This job really should pay more

I actually had a good night's sleep last night. I was asleep by 10:30, didn't even get up to pee and woke around 7am on my own. Yes, it's been a long week as every week is these days--but it was Friday!! My day home with my kids.

It's the end of the day and I can't believe how exhausted I am. I mean, I guess I can--but it just doesn't feel like I should be. It was a rather routine day. Went for a run this morning, came home, did some cleaning and kid entertaining. Went to the grocery store. Baby took a nap, big sister watched a show and played some computer games while I relaxed a bit. I decided not to nap in hopes of sleeping well again tonight. Routine evening...play, dinner, dishes, play, nighttime stuff.

I think every CELL in my body is tired and every BONE in me aches. Granted I'm pregnant...and it was a long week...but come on now. Can you tell I don't have a lot of patience with myself? I've been plagued by another headache all day, which zaps my energy too--but I have to keep on keeping on.

What it boils down to is, being a mom is a tiring job. After the week of work, the girls are usually clamoring for my attention all day on Fridays. Miss Rose just wants to be near me, chatting, touching me. Gracie is often the same. I love my kids--but they have this amazing knack for sucking the life out of me. I mean that in the most loving, motherly way of course.

It is a good tired. I'd rather be tired from a day with my kids than from a day doing anything else. And I'm even a little more tired thinking about doing all this again tomorrow...including a soccer game, being the snack mom and a hubby who has to work all day.

Although this job definately should pay more, I would give anything to do it all day, everyday. Maybe someday.

18 weeks on the 18th

I thought it was kind of random that I'm 18 weeks pregnant today and it's the 18th of the month. For the most part I'm feeling well. The sickness is gone, which is a huge blessing. I'm more tired than I'd like to be, given that I'm supposed to have the 2nd trimester energy. Maybe it's related to having two children already. I am napping more than I thought I would be at this point. Oh well! I'm really struggling with daily headaches. Headaches have been a part of my life for oh, 31 years! Usually I can medicate my way through them, but not while pregnant. Tylenol just doesn't do much. I visited a chiropractor for the first time ever yesterday and am hoping after a few visits to feel some progress.

I am just a few weeks away from being in full-time maternity clothes. I could be now...but they still look a little funny on me. I had to go out on my lunch yesterday and buy some maternity pants though, because I was dying in my unbuttoned, but still too-tight pants at work. I got some good deals on the clearance rack at Target--3 shirts, 1 pair of capri's and two non-maternity but stretchy waist skirts for $65. At least once a day I look down and my first thought is, "why do I have a gut? Oh yeah, I'm pregnant!"

These next few months are going to fly by and there just isn't a lot of blogging time. But, I am going to try to keep up as best I can. I am taking two classes this semester and spend all of Tuesday and Thursday evenings in class. It's worth it...but it's hard work balancing it all.

Miss Rose started soccer and had her first game last week. It was so much fun. She's on the same team as her cousin and the majority of both family members were there to cheer them on. Miss Rose scored 2 goals and her cousin scored 1. We were very proud. Bean was thrilled. I think he heard him make some remark about "the next Pele." Silly man. Even though we don't (and may not) have boys, I'm glad he can get excited about his daughters playing sports.

Hopefully I'll get the time to share some soccer pictures with you this weekend.

Lost Keys

I committed the ultimate parent no-no this weekend. I let my children play with a set of keys. Not just any set of keys, but Bean's keys. Gracie loves keys lately and was pointing to our key rack saying "keys, keys" so I grabbed a set, handed them to her and she toddled off to the front door to try and get a key in the lock.



That was the last I thought of it. We were in the middle of getting ready to go out for dinner so that soon took precedence. Until this morning...when I got the dreaded text from Bean (who texts as rarely as he can, so I knew it was a big deal) that said "do you know where my work keys are."



Oops. Gracie often plays with our keys for a bit, but she either gives them back when she's done or we find them by the door. Not this time I guess. I began to panic a bit inside. Bean, um, doesn't handle these little hiccups of life so well. He likes things ordered and predictable. He is the more responsible parent who would never let his child play with keys, while I am more free-flowing--let kids be kids, if something is lost, it will be found.



