The Nieto Family

We Plan and God Laughs

2011-09-18T18:57:00.000-07:00

I had the full realization this week that I can plan to my hearts content, but if it's not in God's plan then I am just wasting my time. I will be the first one to admit I am a planner. I love to make lists and organize things and keep a neat calendar, it keeps me sane. Its not that I don't trust God, but for some reason I just feel the need to have everything planned.
A few months ago yall read that Frank and I had decided not to have any more children, but to focus attention on the 2 we have and on therapy for Thomas. We prayed and thought this was the way God was leading us. If I am completely honest at the time I still really wanted to have a baby and my prayer was that if it was meant to be God would soften Frank's heart to having another child. But we agreed right now was not a good time to plan a baby when Lily and Thomas needed us so much. Now I can picture God just sitting up there saying, "You have no idea what I have planned for you!"
On Tuesday morning of this week, much to our surprise Frank and I found out we were going to have another baby. We were shocked, and excited, and overwhelmed! This was a complete surprise to us, but not to Him. He has always had this baby planned for us, just as he had Lily and Thomas planned for us. A baby is a blessing, even when it is not our plan it was His plan from the beginning. And we know that all He does is good.
We are all very excited. This week seems to have gone in slow motion! Lily is so excited to be a big sister and I think she has told every teacher and staff member at her school! Thomas doesn't really understand what is going on, but I am sure he will before the baby is born. Frank and I are also very excited, a little afraid because the kids will outnumber us! For some reason I feel like I am already behind in my planning! Like the baby is going to be here next week or something! Told yall I was a planner! I don't necessarily think being a planner is a bad thing as long as you understand ultimately God is in control. We know God loves us and this baby is a wonderful blessing!

Advocate vs. Enabling

2011-09-09T11:25:00.000-07:00

A week ago I had a very dear friend that gently let me know I was enabling Thomas. I tried not to get defensive because after all I had ask her if I was enabling. I felt very strongly I was his biggest advocate and just making the world just a little more user friendly for him. But in fact I was only teaching him that the rules didn't always apply to him and mommy would always take care of it. I took a week to let this sink in and plan a course of action.

This morning I got up and put my stubborn panties on and T apparently donned his stubborn diaper unbeknownst to me! About 9:30 it was time to leave for the grocery store, not my favorite chore, but it had to be done. I told T he couldn't take his cars or his backpack and needed to put them in his room. Well he quickly informed me he was taking them with him and this is where the fun begins! After about 10 minutes of following me around the house, throwing himself on the floor and screaming he decided he wasn't going to win and decided to put his backpack in his room. I left for the store with a sense of accomplishment, Mommy-1, Thomas-0! Yay, my common sense told me from here on out the fits would get shorter and I can handle a 10 minute fit here and there! So I cockily posted on FB I had won this battle, yay me! Off to the grocery store we go. All the way there I am preparing T that he will have to ride in the front of the buggy, he prefers the back, but I had so much to get that he wouldn't fit. He tells me "ok mommy". Well apparently between the car and the front door he had a complete change of heart! I try to put him in the buggy and he starts screaming. So remind him we are riding in the front, and he loudly squeals like a pig! SO I sit down in the lobby of walmart and tell him I will wait. He screams and cries and I point out every child that passes that is riding in the front of the buggy (and pretend not to see the ones in the back of the buggy!), we talk about all the people looking at him because he is screaming like I'm pulling his nails out and the occasional old man tries to talk to him only to have his volume increased. After 50 minutes of this, yes 5-0 he tells me he is ready to get in the front of the buggy. Once I lift him up he changes his mind and starts kicking, at this point I decide he is going in the buggy. So in he goes and buckled and we pass a little old lady who scowls at him and shakes her finger, I couldn't help but laugh! Mommy-2, Thomas-0 Yay me! So I'm exhausted, but so excited that I have held out. Finally as we are finishing up we get our cookie and he decides 1 is not enough, he wants 3. And back comes the squealing pig! He screamed the rest of the time we are in the store and checking out. Mommy-3, Thomas-0.

So what have I learned from today, he is one stubborn little boy and it is going to be a long road. But there is a fine line between Thomas problems and being a brat. I never want him to use this as a crutch so I have to stop making life easier for him. We will continue play therapy and working with him, but I am adopting a no tolerance policy in my house. All rules that apply to Lily also apply to him. We are not going to work our family around his problems/attitude any longer; we are going to work on his problems so he can be a contributing member of our family. I am sure this is not going to be convenient or easy, but this is what is best for all of us in the long run.

Please pray for us: me-patience, Thomas-obedience

Our Summer Update

2011-07-12T07:58:00.000-07:00

WOW!!! That best explains our summer. It has been crazy around here. Being our last summer before Lily starts Kindergarten we wanted to make sure she got to do things like visit grandma and grandpa in Austin and have lots of fun before she starts school. SOOOO here is our update
Lily: We are very excited that lily is #2 on the waiting list for the dual language program at her school. They will place children in that class up until January. This would be an amazing opportunity for her to be immersed in the Spanish language until 7th grade at which time she will be able to study a 3rd language. Seeing as though more than 50% of our state is Hispanic we believe this is a great way for her to get a head start. We have started purchasing school supplies and this weekend mommy is school clothes shopping, there aren't many choices to make because the kids wear uniforms. Lily visited Austin 2 weeks ago and had a lot of fun. She saw big grandma and grandpa (great grandma and grandpa Zendejas) for jello, played with her cousin Lexi, got to swim everyday, had lots of ice cream and of course Grandmas famous chocolate chip cookies (no worries Patsy, I wont give away the secret ). This week is VBS, she (and I) was a little scared the first day, I bet there were 500 kids in there! But when she got home yesterday she said it was so much fun, she wanted to go back today. Mommy had a little taste of what Kindergarten was going to be like and I didn't like it! At the end of July we are going back to Austin to visit and see uncle Michael who will just have come home from the Army, we are all very excited to spend some time with him.

Thomas: We are very proud to say Thomas is making tons of progress with his therapies. He sees a behavioral therapist weekly and a OT (for sensory) every other week. We have found ways to avoid and defuse about 75% of his fits. His vocabulary is growing by the day (it helps to have a sister that talks 24/7!). He had a dr appt yesterday and even the dr commented that he was doing so well during the visit (this used to be a trigger). Thomas loves cars and the movie Cars! When in Austin Grandma and Grandpa took him to see Cars 2. He has not put down his McQueen car since, he even sleeps with it. Thomas carries a backpack with probably 25 matchbox cars everywhere he goes (it is heavy) and it has replaced his blankey (yea!!!) Thomas is loving the water this summer and will even jump into your arms, just as long as you don't let him go under! Earlier in the summer Thomas got to go to the City of Rowlett's Touch a Truck. He loved it, he got to touch lots of trucks, but his favorite is getting to operate the arm on the trash truck...Oh I am proud!

Pups: We rescued a female Boxer at the end of April, her name is Gracie. She is adjusting well, she really likes to bug her brother. She still needs some training, but is VERY smart. Duncan has improved considerably since his hospital stay. I would say he is better now than before he got sick. He is putting on some weight and even chasing Gracie around the yard. He is learning to sit in his new highchair (Bailey chair), he really hates it!

Mommy and Daddy: We are doing great, busy busy as always!

Hope everyone Else's summer is going as well as ours and I think I am ready for school to start so things can slow down!

Our Fur Children

2011-06-21T09:27:00.000-07:00

I used to say I liked dogs more than people and on some days that is true. Dogs always greet you when you walk in the door, wag their tail and are happy to see you; people not so much. Dog are appreciative to have a home and be fed and played with; people not so much. Dogs are always there to listen and not give their opinion; people not so much! I have been a dog lover since I was about 7 and I got my first dog Dryphus. I don't think any dog can reach the status Dryphus did in my heart. He was a HUGE dog, but so loving and protective. Dryphus lived 13 years, a very long time for a Boxer and when he died it was one of the most emotionally devastating times of my life. Dryphus was a rock in our lives always there and I still miss him.

