A little better

It is amazing how much holding a newly born inant can improve your mood. My friend had her baby three weeks earlier than expected, so I took the opportunity to visit her yesterday and meet her new little boy. None of her babies has broken the 7lb barrier and this little guy was no exception, although he did come pretty darn close. It was so strange holding such a slight little thing when I am used to holding my 10 lb plus monster newborns.

A number of you wondered if we could get another weight estimate. We did better than that and changed moving companies entirely. The lady in charge of coordinating the moves is a stellar worker and managed to get everything all taken care of super fast. My husband talked to her yesterday morning and by that afternoon we had the new company, the same moving dates (which was a great relief to us) and a walk through scheduled for later today.

If this company still has us at the ultra high estimate we will have to jettison some of our furniture. This is unlikely since a guy at my husband's shop moved his goods from a bigger house than we are occupying and was well under the weight limit. We shall see what happens.

I must say that the staff at this base has been quite stellar. We also converse a lot with the gal in charge of advising us about Tricare and she has been ultra helpful too. I am really going to miss the great service since we are moving to a very bare bones station that will not have the level of support staff that we currently enjoy.

I need a hiding place

It is starting. The sun rises early enough now that Evan wakes up at 6am. He is kind enough to wait to wake Harry up until around 6:30 which is when he can hear my husband getting up for work. He has to wake the sleeping soundly Harry because Evan has to have him to the dirty work of opening the door. That leaves me to deal with a cranky sobbing two year old all morning long. When we move I am going to be more aware of where the sun rises and place the boys in the room opposite of that even if they end up in the master bedroom and I end up sleeping in a bathroom. The extra sleep would be worth it. Now if you will excuse me, I have to deal with a sobbing Harry.

School is back in!

You may be wondering why I am so excited that the first day of school in my town was today. I am so thrilled because it means that the little gets get the parks back. The local "day camps" (aka glorified day care centers) love to take over the parks for hours on end and was always frustrating to come to the park and find bored tweens hogging the little kid play areas. I had to worry about rambunctious older kids squishing my little ones. It was so nice to go to the park and see only little kids around. The park was also a lot cleaner to boot. I am going to enjoy the park time now.

Finally a real post

I have been kind of mum the last few days. Sunday evening my back started killing me, probably due to me standing forever while making a batch of peach jam. I tried to rest my back (as much as a mom with two young kids can any way) but yesterday I had to get on with preserving the peaches or they would start rotting. I decided to take the easy way out and freeze them for future use in peach crisp. I think we have enough fruit spread to last us for awhile any way especially since my mother in law is threatening me with apples when we come for Thanksgiving/Harry's second birthday (which are the same day).

I am finding a certain amount of satisfaction in my domestic endeavors. Some people claim that becoming a stay at home mother is mind numbing but I am finding joy in expanding my domestic abilities. I have been working on my cooking. When I first got married we had a pretty limited diet and despite my parent's attempts to teach me cooking I still was a pretty mediocre cook when I got married. Canning fruit is an off shoot of my newly found interest in cooking. It is very satisfying to look at the results of all that rather boring labor. Cleaning has a similar amount of drudgery to it but it never stays done, five seconds after you have finished picking up the living room some little child will be there right behind you undoing all that work. Fruit will stay done and you can enjoy it months later in the cold of winter.

Now I am not going to become some sort of crazy homemaker that can turn a dust bunny into a fun craft, but I do want to learn to improve my skills at the job I am currently working at. The hard part is that there is no real motivation other than personal satisfaction. I wish that I coudl get a raise or a promotion from all my hard work. A gal can dream can't she?

Vacation posting

I have snuck away and I decided to do a little blogging. The weather is lovely here on the coast, it actually gets quite chilly in the evening. We thought ahead and brought blanket sleepers for the boys. I am enjoying a chance to really catch up with my SIL. We have always gotten along quite well and she is a great person to chat with. She also confirmed her pregnancy with their third (and final) child. I think that Harry will miss being the youngest grandchild, a post that he has held for all of his life.

Church was interesting today. I actually got to threaten Evan with not being able to go to nursery if he did not behave in sacrament meeting. That is a card I had not been able to play before because even if he did not have to be there in nursery I still had to go to run things. I was a bit worried that Harry would freak out that I was not in nursery with him but he did not care one bit. It was Evan that gave me the trouble. He had a diaper change right after Sunday School. After I finally got that squared away and got back into Relief Society not five minutes later Evan was back with the nursery leader claiming that he needed a diaper change. After checking him and confirming that there was nothing there I gave up hope of an adult lesson and just stayed with the kids in nursery.

