One Day I'll Laugh About This

I was making Jenner's Braciola for dinner, when Alice came in the kitchen. She was bent down grabbing herself, announcing "pees". Before I could do anything, she turns around and I notice my worst nightmare! She didn't mean pee, folks!

I got her in the bathroom and set her on the potty. Then I set off in search of her pull-up. I found it. Behind the tv?! I also found a lot of messes in various rooms.

After getting her cleaned up, a new pull-up, and a movie going, I started to clean up these messes. A few minutes later, she comes up to me with no pull-up on (again!). So we sat back on the potty and put on a diaper this time. I know she will probably just take the diaper off too, but at least she doesn't have to "step out" of it.

I'm excited that she is starting to initiate potty training. I'm not thrilled with the prospect of a poop covered house everyday!

I know I'll laugh about this later, but right now I need to go figure out what is smashed raisins (from her snack) and what isn't! FYI, they look the same. Man, I'm going to need a drink tonight!

Catching Up

I've been absent for awhile. Maybe you noticed. It was bound to happen. I could feel it coming on. I just was so "burnt" out that I didn't even have the decency to let all of you lovely Internets know.

It started gradual. Posting every few days instead of daily. Then not posting, but still reading and commenting on your blogs. And then...well I took a hiatus.

I was feeling so overwhelmed and weighed down. I had a to-do list miles long and nothing was getting crossed off. I had hit the peak of the hormone drop (I did the same thing around this time with Alice too). I was just burnt out. I enjoy blogging and keeping up with each one of you. It just got to the point that it felt like more of a "chore" than something I enjoyed. My comments were hardly thoughtful, and were completely generic. I don't like being like that. I like being "me" and writing the things I would say. So I just took a complete break.

I played a lot with the kiddos. I got some things on my to-do list crossed off. I enjoyed the little bit of "me" time that I sometimes can squeeze in, and did whatever I felt like doing. I got some flowers, herbs, and veggies planted. I have mastered the perfect (to me) cranberry almond chicken salad.

So enough about that. Updates. Alice has had a horrible diaper rash/yeast infection for months. Every time she had a dirty diaper it would come back. I'd slather diaper cream and Lotrimin on her and it would clear up. Only to return with the next dirty diaper. So I took her back to the pediatrician (again) and demanded help. I was thinking it was strep. The doctor thought otherwise. So we started using a few different creams. I'm happy (albeit a bit annoyed I was wrong) that her rash/bumps are pretty much cleared up.

HJ is just the sweetest. He smiles and talks to me all of the time. And the giggles? My goodness. My heart explodes EVERY. TIME.

The chicks? Not so chick looking. We Sean put them outside the other day. I can't tell which one Fluffy is anymore. See for yourself how much they have grown in the past two weeks.

Two or three weeks old.

Three or four weeks old!

Four or five weeks old!

It may be hard to tell how much bigger they are because of the angle and zoom differences. Trust me. They are mini chickens now! And yes, I know they were before, but they weren't "chicken" looking.

One of my mom's pugs had puppies almost two weeks ago. Sean wants to get one. I'm struggling with this. I'm torn. I do want a puppy/dog. I just don't know if I want a pug. And if I want one soon. I already have a lot going on around here. I already deal with enough poop and mouths to feed (Alice, HJ, the cat, three rabbits, the chickens, and the chicks). Logically, it doesn't make sense. However, it does when I look at the big picture. I'm at home, so I'd be here to house train. I could house train before I potty train Alice. HJ isn't mobile (yet), so that makes the transition a bit easier. If we wait, then we'd be waiting at least a year or two. And who knows what life will be like then?!

Then the whole pug debate. I want another Staffy. That costs money, and quite a bit. The pug would be free (initially). Are pugs good with kids? That is my biggest priority, of course, followed by the hair. From what I've read, pugs shed heavily. I'm not too keen on that. So if you have any experience or knowledge on pugs, let me have it!

So I'm back! I'm not going to promise daily posts. I'm going to ease back into my groove. I do promise that if I ever need a break, that I will let all you lovely people know.

Two Months

I'm a few days late, but I wanted to include HJ's stats in his monthly update.

Our little man is getting BIG! He weighs 13 pounds 12 ounces and is 24 inches long. That is over half of Alice's weight! Which is a good thing, since she can be so rough with him.

We got half of his immunizations. We go back in two weeks for the rest. I can't imagine what all of them would have done. He was super fussy and slept from 6 pm to 2 am! He has been cranky today, so I gave him some Tylenol. He fell asleep shortly afterwards.

HJ is smiling all of the time now. His eyes appear to be getting more blue. He loves to talk to us.

He doesn't care much for tummy time, but isn't totally opposed to it. He will scoot himself around the activity mat and the crib. Last night he turned himself ninety degrees and moved two feet down.

HJ continues to be a good sleeper. We usually will go a stretch of five or six hours (we've gotten eight or nine a few times). When he goes that long, he typically nurses every hour and a half to two hours. He has gotten his days/nights mixed up the past week, so I have been up until 4/5 am. That makes for one tired mommy, as Alice gets up shortly after 9 (sometimes 10), but there is usually one or two feedings before that. I'm hoping the shots and his increased sleep will help get us back into the swing of things. The nights I bring him into bed with all of us, he does really well. He is super cuddly!