About 2 years after Dryphus died I was in college, Frank and I had been dating about a year and we got Duncan. He was our first Fur baby. Don't get me wrong things were not always rosy. Duncan peed on my bed almost every day, cried when we left him in his kennel and was difficult to potty train. But after we got through the first year he was a GREAT dog. We have so many memories with him, like when Frank let him fall out of the cart at Petsmart and trying to get "family" photos taken with him, taking Duncan camping and to the park. Everyone loves Duncan, partly because he is a Boxer and people love Boxers, but also he has this sweet dumbness about him!

When I say Duncan has been a great dog I mean truly a great dog. One night when lily was about 18months, Frank and I had gone to bed for the night and closed the door. Duncan was crying at the door, after telling him to go away for about 5 minutes Frank got up to see what he wanted. When Frank opened our bedroom door he was meet with a wall of smoke. Our dishwasher had caught on fire. I ran up to get Lily, thankfully everyone was fine and there was minimal damage to the house, but I always wonder what would have been if it wasn't for Duncan. In the past few years Duncan has been company to me when I am home with the kids, he always alerts me when the kids are doing something that is not safe. He really is a great dog.

About a year ago Duncan started having problems eating. Every time he would eat he would regurgitate his food. He lost a lot of weight and we decided a trip to the vet was needed. They did xrays to find he has Mega esophagus. This means his Esophagus (the tube that carries food to his tummy) does not constrict and take the food from his mouth to his tummy, it just sits in his esophagus. We found a homemade diet that sort of worked, but it was better than anything we had tried. Last week Duncan found some raisins (which are toxic to dogs) and began vomiting, when this was happening he aspirated some of the vomit into his lungs and developed Pneumonia. He was in the hospital for the weekend on nebulizer treatments, oxygen and antibiotics as well as IV fluids. He come home on Saturday night and was still very sick. Frank and I discussed at what point do we say this is enough and let him go. Over the next few days Duncan improved, we have found a food that is working great. He gets spoon fed 3 times a day and then has to be held upright for 20 minutes following being fed. We are working up to 20 minutes (he is not crazy about this) we are at 10 minutes now. He is on 5 different meds and hopefully when we go back to the vet next week his lungs will be clear. Life with a dog with Mega esophagus is very difficult, they could aspirate at any time, Duncan has problems with water so I make him gelatin out of chicken broth and water. This is similar to what a stroke patient would get so they don't aspirate. We have already decided that we will give Duncan the best care he can get at home, but we are not putting him though further testing, treatment or hospitalization. Some dogs live their whole lives with this disorder, some don't make it through their first bout with Pneumonia.

We have prayed that we will not have to make the decision to put him to sleep, I know it would be very difficult and I would carry a lot of guilt from it. We hope when the time comes Duncan can go peacefully and not in any discomfort. He has been such a great dog to our family and I know we Will never be able to replace him.

Homemade Doggy Food

2011-06-02T10:41:00.000-07:00

When most people find out I make my own dog food they think I am nuts and that my dogs are spoiled, the first is not completely true, but the latter is! I started this journey of making dog food about 6 months ago and it has been a journey. Duncan was diagnosed with a fairly rare problem with his esophagus that causes him to regurgitate all storebought food. The truth is he ate a hobenaro plant when he was a puppy and it permanently scared his esophagus...I know hes not the sharpest tool in the shed! So we started experimenting with different recipes and this is the one we have finally after 6 months perfected.

3 cups rice - you can use all white all brown or mix. brown rice is better for them, but mine will not eat all brown rice so I mix it half and half with white rice

27 eggs

4-12 oz cans of chicken packed in water

2-16 oz bags of frozen peas and carrots

optional

10 cups of puppy food (more on this later)

In one large pan put all 27 eggs and cover with water boil for 12 minutes. while the eggs are boiling put 3 cups of rice, 6 cups of water, 2 TBS of butter and some salt in another large pan and bring to a boil. Once boiling cover and turn down to low for 18 minutes. DO NOT OPEN THE TOP!!! While the rice and eggs are cooking I take the chicken and shred it, be sure to save the water it is packed in, you don't necessarily have to shred it but Duncan has a hard time with chunks so I do. When the eggs finish boiling transfer them to an ice bath immediately. The begin peeling, this is the most time consuming part of this recipe. When the rice finishes, turn the burner off and put both bags of veggies and the water from the chicken in and stir well. Once you are finished peeling eggs you can just slice or chop them up and throw them in the pan with the rice and veggies. At this point I have to take 1/2 the mixture and put it in the pan I boiled the eggs in. Then add 1/2 of the chicken to each of the pans and mix well. At this point your dog food is done.

Recently Duncan has been losing weight so we have started adding some puppy food to the mixture to get some weight on him, so I consider this the bulk up recipe! You would just add the 10 cups of puppy food and then 5 cups of water to the recipe. The water helps to soften the dog food. That might not be necessary for your dog unless they have problems with dry food. Another reason you might add the dog food is if you are transitioning your dog from regular food to homemade, you could slowly add less and less dog food in until they had straight homemade food. It upsets their tummy less.

So here is the cost breakdown, keep in mind I buy most of the ingredients from Costco so your cost might be a little different

Regular recipe

Rice - $1.00

Eggs - $3.00

Chicken - $6.67

Veggies - $2.00

-----------------

TOTAL $12.67 and makes approx 24 cups of food. This feeds my 2 boxers for 3.5 days

Bulk Up Recipe

Rice - $1.00

Eggs - $3.00

Chicken - $6.67

Veggies - $2.00

Puppy Food - $4.50

---------------------

TOTAL $17.17 and makes approx 31 cups of food. This feeds my 2 boxers for 4.5 days

Most of the experimenting stage came from determining how much food they should eat a day. There is lots of information out there, but my vet told me without having the food tested for nutritional content there was not for sure answer, you just have to experiment. The guidelines say approx 1 cup a day for every 20lb your dog weighs. This is just a guideline it also depends on activity level and the stage of life they are in.

Some things I have learned along the way:

Onions, Garlic, Grapes, Raisins, Chocolate and Caffeine are all fatal to dogs

Dogs do not like cold food, you have to nuke this for a few seconds

It is easiest to put this mixture into Ziploc sandwich baggies in serving size portions

You look really silly walking out of Costco with 12-18ct cartons of eggs every month!

Sometimes your hubby gets a little upset when they he is having a sandwich for dinner because you are making dog food!

Let me know if you have any questions; there is lots of recipes out there, this is just what works for us. We also add a multivitamin to their food just to make sure they are getting all the nutrients they need. SO at a cost of a little more than $110.00 a month; this is probably not a cost effective way to feed your dogs if you have large dogs, but this beats the heck out of cleaning up dog throw up all the time! :)

Yummy Yougart - For Ms Breanne

2011-05-27T18:38:00.001-07:00

My kids eat yogurt like it is going out of style. I was spending about $6 - $10 a week on yogurt before I decided to try making my own. To say I was a little intimidated would be an understatement . To my surprise (and the hubby's) it was a success. The first batch was a little runnier than we liked, but with a few adjustments we came up with a recipe that was easy and worked really well.

I have had a few friends ask for the recipe so I thought I would take some pictures and blog! Also I will include a price comparison at the bottom.

Things you will need:

Large pot

8 cups of milk or approx 1/2 gallon

yogurt starter

candy thermometer

powdered milk (optional)

sugar (optional)
flavorings (optional)

1. Pour 8 cups of milk into a large pot. Attach candy thermometer so it is in the liquid but not touching the bottom of the pan.