I have been missing the adult classes while I was stuck in nursery, but Sunday School cured me of that. It was a rather dry lesson and it was all I could do to stay awake. I guess it would have helped if I had even knew what scriptures we were studying but having been in nursery or wrangling a kid made sure that I forgot long ago where we even were in the scriptures.

I got a chance to wear my lovely new high heels to church. I loved that they made me tall enough that I could look my husband directly in the eyes. Other than that I was glad to take them off. I forgot how much they hurt your feet after wearing them for awhile. I am still planning on wearing them to the wedding but I doubt they will replace my flats for normal wear. I am not sure how women can wear them all day year after year.

I may already be a winner!

I was just checking my email and apparently I have won a large sum of money from the Irish lottery,£475,318(GBP) to be exact. A surprising thing is that they do not even ask for my bank account number so that they can wire me the money, all they wanted was my name, phone number, mailing address and marital status. They may have been just phishing for a date instead of the typical scam that is looking for money.

I also recently was sent an email telling me that my Paypal information needed to be updated. My first big warning that this was a scam was that it was not sent to the email account that is registered to my Paypal account. I have several different ones for different kinds of email. When I clicked on the link I checked out the URL. It was not a Paypal address but the actual web page was convincingly accurate which would fool an unwary person. I forwarded the email to the fraud department of Paypal.

Maybe next week I will get the change to help a Nigerian businessman get his large sums of money out of the country. A girl can always hope.

Super Powers

Last night while I was cooking dinner and keeping an eye on the boys while they played outside in the back yard my husband (who was in another room) asked me a question about something he was holding. I of course had no idea what he was holding and commented to that effect. My husband then teased me telling me that since I was Awesome Mom I should be able to see through walls. I reminded him that Superman was the one that could see through walls, I was Awesome Mom.

Awesome Mom has eyes in the back of her head to help her see when kids are fighting with each other and who is at fault. She is faster than a speeding toddler, but just barely. When the kids are in another room and suddenly it gets quiet her mommy senses tingle, telling her that something naughty is being done. Those same mommy senses also tell her when someone needs a nap (usually her) and when a diaper change is needed. She can leap baby gates with a single bound, except for the times when she is tired from a long day of caring for kids and does not lift her feet high enough. So you can see, I have different powers, but they are a lot more useful than knowing how to fly (How would you be able to carry both kids and all the junk you need?), or being able to see through walls so that you can tell what your husband is talking about.

Tags: super powers

The time is now!

I was at Target (one of my favorite places) and found a bunch of shorts on clearance in 3t for Evan to wear next summer. It reminded me that I need to get shopping for next season now if I want to get the good clearance. It seems crazy that we are only half way through summer and sweaters and long sleeves are already coming out.

A secret tip for my readers is that if you see a clearance price at Target and the price ends in a 4 that is the lowest price it will be. You had better buy it right then if you even think you might want it because in a few days they will be taking it off the shelf. I got the shorts for $2.24 marked down from $8.00. Also if you are at Costco and wondering if you want an item look at the sign. If there is a * then that is the last pallet of the item and they will not be restocking.

Tags: clearance, shopping, Target

Money talk

Yesterday I spent $99.99 at the grocery store. My first thought was one of shock that I spent that much money at a grocery store that was not Costco. Then the number sunk in and I thought about how cool it was. At least I did not spend $999.99 in groceries for my growing boys. I have a feeling that my grocery budget numbers will have to rise that high when they get to be teenagers.

Tags: money, grocery store, food

A surreal moment

I was playing with the boys in the back yard (well back yard is kind of overstating things a bit, it is more of a small garden area with a patio) throwing pop its on the ground. The noise makes the boys giggle and they love trying to throw them (they hardly ever throw them hard enough and often end up accidentally stepping on them which makes them finally pop). I heard a voice and saw someone peeking in at us through the fence. She was asking if we had a diaper that she could have. I was a bit confounded for several moments as I am not used to being approached like that while I am in the supposedly private space that is my back yard. I of course gave her a diaper, it was the only thing to do really as I would never turn a desperate mom in need away.

I can only assume that she was a visitor to the town home complex, if she had lived here she would have presumably had an ample supply of diapers at home. I think that she may have been on her way to her car to possibly purchase some diapers when she heard my giggling boys and thought that since my kids were so little I was bound to have a bounty of diapers. She was lucky that I did not switch over completely to cloth diapers. Had that been the case I would have been a lot more reluctant to hand one over to a stranger. They are quite expensive to replace.

