Put Some Money in the Bucket

So it's Friday - I should not be blogging, but I can't miss a Company Girl coffee! I should be editing, but my brain is so foggy I can't even look at the screen for that long without my eyes crossing. Come on in, I have coffee brewing 24/7 right now.

*yawn* I still haven't gotten any sleep. Something has got to give here. I am so far gone I don't think I will ever be 100%. If only I could run away for a couple of days and just sleep! That would be bliss!

blank.

my mind is totally blank.

oh yes! Now I remember!

We have been talking a lot about what to do for Kiddo for school. He is 4 now, but will turn 5 this summer and therefore makes the cutoff for Kindergarten this year. Hubby and I have pretty much decided that we want to hold him back a year - for many reasons.

So I've been doing so research on the pre-k and mom's day out programs near us and finding that most everything is super expensive or super inconvenient. I would like to have him in something a couple days a week, both to give myself a break and also to give Kiddo a bit of a taste of the "school" environment so he is not shell-shocked in 2010 when he starts Kinder. I am still toying with homeschooling, but am really scared that my lack of organization would keep me from getting anything done with him. However, I have heard of and am totally interested in the possibility of getting him in a program that does the classroom thing a couple of days a week and then coordinates with a home school program the other days of the week. I have an online friend that works for and has her children in one of these type programs, and it seems like a great solution to many of our issues.

Anyway, up until now the only program like this that I had heard of in the area was based downtown and it is very hard to get into.

I was flipping through a local newspaper yesterday (while I was trying to force an early nap on Port) and saw a blurb about a new school opening up in my area. Right. down. the. road.

It is one of these programs! 2 days a week in the classroom, 3 days with "home school" type assigned work. It is a Christian program, based on the University Model format, and it is opening up this year right up the road from me for K-6th grade.

O

M

G

This is what I think would be perfect for Kiddo - I still get to home school him, plus he gets to be in a classroom with his peers, AND - the home school work is already planned out for me! In Kindergarten they do core classes (Language Arts, Math, History, Science) and you can also enroll them for an electives group (Music, P.E., and Spanish!). I am so excited!!

BUT

{don't you just hate the but(s)?}

ugh,

tuition.

boo, hiss

Tuition, with the elective group added is almost 3K++ a year. [the ++ is the Admission, Registration and Ministry fee, as well as books and uniforms]

*cough! hack!*

ug, ug, ug. Why must they make this so agonizing???

Maybe we can save for it and put him in next year.

Until,
D :/

How Do You Sleep?

Man I really want to blog today. I really, really do. But holy heck, I don't have two brain cells to rub together.

I

am

so

tired.

I honestly have not slept for longer than 30 minutes since last Friday night. Port is killing me. I am at the point now where I am still awake, but running on seriously thin fumes. Caffeine can only do so much. I have moments of great clarity, but most of the time I am in a total fog. I should not be doing anything important right now.

Unfortunately when you run a household, that is not really an option.

Thank God for Girl Scout cookies.

{who said that?}

Anyway, I had lots to do today, so after a couple of failed attempts at getting Port to nap, I loaded up the kids in the van and headed out to run some errands. Put my key in the ignition, turned, nothing.

*sigh* seriously?

The battery was dead again.

Have I mentioned

I

am

so

tired.

See, when I get really tired like this, I have no patience, I have no sympathy and I have very little to no self control. But I must say, I did pretty good and only *thought* of a few choice curse words - they did not however escape my lips. I unloaded the kids and called Hubby, and only slightly tried to blame him for the whole thing. ;) Not really, but it must have had something to do with the fact he left his cell phone at home, right? I mean, it was just him testing fate that he didn't have it on his person at all times. Oh yeah, and it was my fault too because I let the battery die on my cell phone.

[on a side note, when I did get my phone charged back up, I discovered the most bizarre voice mail - a gentleman speaking in Spanish; something about the "HEB". I hope he realized the dialing error and called the right person with his grocery list!]

Anyway, I cooled down and found the battery charger in the garage [another side note; our garage door opener doesn't like to work when it's cold out. After punching in the code on the key pad a few thousand times, I had to wade through the Christmas boxes and miscellaneous junk while holding the baby and trying not to drop him or fall on something.] and hooked the van up to it.

It's the little things like this that test my temper.

I charged up the battery and Hubby called the nearest WalMart to see if they would install a new one for me.

oh the WalMart.

Thankfully they do (and for free!) so I loaded everyone back up and drove on over.

Sitting in line at the service area I watched as the most uh, rough maybe?, looking WalMart employee I've ever seen was talking to the guy in line in front of me. He was most likely my age, but from the looks of him he had lived a lot more life than I have. His hair was overgrown and scraggly. It poked out in all directions from under the cap he wore and the pony tail he fashioned through the hole in the back of the cap looked like a bird could nest in it. He hadn't shaved in a long time - the hair ungroomed and taking over his face. Beneath all the hair though, his eyes looked light and kind. His mouth, mostly hidden by wiry hair, displayed only a few remaining teeth. They were long and crooked; as if they too would fall out at any minute.

I immediately bristled at the thought of talking to him - my assumptions of what his personality must be, based solely on his appearance, were not favorable.

I love it when I am wrong about these things.

He was the nicest man! Very polite and kind; and even though he talked a bit too much for my taste, he was very sweet and courteous. I stared at the countless home drawn tattoos on his hands and forearms and answered his questions, and the whole time I was blown away by how nice he was.

