Boolah & Beso

Random Details

2012-02-13T14:01:00.000-08:00

My little Lovies are finally asleep. Mondays are usually pretty grouchy. I'm always thankful for nap time. While they sleep I thought I'd take a minute and journal some random details about their lives.

Nola has become quite musical lately. I used to think she didn't enjoy it much. When Ryan and I would sit down at the piano to sing or write she would protest and complain. But suddenly she has begun singing and dancing while we play. She makes up her own little songs, usually about scary monsters, and sings phrases from songs she's heard at church or on the radio. She likes a song on the radio called "Hold Me" by Jamie Grace. It's so cute to hear her say from the back seat, "Turn it up, mom. I like this song." It seems so old to me, for Nola to like a song. She has entered the "Why" phase. That's buckets of fun. Ryan has discovered if you give her an incredibly long, over her head, detailed answer to the initial "Why?" she won't keep going with ten more.

Violet has grown up so much lately. Doesn't it seem like kids hit these bursts where they grow leaps and bounds overnight? She is just not a baby anymore. She is walking quite well, and even has this cute little gallop move when she really gets going. She has been telling us when she potties in her diaper. She just smacks her diaper in front and says, "Uh?!" We should have worked harder at teaching her a more appropriate sign. Oh well. She's not saying much. She says "Dad" and "dog". The little stinker doesn't even say "mommy". She fell face first off the potty today. That was traumatic. Her hair is getting so full and long. She has discovered what I call the "stink face" and Ryan calls "giving crusties". When she doesn't get her way she furrows her eybrows and squints her little eyes into slits and stares you down. It's quite menacing. She has recently discovered an intense love for bananas and mandarin oranges.

I'm still loving being their mom. They are two very special girls and I'm blessed to have them.

We Still Believe

2012-01-26T12:27:00.000-08:00

Disclosure. The video at the end of this post is very sad. Seriously. If you are sitting at Starbucks you might want to watch it later. Or just listen, but don't watch. I am not kidding you. Grab tissues, my friend. If you are already in any sort of fragile emotional state it may bring out the ugly cry.

When I first heard this song, "We Still Believe" by Kathryn Scott. I thought to myself, "Has she heard my story?! Does she know what I've been through? It's like she has read from the pages of my soul!" Then I thought, "Man, I'd love to do this in church, but it's really so specific to my situation..."

Wow. Self-centered much there, Char? I hope I'm not alone in this. Sometimes we get so caught up in our own pain, we get so proud of our own stories, that we forget we're not alone on our journeys. We forget that, honestly, our story may not be that original.

Because here's the thing, everybody has gone through some serious crap in their lives. Everyone. Yes, some stories are a little hairier than others. A little more scary, sad, or serious. And some journeys have happier endings than others. You may think your story truly takes the cake, or you may feel like your stories are insignificant compared to other's. But no story discounts anyone else's. Your pain is your pain. The mountain that you're climbing is your mountain to climb. And we all have them. All of us. We're not alone in our pain. Someone, somewhere has traveled the same dark valleys you have traveled. And at the end of it, they either ran to Jesus or they gave up on Him.

I could list my mountains here. I could give you an earful of painful things that have happened to me, but I won't. Maybe I will another day. But today I'm caught up in this thought...

We still believe.

Through it all. The really bad things and the really good things. Somehow God has captured my heart in such a way that I could never let go. Every tragedy and every wound has eventually brought me closer to Him. He has thoroughly and completely won me. There's no hope for me now. Except what I've found in Him. I know I'm not alone in that.

Yes, my pain was awful. So was yours. And, honestly, it's probably not over. But...

We still believe.

Elimination Communication With My 14 Month Old

2012-01-24T10:06:00.000-08:00

Violet wore her Gerber training pants one day last week and kept them dry the entire day! She wore a diaper for nap. The girls had a hard time settling down at nap time so I went in a half hour after laying them down and changed Violet's diaper before laying the smack down. But when she woke up from nap her diaper was dry! I am feeling quite proud. As long as I stay relaxed and don't expect too much from her nobody gets stressed out. The Gerber training pants didn't hold much pee the first few times she wore them, but after being washed quite a few times they are doing well at preventing pee from getting all the way down her legs and to the carpet when she has a little miss.

She still doesn't tell us she needs to go. So far she does well with the potty being offered frequently. I totally understand the people who say, "She's not potty trained, you're potty trained!" I agree. I like to add the word "independently" to the phrase potty trained. Violet is not independently potty trained. But she does know how to use the toilet. To me that is worth the effort. This may be reaching, but go with me and think of it this way...we don't refuse to feed our children until they can figure out how to use a fork and spoon all by themselves and are able to clearly say the words, "Mom, I'm hungry." Babies and toddlers are capable of a lot more than we give them credit for. Some things are just annoying to let them do themselves. One of the things I hang onto is Violet feeding herself her oatmeal in the morning. She probably could be learning that skill, but I don't want to deal with the mess so I always do it for her.

Back to pottying...One funny thing is that Violet keeps her pants dry better when we are out running errands than when we are at home all day. Somehow she holds it between errands, up to an hour or more, knowing I'll take her at the next stop. At home those times aren't as defined, I guess. So she wets her diaper a lot more at home.

So if you're an EC mama looking down the road ahead, I'll tell you that the Gerber Training pants in 18 month size (usually this size is only online) are working fairly well when I'm in the mood to let her wear panties. They fit her well and after a few washings they are absorbing enough to keep mess off the floor. (Violet is 14 months and just under 20 pounds). Soon I'd like to get a few of these for going out because they're waterproof. They're actually swim diapers, but they're padded just enough to hold one missed pee and they come in a very small size for Violet's tiny buns. And they are quite a bit cheaper than waterproof training pants.

Are you an EC mommy? Share the love in the comments below!

Just Do Something

2012-01-18T12:19:00.000-08:00

One of the difficulties of being a stay at home mom, for me, is being self motivated. I don't have a boss coming around the corner to my cubicle every so often to keep me on task. I don't even have a deadline for a project to keep me moving. Everything I do needs done again in five minutes. My husband, Ryan, comes home everyday at about 3:45. This is sometimes a kick in the butt for me. Sometimes I'll notice the clock says 3:10 and think, "Crap! I've got to get something clean before he gets here!" or "Holiness. I need to go brush my teeth." But that's the closest I come to having someone else keep me on track. Mostly, it's up to me to be productive. There may, or may not, have been two days in the not so distant past in which we stayed in our pajamas until lunch time and then proceeded to throw ourselves into the car and drive through Taco Bell, in said pajamas.

Lately, I've been feeling that of all the things I'm not getting done, the thing I've neglected most is educating my two girls. Both Nola and Violet are very good at playing by themselves. This is an awesome skill and one I will continue to encourage. But I've found that I've spent a lot of mornings lately telling them to "Just wait a minute. I'll read to you after I get the kitchen clean" or "Just let me flip this load of laundry then we'll play animals". I need reminded that the reason I stay home is for my girls. Our family has decided that in our situation, me being home is the best thing for Nola and Violet.

I don't stay home to clean the house. I stay home to raise my children.

So I did a really simple thing. On Saturday night, I sat down at my computer and chose a really simple activity for each girl for every day of this week. Just one. I wrote it in my Google Calendar. That way I get a message in my inbox in the morning saying "Reminder: Glue Cheerios to Index Cards" or "Reminder: Sing the Body Parts Song". Some days there is one age appropriate activity for each girl, and some days I chose an activity that they could both do together. Tuesday's activity was going to the Omaha Children's Museum. And Friday we're going clean our big sliding door with shaving cream.

I got lots of my ideas from Pinterest. I stumbled across this blog that is practically an entire curriculum of ideas for children under six. I checked this science book out from the library and I highly recommend it. The projects are very simple and achievable.

My goal was to accomplish just one thing with them every day. I resisted the urge to go all teacher and categorize these activites in search of one activity each of reading, math, social studies, art, and music. I just kept it simple and reminded myself that one thing is better than nothing. Children learn so much just by living life. I just needed to make sure I was taking advantage of every moment I have with them, and being intentional with our short time together. I'll let you know how it goes.

"There will always be worthwhile causes, but not always a two year old in your lap."

Freda Ingle Briggs

Violet and the Potty after 13 Months Together...a love story.

2011-12-20T12:56:00.000-08:00

Violet has really turned a corner with her pottying. She is 13 months old. She's been using the potty since she was two weeks. We have used diapers her whole life. Yep. All 13 months of it. But we have consistently offered her the potty all those 13 months, as well.

We recently took a trip to Kansas to see family for Christmas. I bought Pampers Easy Ups to take along, rather than cloth. I debated between those and the new Huggies slip-ons. The slip-ons are a hair smaller. They come in a diaper size 3. But you get the same amount of diapers for the same price with each brand, so I decided I'd like the vanishing-when-wet flowers on the Easy Ups. They are a bit big on my 18 pound 13 month old, but they work pretty good. For night time, I brought along wipeable diaper covers so the pull ups wouldn't leak where they gape at her legs. It was a perfect combination! No leaking at night and no cloth to wash.

Violet was a champ! She used a total of four, maybe five, pull ups all weekend! She stayed dry while driving, with the exception of one little pee. She didn't poop in them until the morning after we got home. I woke up to nasties that morning, but she still finished up on the potty. I was really amazed.

She still doesn't tell us she needs to go. But she's evidently learning to hold it until we get her to a potty. We take her about every hour. Having the pull ups makes it so much easier! It doesn't seem like that big of a deal. But I swear I took her more often simply because all I have to do is pull up and pull down, without laying her down to change a diaper. Ryan still grumbles just a little, only a little, when I say Vi needs to go potty. It does take frequent trips to be successful. But when she's keeping her pants dry, it is so rewarding!

Grandma Nita always says, "Yessssssss!" when the girls use the potty for her. Accompanied by the elbow to the torso action. This weekend, I noticed Violet, after pottying, would put her hands in a little fist, smile, and make the sound, "sssssssss!"

It's cute to see her feel accomplished.

Christmas Time

2011-12-13T13:55:00.000-08:00

Birthdays and Thanksgiving are over. Now onto Christmas! Nola asks pretty much everyday "Is it Christmas?" And I reply for the millionth time, "Well, it's not Christmas DAY, but it is Christmas TIME."

We went to our church's annual Carols & Cocoa event this past Sunday night. Our church is a small community, and it feels just like a huge family get together. It's like a talent show where everyone takes turns getting up and singing, or showing off some little known skill, or dusting off their old high school band instrument and cracking out jingle bells. This year we got up as a family to sing Little Drummer Boy. Violet held a maraca, Ryan played the ukulele, and Nola breathed into the microphone like Darth Vader. She was enamored with the sound it made. We gave her a few tries to actually sing, but eventually kept singing without her. At the end she finally let out a rum pum pum pum and a final on my drummmmm. I sang a song by the band Downhere called "How Many Kings" with my friend Liz. Ryan did a short stand up comedy routine and it was really funny! Do I sound surprised? I wasn't surprised. Ryan is hilarious. It's just that being a funny person is one thing, but really pulling off a stand up routine is another. He did awesome. I was quite impressed.

Lots of traveling in our future. Lots of partying. Lots of eating. Lots of presents. Lots of...lots.

Sigh.

Picture me now running to grab Nola's storybook Bible, and frantically searching for Baby Jesus in a manger so she understands WHY we have this holiday. I feel like I'm failing her in that area. BUT Christmas day is not here. I still have time. It hit me in church on Sunday that to explain how awesome it is that Jesus came, I have to start by explaining how badly we needed Him. It's not very much fun to talk to your kids about sin and separation from God.

But if she never sees the darkness, she'll never see how truly beautiful the Light.

P.S. This mom has a really great Christmas tradition for teaching her kids about the Light.

P.P.S. Are those two little girls in the picture up top not THE most beautiful girls you've ever seen?! They kill me with their beauty.

Big Girl Violet

2011-11-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

Violet is turning One Year Old on Thursday! I'm freaking out a little bit. This year with her precious little face went by so fast. Today, like most days recently, I was struck by how big she's getting.

Violet crawls around the house like she owns it. We put a gate at the top of our stairs so she is free to roam in the areas we live most, without us watching her every move. She plays very nicely all on her own. Sometimes I'll hear her happy little noises and realize she's all the way down the hall in the toy room. Just checking out the goods. Today she was standing up at the table, playing with Nola's new cash register. It's just so sweet and cute to watch her play like a big girl. Making her own decisions on where to go, what toy to play with, or which piece of trash on the carpet to eat next.

We love our Vee Dizzle. (Oh yes. We call her that.)

Happy Birthday, Nola Serenity

2011-11-10T05:00:00.000-08:00

To my dear, sweet Nolie,

If God had let me put together the perfect little girl... if I'd chosen the smile, the eyes, the laugh, the brains, the hair, the skinny little legs...I never would have put together anything as wonderful as how God made you.

I love your crazy curly hair.
I love your deep brown eyes.
I love your sudden transformations into jaguars and lions.
I love watching you play with Violet.
I love it when you say, "You're the best" to Daddy.
I love everything about you.

Tonight when I stood in the aisle at Wal-Mart and grabbed the blue birthday candle in the shape of a big "3", I almost burst into tears. Time flies when you're having fun. You'll understand when you have babies.

Love,

Mommy

Sister Love

2011-11-09T05:00:00.000-08:00

My two girls have been sharing a room for about six months now. Violet was around six months when two year old Nola crashed her pad and moved in with her. The girls are now one and three.

I asked your advice about room sharing in this post and the response was overwhelming. You all are definitely pro sharing. I loved each comment about how it worked for you practically. I loved Susie's comment about finding her girls together in the crib most mornings. One of my favorite responses was in a personal message from my friend Leslie. She put her girls in the same room at 18 months and 3 years, I think. She said she loved how it was teaching her older daughter to be more "considerate". Love that. I was inspired. I was nervous to do it, though. So when my mom came for a visit this summer, I put the girls together, and after my mom left I just kept them that way.

What I want to discuss here is why did I even want to do this? Ryan asked me this a lot when I was scheming about how we would make it work. He doesn't like to change things up unless absolutely necessary. Why change things that are going well? Here's the why.

We live in a modest 1300 square foot, typical suburban, West Omaha home. We have three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The girls could each have their own room. In the United States our home is considered small, maybe average. In other countries, our home would be occupied by a family of ten. I heard somewhere (sorry I have no real source, but I'm sure it's true because I'm pretty sure I heard it on TV) that in our modern times the average American family is half the size it used to be, but the average American house is twice the size it used to be. As Americans, we tend to over do it. It felt so extravagant to me for the two tiniest people in our home to each have their own space for sleeping! I want my girls to grow up knowing how to appreciate what they have, and be satisfied with just enough. In our situation, I didn't think giving them each their own room would foster that attitude.

Also, I felt sharing a room would make the girls more flexible. We visit my parents in Missouri quite often, and it's nice to know they don't have to be separated to sleep well. They are used to each others noises. It's not a novelty for them to be together so Nola doesn't stay up giggling because she's in the same room with Violet. Or vice versa.

Safety was another thing for me. I'm not a big worrier, but I still feel better knowing the girls are together at night. If something were to happen to Violet, Nola is old enough to let us know. It may be silly, but somehow I feel better tucking them in at night and closing the door to just one room. We have a nice family bed time ritual that would be harder to do if they were in different rooms, as well.

Since the girls are tiny people who sleep in tiny beds, they are in the smallest bedroom in our house. I keep the items in their room slimmed down. Their room is for sleeping, dressing, and storing diapers. There are no toys in their room (I think I got that idea from Leslie, as well). Not even books. (I might change that, but so far no books.) I have learned that Nola thrives on order and having things put away. I... do not. Since I've removed the excess from her room, it's helped me keep her room tidier.

In keeping with the simplicity, they only have one dresser to share. Those of you with older girls may laugh at me, but I am DETERMINED that they will share a dresser as long as possible. Serenity tells me this will get difficult as the clothes in the dresser tend to increase in size with the matching children who wear them. And I have already encountered a problem now that I switched out to winter clothing. I have to be diligent about frequently removing the clothes they've grown out of or simply don't wear. Because, really, they have more clothes then they wear. Too many clothes means they don't end up wearing the ones we really like. Just enough clothes that you can see in a drawer means their cute clothes will actually get worn. (One way I test for this is I wait FOREVER to do laundry. Long enough that I feel like "the girls have nothing cute to wear!" This not-doing-laundry part is fairly easy. Then I go through their drawers, which are usually full even though there's a huge pile of dirty laundry, and get rid of what they aren't wearing. Either to a box for the future or a bag for goodwill. Which then inevitably sits in the garage for weeks before I actually get them to goodwill.)

Where are their toys? Believe it or not, we are not overwhelmed with toys. I LOVE this. The girls have plenty, but toys are not ruling our lives. Most of their toys are currently on a shelf in our third bedroom that we are attempting to make a multipurpose space, kind of like a den. That room is definitely a work in progress. They also have a play kitchen in our dining/kitchen area with a basket of baby toys in the fake fridge for Violet. It's nice for them to have some toys in the area we spend most of our time as a family.

So that's how we roll here at our house. Room sharing doesn't work for everyone, and it's not necessary for everyone. But it's working for us. If we ever have a third baby, I plan to squeeze all three into one bedroom. Hence all the pictures of bunk beds on my Pinterest board. :)

Nola "isms"

2011-11-08T05:00:00.000-08:00

Sometimes Nola gets very excited about things, like little girls do. When she hears a plan we've made, i.e. "We're going to the zoo today, Nola" She lets out a gasp and says...

"That will be 'tastic, Mom!"

Costumes

2011-11-06T20:35:00.000-08:00

We sort of failed the children in recording Halloween, but here's a couple shots of our evening. Plan for next year: split up so someone is at home to pass out candy and decorate with cool stuff so kids want to come to our house! Our neighbor girl and Nola kept saying "Oh! Let's go to that house!" when they saw cool decorations. At the end of the evening a few of our friends stopped by to say hi, and that was really fun. Good friends are good to have.

Violet and the Toilet

2011-11-04T03:00:00.000-07:00

Violet is about to turn one. Her first year went by so quickly! Here's a report on her potty habits.

Still wearing diapers. I decided there's no need to rush things. And no need to spend time cleaning up so many messes like I did when I put Nola in undies too soon. However, Violet frequently goes all day long wearing the same diaper. I call them One Diaper Days. She does especially well when we are out and about. Often holding it for over an hour, sometimes two. She definitely prefers her little potty seat to being held over public toilets. Sometimes I think she holds it just so she can go on her throne instead.

I recently tried a free pattern to make some cloth pull ups. It turned out pretty good, it's just a hair bulkier than I'd like. Being able to pull her diaper up and down really helps for frequent potty trips. It is especially helpful in public restrooms. That way I don't have to lay her down to to put her diaper on and off. I have a package of the Huggies slip-ons. The start in a size 3, which is much smaller than Pull Ups, but still a little big for Violet. I just realized I can adjust the removable sides to make them a hair skinnier. They've been helpful when we're out. I really want to find a good pattern for cloth ones, though, so we don't start buying paper diapers. Also, if I make them myself I can customize their absorbency. I like them to be very trim so I'm more motivated to get her to the potty. If I know they'll only hold one "pee", I'll take her more often.

Just like when Nola was little, Violet does not communicate to me when she needs to go. Unless I'm just missing it, which is possible. Violet just does really well with holding it until I take her. She just trusts that I will, I guess. I should be more diligent about signing "potty" to her, that would really help for the next few months of this process.

We're still loving elimination communication!

A New Tradition

2011-11-02T13:00:00.000-07:00

I love the holidays. I pulled out the Christmas music already because the girls need to learn it now so they can sing it during Christmas time. Right? I usually try to wait until after Thanksgiving to start Christmas. The Friday after Thanksgiving is kind of a holy day to me.

I am a sucker for traditions, and as a family we don't have real traditions for Thanksgiving. This year I'm starting a new one. Today we threw together a Thankful Thoughts board. (I tried to think of something with the letter G to go with Gratitude, but came up empty.) I had an old rectangle of styrofoam from something. I covered it with some orange fabric and hung it on the wall. (The placement looks really stupid, but I wanted it where we would look at it all the time.) On little pieces of card stock, I wrote some things we are thankful for and pinned them to the board. We will add to it all this month, and at Thanksgiving dinner we can pull them all off and read them out loud.

