"cinderella, cinderella, night and day it's cinderella"

geez, now i realize why on some days i just give up trying to accomplish anything before half the day is over. 

this morning daniel woke up at 7 wanting to nurse...and kathryn woke up at 8, so i finally kick myself out of bed to make breakfast...but daniel, with his really bad ear infection, only wants to be held, and so putting him down for even a second is like murdering him...(which i figured out is the cause of all of my horribly painful back problems) 

so since it is cold, i figure, lets make oatmeal...get in the kitchen with daniel in one arm, getting the bowls out, only to realize kathryn is going for the oatmeal container, but it somehow slips, and crash, a nice mess to clean up. ok, not bad, it's dry, just sweep it up....so i put daniel down, ugggh screams ringing in my ears, i clean it up while taking a deep breath...

ok, so pick daniel back up, get back to the oatmeal, i get it all preped for the microwave, give daniel a piece of bread, put him down to get the bowls to the microwave, turn it on, turn around, and daniel has crawled over to the highchair where kathryn has just placed her juice (he is just tall enough to reach) and grabs her cup (not sippy cup) and turns it over...all over him. 

so do i give him a bath or just change his clothes wipe him down and fill my own growling tummy...

yeah, skip the bath, struggle with daniel to get his clothes off, wipe him down, battle with him to get clothes back on, and at this point trying to calm kathryn down who is now screaming for more juice...deep breath...."JUICE JUICE JUICE MAMA!!!" aaaaagh, "i just want to finish the oatmeal!!! is that too much to ask!!!" 

ok, so now i get to eat my oatmeal, and only hope the rest of my day doesn't go this way. 

i've still got to do the dishes and the laundry, and clean the kitchen, vacuum the floor (for remaining oatmeal), mop the floor (all the juice will get sticky) and possibly make dinner too?? i feel like cinderella. couldn't possibly be because that is the movie of choice kathryn decided to play 4 times already this morning.  =) ::sigh::

but i would like to say thank you to my wonderful husband who watched the kids and put them to bed so i could run off to foxy's last night and sit in their hot tub to loosen up the muscles and pain in my back. it helped so much, i feel much better, so thank you  johnathan!

getting to be a kid again

so, my in-laws let everyone open gifts yesterday, because that was the only day that everyone was going to be able to get together before christmas... (thanks to retail) and kathryn got a nice 5 pack train set (geotrax) and so, after sorting through everything, i decided to get it out and put it together, after putting together the other new train set at the in-laws house yesterday (trackmaster train set). i just had so much fun doing both, and realized obviously because of the lack of money my mom had, we never got things like this (except legos and barbies) but i have always like the "boy" toys better. hehe. so i got to be a kid again and play with the flippin sweet train sets with kathryn and daniel too. he liked to look at them. so check out all the fun we had!

daniel is growing up too fast!

so just last week, out of the blue, daniel started crawling all the time, getting everywhere super quick. and a day later, he started pulling up to a kneel on things like chairs, my legs, and whatever else. yesterday he started pulling himself up to a stand, and today he pulled himself up on an empty rubbermaid container, and leaned forward, and it started moving across the tile floor (it was empty) and he was walking with it! then he let go and stood up by himself for a second before grabbing back on!! he's only 6 1/2 months!!! this is crazy talk! i can hardly believe what i'm seeing. my little baby boy is growing up. but he sure loves his mommy and loves to cuddle and eat my feet...yeah, it's his way of telling me he wants to be picked up. 

and kathryn's new thing is "i'm fine" do you want a sandwich? "i'm fine" do you want to take a bath "i'm fine" do you want some water "i'm fine" do you want some candy "i'm fine...oo, candy candy, please" it's pretty funny. it's her getting a bit of an attitude i guess.

Audio Books

hmmm...i have recently been listening to the Book of Mormon on audio, and wow! i love it! most of the time i follow along, but i can see why people love audio books! i know Aaron Saxon has a few audio books, and i may see if he's got twilight...heh heh. it is a wonderful way for people to "read" books, who either read slowly, or don't like to read. 

Twilight.

well, somehow i was lucky enough to be included in the mix of a group that got to see the movie Twilight tonight, 2 days before it's release. funny thing is, i haven't even read the books, so i don't even know what the hype was about! i just figured, nice treat for me to see a free movie...so let me just tell you...i'm going to be looking to purchase these books, because i have to read them now! i hate when movies have an open ending right after they've hooked you in. it was a great movie, but i really want to read the books because i know books are always better than the movie. so that's that. i may see if john wants to watch it with me soon... anyhow. thanks Holly for thinking of me and inviting me!!! and thanks to Jamie for giving me a ride! you guys are awesome!

what a difference

"what a difference a day makes, 24 little hours brought the sun and the flowers, where there used to be rain" (lyrics of a song, that played on a scrubs episode)

yeah, i just kept thinking of that song all day. and the episode i heard it on. but needless to say, my crazy day yesterday, was flipped around, and i got a nice decent kathryn and daniel today. kathryn was exceptionally good. she ate well, she wasn't whiny, she helped put the dishes away, and feed daniel, and put the dirty clothes in the washer...she even read my mind and got me a bib for daniel before i could even ask. she was quiet, and gave me time to get stuff done... i was so pleased with her. 

we had another toddler group. it was so nice! it was at Holly's house, and as far as i could tell, the mom's enjoyed talking, and the kids played really well, and it was really nice! thanks Holly for hosting it! i had a lot of fun, and i think the kids did too! kailey, Holly's daughter, is so sweet. she wanted to hold daniel, and play with him, and she was very talkative to a few of the other moms. she had such good manners. =) Holly, you have such a good little girl! i know she probably isn't always that way, but it's the impressions on other people that count!

a few interesting things about my babies

- kathryn's new favorite thing to do is "press play" on her movie, as soon as she wakes up, she turns on the tv and the dvd player and "press play" and then proceeds to shout it out while running to come tell me. she never lets the thing take a break. even when the movie finishes (she doesn't actually sit through most of the movie when it plays) if she hears the menu music, she runs and presses play again. she's hillarious.