Tags: diapers, moms in need

I am not so fond of some people

I was playing around online a little while ago listening to the latest Pediacast when all of the sudden someone rang my doorbell very loudly and long. It figuratively scared the crap out of me (my underwear is still white thank you very much). I am now jumpy and still feeling the effect of the sudden adrenaline rush. Why are there so many morons in the world? I hope I can calm down enough that I can sleep.

Tags: annoying people

A Proclamation!

I have that until I get caught up on my laundry no one will be able to put on new clothing. The boys will just have to run around in diapers all day until I am able to get my laundry pile down to a manageable level.

Tags: laundry

In a pickle

This morning while I was trying to rush my way through grocery shopping so that we could attend story time at the library (which both kids hated by the way) I broke a jar of pickles in the trunk of my car. I didn't realize it until I got home and the juice had soaked into a lot of things, including the particle board that covers the spare tire. Now I am going to have to suck it up and smell pickles for however long it takes for the smell to dissipate. I am starting to crave sandwiches every time I get into the car.

Is me or is pickle a very odd word?

Tags: pickle

The joys of motherhood

One of the things that you do not ever think about when you are dreaming of becoming a mother is all the indignities you will have to endure. When you are pregnant you jump right in with a multitude of pelvic exams, having strangers touch your stomach and having a human being kick the stuffing out of you from the inside all of which only mildly prepare you for the ultimate indignity of birth where people see parts of you that normally you would rather die of embarrassment than show in such a public way. My own husband has seem my ovaries and I haven't even seen those. Sadly the birth of the child is actually only the beginning. If you breastfeed you are always in danger of flashing perfect strangers while feeding your baby.

Lately it seems like every time I put Harry down after holding me he decides to take the neck of my shirt with him. If I am wearing anything with a bit of spandex in it and it has the slightest bit of a v to it I end up showing off my bra to who ever happens to be looking. Evan decided that one of his trains needed to be shoved down into my cleavage during sacrament meeting no less. He kept telling me that he wanted Percy in "mommy's pocket".

Last week at church I tried to wear one of my shorter skirts (something that was below the knees but not ankle length like most of my skirts) and I actually almost had it yanked off me several times by a leg hugging and skirt pulling Harry. I think if I am going to wear that skirt again I will have to wear suspenders with it. It is a shame because it is a really cute skirt and a nice color.

Modern women have long been harassing women who choose to have children and spend a good deal of time with them for dressing dowdy and frumpy. I have tried to keep a little bit of a kick to my wardrobe while maintaining my modesty, but I think that I am seriously going to have to change my mind on that after the train incident. I might just add a bunch of turtlenecks to my wardrobe, maybe even a mu mu or two. Those kids have me beat and I have a feeling it will get worse before it gets better.

Tags: mommy fashion, embarrassing, kids

Cycles

My life seems to go in cycles. I have periods of quiet where we are able to laze around a bit in the morning and not often have anything in particular to do. Then there are periods of craziness where every day is crammed full of activities. Right now I am in one of those crammed full periods of time.

Evan gets his under anesthesia major mouth overhaul on Thursday. I got a message on my cell politely asking me to call them so that we can discuss how I wish to pay for my portion of the bill. I have decided to give them Harry in exchange for Evan's nice mouth. I would gave them my first born but he is the one needing the dental work and if he was gone then we could not enjoy the dental work in the first place. If they do not take kids in exchange for dental work I guess we will just have to pay them cash. Good thing we have an emergency fund.

This is how I get my reading done after dinner. The kids seem to think that climbing up mommy is a fun game. Note that the book is actually at my feet and not in front of my face so I can actually read it.

Remember

Today is a day of remembrance. Most people think of today as a fun day off of work and it is, but it is also a day to remember those that have helped keep this country free.

Just this week I met my mother's half brother for the first time in probably about 20 years. He is in the same branch of the military as my husband. He came down to my husband's base for some training and we met up with him. It was a very interesting encounter. He had been a reservist for a great many years. After September 11th he was being called up so much that he eventually decided to become active duty military. He served in the Persian Gulf several times and he also helped out after Hurricane Katrina.

Meeting him again kind of drove home the fact that despite what we may think about the war that is happening right now, the people that are serving over there truly need our support. The military is filled with a lot of good people trying to keep the world safe for their family. They want to make an honest living doing something that will make a difference. They have to deal with crazy bosses and odd coworkers just like people in the civilian world. It just kills me when I read about people vilifying our military and the people serving in it.

