Wednesday, September 30, 2009

boys and baby gap (shoes).

I suppose I should first start by saying that I am in the minority. I am in the minority because I think I may be one of the few people on this planet who thinks that boys clothes are more fun to buy than girls' clothes.

This may be why Lacey will still be mistaken for a boy on many an occasion. I just don't totally get into frilly pink okay?

But I digress. I always, always, always, find the best deals on shoes at Baby Gap. Can anyone else attest to this?

Here are some finds....



Sandals for Miles, for next summer. $3.99.



Boots for Miles. $3.97


SNOW BOOTS. Do you know how hard it is to find snow boots this small?
$2.97


And I couldn't pass these up! $2.97.

He only owns 4 pairs of shoes, and these are them. Just to be fair I've got a couple of pairs for Lacey too....


These sweet fall Mary Jane's were only $4.99. Size 7, so still a tiny bit big, but will work with thick socks.


And I just snagged these the other day. $2.99. Perfect for next summer.


Sunday, September 27, 2009

un-freaking-believable.

As if there weren't enough ploys and marketing scams on the market for new (or seasoned) mothers. Enfamil needs to go ahead and come up with something like this:


Enfamil Restfull- designed to digest more slowly so your baby stays full longer and sleeps longer.

Umm.....okay.


We all know that breast is best. It is. I'm not even going to go there.

But I, like many mothers, feed my baby formula, my own choice, but also dictated by medicines that I take. Formula is already a multi-million dollar industry, and so let's just ignore the absurd idea that they now want you to buy a special formula for nighttime.


This disgusts me and I hope Enfamil rethinks and pulls it.

First, since when are young babies supposed to be sleeping through the night? They are supposed to wake up and eat for many reasons. Secondly, why on earth would you want to give your baby something that is designed to digest more slowly, something that will be more difficult on their little tummys (and what on earth did they add to this to make it digest more slowly, I don't even want to know)?

If your baby isn't sleeping though the night a special formula won't solve your problems.

Being patient with them and loving them, will.

Any thoughts?

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Playdates.

In case you're not aware, playdates are for Mom's.

They are not for kids.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

this and that.

We found a place to rent. I love it. It's in the neighborhood we want to be in, has 3 bedrooms, remodeled kitchen and bath, attached garage, wood burning fireplace, french doors in the living room, wood floors, free laundry, and tons of storage. Oh and its a tudor (I am slightly obsessed with tudors). We are just waiting for our applications to come back. Oh and she is very flexible on lease terms, meaning that we can still look for our own place come spring, if we want to. THIS makes me happy.

Therefore we decided not to buy right now. We can't find anything anyway. I am way, way, WAY, too busy with school to remodel. THAT is the truth.

Miles isn't falling asleep on his own well anymore. He is chewing on everything. THIS can only mean one thing....teeth. Hoping they come through soon.

Lacey is now a fan of Dora the Explorer. I must admit, this was my own doing. I kind of forced it on her, but i am SO, SO, SO sick of watching Finding Nemo. I was desperate okay. There is nothing wrong with THAT.

Friday, September 18, 2009

short sale update

the price opinion came back high.

$31,000 higher than our offer, which is what the bank takes as Gospel, so they countered our offer at the price opinion.

It's too high for us, considering the house needs work.

Funny thing is, they want us to counter or accept by Monday or they have to "de-activate" the file. I find that VERY rude since we have been waiting on THEM since May.

Grrrr.

It may be off the table. We may counter back and meet them halfway. We don't know.

I am going back and forth, questioning whether or not I could even take on a remodeling job like that right now (or ever), 2 kids who need constant interaction/supervision, hours of studying etc.

But then we KNOW that we can walk into that house, without lifting a finger, and re-sell it for $30,000 more, and obviously we could make more money if we do some work.

You can't say that about many houses in the market right now.

I will update when we make a decision.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Name ONE thing...

1. You use everyday...
Coffee pot. It's the first thing I use everyday.

2. You can't live without...
Can I name just ONE? Okay...my Contigo vacuum insulated mug, because it keeps coffee hot for 6 hours, and since I don't have a spare second to sit down and relax in the morning to enjoy it, that is a very good thing.

3. You should be doing right now...
HOMEWORK. or watching Jay Leno's new show...


4. That makes you happy...
Babies that sleep through the night

5. You'd wish you'd learned earlier in life...
That I like accounting and should have gotten an accounting degree off the bat instead of a psych degree.

6. That you did today...
I changed FIVE messy diaper. Jealous?

7. That you think you could eat everyday for the rest of your life...
Jelly Bellys...except if I were pregnant because then they make me sick. So I guess I would have to say cereal.

