Thursday, May 31, 2007

WARNING! This post is really RANDOM!

I won't have time to write a whole post today since having company (which is pretty brave of me considering the state of the apartment! I guess the blog has helped me to turn over a new leaf: total transparency and embarrassing openness!) but I thought I'd just jot down a couple of updates.
First of all, on the discipline front, you know that the timeouts didn't work and the spankings didn't work, but a combination of the two seems to be working pretty well. He gets a timeout and if he gets out of the chair then he gets a swat with "the spoon". I call it the "hello-Supernanny-meet-Dr.Dobson" method. I guess that getting out of the chair and making your Mama crawl under the table to get you 700 times isn't as much fun if you get a spanking every time!
Secondly, I bought myself a Mother's Day gift and it's good! It's a new crockpot and not only is it BIG, but it's the fanciest crockpot I've ever seen! And when I say that it's fancy, I don't mean that it's digital or has a timer or any of that useful silly stuff. Oh no! My crockpot is GORGEOUS and RED!
Ok, that was going to be all but something funny just happened. Isaac got a little toy Thomas with a track for his birthday (more on that later) and just now the track came apart and Isaac asked me to fix it. (Incidentally, he's recently gone from calling Thomas toot-toot to calling him Thomees to now actually saying Thomas. I love it!) So I go over to fix it and the whole time I'm putting it together I'm totally bragging about how I've been practicing and I know just how to do it and how fast I can do it and the next thing I know, instead of me saying "Go Mama" like I normally would, Isaac said it for me! Yup, he said "Go Mama!" Twice! I felt like such a rock star! (I know. It's sad, sad, sad but that's my life!)
Anyway, I'll wrap this up now but maybe next time I'll tell you all about Isaac's big birthday weekend! If you're good.

Friday, May 25, 2007

Wacky Wednesday

Wednesday is a very important day to Isaac. Personally, I'm a fan of Fridays (pizza night!) and Saturdays (Daddy's home...and I'm not outnumbered by kiddos) but for Isaac, I think that it's Wednesday that holds the most excitement! Why, you ask? What could possibly be exciting about the absolute MIDDLE of the work week? Well, I will tell you.
Wednesday is TRASH DAY!!!
Not following? Trash day means that a big big truck drives right by the front of our house. And it goes just the perfect (very slow) speed for optimal viewing. Sooo, like the cat that wakes out of a dead sleep and comes running from the other end of the house the very second you even THINK about tuna, the call of the trash truck lures Isaac to the living room window. And me. There's just something so irresistible about seeing your child get that excited. So, on Wednesdays, I'm ready. When I hear that trash truck chugging by, I know that I have about 30 seconds to find a safe place to put Gracie, get Isaac's attention, scoop him up, race to the living room window, clear the Fisher Price farm off of the top of the toy bin, settle Isaac on the toy bin, and pull up the blinds, all before the trash truck finishes with the last house on the street (the one next to us) and starts back this way. And I do it. If racing-to-the-window-to-watch-the-trash-truck was an olympic sport, I'd win. Not because I'm athletic (I'm really really not!) but because I love my boy. (I really really do...I even know the names and numbers of all the main characters on "Thomas" and have been to the website to learn their back stories and all about the extra characters...scary, I know!)
So anyway, we have this little ritual. Isaac watches the truck and talks about it and sometimes the Garbage Men (Sanitation Worker? Is that more PC?) even wave to him and sometimes I can even convince him to wave back to his heroes. Then in the oh-so-pathetic voice that he reserves for the most tragic of occasions he says, "Trash truck 'way" over and over as the truck drives away.
This week it got even better. Wednesday was his BIRTHDAY! Nana and Grandad were over and all 5 of us were OUTSIDE when the trash truck came! So Grandad picked Isaac up and carried him closer to the truck. Nana grabbed her (ever present) camera and tried to get a picture of them with the truck. Then, once he had put our stinking, rotting mountain of trash into his truck, he even SPOKE to us and said, "Have a nice day." Wow.
So,I think Isaac might want to be a Garbage Man when he grows up. And I think it's a great idea. After all, a job that involves adoring fans and papparazzi must be a pretty glamorous one, right?