- daniel hates being left alone, and will come find me if i leave him in a room...once he gets to me, he slobbers all over my feet until i pick him up...he has pulled himself up while grabbing my legs...

well, that will be it for now. i need to make my hubby some yummy sandwhiches for lunch tomorrow!

the boiling point

have you ever noticed how much energy it takes to stay calm when something really annoying or stressful is taking place? it seems to happen to me quite a bit with a toddler and a baby. i find myself taking deep breaths, trying to stop my impluses of screaming, or whatever else... but sometimes, i just don't have the energy, and i reach a boiling point. where everything boils over and i get outside to calm down before i do something i might later regret. it never fails that when that boiling point comes, and i finally calm myself down, i feel like i am utterly exhausted, winded, and light-headed... i guess all that adrenaline will do that. 

well, today was one of those days. i invited my friend Amanda over (with her boys Michael and Ben) and thought Michael would play with kathryn, and the babies would entertain themselves. and we could get busy on making diapers... kathryn just wasn't being very good. she was the one starting the trouble, and doing everything she knows she's not supposed to do...flushing the toilet paper down the toilet, throwing toys/things at the babies, throwing her books all over and, yeah, just generally trying to make a huge mess...i finally just gave up! timeout after timeout, and she wasn't getting it. oh well, we went out to feed the ducks, which calmed her down a bit, then once daniel fell asleep on the floor after finishing his bottle, Amanda decided her boys needed naps too, so she was leaving, and kathryn lost it, she started crying really loud, which woke daniel up, which made me mad (there goes my break, and now i have 2 crying kids) and kathryn wants to cuddle??? GRRR. she wouldn't stop crying after my best efforts of calmly trying to calm her down, so i boiled over, she went in her room, daniel back on the floor and i went outside... of course once i calmed down i felt like a terrible mother, and kept thinking i could've handled that better. so i cuddled with kathryn and read her stories to make it up to her and let her know i loved her. later on when she woke up from her nap...i can only conclude that she must have had a bad dream, because she would not calm down...i would coax her in to stopping the crying, but as soon as i would ask her what was wrong, she would start it up again. after about an hour of her screaming no matter what i said, i gave up, boiled over, and went to lay down in bed. i had a headache and i was out of energy to deal with screaming toddlers. UUUGH. but john got her to quiet down for a bit somehow, and held daniel too so that was nice of him. my friend Amanda let me know that i am not alone in feeling the way i do sometimes. that makes me feel better. to know that someone else goes through those exact same emotions with their kids. i'm not perfect, but i keep trying.

on an up side...daniel has 2 teeth now! i still haven't been able to get a very good picture of them, he hates when you put your hands on his face to prod at him...lol. 

oh yeah, and happy birthday lydia!

a little of this and a little of that

so i am really looking forward to this week! it's when i can finally start working on some goals. it should be pretty busy. toddler group at Holly's house on tuesday! woohoo! you know, you'd think since i am in nursery on sunday that i'd be sick of toddlers, heh heh... yeah, 

so my new calling is nursery assistant. not bad. today was my first sunday staying in nursery the whole time, and it wasn't that bad. i mean, i would probably rather listen to talks given in relief society and pay attention in gospel doctrine, but nursery today wasn't bad... although i have nothing to compare it to... the only problems i am going to have is 1. finding someone to watch daniel during nursery 2. kathryn is always catching one cold after the other, and sick kids aren't supposed to be in nursery... but i think by next sunday this will all be worked out. kathryn's cold won't be contagious next week, and john should be there to take daniel.

so besides the fact that excluding john we are all sick... kids have green and yellow runny noses, and i hack up green and yellow throughout the day...i guess we're doing pretty good. oh, but the highlight of my day...every time daniel would cry, i'd pick him up and he'd spit up all over me! you'd think i would have caught on after oh, the 4th time...but no...however one of the times, he decided to give me a break, and instead spewed all over the laptop! GOOD thing it was closed!!!! but this spit up thing is really getting old...he needs to just grow out of it already. 

but i have a question for all of you out there! i need some new ideas for meals! it seems like we keep circling around the same 4 or so meals: spaghetti, gumbo, stir-fry (frozen), and red beans and rice. so what are some quick meal ideas??? i hate it when i feel like, "didn't we have this 2 days ago!"

the i told you so's

don't we all hate to hear that! we always want to think we are right, and when we aren't, we certainly don't want it rubbed in. well today was lydia's birthday party, and steph's baby shower, and i could've said i told you so, but i decided against it... and then when steph opened her present from me (the baby bedding) she LOVED it. she thought it was awesome and so did everyone else. they were amazed to hear that i had made it. well thank you. i said with a huge smile on my face, so glad that my workmanship is appreciated. mom even threw out the comment, you could sell this stuff honey! haha, no. but that is where mrs corine gave me an "i told you so" about how she would love it, and i was crazy to think that it didn't turn out good. that is one i told you so i would gladly accept! heh. 

so kathryn is desperately needing some new pants, she has one pair of jeans i'm not fond of, and that's it. i looked at target, all they have is a few leggins and a few sweatpants, but i'm looking for jeans or khaki's! so i got the idea from one of Jamie's pictures of Holly's cute girl Kailey (she was wearing super cute jeans, and i noticed the patch with the logo) and i went to the children's place...so worth it! they have such a selection, i now remember why i wish i could shop here for all the kids clothes! i think i am going to go back monday and get another pair. 

and lastly, the pictures of the bedding that i made.

one cute picture of Ethan giving Lydia a kiss good bye!

the quilt folded to get a better shot at the name...

yeah, it is really big, it measures 45" x 59"

this is a large receiving blanket, brown flannel with green serged edges...the green is light and almost doesn't stand out, until you see it next to white. it measures 1 1/4 yards square. i like this size, becuase you can use it for longer than 6 months. kathryn uses the one i made her and loves it.

the back side of the bumper pads, or they could be reversible, and green could be on the inside. either way, this is one side.

the animal print on the front side of the bumper pads with brown flannel at the ends of  the longer bumpers.

the far away shot of the front of the bumpers. i'm pooped. night night.

i hate deadlines.