2. Add 1 cup of powdered milk. The powdered milk is optional, but it does make a thicker yogurt and adds to the protien content of the yogurt. Turn the burner on low, I usually put it between 3 and 4. Whisk until all of the powdered milk is dissolved. At this point you can add sugar. Homemade yogurt is very tangy if left unsweetened, but some people like to add honey when they eat it. I add about 3/4c of sugar to the milk and stir.

3. No is the waiting game, you have to bring the milk SLOWLY to between 185 - 200 degrees. I say slowly because if you burn the milk you have to start over. I have never had a problem with putting the burner on a low setting and stirring occasionally (about every 1-2 min). I usually take this time to do dishes or something else in the kitchen. It takes about 20 minutes for this step.

4. After you reach 185 - 200 degrees you ill take the pot off the burner and let it come down to 118-110 degrees. I am not a patient person so I pot it in an ice bath. Run some cold water in your sink, throw some ice in and put your pot into the sink. Watch carefully and stir occasionally, it takes about 5 minutes for the temp to come down.

5. Once the temp is between 118-110 degrees take approx 1 cup of the milk and add your starter. I used Dannon all natural plain greek yogurt. After your first batch you will take 1 cup of your yogurt and set it aside for your next batch. Mix the starter and milk well and then add back to the pan, mix well. The purpose of the starter yogurt is to add the good bacteria needed to make the yogurt.

6. Put a lid on the pan and wrap in a blanket. Put this in an over with the light on for between 6-12 hours. This is where you have to experiment and see what you and your family like. The longer you leave the yogurt the tangier it will get. It will also get thicker. My kiddos don't like it too tangy, but they do like it thick so I have added a step. We remover ours between 6 and 7 hrs.

7. take out your starter for next time and add any flavoring you like. Our favorite right now is lemon, but the sky is the limit. Some choose to add flavoring as they put it into individual cups so you can make a variety at one. Whatever works for you!

8. Line a colander with coffee filters or cheese cloth and set over large bowl. Now pour in the yogurt, it will be runny. This step drains the whey off of the yogurt and makes it much thicker. I put mine in the fridge for this step because I don't want it to get any tangier. Usually between 3 - 5 hrs later it is the right consistency for me. Remember if it gets too thick just add some of the whey back in and mix well.

9. We divide into small containers for lunches and ENJOY!!

I know this seems like allot of work, but its really not. About 20-30 minutes of actually watching and stirring occasionally and the rest is waiting. As for the cost comparison:

Store bought Yoplait - $0.50 per serving ($0.40 if I have a coupon)

Homemade

milk - $1.50 for half gallon

powdered milk - $1.00 ( this is about $3 and enough for at least 3 batches)

sugar and flavorings - i don't use enough to figure into cost

TOTAL $2.50 and I get about 10 containers = $0.25 a piece

My Little Man

2011-05-20T13:00:00.000-07:00

I know I know I haven't blogged in forever. I think I am the worst blogger ever! Oh well sometimes I feel the need to blog about something and I figure that means it is especially important and may potentially help someone. So here is my blog about my little man and our learning to live with each other.

Thomas from the time he was put in my arms has been a mama's boy, I don't know what it is about little boys, but I definitely did not have the same bond with Lily. Don't get me wrong I love my Lily, but for different reasons. I love her because she is independent, creative, she doesn't just believe what someone tells her, she asks tons of questions, she is smart and beautiful and oh dear her teenage years are going to be trouble. I love Thomas for almost exact opposite reasons, he is loving, he is needy, he believes whatever his sister tells him and does everything she does, he is very OCD and sometimes a total mystery to me. Why you ask? Because I am Lily, I know what she thinks, is going to say or do before she does it, which is why raising her has been ...... well not easier, but less challenging. Trust me when I tell you it is not easy to look into the eyes of a 4yr old that just told you off and KNOW you did the same thing while trying to explain why we don't behave that way! But Thomas is a different kind of challenge.

We have spent the better part of the last year trying to figure out what we (Frank and I ) are doing "wrong". It all started on day last May when T woke up from his nap screaming and inconsolable. After about an hour of trying to calm him I take him to the pediatrician to see if maybe he has an ear infection or something that is causing him pain. We get to the dr office, he is still screaming, the dr checks him over to find nothing wrong except his pulse is sky high. After having another dr come in to assess him they send us to the emergency room for a CT scan to look for a specific problem. On the way to Lakepointe he calms down and seems to be fine upon arrival at the ER. We go ahead and go in because this was such an ordeal I am convinced there is something going on. They decide against the CT scan, but do a blood draw to look for infection....NOTHING. No diagnosis, just watch him and if this happens again bring him right back....REALLY?

At the time I had no idea what was going on, but in hind sight I can tell you this was the beginning of our battle with losing control of our emotions. I didn't realize this until a few months back because from last May until October/November we didn't have any "moments" that were abnormal for a 2 yr old. Then around the end of last year and the beginning of this year these moments increased, significantly. At first, being the strong willed person I am, I decided I was going to WIN, yeah right....I got over that quickly. Like one of my dear friends told me, "you cant pick every battle." Oh she is very right! So we decided on specific rules we were not going to let go; no running in the street, no hitting, ect. You know the big ones! And then we let the other little stuff slide. We thought we will deal with those things once we are past this phase. So lets fast forward to March. I am at a friends house for the day and Thomas starts one of his moments over a peanut butter cracker being stuck to the top of his mouth....yes I am serious, and it lasted 2 hours. I am not exaggerating and had it not been for my friend being there I am not sure we would have all made it thought the day! After that day, these moments became a regular occurrence in our house. We were all walking on egg shells all the time.

In March at the recommendation of our pedi we contacted Early Childhood Intervention for an evaluation. They evaluated Thomas to see if he had a speech delay that would prevent him from communicating what he was upset about. They found a slight delay, but nothing that would prevent him from accurately communicating with us. They offered therapy every other week to help in the areas that needed some work. His behavioral therapist (i call it anger management for toddlers) has been able to make suggestions that have helped T relieve some of this tension. We were seeing improvements and becoming very hopeful until this week.

I am not sure what happened, its like a switch flipped and he digressed. This was so frustrating, we decided again to take him to the dr and make sure nothing was causing him pain. Everything checked out so we decided to talk with the dr about what we should do. She gave us a few suggestions and we have an evaluation scheduled for Sensory Integration. This seems to be the next step, I am unsure how I feel about all of this.

I have a very close friend who has been through this very thing with her son who is now in Kindergarten and thriving. I feel that God brought her back into my life after 8 years for a reason and this is it. She has been there to hold my screaming baby that is covered in vomit, she has reassured me and made recommendations, I really don't know if I would still have my sanity without her!

Thomas continues to be my baby, he always will be. We just have to figure out how to get a handle on his emotions and feel things the way he feels them. Our goal is to have this under control before he goes to Kindergarten.

Interestingly enough a few months ago Frank and I were considering having another baby, we prayed about it ALOT! The one thing that kept coming to mind when I would pray was the word disability. I told Frank about this and really forgot about it. We decided later that 2 was enough for us. Then it hit me this week, God was not telling me that the baby we were praying for would have a disability he was telling me the child I already had did and he needed all my time and attention.

I am going to try and be better about blogging, to keep everyone up to date on our family.

Panic Attack....What I'm Not Stressed!

2010-11-12T10:26:00.000-08:00

As some of you know I started having panic attacks a little over a year and a half ago. For about 9 months we had no idea what was wrong with me and of course my imagination took off with that! We thought I was pregnant, had salmonella, was hypoglycemic, having heart problems...you name it! Of course this didn't help with the panic attacks. Finally after the Dr ruling out most of my "self diagnosis" and Frank urging me I finally saw a therapist. This was not completely out of the blue, I have also been diagnosed with anxiety (whole other post!) and we thought maybe a recent switch in medication was the cause.