So far, the things we are thankful for are:

"The Garage" -Charity
"All my tigers at the zoo" -Nola
"Mommy's boobies" -Violet

Nola thought Violet was thankful for the baby tigers at the zoo. I figured my guess was a little closer to accurate. It's a bittersweet thought because I am weaning her this month. Shhhh. Don't tell her. I'm trying to slowly cut her off without making a big deal about it.

When Ryan got home, I showed him the board and he immediately tried to add his name to Violet's thankful card. I reminded him that the things he's thankful for must be able to be read OUT LOUD to everyone at Thanksgiving dinner. Yes, I just told you that story.

Do you have any Thanksgiving traditions?

They Are Listening

2011-11-01T21:11:00.000-07:00

One day I teasingly and carelessly said to Nola, "Look at that tree. It's losing all it's leaves. It's naked!" She smirked. I laughed. We moved on. I thought.

Nope.

Now every single tree without leaves...is naked. And there are so many. And it's such a big girl word. And she says it all. the. time.

They are listening, people. And soaking in every word.

Thoughts on Halloween

2011-10-31T12:33:00.000-07:00

We celebrate Halloween here at the Long house. I know that among Christians, of which I am one, this can be a very tricky (Haha! Tricky!) subject. I'm sure I have very dear friends who disagree with me about this, and that's ok. We can still be friends as far as I'm concerned. But let me just tell you where we're at on the Halloween debate. I have not studied the history of Halloween. But I agree that it may have been started by very evil people who had very evil intentions. But I also believe that it has now morphed into a perfectly harmless holiday, for most people. (The people who do strange, harmful things on Halloween are doing strange, harmful things all year.) The seven year old who shows up knocking at my door dressed as Cinderella, probably does not have plans later in the evening to sacrifice her precious cat Fluffy on a burning fire of Bibles, as an offering to Satan. And if I refuse to open the door for her, she is most likely going to think, "Geez, what a party pooper." She is not going to think, "Oh my goodness. They must not celebrate Halloween. I bet it's because they love Jesus. They're right! I should love Jesus, too!"

As a follower of Jesus, I want to be known for what I am for, not known for what I'm against.

Do you know what I'm for? I'm for fostering a feeling of community in my neighborhood. I'm for having one night a year where it's perfectly acceptable to knock on your neighbors door and beg for candy. I'm for celebrating creative costumes. I'm for being there when my neighbors come knocking at my door with their adorable kids. I'm for having the GOOD candy. I'm for attempting to be "that house who gives the amazing fill-in-the-blank. (We haven't discovered that yet. We're trying.) I'm for having one last hurrah as a neighborhood before we all shut ourselves in our houses for the cold winter. I'm for taking a holiday that may have been meant for evil, and making it the most fun, community driven activity we've done all year.

There may still be time. Go get some candy.

Mundane Monday: October 25, 2011

2011-10-31T07:10:00.000-07:00

Before I forget. Violet was dry all day! She peed in the potty all day long! She had one poopy diaper, though. So it wasn't completely a "one diaper day". (One diaper days are when she uses the same cloth diaper from morning until bedtime, never soiling it once.) She has had one diaper days before, maybe two or three. I'm happy because it was a one diaper day, but I didn't obsessively take her potty all day. She just did a great job of waiting until I took her. She is getting so big!

Monday got off to a good start because I drug myself out of bed before the girls and got ready before they were up. I haven't done this in a while. Getting up before the girls always helps. Always. I have trouble convincing myself of its usefulness when my alarm goes off at 6:30, but later in the day I'm always glad I did it.

The girls slept late. I went in to their room to get them at 8:30. Violet was awake, just being quiet. Nola was sound asleep. I nursed Violet and then got some breakfast for everybody.

Since I had gotten up early, I had time to get a grocery list made before the girls got up. Right after breakfast I got the girls dressed and we made a quick trip to Wal-Mart. The trip was amazingly smooth. No calamities to report.

We came home in time for Violet's morning nap. I messed around the house and Nola watched tv while Violet slept.

When Violet woke up I said, "Let's go have a picnic!" I grabbed leftover Little Ceasars and a couple of yogurts and we jumped in the car.

This is where I wasted a half an hour of our lives trying to find the playground I wanted.

We live near Lake Zorinsky. It's a small lake but it has several picnic areas and more than one playground. It has a million zillion entrances on two different streets. I gambled with the 168th Street entrances and I was wrong. Four times. I finally made it to the entrance I wanted at 156th Street. I should've called Ryan. But maybe I will remember next time. Nola kept saying, "Where are we going?" every time I turned around.

We finally made it. Nola played while I nursed Violet on a bench. Then Nola came and sat wtih us on the bench and we all ate lunch. Then we all played. Violet loves the slides. They had a very big, swirly one and she would just giggle when we rounded the last corner at the bottom. All three of us got on the tire swing, and Violet giggled and giggled on it, too. It got surprisingly warm and I stupidly wore a sweater without a normal shirt underneath. We left before it got too hot, though.

We went home for nap time. Usually playtime outside equals a crazy good nap for the girls. Totally backfired today. Don't know why. Violet slept for an hour and a half (that's short for her) and Nola never fell asleep at all.I let them get up around three. Nola was hyper. It was a little annoying. Violet was fussy. It was a little annoying. When Ryan came home I smiled my most sarcastic smile and said, "We're awake! All of us! We're all awake!"

A little while later I tried to lay Violet down again, but that never works. I think it helps her a little to just lay in her bed, but she doesn't sleep. When Nola ran into the room to get her (we did not ask her to do this), we decided to get out of the house. I find tired, fussy children easier to handle outside of the house. You'd think it would be bad taking them to a store. Sometimes it is, but usually my girls are content looking around at things while we were out. As opposed to fussing about every little thing at home. It distracts them from their fussiness to get out.

We went to Lowes to look at shower heads. Ours has kind of bit the dust. I love shopping for home stuff with Ryan. It's just one of the little things that I dreamt of when I was single. Shopping for shower heads with my husband, with our little baby in the cart, and our preschooler tagging along behind us. It's a simple little dream come true for me.

We came home shower head-less, but grateful for an outing. We ate leftovers for dinner. Dinner time can be stressful with two small children. The stress of it has forced us to always eat at the table. I love that. We all sit down together, and Ryan makes conversation with the girls. He has this prayer that I love, "Thank you for the food we have to eat, the house we have to eat it in, and the family we have to eat it with." Isn't that so beautiful? Did he make that up? We're not sure. Either way, I love it.

Nola watched Diego after supper, and then the girls went to bed. The one benefit of no naps is early bedtime! After the girls were all tucked in, we watched Transformers 3. Yeah, there's a lot of metal clanking and crashing in that movie.

All in all, it was a pretty good Monday. Mundane and all.

Mundane Monday: October 17

2011-10-24T08:15:00.000-07:00

This day did not start well. Nola woke up and puked twice at 2 a.m. Yay.

We had a very full weekend. Nola didn't take a nap Friday, Saturday or Sunday. And Saturday she stayed up until 10:30 p.m. Not just awake, but dancing like a party animal at our good friends' wedding (Congratulations Drew and Kate!). The cuteness of Nola on the dance floor was overwhelming. After a song ended she would run up to us and say, "I want another one!" Unfortunately, her immune system couldn't quite handle the lack of sleep.

Nola never puked again during the day on Monday. I guess it was a fluke puke. (Did I just make up that clever little rhyme?) So grateful for that. While Violet took a morning nap, Nola and I crashed on my bed. It took Nola a while to fall asleep, but she finally snuggled up against my back and drifted off. So cozy. I snoozed a few minutes myself.

Violet wasn't sick at all, but exhaustion got the better of her. She had only brief moments of happiness. She cried on and off all day. We survived through lunch. Everyone ate something. Then we sat on the couch together and watched Diego. Violet was pretty content as long as I held her and she could suck her fingers.

Both girls took a really good afternoon nap. Thank the Lord. They both woke up happy. Ish. Happiness didn't last long for Violet. And Nola had a fever. Diego came to the rescue for Nola. She watched more of his animal salvations while I nursed Violet. After Ryan got home from work he took Violet out to get some things from the store, then came back and fed the girls dinner. While he did that, I got ready to go out with him to the Dead Hour release party. (It was a blast to see everyone Ryan works with. They just released the second season of their web series.)

Ryan's parents graciously came over to babysit while we went out. We had planned a sleep over at Grandma's which would have been infinitely more fun. But Nola was so under the weather, and they were both so exhausted from the weekend we decided it would be too much. Tom and Nita are such good Grandparents to come over and stay with the girls while they sleep. Not much bonding time, just unconditional Grandparent love.

So today was one of those days that I pretty much did nothing except hold my girls. Which is fine with me. Mondays are always recovery days for us, even after normal weekends. Super busy weekends followed by sickness make for an even more recovery oriented day.

Wow. That was boring. And no pictures. But someday, years from now, I'll get all sentimental reading about our boring days. As someone, I don't know who, says...The days are long, but the years are short.

Loving Learning: A Sappy Post About a Favorite Teacher

2011-10-08T11:39:00.000-07:00

I was lucky to have a lot of great teachers growing up. I went to a very small, Christian school ran by the church I grew up in. I had a small circle of the same teachers on and off for all my schooling. I spent a lot of time with one teacher, Mrs. Schromm, through out elementary and middle school. She was my main teacher in junior high. She definitely stands above the rest.

The thing I remember most about her was how she inspired us to not just memorize facts, but to love learning. Rather than merely teach us what we needed to know, she taught us how to learn. She modeled this for us by teaching us subjects that she herself had no specialties in. We went through a Spanish program together, and she took us through a special unit on drawing. I learned a LOT in both those classes, because it showed me that I could learn whatever I put my mind to. I didn't need special skills or even special degrees, but just a ready mind.

She loved us, and gave extra to give us a great education. She got her bus license so she could take an entire bus load of junior high and high schoolers to the YMCA three times a week for P.E. She was so good to us.

The way she taught me to look at learning is probably the reason that when asked in a job interview, "So you know a little Spanish and you like music. You could teach music and Spanish to preschoolers, right?!" I said, "Heck, yeah! Easy schmeesy." That was a great couple of years doing something I loved.

I hope I can give my girls the same attitude about life and learning that she gave me. She made me feel as though I was just one Library trip away from mastering any new skill I wanted. Thank you, Mrs. Schromm! You are in my personal hall of fame.

How's the Potty Queen?

2011-09-29T13:19:00.000-07:00

It's time for an update on Violet's toilet habits! I can see her sixteen year old face now as she stumbles upon this blog in the future and discovers how often I wrote about her poop.

Violet is ten months old *sniff* *sniff* and has been using the potty since she was about two weeks old. Not exclusively, mind you, but quite often. She is getting bigger now so she is no longer peeing every ten minutes. She occasionally goes an entire morning keeping her diaper dry and getting her pee in the potty. She had been doing really well about pooping exclusively in the potty until we left her for a long weekend and the upset in routine threw her off. She's been sneaking the occasional duece into her diaper just before I get to her after nap or in the morning. But she still uses the potty to poop quite often so I'm not stressing about it.

I am super excited about BumGenius' new potty training pants! They will be available just after her first birthday. And the girl print is super cute! (Yes, Ryan, that's really why I want them.) That should be perfect timing to get really serious about taking her often enough that the goal is to stay dry all day. Nola was staying dry most days at seventeen months, and so far Violet has been a little bit ahead of her in the pottying game.

In other Violet news, she is army crawling with the best of them, gives the cutest little kisses out the side of her tiny little mouth, and points at anything interesting. She is still the happiest little thing, a little shy sometimes but in general she likes people. I'm still breast feeding, but otherwise she's eating real people food. No more jars. She does amazing with her two tiny bottom teeth. I feel so lucky to have her in my life.

P.S. BumGenius did not perk me for this endorsement. :) I just love them and am fairly confident their new product will be awesome. And, it's a super cute print. The prints get me every time.

Mundane Monday: September Twentysomething

2011-09-20T13:06:00.000-07:00

Ryan and I just got back from a conference in Chicago. The girls spent the weekend with his parents. It was so good to see their little faces! Of course, we were all exhausted from our adventures.

We took the morning slow. Didn't do much. Violet took a morning nap and after she woke up we went to see Ryan at his office. We stopped at Hy-Vee for a couple cans of soup for the grown ups and a pack of macaroni for Nola. We chatted with Ryan over lunch, and saw Grandma Nita.

After lunch we headed home for naps. Violet snuck a poop in her diaper on the drive home. I think having formula for an entire weekend threw off her digestive routines.

I had grand plans to put together our new Expedit Bookcase from Ikea during nap times, until Ryan told me at lunch he "didn't trust me" to do that alone. So I crashed on my bed and read part of a book I got at the conference. (It's called "The Art of Curating Worship" by Mark Pierson. I haven't gotten very far.) It didn't take long before my eye lids wouldn't stay open and I fell asleep. (Not because the book was boring, far from it. The trip to Chicago was just too exciting to be restful.)

When Ryan got home he helped me put the bookcase together. The girls helped. :) It was a pretty easy build, actually. Now the extra room has room to walk without stepping on toys. And Violet can crawl around in there without us worrying about her choking on tiny dinosaurs. I love that it makes the space more accessible for the girls. I was inspired by this post to focus on creating an inspiring space for my girls to play and learn rather than go bonkers over choosing the right curriculum. Oh yeah, and Ryan was tired of stepping on the tiny dinosaurs. The bookcase saved the day for all involved. And the room
may not be over the top inspirational yet, but it did make Nolie say to Ryan later, "Come on! Let's go play with my new animals!" Nope. Not new. Just on a shelf instead of buried in a bin.

We had french toast for dinner. It wasn't very good. But it was the best I could come up with.

The girls went to bed. I surfed the web. Ryan played some video games. We watched Burn Notice. We went to bed.

Ah, Mundane Mondays, you're such a Plain Jane and I love you for it.

Mundane Monday Madness!

2011-08-09T12:58:00.001-07:00

It was not a banner day. While I nursed Violet it was very, very quiet upstairs where I'd left Nola. Once discovered, Nola said, "I sorry, Mommy" for the first time in her life unprompted. She knew it needed said and she said it. She said it about ten times in a very low toned, sorrowful voice.

Does anyone know how to get red lipstick out of carpet?

Six Years With Ryan: A Sappy Post About Life

2011-08-05T12:25:00.000-07:00

On August 6th Ry and I celebrate six years of being married. Here's six reasons why I love him. One for each year.

1. He's funny. Every girl wants a funny guy, right? While you sometimes have to be in close proximity of him to hear the funny, it will totally crack you up.

2. He's tall, dark, and handsome. He doesn't seem to think he's tall, but he's taller than me. When he hugs me I fit just right in "the pocket". I love his dark hair and brown eyes. I especially love his squinty eye. I used to think he was winking at me. He wasn't.

3. He's a musician. Dreamy, right? Usually we are playing music together. But on the Sundays he is playing piano at church and I'm in the congregation I could just stare at him the whole time and giggle like a sixteen year old. Occasionally he plays bass from the sound board in the back of the church, and I could just faint he looks so cute. (He hates it when I call him "cute". But since both our mothers and maybe our grandmothers are reading this, I'm going to keep it G rated. I'll let you imagine what three letter word having to do with temperature I really mean when I say "cute".)

4. He has made me more fun. I always joke that I can't believe he married me because I was so uptight compared to him! When we were dating he always wanted to do silly things like, I don't know, see who could close the garage from the inside and make it out before it closed. Or race from the car to the entrance of Target. Or try to jump in the Jeep while it was moving. Or go bowling. I would always say no, that's silly. We had fights about it after we got married. But now he's made me realize, life is more fun when you're having fun with it.

5. He's a great dad. Ryan is amazing with our two girls, Nola and Violet. He is the kind of dad who plays pretend and loves it. He is firm with them and consistent. He makes them feel special and loved. He prioritizes the girls. They are at the top of his list, and they know it. I know that they are going to grow into confident, self assured women because of the love and security they feel from their dad.

6. He pursues his dreams. Lately Ryan has found a passion for film making. And rather than say, "Well, I could never support my family on that so forget it" he has jumped in with both feet and found out that he loves it even more than he thought. He has pushed past his normally quiet personality and met new people in the film community in Omaha, and made some really awesome friends. He has made a few short films himself, worked on several others, wrote an episode for The Dead Hour, and generally said "yes" to most film opportunities that come up. It's really awesome to see your husband find something that he loves so much and pursue it. And, dare I say, quite attractive. He has found something he feels truly called to, and though it seems crazy sometimes, he's going for it.

7. He picked me. (Did I say I'd keep it as six? Sorry, can't stop myself.)Ryan will teasingly say that I practically threw myself at his feet. But truly, 0ut of all the girls in the whole world, Ry picked me. I know it doesn't feel this way when you're single, but the whole world full of people is a possibility for you. Ryan could've waited around to see if he'd run into someone better. Someone prettier. More fun. Someone who would ride roller coasters with him. But instead, he picked me. He decided I was it for him. He would never find anyone better. He would stop looking and I... would be his best.

And then, shaking like a leaf, he walked down that aisle and promised me that I always would be. And I have never been the same since. There's power in vows, people. And such beauty in keeping them.

I love you, Ryan Long.

Preschool

2011-07-29T12:40:00.001-07:00

So I've been thinking about preschool. Nola is ready to learn stuff. Her verbal skills have really sky rocketed recently and it makes me realize how much she would love activities, crafts, educational toys, markers, and paper. You know, boquets of sharpened pencils.

There's a lot of home school curriculum out there for preschoolers. A complete set of books, schedules, and educational toys to take you through a year of learning averages around 300 dollars. Ummmmm. That's nice. They really would be helpful, but I'm not sure how necessary. When I looked through the list of what you get in these kits, I realized that it would be pretty easy to pull the books together from the library (Has anyone told you about the library? It's crazy. You get to take books home for FREE! As long as you bring them back.) The educational toys are pretty cool, but I could accomplish the same goal using things we have around the house for the most part.

I could totally nerd out on preschool stuff for Nola. I am just a tiny bit. But I was inspired by this blog post to chill out a little bit. After reading it, I boiled Nola's schooling down to three main goals. First, introducing Nola to Jesus. Second, giving her interesting life experiences and talking about them. And third, reading to her like crazy.

The first goal, introducing Jesus, is interesting. There's no lesson plans for this. No killer kids dvd to explain Him. Jesus is a matter of the heart. He is a spiritual experience. Yes, I can read to her about Him. We love the Jesus Storybook Bible. But in the end, Jesus is a Person she has to meet. I can only put them in the same room together (if I could be so bold to say Jesus would come when I ask) and see what happens. The Holy Spirit will do the rest. I'm not interested in teaching her about a religion or showing her how to act like a charismaniac. (Although I do think it's important that she participate in our faith community and it's pretty darn cute when she raises her hands and sings during our worship services). But I hope I will be successful in introducing her to the One who loves her even more than I do. And then I pray that He captures her heart like He captured mine.

The second goal, having experiences and talking about them, is super fun. It takes energy sometimes but that's all. Basically, I don't want Nola, or Violet for that matter, to just sit around all day watching PBS (although I think that station is awesome and has great kids programming, and sometimes we do watch it all day). I want to take them places and do different things. Simple things, like grocery shopping or taking our dog for a walk are perfect times to talk about what's happening. (The Zoo and Children's Museum are great, too, but the experiences don't have to be fancy or expensive.) Nola makes great observations, and I think the question phase is just around the corner. Yay! She says sarcastically. Actually, it's awesome that she asks questions and it's important that I take the time to respond to her. It's the little things, really. On a walk with our dog, Saint, we stopped to admire a squashed bunny on the side of the road. Thank GOD that experience did not get all the questions I feared! But the caterpillar we found had "black and white stripes" and "he didn't like it when we touched him". That experience was great education. And it's really all she needs for now.

The third goal, reading like crazy, is fairly self explanatory. The only thing is I sometimes have to remind myself that other things can wait while I read to her. Sitting down and reading two or three library books is an extremely important use of my time right now. Dishes and vacuuming can wait. And wait. And wait. And wait. (If you saw my house most days, you wouldn't think I have any problem whatsoever pushing the dishes and vacuuming aside.)