and that would be why i could never actually be an architect (that's for amanda)

so i kept putting off making the bedding for my nephew, and finally when steph told me a little less than 2 weeks away when she was going to have her shower, i decided, i'd better get on it. i figured two weeks is plenty of time! but i forgot to factor in that i am a mom of 2 kids that never stop needing me, and it seems as if every time i need to work on something, they decide they need me more. i think the bumper pads turned out great for my first time for sure! the quilt on the other hand...i'm not even going into that other than, i only had 4 days to work with...minus all the time my kids demanded my attention, and the day i hung out with nats and helped clean up a few areas of my mom's house. so i kept thinking, all i have to do is this, this, this, and this (assembling the quilt) that shouldn't take long at all...unless you are in a hurry and you sew something backwards, and have to rip it out...twice. see that is the problem with me and a sewing project. i have to concentrate, and i like to do things start to finish in one go. around my house, that is impossible. so there is almost a guarantee that something will go wrong, fixable, but, still a set back. and so here i am trying to finish the quilt the last day i have (shower is tomorrow) (if i don't give it to her then, i'll never finish it!) and so lets just leave it at that, the majority of work was done in one day, with plenty of interruptions, and, i am just glad it's complete. i feel like i have a life now!!! 

i would post pictures, but now i get to make oreo balls for the shower tomorrow. and it's midnight...maybe i'll just cover oreos in chocolate. i am pooped and i don't want to feel like i am running out of time. AHHHH. oh well. anyhow, i am going to take a break. i just want to kick back and relax tomorrow. to bad it isn't MY birthday tomorrow. HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENN!! hope you have a good time!

candy: the miracle cure

so i'm sure before i had kids i could be found saying "i'm never going to bribe my kids, that's just wrong" and yet, it seems to work!

when kathryn gets hurt to the point of crying she usually cries for a while, and nothing quiets her faster than a piece of candy. when kathryn has taken all of her toys and dumped them on the floor just for the heck of it and doesn't want to pick them up...candy gets them cleaned up really fast! so when we started potty training, i tried on my own, and she actually regressed, until a friend gave me some advice: candy and amazing praise, and it definitely worked! now that she is potty trained, she goes to the bathroom so many times that as soon as i put her pants back on (she takes them completely off) she has them off again, and refuses to try to put them on herself. so i have come up with a plan...candy. i have seen her successfully put her panties and pants on, so i know she can do it...so if she does, she gets candy!

 is that mentality wrong? i am trying to teach her that if she does the right thing she will be rewarded...i guess that may not be the lesson she is getting from it. i know eventually candy will turn into money, but i guess it's better for her to know she has to do something to be rewarded, she can't just get something for nothing right? i know this is far too deep for a toddler to understand, but what is your opinion on "bribes"?

ranting

well, the toddler group today was really fun, i am so glad we are able to keep it going. there were 5 moms each with a baby 4 mo to 9 mo, and toddlers ranging from 2 to 4 years! there were 11 kids in all. pretty exciting. i hope the other mommies that came enjoy this group as much as i do!

well, the toddler group was at my MIL's house, because my apartment is tiny, and because she offered. she has a large "play"room with odds and ends, and the few things i thought would be ignored, KATHRYN decided to get in to, when she usually has no interest in them. i think she acts out when a bunch of other kids are around. overstimulated.

she asked for and ate red beans and rice this morning for breakfast...if that isn't strange idk what is.

after we got home she insisted on feeding daniel his baby food. and i showed her how to do it, and she was doing good, so i decided to let her take over...completely. i got up and went to do something in the kitchen when i hear he's whining, i turn around and he's staring at me. kathryn has a spoonful of babyfood trying to give it to him and he's turning his head, i tell her you have to get him to turn his head. so she barely touches his head, he turns, she puts spoon in mouth (very well i might add) and he jerks his head my way with a mean pouty face as if to say, why are you letting her feed me MOM! what's wrong with you! i had to laugh. i got it on video, but it takes too long to upload, so i'll spare. he refused to take the food from her when i wasn't around, but as soon as the spoon got in my hands, he gobbled it up. what a turkey!!

tonight when i put them in the tub, daniel started to get really fussy, and i knew it was because he was tired, so i hurried up and bathed him and got him out and dressed and let kathryn play a while longer while i nursed him to sleep. it took maybe 5 mins to get him to bed, and when i returned to finish with kathryn, i noticed the water was really sudsy, more so than what would have been on the rag i bathed daniel with, i looked at the bottle of baby wash on the edge of the tub, picked it up and it was empty!!! it had a good half bottle left, and some how kathryn had gotten it open and emptied it into the water! haha. the water had a slimy feel it was so thick with soap! i just laid her down in the water and rubbed it all over her. she was pretty dirty, but she should be squeaky clean with all that soap!  fun stuff. 

well, i guess that about does it. 

tired tired

well, i am a wee bit tired, so i'll post more tomorrow, but i am super excited. tomorrow is a toddler play group, and i am hosting it! yay! i am also starting up a sewing group! we'll see how that worlks out!

i conquered the mood swings!

well,  today has been interesting. we got to church on time! WOO HOO. haha. it's really big for us. and church was really good. i really felt the spirit. you know, there are just some sundays where no matter what you hear it just feels so powerful. that was today. daniel was adorable, i dressed him in a button up shirt, and he looked so much older. 

oh yeah, and i got a calling! but i haven't been set apart, so i'll wait till next sunday to share. when we got home tho, i started making red beans and rice and after chopping the onion my eyes were burning like crazy, and daniel was crying from being hungry, so i took him in bed to lay down and feed him, and i dunno what came over me. i felt like i had no motivation to do anything, i felt depressed, but i was determined to shake the mood, so while daniel slept, i played with kathryn flipping her over, and hanging her upside down (getting those endorphins going) i broke a sweat! and that cheered me up, but i had to get out of the house while i was feeling good to make it last. heh heh. i visited my friend amanda, and then went to my mom's to visit for a bit. i managed to scrape the crappy mood and let go of the silly grudges! yay for me! 

go home nick saban!

i really don't like this guy...he's the highest paid coach in college football, and as soon as someone else comes along and offers him more money he's gone like that! what a shallow guy. i guess that's just my opinion. anyhow...i was quite impressed by how the tigers played today, and i wish they would have won. what an intense 2 half tho! i hope they get the QB thing straightened out real soon.