So I go to this therapist, and she thinks I am having panic attacks. The first thing out of my mouth was I am not stressed and whatever is happening is real not in my head! Then we start discussing my eating habits...what does this have to do with anything? So I tell her I drink 3-4 diet cokes a day, have a very big sweet tooth and usually skip breakfast I know not the best diet in the world and apparently the worst diet for someone that is predisposed to panic attacks! SO she tells me cut out ALL caffeine, any of you who know me probably don't want anything to do with me pre-diet coke in the morning! Also eliminate most sugar, WHAT now I am feeling stressed! And make sure you have breakfast with a protein and carb in it...I have never eaten breakfast. At first I am thinking, I know more than her, this is ridiculous, I am not going to stop eating sugar and drinking diet cokes! It only took one more attack for me to change my tune. It took me a little over a week to completely give up caffeinated diet coke, I would like to thanks Frank for not leaving me during this time! The sugar part was hard and I still eat a little just not a bunch at once. Started eating breakfast, usually peanut butter on a graham cracker. And miraculously I went from having attacks 2-3 times a week to having one every 3 or so months! Maybe the Dr did know what she was talking about!

So for a little info on panic attacks and what they really are. They are an unprovoked release of adrenaline and other hormones due to your fight or flight instinct. Only problem is when you are not in danger and this happens you feel VERY sick. Some people think they are having a heart attack, I never personally felt any heart palpitations. Others feel lightheaded and nauseous, this was me. So a lot of people who suffer from panic attacks also develop a fear of public places. They are afraid that they will have an attack in public and everyone will know their little secret, so they don't go anywhere. Can you imagine how debilitating that would be.

I was fortunate enough to be able to quickly identify my target, large crowds. SO the combination of the foods I was eating and the places I was going or planning to go would put me into a panic attack. I am very fortunate to say I was able to get a handle on my problem as soon as we identified the trigger. I now don't fear going out to eat, family gatherings or stores. It is still amazing to me how a release of a hormone at the wrong time can make you so sick!

If anyone is interested I have a good resource on panic attacks.

Meal Exchange

2010-11-09T06:28:00.000-08:00

Freezer cooking never worked for me. I could never carve out a day to only cook, plus the thought of all those dishes just did not appeal to me! About 2 weeks ago one of my friends suggested we do a meal exchange. Everyone cooks 3 of the same meal and we all exchange so we end up with 3 different meals. This has been great, that means 3 nights a week dinner is already half way done! Now if you are anything like me I severly dislike reheated meals, so these meals are not cooked, they just have to be put in the oven and some have to be put together. Below are the meals we have made the last 2 weeks, it has really been a great time saver for me.

Chicken Vermacelli

This is what is included in the bag
1 box of thin spegatti broken into smaller pieces
2 large chicken breast seasoned, cooked and diced
3-4 cups of shreaded cheddar

What the cook has to do:
boil the noodles
layer the ingredients
pour 1 cup of milk over
cook at 400 for about 30 minutes

YUMMO! and it takes alot less time because the chicken is ready for you!

Layered Beef Enchiladas

This is what is included in the bag
1lb of cooked seasoned ground beef
1- 19oz can of enchilada sauce
1 small can of chili (no bean)
2 cups of cheese
tortillas

What the cook has to do
combine chili and enchilada sauce
layer all ingredients
cook at 400 until bubbly

Another easy dinner. Confession: since I got married I have not rolled enchiladas, I always layer them! My MIL said that is how she always cook them so that makes it ok in my book! :)

End of Year Resolution

2010-11-05T12:20:00.000-07:00

Truth be told I hate New Year's Resolutions. You might as well take the thing you are lease likely to do because NO ONE follows through with these! But for lack of a better phrase here are my goals (End of Year Resolutions) for this year.
1. Make homemade biscuits. I have wanted to do this for a while, but I am very intimidated by this. With that said I was also very intimidated by sewing, making bread, canning and making jelly...so this to we will try.
2. Finish 5 blankets for Project Linus. I have 2 done and I just started the first week on November. Project Linus is a non profit that gives handmade blankets to children in the hospital. These kids are going through the unimaginable and I hope that a small gesture from a stranger will brighten their day.
3. Finish Christmas shopping by December 17th. So the deadline for this is a little before the end of the year, but I want to enjoy Christmas and my birthday so this WILL get done.
4. Find ways to let Lily my artist express herself. She has become quite the artist and I would like to find a way for her to be able to show this to others. Maybe I just think she is great because I am her mother, but she is a better artist than me (not that is saying alot!)
5. Take the kiddos to see ICE at the Gaylord. I have wanted to go for the last 3 years, but due to price, location and the crazy holidays it has not happened. This year is Charlie Brown and they have an ice slide that Thomas will thing is soooo coole. So this year we will go!!!
Guys hold me to this, I have to make these public so I will do them..Hopefully an update after the first of the year!

Pictures, pictures, pictures

2010-10-28T15:35:00.000-07:00

I was going through some pictures on my phone and discovered I take some of the most random pictures. So I thought I would share a few....

My sleeping obsession:

In my defense this is the only time he is still enough to get a picture

My bathime obsession:

yes this is what happens when mommytakes Thomas out of the tub and he is not ready!

Bathtime is so much fun in our house, how can you not take pics...(they are going to kill me when they get older!)

And then there is Lily who is the camera hog in the family.

And finally my favorite picture on my phone are you ready..... drum roll.....

This is what happens when you dont get a little boy dressed fast enough after a bath... do you see the hiney print?

me, domestic....NAH!

2010-06-02T18:00:00.000-07:00

I never really thought of myself as a domestic person. My goal in college was a degree in Theatre and move to NY and Stage Manage or possibly tour. Not really the domestic stay at home mom you pictured, I never would have imagined the person I am today!I think it all started when I met Frank (sure why not blame this on him!). When Frank and I started dating I started experimenting with cooking(the way to a man's heart is through his tummy, right?). Mom had taught me to cook, but I had never really done it all on my own. Frank was always a good sport, in fact I dont think he would have told me if something was awful! By the time the kids born I have a good hold on cooking and started baking and decorating cakes. Unfortunatly this has fallen by the way side due to our families busy schedule. When I stopped working I started trying to do SOME things they way they used to be done. For example we have made our own cleaners, laundry detergent, diswashing detergent, I bake bread on a regular basis, make our own pizza dough(YUMM), bake from scratch, grown a garden, cloth diapering, sewing, quilting, knitting (this went terribly wrong!) and the latest making jelly. It is comforting to think I am doing soemthing the way my great grandmother did it 75 years ago. The homesteading movement is very interesting to me. There are some very interesting families out there that are mostly self sufficient. They have chickens for eggs, grow their own produce, raise their own beef, all natural cleaning, make their own clothing, ect. Some of the things I want to try are; making soap, canning, grinding our own wheat, bigger garden, hanging clothes to dry and if I could talk Frank in to it I would have a chicken for eggs! I could never go full into the homesteading; I can't go anywhere without my blackberry, must check facebook 200 times a day, have to get my nails done and I am not really that into raising a cow I know I am going to eat!

Always take your keys with you.

2010-04-29T11:22:00.000-07:00

Well I knoew eventually it was going to happen, I got locked out of the house. I was in the backyard water the tree (trying not to kill it!) and I left the door open. Well Thomas really likes to close doors, I dont know why. He closes the door and I dont think much of it and finish up outside. I go to open the door and it is locked! I peer inside to see Thomas standing next to the door with a giant grin on his face. So I have a decision, am I going to get mad, because I really want to, or do I try to coax him to unlock the door. I chose the latter. I try to convince T to unlock the door and he tries, but gets frustrated and throws himself on the floor....not helping my situation! So I go to head around front and oh no the lock on the gate that prevents people from getting into the back yeard is not preventing me from getting out. So i fiddle with it and eventually it is open, it wasnt really locked in the first place just rusty (whew!) I run around front, thinking about how the toilet seat is up and what if T gets into it..... I try the front door hoping that it is not locked (even though I know it is), no luck. SO I open the garage and check for the key we leave in the freezer for situations like this....nope not there. I start to panic, I say a little prayer and try to open the door from the garage to the house.....and it is UNLOCKED!!! I wasnt sure at this point if I was a mad at T, not that it would have done any good! Then I decided it would make a good blog, so as long as something good comes out of it then I am OK! Lesson learned never walk out the door without my keys!