Anyway, I got the battery changed out. Hallelujah! I ran my errands and took the boys to Sonic for Happy Hour. Port was doing ok, despite not having a nap so I decided to stop into Kohl's and look around.

I received a Kohl's gift card for Christmas. I have been thinking about what I wanted to spend it on; there are some things I desperately need. We shopped around the adult sections of Kohl's for a while and I was exhausted trying to wrangle the kids while looking for stuff for me. Port was not amused with the stroller and wanted to be carried. As if that wasn't bad enough, he had to lean into all the racks and try and grab stuff as we passed by. I thought my arms were going to break! Giving up on finding anything for me, we cruised past the kids section and I spied the clearance racks. Lord, help me!

I ended up spending half my gift card on clothes for the boys. *Sigh* Oh well, at least they will have something to wear.

How does that happen anyway?

Until,
D :)

Scream

From LOL Cats:funny!

Oh it was a looooooong weekend. I am absolutely at the end of my rope. Port hasn't been sleeping. He has a Houdini tooth - it pops out and then gets sucked back in, only to pop out and the disappear again a couple of days later. (actually I think the gum it just swelling and receding) It is making us all miserable. I haven't slept for days now. To make it all worse, my allergies are in full force right now, my nose is raw, my throat is raw and I feel like I've been run over. Our stockpile of tissue is about gone; I guess it's time for a run to Costco.

Friday was a mess. My goal was to leave some time during the day, to avoid the 5:00 traffic and hopefully catch Port in a nap. It didn't work. Port was clingy all day and finally crashed out about 1:00. Since I hadn't the opportunity to pack and get everything ready to go (clingy baby syndrome) I had to quietly get together what I could and then wait for Port to wake up. What I didn't realize was that since Port hadn't slept the night before, he took the. longest. nap. ever and didn't wake up till well after 4pm. And of course, since he had the grandest of grand naps, he was not in the mood to be strapped in the small person torture device and hauled for 3 1/2 hours to Houston. I drug my feet for a while trying to give him some good awake time. We finally got loaded up and ready to go at around 6, and after strapping the kids in the car I hopped in the drivers seat.

and turned the key...

and nothing happened.

aaaRRGGGGGG!!

Thankfully Hubby was there to hook up the battery charger, and thankfully it only took a few minutes to get enough juice to turn the engine over. Little did I know though, it probably would have been wise to wait an hour or so before taking off.

Port SCREAMED the entire way.

Yes screamed. Not cried, not fussed, not grunted or moaned or groaned. He screamed. He screamed until he had no voice and then he screamed while sucking on a bottle. The most bizarre sound ever. Once he had his throat sufficiently moisturized he screamed some more. Kiddo and I did our best to calm him. We sang Old MacDonald for about a hour. I sang You Are My Sunshine for as long as I could before it put me in a coughing fit. We sang Old MacDonald some more. I stopped half way and took him out of the car seat. A front was coming in and it was extremely windy out, which made Port scream even harder. The boy does not like the wind blowing on him. He was hot in the car seat so I turned on the a/c. I froze out the rest of us, but it never phased Port, who just kept on screaming. About 30 minutes from our destination he was at the point of passing out from exhaustion. He would wail, then doze for about 10 seconds, then shake himself awake and wail again. Suck on the bottle, wail, doze, repeat to infinity...

I was soooo done when we got there. I don't know how my sleep deprived brain even functioned. I was frazzled beyond anything. I think after a couple of hours I just tuned him out completely. Poor Kiddo was not so skilled; when we were about an hour out he started wailing about being cold, then told me repeatedly we were "going the wrong way". He held his hands over his ears and whined about Port screaming. I know it was getting to him.

Thank goodness there was a Happy redemption at the end of our trip. lol! {Happy is his grandfather}

Hubby joined us about 30 minutes later. He had to drive our wagon in separately as the purpose of the trip was to sell it to a friend in Houston. Now maybe we can finally register the van and get it some new tires.

God smiled on us on the way home on Sunday and Port slept the entire way home. I am so very thankful. I don't think I could have handled another drive like the one Friday.

Of course, he hasn't slept since...

Until,
D :)

Cindy Song

Hey there girls! I am packing to go to Houston again this weekend, but come on in, there is still some coffee in the pot!

Hubby and I were watching TV in bed last night, a ritual involving getting the baby to sleep and trying to have some time sort of together, when a commercial for a local dry cleaning company came on. It was an unusual commercial for this company - I can't recall ever seeing one for them before, but it was notable in that it was quite the production, with custom original song, singer performance and back up dancers. It was like a scene from a musical.

And it occurred to me (and Hubby too as I later found out) that it was very odd that they would go through such great lengths (and expense) to produce such a commercial and not do anything to make the "star" (the girl singing the diddy) look half way decent. Could they not afford a make up artist? I mean even if they wanted her to look "natural", even if they blew the budget on the production, or the choreographer or the back up dancers, wasn't there someone on the set that could slap some mascara on that poor girl?

She was cute enough I guess, but what really stuck out to me (and Hubby) was this gigantic mole on her upper lip.

She was no Cindy Crawford.
I was thinking about all this this morning, and it reminded me of my days of "modeling school".

Oh yes, I went to "modeling school" - haven't I told you?

Well, I use the term loosely, but I guess as far as modeling classes go, it was a pretty decent program.

I was desperate to get into it; it was quite pricey and my parents had to discuss the funding for quite some time. They really kept me on my toes for a few days while they decided. I even offered to sell my bed (a super way cool free flow water bed...lol!) and sleep on the floor just so I could attend this "school" and start my modeling career.

ha ha! *cough* hee! hee!

