A Letter to Mom

Dear Mommy,

You look a bit frazzled.  Is it because I just ate a hunk of a hot dog out of the garbage can?  You did seem kind of upset when you busted me with it.  Your nose wrinkled up all funny and your eyes did that goofy roll thing again, a lot like when you told me not to eat the ashes out of the bottom of Daddy's grill.  I thought it was just funny colored sand, but the only way to find out for sure was to taste it.  You understand, right Mommy?

As for the hot dog, I guess I should have just eaten them at lunchtime, but Isaiah had already gone in the living room to watch Clifford the Big Red Dog and I felt left out.  It wasn't until later that I remembered I had left a couple pieces behind and I figured they were still probably ok to eat.  I'm sorry I made you mad.

Mommy, I really don't mean to make you upset.  Honest, I don't.  It's not like I really try to poop my diaper every single day in the middle of naptime.  It just....happens.  I promise you I'm not doing it on purpose.  And about that nap.  There are just so many other things I would rather do, Mommy!  You keep telling me to get back in bed and go to sleep, but it would be so much more fun to dig through the closet and find buried treasure.  Or maybe I could pull my socks off and dig for toe gunk.  Remember the other day when I emptied all the clothes out of the dresser?  That was epic. I had a blast.  But now that I'm thinking about it, you looked pretty angry when you came in the room and found the mess.  You even yelled at me, Mommy.  It made me cry when you put me back in bed because it scares me when you yell like that.  I wasn't trying to upset you, I just wasn't ready to sleep yet.

Deep down, I want to make you happy.  I also want to play with my cars, build a fort with pillows, paint my face with Crayola finger paint, and shove Play Dough up my nose just to see what it feels like.  I'm only two years old, Mommy.  I haven't really figured out yet what's right and wrong.  I'm relying on you to teach me that.  When something pops into my head....I just do it.  I haven't figured out yet how to think about whether or not that idea is a good one or just plain crazy.  I look to you for that.

Hug me more.  You spend all day hugging and kissing on Thomas, but I rarely get snuggles from you anymore.  I know I try to head-butt you most of the time, but it's just a game I like to play!  I don't really mean to hurt you or give you a bloody nose.  I swear, that was an accident.  If we're being totally honest here, I do kind of like pushing your buttons....just a little.  Sometimes I smile my little "trouble smile" and do something I know you don't want me to do.  For that moment, your attention is totally on me.

I'm curious, you know.  I'm still trying to figure out how to operate around here.  When I pulled all of the tissues of out the box, it's not that I was trying to be naughty.  I just wanted to know how many were in there.  And that time the other night when I dumped chicken broth all over the floor while you were feeding Thomas?  That totally wasn't my fault.  You told me it was chicken juice and to me, that sounds delicious.  Turns out....it was not delicious.

Unfortunately, I have very little patience and a very short fuse.  I want to play with that car and I want to do it right now.  Why should I have to share with Isaiah if I got the car first?  He's the one who tried to take it from me, so he really deserved that kick to the face as far as I'm concerned.  I find it difficult to understand why I was the one who ended up in Time Out.  I don't like being told "NO."  I'm over here trying to enjoy myself and climb to the top of the couch and launch myself like a rocket, but you're being a bit of a downer by telling me NO.  I don't appreciate it.  Once again, why is it I get stuck in Time Out for telling you to "Shush!" but you're free as a bird despite your efforts to squash my good time?  Makes no sense.

When it comes right down to it, I think we're just going through a rough time right now, Mommy.  Things will get better when we can understand each other better.  I can't promise we won't have our disagreements, but please try to remember that I'm just a little boy.  I haven't been on the planet 3 years yet.  You've been around a lot longer, so please try to control your emotions a little better than I can.  Remember, I watching you and looking to you to teach me how to grow from a little boy into a man.

I'm glad we had this talk.  Smile at me.  Hug me tight.  Remind me of how much you love me, every day.  And take a few deep breaths before you speak when I frustrate you.  We'll get through this.  I love you, Mommy.  