Mommy and Daddy's Quiet Weekend.

2009-10-20T18:54:00.000-07:00

Frank and I took a trip to Amarillo this weekend, in fact this was the first overnight trip we have taken since the kids were born. It was so quiet, no crying kids, 7:30 wake up calls or middle of the night visits!
Amarillo is probably not the most glamerous place to visit, but I remembered how much I really enjoy it. The weather was beautiful, 40's and cool in the morning and would heat up to the 70's during the day. We drove around with the windows down the entire time. It is so flat up there, I swear you can see for miles. The sunsets are amazing, I can't even explain it.

We of course did the touristy stuff and visited Cadalliac Ranch, had to take pics for Lily. We also went to the TEXAS office to get souvineers. But the main reason for our visit was to see the new Performing Arts building on the West Texas A&M campus, it is amazing! We also got to see Fiddler on the Roof starring one of our professors from college. Neither of us had ever seen the show, but it was great. We visited the bookstore, ate in the old food court and walked campus. Things have changed so much since I graduated just 5 years ago. It is pretty amazing.
It was nice to get away and get recharged, we both missed the kiddos 2 days was a perfect amount of time. We need to do this more often, not only for us but also for the kiddos.

Shopping...Shopping...Shopping

2009-08-03T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well I had another great shopping trip today. Walgreens is running some great deals on Ragu and Skippy if your family eats either one. I ended up paying .25 for each. I had to buy 8, but we will go through it. I also ended up getting poptarts for .25 a box, which is great. Here is how it worked

(4) Ragu $2 each
-(2) $1 on 2
(4) Skippy $2 each
-(2) $1 on 2
-------------------
$12
-$10 Register Rewards
-------------------
$2 for all 8!

(4) Poptarts $2 each
-(2) $1 on 2
(2) Cheese-its $1 each
-(2) .75
--------------
$6.50
-$5 Register Rewards
--------------
$1.50 for all 6!!

(2) Fruit Loops $2.50 each
-$1 on 2
--------------
$4
-$2 Register Rewards
--------------
$2 for 2 ($1 is the most I will pay for cereal)

I did 3 transactions so I could use some of the Register Rewards today. ( I lost $14 worth of Extra Care Bucks for CVS the other day so I am going to roll my transactions from now on so I don't have a chance to lose them again!)

Kroger was a good shopping trip today as well, I saved 58%. Too much to list, but always check the managers specials. I got yogurt that will not expire until the 15th for .29!

Shopping Success!

2009-07-12T17:28:00.000-07:00

So I did really well at CVS and Walgreens this week, so I thought I would share how I did it.

CVS
(3) Paper Mate Grip 8 ct Pens
regular 1.99
sale .99
-.99 ECB = FREE
(2) CVS 1 subject notebooks
regular 2.79
sale .99
-.99 ECB = FREE
(1) CVS blunt tip scissors
regular 2.99
-2.99 ECB = FREE
(2) CVS rulers
regular 1.50
sale .99
-.99 ECB = FREE
(2) Electrasol Power Tab Dishwasher
regular 5.89
sale 3.99
-2.50 coupon = 1.49
(4) Colgate kids toothpaste
regular 2.99
sale BOGO
-.75 coupon = .74 each
Gilette mens razor
regular 11.99
sale 7.99
-3 coupon & 4 ECB = .99
(2) Twix
regular .89
- .89 coupon = FREE

I also had $20 in ECB from a previous transaction from CVS, so total I paid $1.44 and got back $14 in ECB for my next trip

WALGREENS
(3) Listerene Mouth wash
regular 3.49
sale 3/$9
-(3) $2 coupons & $3 RR= FREE
(2) Mead Envelopes
regular 1.29
sale .59
----------
(4) huggies wipes
regular 2.79
sale 2.50
-(3) .75 coupons =7.75
(1) huggies diapers
regular 11.99
sale 10.00
-1.50 coupon = 8.50
+when you spend $20 on Huggies items you get $5 RR so
total between these 2 items
=16.25-5 RR=11.25 for 1 diaper and 4 wipes
----------
(4) Blue Diamond Almonds
regular 3.49
sale 2/ 3.59
-.50/2 coupon = 1.55 each
(2) Dove Trail size deodorant
regular .99
(2) Dove body mist
regular 4.29
-(2) .75 dove deodorant
-(2) buy deo get mist free
=both deo and mist for 2.50 (there was a limit of 3.29 on the BOGO coupon)

I had $2 in RR from a previous purchase + $25 for transferring a prescription!
I paid 1.19 out of pocket and received $10 in RR!

Great Shopping Trick

2009-06-22T19:22:00.001-07:00

I did so well at Target and Kroger today. I got everything in the picture for less than $40. Woo-hoo. Frank has been asking for "man body wash" for a while, he is so excited. My savings at Target was round 80% + I have a $5 giftcard for next time. My savings at Kroger was 61%, this is the first time I have broken 50% there!

Hair Cuts All Around

2009-06-22T09:08:00.000-07:00

This weekend was haircuts for all which included T's First haircut. We went to Sharkey's in Rockwall and they did so well with the kids. It was worth the overpriced hair cut to get someone used to working with kids. I dont have any pictures, I was to busy bribing the kiddos with m&m's, but mom does and if I can get them I will post. T got the classic little boy cut, sooo cute. Lily got hers cut into a bob just like mommy. She looks so grown up with this hair cut, but it is so cute on her.

Why oh why...

2009-06-12T07:14:00.000-07:00

SO I am laying in bed asleep last night about 11:00 and the smoke alarms start going off. Not just one all of them. So I frantically get up and ask Frank, "DO you hear that?". Yeah I know stupid question, but I was half asleep. Frank checks the house to discover there is no fire so we call the alarm company. After being on hold with the alarm screaching in my ear the kind lady informs me this is not an alarm event, but one of my smoke detectors battery is low. SERIOUSLY do they all need to go off if one has a low battery??? So we scower the house looking for a culprit. We change the battery in the one causing the problem and decide we had better do them all while we are at it. We change all the batteries and the alarm stops going off continusly, but every 5 minutes or so it alarms for about 30 seconds. So the hunt is on again. We find one of the alarms does not have the light on showing that its battery is good, so we changed the battery out and no luck. So Frank decides to unplug it from the celing and the alarm stops!!! YEA...silence. At this point I am relieved, but guarded. If I go to bed and this thing goes off again it is going to piss me off! So I stay up for about 30 min (now 12:30) to make sure that fixes it. It did, so I am off to be.
Dont get me wrong I am glad we have smoke detectors, we have needed them before, but do they all need to go off when one of their batteries are low? And why does it alway seem to be the middle of the night when it happens?

Walgreens & CVS Deals this week

2009-06-08T18:33:00.000-07:00

This week was really good at CVS and Walgreen's, this is what I did.

CVS
(2) Dawn dishsoap @1.00 each
(2) .25 coupon
= 1.50 & recieved 1.00 off next purchase (.25 each)

(6) Always pads @ 3.00 each
(3) 1.00 coupons
=15.00 & recieved 6.00 off next purchase (1.50 each)

(8) Degree Antipersprent & Deo @ 2.50 each
(4) .75 coupon
(3) 1.25 coupon
=13.25 & recieved 10.00 off next purchase (.41 each)

(1) Gamer Rasor @ 7.99
(1) 4.00 coupon
=3.99 & recieved 4.00 off next purchase (FREE!!)

