthony's first birthday and I'm planning to make the same kind of invite for Matthew.

Food: English muffin pizzas (Elmo's favorite food is pizza), goldfish crackers (for Elmo's goldfish, Dorothy), a candy bar - here's an example (I have been dying to do one of these for a party and though it usually ends up getting cut because of cost, I think I'm just gonna' bite the bullet and do it!), probably a veggie tray and dip for the adults as well as chips and salsa. I may add a few more things, I always tend to go overboard on the food, but I love to play in the kitchen and the food can be a really fun way of adding to the theme of the party.

Decorations: I'm planning to make a Sesame Street sign for our front door and purchase a scene setter to go on our sliding glass door because that was a hit at Anthony's party. Otherwise, our only other decorations will be balloons and streamers and things I make to go on the walls. I still have the pieces to the first birthday decorating kit that I used for Anthony's first birthday, so I know that I'll re-use that as well. Another idea I'm thinking of is cutting out large shapes that look like Big Bird's feet and placing them on the ground leading to our front door.

Games: Cookie Monster Bean Bag toss (I haven't done games at a party before because of the kids' ages, but I think it's too cute to pass up, although it may get cut because of time or money! I plan to use a sheet of posterboard and cut out and color a large picture of cookie monster's head with his mouth open. The kids will get to try and toss bean bags (cookies) through his mouth!)

Goody Bags: ?

Once you've got those basic things worked out, it's time to get started! Try to make as much yourself as you can (or beg a talented friend or family member to help). It really will save you money in the long run!

I do a LOT of research for the parties - if it is based on a character, I watch the shows. I look at different websites. And I steal a lot of ideas. Not really, but I do have a lot of fun looking at other people's parties and adapting their ideas to fit my needs. These are the websites that I always search for ideas and inspiration once I've got my theme (also, just searching for your theme using a search engine can yield terrific sites with lots of great ideas):

familyfun.go.com
www.birthdaypartyideas.com
www.alphamom.com
www.amazingmoms.com
www.makeandtakes.com (This lady has a lot of great craft ideas that could be adapted to fit your theme and has links to some awesome sites!)
www.birthdaygirlblog.com
www.orientaltrading.com

I also like to talk to friends and family. I have an amazingly talented group at my disposal and I love to pick their brains. Andy, especially, has a knack for seeing things from a different angle and coming up with super fun ideas!

Now for our last topic: Why I am the mother that all the other mothers love to hate.

I go overboard. I love birthdays and I remember them being wonderful, magical things when I was growing up. They are special memories that I can give my children to cherish and keep for the rest of their lives.

I don't set out to show anybody up. That is NEVER my intention. And I think if you go into the party planning process with that intent then it will stress you out. Your child won't feel like you threw the party because you think they are special and want to share that with everyone, they'll know that although they were the excuse for your kick-ass party, they weren't the reason behind it.

No matter what you do: Always make sure that your child is the reason, not the excuse, for the party.

So, let me hop down from this soapbox now and wrap things up. I've got two more topics I want to cover with you tomorrow so check back in tomorrow for the conclusion of our Party Planning Week here on Life at the Zoo!

Tomorrow: How to save money and choose your party space.

See you then!!!

P.S. If you have specific party-planning questions you'd like me to answer, just leave me a comment with your question and I'll answer them in Part Three on Friday!

Party Planning 101 - Part One

2010-03-24T00:01:00.005-04:00

A lot (okay, two) of you have asked me about how I go about planning birthday parties. For those of you who haven't experienced the insanity that is a party at my house, let me share the love with you by showing select pictures of Anthony's First and Second-Year Birthday Parties! (This will be a three-part post! Woohoo!)

Anthony's First Birthday
Theme: Construction trucks
Colors: Red, Yellow and Blue
Place: The clubhouse at my mom's apartment complex ($50)
Date and Time: Saturday, Jan. 17 from 5 p.m. to ?

The food table was decorated with a solid-color tablecloth, purchased themed centerpieces, balloons and some decorations from a first-birthday decoration kit that we had purchased. The containers for the food were disposable and purchased for the party.:

The gift table was decorated very simply with a few of Anthony's toy trucks, balloons and an autograph bear we had purchased. We decorated the sitting area with balloons on each coffee table and bags of candy that we had tied up with curling ribbon in our party colors.:
The cake, purchased at W*l-M*rt.:
Anthony's Highchair area was decorated with more themed decorations and pieces of the kit we had purchased. I made his smash cake by following a tutorial I found on the internet.:
Blowing out the candles and a picture of the cake table:
So because it was Anthony's first birthday, we went a little crazy - themed paper goods, tons of decorations, etc. We didn't make anything ourselves, except for the food and I made Anthony's smash cake (the big cake came from W*l-M*rt). I won't lie. It was expensive. My mom helped pay for the party and I think our total cost was near to being $600. YIKES!!!

Anthony's Second Birthday
Theme: Spongebob Squarepants
Colors: Yellow, Ocean Blue and Lime
Place: Our apartment (free)
Date and Time: Saturday, Jan. 16 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The living room - we decorated with the plush toys we had and all the decorations that are hanging from the ceiling (jellyfish, kelp/seaweed and balloon fish) I made in the week before the party. We did purchase the scene setter that is on the sliding glass door as well as the pinata (on the entertainment center) and some decorations that were over the couch):

The decorations over the couch (jellyfish were made of construction paper and streamers, the Spongebob and Patrick designs were purchased):
The sign by the food table:
The cake (homemade):
Our jellyfish cupcakes (homemade):
Blowing out the candles:
What you don't see: Streamers were hung from the chandelier in the dining room to the four corners of the room. I made a Bikini Bottom sign from poster board and hung it on our front door to welcome guests. We had balloons blown up and Andy placed them in the parking lot to mark the entrance to our building and on either side of our front door to mark our apartment for people who hadn't been there before (we had just moved in a few months before).

We approached this party a lot differently than Anthony's first. We knew we had a very limited budget and tried to cut corners as much as possible. As you can see, for Anthony's second birthday, a LOT more was homemade. And it definitely showed up in the amount of money we spent. We learned that the more we made in advance, the more elaborate we could be without spending a ton of money. Total cost for everything was around $200, however, that cost was spread out over several months as we purchased things a little at a time. I have to say that I felt so much prouder of this party than his first birthday party and I love the way that it turned out!

Tomorrow: The first things to do when planning a party; Good on-line party resources; And why I'm that mother that all the other moms hate.

See you then!!!

P.S. If you have specific party-planning questions you'd like me to answer, just leave me a comment with your question and I'll answer them in Part Three on Friday!

Therapy Update

2010-03-23T10:00:00.003-04:00

What a difference a week makes! Although our therapy appointment isn't until tomorrow, I can't even begin to tell you how much progress Anthony has made in a week's time!

The same little hyperactive boy who refused to sit at the table or even eat at meal times now sits AND eats. He is more responsive to us in other areas (i.e. behavior) as well. Of course, we still have a lot to work on but we have definitely seen improvement - and after only one session! I can't even begin to imagine what will happen after a few weeks or months.

Andy and I are learning to be consistent and insist that he follow our instructions. Anthony has picked right up on the different signs we have started using, too. He doesn't use them himself, yet, but he definitely knows what it means when we use "all done" and "stop!"

We're going for another session tomorrow morning and I can't wait to tell our therapists about our week!

Hopefully, if the weather cooperates - it's supposed to be sunny and 70, we'll hit up the park for a little play time after our session.

What We've Been Up To:

2010-03-18T17:40:00.003-04:00

1. Anthony had his first therapy session - it did not go well. The therapists are amazing but getting any 2-year old, let alone Anthony, to pay attention and perform specific tasks is going to be next to impossible. I was told that our nightmare first session is pretty typical of kids in Anthony's age group and who share his diagnosis. Hopefully, next week will be better.

2. Andy and I have decided to take the plunge and plan a family vacation. We had planned to go to the beach in the fall so that it wouldn't be so terribly hot but we're moving the trip up to June or July because we're going to be very busy in October (see #3).

3. We're expecting our third little addition to the zoo this fall! Our official due date is Oct. 22, 2010 but our babies like to get here early so we're probably looking at the very end of September or first of October. Although we certainly hope to go full-term, it would be a first.

4. We are ready for Spring.

What We've Been Up To...

2010-02-28T10:24:00.009-05:00

We're still a little shell-shocked by Anthony's recent autism diagnosis and we're waiting to be placed in the speech and occupational therapy rotations at the child development center. We have his feeding evaluation scheduled in a couple of weeks and I'm hopeful that we'll be able to work on some of his eating issues.

It's so funny to me that the baby who used to eat everything, the baby whose eating habits I used to brag upon, can now only be convinced (and very grudgingly at that) to eat only salty, crunchy foods. Hello, life where frying bacon is a twice, sometimes thrice, daily occurrence!

We've been keeping pretty busy, though. We've been a family of movers and shakers (yeah, right!) and I haven't had time to sit down and write out a post! At least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

The company Andy works for is a corporate sponsor of the Tennessee Aquarium and to thank their corporate sponsors, the Aquarium gave half-price vouchers to all the employees of those companies. Last Sunday, since Andy had gotten some overtime, we decided to take advantage of the voucher and took the boys to the Aquarium.

We had such a good time! We got there about thirty minutes after they opened and for whatever reason (it was early, the sun was shining for the first time in weeks, it was Sunday, it's not tourist weather, etc.) it wasn't very crowded.

For those of you who haven't gotten to experience the TN Aquarium, all I can say is: GO - pack your bags and head immediately for Chattanooga! There's tons of stuff to do here, but the aquarium is truly the crown jewel, in my opinion.

We did the Ocean Journey building first (with the penguins which Anthony LOVED), then took a snack break and let let him play outside for a while before tackling the River Journey building. About half-way through the second building, Anthony gave out. He was so tired, from playing and from the excitement, that he just laid down on the floor in front of one of the big tanks and watched the fishies through half-opened eyes.

It was at that point that Andy and I scooped him up, put him in his seat in the double stroller where Matthew was napping (poor little guy - he fell asleep about forty-five minutes into things and stayed passed out the rest of the time - he missed almost the entire thing!) and headed for the exit.

We had a really great time as it was an experience that Andy and I had been really looking forward to sharing with our kids. (Fun Fact: The TN Aquarium River Journey building was the site of our first date!) We were unsure how Anthony would react but I think going at an off-peak time and letting him go at his own pace made things much easier. We're definitely looking at purchasing a family membership when our tax money comes in.

Here's some pictures of our day:

Andy getting the stroller set up:

Anthony at the first tough tank - freshwater stingrays (he kept looking up at us and saying, wow (or his version of it anyway) - so cute!):

Next came the penguins (and a typical family photo):

Matthew, chilling out before passing out:

As you can see, we had a really wonderful time! One of my favorite bloggers, Christy, over at Southern Plate just put up a post about Family Adventure Days and I think that this is an awesome idea. Andy and I are already planning some adventures for the next few months and I can't wait to share them with you!

2010-02-12T08:50:00.003-05:00

There is a disorder in the world today that is shared by 35 million people.

It is the fastest growing developmental disorder in the world.

It is not limited by race, socioeconomic status or geography.

More children will be diagnosed with this disorder in 2010 than with AIDS, cancer or diabetes, combined.