Love, 

Micah

Project Life Tuesday - Week Eight

Hello and welcome to Project Life Tuesday! This is my third year of doing Project Life and I have found it to be so beneficial to have this post planned every Tuesday because then I have a standing deadline to get my photos done!  I'm doing things a little different this year and instead of the Photo a Day approach I've done for the last 2 years, I am approaching this year on more of a Layout Per Week basis.  This means that some weeks might have more photos than others, some weeks will be missing days, but the goal remains the same: To provide a glimpse of our life and preserve it. 

If you're taking on Project Life this year, good for you!  I am so happy I decided to accept the challenge back in 2010!  Welcome aboard and be sure to enjoy.  This isn't meant to be stressful.  It's a wonderful way to simplify scrapbooking and memory keeping.  If you're looking for inspiration on what others are doing with their Project Life, you can check out my board on Pinterest and be sure to link up on The Mom Creative!

This week I am guest posting on The Mom Creative, so you'll need to click on over there to see my layout for the week!

 



For the sake of my family who read this mostly to see cute photos of the kids, here are a few of the photos I highlighted this week.

Have a great week everyone!

25 for my 20s

My husband turned 30 while sitting in economy plus on a flight to Shanghai, thirty thousand feet in the air.  I couldn't help but feel bad for him that he had to spend such a milestone birthday trapped on a fourteen hour flight.  Sure, we had celebrated his birthday with his favorite pizza and a Packers cake a couple days before he left, but there's just something special about the actual birthday. 

In my case, I feel like I'm already 30.  Heck, I've had people guessing I was 30 or 31 years old for the past three years!  I have three kids, I've been married for dang near 8 years, and (from what these people tell me) I "have my head on straight."  I guess this means I come across as older?  Okidoke. 

Anyway, the reality is that I have about a year and half to go before hitting the milestone birthday of 30.  Yikes.  My online pal, Emily from The Pilot's Wife, wrote a great post called her "30 Things by 30" on her 28th birthday.  She gave herself two years to accomplish this list of things she had never done, but wanted to do before her 30th birthday.  I thought it was brilliant.

So I'm copying her.  :)

I only have a year and a half to go before my big 3-0 hits, so I'm only tackling a list of 25 things.  Since it's not quite as neat and tidy as a "30 by 30" list, let's call it....

25 Somethings for my 20s!

I know, it's not nearly as catchy as Emily's.  Oh well, the concept is still the same.  Some will be pretty easy, others will be tough, and others will take a lot of work to do.  Should be fun.

In no particular order, here is my list of 25 somethings I want to accomplish before my 20s are over:

1. Get a tattoo. (March 31, 2012)

2.  Fly somewhere.  Anywhere.

3.  Run a 5K. (March 17, 2013)

4.  Move to a brand new city. (August 2012)

5.  Join a gym. (October 2012)

6.  Reach my goal weight (140). (July 2012)

7.  Buy a pair of designer jeans to celebrate hitting my goal weight. (August 2012)

8.  Take my boys camping.

9.  Spend a weekend away with friends. (March 24, 2012)

10.  Take a vacation with my husband.  No kids allowed.

11.  Learn how to play chess without killing my husband my teacher.

12.  Get my wedding rings finished...finally. (May 25, 2012)

13.  Learn to shoot a handgun. (August 2012)

14.  Attend a Green Bay Packers football game.  (Yes, I've done this before, but not for many many many years.)

15.  Meet someone in "real life" that I only know from the Internet (who I haven't met already).

16.  Buy a swimming suit for the first time in years and actually wear it. (July 2012)

17.  Get a teaching job.

18.  Attend a music concert. (Concert on the Square and high school band recitals don't count.)

19.  Perform in a play.

20.  Take a photography class.

21.  Bake and decorate a cake for one of my kid's birthday.

22.  Take a trip with my sister.

23.  Plant a garden.

24.  Tackle a DIY project in our new house.

25.  Pay off and cut up our final credit card. (March 5, 2012)

There we are.  And.....GO!

