Summer Fun

My Awakening..

I am challenging you, and myself, to a lifestyle change. I am guilty of NOT working out AND NOT drinking enough water. I am a busy Mommy and I DO chase my kids all over the place, I play with them, and I act silly with them. I do not work out though. I have many excuses, I'm sure you do too! But there is a statistic out there that scares me. I am willing to take baby steps towards my health now. I am ready to cut back on my syrupy beverage of choice and replace it with water. Are you interested in hearing about the recent awakening I've had??? If so, please read my post over at Multi-Tasking Moms.

If you decide to join me at Multi-Tasking Moms, remember I will be posting my accomplishments in 7 days and I hope you will join me by doing the same. Let's work together to spread the word. We can make small changes. Every day is a new opportunity to overcome our diet addictions and/or our lack of motivation to exercise. Share any fun ideas you have found to keep your heart rate up too!!

Some Updates

Hubby came home Tuesday night with a little surprise for HC and me! He brought HC these delightful Gerber Daisies and I received these cheery roses!! Isn't he the best! My HC is a flower girl - she loves flowers!! He couldn't have done better I tell you! By the way, he gave JB some coins for that piggy bank! JB was in heaven, hearing all the clink, clink, clink. He is our hero!!



Today is about updates, so let's start with today! We have progressed in several things on the Home School front. Many fears have been overcome. So, for a glimpse of today, take a look at this little piggie! HC cut these 3 pink circles, with a little help from me (to keep the pig in tact)! I have NEVER heard that little girl giggle SOOOO much, over something like this. It was like she was having fun AND proud of this new accomplishment. We still have work to do, on cutting shapes without destroying them, but we did have fun today!! This is her first school craft!! I am not crafty!



So our next update is... our behavior charts. We do not have the charts on the wall yet, since we moved. But we really do not need them. HC is making her bed, without us prompting her. She LOVES a made bed! YEA!! As for tantrums, they really are almost non-existent! I am not sure if it was due to the behavior chart, our being more focused due to the chart, or maybe they are outgrowing some irritable stages? Whatever - it works and we are thrilled. Another recent trick is that if they argue, AT ALL, they both go to time out in their rooms. They cannot come out until they are ready to work together and share or get along. I know Dr. Phil doesn't think time out in a room is time out but, my kiddos love to be together and/or with me, so this works wonders for us now. They really do share better and play well together. The charts were handy and I think they helped us all focus on the goal - good behavior. I am happy we have 2 happy kiddos!!

The nail biting is up next! HC did well with the suggestion by Oh Amanda. She suggested I trace HC's hands on construction paper and then she would color in one finger nail for every day that she did NOT bite her nails. This worked wonders! She stopped biting and we gave her an at home mani/pedi. She was on cloud 9! My girl loves some girly girly time! We had 2 days of nails painted pink - then she bit them again! AHHH!! We are going back to square one. We took of the nail polish right away (off toes and fingers) and we are working towards another mani/pedi. Baby steps!! :) Bottom line, she is encouraged to get that nail polish back on those toes and fingers! She isn't stressed out and neither am I!

And finally, the artist. Well, we found baking soda is our friend! If only JB could draw in smaller areas and not try to COVER the walls! :) You can see more info on the baking soda findings here. So how has JB taken the 'no drawing on walls' rule? Here is his latest work (notice the date on the photo):

My JB cannot be left alone with a writing instrument. We will not say who left him with a black crayon, but.. someone did! :) Love you someone! JB was sternly warned this time and we are hoping for a better report in the future! You can see his little face inspecting his work above. I wonder if he gets that this isn't art!?! Below is a pic of our results after baking soda. It is work, but it works. I've heard rave reviews about that magic eraser thing but I also received an email warning that it can burn skin. I am not sure about it, but I do think we will give it a go this time. Maybe it is easier than the baking soda. I am just over this phase with JB! :) Let's just paint the chalkboard paint on his walls and let him draw away!

So that is all I have for updates! There may be more in the future. I don't know. 'But that is all I have to say about that!'

School Days

Well, I know school is up and running all around me. I read all of your blogs, regarding your child's first day of school, and second guess myself. I hear all of your hearts breaking a tiny bit, letting that baby go so they can step into the world of being big. Letting them fly a little bit. I hear this and feel a little nervous. Did we make the right choice?? Am I holding HC back out of a Mother's heart to hold on or did God direct this path?