It is not caused by bad parenting as has been suggested by previous generations.

There is no medical detection or cure, although therapies and medication have been proven to help tremendously.

Boys are four times more likely to have this disorder than girls.

According to researchers, every twenty minutes a child is diagnosed with autism. Yesterday, we were one of those cases.

*Facts borrowed from the Autism Speaks website.

{Insert Maniacal Laugh Here}

2010-02-10T09:12:00.003-05:00

Um, yeah. So yesterday, when I posted my Wordless Wednesday post, my brain must have been short circuiting. Because yesterday wasn't Wednesday y'all. It was Tuesday. And I didn't realize what I'd done until just a few minutes ago when I logged in to write this post. I think the glue from one too many craft projects has finally gotten my brain.

But on to more vitally important matters:

1.) Andy worked Saturday - all.day.

2.) Andy worked late Monday night. Mommy began to gnash her teeth.

3.) Andy worked late Tuesday night. Mommy continued the gnashing of the teeth and began to pull out her hair (which is probably a good thing as the color on the box of hair dye did not adequately represent the color that my hair turned after the dyeing process.)

4.) If Andy works late tonight, he will be beaten and not in a good way. Honey, I know you read my blog - just a friendly reminder.

5.) Andy is taking tomorrow off so that we can take Anthony to his initial assessment with a behavioral pediatrician in the Big City. I'll be sure to let you know how things play out. IF we get done with our appointment on time (fingers crossed), then we might get to go on a little adventure!

As a side note, Anthony qualified for our state's Early Intervention program and is now receiving in-home visits for an hour, once a week. Our SI is amazing and it is wonderful to see how quickly she and Anthony have bonded - he LURVES her!

Hope your Wednesday is wonderful - I'm off to go bake these: http://www.southernplate.com/2010/02/mamas-milk-dunkin-m-m-cookies-for-valentines-old-fashioned-recipe.html
and fill out the 17 pages (yes, you read that right - 17 pages) of paperwork for Anthony's appointment tomorrow.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-09T12:45:00.002-05:00

A New Path

2010-01-28T10:15:00.000-05:00

I've been sitting on this post for a while now, unsure whether or not to post it. Knowing how much to share has never been one of my problems on this blog. Up until now, I've pretty much shared anything and everything with you. But when it comes to the monkeys, I would never want to post anything that could be detrimental to them in any way. And so I wanted to be absolutely sure of my feelings and where I stood before I decided whether or not to invite you all along on a new twist in our journey.

Although I'm still feeling adrift in a sea of too much information, I want to share with you what is going on in our lives. This is a development that is here to stay and is going to impact our life in a major way. Not sharing this with you, when you could offer support or when someone who is going through the same thing might stumble here and find some answers or fellowship would be wrong.

I know that by now you're probably wondering what in the heck I'm talking about. And I'm getting there, really and truly. I need to give you a little background though, so just stay with me, please and eventually we'll come to it.

At Anthony's 18-month appointment, we expressed concern to our pediatrician that Anthony didn't seem to be progressing verbally as he should. She shared our concerns but we agreed that it was a little early to do anything. Most children, she said, experience a "language explosion" between 18 and 24 months and will double, sometimes triple their vocabularies.

So we waited. And we watched. But the explosion never came. In fact, he lost over half of the few words that he had been using.

At Matthew's six-month check-up in December, our pediatrician casually asked about Anthony's speech. She agreed with us that we should have seen some improvement at that point and decided to send us for an evaluation at the nearest Children's Hospital.

Since then, we've had hearing tests, speech evaluations, occupational therapy (OT) assessments from both the hospital's developmental specialists and our state's early intervention program. The results have come back in and here's what we're facing:

Anthony's hearing is perfect, absolutely great.

He has a mild delay in expressive language and a moderate delay in receptive language. In normal people language, this means that he has mild difficulties expressing himself (babbling instead of speaking actual words) and moderate difficulties in understanding (he does not understand verbal commands, only gestures, and he doesn't understand words - he goes by tone of voice and facial expression.)

The speech delays go hand in hand with our (for now) major issue - Sensory Processing Disorder (hereafter referred to as SPD).

"Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), also called Sensory Integration Dysfunction, occurs when the brain inefficiently processes sensory messages coming from a person's own body and his or her environment. The person has difficulty in responding in an adaptive way to everyday sensations that others hardly notice or simply take in stride."*

Those with SPD generally are sensory-seeking and/or sensory-avoiding, though they can be both. For example, someone who is sensory-seeking might spin to make themselves dizzy but that same person might also be sensory-avoiding in that they do not like loud noises. Got it? ;)

While Anthony certainly falls mostly into the seeking category (as anyone who's ever met him can attest) he also does have some avoidance tendencies as well.

There is no cure but therapy can help. There is no reason why children with SPD can not go on to live "normal" happy lives. I say "normal" because really, what is "normal" these days?

So, right now, where we stand is getting therapy started for his speech delays as well as the SPD. We're also trying to make an appointment with a behavioral pediatrician in town at the suggestion of our occupational therapist (more on this later).

I have to admit that the diagnosis does come as somewhat of a relief. It's good to know that a lot of Anthony's more frustrating behaviors stem from the SPD and that I'm not a failure as a mother.

It IS still frustrating however, to get the "looks" while we're out from those who aren't aware of Anthony's issue who think that he's simply misbehaving and we're not doing our jobs in correcting it, but I imagine that we'll probably (maybe, hopefully, never?) get used to this. I'm sure that in the coming days and weeks, I'll develop quite a thick skin about those looks and the shaking of heads and the "tutting" of others.

If you have any questions about what's going on, please e-mail me or leave a comment and I'll do my best to answer. Also, you might want to check out this blog:

Our Little Tongginator

about a momma who deals with her daughter's as well as her own SPD.

Another good website to peruse, if you have the time and the inclination is:

The Sensory Processing Disorder Resource Center

*The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun, Kranowitz, pg. 4)

A Very Bad Day

2010-01-20T14:54:00.002-05:00

I can't really talk about this yet, because I don't have all the information to give you and things are so jumbled in my brain right now that I can't even make sense of it all, but please pray for our family as we struggle to understand something and that we can re-order our life to accommodate this new development.

Hopefully, I'll be able to share more soon.

Thankful Thursday

2010-01-14T00:00:00.000-05:00

This Thursday, I am thankful for messy rooms, because it means I have two healthy babies that are able to play and have fun.

I am thankful for dirty dishes, because it means I have the resources to feed my family and the use of my body to prepare the food for them.

I am thankful for a pile of laundry waiting to be folded, because it means I have a family to wear those clothes, one that loves and cherishes me and whom I love and cherish in return.

And I am thankful for the chaos that is planning a 2-year old's birthday party, because it means we have so many friends and family who want to celebrate this day with us and a 2-year old little boy who is the love of my life.

What are you thankful for this Thankful Thursday?

In the meantime...

2010-01-13T09:03:00.003-05:00

I'm getting a post together for tomorrow's Thankful Thursday, but in the meantime, here's a little video of Matthew "opening" some of his presents on Christmas. Please ignore my scruffiness and weird voice. Enjoy!

Update: Breakfast

2010-01-11T09:43:00.001-05:00

Anthony graciously consented to eat a piece of bacon, three spoonfuls of lemon-flavored yogurt and some pear slices.

He just wanted you to know.

=)

5 Days and Counting...

2010-01-11T09:13:00.002-05:00

Anthony's second birthday is Sunday and we're having his party on Saturday. I love going all out for birthdays. Not to out-do or one-up anyone and not to make anyone think I'm super-mom. The fact is, I always had such wonderful birthdays growing up and I want to give those to my kids too.

I still remember coming home after school to find our dining room decorated with streamers and balloons, a paper birthday tablecloth covering our wooden table. Grandma would have baked whatever dinner and kind of cake we had requested. We didn't do bakery cakes in our house - I always thought it was because my Grandma made the most perfectly wonderfully yummy cakes in the world. The reality of it was that we could never have afforded one. But I never knew that until much later and honestly, I would still rather have one of Grandma's cakes baked with her own hands than the fanciest store-bought cake.

I really wish I had a scanner. I've got such funny pictures of both Andy and my birthdays when we were little that I'd love to share with you. Maybe that's a project for one night this week and I can run over to Mom's house and use hers.

In the meantime, I'm armed with a 'To Do' list that's a mile long and mildly freaking out because the house is such a mess with us all having that stomach bug last week. That bug put me seriously behind in the decorations-making department. Yes, I'm mental. I had decided to make most of our decorations instead of buying them to save money.

So, off I go to cut out construction paper in the shape of fish fins, glue tentacle streamers to paper jellyfish and see if I can make something remotely resembling seaweed.

Can you guess what our theme is? Here's a hint: "Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?"

P.S. The Terrible Twos have officially set in at our house - Anthony refuses to eat anything and everything is the cause for a tantrum.

P.P.S. I've got some really cute posts planned for this week, so make sure to check back in!

Resolutions

2010-01-06T00:00:00.000-05:00

I thought it might be fun to make a few resolutions this year. I'm not a big resolution-making kind of gal but there are a few things that I have been wanting to do for a little while and maybe by writing them down, I'll actually remember and do them!

1. Visit a farmer's market.
2. Make fresh salsa.
3. Take the boys to the Tennessee Aquarium.
4. Play in the fountain at Coolidge Park.
5. Eat watermelon and teach Anthony how to spit the seeds.
6. Visit the pumpkin patch.
7. Learn to use my sewing machine.
8. Have a giveaway on my blog.
9. Take the boys on an overnight trip - Gatlinburg? The beach?
10. Have more fun!!!

On a more serious note, I am also resolving to make Andy and the monkeys my priority this year. I am resolved to show kindness and calmness and to do my utmost to speak with love. I am resolved to build our family up. I am resolved to be the wife and mother that my husband and children deserve. And I am resolved to do all this without neglecting my own needs as a person. Let's see how I do.

What are some of your resolutions this year?

Organizing

2010-01-05T15:44:00.003-05:00

I love magazines. Especially the holiday issues. Nothing is more relaxing to me than kicking back in the recliner with a snuggly blankie, a coke and a magazine.

Don't get me wrong - I LOVE to read books as well. But with two little ones around, I do find it sort of stressful to try and read a book because once I start reading and really get into the story, I don't want to stop. For anything. Sadly, being a mommy, the world does not revolve around my whims and so diapers must be changed, meals must be cooked, laundry done, folded and put away, etc. etc.

So I think that's why I like magazines so much - the articles are short and should Anthony decide that now is the perfect moment to awaken from his nap and cause mayhem or Matthew feels the need to make yet another stinky diaper, the magazine can be tossed aside without too much emotional investment.

Having said that, there is one month, without fail, that I usually don't pick any of my favorite magazines up while I'm in the check-out lane and carry them home with me (much to the joy of Andy, who once took it upon himself to tally up how much money we would save each month if I didn't buy any magazines.) And that month is January.

I think the reason is that I've just survived the holidays and now, I just want to enjoy winter and the hibernation that naturally occurs. I want to pull out my favorite soup recipes and just stay indoors and veg out. I do NOT want to know 385 ways to organize my laundry room and I have no desire to find out how to keep clutter at bay.