Mama Needs to Vent

Frustration has invaded my world the past week or so and I'm going to spew some of it out on here in the hopes that maybe it will help eradicate the stress-induced breakout that has attacked my face.  Consider yourself warned.

In the trenches of life with three young boys, it can be difficult to make sure that Mom and Dad are taken care of.  In fact, it can be hard to remember that Mom and Dad actually have names that are not Mom and Dad.  We get so caught up in diaper changes, Play Dough, time outs, PIXAR movies, coloring books, and food battles that couple time gets completely lost.

We've really been struggling with this lately.  Evan was on a business trip to China for 13 days, so I was doing the solo parenting thing during that time and I missed him terribly.  I even had to go buy flannel sheets because I was sick of shivering myself to sleep every night without him there.  He came home and got readjusted, but unfortunately we adjusted right back into a routine that isn't necessarily most conducive to fostering our married life. 

After the kids are off to bed for the night, our evening usually shapes up to include some prime time television viewing while I work on the laptop and he's on his phone or reading a book.  There might be a workout on the Wii (me, alone, in the basement) or some laundry folding thrown in there (him, in the living room), but that's really about as much as we shake things up.  To be perfectly honest, I rarely feel like I even have the energy to do much else, especially on the nights when I've been at home with the kids all day and then worked the closing shift at the restaurant.  It's hard.

Evan and I both feel it's important for us each to have a life outside of one another.  He's going to see that Navy Seals movie with a buddy this weekend.  I like to have "drink wine and chatter" time with my girlfriends from the neighborhood and we'll sometimes actually go to the big city for a movie too.  But these activities are few and far between.

We haven't been on a date in six months.

Six Months.

It was August 14, 2011.  We went to American Players Theater to celebrate my birthday.  I had a nasty tummy ache the whole night and I was so ready-to-pop pregnant that my hips were hurting for the entire show.  Still, it was a date.

Really, I have no excuse for it having been six months since our last date night.  I mean, Thomas was born and was attached to my boob for the first couple months, so I think I get some leeway there.  But then there was just always something: Open House to clean for, two week business trip to China, Weight Watchers for both of us limits our dining out options, can't spend the money on it right now, too tough to get a babysitter.  It just hasn't happened. 

So, here I sit.  As I type this, I am still in my pajamas. At 1:00 in the afternoon.  Once again, I am trying my best to get my big boys to take a nap so about every 4-5 minutes, I am heading back into their room to use my mean mom voice to tell them to knock it off, get back in bed, and please for the love of God go to sleep.  My face is experiencing its worst breakout in recent memory.  My patience has been dwindling with every passing day and I find myself with a much shorter fuse than usual.  We've had no positive outcome from the Open House last weekend.  I'm frustrated, stressed, anxious, and I feel hideous.  And the worst part is that I feel guilty for even feeling this way!  I mean, it's not like things are really all that bad.  We're healthy and everything is really pretty darn good.  So why am I feeling so washed up and scraped thin? 

Ugh.  Mama needs a glass of wine.  But I'm not willing to blow the Weight Watchers Points on it. 

Thanks for listening/reading/whatever.  I promise my next post will be much more positive and will include adorable photos of pink kissable cheeks, sparkling eyes, and big smiles. 

Here.

Does that help?

One Final Evil

There was a time not so long ago when I would call Evan at work and warn him "Don't use the debit card. Don't look at it, don't touch it, don't even breathe on it or we will go overdrawn."

We were so stupid.  We flew by the seat of our pants when it came to our money.  No way to keep track of spending, just keeping our fingers crossed and praying that we'd have enough to squeak by to the next payday.  What really makes me shake my head now is that we actually made more money back when I was constantly stressing out about going into overdraft and wondering if we'd be able to pay our bills. 

I'm so happy those days are over. 

It's been a while since the last time I wrote an update about our money makeover, so I figured it was high time I dish the goods. 