Over this last week I really have second guessed our decision more than any other time. The school HC would have started had their first day on last Wednesday and dear friends began their journey too. I was surrounded by Mom's going to the next level of parenting. The letting go. The handing them over to a school for learning. I felt guilty. Am I selfish? Should I send HC? How is JB fairing? He isn't getting the one on one time with me now. He will not have that.

But God is so good. He always knows best. Through such a difficult week, He showed up time and time again. We had already overcome a lot of struggles - learning to sit still, learning that we will have structured learning at home, finding things to keep JB busy. All of these wins were well won. Here I was again doubting myself. We were thankfully invited to lunch and play time with a fellow Homeschool Mom. She was so encouraging, although I ran my mouth! I felt a little better having seen her, I wasn't the ONLY one Homeschooling. Whew!

I spoke to another friend, whose daughter was going to be in HC's class at school. She shared some fun secrets that we missed out on. Whew! I can see how our learning is very similar to what she would have done at school. One cool trick she told me about was fun! She asked her daughter, 'What did you learn today?', on her first day of school. O said, "We learned to keep our bubble." Her mom was confused and after a little discussion, she let that one go. They brought O to school on Friday and then O's mom learned what "keeping the bubble" was. You put your finger on your mouth, you blow up your cheeks so they are puffy, and keep your finger on lips so the bubble won't escape. See - isn't that a great trick.

I left all of your blogs and my contact with O's mom feeling that I chickened out. I didn't let my daughter go to the next level. Independent of me. I felt ashamed that I did this to HC. I held her back. I felt you were all SO VERY BRAVE. But then I began to think, why did we decide to Homeschool? It was a God moment. It was a change in direction for us. We were headed down the school path and GOD stopped that journey for us. It wasn't a selfish mom, it was a Holy Spirit leading.

Every time I gather with my other Homeschool moms, I feel energized and ready to teach. It is really a unique dynamic. I've never felt such a thing, as far as I can recall. It is so powerful and so beyond my imagination. It made me realize that you are all on your journey - the one God directed you to follow and I am on mine. Our roads are different on the surface but our obedience to His leading is the same. It is a little scary, it is untraveled, it is a faith walk. You are trusting God to keep your child's heart and to guard it, while they are away from you. You are trusting God to protect your child from harm via a friend or an unhappy teacher. You are walking this journey by faith. So am I! I am trusting God to show me how to teach. I am trusting God to guard my daughter's heart from my expectation. I am trusting God to guide us. So are you!

Today, we had school at home, again. Today, we had fun learning together, again. Today, I stepped out in faith, again! Today, I learned of another tool I can use to teach my child. Today, God showed up again for me!

I am so glad that you are following your path! I am so glad that you are so brave! I am so glad that I am reminded to not measure my journey to yours! Much blessing and much prayers to you as you follow that silent nudge of the Holy Spirit. The one whispering in your ear 'Go this way or Go that'!

Blessings!

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Mary at NotBefore7 is hosting Tiny Talk Tuesday. Please head over to her great blog to see more TTT participants!

My tiny talkers are HC - our 4 year old daughter and JB - our 2.5 year old son! Enjoy!

HC: Look Mom, I'm standing on the clock! (She had found the scale!)

JB: Close you eyes. Close you eyes Mom. You count to nen (ten). Then I go hide in covers and you find me. Count to nen!

We took the kids outside to play a little. It was FINALLY a cloudy day and we did not get sweaty for about 20 minutes after going outside. This was much better than sweating because you dared to open the door. Anyway, the kids were outside, in the backyard, playing a little golf with dad and I hear,
HC: I've got my peter dad! I've got my peter! It's my turn.
Dad: It's a putter HC, not a peter.
HC: Oh. I've got my putter now. It's my turn.



I took the kids to a local indoor space walk place. They also have video games and skeet ball. The works. As we were getting ready to leave, JB finds a game and starts 'playing' it. Then I hear,
JB: I need coins Mom. I need some coins for my game!

Saweeet

Why does ONE piece of candy lead to another, then another, then another! I am not a candy girl but after one bite - my taste buds light up! :) Last night hubby and I opened a bag of candy, that was sent for our kids. We had a taste of one thing, then another, and then my head hurt from all the sugar!