*ahem* ANYWAY, I did get to take the classes, and they taught us all sorts of fascinating stuff - how to walk on a runway, hair, make up, poise, etc. It was actually pretty educational and also instrumental in getting me a few jobs later on.

But one of the "lessons" came back to me this morning and made me chuckle. We were being taught make up techniques, and one entire lesson was spent learning how to...

wait for it...

draw a Cindy Crawford mole.

AHAHAHAAAHAHAHAAAHAAA!!!!

Seriously. They taught us that. It was all the rage.

I still try it every now and then. Just for fun.

No not really. But after seeing that commercial, I just might.

Have a good weekend!
Until,
D :)

PS! Some of you asked for the stuffed jalepeno peppers recipe (a few weeks ago, I know. I am organized like that). Anyway, I used the one from Pioneer Woman - simple and easy. Next time I might use some chive cream cheese or something, just to jazz it up a bit, but it really was YUM as is. Enjoy!

Lost and Found

Things the baby may have eaten in the past week:

the sponge part of a make up applicator

crayons

dust bunnies

string

pieces of the kitchen floor (home remodeling sucks)

What I KNOW the baby ate: (if you have to ask me how I know, you probably don't really want to know that bad)

See those little disks? Tiddly Winks. 3 of them. Where they should have never been. One is still missing.

Oh yeah. I am the best parent eh-vah!

Though, I have to say, I wasn't even home when the feast occurred. So technically I could blame it on someone else. But, I am the one who has to clean them. Ick. Moving on...

I took a picture of Port's fat lip last night with our point-n-shoot camera. It is posted in the post from yesterday. The swelling is almost gone today, though it does still bleed a little every now and then. Anyway, I was uploading all the images from the camera and came across a bunch of shots from Kiddo. He is a budding photographer you know. I thought I would share his "vision".

Of course, there are images of Cars. I would be worried if there weren't.
And then there is Hubby. Interactive Parenting at it's finest...
a little closer...shew! No ear hair! Yay!
One of Kiddo's favorite Christmas presents. Most. Annoying. Game. Ever! But, he has learned about healthy food vs. not healthy food, so I guess it is worth the annoyance.
Another Hubby shot. (these are in no particular order by the way)
Hubby changing the channel on the TV. Port about to steal the other remote. His favorite pastime - aside from eating random objects he finds on the floor...
Big Daddy at Christmas.
Kiddo drawing of Wall-E and Eve.
Kiddo drawing of Spiderman vs. Venom. Spiderman is on the right.
Decorating cookies for Santa at Christmas. I think I took this one. Kiddo is not that talented to be able to eat sprinkles and take his own picture. (did you notice that this is not actually Kiddo, but black Spiderman?? hee hee)
Port in the dog water. This was a good parenting day too!
He's just so dang cute!
I'm holding Port in this one.
Pretty sure I took this one too - My Boys!
Kiddo drawing of all his Super Suits hanging in a closet. I believe this is the Incredibles Collection.
Rocket (from the Little Einsteins) vs. Big Jet
So, I hope you enjoyed this little display. I have one final picture for you. It's not very good (again with the p-n-s camera) but I wanted to get a picture of my new 'do. I'm not sure if the color is going to look right either; my lap top is in desperate need of a monitor calibration. My hair is kind of a brassy blond - trying to get the brassy part out, but it's gonna take some time. Anyway, here it is:

Waddaya think? I really LOVE it.

Until,
D :)

Bust a Move

As if the teething wasn't bad enough - my poor little guy busted his lip open this afternoon.

*sigh*

He looks ridiculous. Big ol' fat lip on the top.

He was crawling across the floor and slipped and went face first into the wood floor. His bottom teeth plunged into the top lip.

Blood.

Everywhere.

It isn't too bad, he's just swollen and will be sore later I'm sure. He didn't cry for very long and once the bleeding stopped he drank a bottle and went to sleep.

I'll try to get a picture when he wakes up.

Until,
D :(

Bite Me

I really hate teething. Hate it.

Kiddo; I don't remember him having it so bad. He got really high fevers when he teethed - fever in the 103 -104 range, but I don't remember him being as messed up by teething as Port is.

Poor little guy, teething is bad, bad, bad for him. He is miserable. He gets the worst poops - they come every hour or so - and after a while they don't smell so most of the time I don't notice when he's dirty. And apparently they burn because after just a few (and a couple of unnoticed ones) his little bum is so raw and painful.

He screams when we try to change his diaper. I have to keep him covered in butt cream. Poor guy is miserable without it.

And his gums are so sore, so very sore. He bites at us and everything he can get to with a ferociousness I've only seen in animals. He'll chomp down on my shoulder and moan - it's pretty humorous, and sad, and uh, well, painful!

If he can sleep, even when drugged on Motrin, he will cry out in the night. It's loud enough and long enough to send me shooting out of bed. Often I peer into the crib and find he is still asleep. Other times he'll cry out and sit right straight up. He'll scream and sob and the only thing I can do to calm him is to take him into the bed with me. And though he is hot and uncomfortable he'll doze and sweat and toss and turn there in my arms all night long.

He still has his moments though; first thing in the morning he wakes with a big ole grin and a giggle. He is so happy for a few minutes every morning. We wrestle around and cuddle for a while, either until he realizes he's hungry or Kiddo comes in and disturbs our quiet time.