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Happy Birthday Baby

My baby boy turned 2 yesterday! I don't want to burden you with more of my neuroses (or we could just call them eccentricities ok?) but I know from personal experience that if you lose your Mama when you're only 2, then you won't remember her. And since Isaac is almost my whole world and since we aren't guaranteed any amount of time here, I want to write him a birthday letter. Besides, even if I do live to be a Great Grandma, it never hurts to let your loved ones know how you feel about them, right? So here goes...


Dear Isaac,

You turned 2 yesterday. It's unbelievable how smart and grown-up you are! I'm not really sure what I want to say to you. I guess I just want to give you a little piece of "right now" since you're not going to remember it. I want to give you a glimpse into who I am at this moment and who you are and what we mean to each other. Maybe it will help you to understand me later when I'm driving you completely nuts!
It's so strange to me that you will grow up and not remember anything about the past two years! These 2 years which have been the best ones of my life so far! I'm sure you know why but I'll still say it. You have made them the best years I've had!
You are amazing! You are beautiful and smart, intense and funny, mischievous and charming. Sue likes to remind me that you have a good sense of humor already, and she's right. I can see it in those eyes and in that half smile that you do. I think, and I hope, that it might be similar to my sense of humor. We really "get" each other...
I've so enjoyed these first 2 years of your life. If I ever had any doubts that being a mommy is the best job in the world, you've wiped them out. Do you know that old song that goes "if I could save time in a bottle..."? No, I'm sure you don't. I know, I'm old, but if only I could save time in a bottle...I so would! I've heard that it's a good thing that our children grow up or we'd never be ready to let go of this Earth. It's so true. I really can't imagine how Heaven could get any better than this!
Anyway, I'm sure I'm embarrassing you with my gushing so I'll move on. I just want you to know that I treasure every single moment with you. You're a really good kid and I'm so proud of you. I'm so grateful to God for making me your Mama and to you for loving me and hanging in there with me! I've never done this before you know.
I know I've been taking my time getting to it but my bottom line, I guess, is this: I love you NO MATTER WHAT and I'm always on your side! You can count on me for as long as I'm living and when I no longer am... God will still be there. Always. That's my 2nd birthday message and that's my always-and-forever message. If there's one thing that I can teach you and if there's one thing that I want you to remember, that is it. I love you, love you, love you!

Happy Birthday Baby



Me And Jesus
Artist: Stellar Kart

When there's no where else to turn
All your bridges have been burned
Feels like you've hit rock bottom..
Don't give up it's not the end
Open up your heart again
When you feel like no one understands
Where you are...

Someone loves you
Even when you don't think so
Don't you know
You got me and Jesus
By your side
Through the fight
You will never be alone
On your own
You got me and Jesus

After all that we've been through
By now you know I've doubted to
But everytime my head was in my hands
You said to me...

Someone loves you
Even when you don't think so
Don't you know
You got me and Jesus
By your side
Through the fight
You will never be alone
On your own
You got me and Jesus

Hold on to what we got
This is worth any cost
So make the most of life that's borrowed
Love like there's no tomorrow

Someone loves you
Even when you don't think so
Don't you know
You got me and Jesus
By your side
Through the fight
You will never be alone
On your own
You got me and Jesus

Even when you don't think so
Don't you know
You got me and Jesus
By your side
Through the fight
You will never be alone
On your own
You got me and Jesus

You will never be alone...
You got me and Jesus

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Adventures in Wildlife Viewing