This offer will not last - only 19.95

Having a little blogging fun today! I thought I would share some cool pics I've received as the result of a little email tag MommaRoar and I have been having today!!


If you have a minute, go visit her at Momma Roar's Kitchen! Blessings!

My God is Great!

Yesterday was another 100 degree hot day! I think it has been at least 100 for the last month. I recently read a post by my blog friend Lauren, at Baseballs and Bows, and I too am hopeful that the leaves will remain on the trees long enough for Fall. I actually noticed a ton of leaves fall, after a windy day and had the same thought, I want to have a real Fall. That is the fun of Fall - leaves changing and dropping to the ground. It is such a beautiful time of year! Reading her post made me a little reflective.

I am always amazed when someone sees the day, or an ordinary experience, and brings such a deep lesson from it. It makes me smile! That is how God works, He works in little whispers that most of us miss because of our busy days! The noise surrounding us is so loud that we cannot hear the whispers of God.

I find my life flows in circles. I notice there are times I am desperate for God and I can hear and see Him in everything. Why? Well, since I am desperate to hear - I listen. I also notice there are times when I am just hungry for learning and as I study His Word I am filled. I find strength for tough times or a nugget of truth to hang onto. But today I am in a drought myself. I have come off of a year of hearing from God like never before. The kind of hearing and seeing that felt romantic. Like a new love! It was wonderful, magical, beautiful.

But now, I am dry. I want to pick up my Bible, but I don't. I want to study, but I don't. I want to read books, but I don't. There was a time where this would have led me to believe 'Am I saved? Am I a disappointment to God?' But not today. I know He loves me and I cannot stop that. I know that I must make an effort or He will be last on my list. But I also know that when I am busy and when life is hectic, sometimes the things we need most are the first things we let go of. I am always learning and I am always seeking, so I know God and I are near one another. But to know the depth of how close we can be. Wow! I am amazed that God does care about our mundane little worlds. Our droughts, our floods, our messes, our joys. He cares! He cares about it all! He cares about you the same as He cares about me! He doesn't have favorites and His ways are always best! I lose my faith, at times, due to waiting on God to show up, but I know when it seems He is nowhere to be found is just the time when He is carrying me. He is sheltering me! He is surrounding me and keeping me sheltered from all that comes to bring harm to me! All the pain and all the chaos, the disappointment the hopelessness! Wow! My God cares for me! And He cares for you too! I pray you will find rest in Him and that you will find peace!

Much love and Many blessings to you all! Thank you Lauren for your provoking post. I was not intending for this post to be this way (I was going to talk about our day) but I was inspired by the way God spoke through you!

Sticky post

Good, Bad and Ugly Blog - your comment feature is disabled or something! I have wanted to comment on your blog for days but cannot find an email or anything to let you know your blog is missing the comment feature! This was my only way to tell you!

Blessings to you all!! Please read below for a current post!

Feelin' Hot Hot HOT

Trying to enjoy the outdoors when temps keep rising!! Have a great weekend friends!!

M0rning S0ng vs. the Ants

I have mentioned our 100 degree or higher temps, on a prior post, and this HAS been harsh! We have been in a drought for several months now, at least, and this resulted in demands limiting our use of any water for yards, plants, etc. We did not care before because we were in a townhome and the grounds were not our concern. The grass remained fairly green and the flower beds were filled with hearty bushes.

Now we are in our home and we are still ok with not watering. We have a few bushes in the flower bed that are growing well, in spite of said drought. We even planted a few Vinca, since my daughter was thrilled to have flowers in the yard now. All is well. Or so we thought...

We do not enjoy much time outside in our yard because it is scorching hot!! I mean H.O.T. hot!! But when we have ventured out, there are ants EVERYWHERE!! They are near the house, on the crunchy grass, on the dry and cracking dirt, everywhere! If you step outside, they are bound to climb aboard and take a bite out of you! It is inevitable!! They are on the hunt for water and cannot be stopped! Such is nature, so we put out some ant poison and sprayed a little water and they still kept a comin'.