We are still on Baby Step #2 of Dave Ramsey's plan and probably will be for a long time!  The good news?  We are about five months away from paying off our very last credit card.  Man, does that ever feel good to say! 

After we destroy that credit card in a new creative way, the only non-mortgage debt we'll have left is my student loan.  Granted, that is a rather substantial debt, but if we keep working on building our debt snowball, it will be paid off long before I ever dreamed it would be.

Our debt snowball isn't as big as it should be simply because we had to throw less money at our debt the last year and more at saving for a down payment on a house for our upcoming move, but we'll get it back to where it should be. 

I love having a budget.  I love knowing I have the cash ready to go to buy the things I need to buy.  Sure, I may have to wait a little longer to get a haircut because I have to have the time to save up the cash, but it is so worth it.  It's freeing.

I haven't had to whip out a credit card to pay for something in more than 2 years. 

I haven't had to worry about whether or not the check I just wrote is going to clear. 

Are we rolling in dough?  Absolutely not.  But being on a budget was definitely the key to helping me worry less about money.  We have a goal to be debt free and to be able to give generously someday. Dave Ramsey's baby steps are helping us do just that.

I'll be sure to celebrate with you and share a photo of destroying that last credit card as soon as I've sent the payment! 

Answering a Tough One

My kids are big fans of Veggie Tales.  What's not to love about a tomato and a cucumber who teach values and Bible stories in an adorable manner?  When we drive to preschool on Mondays and Wednesdays, I let the kids watch a Veggie Tales DVD in the van because it makes it so much easier for Micah when he has to wait in the van while I bring Isaiah into school.

There's a great Veggie Tales movie about Jonah and his story.  I'll never forget the time Isaiah was playing with a couple cars in the living room, making them talk like characters from that movie.  Out of nowhere, my four year old made his Lightning McQueen car exclaim, "I am NOT going to Nineveh!"  Hilarious.

Yesterday, my four year old asked me why Jesus had to die.

Oh boy.

We were watching the Veggie Tales Easter Carol (it was the one he picked out!) and there's a part where a little angel named Hope sings a song about the hope we find in Easter and in the resurrection. 

Now, Isaiah's heard plenty about Jesus, but it was like it clicked all of a sudden when he saw a stained glass window of the crucifixion on this movie. 

He turned to me and asked, "Did Jesus die?" 
I replied, "Yes, sweetie.  Jesus died on the cross."
Isaiah thought about his for a moment and then asked, "Why Mommy?  Why did Jesus die on the cross?"

Wow, what a loaded question, kiddo.  I could have gone into a huge lesson about sin and how Jesus was perfect and that his sacrifice on the cross is what saved each and every one of us and that through him, we can live forever with our Father.  I suppose I might have told him about the "mean guys" who betrayed and persecuted Jesus, ultimately killing him because they didn't understand who he was.  And I guess I also could have discussed that Jesus was just obeying what his Father had told him to do, so he should really obey his parents too!  Ok, maybe not that last one.  ;)

Instead, I asked Isaiah to come sit by me and I held him on my lap.  I told him this:

"Isaiah, Jesus died to save you and me and everyone who believes in him.  He died because he loves you so much.  Never forget that he died because he loves you."

His eyes filled up with tears and his lower lip stuck out a bit, like it always does when he's about to have a full-on meltdown.  "But Mommy!  I don't WANT Jesus to die!"

I could see that I may have made a mistake here.  Leave it to me to mess up such a crucial parenting moment.  In about 15 seconds, I had accidentally convinced my preschooler that Jesus' death was his fault. Whoops.

Damage control time.

"Sweetie, I know you wouldn't want Jesus to die, but he chose to.  God asked him to die so that he could take away all the sin of everyone who believes in him.  But you know what the good news is?  He came back to life!  That's what Easter is about, when Jesus came back to life and got to go up to Heaven to be with God!  Understand, honey?"

"Yup. Can I have a cookie?"

I doubt he'll look back on that conversation as the watershed moment where he really understood what it meant to be a Christian, but at least he no longer felt like he had murdered Jesus. 