8. That completely stresses you out...
Not knowing where we will be living in 6 weeks.

9. That you miss...
newborn babies (but I don't miss the eating every 2 hours, up all night, waking up crying and not happy, part)

10. That you wish you were better at...
RUNNING. Maybe not better at running itself, but better at getting my butt out for the run!

Your Turn!

Monday, September 14, 2009

road to recovery

we found out what was wrong with Lacey.

double ear infections.

and a ruptured ear drum.

OUCH!

Thanks to an oral antibiotic, we are finally on the road to recovery.
Let's all run around crazy like and give a cheer!

Sunday, September 13, 2009

7 MONTHS!


I'm Miles and I am 7 months old today!

I'm quite the little guy. I sleep through the night...usually, sit all by myself, and I am trying desperately to get on all 4's. My arms keep giving out though!

I don't have any teeth.

I wear size 3 diapers.

I am about 19 pounds and 29 inches! I've almost tripled my birth weight.

I am so big that mommy and daddy put me in a big boy carseat and I am much happier.

Some of my favorite things to do are watch my big sister, go on walks, swing, and put things in my mouth. I especially love to eat. I've never turned down any food.

I still like to spit up though...

Friday, September 11, 2009

little boys

It seems like everyone is either pregnant or having a baby. In fact, just yesterday I know THREE people who gave birth. Whenever someone I know has a baby it gets me thinking about my own deliveries. Especially my little boy.

My pregnancy with Miles was almost identical to that of Lacey's. I craved the same foods, was disgusted by the same foods, was terribly, terribly sick, and on and on. I was pretty sure I was having baby girl #2. And then, on September 27th, 2008, I found out differently. I was having a BOY.

I was scared. Like really, really scared. What on earth was I supposed to do with a boy?

On February 13th, 2009 at 3:42 pm my 7lb 3.5 oz baby boy came
(and quickly, like 1 push quickly)
into this world


and i found out right away that boys aren't scary.
BOYS ARE WONDERFUL.
I am so blessed to have a boy. Not any boy, but MY BOY,
my sweet little guy, who gets about 5,000 kisses every day because he is so darn cute and wonderful.



and he is 7 months old on Sunday. Growing up way, way too fast for his mom.
And I went from thinking "What am I going to do with a boy?" to
"What on earth would I do without a boy."

Thursday, September 10, 2009

my little girl

This little girl is pretty special.


She's very helpful when it comes to watering plants.

She acts like she wants to eat a cookie,
before deciding she isn't a chocolate fan.
Just like mom.

And she's pretty classy. She does lunch in
downtown Minneapolis.

right by Target Corp.

She thinks Target is pretty cool.
Just like mom.

But then one night she was up.
all.night.long.
SCREAMING.
This special little girl got sick.
Wear pajamas all day sick,

nap in the car with our face covered up sick.

fall asleep on the couch during
sesame street sick.

But today, after 5 lethargic days, high fevers, and not eating,
she is better. 90% better.
Mom is happy.
like REALLY, REALLY, happy.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Rounding the Corner...



23 months down, 1 to go, until Lacey turns 2 on October 8th!

Woohoo! I must say that I am excited to say that I have a baby and a 2 year old, rather than a baby and a 1 year old. Because that just sounds so much worse!

We celebrated her 23rd month by staying indoors/traveling home, with a very feverish little girl. It actually made the 4 hour drive home from my parent's house much more manageable because she slept for 3 hours of it. The sickies hit her on Saturday night. She was fine all day, went to bed and woke up about 2 hours later in hysterics. Well we had the pleasure of staying up with her almost all night long. She slept from 2-4 a.m. and that was it. Thankfully Miles slept all night long so we at least had that going for us. Also, thankfully I was with my parents so my mom and I took shifts. I was with her from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m. and then my mom was with her from 4 a.m. until 6:30 when she coaxed her into their bed and she slept until 10:30. It was a long night and an even longer weekend. She seems to be doing better now, but the fever comes and goes. She had a cold last week and then it turned into this. Blech.

At 23 months Lacey is quite the character.

First of all, she is extremely, and I mean extremely shy. This got bad in the last month or so. Clings to me for dear life whenever anyone she doesn't know looks at her, gets annoyed with other kids at the playground, and has a good memory if anyone does anything to scare her.

She has quite the vocabulary/memory. Knows all animals, big and small, and their sounds. Can recognize about 1/2 of her letters, and can also give me their sounds, she can count to 10...sort of.

Her favorite food is Cheetos Puffs from Trader Joes. That girl could eat the whole bag if I let her. And even in the midst of her sickies, she has asked for cheetos...