Because I'm tired. I want to rest. I just baked no less than 22 dozen cookies in 24-hours time, wrapped many MANY gifts for small monkeys, put those gifts together and have been on constant watch to not kill myself on said gifts' tiny parts when walking through the apartment on my way to the fridge each morning.

Seriously people, could you just give us a break? Why not tell us how to triumph over used dryer sheets and dust bunnies in the Spring when it is more natural to tackle heavy duty cleaning projects?

This year, however, I do admit that I was roped in by the organizing propaganda. Not so much because I wanted to be but because I had to do some major restructuring to make room for things the boys received at Christmas.

They were very VERY blessed this year and THANK YOU to everyone who had a hand in that.

So the day after Christmas, I actually succumbed and cleaned out the closets in the boys' room. They should have been organized since we moved in less than two months ago but unfortunately, they became catchalls. That having been accomplished, I've now set my sights on the closet in the master bedroom.

I purged a great deal when we moved in, but now I find myself contemplating the urge to pull everything out and see what else I can get rid of - how low can I go?

I think the need is there to simplify. To get rid of absolutely everything that I don't possibly need. I don't know why that need exists right now in my life, but I think I'm just going to follow it, see where it takes me and enjoy the ride.

Um, WOW!

2010-01-05T10:01:00.002-05:00

Less than 72 hours into the new year, everyone here at the zoo was rendered immobile by a nasty stomach bug. Matthew was the last to succumb and (as of this morning - fingers crossed), seems to be no worse for wear and is happily bouncing in his jumper.

Andy is at work and I'm keeping Anthony and I on the B.R.A.T. diet (bananas, rice, applesauce and toast) until dinner this evening, just to be on the safe side. The apartment is majorly trashed and I've been taking it slow and steady trying to pick up and clean. Things are slowly getting back to their normal state - normal, of course, being a subjective term.

Whew, what a way to welcome 2010!

On the plus side, I learned that vomit is somehow less gross when it is coming from your sick children, at least in my case. I mean, yes, it is still disgusting. But somehow, I only saw tear-stained faces and not the puke. Guess this is what being a mommy is all about.

Before the bug was even a thought in our minds, Mom and I were able to head to the city and pick up most of the things for Anthony's party on the 16th. I think the only things that we'll still need are the perishable food items. Well, and more Sprite since the party stash got raided while we were all sick. We found some really cute things and had a lot of fun but I could not believe how expensive some of this birthday stuff is!

So, this mommy is off to keep doing laundry and wiping everything down with bleach. How has 2010 been for you so far?

2010

2010-01-01T00:00:00.000-05:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

New Year New Look

2009-12-28T10:44:00.002-05:00

Don't worry - you're in the right place!

I just wanted a new look for the new year. I am really looking forward to 2010 and felt that a change was in order. What do you think?

I'm going to be playing around with the blog's design a lot, so if you drop by and things look different or something isn't working right, it's probably me playing around with things.

New posts will be up soon!

Happy New Year!

Sunday Snapshot: Christmas 2009

2009-12-20T12:53:00.003-05:00

Okay, okay...I know I said I wasn't posting any more until after the first of the year, but Stefanie over at Ni Hao Y'all invited everyone to do a special Sunday Snapshot post and I had some photos that I just didn't want to wait to share with y'all.

Without further ado, Christmas 2009:

The monkeys were nestled all snug in their beds...

Making sugar cookies with Mommy:

Our Christmas Tree:

Making Holiday Mischief:

We've got plans to get together with Maw-maw, Paw-paw and Uncle Joe on Christmas Eve, then we're off to see the Christmas Light Show in Lafayette, Georgia before we come back home and set out cookies and milk for Santa and Reindeer Food for Rudolph and the gang.

Then, Christmas Day Grandma and Grandpa Allison are joining us for dinner and a few gifts.

Hope your holidays are merry and bright!

P.S. Here's a sample of the light show from last year - it is so much fun!!!

Playing Catch-up!

2009-12-09T11:07:00.003-05:00

It's been a good while since I posted but I'm happy to report that we got moved and everything is finally starting to resemble our version of normal here at the zoo.

I just wanted to bring you a quick post today to tell you that there probably won't be any new posts until after New Years. I want to spend some time focusing on my family and celebrating the holiday season with them.

Before we adjourn for Christmas Break, I want to tell you that some of my favorite bloggers are having some giveaways, so pop on over and enter. (I have to admit that I don't really want you to enter because it decreases my chances of winning and that isn't what the season is about - guess I've got some things to work on!)

Stefanie at Ni Hao Y'all
Bakerella
Pioneer Woman Cooks
Angie at Bring the Rain

So good luck and Merry Christmas y'all!

Santa Pic '09

2009-12-08T10:23:00.003-05:00

Guess who wouldn't come unglued from Mommy, so Mommy had to be in the picture, too?

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-04T08:35:00.002-05:00

Uh-Oh

2009-11-03T11:48:00.001-05:00

I woke up with a really bad headache today, so there won't be a new post. We'll return to our regularly scheduled programming tomorrow.

:)

Time Now for Our Weekly Update

2009-11-02T10:53:00.002-05:00

How's it going with you, gentle readers?

In our house, it's verging on mass confusion and hysteria as we all come back down from the sugar high called Halloween, switching the clocks back an hour and packing like crazy for our move in 12 days.

We had a great weekend, though.

Friday night, we met my mom and stepdad for dinner and then mom and I headed to Wal-Mart to get groceries. It didn't quite work out as it was so crowded and I just felt clausterphobic and wanted to get out of there and mom started feeling a little queasy a few minutes in - probably due to the high heat in the place. Why does it always seem like they turn the heat up on you?

We left without getting even a quarter of what we needed and I took mom over to the apartment complex we'll be moving into so she could see (at least from the outside) our new place. She really liked the complex and it was very quiet for that time of night on a Friday (that was something Andy and I had worried about - the noise level at night and on the weekends).

On Saturday, Andy and I worked on packing the kitchen and were making a good dent in it when we had to stop and get the boys ready for trick-or-treating and a little party at my mom's apartment.

We all had a lot of fun Saturday night, but ate waaay too much sugar and got to bed waaay too late. Combined with the time change, we had some issues on Sunday with sleeping and eating patterns shot and crankiness ensuing.

Andy and I got the boys in the Blazer late Sunday afternoon and we went for a drive to look at the fall leaves. We ended up in Cleveland (TN) and had dinner at a Chinese buffet that one of Andy's co-workers had recommended. The food was really good and we all, Anthony especially, chowed down. Who knew the kid would like broccoli so much? I think he ate his weight in the stuff!

We hit Wal-Mart on the way back home, got groceries and made it home just in time to tuck two sleepy little boys in bed.

So that was our weekend. How was yours?

P.S. Two very special little boys had birthdays this weekend - Happy Birthday Stone and Landon!

Crafts and Gift Ideas!

2009-11-01T00:01:00.001-04:00

This is going to be a quick post with lots of links today. Sorry about that but we're still recovering from all the Halloween festivities yesterday and hitting the packing hard today. Strange to think that two weeks from today we'll be in our new apartment!

Okay, so last week my friend Amy asked for fun craft ideas, so here you go, Amy - three ideas just for you! (Amy by the way, is amazingly creative so she should probably be writing this post and not me - you should see the pumpkins and other crafts she and her family made for Halloween - AWESOME!!!)

I think, personally, that these are some of the easiest holiday crafts. They are probably ones that you see a lot - you’ve probably even made the first two yourselves at some point. But they are a lot of fun for everyone involved and only two are slightly messy. Aren’t you proud of me? I’m usually all about the mess.

The first is a paper chain garland. This one is great for the toddler/preschool set because you can actually work in some teaching - colors, numbers, patterns, etc. Here’s your supply list:

Construction paper (or scrapbook paper, cardstock, whatever - I’ve even used plain white printer paper and let the kids I was watching color it with markers and use stickers to decorate the links)
Scissors
Tape

Wow. Super easy and you probably already have these things on hand. Can we say rainy day project? Here's a link that gives you instructions: http://www.ehow.com/how_4866256_make-paper-chain-links.html

Now onto craft #2 - a Pine Cone Bird Feeder! Our second craft idea has a bit of mess factor so you’ll probably want to make sure to cover the table where you are working. Here’s what you’ll need:

Pinecones
Twine (or thread or yarn or ribbon, whatever you’ve got on hand)
Peanut butter
Bird Seed
Spoons

I couldn't find a good link, so I'll just walk you through this one myself, okay? To start, check the pinecones. Some of them have sharp poky little pieces on them and I usually just get some scissors and snip them off. Now, go ahead and tie your twine around the pinecone so you’ll be able to hang it up later (trust me, it’s easier to do this now).

Now comes the fun part - let your little helper get in there and smear peanut butter all over that pine cone - you want a pretty good layer.

Twine? Check. Peanut butter? Check. Now roll your pine cone around in bird seed (I put mine in a bowl to make it easier to do) until it’s pretty well covered.

Now all you have to do is hang your brand new bird feeder. It would be fun to take pictures of all the birds that come to visit your feeder and then look them up on the internet or a bird book and learn more about them! This is a great way to tie in a science lesson for those of you that home school!

Our third craft idea is also the messiest so make sure to put newspapers or some sort of covering on the table/floor/walls where you’ll be working and get your kids some old clothes to throw on. We are making Bubble Wrapping Paper (courtesy of Martha Stewart). I made this the other day to make sure it was easy for everyone to do. Here’s the link to Martha's original craft: http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.3a0656639de62ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=8904fe6b5262f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=default

And here's what you’ll need to make it:

Measuring cup
Water
Dish soap
Tempera paints
Bowl
Rimmed baking sheet
Rubber spatula
Tape
Straws
Butcher's paper, cut into 18-inch squares (I didn’t have butcher’s paper - I don’t even know where to get the stuff (from the butcher, maybe?) so I just used the back of some heavy wrapping paper that I had on hand, which worked out very nicely.)

So first you’ll have to get your measuring cup. Measure out the following and pour it into your bowl: Measure 1 cup water and ½ cup dish soap and mix.

We decided to make red paper so we also added red tempera paint. In all honesty, I didn‘t measure, I just bought one of those $.50 bottles of paint from Wal-mart and dumped the whole thing in. (Martha not only measures her paint, she also uses three colors to get the color red she wants - I didn’t have three colors. Martha also probably doesn’t have a cranky toddler who is ready to be released from the torture known as “helping Mommy” to go watch Spongebob, nor a husband who wants me off the computer so he can play World of Warcraft (hereafter to be known as WoW).

Now combine the paint and the soap mixture and pour onto your baking sheet.

Now grab some straws and start making bubbles (please make sure that your toddler does not think that this is Kool-aid and try to drink this through his straw as mine tried before Mommy stopped him and just blew the bubbles herself).

Once your bubble are blown, gently press your paper onto the surface of the bubbles and then lift off. Repeat until the paper is covered as you’d like it. If you get low on bubbles, just blow more!

Now, hang your paper up to dry and then use it to wrap some holiday gifts!

******************************************************************

Now, for gift ideas! Yay, I'm excited to bring these to you today, because I'm hoping Andy will read this and get hints and these things are really neat!

Okay, so here's for the woman in your life. Honestly these are perfect for teenagers, moms, college students, anyone really. The incredibly cool thing about this gift idea is that these are also really easy to make - aren't you just chompin' at the bit to know what they are?

Scrabble Tile Necklaces!!!!