I gave him two cookies.

Project Life Tuesday - Week Seven

Hello and welcome to Project Life Tuesday! This is my third year of doing Project Life and I have found it to be so beneficial to have this post planned every Tuesday because then I have a standing deadline to get my photos done!  I'm doing things a little different this year and instead of the Photo a Day approach I've done for the last 2 years, I am approaching this year on more of a Layout Per Week basis.  This means that some weeks might have more photos than others, some weeks will be missing days, but the goal remains the same: To provide a glimpse of our life and preserve it. 

If you're taking on Project Life this year, good for you!  I am so happy I decided to accept the challenge back in 2010!  Welcome aboard and be sure to enjoy.  This isn't meant to be stressful.  It's a wonderful way to simplify scrapbooking and memory keeping.  If you're looking for inspiration on what others are doing with their Project Life, you can check out my board on Pinterest and be sure to link up on The Mom Creative!

This week's layout only has one insert in additional to the two standard Design A pages, a 6x12 page protector.

I added a wooden heart embellishment to the date card in the upper left corner of the left page, just to make it a little more festive for Valentine's Day. The rest of the page is about Isaiah's valentine's for preschool, Thomas' yucky face when trying to eat food, and the gorgeous pink roses Evan gave me for Valentine's Day.

I also included the card from Evan's flowers.

In the 6x12 page protector, I included Isaiah's valentine as well as a few favorites from the ones he received.

And then the other side has the bag that held all his goodies (with more valentines inside!) and the glow stick valentine from his teachers.

And here we have the right page.

In the lower right corner, I used an Instagram photo and some digital paper from the Cobalt collection to make up a neat 4x6 photo about finally getting my hair cut on Saturday!

(click photos to view them bigger)

Here are a few more photos I highlighted this week.

Thomas has really been struggling to eat solid foods so far! I tend to get more of this yucky face than anything else!

Evan was so tired when he came home from work that he fell asleep with Isaiah and Thomas on his lap! I swear, he didn't budge from that spot all night.

Since the Sucker Valentine got so popular on Pinterest, I decided to do this variation on the idea for Isaiah - the Hug Valentine!

Look at that gorgeous baby girl. I got to snuggle this newborn beauty on Thursday night when I visited her and her mama in the hospital. She had that awesome "new baby smell!"

Thanks so much for checking out my stuff this week!  Next week I'll be guest posting on The Mom Creative for Project Life Tuesday!  I'm so excited! 

This Weekend

Thomas learned how to roll over from his back to his belly the other day.  Isaiah took advantage of this new development and read a book to his baby brother.

Thomas took advantage of this new skill and rolled all the way across the living room on me.

I tried to get a photo of all three of my boys together, but this is the best shot I got.

This does not bode well for my idea about getting some new family photos taken soon.

I made Glazed Pear Muffins, a recipe I found on the Weight Watchers website. You know, there are some dang good recipes on there!

They have a yummy ginger vanilla glaze on top...yummm.  I found the cupcake wrappers and the cute little toppers at Michael's on super-mega clearance after Valentine's Day. Want to give these a try?  You can find the recipe HERE - only 4 points per muffin!

Guess who has two thumbs and finally got her hair cut?

Yup, this girl.  Got those caterpillars that were passing as eyebrows taken care of too.  Whew!

I barely slept last night.  The hours ticked by while I tossed and turned.  I endured a nightmare about being the only one working in a restaurant when the whole place fills up and I can't seem to get to a single table, no matter how hard I try.  I suppose to comes as no surprise I would be so restless on the night before our most recent Open House.

If you've been following for a while, you know we're trying to sell our house so we can move to the new city my husband's job has been transferred to.  Currently, he is driving two hours to work while we try to sell. We've had little to no luck with open houses in the past, so I was really hoping this one would actually be successful.  We did have a handful of people come through, one couple who my realtor says is pretty interested, so that's great news!  Now we just have to pray that someone follows up soon and that a sale is coming soon!