But shortly after we wake he begins his frustrating day; he's easily distracted, difficult to entertain, and he moves from room to room, toy to toy in a fitful state of unfulfilment.

Today he would only eat soft foods. Even the cheese bread he loves so much was too painful to eat. Tooth number 4 emerged from his upper gum in the night. The flesh was still puffy and raw this morning.

Poor little guy, I hope he gets some relief soon.

Until,
D :)

Furious Rose

Scene from a Walmart bathroom:

Enter a Tall Mommy. Stinky Baby on one hip, gigantic diaper bag and floppy seat hanging off the opposite arm. She looks slightly worried and is obviously in a hurry.

Tall Mommy spots the handicapped stall, one of only 3 total stalls and thinks to herself that most of the time the changing table is in that stall of the public restroom. Tall Mommy makes a very determined b-line to the handicapped stall. Restroom appears to be empty except for a very small woman, about 5 foot nothing, who is a WALMART EMPLOYEE. Small Employee appears to be tidying up the bathroom while talking on her cell phone. She speaks with a squeaky yet loud voice and expresses herself lively in another language to the unknown person on the other end of the phone.

Tall Mommy walks past Small Employee on the way to the stall and as she reaches out for the door, Small Employee, still talking loudly and excitedly into her phone, RUNS past her and ducks into the handicapped stall, slams the door in Tall Mommy's face and turns the lock.

Shocked, Tall and now Fuming Mommy mutters "thanks a lot lady" and wonders what the heck she is supposed to do now. Tall Fuming Mommy looks around and notices a big silver panel sunken into the wall. There is no signage to indicate what the silver panel is, but Tall Fuming Mommy takes a chance at touching something potentially germ-laden to see if it might actually be a changing table. Eureka! Success; Tall Fuming Mommy lays Stinky Baby down and proceeds to change disgusting diaper. Stinky Baby screams at the injustice, and Tall Fuming Mommy gets angrier by the minute as she listens to Small Employee jabber away on her phone in the handicap stall. Tall Fuming Mommy takes special care to notice if Small Employee actually uses the facilities. She does not. Instead, as other female shoppers come and go and have to stand in line to use the 2 remaining stalls, Small Employee camps out in the handicap stall and talks on her cell phone.

After a long diaper change, Tall Furious Mommy lingers in the restroom with the hopes of getting another look at the Small Employee and perhaps acquire her name. Tall Furious Mommy has never tattled on an employee in her life, but after experiencing such blatant disregard for others - especially in an employee/customer relationship, Tall Furious Mommy is using her surging hormones to muster up either a good verbal lashing or at least a visit to the store manager. Tall Furious Mommy also gets increasingly annoyed because while all of this is happening, she realizes that she too needs to use the facilities and there is no way on God's beautiful green earth that she can fit herself, her Clean Baby, the floppy seat and the ginormous diaper bag in a "regular" sized stall. Tall Furious Mommy waits. And waits, and waits. Small Employee chatters and chatters, and laughs and chatters some more.

Defeated, Angry Annoyed Steaming Resentful Mommy takes Increasingly Nervous Baby out of the restroom and sets off to hunt for Spouse and Big Boy. Frazzled Mommy finds the rest of the clan and relays the sordid tale to Spouse. Resentful Mommy remains angry throughout rest of shopping trip, as adrenalin has dumped in her veins and courses throughout her body.

Childish Mommy vows to never go to Walmart again.

Realistic Mommy knows better, but for now she will live in denial.

Until,
D :)

Every Little Counts

Weekend Edition Kiddo Speak:

Last weekend at the birthday party (pics coming soon, I promise!), we made a stop in the lady's room before we left. In the 2 stall bathroom, one stall was out of order, and a large sign on the door said just that. Kiddo read the sign and asked me what it meant...

Back at our house, we have one of our toilets "out of order" as well. I had to remind Kiddo of that last night just before putting the boys in the bath tub. Normally Kiddo goes potty right before a bath, so I had to send him to the hall bath.

Flash forward to today, just seconds ago, Kiddo went to the bathroom. Port and I were playing in Kiddo's room across the hall. This is what I heard coming from the bathroom...

"This potty has order. It has lots of ORDER."

hee hee!

Until,
D :)

Down To Earth

Something else from the weekend:

On the way to Houston I got pulled over (if you call pulling into a gas station, the cop following and turning on his lights *after* I stop at a pump, being pulled over, but whatever) for having a bracket around my license plate. It's illegal in Texas, but not in Louisiana (that I know of) which is where the vehicle is currently licensed. I'm guessing the cop was bored. He gave me a warning, thank goodness.

If I ever get around to finishing the posts from our vacation last August, you will understand the significance of this; this weekend Happy took Kiddo to buy his very own, kid sized putter. They proceeded to spend tons of time putting golf balls in Happy's office while we were visiting. Kiddo LOVES golf - LOVES it! He played more rounds of putt-putt on our vacation than any kid in the history of the world. He would have slept on that course if we let him. Anyway, it was a big event and something he's been talking about all week. Yesterday I had to run to Hobby Lobby to pick up something for my business and we drove past Academy.

Kiddo: "Mommy that's where Happy and I got my putter. Academy"
Me: "Yes, I know."
Kiddo: "Mommy, Happies can play golf and kids can play golf and daddies and Grammies too."
Me: "And Mommies?"
Kiddo: "Nooooooo, Mommies can't play golf!"
Me: "They can't? Why not?"
Kiddo: [reluctantly] "Ok, Mommies can play golf too." [then excitedly] "and Aunt Addies and Uncle Wesses and baby brothers..."