TOTAL
spent $33.74
saved $47.69
$21.00 off my next purchase!

WALGREENS
(2) Oscar Mayer Bacon @3.99 each
BOGO
(1) 1.00 coupon
= 2.99 (or 1.50 each)

(2) Blue Diamond Almonds @ 3.49 each
sale price -3.39
(2) .50 coupons
= 2.59 (or 1.30 each)

Mars Candy Deal
Snickers .89
Twix .70
Milky Way .80
Snickers .79
Twix .80
M&M .69
Total before coupons 4.67
(3) BOGO coupons - 2.18
sale price -1.67
=.82 (or .14 each)

Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder 3.49
(1) 1.00 coupon
=2.49 & recieved 1.00 off next purchase

TOTAL
spent $7.89
saved $15.43
$1.00 off my next purchase!

Family Updates

2009-06-04T14:17:00.000-07:00

OK I have been informed (by someone to remain nameless) that I am the worst blogger EVER! I know sometimes life just gets us sidetracked. So I thought I would give a quick update to all of this interested.

Lily: Miss Lily is doing GREAT, she is so smart (sometimes too smart). She is very into swimming and has informed me (because she usually does not ask) she needs swimming lessons this summer. Which is great because she is completely fearless. We are having so much fun on our break before summer session starts. Next week she will be in Austin with Grandma and Grandpa, hope they can keep up. Lily is very proud of her garden (although mom does all the work). Ask her about it sometime, but make sure you have about 30 minutes, she is a talker!

Thomas: Oh my can this baby get any BIGGER??? He is growing like a weed and is a very active little boy. He has started pulling up and toddleing around objects, but once he is up he is scared to sit down! He loves playing with his sister (mostly going into her room) and getting into things Mommy doesn't think he should have! We still only have 2 teeth, but it is not slowing us down we eat everything mommy, daddy and Lily have for dinner.
Mommy & Daddy: We are doing well, Frank will be taking a trip to Amarillo & Roswell in July to see a friend. We are taking Miss Lily to see Dora Live in July (but shhh dont tell her).

Duncan: Cant forget Duncan, he is good. Thomas loves to play with him, usually his tail which I find disgusting, but Duncan just takes it in stride!

I promise I will make an effort to blog more often.

Reusable Bags

2009-05-24T13:53:00.000-07:00

I finally drug out the sewing machine and dusted it off to make these reusable sandwich and snack baggies to replace out ziplocs. Below is a picture of the first set. They are really easy to do and you can use whatever fabric you think is cute. Lily picked this one out and she is giving it to Aunt Cindy tomorrow for having us all over. (Paybacks for all the "cute" things Griffin gave us when he was little) I totally expect her to use them!

Bread Making Success

2009-05-05T11:54:00.001-07:00

Well the bread making was successful! In fact I am making another batch today. You can see some of the steps below.

The first picture is the wet and dry ingredients separate.

The second picture is of the Kitchenaid doing the kneeding for me (love the Kitchenaid).

The third picture is the bread after the first rising.

The fourth picture is of the bread in the pan before the second rising.

The last picture is the final product. I have also included the recipe I used. It was yummy!

Homemade Wheat Bread

1 C warm water
1 TBS milk
2 TBS oil
2 TBS honey
2 TBS brown sugar
2 ¼ tsp (or one packet) instant active dry yeast
1 tsp of salt
1 ½ C all-purpose flour
1 ½ C whole wheat flour

In large mixing bowl combine first 5 ingredients. Sprinkle yeast on top and gently stir to mix. Let sit for 15 min
Sift together salt and both flour
Attach dough hook to mixer and turn on lowest speed. Slowly add flour mixture until dough ball forms and pulls away from side.
Turn mixer to speed 2 (no higher) and let kneed for 5-8 minutes
Take dough out of bowl and kneed a few times by hand
grease mixing bowl with 1 TBS of oil.
Shape dough into ball and place in bowl. Turn ball to fully cover in oil.
Place damp towel or plastic wrap over bowl and place in over with light on. (Do not turn the oven on.)
Allow dough to rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Take dough out and punch down
Kneed a few more times by hand
Shape dough into loaf place in greased and floured loaf pan
Return to oven and allow to rise for another 30 minutes or until 1 inch above pan.
remove from oven and preheat to 350.
Bake at 350 for 30 min. It is done when you tap the top and it sounds hallow
Allow to cool on wire rack

Yummy Hand Scrub

2009-05-03T10:50:00.001-07:00

I found a handscrub online and decided to try and make it. Oh my, it is yummy. I love it and it is all natural. I think this is going to make wonderful Mother's Day gifts, if I can wait that long to give it away. Below is the recipe, try it I think you will love it!
1 1/2 c sugar
1/3 c Kosher salt
zest of large lemon (you could do any citrus)
1 c of Olive Oil (cheap stuff)
10 drops of orange essential oil (optional)
mix together and store in a jar. This recipe makes about 4 small canning jars.

What Happened To The Old Me?

2009-05-01T14:49:00.001-07:00

I am beginning to wonder if Frank is thinking, "What happened to the person I married." I don't think he is thinking this in a negative way, just curious. Lately I have suprised myself at the things I am trying out and enjoying. BTW, this is all Anna's fault for getting me started with cloth diaper (JK, love ya Anna!)
Actually it all started when I decided to make T's baby food. People ask me all the time why I do this. It takes very little time, maybe 2 minutes every few days and seriously I would not want to eat that stuff out of a jar. Don't get me wrong we buy jarred baby food, but I make everything I can fresh and he loves it.
Then came the cloth diapers, suprisingly easy, fun and GREEN! This is my new shopping addiction, I think Frank has figured out it is probably not less expensive than disposibles.
Then I started thinking of other things in our house that were not so green. From that came the laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent and all the other cleaners followed. The cleaners really made me feel good about what I was doing. There is a sense of accomplishment every time I get to walk by the cleaner aisle at the store and not buy anything.
Now I find myself researching 2 different things, one making my own soap and the other is making my own bread. The soap issue come from T and I haveing sensitive skin and I want to find another fun use for my essential oils. When I started researching the soap it seems very time consuming, so for now I think I am going to buy some natural soap (I found some I think I am going to like alot). The bread thing I have wanted to try for a long time. I think it would be fun, but I have to admit I am a little intimidated. I am going to conqure it this weekend, I think. Dont hold me to that!
Now that I have gotten completely off topic, I know I have changed alot in the past 9 months. You could have never convinced me a year ago the things I would be doing now and the fulfillment I get from it.

My Wrinkle

2009-04-29T14:41:00.000-07:00

I am devestated.
At the age of 20 something (did you seriously think I was going to post my age for the world to see?) I have a wrinkle. I thought only old people with kids and bills and a mortgage got wrinkles.....oh yeah I guess I am one of them.
I pray that I can age gracefully and accept the changes!

AH-HA Moment

2009-04-25T08:44:00.001-07:00

I had an Ah-Ha Moment and a well duh moment this week. I had a shirt of Lily's that had a stain (if I had to guess spegatti sauce, her fav) so I washed it in 3 differnt detergents and tried spray and wash, nothing worked. We have this problem often with Lilys shirts, but this was a really cute one her Grandma just bought! So I gave up until I could think of something else to try. I hung it out to dry, in honor of earth week. When I went to get it from outside the stain was almost unnoticble. In fact I am probably the only one that could find it. I was so excited! Then it hit me duh the sun.
When I started cloth diapering I leared that the sun will bleach almost any stain out and you don't have to put harsh cleaners next to your babys skin. If it is a really bad stain a little lemon juice will help the sun along. So it makes sense that it works on clothes as well.
So I guess this is just another added benefit of drying your clothes outside!