How creative and fun.

So, if you're crafty, here's the link with DIY instructions: http://www.makeandtakes.com/links/scrabble-tile-pendant-tutorial

If you're not so crafty, here's the link to the Etsy shop of the people who did the tutorial in the above link: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5753249

The second gift idea is a cookbook. So, I'd say this is probably best for the adult in your life. Now, some of you don't cook - and that's okay! But you will still want this book. It is gorgeous, with full color, step-by-step pictorial instructions and the humor that is intrinsic to the Pioneer Woman's popularity. The recipes are pretty darn good, too!

Here's the Amazon link for her new cookbook and visit her here and prepare to stay awhile!

The next gift idea is for a lady or child. I've mentioned Stefanie over at Ni Hao Y'all several times, but these tees are from the company she formed with two other ladies, Wild Olive Tees. What I love about these tees is that they are understated and well, cool-looking. I'm being honest here so don't hate but so many times, Christian tees are anything BUT understated and cool-looking and I think that deters a lot of people from wearing them.

Just go check these out, though, because they are amazing, much like Stefanie herself!

Okay, so only two more ideas for this week. Are you ready?

What to give the person who has everything? How about a llama? Or a water buffalo? Yes, I'm serious, why do you ask?

Heifer International is a non-profit organization that I've supported for almost 10 years and I really can't describe in great enough detail here, on my little blog, the enormity of what they are doing. Please visit their site here and consider giving someone the gift of a donation to Heifer this
Christmas.

Last idea: Ugly Dolls. (Can you tell I'm running out of steam - these ideas keep getting shorter and shorter!) I'd say these are good for any child and/or teen - although I think they're pretty cool so maybe you could give these to an adult, too!

I love these dolls because they promote uniqueness and acceptance. And if you click here, you'll see the doll that a certain little person whose name starts with an "A" and ends in "nthony" will be getting this Christmas. Andy picked him out - he said the description reminded him of me. Sigh.

Okay, stay tuned, because we'll be back here next Sunday to cover more grand gift ideas and Christmassy topics! Want specific ideas? Leave a comment and let me know what you'd like to see!

Meal Plan Friday

2009-10-30T03:01:00.001-04:00

Saturday - Halloween Party at my Mom's apartment

Sunday - Potato soup w/grilled ham and cheese sandwiches

Monday - Lasagna w/salad and breadsticks

Tuesday - BBQ Baked Potatoes

Wednesday - Pot Roast w/carrots and potatoes

Thursday - Lasagna Leftovers

Friday - Family Night

Inspiration

2009-10-29T03:01:00.000-04:00

I saw this quote the other day and just wanted to share:

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning how to dance in the rain.
~ Author unknown

2009-10-28T12:21:00.003-04:00

"When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies."
~ J.M. Barrie

Wordless Wednesday Plus

2009-10-28T03:01:00.001-04:00

Well, it was supposed to be Wordless Wednesday. But I've got too much to say to ever be caught wordless. So, if you're one that likes to adhere to the rules, look at and ponder the photo above which details the results of yesterday's adventures in baking and ignore the rest of this post.

Yesterday, I bravely faced a half-packed up kitchen to make some goodies for my Mom's Bible study group. They have been so kind to us - making us dinner one night while Matthew was in the NICU and then sponsoring us so that we could have our yard sale in the parking lot of the church Mom attends. I really wanted to do something to show our appreciation, so I decided to bake. Baking is never a bad thing. It just says LOVE.

Much to Andy's delight, I made several batches of the Magic in the Middle cookies he loves so much. Three batches, actually. Two for Mom to take and one to stay at the house. I would like to report that each batch makes approximately two dozen cookies. Less than twenty-four hours later, our batch is gone. I got two, Anthony got two. SOMEONE I know ate the rest.

After that, I made Cake Balls. I used a spice cake mix instead of red velvet, but these were so easy to make and turned out so well. I didn't eat any, because I wanted to send as many as possible to Mom's group, but man, they looked yummy! I can't believe I actually made these - I'm so proud, sniff!

But I'm happy to report that both cookies and cake created much delight and were devoured pretty much on the spot. Mission accomplished.

May I Have Your Attention Please!

2009-10-27T00:01:00.000-04:00

If I may, I'd like to direct your attention to two blogs that I have found recently:

Ni Hao Y'all
&
Bakerella

Stefanie is the blogger at Ni Hao Y'all and I found her through this post over at Bakerella's website. I spent all of last week catching up on her entire archive section and her other sites - No Hands But Ours, Wild Olive Tees, and Life in Transparency.

How this lovely lady has time to do just one blog (plus a photo blog, an information site AND an online business) is simply beyond me. You see, she and her husband are parents to eight (soon to be nine) wonderful kiddos. Yep, you read that right - EIGHT KIDDOS!!!

She is truly an inspiration and I admire her and her family so much. Even though I've never met them in person, through Stefanie's writing, I feel like I know them. She and her husband have adopted four beautiful children from China and their family has a special love in their hearts for orphans with special needs. Wow. Just, WOW. Can they get any more wonderful?

Please go visit Stefanie and take the time to get to know her and her lovely family.

Also, wouldn't a Wild Olive Tee make a lovely Christmas gift for someone special? Hint, hint, Andy.

Second site: Bakerella

Oh. My. Good. Gravy.

This is one of the most creative, whimsical and wonderful things I have ever seen! This woman is an absolute genius. And she lives in Georgia - can I come visit? Pretty, pretty please with a maraschino cherry on top?!

I LOVE that her recipes are so fun and yet so incredibly do-able. In fact, come back tomorrow and you'll see how my attempt at making Cake Balls went down.

Now go, get thee to these sites and just forget about the laundry and the dishes, because you're going to want to sit and stay a while at both these lovely ladies' sites!

Not Me Monday

2009-10-26T11:40:00.000-04:00

Nope, it wasn't me.

I absolutely, positively, didn't post that I wanted to take the consumerism out of our Christmas celebrations. So I'm sure it wasn't me that went to Toys R Us last week during their Fisher Price sale and used yard sale profits to buy this, this and this for Anthony for Christmas.

I also did not find a million things like this, or this, or even this, that I will be returning to buy for Matthew with the flea market profits in two weeks.

I also didn't forget our camera when we went to Trunk or Treat last night and that certainly wasn't me you saw dodging traffic on Hwy. 201 so I could get to the Dollar General to buy a disposable one.

I also was NOT a bad parent and accidentally picked up a horse costume, not realizing until I was trying to put it on my wiggly four month old that it was NOT a cow costume to go with Anthony's farmer outfit (which didn't look very much like a farmer costume at all - I'm not very good at this homemade costume thing).

On the other hand, it was NOT me that won 3rd place in the trunk decorating contest! :)

I'm not sure who it was, but it wasn't me.

The Countdown is on...

2009-10-25T09:13:00.000-04:00

Do you want the truth? You CAN'T HANDLE the TRUTH!

Christmas is in EXACTLY two months. Eight weeks. 60 days.

Are you ready? Are you thinking about getting ready? Or have I mildly panicked you with the concrete evidence that one of the most magical days of your child's entire year is right around the corner?

Well friends, fear not, I am here to help. Every Sunday from now until the big day, I'll post a helpful idea for fun traditions to start, crafts to make, desserts to bake and one gift idea. Tune in for all things Christmas and don't forget to leave a comment and tell me what sort of things you'd like to see!

************************************************************************************

Today, we tackle a fun little tradition that has divided parents since it sprang onto the scene a few years ago: The Christmas Elf. Now, this tradition has actually been around a while, but it's been in the last few years that it has really seen a resurgence and transformation.

When I was growing up, we had a little elf with a plastic face and hands and a wool body. He sat on our mantle, legs dangling over the edge, with beady little eyes that seemed to follow me and rosy cheeks that suggested he'd been into Grandma's egg nog. I was told that he watched to make sure that I was being a good child. He would report back to Santa each evening with my daily behavioral report card to determine whether or not I was worthy of a visit from the big jolly guy and his reindeer. I must have passed muster, which only meant that the elf could never read thoughts, because I plotted various ways of removing him from the house, some involving BB guns and open flames, he freaked me out so badly.

Fast forward a few (okay, a lot) of years to the present. The elf tradition has now become something more. No longer is he Santa's watchdog. No, now the elf tradition is a way for parents to enhance the magic of the season for their kids.

The way the elf tradition works is that the little (non-scary please) elf arrives at the child's house after Thanksgiving and spends his nights making mischief and his days sleeping. The mischief is, of course, performed by the parents in the quiet of the night, for the children to find in the morning.

Now, of course, there is an "official" elf website that sells "official" elves. But you don't have to buy one to go to the site and get all sorts of ideas about how to make the elf tradition work in your household. Some of the ideas for making mischief are truly imaginative and I am in awe of the parents who thought up some of these things.

In these tough economic times, this is a tradition that doesn't have to cost a lot of money. Most of the ideas use household items and you could probably find an elf for under $5 at a toy store or off the internet. If you're crafty, I'm sure you could make one.

Now, I know that some of the more staid soccer moms out there are thinking, "You mean I'm supposed to make a huge mess AND clean it up? No way Jose." or "I've got kids, animals, a husband and a house - there is no time left for me to pull this off." But you don't have to make a mess and it doesn't have to take a lot of time - how about just leaving some candy canes scattered on the table for your kids to find at breakfast. Or maybe you could make a paper garland chain and hang it up as one of the parents on the elf website suggests. Whatever you chose, it will be time well-spent. If you're like me, you'll probably have a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to spending time with Andy collaborating on mischief and then pulling it off.

In the end, this is all about making the season more magical for our kids. Can't you just imagine how their eyes will sparkle and the joy they'll get out of seeing these "elfcapades?" How much more joy will they derive years later when they are older and they realize how much you must have loved them to do all this during the night after a hard days' work. How much will that mean to them when they are older and they realize exactly what was involved in making this happen for them? (Yeah, yeah, that sounded kind of like I was giving you a guilt trip, I know.)

Anthony and Matthew are too young this year to really "get" what's going on. But next year, you can bet there'll be two little elves showing up at our door. And I will bet that Andy and I have a blast making this magic happen for them.

*************************************************************************************

My gift suggestion this week is for the little boy in your life. (Don't worry, I'll cover everyone, I'm just starting with what I know!)

Andy and I decided last year that we would only do one "big" present each year per child and that would be the child's "Santa" present. While we're still trying to decide what Matthew's present will be, we purchased Anthony's on Thursday night, taking advantage of Toys R Us' big sale that I told you about a few posts ago.

Anthony LOOOOOVES playing with cars and trucks. So we figured that something having to do with this would be in order. This is what we decided on. It's got cars, a ramp and elevator, buttons to press, noises to make and lights to flash. All the things our little guy likes. Plus, it's one of those toys that Matthew will be able to enjoy when he gets just a little older and they'll be able to play together. We've already assembled it (to make sure all the pieces were there and that it worked - NOT so that Andy and I could play with it ourselves) and didn't have any of the issues that some of the reviewers seemed to encounter.

We do this with all the toys, by the way - put them together ahead of time to make sure everything is there and works. (Again, NOT so that we can play with the toys ourselves. That would be undignified and hardly befitting our parental status.) It also saves much frustration on Christmas morning when all the kids want to do is play, not wait for Mom and Dad to have an anxiety attack over assembling all the tiny little pieces and wrestling with packaging.