...gee thanks kid. ;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had an extreme low parenting moment the other day. We were playing in Kiddo's room. He has been doing this thing lately where if the baby wants (or in Kiddo's mind appears to want) what Kiddo is playing with, Kiddo will hover over the toys or gather them up in his arms and cover them with his body. He does this a lot when they are in the tub together - Kiddo will collect all the toys he *might* want to play with and hide them in his arms so Port can't get them. It absolutely, positively drives me up a wall and it is one of the things I fuss at him about the most. Mainly it bothers me because over half the time Port isn't even trying to get the toys - Kiddo is just being a selfish butt about it. {I know I'm not supposed to call him something like that, but it's how I feel about him when he behaves that way} So anyway, we were all playing in Kiddo's room, and Kiddo built a Wall-E and Eve out of wooden blocks. I was so proud of him - they both looked like perfect representations of the characters (as perfect as one can get with basic wood block shapes). I wanted a picture of it, so I told Kiddo to leave it there while I ran to get the camera. I was seriously proud; just beaming at his creativity and craft. I got up to get my camera, and Port turned from what he was doing and started to crawl after ME. I was leaving the room and he didn't want me to, so he was going to follow. Typical Port. So I walk into my bedroom where my camera was and I heard a big crash. I ran back into Kiddo's room and he had literally thrown his whole body on top of the blocks because he thought Port was going to get them. He crammed them all up under his body and screamed at Port to get away.

I

was

furious

To say the least. There was absolutely no reason for it. Port wasn't anywhere near him, nor was he going after the blocks. Of course Wall-E and Eve were crushed and so was I. I know it seems like a petty thing to be upset over, but I really wanted to get a picture because it was just that good - and it just infuriated me to no end that once again he was pulling that maneuver in reaction to his baby brother.

My stellar parenting skills prompted me to shut Kiddo up in his room, telling him that if he couldn't get used to the fact that he had a brother and that he was going to have to find a way to share his toys, just like Port shares his toys with him, then he could stay in his room, by himself all day and keep all the toys to himself. I told him that no one was going to play with him because he couldn't share so he could just be alone. All day. And I closed the door.

Well the worst punishment for Kiddo right now seems to be playing by himself. He wants people around even if they are not playing specifically with him, so this particular punishment was pure torture. I shut the door to his room, and he banged on it and screamed for a good 30 minutes. I was so mad I couldn't even see straight, and I needed the time out more than him.

The whole thing was ridiculous really. So very mature of me. sheesh.

I mean, I know the boys are going to squabble. I know there are some jealousy issues. But I just wish I could make Kiddo understand that Port is just a baby and that he should show him some tolerance. I know it's a lot to ask of a 4 year old who up until 9 months ago was the center of the universe, but honestly, he does a lot better than most older sibs I have seen.

I just want things to go perfectly all the time. Is that too much to ask?

I was asked recently if I use sarcasm.

So that was my stellar parenting of the week. Hopefully I can manage to keep myself together for the rest of the week.

Yeah, right.

Until,
D ;)

The Weekend

As you all know from my somewhat deranged post last Friday, I took the kids to Houston for the weekend. My best friend's little darling turned 3, and we went in the celebrate her birthday and I also did a photo shoot for her. I have been photographing this little one since her momma carried her in her belly, and it is always a joy to be able to capture her personality each year near her birthday.

After a harrowing day on Friday getting my own kids packed, fed, on the road, to the house, and settled in, we really didn't sleep well that night. Port was up several times, and ended up in bed with me most of the night. Kiddo, excited from being around his Happy and Grammy, had trouble getting to sleep too - but once there was ok. Port and Kiddo woke up around the same time in the 7 o'clock hour; Kiddo creeping into my room, and sadly lamented that Happy and Grammy were still sleeping (lucky ducks!). We camped out in the bedroom for as long as we could, then made our way into the living room to play quietly. Thankfully the inlaws woke shortly after and Kiddo was relieved. That kid loves him some Happy and Grammy!

I took off that afternoon to do the session, which went fairly well despite the fact that we were all severely under dressed for the shockingly cold temperatures. Though the forecast called for close to 60 degrees, the actual temperature was probably in the low forties. Add to that the biting wind and we were most likely traipsing around a park in freezing weather. We were all so cold - I was complaining, sweet M's dad looked like a popsicle, and I know my friend R was freezing too. We stuck it out as long as we could (maybe 45 minutes) and ran to the warmth of the car and the nearest Starbucks. Ahh, how I love Starbucks!

Back at R's house, we played and waited for R's parents to come over so that my Backyard Mom (R's mom) could do my hair. I have to say that I am so happy with the new 'do - I can't wait to show you pictures. {more on that later}

Port and Kiddo did so well with their G&H all evening, and both kids were asleep when I returned to the inlaw's house that night. My allergies were out in full force, and I could barely breathe by the time I got there. With no other options readily available, I took 2 kid doses (half an adult dose) of some Children's Benadryll that Grammy kept on hand and promptly passed out 30 minutes later. When I fell asleep, Port's bottle was beside me on the table. When I woke up 8 hours later, it was in the pack-n-play with him! I don't remember getting up at all, AND Port slept through the night!

