Could Get Used To This...

At home with a sick baby and one big sister who wanted to tag along and stay home as well.  She's his little nurse maid...taking his temp (w/a digital thermometer), checking on him all the time, getting him water, and helping him off the bed to go potty. 


Here they are all snug on our bed.  Wasn't your parents bed the safest most comfortable place to be when you're sick as a wee one?  Greg and I both remember that cozy feeling when we were little and sick and our moms would let us lay in their bed.  Ahh..heaven.

::bad cell phone picture::

They have every pillow, blanket and stuffed animal in the entire house on my bed.  Since last Thursday, Greg has been banished to Penelope's bed, while the sick-o's stay with me.  It's just easier that way for midnight water requests, lots of bathrooms trips for a potty-trained toddler who has to make the grandest spectacle of every little sprout he can muster because, "Mama!  I go potty!!" has to be announced at all times regardless of hour or how sick you are, lots of "Mama, I throw up!!", which will wake any sleeping mother out of the deepest sleep and have her snap to attention as if she were back in boot camp, only to be met with a few spits in the toilet which resemble nothing of vomit, and lots of temperature checking, and medicine giving.  My little Junior Mint has been quite sick, and this virus has given us a run for our money. 


Greg took Friday off to take care of the kids and I thought for sure we'd be on the mend by today.  Quite the contrary, last night was one of the worst nights yet for Junior Mint, and I called in today and took the rug rat back to the doctor.  This time, his strep test still showed negative, same as Saturday's visit to Urgent Care, but he now has an upper respiratory infection.  Awesome.  So, we are on a powerful does of antibiotics.  I just hope they make my little man feel better.


Even though Junior Mint is not feeling well, I am still preparing a nice meal, one of which would normally grace the weekend table.  I'm baking muffins, AND, prepare yourselves, doing laundry.  Best yet, I'm loving every single second of it.  I love the idea of making a home and in all honesty I wish I didn't have to work.  My working isn't necessarily a "have to", more of a "choose to".  We could make it without my salary, but the questions is, do we want to?  Maybe someday, but right the now the benefit (savings, fun money, retirement) of me working still outweighs me not working.  But, you better believe, I am super jealous of all the mamas and wifeys that get to stay at home and work from there. 


I would totally rock the June Cleaver role...I might even serve dinner in a dress with pearls on. 

Happy Monday!

♥ ♥ ♥
Olivia

The Purse

The epitome of my life is summed up by the picture of my purse below:

Look at all that shit!

I am so unorganized, it sucks balls.  For real.

This weekend I did something shitty...totally inadvertant, but still shitty nonetheless.  In the grand scheme of life, what I'm about to tell you, is not really a big deal.  But, it's really the icing on the cake for me.  I had RSVP'd to a birthday party for a little girl that Gregory attends "baby school" with.  This little girl and Gregory are little kindred spirits...since they were infants.  Since they could interact, they have been best buddies.  They hug each other when the arrive and leave daycare, they share their food and snacks with each other.  Last weekend at Gregory's party, he ran to her and yelled her name and gave her the biggest hug.  They are totally adorable.

Today when I dropped off Gregory, his teachers told me they "missed us yesterday".  Dumbfounded, I was like, "What?".  Then they said the simple little phrase, "We missed you at Cadence's birthday party yesterday."  OH FUCKING HELL.  I was devastated.  Not only because I missed the party, but because I am so fucking unorganized that it was my sheer incompetence that made me miss the party.  To top it off, I lied...to the mom.  Told her Gregory was still stick and just not at 100%.  I felt awful lying, but I wasn't big enough to admit I forgot...I didn't want her to think she wasn't important. 

Then I left daycare, and had a complete meltdown on the way to work.  This single event is the cherry on the top of a very messy, melty, sticky ice cream cone that is my life.  It's been this perpetual cycle for the last couple years that has me into meltdown mode.  I'm a working mom, and although I want no pity for this, it is hard sometimes to try and manage every detail.  I fuck it up often and I feel horrible about it, but I don't change.  It's insanity

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

~ albert einstein

My day usually starts off crappy because I'm dreading the day ahead, because I loathe my job, then it just builds up over and over.  I get lazy, I see too many unsurmountable tasks and I give up.  This is just a crazy time for us...my hubby is in a job that requires a lot of overtime, so my nights are usually spent flying solo.  Nights can be rough too because the kids are tired, Penelope has homework, violin practice that she fights me tooth and nail on, messy rooms, etc.  

Well, today I made a vow to change.  I have to or I will freak the hell out and go crazy.

I have to say tonight was awesome.  I did everything using "timers" and it worked wonderfully with Penelope.  We got everything done that we normally can't find time for and she was still in bed at normal time of 8:30.  