I'm still surfing the internet for that perfect preschool book or curriculum or awesome educational toy that will turn her into a genius. I can't help myself. But before I click "add to cart" I remember my three goals and ask myself if it's really necessary, and then I don't usually end up buying it.

At 2 1/2 living life with us is all she really needs.

Mundane Monday: July 25 2011

2011-07-26T11:37:00.000-07:00

It was hot yesterday. The a/c works in our car, but on reeeeally hot days it can't keep up very well. I decided to live through it though. I knew Ryan was going to be gone all day. First at work, then at a film shoot in the evening. When I know I will be alone with the girls that long, getting out of the house for most of the day helps me keep my sanity.

We had a very busy weekend so I let Violet take her morning nap. When she woke up we zoomed out the door to have lunch with Ryan at Hy-Vee. Hy-Vee? Yes. It's very cheap. And I needed to go grocery shopping after. Ryan was kind enough to go there with us so I didn't have to do one more in-and-out-of-the-car routine with both girls. Does anyone else find that one of the most exhausting things about motherhood? Buckles and straps, and watching out for cars in parking lots. I usually reach back and unsnap Nola when we arrive somewhere. She is now able to get out of her seat, open the car door, and shut it behind her. It's a blessing and a little worrisome.

After lunch Ry left us and we went shopping. Ten minutes later I realized he had left with our grocery cash. Blast. I called him. He cursed. He said he'd come back. I didn't hear my phone when he called me to say he was back at the store. I suddenly see him rounding an aisle, looking like I had just stuck needles in his eye. So sorry about that, baby.

I put both girls together in one of those race car carts. Violet loved it at first. She grabbed the steering wheel and smiled past both ears. The girls looked super cute sitting side by side in that thing. But about halfway through our shopping trip it was too much for Violet. It was too close to nap time, and she had exercised her tiny little muscles long enough. She kept slumping down in the seat and laying her head down on the side of the cart.

We made it through the heat back home. The girls laid down. Violet fell asleep instantaneously. I could hear Nola talking and singing and being a little restless. After an hour of hearing her mess around, I went in there to lay the law down. When I walked in, she was getting new panties (there was nothing wrong with her old ones) and Violet was awake. I started to give a speech about letting her sister sleep and going to sleep herself, but instead I said, "Well. Want to go to the library?"

I gave Violet a quick snack and off we went. Nola loves the library which makes me so happy. She does get bored around the time I want to find books for myself, though. And she couldn't read books in the stroller because there's not enough room in the "bottom bunk" of the stroller to open up a big children's book. So she followed me around the boring aisles and generally annoyed me. She grabbed two empty book holders and they had a little conversation. One was falling off the shelf and needed rescued. "Help me! Ayudame!" At one point I let her lag behind a little, only to turn around and find she had climbed on TOP of a large table. Yep. I was that mom. It was at that point I decided it was time to vacate the premises.

We almost went to see Ryan at his film shoot, but decided it might not be a good time for my little hungry, cranky hooligan to visit a set.

I tried to tell her that the reason she was having a hard time being happy and obeying was because she was tired. She didn't seem to think so.

We headed to Wal-Mart for what I thought would be a quick trip. When we were leaving I couldn't believe it was already six o'clock! Since Nola hadn't napped, and Violet took a shorter one than usual I was totally planning to put them to bed at seven. Yeah, we didn't quite make it. We got close though. By the time we got home, unloaded, fed, and satisfied with a mini episode of Wonder Pets the girls got in bed by seven thirty.

After the girls went to bed I forced myself to pick up the house before I crashed on the sofa. It didn't take long and I was so glad I did. It's so much easier to wake up in the morning with a clean kitchen. I watched a movie on Netflix called Shades of Ray. It was a romantic comedy interesting enough to keep me intrigued. It stars Zachary Levi, if you're a fan.

When Ryan is gone I have a hard time going to bed. Especially if I know he'll be coming in around midnight. That's just early enough that I could stay up and still be a human being the next day. So I tried. Around twelve thirty I just couldn't make it anymore and I crashed. His shoot ran a little late and he came home around one thirty.

One more mundane detail about the day. Violet pooped in her diaper twice! Twice! The first time it was because I didn't take her potty after nursing like usual, the second time I don't know what happened. I just missed her signals, I guess. Also, I've recently added iron fortified cereal to her breakfast. The last time I did a diet change (adding solids) she took a few days to figure out her new system. Maybe that's what it is...

How mundane was your Monday?

Success and Failure: A Potty Post

2011-07-12T19:26:00.001-07:00

First the success. We went to the bookstore recently. One of my and Nola's favorite activities. Nola grabs a few stuffed animals, plays with the train table, and even looks at a book or two. I grab a book or magazine and watch her play, occasionally stopping to read her a book when requested.

We usually go just the two of us. It's not too exciting for Violet. But all three of us went recently, and while we were there Violet told me she needed to poop. Not in so many words, of course. She looked at me intently and grunted and grunted. She stopped. I said, "Violet, do you need to go potty?" She grunted and grunted some more. So I took her to the potty and she pooped!

Slight coincidence? A little bit. But it's evidence that she does recognize the feeling of needing to go, without immediately letting it loose. If I hadn't taken her to the potty right away, she probably wouldn't have waited, say, until we got home. But it was a good chance for her to start learning that we will take her to the potty if she communicates her needs. Get it? That's why they call it elimination communication. She communicates to us when she needs to eliminate. Fancy sounding words for such a gross part of life.

Lesson learned? A few little grunts really may mean "Take me potty, please" in Violet talk.

And now for the failure. Violet woke from a morning nap while I was teaching my preschool Spanish class here at home. I quickly went and got her and ran back to class. I didn't take her potty like I usually do when she wakes up. Then I proceeded to go on with class and completely ignore her. She was happy in her bumbo seat. When class was over I picked her up and got a nasty whiff of number two. Sure enough, she had pooped. I can't be sure, but I don't think she was poopy when I got her out of bed or I would've smelled it. It was rather foul.

Lesson learned? If I want her to use the potty I have to offer it at predictable times, consistently. At this age the goal is not for her to be able to "hold" her elimination, the goal is that I will take her when she needs to go. We're still working on our communication (like the success story above) so right now we are relying on routine. I have a feeling she was waiting for me to get her out of bed before she pottied, but when I didn't take her like usual she thought, "Well, I'm not holding this forever so guess I'm going in the diaper." Also, she may have been showing signs of needing to poop during class but I was ignoring her. I wasn't communicating with her. It's a two way street, that communication. If she's communicating, I have to listen.

Home Run: A Sappy Post About Life

2011-07-11T09:30:00.000-07:00

When I was in school I hated sports. HATED them. I wasn't ever very good at any of them, and I was afraid of the ball. Many sports require a ball, so this was a problem for me. In the third grade we were all required to be on the basketball team. When I found out that at the end of the season we would take a road trip to Columbia, MO and play another team...I cried. I'm pretty sure I cried all the way home. And it was a half hour drive.

It didn't help that I went to a small church school. My P.E. class was everyone from sixth through twelfth grade. Than meant that teeny tiny twelve year old me frequently had to play dodge ball with the ginourmous sixteen year old boys. They threw hard.

One day we went to a baseball diamond to play softball. The worst. A nightmare for me. I was really scared of the ball in softball. They throw it at you! Right at your face. And you either hit it with the tiny pole you're holding or it hits you. Even underhanded pitches scared me. My usual P.E. teacher (Stacy Schromm, a teaching legend who deserves her own sappy post) always made me suck it up and try. As she should have. I needed to learn to do hard things. But this day we had a substitute.

Enter David "Buck" Hudson. One of the pastors from my church.

I don't remember if I was crying before I even went to bat, or if he could just tell I was scared. Or maybe I swung and swung and never hit it. That might have been it. Either way, Buck stepped in and saved my day.

"I'll bat for you, and then you run to first base."

Such relief. And then, he not only batted for me, he hit a home run for me! Even the big boys who crushed me in dodge ball couldn't always hit a home run like that. It was epic. I felt like I had hit the home run, but all I had to do was run the bases.

Some days we need to push ourselves. Do the hard thing. Learn the lesson. Other days, we need someone else to come along and hit the home run so all we have to do is run the bases.

Thanks, Buck.

A Quote

2011-07-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

"I think the most significant work we ever do, in the whole world, in our whole life, is done within the four walls of our own home."

Stephen R. Covey (The guy who wrote The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People)

Marvelous Monday!

2011-07-05T10:35:00.000-07:00

Nothing mundane about this one! Fourth of July! Woohoo!

I love holidays. I love having something to celebrate. I love traditions. I love the marking of time even though it makes me sad sometimes. I love them so much that I occasionally get a little uptight about the festivities. I'm not a perfectionist at all whatsoever. What we do doesn't have to be perfect, but we have to do SOMETHING!! I think it was when I realized that this was Nola THIRD Fourth of July that I sort of freaked out on the inside. She's already had three of these! We only have fifteen Fourth of July's left with her! (Assuming she magically turns into a complete adult overnight and leaves our home at the age of eighteen never to be seen again.) I was scrambling for traditions.

Since the Fourth of July was Monday this year, the whole weekend felt like a holiday to me. We left Nola's kiddie pool outside the whole weekend. We left it in the driveway which looked a little ghetto. Sorry neighbors. But this way it got soaked in sunlight and was practically a hot tub for the girls. Violet doesn't seem to be a huge fan of the water, but I think we may have been catching her too close to nap times every time we took her out. Nola doesn't like to put her face or head in the water, but she loves playing with toys. She spent most of the time getting in and out of it. She would grab her floatie, which she called "rescue boat", throw it out of the water and then go get it yelling, "Say Rescue Boat!" Followed by a pause while she waited for the audience to respond and finishing off with "Good yelling!" Thank you, Dora and Diego.

The girls slept late on Monday morning. It really felt like a holiday. After breakfast, which included an appetizer of a popsicle for Nolie (This was a last minute purchase while I was scrambling for traditions to make this the best Fourth of July ever since we only have fifteen left), we went for our last swim of the weekend. The water had turned a little cloudy by Monday. Eeew.

We had scrambled eggs and sausage in tortillas for lunch. I'm getting better at making home made tortillas, and faster. I was proud of how quickly I rolled them out.

Nola and I made a Fourth of July treat. We dipped strawberries in white chocolate and then dipped them in blue mini m&ms. The m&ms were a little too big and heavy, but they still tasted good. I was supposed to use blue sugar crystals. Guess who was out of all things red and blue for cake decorating? Hy-Vee the night before the Fourth of July. So I bought a bag of mini m&ms and sorted all the blue ones out like a maniac.

The girls took naps in the afternoon and Ryan and I fought about vacuuming. I'll spare you the details. But we were both wrong and we said we were sorry and we forgave each other.

Once the girls were up we headed to Ryan's parents for dinner. I brought along some flour and a huge star stencil to make patriotic stars on their front lawn. It worked pretty well. Next year we'll do a bigger stencil. We were copying these people.

We did a few fireworks at Ryan's parents house, and then everyone followed us back to our house. We put Violet to bed and then proceeded to shoot loud fireworks off right beneath her window for a couple hours. Poor thing. She slept right through it though. It was fun for Nola being old enough to stay up and watch the Fireworks. She liked them. Every once in a while she thought maybe they were scaring her, but then she'd jump right back into it. She loved the snappers. Of course. Who doesn't? Those things are awesome. And she loved the snakes.

When it finally got dark we took a little walk down the street and up the hill, while Grandpa stayed with Violet. Our neighborhood is just perfect for seeing the fireworks all across the city. We saw quite a few of those floating lanterns, too.

And that was the end. It was a good Fourth. How was yours?

Things to Read

2011-06-25T15:00:00.000-07:00

I've found some cool mom blogs lately that I like. Thought I'd share the wealth. Because what every mom needs is something to cause her more pain in the management of her time. :)

I think Simple Mom looks interesting. This has some great stuff about organizing your home and educating you kids. It has sister blogs for cooking, general girl stuff, and fun things to do with your kids. It is written by multiple contributors, who each have their own blogs as well. You might find someone you really click with and love their ideas.

One of Simple Mom's contributors is Steady Mom. She's on sabbatical right now, but her archives seem great. I have yet to dive in to them. Another contributor I've really latched onto is Lora Lynn who writes at Vita Familiae. She's down to earth and funny. She writes about life with her six kids under the age of seven, the youngest of which just came home to them from Uganda.

A nice blog about living a simpler, more organized life (without buying more containers) is Small Notebook. She's living in Italy right now. How romantic.

A great resource I just found from a friend "liking" it on Facebook is School Sparks. It has amazing resources for getting your child ready for kindergarten, and it's all FREE! There's a crap ton of worksheets. It's free, but it still looks cool. Rare. Sometimes it's a little too obvious that the people giving away resources have no money to pay a graphic designer.

"Liking" School Sparks led me to a sweet little blog called A Mom with a Lesson Plan. It looks like it has a lot of very doable ideas for the average mom like me. And it has me highly motivated to get my girls to the library.

So there you go. A whole evening of reading at your fingertips. :) Just what you needed, right?

Potty Queen

2011-06-24T07:30:00.000-07:00

Violet is still rockin' the potty. On the morning of my birthday she had some nasty surprises in her diaper when I got her up. Happy Birthday, Mom! But other than that she has been putting poop where it belongs.

I haven't even tried super hard with the peeing. She does pee when I put her on the potty, but I don't take her enough to keep her diaper dry. I'm waiting on the motivation that cute new cloth trainers will bring. Which I am planning on sewing. So after I get the motivation for the sewing then we'll be ready to go!

She is seven months old now. I still take her potty at the same times as I always have. Right after nursing or eating, and right when she wakes up. She will occasionally show signs of straining and I will get her to the potty to do her business then, too.

I feel really happy we chose elimination communication. Every family is different, and you have to do what works for you. So far this process isn't causing anyone in our family undue stress. So we're still plugging along with it. And I really like it, actually.

If you are getting ready to have a baby or are just dreaming about someday let me say: You can totally do this! It's normal and natural and not as crazy or time consuming as it sounds!

If you already have small children, are pulling your hair out today, and want to punch me in the face when you read about my baby going potty let me say: I totally understand. And, you're right, nobody ever goes to college in diapers. One way or another, kids get potty trained.

This is just something that works for us. So what about you? What's your thing? Every mom has something that they do that other moms think is crazy. Spill it.

Mundane Mmm...Wednesday

2011-06-22T18:26:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday I could tell that sickness was creeping up on us. I went ahead and cancelled my Spanish class for Wednesday. Good call. Nolie was coughing all morning. She even said at one point, "Mommy, I sick." She layed on the couch all morning watching PBS kids shows. Wearing her hippo on a bicycle jams, cuddling boolah, and sucking her thumb.

I didn't get much done around the house either. I was sort of feeling the ache of sickness myself. Just yucky enough that if I had a job to go to, I'd be there. But since my job is mostly self imposed here, nothing much got done.

After lunch, we were going to try and get out to see Ryan at his office and breathe some fresh air. But Nola fell apart. She wanted to go, but she was crying and crying and she decided taking a nap was a better choice. Seriously. She got in her bed herself. Poor little honey. She fell right to sleep after I sang all four verses of "In Christ Alone" while stroking her knotted, curly hair.

Violet took a nap at the same time. Speaking of which, she's such a little doll at nap time and bed time. I just tuck her into her fleece sleep bag. You know the kind that zip up and leave their arms free? She pops her two fingers in her mouth and calms right down. Even while we do all the little things to tuck Nola in, Violet lays there contentedly in her bed. I love it when we come downstairs and they've both calmed right down, and all we hear in the monitor is the suck suck suck from Violet every few seconds.

The girls only slept an hour, but I decided not to fight it. So we jumped in the car and went to see Ry at the office. Nola really perked up when we go there. She was so happy to see Gamma (that's how she's saying it right now) and Papa. She likes seeing Daddy, but mostly she just wants to sit on Gamma's lap and watch Youtube videos of kittens and puppies.

We didn't stay long, but came home so Violet could have one more nap. Nola watched yet even more tv while cuddling on the couch. Ry came home. Violet woke up. Ry took Saint for a run while I played with Nola and Violet outside. At first I wasn't going to go outside, I mean, she was sick and all. But after she asked and I said no, she let out a heartbroken "Pleeeeeeease!" accompanied with huge, fat, disappointed tears. And I thought, what? is fresh air going to make her sicker? So out we went. We played with sidewalk chalk and checked out the baby bird in our clematis bush out front.

Ryan took Nola and picked up some Little Caesar's pizza for supper. That was so nice.

The girls went to bed early. When Nola was going through her night time rituals she was having trouble producing on the potty. Ryan said to her, "Are you sure? Do you need to go potty?" She answered, "Ummm...No thanks." When she got to me, I said, "Nola, you need to try. One more time." She said, I kid you not, she said, "Actuallyyyyyyyyy...I don't need to." Actually? That's a new word for her.

After another round of all four verses of "In Christ Alone", this time accompanied by Ryan on his rock star guitar, we said goodnight.

Now I'm surfing the internet and updating my blog, while Ryan watches Predators.

Wow. That's a lot of boring personal details in one blog post. (And yet you stuck with it. I tried to reward your heavy reading with lots of pictures.) Share the wealth. What's the most mundane thing you did this Wednesday?

Mundane Monday

2011-06-14T06:55:00.000-07:00

We made the grocery shopping trip of a lifetime this Monday. I carried Violet in the BabyBjorn front carrier, Nola sat in the cart, and I loaded the basket full of stuff. I usually only shop for a week at a time. This helps us stay on budget, and it helps me to shop alone with the girls. With Violet's huge car seat in the basket I can't fit much else in the cart! But I realized that we were often eating out on the weekends because "we need to go to the store". Convenient excuse. It may not completely curb our eating out, but it will help to have two weeks worth of suppers and lunches available. When I went to check out I plopped Violet in the front of the cart beside Nola so I could get the groceries out faster. Violet was sitting kind of strangely in the cart. The mom behind me was having a heart attack, evidently. She finally said, "I'm sorry! Every time she leans over I'm like..." And I replied, "Oh, I know. Don't fall!" After I got the basket emptied I threw Nolie in the basket and moved Violet to the center of the front so she could hold on to the bar and balance better. That way the mom behind me could breathe.

Nola and I ate a snack on the drive home. It was a little past lunchtime and we were hungry. Once we pulled in to the garage, getting all the groceries and both girls out of the car is a feat, I tell you. I left them both buckled in while I took the frozen stuff in. Then I came back, closed the garage door so Nola wouldn't run outside. I let Nola out, grabbed the rest of the groceries and dumped them right in the entry way, and went back for Violet who was starving.

Nola watched some tv while I fed Violet. Then we had peanut butter and jelly. Followed by naps for both girls. They were asleep in seconds. It was awesome. Nap time is usually a little more stressful than that.

I cleaned up the house while they slept. With a little break for checking email, Facebook, and my newest time stealer Pinterest.

When Ry got home he tried to motivate me to work out with him. I was kind of a party pooper. So he went for a run, and then I took the dog for a walk when he got back. Kind of a weak workout, but better than nothing.

Nola went to Grandma Nita's for the evening. I'm sure she had a ball.

I tried a new chicken recipe for dinner. Peachy Balsamic Chicken. It wasn't superb, but it was different. Since Nola was gone we ate in front of the tv. (Believe it or not, we do actually eat at the table most nights. This is partly because we feel it's important to eat together as a family, and mostly because we don't have a table downstairs big enough for all of us anymore.) We watched an episode of the British Comedy "The IT Crowd". Violet was a little fussy, but we managed.

Nola got home around 7:30 and the girls went to bed. Bed time stresses me out sometimes. I get so DONE at the end of the day. I know the girls do better with a little routine before bed, but I just want to throw them in their beds, shut the door and be done with it! But, still, we powered through. We kissed Grandma and Grandpa's picture on the nightstand, said night-night to the blue birdy on Nola's lamp, prayed, and gave kisses and hugs.

Ryan and I successfully made it to the couch after saying goodnight. We watched more of "The IT Crowd", and an episode of "House". Then we both went to bed. We're such an exciting couple.

The weekend was far more eventful, as weekends usually are. We went to the Omaha Summer Arts Festival Saturday night with Ry's family. (That's what the pictures are from.) Sunday afternoon Nola and I went again with my sister Felicity, her husband Dan, and their three girls to see the Ballet Folklorico perform Mexican folk dances. It was pretty cool, I'm glad we went. The girls all got balloon bracelets and snow cones, too. Free. Sweet deal.