{My theory is - he was able to sleep through the night because he thought I wasn't there. We so need to get him out of our room!}

Sunday could not have been more perfect. After a wonderful night's sleep, Port went down for an early morning nap, the woke just in time to meet G&H and Kiddo for lunch down the street. He took a second nap on our way across town and woke just as we arrived for the party. Port was great all through the party! He only cried a couple of times when R's mom took him from me so I could snap some pictures. He was great afterwards when we went to R's house for a little while, and he slept in the car again on the way back across town to G&H's house. He even went to bed for the night at a somewhat reasonable time. He did end up in the bed with me at about 4 am, but it wasn't bad at all.

The party was a blast. My friend had it at one of those bouncy house type places. It was the second one Kiddo has attended like that, and he did great. Surprisingly, even though the noise level in those rooms is beyond obnoxious, it didn't even phase him. I guess because he has room to run and move about he is ok. He did put up a bit of a protest when it came time for the group picture, and after sitting for a mere, oh 10 seconds or so, he tried to climb backwards up one of the slides. So, all the group shots have the smiling faces of party goers and my kid's backside. Joy.

And, I guess you are wondering why I don't have any pictures in this post. Well, I of course took tons over the weekend, but unfortunately I cannot do anything with them right now. The reason Hubby didn't come with us was because he was staying behind to work on the floors - we still haven't laid the wood in the hall or the kitchen. He also needed to level the floor he has already laid by pulling up the wood and putting down concrete leveler before laying the wood back down again. He hit some unexpected snags and didn't get near as much done as he thought he would, and so my "office" is slightly displaced right now. As I type this, I am in my bedroom (while Port is napping) on my laptop which is propped up on a pillow in the bassinet by my bed.

Even if everything was sort of normal, I still wouldn't be able to process any photos because I took them all with our new camera and my laptop can't handle the much larger images. For this reason, we had to purchase a new desktop computer last week and it still sits in it's box amidst a pile of dining room things stacked up in my now unusable living room. *sigh*

So, hopefully I will be able to get things set up this week, process some photos and share with you.

Hopefully.

I hope.

I really hope.

Until,
D ;)

Somewhere In the Night

Happy Friday Ladies!

I know I am getting in on this late - sorry about that. How about some decaf? Well, I am hosting Company Girl Coffee today from my inlaws home in Houston. I hope my mother-in-law doesn't mind y'all coming over. She keeps a much tidier house than I do, so today we shall sip our beverages in luxury! ;)

Oh man what a day. Port was up all night - and by "up" I mean awake and screaming his head off. Poor Hubby. Poor Dog. Poor neighbors. *sigh* His top tooth finally broke through the gum and he was in serious pain. I had him doped up on Motrin, which I can only assume took the edge off, but did little else. When things got really bad (re: uncontrollable screaming) I could smear a big glop of Oragel in his mouth and in about 10 minutes it worked enough to let him sleep for about 30-45 minutes or so. We ended up on the couch most of the night in my feeble attempt to allow Hubby a few hours of sleep. Have I mentioned how well sound carries on the new wood floors?? oh yeah!

Anyway, somewhere in the night (ooh that reminds me of an old Sawyer Brown song) Port acquired an awesome stopped up nose to go with his searing gum pain. This morning Kiddo rolled out of his bed with the same fountain nose, and wallah! two sick kids!!! Can life get any better! eeeeeee!

Obviously I am delirious.

Lack of sleep can do that to a person.

AND, because I am the brilliant sadomasochist that I am, I loaded up my brood and strapped them into car seats (re: short people torture devices) and drove them for about 4 hours to the above mentioned inlaws house.

Ah, so much FUN!

Have you ever listened to a baby scream for 2 hours without stopping - and do everything within your power to make it better, but aside from stopping, getting him out and wriggling your nose to magically whisk you back to your house in an instant, know there is absolutely nothing you can do?

Am I frazzled yet?

heh

Well, we made it. Barely.

And now here I sit at 10:30 - both kids are asleep for the time being - and I finally have a moment to have a virtual cuppa with you.

Hooray!!

Tomorrow I have a photo shoot for an absolutely stunning 3 year old, AND I am finally going to get my hair cut and colored!!!!!! YIPPEE!!! I am so excited. I will once again be restored to my blond self. Hubby has requested his blond wifey and so it shall be.

Though, I do so very much miss the red.

Have a wonderful weekend!
Until,
D :)

Decision of the Skies

Why is it that when I am away from the computer, I think of all these great things to blog, but then when I have a moment and I sit down to blog them I can't remember a thing? I can't even think of where to start or what to write about. There is just so much right now.

So, I realize it is only January, but I am completely immersed in thinking about Kiddo and school. This could be his year to start Kindergarten or I can hold him back one more year. My, it went so fast. I really thought I had more time to think about this. But, I think many of the schools start the fall registration process in February. ack!

I'm still not even sure if we are going to send him to public school, private school or go the home-school route. There are so many reasons for and against all of it - it is completely overwhelming.

First off there is Kiddo's peanut allergy. This is a BIG issue because his allergy is not slight - just being around someone that has the proteins on their hands could send him into a reaction. He is contact sensitive and if he ingests something unknowingly, he is still too young in my opinion to know what to do about it. Or maybe it's that he is still very socially immature - when something is wrong he is more likely to hide rather than seek help. That scares the life out of me. I wake up in a cold sweat dreaming about it at night. I cannot trust that a teacher or even a school nurse would know what to do - nor can I trust that they could locate and properly administer the epi-pens even if they did. I know a lot of the schools are going peanut free and that is wonderful - but what about the parent who forgets or just doesn't care, or the kids that have pb&j for breakfast and get it on their clothes??? The possibilities of contamination are endless. I am trying not to be paranoid about it, but man it is tough.