aside from the game today...daniel decided he would start crawling hands and knees style. he's been pulling himself forward on his tummy with his arms for at least a month now, and been rocking back and forth since 2 months ago...but out of the blue, he lifted one arm, then moved forward, then lifted the other arm! i was a bit shocked cuz he hadn't been using his arms at all when he was on all fours, he'd wait till he dropped to his belly to pick stuff up etc. so, of course i tried to get a video. i dunno just how good it is, but i'm just amazed...this little boy is growing up too fast! he's got soooo much energy...i am just bracing myself for what is to come...need to baby proof 100% asap...but how do you baby proof when your toddler comes right behind you and leaves things within baby's reach that they really should have??? ahhh...oh well. 

the kids room

so we live in an apartment but our landlord says it's ok if we paint as long as we repaint over it. before we moved in we painted their room because the walls looked really bad... but i decided since i painted their room already, i would dress up the room more. so recently i did a bit more, and have been meaning to post it!

i painted kathryn's name above her bed, and gave her some flowers. my plan was to do it in pink, because her "colors" i picked when she was born was pink and green, well, as i was mixing the paint and she saw pink, she said...NO purple purple...so, i changed it to purple. 

i made their curtain a while back but just getting around to posting that too. it turned out really good.

kathryn has way to many beanie babies, so to consolidate to one huge 72 gallon container, i decided to put them on the ceiling. it took longer than i thought, so i never really finished, but what's the difference. they like it. 

maybe i'll get around to painting daniel's name on his wall. 

we'll be here probably another 2 years, so might as well make ourself at home.

daydreaming

so i had an incredibly vivid dream last night, i'll spare the details, it's not necessarily interesting, but when i awoke to daniel crying at 6:30 it was like i was on auto pilot, i grabbed him and brought him in bed with me to feed him, and my dream continued where it had left off. now most of the time i'm abruptly woken up from a dream, i forget what i was dreaming about...but this dream just kept going! even when i kathryn woke up at 7:30 and i got up to get breakfast, the dream was still continuing to play out. but every time i tried to think about what i needed to do today, my thought process would freeze and the dream would continue! it started to get annoying, and i couldn't figure out why i couldn't just block it out. when i laid down with kathryn to get her to take a nap, i fell asleep and had a dream about something else, and have since stopped "daydreaming". i wonder what that was all about! i know dreams are supposed to describe what your unconsious mind is thinking, and your true feelings about things, but i couldn't get out of my own head!

anyhow, i opened the door today cuz it was feeling rather nice outside, and daniel went for his escape. he is really getting around, although i'm not sure it's considered crawling yet.

he's going for the plants...

he knows where it's at

so i've been (for the most part) strickly breastfeeding Daniel, and just recently he has become very aware of where his milk comes from. to the point where when i catch his attention he will look me in the eyes smile, his eyes drift to my chest, then back up to my face and smile big...i think it's kinda funny, but i was trying to give him a bath, and i was resting my chest (fully clothed and all) on the side of the tub so i could reach him better, and he was sitting up and he kept reaching for my chest to pull my shirt open... and he'll do that when i have him on my lap and i know he's not hungry, he tries to pull open my shirt (if i'm wearing a button up shirt)...

my mother in law Corine said that this was the age that she would stop breastfeeding when they started to know where and how to get their food. i'd like to keep going with it, but i'm begining to wonder...if i go til he's a year, how in the world do you wean the off the breast?? it seems like at that age, they'll have it engrained in their head that that's where they go when they're thirsty. hmmm.... am i wrong? i haven't gotten to talk to a whole lot of mama's that have been this far or past this point BF. 

so on a quick side note...i volunteered to make my nephew's baby bedding and i had never done this before...a quilt sort of, but bumper pads no...and i must say...IT IS NOT EASY...making bumper pads that is. ok, so it isn't that hard, but when it comes to me, i tend to "teach" myself how to do things the hardest way possible. but i have one bumper pad out of 4 done and i must say...it is GORGEOUS! well, she couldn't make up her mind with what she wanted,so i chose for her! i chose green and brown (like a sea foam green) and an animal print, and i LOVE it. i'm almost jealous i'm giving it away! haha. when i finish all 4 parts, i'll take a picture and post them. 

feeling a bit down

well, with all four of us being sick, daniel probably being the sickest, and only wanting to be cuddled, not sleeping well, and always spitting up from the yucky stuff lingering in the back of his throat...yeah, that alone bums me. i thought that by breastfeeding him, he would avoid the colds that plagued kathryn, not so. 

john and i are trying to get completely out of debt, and clean up our "credit score" so we can be sitting pretty come time to buy a house...we had some dental credit cards that we needed to pay off asap, or else they will add retroactive interest of the tune of 700 dollars, so we decided to do a loan at our credit union. we figured since we have never had collections of any form, never been delinquent on any bill, and just knocked alot of debt out and closed out some credit cards within the last year that we'd get a super good rate, since a little less than a year ago i checked our credit score and it was 717, and 704 (john)...so i was pretty confident that we'd get approved hands down. the loan officer calls me back asking if i wanted to put up collateral to get the loan...what for?? well, you don't have good credit. SAY WHAT? HOW!? well, that's what i'm trying to figure out. there isn't any mark against you...i guess it's just that you don't have a mortgage and you only have 3 credit cards 2 of which is over 50% of the limit charged...those are the only things i see that might bring it down...down to what??? 609. WHAT?!? 

so let me get this right...because we aren't more in debt, we have a lower score???? because we paid off and canceled about 5 credit cards and didn't leave them open we are penalized for that in our score??? because we don't owe money on a house we have a lower score????? WHAT KINDA CRAP IS THIS!!! yah know, i am totally there with DAVE on this one. i refuse to worship at the alter of the great FICO.  i can't believe that this is how the credit score works...so disappointing. all the hard work we've done in paying off over 20,000 in debt in the last 20 months...never being late on bills...all to have such a crappy credit score. there is something wrong with this picture.

and i don't even want to get started with OBAMA...

and that is why i am feeling a bit down. what is this world coming to?