Hope your Monday was as Mundane as mine!

Mundane Monday, of course

2011-06-06T14:14:00.000-07:00

We spent the morning at the zoo with some friends from out of town. (I had fun talking cloth diapers with them. I'm like a Jehovah's Witness for cloth diapers.) It was pretty hot at the zoo, but the humidity wasn't too bad. The a/c in our car isn't quite up to par, though. That's frustrating. After a few minutes in the car Nolie's little nose beads up with sweat. She's hot blooded anyway.

We had a long weekend with meetings at church. My mom came to help out with the girls and it was awesome. Nola really enjoyed her time with Gramma Kaffy. Violet even seemed to smile at her more "knowingly" this visit.

The girls shared Violet's room the whole time mom was here. They did great at nighttime. Naps were a little tricky, but doable. The are usually both napping at the same time in the afternoon, but Nola has been having a harder time with naps lately. She plays and plays, and we do our best to discipline her to stay in her bed but she just seems to take forever to fall asleep. And Violet thinks Nola is funny so her antics are occasionally encouraged. Never the less, we've decided to keep them in the same room. Maybe Nola will need to rest somewhere else in the afternoons.

I'm excited that they're together because now I will really finish decorating their room. Last night I moved the furniture around until I found a configuration I liked. Their room is small. The only things in it will be their beds, their dresser, the changing table with diapers, and a small nightstand with a lamp on it. I thought leaving toys out of the room might help encourage sleeping for Nola. Fingers crossed. And I would like to be more zen, like my sister Serenity.

No big plans for this evening. It'll be nice to hang at home with the family.

The girls still aren't asleep. It's 4:36. Should I give in? For Nola, maybe. For Violet, no way. I'm about to fall asleep myself, but it's much too late for that!

Oh, yeah, Violet hasn't pooped in her diaper since I posted about it last! About two weeks, I guess. But now that I've said that, she will probably wake up poopy or something. :) This blog always jinxes me.

And the picture is from our trip to the zoo on Memorial day. The sisterly love is overwhelming. And,yeah, we're zoo crazy here. We're going again this week with my sister Felicity. What can I say? We can't get enough of those tapirs and caymans.

Hope your Monday was as mundane as mine!

Worth It

2011-06-02T14:14:00.000-07:00

Parenting is hard. I don't know how it will be in the future, but parenting small children is exhausting. Right now I feel... tired. They need lots of things. Some things that only I can give. It's hard work.

But...the rewards of it rock. I have never done anything, and probably never will, as cool as bringing people into the world. Nothing I have ever done, or dream of someday doing, is as wonderful as being Nola and Violet's mom. (Aside from being Ryan's wife. That was the best decision I ever made, and it just keeps getting better.)

Somedays I have to remind myself how awesome the rewards are. Really. Seriously. I have to stop, breathe, and think of the happiness.

Like chubby cheeks.

And back-lit, crazy hair running around my backyard.

Mundane Monday

2011-05-30T19:21:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day! Ryan was home with us all day. Gotta love that. We headed to the zoo first thing. When I asked Nola what animals she wanted to see at the zoo the first one she said was, "Tapir." Her love for Diego has been renewed lately so that must be why she had such a random animal on the brain.

Were we crazy? The zoo on Memorial Day? Well, a little bit. But we got there early and sort of beat the crowds. Grandma Nita and Papa Tom came too. That made it special for Nola. Ry and I were going to ride Skyfari for the first time, but it was closed! We think it was because it was so windy. Everybody went through the aquarium while I went to nurse Violet. As I sat down at a table in the shade I discovered I'd forgotten my cover. (By the way, I just found out it is now legal in Nebraska to breastfeed in public. Ummmm...send me to jail about a million times over. Did not realize it was illegal. Still, you won't catch me whipping Violet's lunch out for all to see next time I'm out. Covering up is still my preference.) So off I went to the bathroom to nurse. Standing up. In the corner. Not fun. I started out in the handicapped stall since I had the stroller with me. Then I overheard someone say, "Well, I'm going to need the big one." So I thought I'd better not hog the handicapped stall from the actually handicapped people. Out I came. I don't think anyone even really noticed what I was doing. I think they thought she was sleeping.

After seeing the cats, we left the zoo and went to Mai Tai for lunch. It's a Thai restaurant. I thought Nola would be a fan of pad thai. It's noodles! She tried it. But after a few bites she turned to me and said, "Mommy, I want some french fries." Little honey.

We came home for naps. Even I fell asleep on the couch. After everybody woke up, we had some leftovers for supper and headed to a party for our friend Britney who just graduated from College. Nola was happy to see a table full of cakes and desserts. She chose white cake with white frosting and sprinkles. She even told Britney "congratulations" to earn her cake.

We had to run to Wal Mart to get dog food and breakfast. I also grabbed a white hat while we were there. It looks quite stylish if I do say so myself. But don't be fooled. If you ever see me in it, it's because I didn't wash my hair. It's not because I was in the mood to accessorize.

This picture was taken Sunday afternoon after naps. That little blanket Nola's holding is "Boolah".

A Potty Post Full of Too Much Information

2011-05-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

Violet is 6 months old now. I have been taking her potty since she was around two weeks old. I just thought, "Why not?" I knew I wanted to do elimination communication with her the same as I did with Nola. I started Nola around 7 months, but thought I'd dive in with Violet from the get go. I was amazed at how quickly Violet caught on.

Here's the thing. Little babies pee a lot. A lot, as in, probably every ten or fifteen minutes. They've got some tiny bladders. This translates into a lot of opportunities for success on the potty. Violet pees pretty much every time the potty is offered. Most often, this is right after she wakes from a nap or right after I nurse her. Every once in a while I take her between those times, and it's more hit and miss.

She also poops in the potty. She went almost two months using the potty exclusively for pooping. It was around 4 and 5 months of age. So, I guess I would say that around 4 months she really caught on and was effectively controlling when she eliminated her bowels. (This is such a gross post.) It was around the same time that I stopped drinking milk. I still eat dairy products, but we buy almond milk for the whole family now. This diet change really affected her and she was only pooping about once a week. (My pediatrician says this is fine.) But it was still going in the potty!

We did a lot of traveling recently and she still seemed to have some serious control over her bowels. But then I started feeding her solid food. This threw off her groove. For about a week, she pooped two or three times a day it seemed like, usually in her diaper. I thought, "Oh man! Why am I even doing this? She doesn't know what she's doing. This is craziness." But then she figured it out. I guess the change in her poop threw her off and she wasn't sure how to control it or how to get it out. I don't know. But she's on top of it now. Well, her last poopy diaper was Sunday and today is only Wednesday, I realize. But she's been going just as frequently but putting it in the potty every time.

I think starting earlier is paying off. Nola was around 9 months when she started pooping in the potty successfully, 75% of the time. Poopy diapers have become rare enough already for Violet that it feels kind of weird when I have to change one. And we really don't spend our whole day in the bathroom, I promise. It probably takes me less time to hold her on the potty and let her poop, than it would to clean her up after a poopy diaper. I don't sit there all day waiting for action. She either goes or she doesn't. And then we move on with our lives.

I feel much less obsessed with this process this time around. I'm not gonna lie. I was a little crazy about it the first time. This time I'm so much more relaxed, and yet, look how successful Violet is with it! I guess I could have chilled a little last time. Sorry, Nola.

I can't wait until she is doing so well that I have an excuse to buy cute, teeny tiny cloth training pants. Don't tell Ryan.

Mundane Monday

2011-05-24T12:41:00.000-07:00

This Monday started out most beautifully. It began with breakfast at Cracker Barrel WITH MY SISTERS! Oh the sheer joy of sitting at the same table with my favorite people in the whole wide world. The only thing better would have been if my mom had been sitting there, too. (Of course, Ryan would have made the table complete for me. But he also would've been stabbing himself in the eye with his fork while sitting there listening to us women jabber.)

My sisters were in town for the engagement party for some very good friends on Sunday night. (All the happiness in the world to Kate and Drew! Although it appears there may not be any more happiness to wish them. They were overflowing that night!) Felic and Seren brought Jake and Macy. Ryan was a doll and watched all the kids so we could go out for dinner beforehand. As we got seated at Red Robin we whipped out our mile long lists of things-to-talk-to-my-sisters-about. There is never enough time at dinner to complete those lists, people. Never. Enough. Time. Later that night we headed to downtown Omaha for the party. It was fun to see us walking to Old Chicago. The three Nickerson sisters with their matching mini people in hand. (Ry took Violet in his car. I had to ride with my sisters. Going downtown is an entire half an hour of conversation I refused to miss!) We took this picture at the party. Nola was busy hunting down deer in the arcade and shooting them with the bright orange shotgun that was as big as she was.

Anyway, that brings us back to Monday's breakfast with sisters. Being with them reminds me how happy I am that Nola and Violet have each other. Sisterhood is such a gift. Alas, we did have to say goodbye. Nola did not want Jakey to leave. And she was disappointed she hadn't seen Macy's bag of animals sooner! We have a classy picture of Jake and Macy smiling nicely at the camera while Nola sits between them staring at the toys in her hands. Violet gave her aunts smiles now and then, but she was mostly sleeping while they were here.

After our goodbye we went home. It was a beautiful day and I got all ambitious and trimmed the tree in our front yard. (This is probably because Felic casually mentioned that it needed done. And I worship her.) It was hard work but it looks so nice. Ryan is annoyed that we now have a pile of limbs in our back yard. TREE limbs. Tree limbs. I promised I would take care of them.

Nolie followed me around in the yard with her rain boots on. We had a lot of "STAY OUT OF THE STREET!" practice. And also some, "It is not safe for you to play in the car." And a little, "Nolie, put down the hand saw." I'm not sure why she insists on sitting on the patch of grass between the sidewalk and the street. What's wrong with the grass in the shade IN OUR YARD?

Saint got out while we worked. He tore at the fence and dug enough of a hole to wiggle out of there. Yay! Nola told me, "I'll go get 'eem" as she ran after him. I told her he'd come back on his own. Violet was asleep inside so we couldn't leave. He did come back because he got hot and needed to take a dip in Nolie's pool in the back. I grabbed him and locked him up downstairs.

We ate some cold pizza for lunch. Then we all took a nap. Violet was still sleeping when we laid down, but she got up about an hour later. I nursed her and took her outside for some fresh air herself. We played in the front yard until Ryan pulled the Jeep into the driveway. You should see the smile on Violet's face when she sees her dad. *Sigh* Heart melting.

The day kind of went down hill from there. It was just one of those nights where having small children was a hard job. They were lovely little girls, but they were needy. We survived through supper and a bath, and an episode of Diego. Then the girls went to bed, and Ryan and I tucked ourselves into the tv room for a movie.

And that's that. Mundane Monday memories in a very large nut shell.

Mundane Mondays

2011-05-16T11:52:00.000-07:00

We are driving home from visiting Ryan's grandma in Kansas. Papa is driving. Aunt E and Grandma are with us, too. Both baby girls are sleeping beside me in the back seat of the minivan. We stopped at Subway for lunch. I nursed Violet while chowing down a chicken salad sandwich.

Before Nola fell asleep she said, "I still need to drop a duece, Mommy." Thank you, Ryan, for teaching her that incredibly lady like phrase. I told her she had to wait. While we are on the topic, Violet broke her streak of only using the toilet for her solid waste and we ended up changing a poopy diaper this morning. Travel messes with the best of us. (Aren't my girls going to love me for writing this?)

Nola was excited to see a few buffaloes near Grandma Norma's house. She pronounced it "BUCKaloes". I bought her a toddler cot to use on this trip and she loved it. We put a foam topper on it for a little extra comfort. She took a nap and slept both nights in it without a fuss.

As is her usual style, Violet gave lots of great smiles. When she made the rounds for goodnight kisses last night, she gave everyone this low little growl accompanied by her happy, smiling face. It's like she's talking to us. So cute. She also enjoyed her beginning baby foods. Squash, sweet potatoes, applesauce, pears. She eats about a tablespoon in the morning and a tablespoon at night. She wasn't a fan of rice cereal so I just skipped it. Yeah, I break the mom rules like that. Such a rebel.

Home will be a welcome sight. Nobody rob us before we get there. Our dog Saint will eat you alive.

How'd that work out for 'ya?

2011-05-10T14:30:00.000-07:00

Nola is 30 months old. What? Nola is 2 1/2. That's better. Once I get past 18 months, I'm lost. Since Nola has recently come to a new level of independence with her potty needs (She is officially diaper free. Nights, nap times, everything.) I thought I should share how I feel about elimination communication after the fact.

I wish I'd never done it.

HAHAHAHA! Just kidding. Read on for the truth. :)

At the beginning of this process I told a friend, "If she's not potty trained earlier than most babies, this might not be worth it." Well... she wasn't. She was using the potty well before most babies her age, but she wasn't completely potty trained before the average time.

So...am I disappointed? Surprisingly no.

While it would have been nice to have a one year old who could hold her pee for two hours, elimination communication is most definitely one of those it's-the-journey-not-the-destination things. You do reap rewards in the process, though. I washed less diapers every day, little by little. From seven months old on, she rarely sat in her own poop. I'm pretty proud of that. And it was awesome to not have to wash poop out of her diapers for two years. Major motivation there. And it was just so satisfying to meet that basic need for Nola. The same way you feel all happy after your baby is nice and full from a bottle, I would feel all happy when I was able to get her to a toilet to do her business.

So...do I think this would work for everyone? Maybe.

I definitely think every mom and every baby is capable of this process. I'm not a baby potty whisperer. I just consistently offer my babies the potty, and it's like they know. And despite what my mother-in-law would say, I don't think it's because my girls are geniuses. However, having worked in daycare before, I don't know that it would be possible for your baby's caregiver to do this all day. But I do think you could try pottying only at home. With consistency, I think a baby could catch on to a routine of using a toilet at home and a diaper at daycare. Yes, I'm serious.

So, after all is said and done...I loved elimination communication so much that I'm doing it again with Sweet Baby Violet! Stay tuned for news on how that's going. I'll give you a hint: I've only washed one poopy diaper in the past six weeks. And, no, she's not crazily constipated.

Mundane Mondays Catchup

2011-05-05T12:27:00.001-07:00

I missed a few weeks of Mundane Mondays! I'm bummed because I recently read through a couple of those and was so glad I had written them. Not for you, sorry. It's a self indulgent post, really. Someday I will be so happy to read over those mundane little details. And I think the girls will like reading them in the future as well. I'm going to try and include details of technology we use that they will find archaic. And I'm sure the way I mother will be funny to them, as well. You did what?! I once read a little booklet that my husband's grandmother received when his dad was born. It was crazy some of the things they say to do or not to do.

So here's a highlight of our past few Mondays...

The Monday before Easter we were at my mom and dad's to spend a week with them. We drove down after church the day before. The night we got to their house, Nola walked in and pointed at all the elk statues and then the elephant statues. Then she paused, looked at my mom and said, "Where's your baby camel?" So Grandma and Grandpa immediately jumped in the truck and took her to see the camels and the zebras.

The Monday after Easter we drove home. Stopped at Chik-Fil-A in St. Joe for some delicious waffle fries and sweet tea. (That's what I go for, anyway.) Nola liked playing in the kid's area where they have a race car way up high you can crawl into.

The most recent Monday was just four days ago, and I can't seem to remember it for the life of me. Ryan and I spent the weekend in Mankato, MN spending some time with the worship team that some friends of ours lead. Violet went with us, and Nola spent the weekend with Ry's parents. We were all pretty wiped out on Monday. Hence the blockage of memories.

So, there. That's better than nothing! I love having these memories written down. Mundane matters.

Vitamins

2011-04-07T12:42:00.000-07:00

So we started Nola on some vitamins. She's kind of hit a stage of pickier eating, and she's just so tiny, and I've heard a good dose of B12 never hurt anybody. So I went to Whole Foods and got her some yummy gummy ones without any food dyes or crazy weird stuff. They look and taste like candy. One whiff of the open canister sends you straight to heaven. When Ryan opened them up the first time he said, "Mmmmm. Smells like Jesus."

Well, she got one that afternoon or something. And the next morning, before the Lord, she woke up a different girl. So much energy, so happy, so active, so interested in everything. It was like night and day. I wouldn't have thought there was anything wrong with her before. She's just a quiet, calm kind of girl. But now she's friendlier, more outgoing. It was practically a personality switch. I wasn't expecting this. I thought it would help her out a little. I didn't think it would turn her into SUPER NOLA!

It reminds me of the time we had her on iron because she had tested borderline anemic at her one year check up. All the sudden she seemed hyper. She wasn't the same, mellow, laid back baby. We had been so proud of her mellow yellow qualities until we realized it was because she was ANEMIC!

I am thankful it worked so well for her. So. So. Well. There are days when I hand her the vitamin and Ry looks at me, shakes his head, and mouths, "No! Don't give it to her!" And we laugh.

We're keeping 'em healthy here at the Long house.

Monday's Mundane Memories

2011-04-04T13:58:00.000-07:00

Great day here. Aside from the crazy wind. Got the girls out the door by nine o'clock to get some groceries. Stopped by Scooters and saw Ryan, who was discussing business over coffee with his dad. Even after seeing him, Nola still really wanted to go to Daddy's office. We stopped at home to unload groceries and feed Violet. Then we went up to see Daddy, Papa, and Grandma. Nola saw the office building as soon as we started down the hill towards it. "Daddy's office!!!!" she yelled from the back. After we got upstairs we chatted for a while. Showed everyone the new stroller. It rocks. As we were leaving the office suite Nola said, "Let's go ride the alligator." Elevator.

Violet fell asleep on the way home. She stayed asleep after I moved her to her bed and has now been asleep for three hours! That's rare for her, but we had a very busy weekend so it's understandable.

Nola and I ate some noodles and goldfish before she went down for her nap. While we ate I said to her, "Did you have a fun day today?" She said Mhhhm. I said, in a tone of beginning a series of statements, "We went out and got some groceries..." She finished using the same tone of voice, "Go to Daddy's office....watched some tv...." So adorable.

Thinking about the zoo sometime this week. It's supposed to be very nice, and I want to give my new stroller a work out!

Done!

2011-04-01T12:02:00.000-07:00

I did it. Four days in a row of getting up at 6:30. And I ended up loving it! But I reeeeeeally want to take a nap right now. Both girls are asleep and the house feels mostly in order. I won't do it, though! First, because I'm blogging. Second, because I'm waiting for something from UPS. (The second seat to my new stroller! Woohoo!)

The key to success for me is to get in the shower IMMEDIATELY after the alarm goes off. Don't try to eat breakfast, throw in a load of laundry, or have a quiet time before the shower, Char. I guess it's like my cup of coffee. The whole world looks better after I've showered.

This whole experiment was easier than I thought it would be. It payed off just like I thought it would, but it didn't exceed my expectations. I did get a little cranky with the fam last night, and I think it was because I was tired. It might take a few more days, or weeks, of the routine for my body to adjust.

I think it might really help our family's Saturday dilema. Lots of Saturdays I end up feeling a little sad because the day is no different for me than any other day. The girls schedule is the same, and the house still gets dirty, and I still have to feed everyone. Sometimes Ry and I can get a little irritated with each other because I want to go DO something, and he wants to enjoy being home since he worked all week. I think it will really help me if I get up at 6:30 Monday through Friday. I can "sleep in" on Saturday and it will make the day feel a lot different.

All in all, glad I did it. Will I keep doing it? Yes. Will I keep reporting my daily wakenings to you all? No. Accountability is over, sweetheart. If I snooze, I snooze. You'll never know about it...

Day Three

2011-03-31T13:32:00.000-07:00

Whew. Today was not easy breezy. Imagine that. We had friends over last night so I stayed up a little later than usual. Violet woke around 5 a.m. so I went ahead and fed her. (She's been doing that lately. I've decided to not be a sleep nazi about it.) She went right back to sleep. It was tempting to sleep in, but the power of what-you-would-think-of-me carried me to the shower.