Lacey can recognize herself in pictures now. It's funny to hear her refer to herself by name. If she is trying to get my attention (or Dad's), she will call us by our names as well.

She loves showing things to Miles. 'Miles do you see the swing?' 'Look Miles a big ball.' Etc.

Sleep: Zero Issues. Sleep has never been negotiable in our house. Naps for 2-2.5 hours a day and sleeps 12 at night. Bless her.

Loves Nemo, and has declared she wants a Nemo cake for her birthday.

I have no idea how big she is...maybe 26-28 pounds and 34"?? She's pretty tall. Too tall for 18-24 month clothes, but too thin for 2T, even with the adjustable waist. I can't imagine how they'd fit without a diaper on.

Potty Training- She will go in the potty when we ask, but I haven't made a big deal about it yet. I am going to do the "Train your child in a day" approach. I've had friends with lots of success with that. I'll probably wait until closer to Christmas, or after we move.

Friday, September 4, 2009

5 things i can't do without.

Kristen at Wivlihood asked us to name the 5 things we just couldn't do without. Here we go!! (in no order).

1. My Down Comforter- i love down comforters. a lot. i've been sleeping with them for years and would never, ever, go without.

2. Super Target. Enough said.

3. Mac Book Laptop. I am on my laptop constantly. This one is almost 3 years old though, so I am thinking a new one will be in order soon! Working on getting this one backed up before it goes belly up.

4. Coffee- and not just for the caffiene. I love the taste and I love how good it tastes on a cold morning or drinking a latte on a fall walk : )

5. My last one is a toss up between a garage and air conditioning. We all know about my lack of AC last summer and how that just about did me in. But going without a garage in MN is pretty brutal. I'll just tell you that digging out your car/chipping ice off the windows at 7 am, in the pitch blackness, when the temperature is below freezing, isn't much fun.

your turn!

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Day in the Life.

Baby Bunchers Unite! I was challenged to describe a "typical" day in the life of 2 under 2. Here we go! Lacey is 23 months (almost) Miles is 6.5 months.

7:30 a.m. I am up. Babies #1 and #2 are still asleep. Amen.

7:33 a.m. Lacey (#1) is up.

7:36 a.m. Miles (#2) is up. Let the day begin.

Breakfast: First I make coffee for myself. Then I feed Miles while the coffee is brewing. He went 12 hours of sleep last night, so he is acting starved. Lacey is asking me if she can watch Nemo. Miles finishes eating, I load up my coffee cup. Next I change both their diapers. Lacey cries because she doesn't want to take off her "pink nammas" I don't care, she can keep them on. Miles is puking all over the place, but that's normal. He just does that. So, breakfast...give Lacey a bowl of yogurt and granola. She eats about 1/2 of a bite and says "all done mama" Are you sure? Try to eat another bite. "no mama, all done" Fine. I can't get this girl to eat breakfast. ever.

Kids are happy, so its general play time. I am talking on the phone, making beds, etc. They both have colds, because when one gets it, they both get it. You can't get past that! Constant sneezing and nose wiping today. Change 2 more diapers (of the messy variety).

I have an appointment to get my tires balanced. So I head on out, thinking this will take about 15 minutes. Wrong. I get there and go inside. First Lacey starts throwing a fit because she is scared of anyone who looks at her. She has a vice grip on my hand and will not let go. I am holding Miles and trying to pay the guy with my other hand. Not working so well. Lacey is crying, very loud. Then I ask the guy, how long will it be? Oh about an hour. WHAT. AN HOUR? I have no food with me and Lacey won't tolerate being in the waiting room, so I ask for my keys back to go get the stoller out of the car.

So, where do we go for the next HOUR. Well the only places within walking distance are Home Depot and Kwik Trip (gas station/convenience store). Perfect. We go to Home Depot, Its about 10:45 so I figured we can waste about 1/2 an hour there.

We left Home Depot at 11:02. Somehow walking through there with a stroller and whining kids doesn't work. Miles is at this point missing his nap.

Now its getting close to lunch and I of course didn't bring anything because this was supposed to be a 15 minute appointment right? So I go to kwik trip, get Lace a hot dog and a smoothie and she downs it in record time. Then I notice my car is done! Hooray. We are out of there!!!!

Home. 2 more diapers. Now since lunch is out of the way for Lacey, I just need to feed MIles, put him to bed and then put lacey to bed and I will have a glorious kid free couple of hours. Lacey decides she needs to practically sit on me while I am feeding Miles and putting him down. He doesn't go down easy, but does fall asleep. Lacey doesn't go down easy either, because she keeps coughing. 20 Minutes later Miles is up screaming! Are you joking? Go get him, play with him for a while and then he is fussy so put him back to sleep. Now they are both sleeping. Finally.