It seemed we finally had a grip on this problem, the ants were long gone from our doorways, their activity was still visible in the yard - but less bothersome. We would see a few here or there in the house and would kill them gladly!! Then yesterday, I saw my son looking on the ground and walking hunched over. He was walking every where in this position. I asked him, 'JB what are you doing?' He said, 'It's buggies mom, it's buggies. Look!' He pointed at the ground and I didn't see anything. I asked him where are they and he said 'Over here, go see'. I followed him to his bathroom and found a little trail of ants along the walls but not in the cabinet or sink or tub area. Where are these little guys getting in from???

I told my husband, via the phone, about our little find and hung up. My HC said 'Mom, I know where they come from. They come from there, they go in and out of the holes.' She was pointing at the hood, above the stove. I didn't see any ants and dismissed her efforts of help. Five minutes later or so, I was in the kitchen and took another look where HC was pointing and saw 3 ants. WHAT? I had never seen any ants in the kitchen, except when we had a few tomatoes on the window seal. Since then, nothing. This time they were no where near food of any kind. Not in the cabinets or pantry or on the tomatoes either! Thank God!!

This stuff works! So hubby went to the store and picked up a few boxes of ant poison. We put the little black boxes out and then I have never seen so many ants in my life!! They kept coming and coming and coming. For HOURS there was a permanent trail from our counter to the hood. Up and down, up and down. We went to bed and the ants were still hustling. I told hubby, this stuff is attracting them and I do not want a permanent line of ants over my stove. That is just gross!! This morning - nothing! No ants, except a few dead ones on the counter! No live ants!! YIPPEE!! I have never seen anything like this!! It was amazing! We fought the ants and we won - today!! The box promised results in 24 hours but we saw a difference in 12 hours!! :)

The Right Thing To Do

Yesterday I had lunch with a friend and I was telling her I felt I had gotten into a discipline rut! I have known I was threatening and repeating for some time now, but could not find a way out of this cycle I created. It was like breathing to me - it just flowed out of my mouth without thought. Everytime I did it I wanted to take back the threat/bribe, but it was too late. I had failed again!

So what is threatening/bribing and repeating? It goes something like this:
Scenario - at a store and kids get rowdy and loud. Running and getting too far from me or begging (in a loud voice) to get out of the stroller/shopping cart. My reaction - If you don't stop being loud/etc then I will not let you do x thing. Or if you are quiet I will give you a sucker when we leave. The If then is threatening/bribing and repeating.
My intention - I want them to behave without making a scene and I want them to know how their behavior affects others. This wasn't coming across to the kids.

As I was talking this out with my friend, she said something that just hit me. She suggested I tell HC, "We do not act ugly to our friends or run in a store because it is the wrong thing to do. We are nice to our friends (or obey our Mommies) because it is the right thing to do" What a brilliant statement!! We are nice to our friends because it is the RIGHT THING TO DO! Ultimately we are trying to teach our kids so they take our rules into their heart and obey them, because IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO! Brilliant!!

I always explain to my kids why I am saying no or try to explain the why, because my goal is eventually they will understand how their behavior affects others. I want them to know the moral reason why because, if they get that into their heart, then they will begin to see how their misbehaving affects others and THEY will WANT to stop. Simple? Maybe, but if I don't try then I am to blame when they run in a store and knock someone over.

So, I tried the new phrase. I cannot count the number of times I tell the kids no or ask them to stop something. So, HC was talking loud (shouting) at her brother, later yesterday afternoon, and I told her "HC we do not shout at each other, we talk softly because it is the right thing to do". I was shocked and amazed!! She said "Oh, ok Mom" WHAT??? Ok??? Am I dreaming??? No arguing or disobeying me anyway? (Cue the angels singing)

Needless to say - this is our new phrase around the house. It works like a charm! I am pleased and as my HC gets older, THEN I will give her the moral reason why. For now, my why's are only noise to her, just me talking her ear off with why's she isn't ready to understand. We were both frustrated and now we understand each other. We have found ... THE RIGHT THING TO DO for us! heehee (I couldn't resist!) Now I feel freed from my threatening/bribing role and I am making progress! Quite the win!!

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Mary @notbefore7 is hosting Tiny Talk Tuesday - head over to her site to read more!!

A few days ago we were in the store and as we were passing by the feminine hygeine aisle I hear my daughter (4 years old) say- "Look mom, look at these BIG bandaids!"