I can't wait for Christmas morning - Anthony's going to love it.

2009-10-24T11:23:00.000-04:00

I was over at The Pioneer Woman's website and read that she taped a segment for the Bonnie Hunt show. I LOVE Bonnie Hunt and have missed watching her show since we axed cable from our budget. I don't think I've ever seen anything that I haven't loved her in, but you know the first thing I thought of when I heard Bonnie Hunt? Sally.

Yep, I'm a mom now.

Meal-Plan Fridays!

2009-10-23T09:39:00.000-04:00

I've been doing menu planning for a while now, probably at least the past couple of years. I really enjoy it (see my post on lists) and it has really helped us save money at the store. So each Friday, after I get my weekly meal plan done, I'm going to share it with you! Maybe you'll learn a few new recipes, but what I'm really hoping is that you'll try this for yourself and then come post YOUR meal plan in the comments section.

One thing I do before planning my meals is take stock - what do I have in my pantry/freezer/refrigerator that I need to use? Then I go from there. Also, after you've planned your meals, when you're ready to make your grocery list, try to make headings (dairy, canned and dry, meat, frozen, produce are the ones I use) then place all your grocery items under the appropriate heading. It saves time and money - ever have to go back three aisles because you overlooked something on your list and then find three things you NEED that aren't on your list when you do? Yeah, I thought so.

And write down everything you need. Don't just write down "lunch stuff" or you'll wander aimlessly through the aisles and see stuff that will end up in your basket because you just can't live without it.

P.S. You'll notice a lot of repeats on my list. That's because I try to make soups/casseroles/meals in general that make enough for two nights. My grocery bill comes out better for it and I'm a happy camper not having to cook each and every night.

P.P.S. I always serve a starch and a veggie (or two) at each meal, but I'm only going to list my main dish.

Saturday - Cream Cheese Chicken w/rice (I use a whole fryer that I've cooked and deboned - that makes this recipe stretch to feed us two nights.)
Sunday - Supper and Trunk or Treat at my mom's church
Monday - Deep Dish Pizza (I add green pepper, mushrooms and black olives to the meat and I don't use sausage (too expensive) - I just use 2 lbs. of ground beef.)
Tuesday - Chili - my own recipe
Wednesday - Cream Cheese Chicken leftovers
Thursday - Deep Dish Pizza leftovers
Friday - Chili leftovers

And now, because I love you - here's my grocery list for tonight. (I'm getting off easy this week because I already have all the ingredients for the Cream Cheese Chicken here at the house. I've also got onions from last week so I don't need to get those either.)

DAIRY
Shredded mozzarella - 8 oz. (If you need an exact amount for a recipe write it down, then you'll never get home with too much or too little. If you just need it on hand for garnish, topping etc. skip it.)
Shredded parmesan - 8 oz.
Shredded cheddar (topping for chili)
Sour cream (topping for chili)
Yogurt

MEAT
Ground beef - 5 lbs. (I'll get the tube and freeze the pound I don't need for next week.)
Lunchables - one 2-pack
Lunch meat - turkey
Breakfast biscuits (Andy takes these for breakfast in the mornings. If I were a better wife, I would make him homemade breakfast biscuits and save the money but alas, I am not.)

FROZEN
Kid Kuisine meals - 2

PRODUCE
Green pepper
Mushrooms - 1 carton, sliced
Apple
Banana

CANNED AND DRY
Bread
Soft drinks
Black olives
Chili seasoning pack - 2
Pizza Sauce - 15 oz.
Diced Tomatoes - 2
Kidney beans - 3
Crushed tomatoes - 1 large can
Crackers
Fritos (for chili)

See how easy that is? Now go, get to it!

For Those of You with Kids in Your Life

2009-10-21T01:53:00.000-04:00

Here are two really good deals that you might want to check out. (Christmas is coming soon...)

Playskool Sit and Spin is on sale for $20 at Target through Saturday, Oct. 24. Go here: http://print.coupons.com/Couponweb/Offers.aspx?pid=13306&zid=iq37&nid=10 and print out the $10 off coupon. Voila - you can get the Sit and Spin for 10 bucks baby!

Also, Toys R Us is having a great sale until Saturday, Oct. 24. Select Fisher Price toys are buy 2, get 1 free. I think it includes Geotrax, Little People, Laugh and Learn and some others.
http://www.toysrus.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=2255956

There you go! Now go get a jump on your holiday shopping!

P.S. Purchase select products at Target this week and 5% of the purchase price will be donated to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Follow this link and look at pages 26-27 of the weekly ad to see which products qualify! http://weeklyad.target.com/target/default.aspx?action=entryflash&ref=sc_iw_l_0_4

Back in the Saddle

2009-10-20T09:44:00.000-04:00

Wow. So it's been, well, a month since I last blogged. A very long stressful month. It's starting to ease, but there is still craziness to come, so let me just catch everybody up so if I go MIA again, you'll know why.

Shortly after my last post (i.e. that Wednesday) I got really, really sick. Want to die sick. Rolling around on the floor in pain sick. It took me twelve hours of excruciating pain before I caved in and went to the ER. Diagnosis? An infection in my pancreas, a completely non-working gallbladder and gallstones. I was admitted and after enduring a day on a morphine pump to control the pain long enough for the antibiotics to reduce the inflammation and infection in my pancreas, I had my gallbladder removed.

I can't even begin to say how much better I feel. Though there was an adjustment period, I'm now feeling much MUCH better. I had pretty much stopped eating before the surgery because at least once a day I would be in pain and sick with throwing up (TMI, I know) but now I am starting to overcome my fear of eating (weird, huh, to be afraid to eat) and am making a concerted effort to eat more healthily, since my surgeon told me that following a low-fat lifestyle may prevent a recurrence of the pancreas problems and make things easier on my system as I no longer have a gallbladder to help in the digestive process.

Upside - I've lost some weight! Downside? I haven't found one, yet.

Shortly after the surgery, Andy's hours got cut at work. Not good as his job is currently our only source of income. And lest you think that I'm sitting at home on my butt eating bonbons without contributing, let me say that since August 1, I have applied for 57 positions. I haven't gotten a call from anybody. I'm trying to find a job, but it seems no one's hiring, at least not for a position with the hours I am available. Plus, I have a feeling I keep getting knocked out of the running by being overqualified. I mean, employers really don't want to hire someone with a college degree to run a cash register for a few hours on the weekends.

So we had to make some decisions and fast. Unfortunately, our budget is already as bare bones as we can get it: no cable, driving only one car to save on gas, tags and insurance, a $50/week grocery budget and absolutely no extra spending of any kind as any sort of deviance from that meant we couldn't pay our mortgage or other bills. And, let's be honest, I like having electricity. (If you're wondering why we didn't turn off the internet, it's because we have a deal with our telephone company and we're actually getting it for a very reduced cost - like under $5/month - and seeing as how I'm using it in my job search, it was decided that we would keep it until the price went up.)

I was NOT in favor of Andy getting a second job. He works very hard all day, doing manual labor. For him to have to go to a second job, at night or on the weekend, was asking too much. There was no way I could ask that of him. I felt that to do so would be detrimental to our marriage and our family.

Then, other things started happening. Broken toilets, leaking pipes, a rotted sub-floor. We realized that we were in way over our heads. Our house was slowly falling apart around us and there was no way we could fix it and still make the monthly payments.

And so, we are moving. We're putting the house on the market and hope that someone who loves to restore and resell houses will see it's potential. It is a bittersweet moment for us. This is the house where Andy proposed and where we returned as a married couple after our honeymoon. This is the house where we have brought both our sons after their births. Andy's parents are right next door and it has meant so much, to all of us, that they have been able to be such a large part of our lives over the past four years.

But this house has also seen our incredibly rocky first years. The fighting, the doubt, the anger, the sadness. And somehow, I can't explain it, the house has grown oppressive. Like we're under it's thumb and a black cloud surrounds us. We can't get it clean enough, organized enough. It's overwhelming us, burying us in a slow and steady slide of clutter and cobwebs.

We need a fresh start, physically and mentally, and we're hoping this move will help provide it.

We've found a really wonderful apartment just down from the boys' Godmother. We're so excited to be closer to her! The apartment is in a complex that seems to have a lot of people our age and lots of children, too. There's a pool and hardwood floors and a dishwasher. The apartment we've picked out just feels happy and is beautiful. We were unsure about the elementary school we will be zoned for (we knew which one, we just weren't sure how happy we were about it) but I spoke with someone who gave it rave reviews and I will be looking into it more in the next few years before we decide to go there or home school.

Our current plan is that we will stay in this apartment for probably the next 4-5 years. We'll be using that time (and small amount of extra money we'll be saving from our mortgage) to purchase a new-to-us vehicle as our Blazer is about shot. Andy and I are both thinking about going back to school and we plan to spend time making our family a stronger unit. We'll be putting back money for a down payment on a house, but that isn't a priority at this point. We really just want to de-stress and make a fresh start.

Soooo, I'm in the midst of packing, tossing, having yard sales and making boxes of stuff to donate. October is always a busy month and Andy has worked the past two Saturdays as well as getting extra hours during the week (hooray!!!) so I've been trying to handle everything here at home. (I'm getting a little frazzled!) But we'll get it done - because we have to! Our move date is set for November 14th.

Less than a month to go (and we can't wait)!!!

*Photo courtesy of www.morguefile.com

5 Things I'm Thankful For...

2009-09-20T13:48:00.000-04:00

1. My husband. Who currently is urging me to get out of my pajamas and go to the store to buy flour so I can bake him more of those cookies from the previous post.

2. Chubby toddler hands curled around mine while he sleeps

3. Toothless baby smiles

4. Caffeine

5. Rainy Sunday afternoons

I did it for you baby, I did it for you...

2009-09-17T12:00:00.000-04:00

Well, after posting Flo and Mo’s introduction yesterday, I was in a baking mood and decided to make some peanut butter cookies for Andy and the boys (well, Anthony anyway - Matthew‘s still a little young!). Just on a whim, I decided to look for a new peanut butter cookie recipe, maybe something with chocolate, since Andy’s very favorite candy is Reece’s Cups. After a little while, I found these: Magic in the Middle Cookies.

Yesterday, friends, I found religion.

These are, without a doubt, hands-down, THE BEST CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES YOU WILL EVER EAT! Warm out of the oven, with a tall glass of cold milk, you will find yourself transported to a plane of existence where wars have ceased and tight-butted, hard-chested bronze gods (or big-chested goddesses, your choice) rub your feet and pass around trays of milk and these cookies before gently fluffing your pillow and allowing you to drift into a peaceful nap. A nap with no screaming children, needy spouses, dirty laundry breeding more dirty laundry in dark corners of the wash room…Sigh. Well, at least we can have the cookies.

I won‘t lie. These were kind of a hassle to put together. It could be because I was trying to deal with two monkeys at the same time, but the whole making balls and stuffing them inside each other was a little bit of a headache. And, as always, I forgot to read the whole ingredient list before I started (don’t be like me) and had to stop and let the margarine (yes, I know it calls for butter, but I had margarine) soften before I could continue. But PLEASE do NOT let that deter you from at least trying these once.