I do homework.

Lacey is up, change diaper. Husband comes home. Miles wakes up, change diaper.

We went out to eat. Everyone did just fine. Miles was a little fussy, but he's 6 months old so attention span is short. Then we went to whole foods and Lacey found cheetos, which we just had to have.

Came home, change diapers. both kids were SO CRABBY. Put Nemo on for Lacey. Tried to keep miles content for a little bit longer. Too lazy to give them baths. Threw them in bed (okay no we didn't). Mike put Lacey to bed, I put Miles to bed. 2 more diapers.

Mike made cookies. and I ate 3 cookies.

Folded 4 loads of laundry.

Watched 2 re-runs of the office.

Did some more homework.

Went to bed!


I changed 10 diapers. I would say that's on the low end of average. Usually its 12-14. That isn't cheap (or fun). But we were on the go a lot.

Your Turn!

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Mom?Wife?Female?

If you fall into one of those three categories, I'd love for you to take this survey and then leave me a comment, letting me know you did. I love to learn more about friends. Thanks to Rose at Growing Colin
This survey, my friends, is the ultimate mom/female/wife survey. Okay, ultimate might be a bit extreme, but these questions are not hard to answer.

1. Do you cook every night?
No. I don't cook. Can but dont.

2. What kind of laundry detergent do you use & why?
Tide Free with Tide in wash stain booster packets. I'm not sure why, but it does a good job at getting the clothes clean.

3. Do you do laundry every day or loads at a time?
Oh, Lord I would do it every stinking day, but I have to pay $2.50 a load, so I save it up and fill those loads to the brim. I can usually make it so I do laundry once a week.

4. How often do you eat out per week?
Never ever for lunch. It's too stressful trying to keep both kids happy on my own. We probably eat out in the evening 3 times a week or so.

5. Where do you usually eat out?
Noodles & Co, Big Bowl, Chipotle, Punch Pizza, Turtle Bread, a lot of times we'll stop at Whole Foods and snag some stuff a la carte.

6. What is your favorite retail store?
Super Target tops the list, it's a one stop shop. Otherwise I love IKEA if I have time to browse, Peapods, Gap, or Old Navy.

7. What's your favorite thing to drink?
Coffee/Lattes/Izze

8. Do you take vitamins? What kind?
No

9. What percentage of the household chores to you do?
Probably 50%. I do the surface-y day to day chores...keeping the kitchen clean, vacuuming, making the bed, laundry etc. Mike does the deep cleaning things, floors, bathrooms, etc. Not an arrangement, just what we fell into.

10. Do your children do chores? {Or will they, did they, etc}
They will! For now her only chores fall into the line of natural consequenses...if you dump your mac and cheese all over the floor then you go get the trash can and pick every piece up. We are working on learning how to pick up our toys and also putting away toys before we move on to the next thing. Both Lacey and Miles will certainly have chores we expect of them.

11. Do you go to church?
yes, River Valley Church.

12. Do you have a housework schedule?
In my head.

13. Do you keep a working budget?
Again, in my head.

14. What do you do at night as a family?
Mike is usually home around 4, so we usually have 3.5-4 hours before bedtime. We usually spend that time running errands (have I mentioned that its a log of work getting places on my own with the two of them?), taking walks, or going to the playground.

15. How do you prepare yourself for a new week?
Write down each days and the things/schedules that need to be accomplished on each day. I also have a calendar that I have on the wall that I review on Sunday nights.

16. What do your mornings look like?
Get up, MAKE COFFEE, feed the kids, get the kids dressed, play for a while, put on a video during Miles' first nap to keep Lacey occupied. Then I take a shower/get ready. If we go running (few days a week) then after they are dressed we head out. Miles naps in the stroller.

17. What time do you get up in the mornings?
usually 7-7:30, but really it depends on Miles, which is anytime from 5:30 on. Lacey is usually pretty predictable at 7:30.

18. What time do you go to bed at night?
10ish

19. How do you manage all of the paperwork that floods into your household? {bills, school work, magazines, ads, etc}
Bills- Paperless, except the occasional random paper bill which gets mailed and out the door promptly.
School work- take it out when kids are in bed, put it away when I go to bed.
Magazines-throw em when I am done but runners world is the only one we get so its not bad.
No newspapers/ads/etc.

20. How do you keep your household organized? {calendars, charts, etc}
Basically just a family calendar that I review daily.