There's a couple reasons this is easier than I thought it would be. I have always had a very bad association with getting up early as a self discipline. Mostly because in the past I've always failed. It has never worked for me. I always end up going back to sleep mid-morning or needing a nap later in the afternoon. Or snoozing until I give up and turn the alarm off. But this time around, I have little people to take care of. Once I'm showered and ready, the girls are getting up and the day truly begins. I have no go-back-t0-bed option. And they're cute little things so I'm not bitter. Also, Ryan goes to work at 7 a.m. every day. It helps that he is up and getting ready like I am. If he was still sleeping away, I would be more tempted to snuggle back in bed with him. Or throw a cup of cold water on his face in jealousy.

My eyes are very heavy this afternoon, and I will probably crash early tonight after the girls get tucked in. Tomorrow is the last day of my experiment. But I think I'll leave the programmed alarm on my phone going. We'll see...

Oh yeah, after I took the picture above I thought to myself, "So THAT'S where Violet gets her cheeks!"

Day Two

2011-03-30T12:43:00.001-07:00

I was still motivated by the novelty of this new venture this morning. It wasn't torturous getting up. I'm sure that will wear off soon. Probably tomorrow.

Today I appreciated the 6:30 wake up call because at 8:30, while we were eating breakfast, I remembered there was a huge kid's consignment sale in town. It started at 9 a.m. and I wanted to get there early to see the good stuff before it sold. It was so nice to be able to just get the girls dressed and jump in the car and go. (Omaha moms, the sale was a little disappointing. But it goes until Saturday. Twice as Nice Kids Consignment Sale at the Omaha Police Union behind Outback and Dave & Buster's, 132nd and Center.) After that we went to JoAnn's Fabrics for fun, then stopped at Ry's office so Violet could nurse. We were home for lunch by 11:30. On a normal day, I have trouble getting out of the house by that time!

I do feel tired today. But some days you just feel tired, right? I didn't get all those little chores done like yesterday morning, either. Violet woke up a little earlier today. But, over all still loving this. I feel a little stupid, though. Four whole days of blogging about WAKING UP in the morning. Weak. :)

Day One

2011-03-29T12:52:00.000-07:00

I did it! When my phone oh-so-pleasantly announced it was 6:30 this morning, I rolled out of bed straight to the shower. "Don't even think about anything else. Snooze is not an option. Just keep moving." And I'm so glad I did.

Things I've loved about getting up at 6:30 today:

Chatting with Ry before he left for work.

Being alone in a quiet house before the girls woke up. (They slept until 8 and 8:30 today. Score!)

Having time to run to Target between lunch and nap because we were all dressed and ready.

Passing by the hallway mirror a million times and seeing someone who was ready and dressed with make up on. As compared to seeing someone with wacky hair, mismatched pajamas, and smeared mascara. I seriously think it elevated my mood.

Getting a bunch of little things done before lunch time. Like emptying trash cans, cleaning the kitchen, and general pick up. Feels good.

Things I haven't loved about getting up at 6:30 today:

Getting up at 6:30 today.

One day down, three to go!

A Shower and Shoes

2011-03-28T08:32:00.000-07:00

Working moms are going to hate me for this. And I understand how this personal challenge would annoy you. Stay at home moms will totally understand me on this one. At least I hope. If I'm alone on this one I'll feel like a huge dork.

So here I sit. Mid morning on Monday. Still in pajamas. Both girls still in pajamas. Nola is on her second hour of tv. No joke. Can you believe I just admitted that?! I feel guilty that Nola is watching this much tv. Even if it is "educational". I feel guilty that I'm still in pajamas. If someone showed up at my door right now I'd be mortified. And I need to go grocery shopping. I should be leaving right now, but I can't because none of us are ready. It will take a long time to get us all out the door, by then it will be lunchtime. So we'll all be hungry and cranky at the store. My day is running all over me. And this is a common occurrence.

So here's my personal challenge. For the rest of this week (Four days. Weak sauce, I know. Smaller goal= greater chance of success.)I'm going to get up at 6:30, take a shower, get dressed, and put on SHOES. This should get me up before both girls. Nolie's been up at seven lately, but some days this might have me up for an hour or two without them. Score! But that will just be a plus. I'm not going to plan those hours. I've never been an over achiever.

So, friends, it has been written into cyber space. You all know my goal. You're my accountability. My reputation is at stake.

Here's to more productive days! Quality mornings with my girls, and kissing Ryan goodbye each morning while coherent.

More Mundane Memories

2011-03-23T12:40:00.000-07:00

The girls are asleep. Both of them. At the same time. This is still a rare occurrence.

Went to Kohl's and exchanged a few clothes for the girls for summer. Thank you, Grandma Nita! Nola is hard to fit right now. She has a teeny little waist, so pants either fit her at the waist or fit her in length, but not usually both. I thought shorts would be easy to get right. She tried on some size 6-9 month shorts today (Yes, 6-9 month) and they fit her little waist, but the tushy looked all weird. Probably because they're made to fit over a diaper. We did get some 12 month denim capris. Violet has so many hand me downs from Nola, but she got a couple of new cute things anyway.

We went to Sgt. Peffer's with Ryan for lunch. We all had a slice of pizza. Nola and I had yummy wheat rolls, too. When Nola heard me talking on the phone to Ryan about lunch she chimed in from the backseat, "I want pizza!" *Sigh* She's getting so old.

Violet is still the happiest little baby ever. All smiles. And she LOVES Nola. We have a couple great videos of Violet laughing at Nola.

Nola is in love with Dinosaur Train. A show on PBS. She also really gets into Sesame Street. She watched both those this morning while I sorted through the girls' clothes and got everything packed up to go shopping.

Love my husband. Love my girls. Love my life. So thankful.

I think I'm in labor...Hello, Violet!

2011-03-18T13:01:00.000-07:00

I couldn't fall asleep at all that night. I tossed and turned until the clock went past midnight. At 1:28 I decided if I wasn't asleep by 1:30 I was going to get up and eat something. I was starving. 1:30 came so off I went to the kitchen. I ate a bowl of Grape Nuts. Headed back to bed hoping to fall asleep.

Instead, I starting feeling contractions. Just little ones, but they were very rhythmic, and uncomfortable. After about an hour, I went to the bathroom and realized I was shaking and cold. I am usually burning up all night long. It was the kind of uncontrollable shaking that I remember when I was in labor with Nola. So I woke up Ryan. Poor thing.

"Babe?"

"Hmmph?"

"I think I'm in labor..."

"Really?..."

He was pretty awake then. I asked him to help me time the contractions with the contraction timer app I made him put on his phone. For about an hour we timed them. The app does all the work for you. You just push start and stop with your contractions. We would lay there almost asleep, then it would hit me. "Start!", I'd tell him, relax through the contraction, and then tell him, "Stop" when it was over. He was falling asleep between and during my contractions. A couple times he never heard me say stop, and once or twice he had to ask if we were stopping or starting! Such a trooper.

After an hour we were sure the contractions were about seven minutes apart, lasting about a minute. I didn't feel quite sure I should call my midwives. It was around six in the morning, so I knew on-call shifts would be changing soon anyway. I decided to wait until at least seven so I'd be talking to the same midwife through out my labor.

I did call my mom, though. Just for a heads up.

"Hey, I'm pretty sure I'm in labor."

"OOOOOOk."

She was planning to be with my sister that day. Serenity was having a consult with the surgeon who was going to remove cancer from her lungs in a few weeks. Mom was understandably torn. But she decided to get herself ready and packed, and talk to me after I'd talked with the midwives, before she decided to make the five hour drive to Omaha.

Around seven I was planning to call the midwives, but my contractions stopped. I only felt slight cramping. So I took a shower instead. Ryan stayed home just in case we did need to make a sudden dash to the hospital.

For a couple of hours I thought it was over. False alarm. But then around nine they started up again. Luckily I had time to get showered and put makeup on by then! Still the contractions were completely manageable. I called my midwives just to give a heads up. My labor with Nola was only seven-ish hours, so I wanted to make sure I was on their radar. When I called, my contractions were pretty serious don't-touch-me-or-talk-to-me minute long ones, but they were only coming every ten minutes. I had just been at an appointment the day before, and CeCe (one of the midwives) had checked me and I was 3 cm dilated and 80% effaced. Since I had a pelvic exam the day before, they thought maybe I was just having some cramping due to that. So I stayed home. I called Mom. She was at my grandparents helping them with their computer. She decided she better head my way. And are they sure they don't want you at the hospital?

I packed my bags. I cleaned up the house. I sat down to get through a contraction. I packed some more stuff. Cleaned up something else. Sat down for another contraction. Ryan and Nola ate lunch. I wasn't hungry. I called my friend Revonna to cancel Nola's play date. I told her I was pretty sure I was in labor and we didn't want Nola to miss meeting the baby. I said I'd let her know when we were actually headed to the hospital.

After lunch, my contractions really picked up. I was watching Dora with Nolie, and realized I was getting reeeeeally agitated with her if she touched me during a contraction. So I got up and started doing laps around the house. Walking through them seemed to make it easier than sitting through them. They got stronger and stronger. I called the midwives and kept getting the nurses voice mail. I timed it poorly once, and wasn't even able to leave a message because a contraction hit me and I couldn't talk. Ryan had called his mom to bring me some Boost. I wasn't hungry, but I knew I was in labor and needed some energy. She came while I was trying to reach the midwives. We weren't sure what the midwives would say, but we thought surely we would be going to the hospital soon. We asked her to stay with Nola while she napped. Finally, the nurse called me back. I told her my contractions were 4 to 6 minutes apart. She said, "Oh, honey, what's your date of birth? I'm gonna send you on over to the hospital."

Out the door we went. Ryan grabbed all our stuff. I just got in the car. My contractions were so close together I barely had time to get in the car before another one started. Our dog escaped while we were loading up. There was nothing we could do. He would come back. Eventually. So we just left.

I got my mom on the phone between contractions to tell her we were on our way to the hospital. Then I said a quick goodbye because another contraction came on. At 2:10 p.m. I sent Revonna a text message: Headed to hospital. Ouch.

We pulled up at the Methodist Women's Hospital. As the valet was taking our car, I ran inside to get in the door before another contraction knocked me to my knees! Luckily, there was a bench right inside the door. I barely made it to the seat.

The receptionist a few feet behind me asked, "Ma'am, are you in labor?"

I could only nod my head.

"Do you want a wheelchair?"

Again I nodded. The security guard at the door was asking me at the same time about the wheelchair so he ran and got me one.

I was definitely in the zone at this point. Ryan pushed me up to the second floor. The lovely nurses took their sweet little time deciding what room to put me in. 17 is open. Oh but there's no jacuzzi...I'll go check 15. Be right back. Then they took their sweet little time punching my info into the computer. Since I handle my pain by going inward, I guess they couldn't tell how serious my pain was.

We finally got in the room, and so begins the 20 questions and signing of a million forms. Honestly, they could've gotten me to sign anything at that point. I wasn't listening to them. I did my best to find the X and scratch my name on the paper. They put an IV in my arm. I guess my veins weren't too cooperative so they had to try both arms. The nurse apologized for the pain. Haha! Sister, that does not even hurt. My uterus is what hurts! They also filled up the jacuzzi for me, since I was planning on using it for pain management. I couldn't wait to get in the water.

The other nurse checked me and said I was "a 4, almost 5". I wanted to cry just a little bit. I could've sworn I was fully dilated and ready to push this thing out! They called Marilyn to tell her how I was doing. I love all three midwives, but I was excited to hear that Marilyn was on call, since she had delivered Nola.

When Marilyn came she agreed I was about 4 cm dilated. She asked how I felt about getting my water broken. She said it would get things over more quickly, and I said, "Yes, please!" Then she said, "After we break your water, we will probably have a baby in about 45 minutes." So Ryan called his parents to let them know to go ahead and bring Nola on up to the hospital.

When Marilyn was breaking my water she said that it was really bulging and ready to pop soon anyway. When she broke it, I felt crazy pressure and the contractions were super intense. She said the baby had come way down with the water breaking, and now I was 8 cm dilated. She told me I needed to relax through three of four contractions, and let the baby come down a little more before I started pushing. She also said I couldn't get in the jacuzzi because I was so close I might end up having the baby in there (They don't do water births at this hospital). At that point I didn't care anymore because I could feel it was so close to being over.

Wonderful Marilyn talked me through the contractions. I didn't get a break in between them. Maybe a mini breath. But she would tell me when they were at the worst part, then talk me through relaxing them through to the end.

It really was only three of four contractions before I started naturally pushing. I just couldn't stop myself. She told me to stop it, of course. She wanted to make sure I was fully dilated and the cervix was completely gone. She checked, and I was. I did my best to not push...sort of...while everyone scrambled to get ready for the delivery. I was a little bit...um...noisy at this point. I wasn't exactly screaming in pain, it was more like groaning, I guess. I wouldn't want to see video of it. Neither would you. But it was almost over. After everyone was in position, they gave me the go ahead to start pushing. As if I wasn't already. :) And then it was a blur of screamy pushing. I just barely remember the "ring of fire" people talk about when the baby is coming out. I felt a mild stinging feeling, and then I heard Marilyn say, "Well, hello, sweetheart!" I thought, "Her head is out?!" One more push and then they plopped her on my chest. Her face was towards mine and I stroked her little face and said, "I'm so glad you're here!" Then I threw my head back on my pillow and said, "Ugh! I'm so glad that's over!" Everything. The pregnancy and the labor and the delivery. I was just so happy it was over, and my beautiful baby was here.

Because the delivery was so quick after getting to the hospital, none of our family was actually there right when the baby was born. I had planned for my mom to be in the delivery room with me, but she was still two hours away when the baby came. It turned out to be a nice, intimate time for just me and Ryan to welcome the baby into the world. We had a minute just to ourselves to decide her name. I was pretty set on Violet, but Ryan wanted to check her out and make sure it matched. Violet she became. We decided to pick her middle name later. We had nothin' in the middle name department.

A few minutes later Ryan's parents came in with Nola. They let Nola come in by herself first, if I remember right. Nola really liked Violet. Then everyone came in to see her. Ry's parents and his sister. A while later our friends Liz and Andrew came in to say hi. Everyone said they were a little disappointed everything went so fast. They had brought books and homework and toys for Nola to wait it out. I, on the other hand, was not sorry they didn't get a study hall! I was so thankful things had gone so fast.

The next day Ryan found the middle name Emery. Violet Emery. I had heard it before, but never considered it for a middle name. Now the girls' names rhyme a little. Nola Serenity and Violet Emery.

My recovery with a second baby has been way better than I would've imagined. I'm enjoying these first few weeks a lot more this time around. (Sorry, Nola. I was totally freaked out when you were born. The first few weeks were HARD!) Adding a second baby to the mix is a milder life change than when you have your first. I feel like I could add five more now! We'll see...

Remembering Rubies

2011-03-18T13:00:00.000-07:00

When Ryan and I found out we were pregnant for the first time, I was freakishly excited. I told him, "I've wanted to be a mom since I was two years old. Hate to say it, Babe, but little girls dream of being moms before they ever dream of being wives." The baby would come in July. Ruby would be the birthstone. In typical Ryan fashion, he made a movie to announce our news. It was awesome. We showed it to everyone. We shouted our news from the rooftops. We found out that THREE of my friends were expecting in July as well! I was feeling great, and to make life even more wonderful, it was Christmastime.

And then the baby was gone.

I had been feeling strange all day. Somehow my body just didn't feel right, and even in my spirit it felt like something was wrong. We went Christmas shopping that night, and I started cramping so much that I had to sit down on a bench in the middle of Wal-Mart. I hate that bench. I still pass it all the time. Right by the spray paint. Once we got home, I knew for sure something was wrong. I called my parents. My poor doctor Dad. I know it must be hard to wear both those hats at the same time. I know he didn't want it to be what it sounded like. I called my midwife. She told me what to expect for the night. The next day we went in for an ultrasound and found out that the baby really was gone. I think it was December 19th.

Time passed. It was heart wrenching to watch my friends' bellies grow and not be able to join the pregnancy chatter after church. But Ryan and I were very lucky. By the time July rolled around, I was blessed to be visibly pregnant with Nola. But even though I could feel Nola kicking inside me, when my friend's babies were born that July...I cried.

It hit me that the baby I was pregnant with now, was not the baby I had lost. We got pregnant again so quickly after our loss, that sometimes the pregnancies rolled together in my mind. It was as if the miscarriage was just a set back in starting our family. After getting pregnant again I had myself convinced I was fine. But that July I grieved again for our first baby that would have been born that month. It was an important, but painful, realization. Nola's birthstone would be a beautiful orange topaz. The baby I lost was a deep red ruby.

It was amazing to me how many women I knew had stories to share with me after they heard about my loss. It really is such a private thing, losing a baby so soon after announcing your pregnancy. Some women don't even get time to announce it, or choose not to, by the time their baby is gone. Everyone grieves in their own way. Some people name their babies. Some people plant a tree. Ryan and I never did any of those things. But the month of July has a special place in my heart. And even though I have the memories of the loss in December, I still feel a little heartache each July.

A few months after Nola was born, I went to a funeral for a good friends' grandad. Keith Lawson. Yes, his name deserves it's own sentence. If you'd known him, you'd understand. He was one of the kindest men I've ever known. He was at church every Sunday when I was little and always gave high fives to all the little kids. It was a beautiful funeral full of the hope we have in Jesus. During one of the songs, I saw what was like a little video playing in my mind's eye. I saw Grandad Keith, happy in Heaven. He was giving a high five to a little tiny girl. After the high five, he pointed at her and said, "Hey! I knew your mom." I cried and cried. I knew that Jesus was taking care of my baby, even though I couldn't.

I know there are probably a surprising number of you reading this who share this story. I hope you feel reminded today...

Jesus remembers our rubies.

Mundane Memories

2011-03-17T11:22:00.000-07:00

Violet had her four month check up today. All is well in her little world. She was in the 50th percentile for weight and 75th percentile for height. She smiled and smiled at the doctor. Until he gagged her with the tongue depressor. After that was over she gave him the most pouty little face she could muster. (Note to self: Gotta' get that pouty face on camera.)

Nola woke up not feeling well. Just a cold, probably. She sounds all plugged up. Coughing every once in a while.

Both girls are sleeping soundly right this minute. That's a lovely feeling. Violet sucks on her index and middle finger on her left hand. Nola sucks her thumb still, and today she is sleeping with her big stuffed Tiger from Papa Tom and her little white bunny from Grandma Kaffy.

I've got a load of peed sheets and clothes washing. Diapers are next. Beans are cooking in the crock pot. Ryan is home working today as he always does on Thursdays.

Now Violet's up. She's probably ready to eat.

Fail

2011-03-10T15:48:00.001-08:00

I put up the story of Violet's birth. But I wrote it a LONG time ago, and I can't figure out how to put it at the top of my blog. Until I figure it out, check it out in the December 2010 archives...

The Hair

2011-02-24T05:46:00.000-08:00

We try. Really we do.

When we wash it looks like this...

When it dries it looks like this...

Cute little dorsal fin.

Name Calling

2011-02-19T14:43:00.000-08:00

In preface to this post you need to know that my name is Charity. People who know me well often shorten it to "Char", pronounced like the piece of furniture you sit on. Ryan, my husband, calls me Char pretty much all the time when we're hanging around the house. So....

I left Nola on the potty upstairs recently while I ran down to the basement to flip some laundry. It took me longer to flip than it took her to go. I could hear her yelling, and knew she was yelling to tell me she was done, but couldn't quite make out what she was saying. As I headed up the stairs I finally heard it loud and clear...

"Char?! CHAAAAA-aaaaar! Char!"

I didn't correct her. I just laughed. What did you do the first time your kids called you by your actual name?

Picture-free Potty Post

2011-02-11T06:36:00.000-08:00

Remember when I said I wanted this teeny tiny newborn potty? I didn't end up getting it. But it turns out, I didn't really need it! We've been taking Violet potty since she was around two weeks or so. (I say "we" quite honestly. Although I take her much more often than Ry, he does take her when I ask and doesn't think I'm crazy for doing it. What a dad, right?) Turns out, it's easy to just take Violet on the big potty. This post is picture-free because I decided telling you about taking her potty is one thing, but posting a picture of it could be slightly mortifying for all of us. Here's how we do it. We hold her facing out, put our hands right under her thighs so she's in a squatting position, then we sit with her, backwards, on the toilet. She's kind of dropped between our legs a little. Can you picture it? I hope so because you're not getting an actual picture. You should have heard Ryan's sister laugh when she saw him do it the other night! It is pretty crazy looking.