Now a few pictures (these were taken on his two month-aversary!).

The second picture is my favorite, but a bit blurry. Then there is the picture with Alice, whom likes to take her clothes off! My (not so) little man is just the cutest thing ever!

Mother's Day: The What I Would Like Versus What I'll Probably Get

I'm going to make this brief because I have both kids napping, and that is rare. So I think I'll take a shower.

What I would like for Mother's Day:

A good nights rest and to sleep in.
To wake up to an immaculately clean house.
A yummy breakfast, complete with coffee, fruit, pancakes, eggs, bacon and sausage.
To go by myself to the annual Derby Day festivities with my friends-and to have a beer!
A new Chariot with the bike and jogging packages.
Lots of flowers to plant!
A massage, pedicure, and facial.
To end the day with a hot bubble bath, with a bottle of wine, my Sarah McLachlan cd playing, and candles lit.

What I'll probably get:
A cup of coffee and a "Happy Mother's Day." (note I didn't put an exclamation point-this will be said with no enthusiasm)

What may occur:
I may get taken out to lunch after church.

What will most likely happen:
A typical day. Complete with changing lots of diapers, plenty of nursing sessions, dishes, laundry, cleaning, making dinner, and taking care of and entertaining our children. All after church, that I have to wake up three hours before hand, so I can shower and prepare the kids to drive an hour and a half there, and then juggle holding/feeding HJ while attempting to keep Alice quiet and sitting in her seat, rotating with chasing her down and bribing her with candy to come back and sit down.

I find it ironic that most mothers wish for time away and to themselves from the thing that gives them this day...their children. And I'm not implying that is anyway wrong, selfish, or whatnot. You deserve some time to yourself. So I hope that you get whatever it is that your heart desires on this special day. What would you like?

Struggling

I'm struggling. I have so much stuff that I need to do, and not enough time to do get it done. I feel like I'm caught in an undertow, and fighting for air!

It doesn't help matters that Alice is teething and cranky. Add in a horrible diaper rash, and yeast infection that requires constant changing and slathering on creams. Then I've got a little fuss bucket, whom does not like garlic, and a mommy who forgets those things. I have been up the past two days with a screaming, gassy baby. Poor little guy!

I probably wouldn't feel this overwhelmed if I had some sleep. I swear I get one asleep and the next one is getting up!

I hate Sean's new schedule. He has been leaving around midnight and getting home somewhere between 2-3. He almost immediately goes to sleep, gets up for dinner, and then goes back to sleep until he gets called in (usually around 10-10:30pm). This sucks! Unfortunately, I think this is how life will be for awhile.

And for those wondering, he does help out some. I just worry about him driving and falling asleep, so I try to enable him to get as much sleep as possible (try keeping a Daddy's girl quiet and away-she went in and threw a few of her toys at him today because he wasn't awake to play with her, and I was nursing). I think it is fair to say she is struggling with this new schedule too. Heck, Sean is also!

I have not had time to read (or comment) on many of your blogs. Please don't take it personally. I enjoy keeping up with everyone. I may only get to you every few days, but I'm reading (and lately doing one mass comment for all your posts-tacky, right?). I'm just doing what I can, when I can. So bear with me. I'm struggling with our new schedule here, and it has thrown me the biggest curve ball. This pitcher is good, but I'm determined not to strike out!

Our Newest Additions

Nothing quite says spring like babies. Any kind of babies. While I would be most thrilled with a puppy, and we will get one someday, I don't quite have the time for something like that. Ever since Bruno's death (he was our first baby-a Staffordshire Bull Terrier), we have been hesitant to bring another canine into our home. Ideally, once the kids are a bit older we will consider adding a new best friend. I'm hoping for another year or two!

So what did we get? Why, a bunch of chicks, of course! We currently have three hens and a rooster, and we needed/wanted a few more. So Sean and Alice went chick shopping! We were planning on getting 5 or 6, but I guess he had to buy at least 10. So we have ten baby chicks! If any of them are roosters, I'm a bit sad to say that their lives will be somewhat short. Though we would be doing them a much better disservice to put them in with the one we have now. He is large and beautiful, but oh so mean to other cocks. He was part of our original set, and he killed three others. We weren't sure which one was the "killer" as he was the smaller of the two we had left, and we were deciding which one to keep. I wanted to keep him, and Sean wanted the other one. Turns out I have a better knack for these things, as a day or two later we found the other rooster dead.

So enough about death. Let's see the chicks!

This was the box they came in. Way too small!

So Sean and Alice found them a bigger box! And moved them into our laundry room, so that we could care for them easier (I'm short and couldn't reach the food or water when they were in their original spot!). Plus now Alice can stand and watch them for hours! So far, she has tried to share her sippy cup and shoes with them.

This one is my favorite! S/he is so fluffy and fuzzy! I shall call him/her Fluffy. And Fluffy is, obviously, intelligent because Fluffy is doing the crossword! My kinda chick!