Soooo.....I've been so busy using this blog as my own personal therapy session (which thrills my readers, I'm sure) that I forgot to write about our much anticipated trip to the Wildlife Park. Before I do though, if you're local to me can you please explain why people call it the Animal Farm? I was calling it that because my bff Sara, who was the first one to bring me there, does. Then I saw on the website that it's actually the Wildlife Park. But when I called it that, the person I was talking to had no idea what I meant. Anyhow....
We had a fabulous time at the Wildlife Park last weekend! The kiddos slept most of the way there (I thought that day would never come!) and us grown-ups (I was gonna say we grown-ups to be grammatically correct but it just didn't sound right) got to enjoy Dunkin Donuts and each other's company for a whole hour or so! Woohoo! That was definitely a highlight of the trip for me!
We arrived. We parked the car. Changed diapers. Loaded ourselves up with the approximate ton of stuff that babies require for any trip longer than 5 minutes, and a year or so later, into the park we went. First we went to look at the bobcat, lynx, and mountain lion which I love to see but which didn't seem to impress Isaac very much. Either because it was hard for him to see through the fencewire or because, Duh, we have kitties at home, I'm not sure. The porcupines also didn't really excite him. Neither did the turtles. He wanted to get closer to the bears (Darn! I wish they'd have let us...NOT!). The moose actually were mildly interesting to him but by the birds he was just plain bored.
Finally came the highlight of the trip for Isaac! We went into the little snack shop and got ice cream which we ate in the picnic area right before he got to race around the picnic area! Isaac heaven! Us grown-ups didn't really mind that part too much either since, you know, we kinda like ice cream too. LOL! The running around wasn't so much our cup of tea but Isaac was smiling so of course we were happy.
Oh yeah, Grace was also there. She didn't like it very much because it was a bit too windy for her. She spent half the time fussing and the other half sleeping in the Baby Bjorn.
Another thing.... we didn't get to see the deer. I'm not sure where they were but I was a little bit disappointed because I love to see deer and since we're living in town now, I don't ever get to see any.
Last random comment, I promise. How come they don't have any snakes? I wouldn't like that so much because eeeewwwww!, but the boys probably would.
Anyway, that's the story of our big trip to see the "amuls" (animals). Stay tuned to hear about our 2nd birthday adventures and our trip to the big city for a ride on a steam train!

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

Crappy Mother's Day to me!

Ever have those times when you just freak out and you're not sure why? Like, the normal everyday stuff just seems like too much? The mess that was annoying yesterday suddenly makes you feel like the walls are closing in on you? And that whining child that you can normally deal with sympathetically, or at least with humor, just makes you want to reach in and remove your own eardrums? And the worst part is, that when you're feeling this way, it seems like you always will? And like you need a big dramatic solution to fix it? But there never is a big dramatic solution because it's just life? Yup, you guessed it. I'm talking about me. My weekend was pretty much like this, and you know, Monday and Tuesday. LOL! What a freakin' basket case I am sometimes!
I think that what may have triggered it was actually Mother's Day. Mother's Day is a pretty big deal to me these days. Growing up I hated it. I always felt that it wasn't fair that I was obligated to buy cards and things for all these various "mother figures" in my life when there was no actual Mother to celebrate. (Disclaimer: If you're reading this and are one of the "mother figures" please understand that this doesn't have anything to do with how I feel about you. I love you very very much but I just think that maybe you need your own holiday. Like a How-awesome-are-you-for-loving-me-even-though-you-don't-have-to Day!). So anyway, to be a part of the mother/child relationship is that much more precious to me now. And I want to make a huge deal out of it. But it doesn't work that way. You need someone else to do the tokens of appreciation because it really doesn't mean a whole lot when you show yourself how much you appreciate yourself. And my sweet wonderful Husband doesn't actually do "huge deals". I mean, I don't want to complain because he really is so great about telling me how much he appreciates me (which is a lot because he is awesome!) and he wants nothing more than to make a big deal out of my special days, but he has never really been able to pull it off. That's just who he is, and I love him so much and that's why I am usually ok with it. Plus, one of those aforementioned "mother figures" taught me that those big gestures aren't what's really important (bless her heart!). So usually I just tell him exactly what to get me and carve out a chunk of time for him to go get it. This time though, I couldn't decide what I wanted. I mean, if it's a surprise, it doesn't matter at all what it is because it's the thought that counts. If the thought is your own though, then the gift has to actually be good, right? And that's pretty tricky on our budget!
So to make a short story long, I ended up with no card, no gift, and a last minute, disastrous, brunch trip (picture a major blowout and nowhere to change her except the scary bathroom floor, among other disasters! Yikes!). And the worst part is that since there was nobody to blame but myself, I was that much slower in figuring out what was bugging me.
Something good may have come out of this though. I think I may have come up with a way to prevent this from happening again. I'm just going to make a list for Hubby of things to get me when I don't specify, and include instructions to always get SOMETHING (a steak sub doesn't count- yup, that's actually all I got one Valentines Day)! Then I'm going to email it to him because he always seems to do better when I communicate via email. LOL!
So, it's no big, dramatic solution, I guess, but I'm crossing my fingers and it just might work!