I ran home and did a quick search when I could get away from church for a moment (we live in a house next to church property); Bean had taken Miss Rose for her soccer pictures. No keys.



When we got home from church I could tell things weren't good. I'm sure Bean had spent at least 30min searching for his keys--missing part of his precious "Opening Day" football.



Thank God for Miss Rose's great memory. I asked her about the keys and she said "yes, I put them in the white box I always play with. I was the bad guy stealing things." (yes, my 4yr old is obsessed with bad guys) We couldn't figure out what box she was talking about and looked all over again to no avail.



I had to leave again to head to an after-church lunch meeting. I was wracking my brain trying to think of where a 4yr old bad guy would stash her booty. On my way out the door, I opened our armoire on impulse. Voila! The white box (a storage container), with toys and keys inside. Praise be to Jesus!!!



I've learned my lesson. Bean wanted to lecture me, but I knew. A mistake I won't make again. Common sense says I shouldn't have done it in the firsts place, but I'm the free-flowing one when it comes to stuff like that. Next time I'll have to hand over MY keys!

Why do we need $$$$?

I suppose that every culture has some form of currency--be it animals, goods, food, paper, gold/silver etc. But it really is a pain. I'd like to go back to the garden of Eden days when no currency was needed. All the food you needed grew from the ground and you didn't have to buy clothes.

Can you tell I'm a bit stressed about money right now? Really there is nothing new, but every once in a while the expense of life can be overwhelming. Especially when you add in a new baby coming. We have a lot that we will need, but the carseat expense is such a killer. With fall coming, Miss Rose needs a new wardrobe--and although she has friends older than her--she's bigger than them, so no hand-me-downs. Gracie won't need much, but a bit to add to what I have. And then there's my ever-expanding body, which in about a month or so will require all maternity--and I have, um 3 pieces of maternity-wear currently.

I have no idea what to do about carseats fitting in our current vehicle. Because I'm a big carseat fanatic, I want my kids as safe as possible. I really want Miss Rose to be in a harness until she's 6--and our current seat would accomodate that. However, she has one of the larger seats available (due to her amazonian size). Our infant seat is also the largest, as most children can rear-face in it until age 2.

So adding another seat to our one available bench (I drive a Honda CRV) is quite a challenge. There are a variety of options...but I have no idea what three seats will even fit, and many of the options require the purchase of two more seats--since the current ones may not work with a third. A minivan will definately be in our future, but maybe not the near one.

I know it will all work out, but sometimes my brain works overtime. I want to figure it out NOW, but there isn't really the time or money at this moment. God always provides, but I really it would be more convient to strap my kids into a box on the back of a wagon. You may think I'm kidding--but some days the Amish life really calls to me.

We have been blessed that our income has increased some over the almost 7 years of our marriage--but as life would have it, so have the expenses! I wonder, will there ever be a point that the expenses level out and the income goes up a bit giving more of a cushion, allowing us to save for larger expenses? Hopefully...but it seems SO far away.

As I go to bed tonight, I'm going to dream of growing all my own vegetables, making all my own baked goods and driving a wagon. Part of me would welcome the hard work of farm life! I do know that grass is not always greener on the other side. I am happy with the life God has given us and we have never truly been in want and as we remain faithful to Him, I trust that we won't be.

Nakie Part II

So Bean tells me that last night Gracie was in the bath, but suddenly stood up and signed "all done." He confirmed with her, but she definately wanted out. She LOVES the bath and would stay in cold water for an hour! After she was dried off, she went over to the toilet and fussed at it. It didn't mean much to Bean until she pooped 5 minutes after he had put her diaper on.

She's pooped in the bathtub a few times before...so we can't help but wonder if she was actually aware of her need to poop this time. Bean was pretty convinced she was trying to tell him she had to poop.

Interesting... I may pull out the potty chair this weekend just for introduction's safe. Maybe I'll be one of those lucky moms who's child is potty trained by the time they are two. Can't hurt to take baby steps towards it!

Nakie Baby

So I have a nudist in the making, which isn't suprising if you knew her father. Bean is very comfortable in his own skin...and very uncomfortable at night now that he has to sleep in shorts! In fact, it's something he's passed on to both of his daughters. During these hot summer days Miss Rose usually runs around the house in her underwear only. She'd be mortified if she knew I was publicizing that. She's gotten really sensitive to me telling stories about her.