Detergent Update

2009-04-22T13:31:00.001-07:00

OK
I know you have all been on pens and needles wondering about my homemade detergent and dishwasher soap.
WELL (DRUMROLL).....
Laundry - No problems. It cleans just as good as Tide. I have not used this batch on T's clothes yet because I made it with a strong soap. I am making a batch this weekend with Ivory soap because I will be able to use it on all his stuff. I have not tried the vinegar for softner yet because I am in the middle of a bottle of Downy, but as soon as it is gone we will. I do miss the smell of Tide, but I am going this weekend to get Orange Essential Oil to add to my detergent and cleaning products for a clean scent. Also in honor of Earth Day (or Week in our house) we are not using our dryer (the biggest energy sucker) unless absolutely necessary. We are drying all of our clothes outside!
Dishwasher - Same result, no big problems. I did notice a film on my glasses, but I also noticed my Jet Dry was empty. So I have refilled it and that solved the problem. I also have not tried the Vinegar in the dishwasher as a rinse agent, but as soon as my jet dry is gone we will try that as well.
So Far So Good we are going to try household cleaners next. I will post recipes as I find and try them.
HAPPY EARTH DAY!

Lily's Being Creative

2009-04-20T09:27:00.000-07:00

Last week when I told my friends I don't let Lily use scissors they looked at me like I was crazy, so I decided to try. She loves it and it keeps her occupied for 20-30 minutes.

Of course she can't cut with her mouth closed! It's genetic.

Our Peas Have Sprouted

2009-04-20T09:20:00.000-07:00

We are so excied our peas have sproted, I am glad to see my hard work is starting to pay off. Of course Lily says it is her garden even though she didnt want to help plant it! Oh well. Anyway here are some pics of the garden so far.

Cracked Me Up

2009-04-17T14:51:00.000-07:00

Yall have to read this- An open letter to the people in the fashionindustry who design clothes for grown women.

http://rocksinmydryer.typepad.com/shannon/2009/04/an-open-letter-to-the-people-in-the-fashion-industry-who-design-clothes-for-grown-women.html

I Bet You Would Have Never Thought!

2009-04-16T13:18:00.000-07:00

I bet any of you that have known me for long would have never thought I would cloth diaper a baby or make my own cleaners.
Well these two thinks kinda have to do with one another. Once I started washing T's cloth diapers I starting having some problems with his little tushy breaking out. (I am sure he is going to kill me for this when he gets older!) Anyway so I have tried many different detergents "espically for sensitive skin babies" and no luck. So I started researching how to make laundry soap hoping I could identify what was making his booty red. I was VERY suprised to see how easy and cheep it is to make your own. I also realized that you can make ALL the cleaners you need for your house out of 6 different items (Washing Soda, Baking Soda, Borax, Vinegar, Bleach [never combine the two!] Dawn). So I am giving it a try, why not right. So for any of you that are interested here are the recipes I am trying first. I am starting with what I think are the most used and most expensive cleaners in the house

LAUNDRY DETERGENT
1 bar of soap (Ivory, FelisNepal, or something without oil or fragrance)
1 c of Borax
1 c of Washing Soda
1 c of Baking Soda
Mix all together and use 2TBS for a load of laundry or 1TBS for a load of diapers

DISHWASHER DETERGENT
2 c of Borax
2 c of Baking Soda

Really that is all. For the Fabric softner in your wash you will use white vinegar. You can put it in a Downy Ball or in the Fabric Softner dispenser. And for the Rinse Aid (Jet Dry) in your dishwasher you also use white vinegar.
This solves multiple problems for me. 1. I have 3 different laundry detergents I am using now (one for family, one for T's clothes and one for T's diapers). Not only does this drive me nuts, it sets us up to put the wrong thing in the wrong load and that causes problems! 2. I have to say this is better for the enviroment. 3. It is much less expensive, depending on the soap you use the laundry detergent is between 2-5 cents per load compared to 20 cents per load for Tide. 4. I don't have to keep a thousand different cleaneds on hand for cleaning day.
I have a realization I have come to recently, I think we make things difficult for ourselves. We have to have the bigger house, the more expensive cars, the name brand stuff.... And in doing this we HAVE to work, we lose time with our families because we have to work those hours to pay for things we WANT. If there is a silver lining to the recession thing I think it is that more families are spending time together, grandparents moving in with their kids and helping raise their grandchildren, and basically getting back to the way our Great Grandparents did things. And that was what I was trying to get at (before I got on my soap box!) I want to get back to a simpler way of doing things, the way it was done before all the short cuts.

Thomas' First BAD Habit

2009-04-10T14:30:00.000-07:00

I am sure this is the first of many, but Thomas now bangs REPEATEDLY on his tray when he wants more food! It is drving me NUTS! Then he smiles and lays his head on his shoulder when I give him the look. Oh he has me wrapped around his little finger. :(

If I Had Just One Wish

2009-03-29T18:22:00.000-07:00

If I had one wish it would be for a 3-day weekend every weekend. It seems on Saturday there is always family obligations (ex: birthday parties, clothes shopping, house cleaning ect.). And on Sunday I have to get all the grocery shopping, still cleaning (yes I clean almost every day...I have 3 messy kids!). I wish I had just one more day to spend resting. Yes I am sure this day to would become full of To-Do's.
We had alot of fun this weekend. T cut his first tooth, but does not like anyone looking at it. I will post a pic as soon as he allows me to take one! We had Colby's 1st Birthday on Saturday. On Sunday I got up early and went grocery shopping, the store was EMPTY! It was great. I love going when it is quiet (I actually caught myself singing to the store music a few times) and the grouchy ladies aren't trying to get you to hurry up. I did good at Kroger this week, I saved 47%!! I am proud of myself. After the store I made T's food for the week, Frank got a hair cut and I went to CVS (saved 98% there!) and Walgreens (saved 55% there). After a 2 hr attempt to get Miss Lily to take a nap, I decided it was a lost cause and took her to Lowe's with me.
We went to get some flowers to plant in a pot to put on the back porch, we came hoem with alot more. Every time a turned around I had 3 more things in our buggy and Lily kept telling me "we need lots of flowers mommy" We ended up with Red-tipped Photunias for the backyard along the fence, 3 Gerbera Daisy's for a planter in the front and a Asiatic Lily for the back porch. Of course while we are shopping we had to take a trip to the potty and Lily announces while we are in there, "Mommy your big booty is coming off the potty." Thanks Lil!
So overall it was a good weekend, not so restful, I guess that is what tomorrow is for...oh nope, tomorrow is laundry day :(

San Fransico

2009-03-12T08:47:00.000-07:00

Per "Uncle Dexter's" request here is my perspective on the San Fransico trip.
When I was in high school uncle Dexter and aunt Cindy said they would take me to San Fransico and the only requirement was I could not eat chicken nuggetts or a hamburger the entire time I was there. This was ALL I ate as a teenager (and sometimes now)! So in the airport we sat down for our last hamburger at Chili's (Sissy's Cafe). The trip was long, I think I lost 10 lb. There was noting I liked to eat. At the time I didn't eat Seafood(still don't), Chinese or Italian. So I was pretty much out of luck. One day for lunch Cindy snuck me out for a burger at a restraunt, I think she was afraide I was going to starve! But I did try something new at that meal, Yucka Fries. They are actually really good. One night we all went to a hole in the wall Italian restraunt and there was NOTHING on the menu. I was almost in tears. The chef came out and asked what I like and made something special for me! I am not sure if it was the starvation or if it really was the best grilled chicken pasta I ever had!
Anyway I survived the trip and San Fransico is still one of my most favorite places to visit, just without all the restrictions!