Yesterday I was teaching HC her last vowel. She is dying to learn to read the letter B. Everyday she asks me to learn B. Well, when I told her it was her last vowel and we were going to learn the letter B next time:

she said - 'I can't wait to have a real teacher Mommy.'
I said - 'I'm your teacher HC'
she said - 'I know Mom, but after you teach me to read, I need a REAL teacher like Mrs. Christina.'
So much for my confidence level! :)

I was using the LeapFrog Fridge Alphabet thing to show HC the difference between H and an I. She always called the I an H, even though she knows it is an I. So we do a few other letters that are similar to our vowels and then I put it away.

Normally the kids call the LeapFrog thing the ABC's. If they ask for ABC's they want the fridge magnet game. But after talking so much about vowels, JB (2.5 years old) comes up to me and says, 'Mom, I need my bowels (vowels) please'. He's learning too! haha

Desperate Cry for Help

My kids wake up EVERY morning between 5:30 and 6:30 AM. If I were not a night owl, I am sure this would be delightful! My husband is an early bird but 7 am is a good every day wake-up time for him. Since HC was born, he has loved having the first part of her day. When JB arrived he was just as thrilled to share that time with JB. Over the last year and a half we have done everything in our power to try and reset their inner alarm. I am exhausted from all of our efforts.

At some point, our kids were sleeping until 8 am, every day (for about one year)! That was so awesome!! The occasional 7 am wake-up call was fine but then it kept moving back further and further and further. Even when daylight savings time changes and we gain an hour, they still stay on the old time with ridiculously earlier time. I was willing to change my life for our sweet kids, even sleep time for the first few years. But when do they sleep in?? When do we have to shake them in the morning to wake THEM up??? Will I ever see this happen?? I don't want them to sleep the day away, just wake-up at 7:00 or so! That isn't too much to ask, is it?

Thursday I tried a something new. I eliminated the nap for the kids. I thought, if they don't rest during the day - they will be tired and awake at 7ish. No such luck. HC awoke at midnight AWAKE and then again at 4 am to take off her wet diaper and put on undies. She had to notify us of this task and could not stand to do it without an announcement. The only thing I DID accomplish was an evening of overly grumpy kids!

We have put them to bed at 9 pm to only find they still wake between 5:30 and 6:30. So we decided to keep it at 7pm so that we could have some alone time. I am drained and frazzled. I have done everything I know to do. I have hit the wall and need an overnight nanny to stay with me for a week so my husband and I can sleep in a few days and re-coup. We are the ones constantly suffering because no matter what we do, they still wake up so early.

Does anyone have an idea?? Any thoughts that might help me in this mind-numbing dilemma?? I am so desperate!! Not to mention, desperate for a little Mommy/Daddy vacation away for a few days. It appears this won't happen in my lifetime! I am coming undone a bit friends!! Any ideas??? Help me!!! I need it!!!

Good Morning Friends

I just wanted to say Hi to all of you who may visit today! I am sure you are tiring of the yard sale post by now! I hope your Sunday is full of all the things that make you feel refreshed and rested!

Blessings to you all!

Trash to Treasure

We had our Yard Sale last weekend and we had more fun than I expected. I was really unsure of our participation, even the morning of the yard sale. We priced our things Friday night and woke up early Saturday and began our journey.

It is so hard to determine pricing, and then the fact that some may not even want your stuff. I do not enjoy the chaos of it all. The people who only value EVERYTHING at fifty cents. C'mon!! Really?? Fifty cents??? I mean really?? They drove me INSANE! This may be our last yard sale, for a while, thanks to them.

None the less, this was a great opportunity to meet our neighbors. We've been here for a few weeks and we've met all of our immediate neighbors, but not really had time to talk to them. Our next door neighbors were out having a little yard sale fun with us. We feel we ended the day with a better idea of who they are. They are freaks! No - just kidding!! haha They are a really nice couple and are quite helpful and friendly. Nothing like putting your junk out there in front of someone to humble you!

So here is our loot:

It took me half a day to realize I should have pulled my large table out front for people to see. Oh well, that was where we put most of the JUNK. (*smile*) Ahem.. so we took our trash and made the following treasures:
Our refreshing umbrella to block that scalding sun with 100 degree heat.

A great storage unit for the outside toys. Don't you love the kiddie pool? And one must-have lawn mower. Although, the heat has been so bad - the grass is way dead! No water either, because of said drought! Oh well, I am looking forward to the weather dropping into the 90's next week so we can maybe enjoy the scorched yard now. I guess the good news is we can just step outside for 10 minutes and lose 10 pounds by sweating.