Private Christian school would ultimately be my first choice - if we could afford it. I seriously doubt that will ever happen though. I may as well take that out of the running.

I always thought I would home school - but as of late have been doubting my ability to stay focused and organized enough to actually do it properly. Kiddo is very bright and I know he needs social interaction, and I am afraid that while I can probably give him a better education (assuming I can get my act together), I know that I probably won't give him the social interaction he needs. Past actions can predict future actions, and I have a hard enough time taking him to playdates and stuff as it is.

Another downside to home schooling is that I really need a break. I need the social interaction as much as he does I think.

And now we are possibly dealing with another big issue. Hubby and I think Kiddo may have a slight sensory disorder, hyperacusis. This is something that actually I have dealt with in some degree all my life, and lately Kiddo has been demonstrating hearing sensitivities - to the point of it interfering with normal life. He has always been a bit weird about crowds and loud places. As a baby and toddler I had to be careful to keep him on the perimeter of a group or he would freak out. I thought he had outgrown it, but recently his Sunday school teacher pulled me aside after a particularly rough morning. She told me that Kiddo freaks out every Sunday when they go for children's worship (the music time). Kiddo complains that it is too loud; he won't listen and usually he freaks out and starts crying or panicking. The teacher decided it would be best to have him walk the halls with a volunteer every Sunday during the music time. He has been much better behaved since they started doing that. It makes me incredibly sad when I think about it.

He has unusual or weird reactions to different kinds of noise. Sometimes he gets scared, sometimes he panics and sometimes he just cries uncontrollably. He even gets mad or enraged. On Christmas Eve we went to the 7:00 service. Rick Trevino was performing, and at one point he invited all the children to come up to the stage and sing a song. Even though I wasn't sure it was the best idea, we let Happy take Kiddo up to the stage. He sat down on a step with about 200 other kids and when the music started...well everyone was all smiles except my child, who crossed his arms across his chest and had the most sour look on his face the entire time. The video cameras were panning across the sea of children, close in on their smiling, beaming, happy Christmas faces, and you could actually hear the crowd collectively giggle when Kiddo's face came up on the big monitors hanging over the stage. By the time the song was over, Kiddo was in a full on rage and Hubby had to take him out of the sanctuary until he calmed down.

So now I am doing some research into what can be done for him, and eventually will have to set up some hearing tests. I am hoping their might be some early intervention programs or some sort of therapy that he can get into - because if he doesn't learn how to control himself and cope with the confusing signals his ears are sending his brain, he is going to have a lot of trouble in school.

My affliction with the same thing is probably not as severe. I have always had a problem with certain tones and dissonance. Growing up I had huge reactions to the emergency broadcast system's warning tones. When they changed the warning tones some 10-15 years ago I was greatly relieved, though I still have to turn them way down when I hear them on the tv or radio. As a music major in college, I learned to deal with my reactions to certain tones, but overall my sensitivity caused me to struggle with singing "loud enough". It wasn't until I was studying at ASU that my vocal professor suggested I have my hearing checked. He told me the reason I couldn't give him the volume he wanted (after him shouting at me "sing loud!" and I shouted back "I AM!!" grr!) was because my head was telling me I was already singing loud. He spoke to me at a "normal" speaking volume and asked me if I thought he was speaking loudly. Of course, I said yes, and he determined that I most likely have oversensitive hearing. After doing some research on Kiddo's behalf, I am certain that I suffer from hyperacusis as well.

But poor Kiddo, he just doesn't understand his reactions sometimes and I think it makes it worse. I can ask him what is wrong and he will wail "I don't know!!!!". I think it scares him.

So, in all this school stuff that is something else to consider. Something else to make the decision more difficult. As a mom I struggle with the intense desire to keep him home, to shelter him from the big, bad world; to keep him as far away from feeling "different" as possible. He has issues, every kid does, but no mom ever wants to see the day that their child realizes they have something going on with them that is not normal and not "special" in a positive way. I hate that he will someday have to experience that. I pray daily that I can prepare him, so that he can take his issues and spin them in a positive manner. And I pray that God will give me the wisdom to come up with a way to make that possible. Because right now I am at a total loss. I have no idea how to explain things, if I even should explain them, or how to go about it. I know things could be much, much worse and much more difficult. I know we are so very blessed he is healthy and smart and able bodied. I know that there is so much more positive than negative. But I still struggle with not having a normal existence; a normal life.

We all struggle in one way or another. This is our journey. I just wish it came with a map.

Until,
D :)

Blues Traveler Lyrics
When you're living in a series of atmospheres
You don't stand upon the world, but within it
And the faster that you move, the lighter you become
The farther out you go, the better the view
And you wanna rise
So that you can last
Take it all in slowly
Real fast
The capsule goes at 17,000 miles an hour
To make the sky act like a pond
And if it should slow down
Then the mighty ship will sink
As if falling through the sea
So your destination for the outskirts
Thinks the answer lies beyond
But the slower that you go
The more substantial you become
Come to rest against the pure and solid center
And you wanna last
So that you might rise
Take it all in slow
That's the decision of the skies
The decision of the skies
Your best discovery will always be
Simply what you see
And there's something to look at ...everywhere
Devoid of any destination
Yes, you're part of a relation
From the cold ocean floor
And beyond the softest air
When you're living, you're just a series of atmospheres
Whatever velocity appeals
And no matter how you move
You're going to become
You cannot end and there's no beginning
The farthest you can go is right behind you
The closest you can get is nowhere near
And it could make you wonder where
When you're discussing here or there
And do you really have to get going
And nothing lasts
And only time really flies
And you're always free
From the decision of the skies
Decision of the skies