By the way, thank you to everyone who left comments and suggestions about Thomas' struggles to eat solid foods.  I think I'm going to wait a week or two to build up a little supply of pureed vegetables before trying again.

After such a busy weekend, I'm kind of looking forward to things slowing down a bit this week!  Enjoy your Sunday evening!

Unfamiliar Territory

My baby won't eat.

I'm not really sure what to do here because I have never before been in a situation where my baby won't eat the food he's being offered.  Sure, he's picky as all get out now, but at one time Isaiah looked like this at mealtime:

And then there was Mr. Micah John who wanted to do nothing but eat his solid foods.  He shoveled it into his mouth with those chubby paws quicker than you could reload the spoon.

And now I have Thomas, who at five and a half months old wants absolutely nothing to do with that goofy crap on a spoon I keep trying to give him.

I've tried rice cereal.  I've tried the oatmeal.  I've tried mixing prunes in to give it some flavor.

Nuthin'.  The child won't even open his mouth.  And when I do manage to sneak some in there, he moves it around in his mouth a bit and then I get this:

Or better yet, this:

This is after repeated attempts with solid food for the last month, several times a week, at different times of day. He clamps his mouth closed and refuses to let me stick the spoon in there. 

What do I do?  Do I just keep trying with the rice cereal or oatmeal?  Perhaps I should just quit and wait until he's 6 months old and jump right into pureed foods?  Help!  I'm really stumped here about what course to take!

(P.S.  He's eating his formula from the bottle like a champ.  It's just the solid stuff he's taking issue with.)

Project Life Tuesday - Week Six

Hello and welcome to Project Life Tuesday! This is my third year of doing Project Life and I have found it to be so beneficial to have this post planned every Tuesday because then I have a standing deadline to get my photos done!  I'm doing things a little different this year and instead of the Photo a Day approach I've done for the last 2 years, I am approaching this year on more of a Layout Per Week basis.  This means that some weeks might have more photos than others, some weeks will be missing days, but the goal remains the same: To provide a glimpse of our life and preserve it. 

If you're taking on Project Life this year, good for you!  I am so happy I decided to accept the challenge back in 2010!  Welcome aboard and be sure to enjoy.  This isn't meant to be stressful.  It's a wonderful way to simplify scrapbooking and memory keeping.  If you're looking for inspiration on what others are doing with their Project Life, you can check out my board on Pinterest and be sure to link up on The Mom Creative!

By the way, Happy Valentine's Day!

This was the second week that my husband was away on a business trip to China, so I organized my Project Life layout a bit differently than usual.  I used a Design D insert in the middle of my layout and also threw in a 8.5x11 insert.  Check it out!

This is the Design A facing the Design D.  The left side has a Week in Review journaling card and focuses on the first half of our week here at home.

I used the day of the week stamps and a bi-fold card included in the Core Kit to make the highlights card on the bottom left.

The front side of the Design D insert focuses on the Pinterest projects we tackled this week.

Here's the next couple pages, the back side of the Design D and the 8.5x11 that sits on top of the second Design A.

The flip side of the Design D was split between a feature on what Thomas is up to at the age of 5 months and a couple little snippets about our trip to Target on Friday. 

I just printed two 3x4 photos on a 4x6 canvas for each of those vertical spots at the top.  I like how it ended up looking like a bunch of horizontal photos all broken up.  The accent card from the Core Kit acts as a separation between the Thomas stuff and the Target photos.

On the opposite side is a print out of the news story from CNN.com about Whitney Houston's death.  Evan thought it was a bit silly of me to include it, but he wasn't an adolescent girl in the mid-nineties so what does he know.

And finally, the last page.  This is the page where I included all the China photos Evan sent me from this week along with the stub from his boarding pass for the flight home. 

Whew!  Another pretty big week in the world of Project Life!  If this keeps up, I'm going to have to get another album for the second half of the year!  I really liked using Design D in this week's spread.  It was neat to be able to include some big vertical photos and those spots also provide the opportunity to include two small horizontals.  Very versatile! 

Have a wonderful week!