So does Violet go? Yes. Number one and number two. But not every time we take her. She is still making good use of her diapers like a healthy little girl should. The most successful trips to the potty are when she has just woken up and when she has just nursed. I do take her in public places if there is a place to change her in the stall. If not, I'm kind of stuck. I have to be able to corral Nola in there, as well. So it just depends on the situation.

It'll be interesting to see how infant pottying goes this time around. I still enjoy the process. I don't know why exactly...It's a weird way to bond with your baby, but it does make me feel closer to her and more "in tune with her needs", if you will.

Still curious? Google elimination communication.

Project Complete

2011-02-03T14:53:00.000-08:00

I tend to admire interior design without applying any of the ideas I see to my own home. Fail.

But, look! I actually completed a project. I've seen this idea in lots of children's rooms online. It's pretty cheap art for a kid's wall. People pull it off lots of different ways. I used a set of ABC flash cards that I LOVE, ribbon, thumb tacks, and clothes pins. For me, it only cost $3. The flash cards were a gift for Nola at Christmas. I had thumbtacks lying around. Clothes' Pins were only $1 and ribbon was only $2. You might already have all these things on hand and it would be free!

All I did was pin the ribbon to the wall and clothes pinned the cards on. Well, actually, I layed it all on the floor to make sure it looked even. Then I stupidly pinned the cards to the ribbon first, and very carefully thumb tacked the ribbon up with the cards already on! The cards seemed like they would be too heavy for just thumb tacks and ribbon, but so far so good. Although it's only been about four hours...

Here's the finished product. Nothing fancy. But it makes the room feel more "done" and is something interesting to look at for Nola as she falls asleep. It's directly across the room from her bed. Oh, yeah, ignore the pile of clothes in the corner. That's real life, baby.

Is it a little bit crooked?

Room Sharing

2011-01-24T11:58:00.000-08:00

After a very busy Sunday, Violet totally crashed last night and slept twelve hours straight. It got me thinking about room sharing. I'm thinking I will move Violet into Nola's room just as soon as she is consistently sleeping twelve hours straight at night. I figure it might be easier to do it while Violet is still too little to really care that she's in the same room with Nola. Nola might take a few nights to get over the novelty of it, I'm sure. I also had the idea of maybe making a cute little curtain to somehow go around Violet's crib. This way she would be a little bit more out of sight, and might cut down on playing at bedtime.

Really, I'm looking for some advice here, people. Do any of your kids share rooms? How did you do it?

Thoughts on Sleep

2011-01-19T11:38:00.000-08:00

Violet slept for twelve hours straight on Monday night. That's 8 p.m. until 8 a.m. baby! Last night she slept for eleven hours straight. Sleeping for twelve hours at night is not very common for a two month old. I suppose I need to give it a few more days before I get too excited. We have really lucked out with Violet! I do think the personality of your child has a lot to do with how they sleep. Every baby is an individual. But the way you approach sleep as the parent, does affect them. I thought I'd share how we approach sleeping here at the Long house. On the off chance that it is rock star parenting that has given us a good night's sleep, maybe our philosophies could help you out. Or at least give you some ideas. Or give you a good laugh if you think we're crazy.

At our house, Violet has been sleeping in her own room, in her own crib since she was one week old. And I don't use a monitor. This way, I don't hear every little noise she makes and wonder if she needs to eat. When she needs me, I hear her. Her room is right across the hall.

They tell you a newborn baby shouldn't go more than four hours without eating, including night time. I obeyed that rule in the hospital. When we came home, I threw that out the window. After her feeding between nine and eleven, she went to bed and slept as long as she wanted. Luckily for me, she spent the first couple nights with my mom who sleeps VERY soundly. So mom only woke me when it was FOR SURE that Violet needed to eat. Before you call Child Services, let me tell you that since I felt that way about night time, I frequently nursed Violet every two hours during the day to make sure she was getting enough milk in a 24 hour period. And in the daytime I did wake her from naps to nurse her. (Still do, actually. Right now I am letting her have one nap a day that is three hours long, if she wants, even if that means four hours with out nursing. Other wise, she eats every three hours.)

Also, (this is where you might think I'm crazy, and my elimination communication friends will be ashamed of me), I never changed Violet's diaper at night. Unless her diaper had leaked, or I actually heard her poop. I just nursed her and then put her right back to bed.

After a couple of weeks of the nine or eleven-ish bedtime, we started putting Violet to bed at 8, when Nola goes to bed. Nola's bedtime routine was already established so Violet just joined in and got one herself. And, yes, we made Violet cry herself to sleep. For a couple days, maybe a week, Violet would wake to eat again around midnight, and every three to four hours after that. Then for quite a while she didn't wake for the first time until two or three. Then it creept up to five, and now we're crossing our fingers it continues with the twelve hour stretch.

Some nights in the early days I wanted to feed her before I went to bed, to see if she would give me a six hour stretch of sleep. I know this works really well for a lot of moms. But I always ended up changing my mind. I decided I didn't want to train her to need a midnight feeding. If she wanted it, I would give it to her. This meant that some nights I would go to bed at eleven and get up an hour later to feed her. Annoying. But eventually, she slept through that midnight feeding. I think it may have helped her naturally learn that night time is for sleeping.

My sister, Felicity, gave me great advice with Nola. She told me that a great pattern for babies is for them to eat, be awake, and then sleep. Wake up. Eat. Play. Nap. Repeat. So I don't nurse Violet to sleep. Even when she seems to really be zonked out after nursing, I burp her and change her diaper so she will wake up. Even if she is only awake a few minutes, she then has to fall asleep on her own. This helps when she wakes in the middle of the night, she knows how to go back to sleep with out eating.

The last thing I can think of is swaddling. Violet LOVES it. We use these. Every time we lay her down she is all swaddled up. Super tight. We have never given her a pacifier, but this seems to be the equivalent for her. She falls asleep quicker and sleeps longer when she is wrapped up. (Yes, I've tried letting her sleep free style a couple of times and decided it wasn't worth it. I think she'll let us know when she's done with the swaddle.)

So there's my thoughts on sleeping, in random order.

Bedtime

2011-01-17T19:04:00.001-08:00

I love my girls. LOVE them.

But lately I've been a little stressed with the 24/7 of motherhood. Nola and Violet are just always HERE. They don't go away. On Ry and I's last night out, Baby V wouldn't take a bottle. I fear I may be attached to her every three hours for the next ten months.

Thank the Lord for bedtime! How smart of Him to create kids with a need for more sleep than adults. I'm so thankful for the two to three hours I get to spend with Ryan after the girls are in bed. It's just what I need to be ready for tomorrow.

To bedtime!

A Day In The Life of Violet

2011-01-13T14:07:00.000-08:00

When Violet was a few weeks old I found myself googling "how often should I breastfeed my three week old" or "sleeping schedule for one month old baby". Even though I've already done this once, and only two years ago, I still wonder what's normal. Are you the same? So here's a day in Violet's life to hopefully help you feel sane about what you're baby is doing. Or, to help others of you feel sane that you've decided to wait a while before having babies. Liz.

I wake Nola and Violet around 8:30 every morning. (I know that's leisurely late. Don't ask what I'm doing until then. Just assume I'm up, exercised, showered, and have home cooked breakfast on the table.)

I nurse Violet around 9:00, after pottying, diapering, and getting Nola some oatmeal. She nurses for twenty minutes.

At 10:00 she's ready to sleep again. I swaddle her, lay her down, and she cries for a little bit.She usually only sleeps an hour.

At 12:00 I nurse her again.

Between 1:00 and 1:30 I lay her down again. I'm trying to get her to sleep a longer stretch at this time because it's when Nola naps. Sometimes she does, sometimes she doesn't.

I nurse Violet again after she wakes up, or I have woken her, between 3:00 and 4:00. She will sleep again, about an hour after I've nursed her, napping about an hour.

I nurse her between 5:00 and 6:00. Depending on when she ate last. Then she'll take a mini evening nap, usually in her vibrating bouncy seat. We cross our fingers this hits at our dinner time, so we can make it through an entire twenty two minute episode of King of Queens without either child interrupting.

At 7:30 I nurse her again. No matter when she ate last. This is her last nursing for the night, so I always offer it, even if I fed her at six.

At 8:00 she goes to bed. She cries, at the most recent count, about fifteen minutes. Sometimes she will cry for a very short time around nine or ten. Then she's out until 4:00 or 5:00 in the morning. I nurse her and she goes right back to sleep until I get her up at 8:30.

And. The day. Begins. Again.

In short, Violet is basically eating every three hours, and napping three and a half times a day. :)

When it comes to nursing, here's how I've changed my mindset a little since she was born. In the itty bittty newborn stage you really are counting the hours and making sure your little one is getting enough, even if that means waking them at night. But now that Violet is two months old and a healthy almost-twelve pounds, I think of it in terms of how many times she's eaten that day rather than how often. I think of it like this: Violet needs to eat breakfast, a morning snack, lunch, an afternoon snack, supper and a bedtime snack. When I think of it this way it helps me be more flexible and relaxed. And also it helps Violet fit into our family, rather than us ruling our lives around her.

There you have it. A day in the life of Violet. Oh! And isn't that picture of her with her Grandma so cute?

A Quote

2011-01-10T08:27:00.000-08:00

Ryan came home Thursday and asked me how my day with Nola was. My response...

"She was two. And I was annoyed."

Guest Blogging It Up!

2011-01-06T08:21:00.000-08:00

Go to www.toptobottombaby.blogspot.com to read my latest guest blog about cloth diapering a newborn!

Breastfeeding

2010-12-27T11:49:00.000-08:00

I love nursing my babies! After working in daycare for years before having my own kids, I couldn't wait to breastfeed my own babies. Because I had strong bonds with the children I cared for, I wondered if I would feel like I was just babysitting when I had my own kids. I thought breastfeeding would make me feel more like the mom and less like the babysitter. As it turns out, breastfeeding is not what makes me feel like the mom. The fact that my babies never LEAVE at the end of the day. That makes me feel like the mom. But I still think breastfeeding is awesome, and I'll tell you why.

Convenience. I have nothing to mix in, shake up, or warm up in the middle of the night. When we travel, we don't have to take a million bottles, nipples, and cans of formula. My milk is always ready, always the perfect temperature, and I don't have to try and fit it in my bag.

Cheap. Buying formula makes a big difference in your monthly budget. Breast milk is free. (As long as it's your own. Evidently, breast milk from a donor bank is expensive. Just ask Neil Patrick Harris.) Thanks to nursing and cloth diapers, Violet hasn't really impacted our monthly budget yet at all. So as long as we buy groceries to feed me, we're good.

Bonding. There are so many little things that make up the bond you have with your baby. Nursing can be a big part of that. When you nurse, you are forced to spend feeding time together. Yes, I often surf the internet and watch tv while I nurse. But I can't prop the bottle up for the baby and walk away, or hand Ryan my equipment and have him do it. (Although there are times I wish I could. But never fear, I have some milk in the freezer if I need a break.) And nothing beats the look on your baby's face when they first latch on. This is the best. thing. ever. To top it all off, your body actually releases a happy hormone while you're nursing that makes you feel closer to your baby.

Rest. What?! Yes, nursing can help you rest. Especially in the early weeks, it is so nice to be forced to sit down for about twenty or thirty minutes every two to three hours. I'm not even an over achiever, and I appreciate the forced time-out. And that same happy hormone that helps you bond also relaxes you.

Magic Milk. Did you know breast milk is magic? When I went to my family Christmas this year, I hugged and kissed all my snot nosed, carrier monkey nieces and nephews. My body then fought those nasties off for me, AND somehow knows how to tell my mammary glands what kind of milk to make to fight those specific nasties off for Violet. Seriously. I know it's true because I read it in a book. It's called So That's What They're For! by Janet Tamaro. Great book.

Just like any other parenting decision, you gotta do what works for you and your family. This is something that works for me, and I love every minute of it! So does Ryan, it means he never has to get up in the middle of the night with the baby. Lucky duck.

I'm Back

2010-12-26T13:58:00.001-08:00

It's been about six weeks since beautiful baby Violet was born. Pretty standard "maternity leave" time. As a stay at home mom I don't get your typical maternity leave. My life really won't change much looking in from the outside. It doesn't look the same as going back to an office, but it feels that way to me. I guess it's probably not acceptable for me to ask Ryan to stay home from work and help me now that I'm the magical "six weeks out". Dinner is again my job, and laundry, and cleaning. Exercise should most definitely become a priority now. Nola should probably not be watching tv all morning long. And (this I'm thankful for) if I take a nap during the day I have a hard time falling asleep at night.

It feels great to be back in the good ol' "office".

Check it Out!

2010-11-22T13:36:00.000-08:00

I wrote a guest blog for Top To Bottom Baby Boutique. They are a cloth diaper retailer based here in Omaha. You can find my blog post here.

Leave a comment if you like it!

13 Days Left

2010-11-15T11:44:00.000-08:00

If this baby comes on it's due date, I only have 13 days left of pregnancy. Ahhhhhh. That sounds doable.

I have to admit, I'm not the best pregnant lady on the planet. I do love feeling the baby move inside me. I enjoy, maybe, the two months right in the middle. But I am most DEFINITELY not the type who just loves every second of pregnancy. Is it an urban myth that there are those who do? But, at the same time, I hate it when I hear women complain and whine the whole time they're pregnant. Before I was ever ready for children, but wanted them so badly, I didn't like to hear a pregnant lady complain. Ummm...you realize you're going to get a KID out of this right? As in, a little person who will love you more than anyone else on earth?

So I try to hold my tongue. And anytime I feel like whining, I think of Nolie. And how I barely remember being pregnant with her. And how it would be worth more than nine months of pregnancy to get the precious two years I've had with her. And I dream of how much fun it's going to be to meet this new baby. And figure out their personality. And learn their little quirks. And hold them in my arms...instead of in my STOMACH!

*Big Sigh* 13 days is nothing, right? Baby, please come by your due date. I promise it's awesome out here!

Nesting in Action!

2010-10-18T12:43:00.000-07:00

I have been so inspired lately by my frequent trips to design blogs. I finally put my dreaming into action!

Ryan's parents are buying us a new crib for this baby. Yippee! Nola's crib was a much appreciated hand me down. But it had seen better days and had a failing drop side on it. The new crib is the Baby Mod Olivia from Wal-Mart. It's very modern looking and I love it. Our changing table is kind of old school and doesn't really match the new crib's style. But we did use it all the time with Nola, so I knew we wanted to keep it. I found this tid bit of advice on one of my favorite design blogs (I think it was Ohdeedoh). If you have a piece of furniture that doesn't "match" all the others, painting it a different color than the other furniture makes it a nice pop of color as if it were a piece of art. I happened to have a can of blue spray paint in the garage so out it came!

And, yes, I wore a mask.

I hesitated to paint it blue because that's so traditionally "boy", and we don't know weather I'm going to pop out a boy or a girl. (And the leaning from the technician was girl.) But I finally decided that blue is pretty, and boy's can't have it all to themselves.

Here's the before and after of the changing table. I am hoping to have the nursery all done before the baby comes, and I will post pictures of it all done up and complete.

What do you think? Blue can be for girls, too, right?

First & Then

2010-10-12T11:42:00.000-07:00

Let me clarify a little. I do not believe in negotiating with two year olds. More often than not, all this activity will do is teach your child to manipulate you and other people. Not a fabulous skill. It's important for children to learn that they can't always get what they want. The earlier, the better. I sound so strict and dull, don't I?

BUT Ryan and I have discovered a great way to walk Nola through her emotions when she has to do something she doesn't want to do. I don't know who started it, but it was BRILLIANT. Ok, ok, it was probably me. :) This tactic is most often used when it's time to go potty, and she doesn't want to. It goes a little like this...

"Nola, let's go potty."
"Noooooo!" followed by worked up tears and, "Puppy!" while running away from the bathroom and towards her puppy.
"Nola, listen to mommy." I hold up my index finger. "First, potty. Then, puppy."
Nola sniffles, sucks it up, and says, "Ok."

Seriously, it works pretty much every time. It's like magic. And here's why I think it has worked out for us.

We always stick to just two activities. First and Then. Adding a third is too much for her little genius mind to take in. When she's crying for a cookie we don't want her to have before dinner we wouldn't say, "First we'll wash our hands, then we'll eat dinner, and THEN you can have a cookie." This will come when she's older. For now, we're sticking to what her almost-two-year-old mind will be successful with. We would just say, "First, dinner. Then, a cookie."

We always do the "Then" activity immediately after the "First" activity. Say she wants to go outside, but we need her to put her shoes on. We say, "First, put your shoes on. Then, we'll go outside." After her shoes are on, we go straight outside. We don't make her wait while we finish up ten more things. And we don't make her do anything besides the shoes. There has to be immediate follow through. If we have ten things we need to do before taking her outside, we don't use First & Then. She needs to know that we will do what we say we will do. And at her age, that requires fairly quick follow through.

Lastly, we don't use First & Then as a reward incentive program. Or bribery. This seems like a fine line. But it's important to me. Let's take one scenario of going to the park. Let's say I am pretty sure she's not going to want to ride in her stroller. If while I'm popping out the stroller I say, "Hey, Nola! First, sit in your stroller. Then, we'll go to the park." To me, that's reward incentive programming. It might not be as blatant as, "I'll give you a cookie if you get in the stroller" but to me it still has the essence of a bribe.

With First & Then it would go like this: I'm pretty sure Nola's not going to want to ride in the stroller. But while I'm popping out the stroller I simply say, "Ok, get in the stroller." If she starts fussing about it, and possibly running down the driveway ahead of me, screaming "Paaaaaark!" Then I will stop her. I will make sure she is looking in my eyes and say, "First, get in the stroller. Then, we'll go to the park." And she usually will.

What's the difference again? It's just my opinion and my parenting style, but I think it's important that Nola get the chance to obey without the promise of a cookie. In life, she's going to have to do stuff that she doesn't want to do. And there won't always be someone there to say, "I'll give you a cookie if you pay that electric bill." Yes, it is good to do things that prevent tantrums. But not if the tantrum prevention means your child is not ever really obeying you. They're just waiting around for cookies.

Do you think this would work with your toddler? Every child is so different. But maybe there is a similar tactic you could use to coach your child through the emotion of a tantrum. It would be nice to skip the tantrums all together, but I just don't bake enough cookies for that. ;)

Sort of Mommyish & not really sappy....

2010-10-08T13:35:00.000-07:00

Does this post belong on this blog? Hmmmm. It fits this blog about as much as that picture fits this post. Which is...not really related at all. (That's Nola and her cousin Ada.) But it is my blog and as my lovely husband often says to me when I am protesting his inconsequential life decisions... "I do what I want."

So this pregnancy has me obsessed with interior design. I want to redo my whole house! And make it beautiful, and organized, and functional, and interesting, and creative. My obsession is not always followed by action. Usually it manifests itself in time spent looking at other people's designs. At almost 33 weeks pregnant, I rarely have energy for follow through. I try to not let it depress me.

So here are the three websites I check EVERY SINGLE DAY. In order from most favorite to least favorite. Mostly, I just love looking at the pictures and thinking about what I could do someday.

www.younghouselove.com

A married couple blogs about designing their first home with lots of do-it-yourself project ideas, and things to do on a tight budget. (Oh! And they cloth diaper their baby girl.)

www.ohdeedoh.com

A mother load of real people's nurseries and kid's rooms. As well as real kid's parties, and other cool, design related kid stuff.

www.designmom.com

A designing mother of six. Sometimes her design ideas and cool, mom finds can be a bit pricier, but are fun to look at.

So, there you go. Happy surfing!

Bittersweet Doesn't Say It

2010-09-28T13:02:00.000-07:00

Parenting is so wonderfully...sucky.

Ryan and I just came home from a long weekend in Chicago at Story Conference 2010. (My sister has a great post about it here.) We came home to find our beautiful baby girl had grown five inches and successfully mastered the English language while we were gone! I have never found anything in life to have such a crazy mixture of emotions as I've found in being a mom. It is so exciting to see her learn new things and master big girl skills. I am ready to explode with happy pride, while at the same time I am ready to break down in sad tears to see the old days disappearing.