UGGGG Nap Time

2009-03-10T13:37:00.000-07:00

How is it possible that I need a daily nap and my 3 year old does not seem to think she needs to?
Is she too old to be taking a nap? This isn't only a nap issue, but nightime issue as well. We put her to bed at 7:30 (always have) and she is staying awake until 10:00 sometimes!!! This is past my bedtime. Then she is back up at 7:00 (that is 9 hrs) and she doesn't think she needs a nap....Is she CRAZY!?! All the research says she needs atleast 12 hrs asleep at night. And I can tell she still needs a nap because at 3 or 4 in the afternoon we have a total breakdown.
I dont know what to do, I can't duct tape her eyes shut!! I hope somone out there has some insight...PLEASE HELP!

Ohh The Things Kids Say

2009-03-04T15:06:00.000-08:00

I have to share this story with yall it is the classic embarrassing parental moment.

We are standing the the check out line at Babies R Us this afternoon and the is a man with an eye patch behind us. Lily says "Look mommy, there's a pirate." I was so embarrassed. I apologized to the man and he jokingly says "well I kinda look like a pirate." I am so relived at this point that the man has a sense of humor!

A Wonderful Weekend

2009-03-03T13:49:00.000-08:00

I had such a wonderful weekend.
Frank was so nice to keep the kids (one of which was sick) all weekend so I could go to Austin with the girls. Not anything too exciting. We went to a cake show, ate at some really good restaurants (no Dexter I did not have Chicken strips the entire time), and did some shopping in Saledo. I think the best part was no one asked me for anything all weekend, tugged on my leg, asked me to prepare food or change their diaper!
I know it probably doesn't sound like much, but it was very rejuvenating. Monday I noticed I was more patient with the kids and enjoyed the little things that usually irritate me. Without Frank I never could have done this, I love that Frank is a true partner which allows me to get some time away.

Story Time at the Library

2009-02-24T11:46:00.000-08:00

Story time at the library was more than frustrating today.
On the way to the library I find myself going over the way we should act with Lily. No yelling, sit on the rug during the story, don't climb all over the librarian, you know the norm! Lily agrees and repeats it all back to me so I know she understands.
We get to the library to discover it is all about Dinosaurs today. Yeah Lily's favorite so it should be a great day, right. She will sit attentively and listen to the story, right. NOPE! Not two minutes into the story time the librarian has Lily in front of her and says maybe you would rather sit in mommy's lap. (because she was trying to climb all over the librarian.) So I have her come to me and sit in the floor next to me, but she can't see. She promises me she will sit still on the rug during the remainder of the story so I allow her to go back up to the rug with the other kids. A few minutes later I realize she is playing along the walls where they have flowers painted. I think to myself ," at least she is not being disruptive" and in an effort to pick my battles I don't say anything. A few moments after that I realize she is playing with the librarians buttons and name tag while she is trying to read. The librarian doesn't acknowledge her, but Lily does not lose interest she continues now playing with the books and the white board. That was it. I walk up there with Thomas in one hand, who by the way is screaming because his bottle is not warm enough, and try to get Lily to come with me so she is no longer disruptive. But she has another idea, she is not going. She plants it on the floor and shakes her head no with a look on her face "I want to see you make me in front of all these people". I give in because I know I can not make her do anything at this point. We finish the story mostly sitting and listening, but then it is time to leave. Except Lily is not ready to leave. So she stands her ground in the middle of the Children's center at the library (thank goodness we were in the Children's area so I was not so concerned about her yelling). I tell her I am leaving and she says NO! So I turn and go to check out the books, without her. She thinks I am leaving so finally follows screaming "I don't want to go, I don't want to". We get to the car and in our seats and then she asks if we are going to lunch with our friends. We weren't because some of the mom's had other obligations, but she didn't know that. So I decided to use this as a opportunity to show her we only get to do fun things when we behave. So I tell her no we are not because we did not behave during story time. She begins to scream, I am surprised someone did not think I was killing her! I ask her if she understands why we can not go eat and play with our friends and she tells me because she did not sit and listen to the story and she bothered the librarian. SO SHE DOES UNDERSTAND!!! So why does she do this. She continues to scream most of the way home, which is ok because now she is taking a great nap!
I would not be surprised if we were asked not to return to story time!

Granny Barnett Would Be Proud!

2009-02-19T12:23:00.000-08:00

So for those of you who were never lucky enough to meet my Granny Barnett she was a feisty little lady that didn't take sh%$ from anyone. That has little to do with this, but she also lived through the depression which made her a compulsive hoarder!
Some other mom's I work with have gotten me started doing this thing called the grocery game. Basically you cut coupons and this website tells you when to use them to get the best deal. When you get a good deal you stock up on stuff so it holds you over until the next cycle of sales.
So I get home from CVS last night with a bag full of stuff. The shelf value is $45.00, I paid $25 and received $23 in store cash to use next time I got to CVS. So really it cost approx $2! I start putting the new treasures away to realize I have accumulated 10 tubes of toothpaste (we will never have bad breath again!), 10 different shampoos (our hair will smell good too), 5 deodorants (no BO!), 5 toothbrushes and some other misc things. It made me think of Granny Barnett :)

Lily's Green Thumb

2009-02-16T15:59:00.000-08:00

Lily definatly did not get her green thumb from me! I am actually very suprised my children are still alive, but they cry when hungry and plants don't.
Our Roma tomatos began to sprout on Saturday night and they actually have leaves today! We are so excited about our garden this year. It reminds me alot of Papa & Granny Barnett. In fact we planted purple hull peas just so we could sit on the back poarch this summer and snap them. I still remember the garden at their house and picking veggies in the summer time. Unfortunatly living in the city (yes Forney qualifies as a city) my children will never experience the real thing, but we will get as close as we can.

I Can Do This!

2009-02-12T11:34:00.000-08:00

I am starting to feel more comfortable being a Stay at Home Mom. It took a few months, but I think we have most of the kinks ironed out.
When I first considered staying at home, I had this idealistic picture of things. Much like June Clever. House cleaned, Dinner on the Table, Clean well dresses kids, Make up and Hair done all in time for hubby to be home from work. Boy was I mistaken. It has taken a few months for me to get comfortable with the fact that things will not be this way and it is ok. I am home to be with my kids not to be the maid. Don't get me wrong, I pick up the house as the day goes, but be real when you have 2 kids that are home most of the day we are doing good just to clean up the messes we make not to mention the ones that already existed. We do have a rule about getting up and getting dressed in the morning, except for Monday's which are our Pajama and Laundry day. Dinner, this has been a hard one for me. I will always think that dinner as a family is extremely important. As a child we all sat down to dinner together and it was our family time. So I still strive to get dinner on the table by the time Frank gets home, but there are days that someone is hungry or sick and our schedule gets out of wack.
Hubby has been wonderful about this, I think he knew from the beginning it was not going to be the "June Clever" house when he got home.
We are however getting to do things we have never done before. We planted our first garden last night. Well we started the seeds last night. Lily is so excited. I am fully expecting the Jalapenos to be growing in the Petunias! It is so hard for little fingers to put those tiny seeds where they belong! We are also trying to be more "Green". I know this is the word of the year right. I do think it is important to leave the Earth better than we found it. I am not going to push my ideas on anyone, but we try as a family to recycle, use reusable bags and such and the newest is using cloth diapers. I know YUCK right, but you would be surprised how much like disposables they are. The only thing you have to do extra is wash them. Anyway, this is exciting to me (thanks Anna for talking me into it!). And they are too cute. We also go to story time every week and we are checking out books from the library. We have a play date once a week with our friends from Mother's Day Out. We also are going to Open Gym twice a month to get all our energy out.
So I am beginning to get more comfortable with my new role. Thanks to a few special friends who have adopted me and made me get out of my house. I don't think things would be the same without them.