This morning I went in to get Gracie around 7:15. Usually I get her at 7am and she's standing up and has been awake for a bit. Since I hadn't heard her yet, I hopped in the shower first. I peeked into her room and saw she was still laying down. I was surprised, since she's usually awake. Upon a closer look I thought to myself "that's a lot of skin." As I approached the bed, I saw Gracie was laying down on her tummy (although awake) and totally naked! She'd figured out how to take her diaper off. No peed bed and a full diaper so I'm sure it hadn't been off long.

My babysitter called me later this morning and said she was naked after her morning nap (I hadn't told her about the other episode). So my baby likes being naked and knows how to take her diaper off. I guess she'll be going to be in shorts only. It's just too hot these days for her to sleep in clothes.

I know that part of this has to do with a recent fascination with "pee" and "potty." Like most mom's I quit closing the bathroom door ages ago and she always follows me in. I'll tell her "mama has to go potty." She's learned both those words and uses them sometimes when I'm changing her diaper. Bean and I both have observed her pulling at her diaper recently saying "pee" or "potty."

Now if I were a first-time over enthusiastic mom (no offense if you are one!) I'd think my child was ready for potty-training and I'd be pulling out the potty chair. But, she's not even 18 months old yet and so I realize that's a very slim possibility.

But I do take it as a good sign that she's pretty aware of what's going on and maybe there is an ever so slight chance she'll be potty trained before the baby arrives. Most likely not. I may give it a shot though towards the end of the year and see what happens.

In the meantime, bring on the duct tape. I'm afraid of the time she'll take her diaper off and it will be full of, you know what!

Miss Gracie Girl

It's so interesting to watch the personality develop of a toddler. I feel like I am more in tune with Gracie's developing personality than I was with Miss Rose's. Probably becuase I find myself comparing the two of them.

My Gracie Girl will turn 17 months in a few days. Almost one-and-a-half years old. The time goes so quickly, yet I feel like I remember so much. These last few months she has changed so much, from a baby into a toddler. She is communicating more, especially her likes and dislikes. Even some of her interests are starting to become apparent.

My girls sometimes seem like night and day in so many ways. Not only their skin color either! Although I still am astonished that I have such a dark child and such a light child. Genes are a crazy thing! While Miss Rose thrives on constant interaction and entertainment, Gracie will wander through the house for hours, quite content with whatever she finds, with the occasional drop-by to where mama is.

Gracie loves playing with baby dolls. She holds them to her shoulder and "shushes" them, pushes them in the doll stroller. Today I pulled out my old doll cradle and she was in heaven putting her baby "night night." She also loves purses. Uusally mine! She'll put them over her shoulder and wave and say "bye bye."

In fact, the kid loves putting on pretty much anything. I cannot count the times she has found underwear (both clean and dirty--yikes) and put them on her head. Even before she was 1, she'd spend 30minutes trying to put a piece of clothing over her head. She was so proud when she accomplished the task.

Sometimes this becomes a problem. Gracie now seems to understand that pants and shorts go on the legs. So she'll sit on the ground trying to get shorts (usually her sister's or mine) on and gets very frusterated when it doesn't work. Most of the time, even if I help her--they fall right off anyways, which makes her more angry.

Gracie loves ice cold water and milk. She usually drinks 2-3 sippies of just water each day. And the girl gets MAD when she's thirsty and her drink isn't coming fast enough. Miss Rose was never a huge fan of milk, so I can't believe how much Gracie consumes. She's finally starting to eat a bit more fruit--up until recently she'd only eat bananas and raisins. Feeding herself has become a huge deal too.

Oh and the girl can nod her head like you wouldn't believe! If she doesn't want something she's being offered, she will shake her head "no" quite vehemently over and over until you get the picture. But, she will also nod her head in the affirmative to answer a question.

I just can't believe, a little more than 5 months and we'll be doing this all over again! It will be fun to watch Gracie with the new baby, especially with her love for her baby dolls. I know my girls will be great big sisters.