Because when Mommy and Anthony sat down with milk and each had one, the world stood still. Then we each had another. Then Mommy cleaned the cookie off of Anthony and decided she deserved another for her A+ parenting skills. Then the boys both went down for a nap (not really, but they were blinking their eyes and looked sleepy and that’s about as close as we get in this house) and Mommy went to wash dishes and had to pass by the cookies and oh, look! That one’s sort of lopsided - better eat it, too. And just another to make absolutely sure they were okay for my husband to eat…Andy’s very lucky there were any left at all.

P.S. I found that after I smooshed them down with the greased drinking glass, most of the sugar on the top of the cookie came off on the bottom of the glass, so I just sprinkled some more sugar on top of the cookie before sticking the tray in the oven. No harm, no foul.

Introducing...

2009-09-16T12:48:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, Andy and I introduced two new family members into our household. We thought Anthony would really get a kick out of them, but to be honest, he hardly even acknowledges their presence. I've gotten much more out of them than anybody else so far. But, here they are...

World, meet Flo and Mo. Flo and Mo, the World.

Lists and Introspection*

2009-09-13T21:54:00.000-04:00

I’ll just go ahead and say it: I could probably be diagnosed with OCD for my obsession with making lists alone. At this very moment, I have approximately 10 lists, probably more, going in a spiral-bound notebook that is never far from my hands. Should an idea hit, you see, I want to have instant access to a piece of paper and a pen before said idea slips out of my confused little mommy-brain.

I have a list for Anthony’s second birthday party (currently four months away) and one already started for Matthew’s first birthday party (now a little over 8 months away). I have a menu/grocery list started for Thanksgiving dinner. There’s a list of Christmas cookies I want to bake this year and another list devoted solely to the items that I need to get to put the boys’ Halloween costumes together.

Flipping through my notebook you will see various lists for Christmas gifts, holiday crafts, groceries, recipes to try, things to do, well, you get the idea. Some of my lists have sub-headings and even my post up to this point has been a list of sorts. You see? Obsessive.

What is it about lists that I, and people in general, love so much?

The best thing about a list, to me, is the dream and hope it represents. Silly, and even a little bit sappy, sure. But think about it. As I sit down with my pen a notebook, I am getting to put down on paper my ideas of perfection. Exactly, in detail, my idea of the perfect party (or whatever the list may be about).

Of course, while writing everything down in such obsessive detail makes for an incredibly organized and easily executed event, it also, at least for me, creates a huge amount of pressure and stress. And, just as an aside, that’s why Andy hates it when I decide to plan a party.

You see, creating such a detailed plan of the way I expect my perfect party to unfold creates a lot of expectations in my mind. Once I decide on a plan of action, I HATE deviating from it. And so, I strive to achieve everything that I set out in such meticulous detail, ignoring the fact that I am making myself and others around me miserable in my quest to achieve perfection.

I came across the blog 4 Reluctant Entertainers recently** when I had a few minutes of Mommy time. She says in her blog, “Perfectionism is a robber. Lower your expectations. Your guests do not expect perfection and neither should you.”

When I think of all the times that I have been stressed out over hosting an event in our home, I can pretty much name all the events we have EVER hosted in our home. I’m extremely sorry to say, I’ve enjoyed very few of them, because of my stress and the disappointment I‘ve felt that I hadn‘t been able to achieve perfection according to my list. Which means that my guests probably picked up on my stress and unhappiness and probably didn’t have a very good time either.

But to take this even a step further, why do I feel like I have to be perfect or throw the perfect party. It all boils down to pride and ego. I’ve always wanted to be “that mom,” “that wife,” etc. The one that everyone raves over. The mom that other kids want to have and the wife that other husbands want to take home at the end of the night.

If I’m perfectly honest with myself and the rest of you who will read this, these feelings have a lot to do with trying to overcompensate for a low self-esteem. They stem from a young girl with glasses and braces, too smart in school to be part of the cool crowd, the dork that was teased unmercifully over everything from her grades to her pasty white legs.

It’s only been with time and the love of my husband that I’ve started to get over this. To realize that I don’t have to be perfect for people to love and accept me. I’m very blessed to have friends and family that love me for who I am and don’t care if the floor isn’t swept and the dishes aren’t done when they come to visit.

So if they don’t care, why do I still torture myself? I’ve got to work harder at letting go. At realizing that they will love me even if I fall short of perfection. I need to go easy, to allow myself some of the leeway, love and understanding that I extend so readily to others.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

*Disclaimer: I really actually intended this post to be a humorous poke at my obsessive tendencies. But obviously, I had some things that I needed to explore and work out! So thanks for reading and, as always, I welcome you comments!

**Please visit Sandy over at 4 Reluctant Entertainers! She has put together a fabulous site with lots of great tips and encouragement. I especially love what she says about the difference between hospitality and entertaining. She definitely inspired a large part of my introspection regarding this post and has inspired me to try and be more.

***Photo courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net/

Remember 9/11

2009-09-11T13:19:00.000-04:00

Simple Inspiration

2009-09-09T16:47:00.000-04:00

Recently, I've been thinking about Christmas. More specifically, Christmas presents for two small monkeys. Partly due to our current economic situation, I've been looking for ways to make Christmas more meaningful, without the usual gift buying frenzy that accompanies my holiday celebration. But also, because I would rather the boys grow up anticipating and reveling in the good will and joy of the season rather than stressing out about how many packages will be under the tree.

I've come up with some pretty good ideas about traditions that I want to start - places to go, things to do, all of them focused on spending time together and having fun as a family without emphasizing the latest, greatest toy fads. I've also started researching homemade holiday gifts that I, with my limited artistic ability and lack of patience, might be able to accomplish.

Let me tell you something friends, there is no dearth of inspiration for projects on the web. I've found everything from surprisingly realistic felt food to wood crafts to how-to's for massive amounts of cinnamon buns to give to friends. My problem, of course, is that I am utterly overambitious and that I want to try every project that catches my eye.

Andy is incredibly familiar with my "grand plans" having endured too many to count. I start off meaning so well, then, somewhere, somehow, everything seems to unravel and I'll end up stuck with cases of canning supplies that were meant to help preserve the bounty of the garden that never got planted. Or like the box of beading supplies shoved in the back of the closet under a bag of clothes to take to Goodwill because I got pissy that my necklace looked like it was created by a ferret on crack instead of the picture in the book, despite having followed the instructions TO THE LETTER!

So, my plan is to start simply. One project for each child. For Matthew, I found a free tutorial on how to create blocks out of fabric scraps. And for Anthony, well, I'm having a hard time deciding. But hopefully, by the time I finish Matthew's blocks (the plan is to make 3, although I'm really hoping to make a set of 6) I'll have decided on a project for my oldest.

Three months ago today...

2009-09-03T12:07:00.001-04:00

Matthew made his debut!

Happy 3-month birthday sweetheart!

2009-09-01T17:31:00.000-04:00

Well, it's the first day of September. Fall is soon to be upon us (thank GOD!) and cooler temperatures will be within our hot sweaty grasp. I can't even begin to tell you how excited this makes me. I love Fall. The colors, the smells and for me, the feeling of new beginnings.

I know that most people tend to associate this with New Year's or Spring, but I've always seen fall as a fresh start. Maybe it's because school is starting again and the stores all smell like fresh crayons. Well, fresh crayons and...other things...but you get the idea.

Around this time of year I always seem to go into a homemaking frenzy. Strange, isn't it? I guess I just see it as a time to get the nest ordered and cozy before the cold (relatively speaking, of course. We are, after all, in Georgia!) days of winter settle upon us, cloaking us in a blanket of holiday baked goods and the inertia that results from consuming said goods.

I like my home to feel like a refuge, like a welcome haven at the end of the day when Andy or the monkeys and I come tramping through the door. And I guess that a clean (somewhat), neat (sometimes) abode seems more welcoming than the cluttered trap that is our normal existence.

And so, I clean. I organize. I go on a frenzied search for recipes that scream "cozy." And I eagerly anticipate certain events that mark my favorite season of the year. Things that top the list at The Zoo: Picking pumpkins and hay rides, making apple butter, HALLOWEEN!!!, going for drives to see the fall leaves and jumping into leaf piles. Yeah, we're boring. Sigh. But happy.

To say that I am excited for fall this year seems to me to be the equivalent of saying that the pope is Catholic. Are you freakin' kidding me? Of COURSE the pope is Catholic. Are you crazy?! So yes, it may be that I am mildly (alright, alright, unequivocally, ecstatically, absolutely) enthused about the season this year. I can not wait to take the monkeys to the pumpkin patch and let them climb, jump and squeal. (Well, Anthony anyway, Matthew might not quite be capable of such gross motor responses, although I'm sure he'll get into the spirit of things with coos and enthusiastic spitting up on Mommy.) And all the rest - the hay rides and leaf jumping and trick-or-treating and costume deciding and pumpkin carving - all the joy that we experienced last year with introducing Anthony to these things will be increased a million times by introducing them to Matthew and watching Anthony "get" (to an extent, of course) what is happening.

So, let's go already! Fall needs to get here and quick!

P.S. Leave a comment and let me what your favorite fall event/tradition is with your family!

Happy Anniversary

2009-08-21T15:07:00.001-04:00

Three years ago this week, Andy and I stood in a gazebo, sweating to death in formal wear, and joined our lives together for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health for as long as we both shall live. And although the last several years have seen a lot of sickness and a lot of poorness and a whole lot of "What the HELL - can we never just catch a break?!" I have never been happier in my whole life.

Loving Andy and, more importantly, being loved by him has changed my life in so many tangible ways. I can't begin to tell you how much he makes me want to strive to be a better person - to curb my frequent anger and impatience, to laugh more and to stop freaking out about what needs to be done and take the time for a long embrace. Being around him has made me examine my life in unexpected ways and forced me to take a long, honest look at the not so prettier aspects of my personality.

I never expected to find someone who understands me so perfectly and accepts me so completely. That I have is such a miracle to me that sometimes I think that one morning I'll wake up and find it was all a dream or a joke. To say that I think he's the most perfect, wonderful man in the world sounds like a cliche, I know, but to me, he is.

And I thank my lucky stars that he seems to think the same about me.

Happy Anniversary Sweetheart - Love, your Rabid Sea bass

2009-08-11T12:34:00.000-04:00

Say What?

Ways to drive mommy insane...

2009-08-11T12:24:00.000-04:00

...by Anthony Davis

1. Wait until Mommy is sitting down, feeding your little brother.

2. Find the purple crayon that mommy missed while picking up the living room last night because you had hidden it inside one of your trucks.

3. Quietly color the living room wall purple.

4. Go to the corner of the living room over by your playpen where mommy can't see what you are doing and take off your diaper.

5. Squat down and make a massive stinky.

6. Pee on it.

7. Squeal in glee and stomp on the stinky pee pile.

8. Touch the stinky pee pile with your hands.

9. Touch yourself.

10. Run across the living room, giggling like a mad person, and give mommy a hug while she is scrubbing crayon off the wall.

11. Pretend to be offended when mommy realizes what has happened and starts cussing under her breath.

12. Struggle and scream violently as though your civil liberties are being violated as mommy scrubs you down with baby wipes.

13. Wait until mommy is cleaning up your poo artwork to grab mommy's container of blueberry yogurt and pretend that it is body paint. And carpet paint. And little brother paint.