A happy baby makes a happy mommy

oh last night was much better. i somehow managed to bathe both kids and had kathryn in bed by 8:30, and daniel asleep and in bed by 9. i made a pork roast for dinner last night, and corn on the cob, and kathryn tried out the corn for the first time. she didn't eat much but it was fun watching her try something new. she ate a good bit of dinner, so john asked if he could make her a "kiddie" cone (the kiddie cones are small) so i agreed as long as she was in her highchair. in about 20 mins, i noticed this:

poor kathryn. she hadn't had a nap (those are becoming harder and harder to get out of her, and more of a hassle, besides, she goes to sleep on time without one! and goes without a struggle. lol.) and at 7:30, she pooped out, but she was covered in ice cream so i woke her up threw her in the tub and tossed her in bed. she was so good for me when daniel wasn't. it's nice when it works out that way. 

i got to have about 2 hours of play time after the kiddos went to sleep and then i pooped out myself, and no crying was heard until kathryn started beating on her door at 7am. i'll take that over last night! it's always a plus to start out good. 

i have 4 major chores to do today, and i told john to pick two...i gave him his choice! how nice is that. lol. so we'll see just what gets done. 

I jinxed myself

call it what you'd like...before i went to bed i said it didn't seem like Daniel was cranky from teething...and then it started. apparently daniel woke up about 1am, john got up with him tried calming him down till 2:30 then woke me up to see what i could do. i tried feeding him, but his nose was so stuffy from crying, he couldn't breathe but out his mouth which frustrated him more, and he just kept crying and trying to nurse for about 30 mins or so, then he gave up and just started trying to suck his thumb to sleep, but with the same problem, i think he may have slept for about an hour and a half, but at 5:30 it was more screaming for him. poor guy...but when i don't get sleep i don't have a whole lot of patience. so i tried feeding him again, and i attempted to try falling back asleep, but he couldn't breathe still, and went back and forth from crying to nursing for about an hour. finally at 6:45,  (i forgot to set back my clock so it said 7:45) i woke john up and asked him why he wasn't heading for work...he reminded me of the switch, then proceeded to get dressed. daniel started semi smiling at john who was trying to cheer him up while i feel dead and just want the crying to stop. well, i try feeding him again, and after 5 mins he gave up, and about 7am kathryn is banging on the door. nice. now it's hopeless, i'm certainly not getting any more sleep. i tell john to put daniel in his bed so he can cry there, i can't hardly hear myself think from the ears ringing. 

so kathryn gets in bed with me and i still desperately fight both kids being up to try to sleep even for 10 more mins. well, i almost fall asleep when john comes to tell me bye, he was leaving for work. about 7:30 daniel is still crying, so i take him out of his bed, change his diaper, try to give him tylenol which he just lets drool out of his mouth, then, since i was nursing him all night i knew i had nothing left, i made him a bottle, and let him drink it in bed hoping it might put him to sleep...i meanwhile crawl back in bed, kathryn following, and close my eyes, even though kathryn is jabbering away at me, my eyes just burn. i sing some songs until i hear daniel wail again, i get him out of bed and put him on the blanket in the living room to crawl around so i can get breakfast for me and kathryn and possibly start getting read for church. it's like 8:30 now, i'll probably be late but what can i do...so i get breakfast (cereal) try to eat it fast as daniel is staring at me wanting some...i notice spit up on his mouth, i go to wipe it off and find where on the floor it was when i pick him up i realize he tracked all through it and now he was covered from neck to waist in it. gross. i get the water ready for a bath, strip him down, bathe him, start drying him off when he starts again...WAILING. ahhhh make him stop make him stop! i try to dress him but he's stiff and uncoopertive and try holding him and comforting him, he only turns to scream directly into my ear. so i decide i am going to jump through the window if i don't let him calm down away from me....i stick him in his bed half dressed in his bed and quickly leave the room. i hear kathryn say "sta cying dan-do" as she closes the door. that made me laugh. 

after about 5 or so mins he was only hooting, so i go back in there, as soon as he sees me he starts screaming again, but i figure, maybe he wants solid foods, he hasn't had those all morning, so i stick him in the swing, and try to feed him he's so worked up but wants to eat that he takes the bite, but blows it right back out as he tries to breathe, then realizes he didn't take the bite and screams again. finally i decide to search for the medicine..orajel, i lost it, and so it took me all of 5 mins to find it, i got the swab, tried to swab his gums, the screaming only got worse...come on please...i fight with him to get more on his gums for a bit longer, and he sticks his thumb in his mouth and within minutes he is sleeping. oh finally!!!! 

 

on a funny note, kathryn kept tripping over her shoe that was laying on the floor and i kept telling her you need to pick it up so you won't trip on it, then finally she tripped again, and i told her if you would pick it up and put it away you wouldn't trip on it, so she proceeds to grab her shoe run over to the diaper bag and pusehed the shoe in then proceeded to push it down with both hands over and over while saying angrily "sta in deh" (stay in there!) it was just funny because that's exactly how i am when i get mad!

Ahhh a tooth

so daniel cut his first tooth...i dunno if it happened today, but it had to be within the last 2 days, it's pretty new. i would take a picture, but there is nothing to see yet...the tooth just barely broke the gums, so we gotta wait for it to sprout up. no more toothless grins =(  i sure hope this doesn't mean he's gonna get them all at once though! i'd like to keep breastfeeding him, but not if he's going to bite! it just doesn't seem like he's been cranky from cutting a tooth...although i have noticed an increased desire to chew on everything...hehe. he's getting energentic already and it's so cute.

2 sets of twins

so today i went to sam's with amanda, and we had all our kids with us...i love the sam's shopping carts because they hold two kids up front. so we put both babies up front and both toddlers in the back...we were walking through the store and amanda saw something she wanted to go run and get, so i just stopped as i was the one pushing the buggy, and waited for her to come back..and there were quite a few older folks that kept staring at me, and one older guy stopped just long enough to comment: "WOW two sets of twins, you've been blessed, they are adorable" i didn't get to correct him, because he was already walking off...but he said it rather loudly, and a few people turned to look and smiled...i couldn't help but smile back...as i thought what it would really be like to have 2 sets of twins only 2 years apart! i certainly wouldn't be bringing them to sams without extra help!!

picture tag!

so i've been meaning to do this for a while, thanks jenn. the fourth folder in my pictures, fourth picture would be: 

 and this is a cloth diaper that i made from recycled t-shirts (and if anyone has any donations that would be awesome). yeah, that's right. i cloth diaper. i look for ways to cut our costs so we can get out of debt, and for me, that means cloth diapers. it's actually quite fun to sew them up and see them so cute. and heck, aside from the thread and elastic, they're free!!! oh, and what's better, i can sell these once i'm done to another mama, so i actually come out ahead. 