Sometimes I browse through my old pictures on Facebook. (Yes, I realize that may be the epitome of wasting time on a social networking site. Looking at your own stuff?) I see old pictures of Nola and can't believe how she's changed. It's such a weird emotion.

I am sad to see that old Nolie go...enjoying every minute of the Nolie that I have...and anticipating all the moments I will have with the Nolie that's coming. All at the same time.

It's just so...wonderfully sucky. Do you feel me?

A Few Things I'm Thinking About...

2010-09-18T13:02:00.000-07:00

Baby number two is ten weeks away from arriving! Hopefully. I was five days early with Nola, but I hate to bank on that again. If I'm early with this baby, then maybe I'll bank on it with baby number three. Yes, Ryan, there will be a baby number three. Lord willing.

Here's a few things I'm thinking about as the time is drawing near...

Holy Lord, I need to clean out the baby's room! How did this happen again? As soon as we moved Nola out of that room, we immediately made it the dumping grounds. I am DETERMINED to go to the hospital with the baby's room done this time.

Proffessional house cleaning while I'm in the hospital. How awesome would it be to come home from the hospital to a professionally deep cleaned house? I left the house a wreck during Nola's delivery. My mom did an amazing job making it beautiful for me when we came home. If it's not crazy expensive, I just might do it.

Newborn elimination communication. I'm going to buy this little potty for baby number two. Yes, I know you all thought I was crazy when I said I was going to start taking Nola potty at seven months old. Now you can just check me in to the crazy house, I guess. Don't worry, I do not expect to throw out the beautiful new cloth diapers I bought. But I've heard that earlier is better when it comes to infant pottying. Since Nola is potty trained, I don't think it will be too stressful. And my approach will be much more relaxed this time around. I said I was relaxed last time, but that really wasn't true.

A baby sling. My cousin Jennie recommended the Maya Wrap ring sling. She loved it with her second baby and I really think it will be perfect for me. I had a sized sling with Nola, and it was just a hair to big and never quite comfortable. I didn't use it much. Ring Slings adjust perfectly to your size, and therefore to however bulky or not bulky clothes you're wearing. I think it will be so handy for outings with a toddler and a newborn in tow. And I think it looks like you're wearing a fashionable scarf. It would be really easy to sew, which I might tackle after the baby. But I think it would be nice to have a good quality one first.

Was there anything you knew you HAD to have with your second baby? Share the wealth.

You Are A Beautiful Mother

2010-09-15T12:09:00.000-07:00

Why does no one ever post pictures on Facebook of their kids lying around in their unmatched pajamas, watching an episode of Dora for the umpteenth time, with a crumby pop tart in their hands, and snot dripping out their nose? And why have I never written a blog post about the time Nola peed her pants THREE TIMES during church, and I had no clothes left for her, and I had to steal a diaper from April (did I ever tell you that, April?) and my image as the all powerful elimination communication mom was totally busted?

Well...because...who wants to share that part of themselves, really? Some people do it well with humor. But then, it's funny, so you at least get cool points for that.

I thought to myself today, "I should write a post about failing as a mom." I was inspired to do this because I didn't get much accomplished today. As in, so far I haven't showered, Nola went down for her afternoon nap still in her pjs. There is a pile of crap on my couch that has been sitting there for over a week. And the worst part is...I HAD to make a grocery run. So I did. I was that mom. In the store, with nasty hair, flip flops, an ugly, ginormous maternity shirt, and a child whose hair had not even been brushed, obviously still wearing her pajama shirt.

After deciding to write a FAIL post. I thought to myself, "Wait a minute. I am not a failure as a mom. That's ridiculous." Honestly, it's not even really funny to say that. Ok, sometimes it's funny. But deep down, we should never say such negative things about ourselves. I am not a failure as a mom, and neither are you. (Well...wait...Are you beating your children? I'm pretty sure that puts you in the failure category. But, otherwise, I'm pretty sure you're good.)

Think of the little things you do as a mom that make you feel like a failure. Now try to remember your mother doing any of those things. Having a hard time? So did I! The truth is, you probably remember the time your mom took you for a special trip to McDonalds where you got that super cool mermaid barbie in your Happy Meal. While your mom remembers that day she had no groceries in the house simply because she didn't want to go grocery shopping, and she ended up taking you to McDonalds. Where she proceeded to feed you trans fat, and you ended up getting that blasted Barbie doll that would give you the wrong definition of beauty.

I know my mom had her days. Actually, no I don't. I'm guessing my mom had her days. But the overall picture over rides the imperfections. The fact that we love our children, and are doing our best... that makes us beautiful mothers. And successful mothers.

Looking like a celebrity mom wherever you go? Not important.

Your house looking like a magazine cover? Your kid could care less.

That snuggle time that you took instead of loading the dishwasher? Your kid will remember forever.

So let go of your facebook image. Quit comparing yourself to your working mom friend, or your stay at home mom friend. Or even Angelina Jolie, heaven forbid.

Love your children. You are a beautiful mother.

Lessons!

2010-09-07T13:08:00.001-07:00

You should hear Nola say "Lessons!" out loud. So cute! She puts a little more thhhh than ssss in her s sounds.

We started our lessons this morning. We had a Spanish lesson and a math lesson. (Dear Lord, please let her get something out of the math lessons I give her! When I was little, I got a stomach ache every day in kindergarten right around math time.)

For Spanish time, I made a cube with red and blue sides to it. We took turns throwing it into the air. When it landed, we would say what color was on top...Rojo or Azul. I had high hopes that she would love this game. She did say the colors many times in both languages, which is great. She even tries her best to roll her r's.

For math time, I drew a chart with zero, one, and two at the top. We said the numbers as I pointed to them. Then we put the right amount of quarters under each number. Zero gets, "Nothin'!" She had fun saying that word. One got...well, one quarter. And Two got..two. This is a shortened version of a Montessori lesson. Montessori teachers would faint dead away if they saw I was trying this with my not-yet two year old. (That is why I will not be tagging "montessori" in this post.) But since we're not trying to be true Montessorians, I think borrowing some of the ideas is safe for now.

Overall, lessons went well. They went much quicker than I would have imagined. If I really want to capture her attention, I'll need to add some Dora stuff...she'd be in heaven.

Night time diaper solution

2010-09-03T13:23:00.000-07:00

When Nola got potty trained enough to only need a diaper for nap and night time I realized we needed a solution for cloth diaper STINK. Waiting for there to be a full load of cloth diapers to wash took a whole week. Once she conquered nap time, waiting for a full load took two weeks! I don't know if you've ever had the pleasure of opening the bathroom cabinet doors to be greeted with two week old, pee-filled cloth diapers. If you have, I'm sure you don't remember the next few moments after, because the smell comes flailing out of it's prison doors and knocks you out. It's gross. And it was in our hallway bathroom that we share with friends when they visit. Hi, welcome to our lovely home! Just don't breathe in while you're using the bathroom. Nice.

I wanted a night time diapering solution that was still "green". I don't hug the WHOLE tree, but I hug certain parts of it. I'd been nice to the earth so long in this department, why quit now? So I turned to gDiapers.

The disposable inserts that gDiapers make for their diapers are FLUSHABLE! They are earth friendly even if you throw them in the trash because there is no plastic in them. You can also compost them if you're into that sort of thing. You know, if you're hugging the whole tree. But thanks to living in a younger neighborhood and newer house, our sewer system handles the flushing just fine. I had shied away from using the disposable inserts because of price. (I had already used gdiapers with cloth inserts off and on for Nola.) The cost of a regular pack of gdiapers disposable inserts is almost twice that of a pack of regular disposables. But since we are only using one a day, it doesn't bust our budget. (Ummmm...here's a link to lady who seriously did her math homework comparing the price of regular disposables, Flip disposables, and gDiaper disposables. She says it's not that different price wise...I never was very good at math.)

After a few nights of sleeping in her gdiapers, I was LOVING the fresh smell of the bathroom! But the gDiaper shells left little red marks on her legs, and little red indentations from the snaps that hold the liner in the shell. So I turned to BumGenius once again.

BumGenius makes a diaper cover called the Flip. I guess there's lots of diaper covers I could've chosen, but this one is pretty cheap, has multiple snap settings for different sizes, and gets great reviews. The elastic is encased and doesn't leave any marks on Nolie's precious little legs. I only bought one, and it's all I need. There are disposable inserts made for the Flip, but they are not flushable. The medium/large gdiaper flushable insert fits nicely in a Flip when it is at it's largest setting. It's a wipe clean cover. All I do in the morning is take the the diaper off Nola, flush the insert, and put the Flip back in the cabinet. I wash the cover about once a week with her regular laundry and it has not lost it's waterproofing yet.

I'm not sure when Nola will conquer night time. It could still be a while. But when she does, the Flip cover will not be out of commission! Thanks to it's multiple sizing, Nola can pass the wealth to Baby Number Two no matter their age! Of course, it is powder pink...

Red Rug Time

2010-08-31T12:30:00.000-07:00

I love reading other mom's ideas for activities and little goals they have for their kids. So here's my new one that I will share with you. It's very simple.

Every day we are going to have Red Rug Time. Yesterday, we went in her room. I had her sit on her red rug, and I sat in front of her in a little rocking chair. I told her, "It's rug time, Nola! We're going to sit on the rug while mommy reads a book." Then I read her a book. She had to sit for the entire book. Nicely. Not laying down. Not getting up to sit with me. Kind of like how it would be if she were in preschool and it was story time. It was a very quick read. But it was challenging for her. She had to be reminded several times what we were doing, of course. But as long as she responded nicely to my reminders, she never "got in trouble". As she gets better at it, and I know her abilities for the situation...that may change. :)

After I read her a story, I gave her a book. I told her to read the book by herself, staying on the red rug because it's "rug time". This was very short, too. As SOON as she "got to the end" I said, "Good job, Nola! You stayed on the rug while you read your book. Ok, rug time is over! Go play."

My goal for this time is two-fold 1) that she learns to discipline herself to sit still and do something that was possibly not her idea, and 2) that she learns to entertain herself and complete a task without constant prodding or interference from me. We won't always read. Maybe I will give her a puzzle on the rug. Or let her choose between two toys or activities. The rug gives her a visual boundary that is smaller than, say, her room. The hope is that the skills she learns with the rug will translate to other situations such as "stay on this chair and play with your doll while mommy and daddy practice for worship team."

This idea is inspired by the Montessori Method of learning, and by Michelle Duggar. Montessori is a major proponent of children being independent and Michelle Duggar is a major proponent of children having self-control! (She writes in her book about her "portable playpen" that is just a blanket she keeps in her diaper bag that her children are trained to stay on and play nicely with just a single toy.)
I'll keep you updated on our progress!

The Mother Load!

2010-07-30T12:03:00.000-07:00

I did it. I bought the newborn cloth diapers. Rumparooz Lil' Joeys. I ordered one pack directly from Rumparooz, and then I stocked up on the rest at Mom's Milk Boutique. The ladies at Mom's Milk Boutique were wonderful. They accidentally sent me an extra pack! I let them know of the mistake, and they still let me keep them. Lovely. So now I have 14 total, which is more than enough. It's the mother load, honestly.

They are the teeniest, tiniest most adorable little things I have ever seen. They made me so excited about this baby, and that made me happy. I just love knowing that I will have cloth diapers that are easy to use, and will fit, right from the get-go with this baby. I almost feel like I'm rewarding myself for actually following through and using cloth with Nola.

I also bought some newborn sized prefolds from Green Mountain Di apers, along with two wipe-clean covers to have for laundry day. I got a Bummis Super Brite in newborn size, and a Thirsties Duo Wrap in size one. Green Mountain Diapers has a very cool feature on their site. On every product they have a "see this on a baby" link, that takes you to a bunch of pictures of that product on different sized babies. They also have lots of (as in, almost overwhelming) information on cloth, if you are just getting started.
I can't wait to use these on my new little lovey!

Nola's Birth

2010-07-27T12:43:00.000-07:00

I am just 18 weeks away (give or take a few) from meeting our new baby. I have never written down the story of Nola's birth, and want to get it out now before another labor experience mushes my memories up!

I woke up on a Sunday morning feeling especially tired. And huge. Ryan left early for church to help on the worship team. I was so tired I was an hour late for church that day. I sent Ryan a text when church was starting to let him know I'd just woken up.

The whole day I felt so sluggish. I didn't feel well, and kind of thought I was constipated. All I ate was Grape Nuts to try and fix that. I spent a lot of time in the bathroom thinking I needed to go.

David Gray called early in the evening to check up on us and see if anything was going on with the baby. "Nope." We said. "Nothing going on."

Only a few hours later, around 6 p.m., I went to try and use the bathroom again. This time, something gushed out. I thought it was my water breaking, but when I peeked down I saw that it was blood. This was a little scary for me. I was pretty sure you weren't supposed to BLEED as an initial sign of labor. We called the midwife and she sent us to the hospital immediately. I called my mom, who was at Sunday night church five hours away in Missouri. I am pretty sure I cried when talking to her because I was so scared.

We threw a few extra things into my half-packed hospital bag and jumped in the car. We left the house a huge mess. Friday had been my last day at work. Since I wasn't due until the following Friday, I had been counting on that week to get everything in order before the baby came.

I was shaking the whole way to the hospital. We listened to a great, soothing song off of the cd 24/7 by the band RoJo. But I had a hard time calming down.

Checking in at the hospital was relatively quick and easy. Our nurse, Jessica, was awesome. She put me right at ease. As soon as I got settled in, and they were monitoring the baby, I settled right down. Just knowing that now someone would at least know what was going on made me feel better.

As it turned out, our midwife, Marilyn, had misunderstood us on the phone. She thought I had said I was 29 weeks, rather than 39 weeks. So she had sent us to the high risk side of the maternity ward. Jessica told us that when she saw the blood, she was very scared for us. But when she saw the size of my belly, she knew there had been a misunderstanding! After we got that cleared up, we moved to a different room for my labor. Luckily, Jessica came with us.

I think my contractions started around 9 p.m. They were noticeable, but extremely manageable with long breaks in between. Jessica sent us walking around the hospital hallways to keep my labor going strong. If I remember correctly, I was four centimeters dilated at this time, but the contractions were still not a problem. We walked a loop around the Hospital floor, passing Ryan's parents, sister, and our friends Liz and Andrew every few minutes. We were laughing and joking with them. I never got to see him, but I know at one point in the evening Ryan's good friend Paul had brought us a few more things from our house. When he and Revonna heard we were in labor, and had had to leave in such a hurry, they went to our house and packed up more of the things we would need. Like our camera!

Around 9:30, Jessica came and got us. My midwife, Marilyn, wasn't at the hospital yet, but there was a doctor there who could break my water for me if I wanted. I was doing so well with my labor, that I wasn't sure. I called my mom to see how close she was. She was only about halfway to Omaha, but she said I should do whatever I needed and not try and wait for her. So the doctor broke my water. She said, "Your contractions should get a little harder and more painful now that the watery cushion is gone." She was very right. The first contraction after my water broke was extremely painful. Ten times worse than they had been. But I still had very long breaks in between contractions, with no pain whatsoever.

Jessica sent us walking again. This time around, I didn't want to walk past anyone I knew. Joke and laugh time was coming to an end for me. The contractions became stronger and stronger. Eventually, I couldn't stand during them. When I felt it coming on, I would grab Ryan and he would help me slowly fall to my knees. My only strategy during contractions was to completely relax every muscle in my body. I would close my eyes, and let everything loosen up. This is another reason I didn't want to stand during them. Ryan thought it was weird that during contractions, I would actually let go of his hand rather than squeeze the life out of it like everyone told him would happen. Squeezing just really didn't help. Relaxing did.

I don't know how long we walked, but we returned to the room so I could sit down. Jessica really wanted me to keep walking. I smiled at her and in my head thought, "Is she crazy?!!!" At this point I was also feeling quite sick to my stomach. She offered me something for that, but I didn't really think it was that bad. I think Jessica must have read me like a book during this time, because she decided to call my midwife to come up to the hospital.

When my midwife showed up, I think she checked me. I think. And I'm pretty sure I was at a seven. Things are a little hazy in my memory at that point. I think I was in transition and didn't quite realize it. They got the jacuzzi ready for me.

Ahhhhhhh. That was perfect. The water was so helpful and calming. The only thing I didn't like was the jets of water during a contraction. I liked them in between, but during my contractions I wanted to tear their jetting heads off. The lights were turned down low, and everyone kept their voices low for me. Looking back, this is the most awkward part of my labor. There I was, in all my glory, (next time I'm bringing a swim top) while the nurse, my midwife, Ryan, and eventually my mom, all stared at me. Ryan says it wasn't that weird at the time, which is probably true.

In the water, my contractions were extremely painful. I could feel myself wanting to fight them and get flustered. But my midwife told me to breathe them out, so I did. Strangely, breathing out helped a lot. But the breath in was the worst! Such pain when I took a breath in, but when I breathed out it really felt like I was blowing the pain away. I was in a little bit of a trance during this phase, as well. Jessica caught a moment in between my contractions to make sure I had seen my mom had showed up. I just barely opened my eyes to say hello. Then it was back to business.

After a while, I don't know how long, I felt the urge to push. My midwife saw me curl up in a ball. She had been calmly sitting in a chair in front of the jacuzzi monitoring me. She may have been timing my contractions, as well. I'm not sure. But when she saw me curl up, she sat right up and asked if I felt I needed to push. I told her it sure felt that way. She said we should try for a couple more contractions, and if I felt like pushing again I would need to get out. I didn't want to get out of the water, but with the next contraction I felt like pushing, so I had to get out. (Next time I'm lying. The water is too wonderful.)

Jessica and Marilyn (or was it my mom?) wrapped warm towels around me as I got out, and helped me slip into a gown. I got back in bed and Marilyn checked me. It must have been around 12:30 in the morning. She said I was still just a nine, but she thought she could just push my cervix out of the way for me, and I could go ahead and push with each contraction.

The contractions seemed to really slow down after I got out the water. It was kind of nice because I got such long breaks between. And, oddly enough, when I pushed I didn't feel the pain of them. The second I felt a contraction coming, I would feel that anxiety and the fear of severe pain coming on, but then I would start pushing and it would disappear.

During one push, I sprayed the whole room with some sort of baby fluid. Yes, it happened. Ryan's jeans were splattered with something. I think Marilyn got a little in the face. Everyone laughed. At one point in between contractions, I remember looking up at my mom and saying, "This is a lot easier than I thought it was going to be." Everyone laughed then, too. But I really meant it. I pushed for forty five minutes. I broke every blood vessel in my face. They kept telling me to take breaths during pushing, but I just wanted to get the baby out so I wouldn't stop. In retrospect, that was probably a mistake. A little mini breath probably would've made for more effective pushing. I must have lost my cool a little at one point because I remember mom looking at me sternly and saying,"Don't lose control now, Charity. Get a hold of yourself." I remember thinking, "What is she talking about? I'm doing fine!" After a while, Marilyn told me to reach down and feel the baby's head. I did. And it was gross. Then, suddenly, everyone got bossy. I could feel tension in the air between Marilyn and Jessica. They were communicating with their eyes. And they started yelling at me to push. Quite sternly. And then Jessica was on top of me, using her body weight to push down on my stomach.

And then Nola was here. They put her on my chest. I remember stroking her slimy little back so I would look like a good, loving mom. On the inside, though, I was grossed out and really wanted them to take her away and clean her up before I snuggled her. Ryan cut the umbilical cord. The first thing I said about her was, "She looks like a little Mexican baby!" She had so much dark, black hair. I watched as the baby nurse came in and gave her a nice bath and washed her hair.

Marilyn helped me deliver the placenta. Yes, that's an odd part of labor, but you barely remember it. I did not have an episiotomy, but I did naturally tear in a couple of places. Marilyn said they were "good" places to tear. I don't think any place down there is a good place to tear. She stitched me up and it hurt like the dickens! This is the downside of not getting an epidural. You feel every little thing after the baby is born. You feel every little thing during the labor, but you're focused on getting the baby out so it's different. Once the baby is out, you want it to all be over, and then they start stitching you! Evidently, she did numb the area, but it's a very difficult area of the body to numb.