14. Squall as mommy puts you in the bath tub (adding bubbles - the HORROR) and proceeds to make you clean and good smelling.

15. Wonder why mommy is pulling out pieces of her hair and muttering about tequila.

The End.

It's been a while...

2009-05-17T04:03:00.000-04:00

Sorry that I haven't posted anything for a while. It's been a crazy past couple of weeks. So...updates (and sorry about such a long post):

We're still here and baby Matthew is still baking. Fluid levels are holding steady at about 6 cm. so we're still taking it from appointment to appointment. At our appointment last Tuesday, they did measurements and they estimated he was 4 pounds 8 ounces. Since at this point, babies gain about 1/2 pound each week, we're probably looking at his being about 5 pounds this coming Tuesday.

They have tentatively scheduled our amniocentesis for 36 weeks (June 9th). Our doctor told us that if he can't find a fluid pocket big enough to get the needle into for the draw, he will probably go ahead with the induction that week instead of waiting until 37 weeks. EEK - better start getting organized - we could be less than a month away!!! We're getting so excited!

We got our tax money - YAY!!!

Not a lot else is going on with us. Our primary focus right now is getting Matthew here, so baby stuff is probably all you'll hear on this end for a while!

Updated May Calendar:
Tuesday, May 19 ~ ROCOB (high-risk OB) appt. at 2:45 p.m.
Friday, May 22 ~ Associates in Women's Health (regular OB) appt. at 10:40 a.m.

Friday, May 22 ~ Premier Designs Jewelry Party (y'all are all invited - e-mail me for details!)

Monday, May 25 ~ Memorial Day (observed), Andy is off from work!!!
Thursday, May 28 ~ Freddie's Birthday
Saturday, May 30 ~ Mary Sue's Big Party for all the summer birthdays in Andy's family

***Save money and help the environment***
The waste-free lunch movement is, I think, an awesome idea that helps you save money by buying in bulk and purchasing reusable containers instead of disposables that take up landfill space. Using plastic bags to hold sandwiches and chips for your kids' (and you and your spouse's) lunches means you are literally throwing money away!!! Check out this website for more information: http://www.wastefreelunches.org/.

Did you know that the average clothes dryer costs around $85 per year to operate (according to the California Energy Commission). And, since the average dryer's life span is 11 years, minimum, 20 years maximum (according to the US Dept. of Energy), you're looking at between $935 to $1700 in operating costs over the lifespan of your dryer! I don't know about you, but my family could use an extra $85 dollars every year come Christmas-time! Now, I'm not saying to chuck your dryers, but why not take advantage of the warmer weather and hang up a clothesline? With summer coming, you'll also save money on cooling expenses if your dryer isn't on and heating up the house!

***Just save money***
I've been a member of this site: http://www.mypoints.com since November 2002. Basically the way that it works is that the website sends you e-mails which contain links to other companies. Not unheard-of ones, either, but places like Target, E-bay, Avon, etc. Usually, just by clicking the link to visit the company's website, you'll earn 5 points. BUT if you choose to take advantage of the accompanying offer, you can earn points based on various things, like how much you spend, etc. So how do you use these points? You redeem them for gift cards, which make lovely Christmas gifts!

***Deal of the Week***
If you live near a Bi-Lo, they some pretty good deals on various produce items this week including ears of corn 2/$1.

So, that's all from me! Hope you all have a lovely week!

P.S. If you're like me and are always curious about the proper etiquette for everything from eating spaghetti to trick-or-treating, check out this blog: http://www.mannersmentorblog.com/2009/03/meet-maralee.html.

This past weekend...

2009-05-04T09:10:00.000-04:00

Was so much fun!!!

Mom surprised me by sending me to get a pedicure Saturday morning and then that afternoon was our baby shower. THANK YOU so much to everyone who came and shared the afternoon with us. The food was amazing! We had little weenies in BBQ sauce, sausage balls, pasta salad, Mexican dip, fruit dip with strawberries, a veggie tray, deviled eggs...needless to say we ate a LOT! Mom also managed to get the cutest cupcakes from Irene's bakery. I hope someone took a picture!

Everyone was so generous and we received many lovely gifts. Matthew is certainly a lucky little boy to have so many people that love him! We just had a wonderful time, talking and laughing and playing games. I was so glad to see some of my friends that I don't get to see all the time and am so thankful that they took the time to come and celebrate with us.

So we are now officially 31 weeks! Yay!!! 4 weeks to the amniocentesis; 6 weeks (at most) to seeing our little Matthew!

***

I wish I could figure how to do a calendar on here, but in lieu of that, here is a list of important dates for us in May (I will update as the month progresses).

Tuesday, May 5 ~ ROCOB (high-risk OB) appt. at 3:15 p.m.
Thursday, May 7 ~ Associates in Women's Health (regular OB) appt. at 3:50 p.m.

Sunday, May 10 ~ Mother's Day (Dinner with family)

Friday, May 22 ~ Premier Designs Jewelry Party (y'all are all invited - e-mail me for details!)

Monday, May 25 ~ Memorial Day (observed), Andy is off from work!!!
Thursday, May 28 ~ Freddie's Birthday
Saturday, May 30 ~ Mary Sue's Big Party for all the summer birthdays in Andy's family

***Deal of the Week*** (Long rant included for free!)

Can I just say that I do not like a certain store beginning with a "W" and ending with "al-Mart"? It's my own fault for going at a peak time, but why were there NO bananas or sliced mushrooms? WHY is my store the only one in a 25-mile radius that does not carry the yummy granola bars (see previous post) that Matthew NEEDS for his development?

And why is everyone so rude about standing in the middle of the aisles, blocking traffic, while they have social hour? People - do NOT block a pregnant woman who is trying to get to the frozen pizza and then glare at her like she is inconveniencing you when she asks you politely if she can grab something from the freezer you are blocking whilst you talk loudly about your daughter's hair bow. Especially not when you are wearing church clothes and have obviously just come from said establishment. Seriously. Did you even get anything out of going? Because Jesus doesn't like people who are mean to pregnant women.

And said pregnant woman will smack the shit out of you if she is denied her frozen pizza. Don't think I won't do it just because I waddle like a duck and can't bend over to tie my shoes.

The ONE redeeming spot is that they have strawberries (quarts) on sale for $1.50. So if you love strawberries like I do, run on down there and get some before they get gone. Then, go home and make this: http://www.southernplate.com/2009/04/fresh-strawberry-pie.html or this: http://www.southernplate.com/2008/09/strawberry-punch-bowl-cake.html. Need I say more?

P.S. Remember when I told you in the last post about Happy Hour at Sonic and how it's easy to justify a $1 splurge? If you go three times in one week and spend approximately $7 in those three trips, it gets harder to justify. Just saying.

Sweet Heaven

2009-05-01T12:40:00.000-04:00

I normally wouldn't post this on my blog since I imagine that people might think I was getting paid or something for promoting a product (which simply isn't the case), so I'll just say this and post a link: SOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOD - http://www.quakertruedelights.com/ (I had the almond, dark chocolate and raspberry one). There's a $1 off coupon you can print, too.

Now, if someone at the lovely Quaker company sees this and decides to send a box, or a case, of these to me, I would only be too happy to accept!

Now, on to other, more important matters. We've had two appointments this week and the fluid has increased both times! Matthew currently weighs 3 pounds 8 ounces and has been practicing his breathing each time we've taken a peak. He's also not ashamed of showing off his boy bits for the ultrasound tech, so we may need to have a talk with him once he arrives about modesty. He looks great and the doctors are happy so even though we're still going to have twice weekly appointments for the remainder of the pregnancy, the doctors are pretty confident that we're going to make it to our original goal of 37 weeks. Woot!!!

Anthony is doing well. He's still teething and has his 8 front teeth (4 top, 4 bottom) and 4 molars. He's discovered the great outdoors and is learning how to throw excellent temper tantrums. He takes after me, *sniff*, I'm so proud! So now his favorite thing to do is throw himself dramatically against the door and wail when he wants to go play outside. I try not to laugh, but it's really cute. He's also discovered he's tall enough to reach things that were previously off limits (and Andy and I have had to get even more creative at finding places to put things) and that he has a wonderful new superpower called "climbing." I'm going to go to the courthouse next week and officially change his name to Monkey.

***Deal of the Week***
I promised to let you know about some money saving things from time to time and here's one that I think most of you know about but it never hurts to be reminded...Sonic does Happy Hour between 2 and 4 p.m. Mon. through Fri. This means all their drinks (no milkshakes or ice creamy things, though) are half-price. With summer rapidly approaching, I always think it's a treat to pull in and get a Cherry Limeade or Ocean Water. And then there's the best part: PELLET ICE!!! Makes me giddy just thinking about it!

So, while you're technically spending money you may not need to, at least if you're craving a big Rte. 44 cold drink with pellet ice you can get it for cheaper than normal! And hey, it's easy to justify a $1 splurge!

Happy Weekend everybody!!!

Amniotic Fluid Update

2009-04-25T11:00:00.000-04:00

We had a doctor's appointment on Friday for our non-stress test (NST). Matthew is still just a little too small to pick up his heartbeat on the monitors, which is completely normal as he is only 29 weeks. Most babies will not show up on the monitors until around 32 weeks, although Anthony showed up sooner because he was measuring big because of the diabetes.

Well, the ultrasound tech was really backed up and the office was getting ready to close for lunch so I offered to leave and get lunch for Anthony and I, then come back when they opened. (As opposed to sitting there and waiting with a increasingly fussy little boy and making the ultrasound tech miss her lunch - not good since she is 35 weeks preggo and needs to eat!) So Anthony and I went to Sonic, where he ate an entire hotdog (yay!) and ignored his banana in favor of begging a tator tot from me and then passed out in his carseat while I ate my sandwich.

We headed back to the office and arrived at 1:30 p.m. and were taken right away back to the room. We got some great pictures of Matthew. He looks great and was jumping around like a crazy person (probably because of the Cherry Limeade that was supposed to be diet but didn't end up that way). The bad news: fluid is down again. 6.something. I don't honestly remember.

So we go back back on Tuesday and hopefully the levels will be back up. I'm in bed all weekend and drinking lots of water, so we'll see if that helps. Keep your fingers crossed!

Some Good News

2009-04-23T14:56:00.000-04:00

We finally caught a bit of a break. At our appointment on Tuesday, they found that the amniotic fluid levels are up. Yes, UP!!! We're sitting pretty at 8.34, up from 6.19 last week. So now we just have to hope they stay there! Only 6 more weeks until our amniocentesis (who would ever think I'd be excited about having a needle stuck into my abdomen to suck out fluid for testing?)!

In other news, some of you know that our washing machine broke. We were able to find the part we need, though, and Andy worked on it last night and got about half-way done. He thinks he is going to finish it tonight but he's actually going to be installing one of our air conditioners in the living room as it is supposed to be 87 degrees tomorrow. Pregnant woman hormones + high temperatures = much complaining and much ill to those who have to be around pregnant woman.

We're still waiting on our tax money. I called the IRS and spoke with someone who said "definitely" 7-15 days. I'm glad they were able to at least give us a time frame this week but seriously people, we filed our taxes on Feb. 9th. It is April 23rd. They. Are. Toying. With. Me. There has been much disappointment regarding our tax money - first, we were hoping to get it so I could make Anthony an awesome Easter basket. Nope. Next, hoping to get it to take him on Andy's day off to the Aquarium. Nope. Hoped to receive it in time to buy tickets for the Thomas the Tank Engine train ride at the TN Valley RR Museum. Nope. Then, hoped to get it by tomorrow so I could order a new dress to wear for my baby shower. Unless a miracle happens, nope.