Please take a moment today to remember why you have this day off of work. Please look beyond the hype in the media about what is happening over there.

I also want to wish my sister E (now officially dubbed Annie Pompom by Evan) a happy birthday. She and my sister L have come over for a visit which is why my blogging had been a bit spotty.

Ten things that make life grand for me

I was tagged to do this meme by Laura. These are not going to be the obvious things like my husband and kids, but little things that I think make life a little nicer.

1. Homemade apple crisp with ice cream on top. That was the dessert Evan requested for Family Home Evening dessert. It was very yummy!
2. A very gripping series of books that I am reading. I have to finish all three books in less than two weeks (our library has newer books on a time limit, so more people can read them and of course the last book in the series is the two weeker so I have to read all three in that time limit) which is a very fun challenge for me.
   
3. The nice weather that has been happening these last few days. It has been warm but not oppressively so.
4. Evan finally starting to express himself more and more. He took so long to start the whole talking thing that I was starting to get worried. It is nice to see him catching up with his peers.
5. My sisters coming for a visit this weekend. They enjoy spoiling the boys and it is fun to have visitors to change the routine.
   
6. My kids sleeping in until a luxurious (I am being sarcastic here) 7:30. It beats them waking up at 6am by a long shot though.
7. Bedding fresh from the dryer.
8. Nap time.
9. A day in which I do not have to change a poopy diaper. This is a vary rare occurrence but very welcome.
10. The Fridays my husband is able to come home early from work. It is nice to be able to get a bit of a head start on the weekend.
    

Happy Mother's Day

I want to send a happy mother's day out there to all the mothers (that includes everyone adoptive mothers, foster mothers and so on) out there.

I can remember the exact moment that I really started to understand and feel a special kinship with her. It had been an especially rough few days. The night before I had called home sobbing in frustration at Evan still being in the hospital. He had taken a few steps back with his eating and I had come back from some time home only to see him with an NG tube in his nose. I got a phone call in the morning from my mother. She told me not to be mad at her and before she could finish I knew in that instant that she was either int he city or would be shortly on her way. I was right and while I had been resisting the thought that I needed help, I really did need some help. I knew that she was feeling all the same worries and concern for me that I was feeling for Evan. The visit was something that I really needed. My husband while an excellent husband and father was not a very good hospital person. He paced like a caged tiger so it was relief when he had to go back to work. The nurses and doctors were nice but they had jobs to do, they could not sit with me the way I needed. My mom was calming influence who was able to keep me company in just the way I needed.

I also want to give a special shout out to my mother in law. She has been the best mother in law a girl could ask for. She does not resent me for taking her boy away from her (actually I think she would have payed me to take him (just kidding)). She does not meddle in our parenting decisions in any way. I have see the way she is non critical even though some of her grandkids are not nearly as well behaved as Evan and Harry. That same family has made several financial decisions that have been very questionable, yet not a word of criticism is uttered even when that family is not near to hear. She is also not one for unwanted advice. She will only offer it if asked. Go on and hate me for my great mother in law, I think I can take it.

I hope that everyone can have a great special day and reflect on the wonderful influence mothers and mother like people can have on lives.

Good Mail

When I was a child I used to think it was so cool that my parents seemed to get a mail box full of mail every day. My mother tired to tell me that it was mostly bills and junk mail but I thought any kind of mail was cool. Now that I am all grown up I realize the enormous annoyance of junk mail. I know that those bills will have to be payed. The mountains and mountains of mail we get telling us how much the insurance company is paying out for Evan's health care is downright scary at times. Often my only exciting mail is stuff I send to myself by ordering something online.

There has been the beginnings of a movement in blog land to change this. Damselfly has a contest going that involves the sending of nice letters. Annie has taken things a step further and actually set up a blog that contains other mommy blogger's addresses so that we can all send each other some good mail. I have started things off on my end by sending out three little notes. I hope the recipients are excited when they see my note in the mail in a few days. Maybe someone will send some to me before long (hint, hint). Go forth and hand write some letters!!! You never know how much you will brighten someones day until you try it.

Exciting news!

I just got the great news that my youngest sister L is engaged. I am very excited that I will no longer be the only married one among my sisters and that my boys will eventually have some cousins to play with a few years down the road(not that they don't have cousins on my husband's side of the family). This will be the first wedding I have attended since my own.