Now everything is hazy after this. It was 1:20 a.m. when Nola was born. I know that everyone came in to see her. My mom and dad, Ryan's mom and dad, Erica, Liz and Andrew. My sisters, Felicity and Serenity came in at the last minute as a surprise! I didn't know they were coming. I cried. It was perfect, too. The fist person we handed the baby to was Serenity, and I told the whole room, "This is Nola Serenity Long." Serenity survived a rare form of cancer called Synovial Cell Sarcoma. Ryan and I were married right around the time of her diagnosis. We didn't always think she would survive, and I often thought one of my children would be named after her because of her death. But, then, she lived! Thank you, Serenity. While I was pregnant with Nola, I thought how unfair to only get someone named after you if you die. You should have someone named after you because you lived! There are a few other details to her naming and you might like to read Serenity's side of the story here.

Looking back, Nola's delivery was better than I would have hoped. God gave me everything I asked for in her labor and delivery. Literally, we prayed every night for the baby and the delivery and God said Yes to all of it! That's why this time around I'm praying for a daytime delivery!

Nola's New Room

2010-07-21T20:33:00.000-07:00

My sister, Serenity, told me once that she sometimes worries if her boys are happy. And if they like their life. Do they like our house? Do they wish we had nicer things? Do they like sharing a room? I must not have had Nola at the time she told me this. I had no idea where she was coming from and thought she was crazy. Of course her kids are crazy happy!

But now it's hit me.

I'm putting Nola's new room together. And I'm, kind of, nervous. I hope she likes it. She's not even two. Really, the only thing I KNOW she likes is puppies. On top of that, now we have a new kid coming. How will I know the baby's preference in room decor?! And what if the new baby likes Nola's room better?

Now I understand a little bit more why some moms make the mistake of trying to be their kid's best friend instead of their parent. Because, ultimately, our kids are people. Little, tiny people. People we have gotten to know slowly, without much conversational feedback in the early stages of the relationship, but people all the same. And we care what people think of us. Especially the people we love the most.

The picture up top is a little preview of Nola's room. Hopefully my little person likes it.

2010-07-11T20:19:00.000-07:00

I want to buy some cloth diapers for my newborn this time around. Pictured here are the Rumparooz Lil' Joeys. Crazy? I did some math. The first two months of diapering in disposables will cost 180 dollars. For this same amount I can get just enough newborn diapers to do laundry everyday. I would throw them in the washer at supper time, in the dryer at bedtime, and have clean diapers in the morning.

The only gamble is...what if this baby is ginormous? What if I buy teeny diapers, and the baby already fits the BumGenius One Size I have at two weeks old? Also, what if I'm underestimating being a mom of two? What if I'm exhausted at suppertime and the idea of one more chore makes me bawl my eyes out?

Decisions, decisions...

Opinions?

Expecting

2010-06-16T15:47:00.000-07:00

I am expecting our next baby! I'm pretty sure all three of you who read this have already heard this news on Facebook or something. But just in case, just in case I have some followers I don't know about it, I thought it only fair to share the news here.

Check out the video my husband and I made to announce our happy news.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXk1diRE5Xg

Potty Routine

2010-02-19T18:21:00.000-08:00

*I wrote this post in February. Not sure why I never posted it...*

We are almost eight months into this elimination communication experience. Nola is fifteen months old and we are oh-so-close to declaring her traditionally potty trained. I thought some might be curious to know what it's like to have a tiny toddler who uses the potty. And I thought some might like some inspiration to start taking your tiny toddler potty.

On a good day, Nola's trips to the bathroom are almost like clockwork. She's become very routine, which works nicely for us since she is still learning how to tell us when she needs to go. Here's a little breakdown of our potty routine.

8:00ish...Sometimes we get her first pee upon waking in the morning. (She has been dry all night long only once. It was after an evening of peeing her pants every twenty minutes. Literally.)

9:00ish...If we didn't get her first pee, she will usually go right after breakfast. Either way, we then have a nice long break from the bathroom. She often goes two hours or more without using the potty in the mornings.

11:00 ish...She will need to go sometime around eleven.

12:30ish...She pees before we sit down for lunch, and then pees and poos right after.

1:00ish...She will pee at least once, maybe twice, again before her nap.

1:30ish...One more pee right before nap.

3:00ish...If I get Nola right away when she wakes up from nap, she will be dry and ready to pee. If I haven't heard her and she's been awake a bit, she has usually wet her pants. We're still doing underwear at nap, unless we're at someone else's house.

4:00ish...She often pees right after eating her snack. Which is sometimes only a half hour or so after her post-nap pee.

5:00ish...In the evenings, we shoot for taking her to the potty about every hour.

6:00ish...We take her before and after eating, as well. She most often poos after a big meal.

7:00ish...potty again.

7:45ish...last potty before bed.

So that's a pretty normal day for us. When you write it down is seems like so much, but it doesn't feel that way during the day. A trip to the potty only takes about two minutes now that she wears underwear. And we don't sit around waiting on her. She goes right away. There are a few times that I KNOW she needs to go, and it will take her a second to calm down and get the job done.

A good suggestion I have followed, and has worked well, is to take her potty at transition times. Before an activity, and then after an activity. Before we leave for Target, right before we start shopping at Target. Again before we leave Target. You get the idea. Even if she doesn't go all those times, somehow I think she knows, "Mommy will take me potty soon. I don't have to pee here in the cart."

So give it a whirl! You may be surprised how receptive your toddler is to giving it a go outside their diaper.

Incomplete

2010-02-04T18:18:00.000-08:00

I'm 27. Shouldn't I be the best version of myself by now?

When I was a teenager, I always thought I would have myself figured out by thirty, for sure! I would have the perfect haircut that really worked for me and an incredibly self distinctive wardrobe. I would have three beautiful children who obeyed my every word and spoke two languages fluently. I would spend my afternoons writing the next great worship song while my babies took long naps. I would have three recordings under my belt, and be working on the next one. My house would always be impeccably clean. And my husband, he would...well...actually, my real husband is about a million times better than the teenage Charity would have ever come up with.

And yet I find myself still flipping through hairstyle magazines looking for that perfect cut. Watching movies and admiring the Heroine's put together clothes and thinking, "THAT'S how I should be dressing!" Wondering why perfect little Nola giggles at me when I tell her no. Wishing I was speaking in Spanish with her more. I haven't written a new song in a VERY long time. (It's so much more work than teenage Charity imagined!) I have not been approached by any recording companies to be the next Crystal Lewis. And my house is messy more often than it is clean. It makes me feel incomplete.

My mom lives five hours from me. I wish everyday that I could see her beautiful face and tell her all my problems. My friend Leslie lives in Chicago, and is one of the dearest friends I have ever had. We do our best through emails, but there's nothing like being face to face. Poo on you, Time-Space Continuum! Not only do we all have pieces of our hearts spread through out the globe geographically, we all have loved ones we've lost, as well. When we lose them, something inside feels unfinished. We have grandfathers who lived long, full self-less lives before we said goodbye... cousins who were taken too early... nieces who lived for nine hours... babies we never got to hold...and even dads who all too soon beat us to the other side. And we will never quite feel the same without them. And we aren't supposed to.

Because there is really only one thing that is going to finish us...and that is the Face of God. This life is like one big, long tease of all the Beauty we will get to behold on the other side. Without inhibitions. Without baggage. Without wishing we were better. Without this haze that bogs us down. This glass we are looking through dimly will finally shatter. And we will see Him. And then...we will be complete.

14 Month Update

2010-01-13T08:32:00.000-08:00

It's way past time for an update, people! I tend to only want to update when I'm on the heels of a new great achievement on Nola's part. Hence, I did NOT want to write an update a couple weekends ago when Nola spent two whole days peeing her pants. I should've updated the weekend before Christmas. We went to Missouri to visit my family and she had her first dry day! She has had some ups and downs since then. Some really good days, and some really bad days.

Nola is now 14 months old. She has been wearing underwear since the middle of December. She has had a lot of "accidents". (We like to call them "misses".) But I just felt we should keep going forward. I think it's paying off. She has spent the last two days with only one miss. It was a poopy one, and she actually finished it up on the potty.

The greatest excitement has been that she now says the word, "potty". She says it very pronounced "Paaaaaaw-TEE!" The first day she said it, we had five successful pees completely initiated and followed through by her. Naturally, it felt like a fluke because she hasn't said it much since then. But every once in a while she will. At this stage we take her every time she says the word. That won't last forever. So far, she hasn't figured out how to abuse this power to get out of things. :)

So there it is! My big girl is doing so well. And I still think I will do this again with the next baby...

Love

2009-11-04T11:37:00.001-08:00

I often get overwhelmed with love for Nola. The latest time was when we took her trick-or-treating. We dressed her up as Boo, the little girl from the movie Monsters, Inc. Everyone thought she was so adorable. She had so much fun. By the third house she had figured out how to take the candy from the bucket, and then put it in her treat bag. When we got home she sat on the floor in the living room for a long time just taking her candy out of the bag and then putting it back in. I sat on the couch and watched her, and was ready to burst into tears of love and happiness.

And then I think of God. "If we love giving gifts to our children...how much more the Heavenly Father." And I think of how He loves me. And wants the best for me. He is overwhelmed with love for me. While I was sitting in the living room adoring Nola, He was on the other end of the couch adoring me. And, again, I'm ready to burst into tears of love and happiness.

Hello?

2009-10-23T12:39:00.000-07:00

Hey, guys. Remember how I have a blog? Well, it seems to have slipped my mind recently. I thought I'd just quickly give a short potty update to get myself back in the groove.

Nola is going to turn one in November! I started elimination communication with her around seven months old, I think. One of her greatest achievements so far has been her weekend at Grandma's where she pooped in the potty every time all weekend! I was so happy and amazed. Pee is still a challenge, but she still goes quite often. We missed a big poop today, but didn't let it get us down! :) It's getting easier as she is getting bigger and more coordinated. She stands more steadily on her own making it easier for me to pull her pants up and down. And she can reach up and flush after she goes. Pretty cute.

I'm still very glad I did this process with her, and feel very hopeful she will be completely potty trained by 18 months. Fingers crossed.

A big shout out to gdiapers! They have been the perfect tool for this stage of potty training.

Teeth!

2009-07-30T13:21:00.000-07:00

Nola is getting her top teeth in. It doesn't look very fun. It's so fortunate that we don't remember the pain of teething. Just imagining hard, white teeth bursting through tender, red gums causes my mouth to hurt. Kind of in the same way that my mouth hurts when I hear the twang of steel guitar in country music. That's what they played at my orthodontist. Since it was the only place I listened to country music for any meaningful amount of time, I now have a very painful memory association with that sound. Sorry, Country Music. You will never be my friend.

Yep, we're still doing it...

2009-07-24T12:32:00.000-07:00

Warning: This post is a little graphic and a hair preachy.

In case you thought I would give up by now on this new, crazy, parenting technique...Nope. We're still going. Why? Because it honestly feels so natural and normal now. We went out to dinner recently and I noticed that she needed to go to the bathroom. So I swept her up quickly and off we went. I held her over the potty and she had a nice big poo. Later, while we were shopping, I needed to use the ladies room so I offered to let her go, too. After I was finished, I held her over the potty and she had a nice little pee.

We have passed the off ramps and there's no going back now. Now that Nola knows she can use the potty when she needs to poo, it feels a little strange of me to make her go in her pants. Can you imagine telling your newly potty trained three year old, "I'm sorry, but I don't have time to take you to a bathroom. Can you just poop your underwear?" I think we'd all agree that would be an unfortunate situation for all involved.

At this point, pee is still a different story. She pees WAAAAAY too much for me to get her to a potty every time, but little by little I've noticed her holding it longer. Today we went grocery shopping. She peed in her car potty before we went in, we shopped for about forty five minutes, and then she peed when we got back to the car. She also holds it more when she is being held, riding in her car seat, and just generally sitting up or standing. She pees the most when we are at home letting her play on the floor on her belly. I swear she pees every five minutes when we stay home all day. Any ideas why that would be?...

Remember, anyone can do this. I have no superpowers. I guess I'm just really into pretending I live in a third world country!

EC update

2009-07-13T10:54:00.000-07:00

We are doing well with the pottying! I say "we" because it is definitely a joint effort. Nola still does not give any signals when she needs to go. At least, not that I recognize. But she seems to do really well with timing. Meaning that she goes almost every time the potty is offered. She has been doing so well today I let her wear some tiny undies while we are at home. As I write this, I had to clean up a tiny little "miss". But it's only the second miss today in a five hour stretch. That seems pretty good. She has not pooped in her diaper in over a week now. She uses the potty every time. So I think we may have that one pretty much conquered.

We have good days, and we have bad days. I never would have thought I would do this...but I'm actually really enjoying this process!

A Singer and a Mom

2009-07-08T11:32:00.000-07:00

We were clapping and laughing and practically jumping up and down with excitement. We couldn’t believe this was happening!

Ryan and I were recently on the radio. We were on KOTK 1420 am Radio Luz, here in Omaha. It was quite an experience because it was entirely in Spanish. We sang two songs and were really looking forward to hearing ourselves on the actual RADIO!!! The program was pre-recorded so we were planning to listen together the following day. I got me and Nola all dressed and ready and we ended up meeting Ry at his parent’s house to listen. It was really exciting to hear our broken Spanish as the program began, and then hear our song start to play. Just as the song started, though, I noticed Nola starting to go to the bathroom. This was when I had just started taking her to the potty and I didn’t want to miss a possible success! So I rushed her to the potty just a hallway away from the radio and sat her on it. I could tell she was going to go so I called Ry and he came running in, too. We could still faintly hear our song playing on the radio, but we didn’t even care. Nola was going potty! We were so excited. She had never used the big potty before. So the whole time our song played, We were clapping and laughing and practically jumping up and down…for Nola pooping in the potty.

I hope that’s a recurring story in our lives. I hope whatever success we achieve with our music…I hope it just becomes the background music to the real story of us cheering on our kids.

A Little Update

2009-07-01T11:15:00.001-07:00

It's gong surprisingly well! Just thought I'd let you all know. I think this time the process is going to stick. Today I took her out shopping and just brought her potty along. She went only once, but I offered every time we got in or out of the car. It sounds time consuming, but I feel it's worth it. She pooped twice this morning at home, and had a nice big poop before nap. This is awesome! Little by little I have less diapers to wash. I'm not sure I would've tried this if I hadn't had that motivational factor.

Oh, yeah. I bought her the smallest little undies I could find at Baby Gap today. I'm going to tailor them for her so when we're at home she doesn't have to be completely naked. I'm going to put a little soaker in them, too. Just big enough to catch one pee.

I'll keep you posted...Nola is going to love this when she turns sixteen. "Well, Sweetie, I never made you a cool scrapbook like the other moms. But I have a whole blog about your poop and pee!"

Hippy Mommy

2009-06-29T09:25:00.000-07:00

I have decided to attempt infant potty training. Go ahead and laugh.

I bought a tiny potty when Nola was only a couple of months old. I had heard of parents who practice “elimination communication”. The goal is to learn your child and know the signals they give before they eliminate. And then put their elimination somewhere besides their diaper. It sounded a little extreme, but worth a shot. I set her on her potty once in a while and she even pooped in it twice. But in the end found it too difficult and stressful to “catch” her sudden, explosive poos. Once she started solid foods that all changed. It became very obvious when she was attempting to eliminate. So one day she was attempting and I thought, “Hey, let’s give it a try!” So I quickly got her on the potty and she went! She went an entire week pooping in her tiny potty, and once on the big potty at Grandma’s house. She did still go in her diaper when we were out shopping or doing other things, and at naptimes she seemed to always sneek one in before I got her up. But when we were home and awake she was a champ!

Pee is a different story. Although she has peed quite a few times in her potty, it’s harder to tell when she needs to go. So today we are experimenting. I have a huge quilt spread out in our living room. Nola is playing and watching Plaza Sesamo with just her onesie on. No diaper. This way I can see when she needs to go. (The cloth diapers I use are amazing and I have trouble telling when she is wet.) And, yes, I’ve already had to clean up one mess. But it was worth it because now I know…it appears she needs to pee a few minutes after she poops. Which I wouldn’t have thought. I assumed she was already peeing in her diaper before I catch her pooping. Lesson learned.

Ryan said to me last night, “You’re kind of a hippy mom.” I guess so. But only a little. I pick and choose my hippiness. Nola wears cloth diapers, but she eats canned baby food. I enjoy the breastfeeding bond, but Nola has slept in her own bed since the day we brought her home. I want Nola to learn to poop in the potty not for the health and well being of her inner zen, but because I’d rather flush her poop down the toilet than wash it out of her diaper!

2009-04-26T19:06:00.000-07:00

What makes sisterhood so wonderful? I was just perusing my oldest sister's blog. I was listed on her blog roll as "my sister, Charity". I felt so proud to be her sister. Aside from my husband, and also my mother, my sisters are my favorite people. Hands down. If someone told me I was going to be trapped on a desert island forever and could only take two people...I'd have mom and Ryan in one hand and Felic and Seren in the other...and there would be serious debate going on in my head.

My sisters have been with me my whole life. (I'm the baby of the family.) When I was five my mom was really sick, and I remember one night Felicity tucked me in and gave me a kiss on the cheek. She became my idol forever. During one very difficult transition from little girl to teenager, Serenity held me while I cried because I didn't want to wear that stupid new undergarment! Idol. Forever.

Maybe it's not the same for everyone. I mean, my sisters are extremely cool. But it's so nice to have someone you're stuck to. Your relationship is forever defined. No matter how you change, or what opinions you make, or what church you go to, or what stupid stuff you do, or what amazing stuff you do...you will always be sisters. That can't change. It's the identity factor.

Here's to sisters!

Mommy-ness

2009-04-16T19:05:00.000-07:00

My daughter is amazing. She gobbled up her mushy cereal for dinner. She went for her first ride on the baby swings tonight, and she peed in her tiny little potty before her bath. She already tells me that she loves me with this sweet little gurgling sound she makes in the back of her throat after she breaks out her nose crinkling smile. It really doesn't take much for me. The way I feel when she does these things is one of the best feelings ever. Do I feel the same way when I see another tiny baby gobble up their mushy cereal for dinner? Not so much. I read in one of my many baby magazines that they have studied women while they look at pictures of babies smiling. Their physiological reactions were similar to that of taking recreational drugs... but only when looking at their own children.

It's an amazing bond, the mother daughter relationship. I've spent twenty six years on the receiving end. Now I'm ecstatic about being on the giving end. Or is it vice versa?...

Picking up Prayers

2009-04-11T19:50:00.000-07:00

I brought my daughter to her first Easter Egg Hunt today. Not just any hunt, though. Easter at my grandparents house has always been a big deal. Every year, rain or shine, sleet or snow, Grandpa hides eggs for everyone in the family. I vaguely recall one year when the eggs were hidden inside, but no one ever seems to remember that one. It messes with our reputation.

Everyone gets an egg with their name on it. No one can leave till everyone has found their egg. And you can't tell if you found someone else's egg. One year all the grown uncles took a turn climbing a tree to see if the egg at the top was theirs. Naturally, Uncle Kenny went last and the egg belonged to him.

This year I was one of the last to find mine. Maybe I was last, actually. I made pouty faces at Grandpa to get some sympathy or some clues. He said to me, "I remember where I hid yours, actually." There are a lot of us. And he remembered where mine was. I could suddenly picture him hiding my egg. Holding that pastel pink, plastic egg in his leathery aged hands. I know he was thinking special thoughts of me as he hid it under a clump of grass by that old tire in the side yard. Maybe he was remembering the first time he hid that pastel pink egg with the name Charity on it, even as he hid another pastel pink egg this year with the name Nola, my daughter.

After so many years of enjoying the fun of finding my egg, getting candy, and occasionally hating the cold he was forcing us to endure... I realized how much more this must be to Grandpa. I'm sure Grandma helps stuff them with goodies, but Grandpa hides them himself. And everyone of us passes through his mind while he takes our egg from his basket to it's hiding spot. Grandpa isn't one for fancy words or deep spiritual discussions. His life well lived is his testimony for Christ. But you should never underestimate the silent type....

Silly me, we weren't just picking up eggs. We were picking up prayers.

This Is For You Mom

2009-03-26T15:29:00.000-07:00

I've always said I'm not a writer. Writing has always been my mom and older two sisters "thing". But I always have something to say. So I'm going to give it a go. Let's just see what the youngest Nickerson Girl has to say...