Monday, May 7, 2007

Ups and downses

"Motherhood brings as much joy as ever, but it still brings boredom, exhaustion, and sorrow too. Nothing else ever will make you as happy or as sad, as proud or as tired, for nothing is quite as hard as helping a person develop his own individuality especially while you struggle to keep your own."
Marguerite Kelly and Elia Parsons

I spanked Isaac with a wooden spoon today. I know, I know, some of you are going to think I'm a monster. Some of you probably think I'm a wimp for not doing it sooner. Nothing else was working. Nothing. And he was doing something dangerous. Repeatedly. The spoons were right there next to me and I've thought about it before and it seemed appropriate. I hated it. I really really did. But I believe that discipline is important. I believe that it's necessary for a child's sense of security. It's necessary in order to help him become a responsible adult. It's also necessary if he's going to make it to adulthood in one piece. I still hated it. And it didn't actually work. In the end, I resorted to another timeout and I don't know if that did any good. It was a very frustrating morning.
Then, a bit later Isaac said, "Drace try." Huh? I know try means cry... Drace cry? Oh! GRACE is crying! He said his baby sister's name for the first time! He says new words everyday now but for some reason this one just melted my heart. Truly, nothing could make me more proud or more tired!

Friday, May 4, 2007

Decisions, decisions...

Are other kids like this? I wake up to a beautiful day and think, "we should get out and get some fresh air and excersize." Go to all the trouble to get everybody fed and dressed and get some makeup on my face so that I don't scare any other small children that might be outside. Then when we finally get out there, Isaac wants to play in the car!? Because forget fresh air and excersize! Let's get out and spend some time in the one space more confined than our apartment? And it's not because he has a fascination with cars (he does). He's not pretending to drive or anything. Just climbing around the car, seeing what old food and forgotten toys he can find. Seems strange to me.
Of course I have to admit that I probably wouldn't be complaining if it was just the two of us. Sitting down?! In an enclosed space?! Instead of following Isaac all over creation trying to keep him from getting hit by a car or picking up dog poop or something?! And I'm off the hook as far as getting him out of the house?! Yeehaw! Sign me up! The only problem is that Grace doesn't agree. Once I stop walking, she starts wailing! So there I am sitting, holding her in a seat meant for one, trying to bounce her and cram that pacifier into her mouth while she screams and arches her back nearly catapulting herself out of my grip and onto the floor of the car, and I'm trying to decide which is worse, this or the tantrum that Isaac is going to throw if I drag him inside already. Inside I'll have more room to get away from the screaming but first I'll have to wrestle him out of the car. Tough choice!
Then I have a "lightbulb" moment! We'll nurse! Like we always do when I want to sit down (or sleep) and Grace doesn't. Of course, this is only going to contribute to the habit that she's developing, of nursing all the time whether she's hungry or not. The same one that helped Isaac learn not to ever sleep through the night until after he was a whole year old and weaned (he then started a habit of getting up for a drink from a cup in the middle of every night so once again he isn't sleeping through!). But I don't think this all through before I get her latched on (and really who can think while holding a screaming infant?).
So the decision is made. And it's relatively quiet for the moment. I guess for today, I'll just take it one moment at a time.