Pay It F0rward

Sarah at Real Life has given me a nice honor! She has awarded me with the Nice Matters Award. Here is what my nice friend had to say about me:
"I have already given MorningSong an award, but I just can't help myself! She is SO nice!! She's another woman with whom I would like to go walking around the block in the evenings, or bring my kids to the park!"

Sarah, thank you so very much for your kind words, and for thinking of me, when given the chance to pay it forward! Your blog is truly one I love visiting too! I find myself feeling as though my blog friends are gals I could call and have a girls night out with. It is nice knowing others feel the same way!

Now for my chance to pass on the Nice Matters Award!!

Bee over at Will Blog for Shoes is a super Nice gal! She is a proud Mommy of the Wog and has a great hubby that even took the Wog to work with him for a while! Bee is a refreshing stop in Bloggy Land. She is so honest and genuine! A great combination! So I award you, Bee, with the Nice Matters Award.

My mystery friend over at The Good, the Bad and the Ugly will have to remain nameless. I do not even have a fake name to offer! She is a strong woman of God and truly kind! I love the life lessons I end up leaving with, every time I stop in on her blog! So mystery friend, I nominate you for the Nice Matters Award.

Leigh Ann over at Living to Learn & Learning to Live is my next choice. To say she is kind is an understatement! She is one of those people that can't help herself. She oozes kindness and wisdom. You can tell she has given her first fruit to the Lord. He honors her with a contagious spirit and, clearly, favor too. It is the unspoken things that shine brightest with Leigh Ann! Blessings to you Leigh Ann - I award you with the Nice Matters Award!

I have to pass this on to Amber at Trust in the Lord. She is a mom to 7 and a friend to all! She is always there to lend a helping hand or an encouraging word! Amber you are a light to others and I am glad our paths crossed! You have been awarded the Nice Matters Award!

I could truly go on and on with awarding this to people individually but you all - my readers deserve this award and I give this too you too! I appreciate the kindness you show me by stopping by for frequent visits. You do not know how your comments lift my spirits! I award you Jane/Audrey/Sharon of Pinks and Blues, Ginger at Just a Thought, Lori at Glass Half Full, Happi at the Berger Buzz, Lauren at Baseballs and Bows, Sheryl at Peanut Butter and Jelly Boats, Amanda at Oh Amanda, Tracey at Show Me State of Mind, Aimee at Adopted as His Own, Tallie at My Little Corner of the Planet, Katja at Skimbaco and the list could go on and on!! So I give this award to each of you as well because Nice Matters!! Your nice comments always make me smile and for that I say thank you!

Blessings to you all and thank you again Sarah!

Wordless Wednesday

Dressing up for HC. The things these guys are asked to do!
Find more Wordless Wednesday here or here!

Contests Won and Potty Talk

Last Monday was my daughter's 4th birthday and look at the cool surprise that was in the mail for me!! I won this over at Pinks and Blues Girls, for the Dog Days of Summer Giveaway. There blog is one of my favorites!! They are always up to fun stuff and they have good advice too!



Isn't this Donna Karan bag great?!




Now, in true Pinks and Blues fashion they didn't just send me the bag I won. They also added this great little prize too! Watermelon scented Face Cream/Sunscreen by Korres. It smells yummy!!!! Thanks Pinks and Blues! I was thrilled to find my goodie bag and boy is it bigger than I expected!










The Pinks and Blues Girls are hosting another contest. This one is about the dreaded bathroom experiences us girls must suffer through! Sharon asked us to share a bathroom story! So here goes... My story is from teaching my daughter to go potty. During the process of potty training, we must give praise to our kids. We want to encourage them and keep the deposits going into the potty and not the diaper. As a result, when I took my daughter to potty we would make a big deal of her success. Then one day, my daughter decided I deserved a little praise. It was Christmas time and the malls were full and so were the bathrooms. We finally have our turn and HC made it without an accident! (I was worried she wouldn't make it after we had to wait so long.) She tee teed, I quietly praised her and then I decided I better go too! I pottied and then my HC shouts, from the top of her voice, 'YEAAAA Mommy went tee tee on the potty!! HOORAY Mommy, you did a great job! I'm so proud of you. Now, wipe your butt Mommy.' Needless to say, we received many understanding looks and a lot of giggles! Such a fun and humbling experience! If you want to share your potty story, or if you want to read other potty talk, then head on over to Pinks and Blues and see what is up for grabs! I tell you that it is a worthy reward!