if you're wondering, the diaper above is what you would call a pocket fitted diaper, you stuff an insert from the front which has a flap that folds over to cover the opening. i stuff with microfiber. it absorbs 8x it's weight in liquid, and works on daniel and kathryn overnight!!! i could finish the diaper off with some velcro or snaps to keep it on, but instead i use a snappi, it's quick and velcro or snaps is not cheap. what's a snappi you ask? check it out:

pretty cool. now, the one thing i do have to buy is a cover to contain the moisture and keep the diaper from wicking on to clothes, but once again, they resell very well. one example of a cover:

i think it's cuter than a disposable, and i've been doing it for 3 months now, and it works for me. my friend amanda and i are working on sewing up some diapers and selling them. i'll let you know how that goes. so cloth diapering still exists...who knew???

oh and i've decided i'll take on the NaBloPoMo challenge too. here we go!

and my heart stopped

so lets set the stage...on friday my friend Amanda was trying to pack up everything in her apartment so her husband could move it into their new apartment, well, i knew she was going to be busy, and so i called her up and volunteered to watch her two kids (michael 3 and benjamin 8 months) well, it's like having 2 sets of twins, our kids are so close in age, however it really wasn't that bad. so i have 4 kids to watch... and michael says he wants to go see the ducks. (we have about 10 ducks that hang around the apartments hoping for food...) ok, we can go see the ducks...sure. well, i get kathryn's shoes on and i put ben in the stroller cuz he's the heaviest baby, i have daniel in my arms, and i open the door to let everyone out the door. michael walks out the door first, and kathryn is trying to put the stroller out the door and running into everything, so i tell her let me get the stoller outside, and then you can push it. well that just wasnt good enough for her, she got all upset, and went outside to find the ducks while i push the stroller outside. i get the stroller over the door jam and realize i only see michael who is a few feet in front of me, and the ducks aren't sitting underneath my neighbors truck...so where are the ducks? on the other side of the  parking area next to the mailboxes (about 50 feet away). and kathryn is running after them...and the ducks are quickly making their way into the ditch...right next to the road. i scream kathryn's name...she keeps going, i scream (fairly loudly at this point)"kathryn get over here now".. she turns and looks at me with a sarcastic look like, "make me"...all the while i'm getting the sroller off of the sidewalk so i can go get kathryn, until...she turns and starts running toward the road (cuz she knows i'm coming to get her, so she's trying to run away) and she's like 5 feet from the road, i'm at least 50 feet from her, as soon as i see her turn toward the road... i scream. the kind of scream that is so high-pitched and wavering you can barely understand it, the ear piercing scream of fear..."KATHRYN KATHRYN  NO!!! NO NO!!" and of course as i'm screaming i'm sprinting daniel in hand, which i nearly threw out of my arms concentrating so hard on stopping kathryn...running as fast as i can and screaming as cars zoom by...i reach her just as her foot touches that white line, you know, the one that marks the outside of the lanes... i reach for her arm and pull her back for all i'm worth...and as i do, a car in that lane flys by. i nearly collapse in the thought of what almost happened... i'm shaking so bad dragging kathryn and barely holding on to daniel making my way back into the house.... tears falling down my cheeks, while screaming, "DON'T YOU EVER EVER DO THAT AGAIN!" i can barely think straight, and i guess kathryn is freaked out too, because she starts screaming and crying.... i just get everyone inside and try to breathe.

if i was a second later than i was in grabbing her, she would have run into the middle of the lane and the car would have hit her, and killed her no doubt. the speed limit on the road in front of my apartment is 55, but i can't tell you how many times people tail me on that road cuz i'm only going 55... it's a bit different from the neighborhood speed limits of 25 or 30... and just seeing it play in my mind while i was running to grab her...yeah, it felt like my heart stopped beating. it took a while to settle down and to calm kathryn down too after that. i tried to explain to her in the most calm voice i could muster, that if she runs out in the road, the cars driving by will hit her, and hurt her really bad,so we never go near moving cars. as soon as she heard the word her she starts bawling her eyes out again. wheeew...i don't think i could take witnessing that happen to kathryn...

and what's worse...last night (saturday) coming home from getting groceries, all the traffic was stopped for quite a ways, right before my aparmtent, and there were numerous cop cars with their flashing lights, and right behind the church on joe may road, their was a heliocopter!!!! oh no! yeah, someone had to be air-lifted to the hospital. i saw a guy walking down the road (traffic was stopped at 10 pm) and he said there was a really bad wreck, and i asked him if i could take the other lane to get past the cars to get to my apartment...and he said yeah, so i did, and this wreck was about 50 feet from the driveway to my apartments! just reiterating how people can't drive and how dangerous a road it is. 

how cute!

so i just had to share a few cute pictures before i went to bed. 

it's toddler john!!! how cute was he! i think daniel really does look like a combination of both of us. 

so i stuck daniel in kathryn's bed while i did clothes on their floor so he could see us, and he just got into the cutest stares...

then he would smile really big. i love it when he smiles!

i love this one. he's a thinker.

notice kathryn with a purse full of crayons. lol. she's a funny one. 

this is an adorable picture of my kathryn. it's gotta be my most recent favorite. she's standing in her highchair hoping to get something off the counter without me catching her...yeah, she's a sneaky one.

i was reading bedtime stories to kathryn in a chair right next to daniel's crib when i looked over and saw him peaking back at me! i think it's cute how the rungs frame his face.

so this is what happens when kathryn sneaks off to her room with her markers and mommy wonders why she is so quiet...she colors her lips blue. and of course she is trying to hide them when i want to document it. lol. she also colored her legs brown...at least it wasn't daniel right?

and she tries to put her shoes on "zizzy" her all-time favorite plush.

daniel the flexible lad likes to suck on his big toe when his thumb just doesn't cut it. and of course while i'm trying to diaper him he's gotta have his toes.

this is just cute. Ali one of the sweet girls that comes to the playgroups couldn't get enough of daniel.
today both kids peed all over themselves through the night, so a good morning bath was needed...and since daniel can sit up now, they get to play together in the tub. 
and when they got out...mmmmm nothing like having clean babies to lotion and kiss!
and we went to play with amanda and her kiddos michael and benjamin... daniel is sitting straight up...it almost looks weird. lol. 

well, that's it for now, more to come later. i sure do love my kiddos. goodnight.