Buttercup

So my little man is 9 months old now. He had his well check today, and all is, well, well. He weighs 23 pounds 2 ounces. He's 29 inches long and I believe his head circumference is 18 inches. So in a word, he's huge - actually, not really, he measures in the 75th-90th% on all counts. When we were in the waiting area I was walking him around (holding his fingers while he walked) and another mom asked me how old he was. Well, actually she asked him, "you are walking so well, how old are you? You must be a year at least, right?!" When I told her he was 9 months she about dropped her baby!

He is so close to walking it is scary. He took some steps the other day while I sat on the floor just barely holding the fingers of one hand. He wasn't even putting any weight on my hand or using it to balance. Crazy. He cruises around all the furniture and is obsessed with getting to and pounding on Hubby's computer. When I pick up my camera to take a picture of him, he always smiles and tried to come over to me - that's what he's doing in the above image. He saw me and was heading over to where I was sitting.

Port is eating really well now. He's not much of a fan of fruit or veggies; about all I can get him to eat in those departments are bananas, broccoli and most beans. I did discover he likes blueberries, both frozen and in yogurt. I stopped pumping about 2 weeks ago so he is drinking only formula and water now.

He is wearing 18 month sized clothes, and got his first pair of shoes for Christmas. Grammy and Happy bought him a cutie-patootie pair of baby-sized checkered Vans. He absolutely loves books and gets incredibly excited when I read to him or Kiddo. He loves to bounce and "jump" and he gets a big thrill out of running around our house in his walker. When Kiddo runs or jumps around, Port will laugh hysterically. He loves Kiddo's room, and will happily play in there by himself several times a day. He loves Kiddo's bed even more, and enjoys bouncing around on it and loving on all of Kiddo's stuffed animals.

He says ma-ma, da-da and na-na - though more than once he has said ma-ma in response to looking at me or when he wants me. I think he is starting to get the idea that I respond to ma-ma faster than other noises.

He has two teeth on the bottom and another one about to emerge on the top. So, needless to say we haven't been getting much sleep lately. He doesn't seem to respond to Tylenol or Motrin, and I don't think the teething tablets work either. I am out of night time options so when it gets really bad we just hang out on the couch all night. Last night was a couch night; let me just say that making it to a 9:30 appointment with all of us dressed and presentable was an act of God. I am surprised that without my coffee I was able to answer basic questions.

Now I have to take him for some routine blood work and a followup EKG with the cardiologist. Fun times.

Until,
D :)

Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

Well I was going to do an update on Port today, as he turned 9 months old yesterday. But then I remembered that he has his 9 month well check tomorrow, and since I'll be getting all the stats and whatnot, it would be better to do an update then.

So, in lieu of a real post, I would like to direct your attention over to my photography blog, Little Moments Captured. I have given it a makeover and posted a session summary from my most recent session. I think it looks pretty good, but there are still some kinks so if you notice anything weird, please leave me a comment so I can get it fixed. Of course, if you like it and want to comment on that too I would be thrilled. You know how much I love comments!

I am hoping to get back to regular posting soon. I am a bit overwhelmed with life in general at the moment and for whatever reason I just don't know how to get it out of my head and on to the blog. Call it holiday let down, lack of sleep (oh Lordy do I miss sleeping), blame it on the economy (why not, it's the hip thing to do!), seasonal blogging disorder, whatever. Thank you to everyone who faithfully stops by anyway. I am just feeling a bit, well, lost lately and I don't know where to start or how to get back on track. Life is moving too fast for me and I am tripping over my own feet trying to keep up.

I have pictures and stories to share. I will do my best to get them posted soon.
Until,
D :)

A Place In the Sun

Happy Friday Company Girls!

OMG, is it really January 2nd??!? What happened to New Years Day? Did anyone else miss it? Mercy.

Well I can see how my year is going to go now. lol! I do have a couple of posts in my blogger cache that will be posted later - one from xmas and another from New Year's Day. I just have to take the time to finish them.

So how is your 2009 so far? Here, let me pass the coffee. I still have some yummy Christmas cookies left over; Neiman Marcus cookies and Chocolate Gingerbread. They are still fresh and moist.

We had a pretty uneventful New Years - just Hubby and I and the kids. I made way too much food for two people. On the menu was boiled shrimp with cocktail sauce, cocktail sausages, sausage and cream cheese dip, bacon-wrapped cream cheese stuffed jalapenos, pigs in blankets, and a bunch of TGI Friday's stuff that never got opened because we were stuffed! The boys went to bed early - no fireworks for us since we are in a severe drought and they are banned everywhere. Of course, it didn't stop some people from making all the neighborhood dogs bark at midnight. ;)

I am determined this year to just do MORE. Much like Rachel Anne's resolution, I feel like I can take this living day to day thing up a notch. I have really been letting things slack in the past couple of years, and I am hoping to "tend to my crops" so to speak. My friendships need a little love and care as well as my house and my relationship with my husband and kids. I am tired of being tired, and I guess the only way to get out of my funk is to actually get out. and do something that is.

Anywho, how about you? What is on your plate for 2009? I look forward to hearing about what you have planned. :)

Until,
D :)