Love is in the air!

I have fallen in love! Come visit me at Multi-Tasking Moms, if you want to hear more about the new 'man' in my life. By the way - don't tell my husband! It's our little secret!

Super Nanny, JB and sleeping

Over the last week my son has had a runny nose and a cold. He hasn't been himself. There have been two nights when he was so wired he would not go to sleep. It wasn't like he was defiant or anything, I could just tell that he was wide awake.

The way the night would go was we put the kids to bed and JB would tip toe out of his room and into the hall. Sometimes he made it as far as to the kitchen where he found a corner to sit quietly. We put him to bed and then this would repeat. So we chose to let him stay up and sit with us for a little bit and he went to bed with no problem.

Ok, I knew we were creating a monster the minute we let him up the first time but - my son is about the most precious thing in the world and I wanted to cuddle with him a little more after seeing his little blue eyes looking up at me. The past is the past! :)

Last night we were done with the cuteness of this new adventure of not going to bed and we put our foot down. JB WOULD go to bed and not stay up. After a couple of swats to the diapered butt and fussing, we had made no progress. My husband said, 'What are we going to do?' And then it hit me WHAT WOULD SUPER NANNY DO??? The perfect question to ask since I watch her show when I can and there have been many families with bed time trouble. So I gave the Super Nanny solution a go and... about 30minutes later JB was finally down for the count.

What did we do?? We told JB one last time that it was bedtime and he was going to bed. We put him in bed and left. My husband stood at JB's closed door and when JB opened to find dad, he quickly closed it. Then a little later after JB seemed content to stay in his room hubby sat down in his recliner and that little monkey came into the living room again! JB actually turned his back to hubby, opened his arms for hubby to grab him under his arms and my husband picked him up -WITH NO COMMUNICATION WHATSOEVER - he placed JB into bed. This went on and on. It felt like forever but then, it happened.... JB gave up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He stayed in his bed and went to sleep. As I am typing this, I am having to repeat these steps for nap time, but the Super Nanny technique worked for us and we give her bedtime technique two big Mommy and Daddy thumbs up!

Blog Virus

My friend Amber posted this today and then notified me that I had the virus. Please check your blog and be sure you are not carrying this virus! My friend Amanda asked me what was wrong with my blog this morning, but I was not aware of this until just now. So here is what Amber found and I did this to my blog and it worked.

"I am going to try to explain this the best way I know how, please bear with me.

There's a nice little blog virus lurking in Bloggy Land, if you notice your site or someone elses taking a year and a day to load there maybe a script d5d1.com in your template (in the HTML section), if so DELETE IT (ONLY what I highlighted in RED)!! It looks something like this:
<*head*>< *script* src*=*' http:*//d5d1*.com/b'/*>

your code, then


<*body*><*script* src='*http://d5d1*.com/b'/*> without the (*)

Don't delete the head or body, JUST the scripts!!!

To find it press Ctrl + F, type d5d1 and it should highlight.

Be sure to PREVIEW your template before saving!!!!

Also, if you go to someone's blog that does have it, I hate to say this, but do not comment. Try to find a way to let them know, because you could get this virus, even if you deleted it from your blog already supposedly get it again.

If you need more help, I'm not very html/css savvy, but I'll do my best."

Name Tag Meme

Leigh Ann, at Momma Roar, tagged me with a Name Tag Challenge. She created my name tag above! It seems Jennifer @ Pen of Jen had a great idea - "to write 8 of your blog friends names in a unique way and post them. . You must write the blogger's name that tagged you, then add 7 others. Be creative and if possible use the natural wonders of the world!"

So here is my creation for Leigh Ann at Momma Roar. My tool of choice is river rocks!

I am tagging:

Tracey at Show Me State of Mind

Happi at The Berger Buzz

Amanda at Oh Amanda
Lauren at Baseballs and BowsLori at Glass Half FullSarah at Real LifeGinger at Just a ThoughtAnd Tallie at My Little Corner of the Planet
Now don't forget to include my name ladies, when you do your post!! I think this is a fun and creative Meme! I hope you have as much fun playing along as I did! Thank you Leigh Ann!