House hungry

so i helped my mom move in to her "new house" throughout the last week and it really is nice. i saw things i really liked and it made me start thinking about certain things i would want in a house... 

this tuesday we went to Aaron and Lisa's house and had dinner with them and they have a beautiful house as well...the living area is huge, i really liked that! so then i started recalling how many other couples around our age have houses...and then it really hit...

I WANT A HOUSE!!!! (pouting like kathryn when she doesn't get her way) it's not fair, why do they get houses and i don't...ok, then reality sets in, and i remember just how much work a house is...more square footage to keep clean, more rooms to potentially get messy, a yard to tend to, when something goes wrong it's all on you! a bigger mortgage, homeowner's insurance, water bill, higher electric bill, sewer bill, trash pick up...ok, what am i forgetting all you homeowners out there....

needless to say...i still went online and checked out some houses, and thought to myself, but now is the time to buy, we could offer about 10 grand less and they'd jump on it...our mortgage wouldn't be that high if we had the best interest rate, a 30 year mortgage and no PMI...oh yeah, we have no money to put down, dave ramsey advises no more than a 15 year mortgage that comes out to be no more than a quarter of your take home pay...and for us...that would be....a mortgage of 70-80 thousand...what in the world can you buy with that?!? oh well, we know we are working on being completely debt free, and that will take another year, so until then, no house for us...

on a funny note...i tried feeding daniel applesauce yesterday, and oh...it was hilarious. he kept making the funniest faces...never spiting it out, so i got the camera and took a video...

super woman

wow what a day i have had. 

i washed, dried, folded and put away 6 loads of laundry. 

i changed the sheets on all 3 beds

i vacuumed the entire house

i mopped all the tile in the house

i washed the dishes

i made a few batches of baby food for daniel

i made dinner

i cut out some diaper patterns

and of course amidst all of the above, i fed, diapered, and entertained daniel and kathryn.

so man, all i need to do now is get a job right?!? put me to work! HA. so to all you men out there who complain about having to go to work, and say you'd love to be able to stay home all day...yeah, think again. as one of the great baby blue's comic strip says (after playing with the baby, chasing, etc for hardly 10 mins and being out of breath the husband turns to his wife) he says "i want to make sure it's clear that i don't go to work to make money to support my family, i go to work to get a break"!!! yeah, being a SAHM is no walk in the park. i mean, being a mom is consuming enough of your time, much less trying to find time for the other things, that if you don't do it, it'll never get done. so, why then with a day that was very productive do i feel so crappy? and why can't i go to bed! 

kathryn was hilarious today. she saw the "bug house" that i had put away about 2 months ago because she was throwing it around (it is a little house my pawpaw's good friend built for me when i was a wee little one, so i want it to be taken care of) and she wanted to play with it. so i told her if she let me fold some laundry while she colored a bit i'd get it down for her. well, i also have this old art set (markers, oil based crayons, colored pencils, paint etc) that i had also when i was a little girl, and some how it survived this long, so i'm letting her use the markers (they are almost gone anyway, so not too much she can harm with them) and so she had fun putting the markers in an empty wipe container, and taking them out through the small slit at the top. when i was done with the laundry (the markers entertained her for the whole time!) she helped me put it away, and when she was putting some of the clothes away in our room she saw the bug house again, and kept pointing and saying " buh house, buh house" so i took it down for her, thanked her for being good, and gave it to her, and the first thing she did was start putting the markers in the house! there is no denying that she is a miniature version of me for sure!! that kept her entertained for a good hour! she was playing with them on our bed, and surprisingly she fell asleep in our bed for her nap! i was so shocked!!! she was really good all day! i think i'll have to do something special for her tomorrow. devote lots of time for just her! well, anyhow. i had better get to bed

did a hurricane come through?

i tag you

thanks jenn for tagging me, this was alot of fun, and made me think!

I am: taking pictures of my sweet babies
I think: kathryn wants to help me type. got``````a love em
I know: i have some areas in life that need improving
I want: to go to hobby lobby today, i am in the mood to sew something!
I have: some great in-laws--- especially my MIL

I dislike: how biased the dumb media is with their blaming McCain for everything and acting like Obama is the flippin Messiah 
I miss: having time to do what i really want
I fear: that John will get in a terrible wreck when he's on his motorcycle and I'll be widowed with our kids to take care of all by myself.
I feel: like such an outsider sometimes.
I hear: the LSU football game playing
I smell: brownies baking in the oven =) 
I crave: something sweet, hence the reason i'm baking brownies
I cry: when life seems unbearable, or when my sweet baby Daniel smiles at me
I usually: wait for john to get home from work if he works the night shift
I search: for ways to make a little extra money to pay off our debt quicker!!
I wonder: if we'll ever end up moving to Utah
I regret: not making wiser choices with the money we've earned or recieved, hence being in debt still. 
I wish: john and i could spend more time together like we used to when we were dating
I love: making Daniel and Kathryn laugh and smile
I care: about making john happy
I always: end up doing all the chores around the house, i feel like the maid.
I worry: that i'm not being a good enough mom/teacher to my kids.
I am not: a democrat
I remember: how fun it was to do gymnastics, and wish i had time to go to BRHS and use their equipment. 
I believe: in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and know it is the only church on the face of the earth with the fullness of the Gospel.
I sing: nursery rhymes to Kathryn and Daniel
I don't always: remember to brush my teeth 
I argue: when i know i'm right
I write: when i'm mad, or angry about something, and it releases the feelings and allows me to get over it.
I win: intermidiate spider solitare, for some reason that's how i relax, and it feels good to win. small accomplishments.
I lose: the battles trying to control how john spends money. he won't change.
I listen: best. i'm not always good at talking, but i sure can listen. it's one of my better qualities
I don't understand: bipolar disorder...are you REALLY not able to control what you do, think, or say??? or is that just an excuse to behave badly? hmmm
I can usually be found: at home, entertaining Kathryn or Daniel.