At some point, you'd think we would learn to stop hoping. But I guess we're crazy. We have, at least, lowered our expectations to match our current track record. We now just want to get the money before Matthew arrives in June so we can buy him a new playpen, as our last playpen was recalled. (Yes, we did get the check for a replacement from the company, but bills happen and I like having electricity.) And I'd really love to be able to pay Jessica and Dawn for the cloth diapers they are making us so I can make the final switch to cloth and stop wasting money on disposables.

I think the best way to measure my and Andy's lack of hope at this point is that we've stopped discussing how we'll spend the money when it arrives. We just don't care anymore. We want it to be here but, having waited for so long, it's like Don Quixote's impossible dream. It's out there; we're chasing it; but we'll probably never see it.

So that's it with us this week. Not really anything new and exciting except the fluid levels to report. Anthony is still a munchkin and is doing great. If I can figure out how to post a video, I'll post one of his fun at the Easter Egg hunt. He really did have a good time, even if Mommy and Daddy didn't!

Gonna' be a whiny baby...

2009-04-15T04:10:00.000-04:00

This is my whiny baby post. I've decided to allow myself one each month and this is going to be it...

I am SO SICK of doing everything right pregnancy wise and having all these issues. We had another appointment with our high risk OB today. Matthew's amniotic fluid level was down to 6.19 (down from 6.56 last week). I am doing everything I have been told to do: I am staying off my feet as much as possible with the exception of my one weekly outing (which has been approved, BTW), I am drinking a GALLON of water everyday, I am following the stupid freakin' diabetic diet which denies me everything a pregnant woman craves and I am making myself bleed onto tiny little test strips four times daily to check my blood sugar.

So now, in addition to everything else, I'm dealing with two doctor's appointments every week. Tuesday is the high risk OB, which is late in the afternoon, so I pick Andy up from work early and we go for an ultrasound to measure fluid, check growth, etc. Friday is my appointment with my regular OB for a general check-up and non-stress test (NST), which is in the morning. This involves sitting Anthony on the floor in the room surrounded by toys and praying that he decides to cooperate while I'm stuck on a narrow exam table (trying not to let my fat ass fall off the sides) pressing a button every time Matthew moves for 20 minutes.

This whole appointment thing is compounded by us being down to one vehicle (c'mon tax money) so Anthony and I have to be ready and in the Blazer at 6 a.m. (yes, I know that isn't early by some people's standards, but it is by Anthony who prefers to sleep until around 9 a.m. each day and is a cranky little butt if woken involuntarily before he decides to wake) to take Andy to work in Chattanooga, then drive back to Rocky Face or, if it is Friday, to Ft. Oglethorpe for my regular OB appointment. Then back up to Chattanooga at 2 p.m. (which is Anthony's naptime, BTW) to pick Andy up and either head home or, if it's Tuesday, to our high risk OB.

Yes, people, I realize this bed is of my own making. I should suck it up and go on. I foresaw all of this happening as it happened just a few months ago during our pregnancy with Anthony. And that is why I wanted to wait a few years to get pregnant again, but my former OB decided I couldn't get pregnant on our own so there was no need to us to use birth control. He was a FREAKIN' IDIOT and has been FIRED!!! I suppose that I should have done my own research, taken more precautions, but I'm one of those people that tends to place trust in a doctor that has had extensive medical training and has run numerous tests on my female parts.

So, here we are 28 weeks pregnant and facing at least 8 more weeks of this until our amniocentesis to check for lung maturity at 35 weeks. Am I grateful to be pregnant? Hell, yes, I'm not so stupid that I don't know a miracle when I see one. Am I grateful that we have access to and can afford this type of intensive medical care which will hopefully ensure our baby's safety and survival? Definitely, more than you can know. I can't wait for Matthew to be here, so I can meet him and tell him how much I love him. But it's the getting there, to the delivery room, that's the hard part for us. After all this, it's a relief just to push the little boogers out and the rest is gravy.

I guess what this post boils down to is fear and frustration. As mommies, we all constantly doubt our abilities to nurture and parent our children effectively. And when there are issues, especially in utero, you constantly ask yourself whether or not you are the right person for the job. I mean, if I can't even protect my child while he is INSIDE me, how effective am I going to be as a parent once he is born and in the outside world? I question everything I do - even sitting up to write this post - should I be asleep (YES!), shouldn't I be drinking another glass of water as I right this, should I go upstairs one more time to pee or would it be less harmful to the fluid levels if I just didn't exert the energy and stayed here in the chair and peed on myself...

Plus, when there is another child in the picture, the worries multiply. Am I giving Anthony enough time? Will he be okay when Matthew gets here or will he freak out because I'm going to have to split my attention? Is he truly getting his needs met if he plays on the floor while I am stuck on the couch with my feet up? Most importantly, how is he going to handle being away from me in June, when we've never spent more than a few hours apart?

So there it is, in black and white, my whiny post of the month. I guess I should have written about how the IRS is STILL holding onto our refund (it has been processed, people, just cut the damn check and send it all ready) but this seemed more relevant, although, the tax money really does need to arrive soon as I have important purchases that I simply must make including, but not limited to, a new battery for the Cavalier and possibly a new pair of flip flops and the 3rd book in the Twilight series and reactivating my WoW account (although I only use it when Anthony is not home, I need to know that I can get to Orgrimmar as needed).

It is now 4:45 a.m. Andy's alarm will be going off in 15 minutes. I am peeing and then I am going to bed, although not for long as Anthony crashed at 7:30 p.m. last night so I am sure that he will be up by 6:00 a.m. We really need to get that new battery/tags/insurance for the Cavalier and become a two-car household once again.

A Whole New World...

2009-04-07T09:45:00.000-04:00

We got Anthony's cast taken off at his appointment yesterday morning. I know it didn't really bother him to have it on, but you could definitely tell that he was enjoying his greater mobility all day yesterday, running laps in the living room, heading down the driveway to explore, laughing at Mommy when she slid down the driveway trying to catch him...And when we ran his bath water last night, he was soooo excited! We let him play in the tub until the water got cool and he was all pruney. Then we lotioned him up and put him in some footie pj's (which he couldn't wear while his cast was on since the pj's wouldn't fit over it) and he passed out cold at 9:00 p.m. Of course, Mommy passed out at 7:00 p.m.

We have another appointment with our high-risk OB this afternoon to check on Matthew's amniotic fluid levels. I think this is going to be a weekly thing from now until I-day (inducement day). Everyone keep your fingers crossed that levels haven't gone down. We're 27 weeks today - just need to make it one more week (although, of course, 10 more weeks would be AWESOME).

Andy is off work on Friday - yay! I've got a regular OB appointment that morning, then, depending on the weather, we're either heading to the Chattanooga Zoo or the Creative Discovery Museum. Maybe Chuck E. Cheese for lunch? But definitely some Clumpies for dessert...Andy has never been there so I've been taunting him all week with the flavor list from Clumpie's website. If you're ever in Chattanooga (and some of you live there so you have NO excuse) you must go there and gorge on some of the most delicious ice cream you will ever have:

www.clumpies.com

I can't wait for Friday and Saturday - family time AND Easter egg hunts!!!

Really Cool Idea

2009-04-05T16:12:00.000-04:00

So here is an awesome link that one of my mommy friends sent to me:

http://www.the350project.org/home.html

For those of you who don't click on links, or just don't feel like doing it right now, here's the basic idea: Pick 3 of your favorite, locally-owned, non-franchised businesses. Spend a total of $50 in these three places in a month. You've just help save your local economy!

I know which three I'm picking: Clumpies Ice Cream on Frasier Ave. in Chattanooga, Daylight Donuts in Dalton and Details and Options Day Spa, also in Dalton.

What are yours?

Let's save some money!

2009-04-02T14:25:00.000-04:00

Recently, I've been on a huge kick to save money. I know, I know. Who isn't these days? Well, the only place our family can really do this each week is with our grocery bill. Now, there's not a whole lot of money to cut in that area, I mean, we have to eat and we're pretty bare bones as it is. But I've recently resolved that not only can I feed my family for a certain amount each week, but I can try to feed them WELL. As in, no more Hamburger Helper and boxed dinners. Though convenient, and certainly very cost effective, I feel like I can do better.

So, I've spent a lot of time scouring the web for sites that offer coupons and recipes that will help me accomplish my goal. I've found two that I just keep going back to again and again:

www.southernsavers.com

AND

www.southernplate.com

I love Christy over at Southern Plate - her meals are amazing and you just feel like family when you get there and start reading. I've already tried several of her recipes and they all came out perfectly! Plus, Andy and Thing #1 really liked them as well (although Thing #1 will eat five-day old cereal off the living room floor after the dog has licked it so maybe he's not the best judge for this kind of thing).

The first site (southernsavers) lists store circulars every week and has links that you can follow to coupons and other good deals. Since we don't have a printer that works right now (come on tax money!) I haven't been able to print anything yet, but I've seen a lot of things that I've wanted to.

Got any good money-saving sites I should know about? E-mail me and if they're good, I'll post 'em for everybody!

Time flies...

2009-04-02T14:21:00.000-04:00

It's so hard to believe that it has been a year since I created this site, posted a post and then completely forgot about it. Let's face it. I'm a bad blogger. I want to write. I start to write. And then I erase each post because I think, "Who in the heck wants to read about that?"

But I really do need a place to talk about what is happening in our lives, where all of our friends and family can come to see if I am writing evil things about them. Mwahahahaha! Just kidding.

So, I know it's not New Year's but I'm resolving to write at least once a week and let you all know what is going on with us. Well, with Anthony and, when he arrives, Matthew. Because, let's face it - y'all don't really care about Andy and I - you just want to hear about the cute little monkeys that live in our zoo! And that's okay by us.

Emergency 911

2008-06-11T08:41:00.000-04:00

Last night, Andy and I were awakened by the sound of our doorbell repeatedly ringing.

"Crap," we thought. "The storm must have knocked out the power long enough last night to mess up Andy's alarm clock and he's overslept." So while Andy got his glasses and went upstairs to greet our visitor (who we assumed was Andy's brother, Joe, who rides to work with Andy every morning), I rolled over and began snoring, thinking how lucky it was that Andy had taken his shower last night.

Imagine my surprise when Andy comes down the stairs to tell me there's a Sheriff's Deputy from the county at our door and he wants to talk to me. Ummm, okay...what's the statute of limitations for underage drinking anyhow?

So to make an already long story short, the deputy told us that they had received a 911 call that traced back to our address. The caller never said anything, but the line stayed open for 15 minutes before disconnecting. In that situation, the deputy told us, they always come out to check things and want to speak to all household members in case of domestic violence.

I applaud the Sheriff's Dept. for checking to make sure that things were okay (even though the Chunky Monkey woke up during the commotion and had to be wooed back to slumber with much rocking and a feeding). But Andy and I have to wonder - if we were both asleep and the baby was asleep too (and, we're assuming, unable to dial a phone), who called 911? I'm voting for Chloe...