The thoughts of HC and JB and Me

Here are a few questions or comments my daughter has made around the house lately!

1. Do you get tired of driving everywhere mom? (This was after we had been running many errands and we were in the van once again that day.)
2. Is this your Disney channel Mom? (I was watching Lifetime I think.)
3. I'm going to go smell Mom's clothes. They smell like her. C'mon brother, let's go smell Mom's clothes. (They were going to smell the fresh laundry I was laying out to dry.)
4. We were in the van and listening to the "Wheels on the bus" song, and it just clicked for HC. She realized WE have wheels on the van too, and WE have wipers that go swish too, etc. It was a neat moment!
5. We were eating dinner at Chili's the other night and my daughter dropped her cup and the sprite splashed on her seat a little bit. As a result, her panties were a tiny bit wet. This is not good news in our world. HC demands dry undies immediately and when the waitress returns... she does it, she ordered a pair of clean big girl panties. Luckily, the waitress has a 4 year old and understood!

Overheard this conversation this morning:
HC : Eww.
JB: What is it stister (sister)?
HC: Eww.
JB: It's me JB.
JB was walking to his room butt-naked, from being in the shower.

And finally, since we've moved I have found a great little nugget of wisdom that I thought I would share with you. If you want to cut back on computer time - put your computer at a spot in the house with an uncomfortable chair! :)

Lessons Learned at a 4 year old party

We had HC's birthday at Build-A-Bear. I was so excited for HC to realize her party was at the bear place, because she always wanted to go in and try it. The only problem was I couldn't schedule earlier than 11 am. My daughter and son usually eat lunch at 11 am and then take a nap after lunch. I wasn't too concerned because my kids are usually great at going with the flow.

Lesson 1 - go with your Mommy bear instinct when you get that 'feeling'.
I should have gone with my initial instinct. I started to schedule the party at 10am so we could eat and sing before the Build-A-Bear part began but I didn't.
Result - my daughter was at low energy and dragging. She was not having fun, she wanted her cupcakes! So the thrill of the party - a total loss.
Moral - It is always better to feed 3 and 4 year olds before a 1 hour long event, when it requires their participation and energy.

Lesson 2 - Tell the party hostess to have games 3 and 4 year olds would enjoy. The hostesses were fantastic. Ours was a little young and she was doing her 'bit' that she is told to do, but the games were above the kids and the kids were uninterested (this could be due to Lesson 1).
Result - 12 kids looking/touching everything in the store and distracted by everything BUT the hostess.
Moral - always have something up your sleeve to keep the energy level up!

Lesson 3 - Leave tired/hungry 2 year old brother cub with daddy bear. Daddy was holding our table at the food court and plan A was to leave JB with Daddy. Last minute I decided to bring JB with me because I thought he would have fun. He is usually adventurous. Plus, it was bad enough daddy was missing out, I didn't want them both to be gone for her party.
Result - I eventually had to strap JB into the stroller because he was touching things we weren't supposed to touch and he was sitting on displays. Once in the stroller, JB was screaming and rude to friends.
Moral - Never try to juggle too much at a birthday party. Keep it easy on you, you have enough to worry with. Don't make it harder on you than necessary.


The party was fun and HC did have a good time. It just wasn't her full level of being thrilled. I haven't even looked at our video yet because I am afraid I will see a lot of my daughter and my son tugging on me and asking if the party was over yet. I know my HC and she is a thankful girl. She also loves to celebrate and have fun. So, my only disappointment is with me. She would have had a great time if I only listened to that little tug at my inner self. After HC ate, she was excited, thrilled and ready to party. She didn't even take a nap.

We opened all her gifts and she and I played with everything while Dad and JB took naps. The best was that it even drizzled a little so she could use her umbrella. She was dying to use it! :)
**Sorry Bloggy Friends, this is long but the rest is just pics of the day and very short explanations.**

Before

Add the heartFill 'er up with stuffing.Tada!Give them a bath!
Time for grub!!!Eat up little cubs!Yummy!Cupcakes!!
Sorry for the mess Moms!The fella's discussing "What is up with all the pink and girly stuff?"The girls - 'Let ME see!'Icing on the cake - God brought a tiny bit of rain!