I need: to go visit my grandparents. they always complain i don't go visit them enough. i guess they are right. 
I forget: how it feels to not have kids to take care of.
I am happy: that i am sealed my family for all eternity. 

i tag...whoever decides to read this and hasn't done it already.

best anniversary yet!

so even though yesterday (being our anniversary) didn't start out too well, the rest of the day went pretty well. i'll just highlights of the day

-kathryn actually went down for her nap with no fuss and on time at that! (around 2pm) she didn't wake up from her nap til 6:30!!!! and she was in a great mood when she woke up! (usually this isn't the case) she gave john and i hugs and kisses! we were very impressed.

- john actually got off of work on time!! he was home before 4 which is unusual, but great. 

- even tho daniel was sick, he was in a better mood the rest of the day and took 2 naps before 6 pm! 

-my sister jenn offered to watch the kiddos while we went out and had some time to ourselves.

so why was this the best anniversary yet? well, although all we got to do was just go out to eat, it's been awhile since we got to really connect and talk to each other. and while we drove to jenn's to drop the kids off, and on the way to the restaurant, and on the way back, we really got to talk. share our deepest thoughts, talk about what troubled us, what we wanted for our future, and our views on the economy, our families, etc. we got to talk like we were best friends again. we really connected. we talked about memories that we've shared these 7 years we've been together (4 dating and 3 married) and got to laugh about some of our screw ups and some funny moments amidst it all. it was really nice. i remember now why i love john so much, because he IS my bestest friend of them all. so thanks jenn for watching the kids so we could have such a fabulous evening! 

the love of my life, Johnathan Joseph Thibodeaux

a fabulous morning to be a mom

i love it when you have those great nights/mornings that really start your day out right....

so not only is kathryn sick with a cold or sinus infection or who knows...with a thick runny nose just about all day long, but daniel is also now coming down with something the poor child...he sounds like he's gargling (you know the stuffy nose sound) every time he breathes, and what's worse is he doesn't know how to blow it out, and every time i try the booger sucker, he screams for like 5 mins straight. anyhow...i know that if i took them to the doctor all they would say is they have a cold, oh well that their snot is green, it's just cuz it's in the morning...and send me out with nothing...i mean this is becoming somewhat of an unfortunate tradition with kathryn...seems like every fall thru winter she has a chronic runny nose, that never goes away, and never seems to be a bacterial infection to get antibiotics for. i just hoped with me breast-feeding daniel, he would not follow the same path...guess not. anyhow, it's bad enough that they are sick...but so am i..it's bound to happen with me around my sick kids 24/7...but i am the cough and hack all that junk up sick...with a constant need to blow my nose. it sucks. but that is just the background info to my lovely night. i finally got my kids to bed by 10:30 which is WAYYY too late... i know, i was backed up with all my SAHM duties... and so i figured, if they are going to bed this late...that means they'll wake later than usual in the morning...yay. so before i go to bed, i decide to check my email, clean things up a bit more, etc. and find myself finally trying to get in bed by 11:30 or so...which is later than i like, but oh well. but low and behold...how dare i try to get sleep...daniel start wailing at 12:15am, so i go in there to get him, and when i bring him in the living room so he wouldn't wake up the other 2 i see his face...snot running down his nose, and smeared all over his face from him rubbing his face on his bed. yuck. so i figure he woke up cuz he was having a hard time breathing, so i cleaned out his nose and tried to feed him, but within 5 mins, he was whining again...so i try the other side, and within 2 mins he's whining. he usually feeds a good 10 mins on each side...so am i loosing my milk???? so i resort to the only thing left...formula...he downed 6 oz easy, burped, spit up, and then he was fine...but awake and alert...and 2 nights ago i learned my lesson with trying to lay him down when he is not the least bit tired...he screamed bloody murder! so i just let him play around on the pad on the floor and by about 1:30 he starts looking tired. i finally got back to sleep by 2 and then 5 am... someone isn't happy again... by the by, he has been sleeping through the night since he was 2 weeks old, and sleeping 10+ hours at night since he was almost a month old. so this is not normal at all. so i get him up, try to feed him, he wouldn't take it, so i have to get formula once again, and while i went to get that, he was really being loud, john held him to try and quiet him, and once i got in there with a bottle of formula, guess who appears at my side of the bed...kathryn dear. wonderful. everyone is up and it is 5 am. just what i had in mind. but kathryn was suprisingly decent, she got in bed and watched daddy feed daniel, and after daniel was done, and daddy burped him, daniel seemed fine...and so john but him back in bed, and asked kathryn if she was going to get back in her bed...and she lost it. she wanted to cuddle up next to me... i was so tired, i just didn't even care... john noticed it was 5:43am, and he says "wow, no point in me going back to bed, my alarm goes off in 2 mins!" so he proceeded to get ready for work, but kathryn kept crying for juice, so john got her some juice in a sippy cup...lovely. i'm so tired i don't even care that he filled it to the top with juice, i just want to get to sleep. and i turn over to block kathryn's cries out, and she starts kicking me in the back with her feet. and laying her legs over my back and apparently to her it is soothing to pick up her legs and the drop them...and thats what she kept doing on my back!!! aaarrrrgh. after pushing her away several times to escape her legs, and they kept coming back...i gave up, and somehow went back to sleep. midway through, i wake up due to kathryn's sippy cup leaking on me, so i take a shirt, put it under me, and fall back asleep. but at 8:30 am, daniel decides he's not sleeping anymore, and so i go get him, bring him in bed, and he finally nurses. then kathryn starts wacking him on the head...uuugh...toddlers. finally he finishes, and i've given up on sleep, so i go to get up... only to realize the wetness from kathryn's sippy cup leaking wasn't juice or milk, it was strawberry crystal light (red colored flavored water) and so red splotches are all over our white sheets...and since there is not mattress pad for a queen mattress, it probably got on the mattress too. wow. well, even that wouldn't be so bad...just get up and decide to have a better day...so that's what i decided. i have the car (YAY!) and i am going to get the errands done and visit some family and have a good day. who cares how my morning started... so i get on the computer only to notice that it is Sept 17...our anniversary. lol. what a great way to start out. oh well. i think it's funny. and i'm going to have a good day, and only hope that tonight i can get some sleep! 

I LOVE YOU JOHNATHAN~! HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!