Some things I did differently tonight:

•  After dinner, set the timer on the stove for 20 minutes.  Told Penelope this was our "Tidy Timer" and she had to pick up her room.  I also used the time to clean up the kitchen, pick up the bathoom, organize the little things that so easily get out of place, etc.  At the end of 20 minutes, she wasn't quite done, so she begged for 10 minutes to finish.  What?  Excuse me?  She wants more time to clean her room?  I'm pretty sure it's because she felt like she was playing a game with the whole timer thing.  After the second timer went off, we were done cleaning for the night and it felt good to know we got a ton of stuff done in 30 short minutes. 
• After the mini clean-up, I put the baby in bath, let him play, and while I was sitting there I had Penelope practice her violin.  I had her do a specific task 10 times.  If she got lazy about it, I wouldn't let her go past that number until she got it right.  It worked.  By the last few times she was really paying attention and when she finished she felt accomplished.  The best part was it kept her interest because we only spent about 10 minutes practicing, but it was quality practice.  And, I bathed the baby during all of this, so he was done when we were done.  Score.  Then we read the baby a book and put him to bed. 
• It was 7:53 and instead of putting Penelope in the shower, I set the timer again for 7 minutes and we practiced her dribbling and foot control techniques for soccer practice.  It was good for me too, because we ran around the house for 7 minutes and I got my heart rate up too.
• We did a few pages of homework, got her showered, in bed and read a book.  I was really happy.  She was happy.  We got so much accomplished without any tantrums...very smooth sailing.   I think my approach has just been wrong all along
• Also, the TV did not come on at all until the kids went to bed.  I told her TV was going to be dramatically cut.  She was bit put off, but then I told her what an awesome job she did tonight, and how things like that allow her privileges and rewards and she was excited.   For the first time, in a very long time, I felt like our time together was quality time...and we accomplished a lot.
• I also picked out the week's remaining outfits for Penelope, Junior Mint and myself.  No more searching for crap in the morning.

I know this new routine will take some major adjustments on my part and time to work itself into habit, but I am so ready.  How will I ever be successful in other parts of my life, if I feel like the most elementary parts of my life are in utter and complete shambles?

But, I have to try, right?

So, tell me...what are some techniques you use to keep yourself organized?  

♥
Olivia

Junior Mint Turns 2!

Seriously...my little Jr. Mint is two?  Already? 

Wasn't this just happening?

I still remember this moment like it happened an hour ago...

I still can remember what he smelled like...

And, I can still get a lump in my throat when I look at this...realizing that I could love another human being so purely and so unconditionally from the very start.

And now I get looks like this...every day...all day long...

• He is now 36 inches, yes he is 3 feet tall at 2 years old.
• He is 32 pounds
• If I make him mad, or try to be the boss (God forbid!), he tells me "Go.  Mama.  Go."  I don't know whether to get mad or eat him up and giggle.
• He loves his "Sissy" more than anything and wants to have whatever she has or do whatever she does.
• He thinks he's 5 already.
• He's pretty much the boss of all the grandkids on my husband's side because the rest baby him like crazy.
• He knows his color and shapes and all his body parts.
• He melts my heart and pushes every button on a daily basis.

This past weekend, we had his 2nd Birthday Circus at the local park by our house.  I invited all his baby school friends and all of our family.  We had about 40 people show up.  It was super fun.  The following pictures are totally not my normal stuff...all done with a point & shoot, no composition, no editing...just taken for posterity.

So, I did all the decorations myself, and either printed them off the computer, or bought them from The Dollar Tree.  I also bought all the games and prizes from The Dollar Tree of the dollar bins from Target, Michael's & Jo-Ann's.

We had a fishing game, a ball toss game, facepainting, gunny sack races, and a pinata.  The big item was a petting zoo.  Carter's Farm was amazing.  I did my research and called around, and they were the ONLY professionals that I spoke with, didn't balk at my request for liability insurance (also a requirement of the park), and were just awesome.  They came and set up a mobile fence, and had a hand sanitizing station, and had mules, goats, piglets, chickens, ducks, and bunnies.  The kids had a blast.  I only paid for an hour, and with the kids there that was just enough. 

The kids played games, in turn they got tickets just for playing and then they redeemed them at the prize table.  We had hot dogs, chips, cotton candy, cheese popcorn, carmel corn, cupcakes, tons of super sugary candy, juices, water, and good old fashioned Shasta pop in all the great flavors.  I wanted so badly to rent a popcorn and cotton candy machine to really bring home the circus vibe, but just couldn't justify it in addition to the petting zoo.  Well, I just about died when shopping at Smart & Final for all my stuff when I spied a stand with individual bags of popcorn and COTTON CANDY!!  I was so excited.  So, I bought a few varieties and put them in a tub on the Goodies table.  Everyone loved everything, so I think it was a success.

The Popcorn Bags were the kiddies loot bags...to start them off they had little bottles of bubbles, I made them mustaches on stick, stickers, and candy necklaces.  The bags were from The Dollar Tree and they came 30 to a bag.  Score.

Made the bunting from scrapbook paper, made the centerpieces, tissue paper puffs...

Tissue paper puffs...directions from Martha Stewart.  Hung with red and white baker's twine*.  Our little clown pinata hanging up in the tree.



Popcorn containers (3/$1), tissue paper, ribbons (3/$1), and giant suckers all from The Dollar Tree.  Wooden lion from Jo-Ann's.  I alternated between the lion, a giraffe, and an elephant.  I also made circus themed suckers from candy melts.  Got the melts & mold at ABC Cake

The Prize Table! 



Downloaded several circus themed fonts from dafont and made all the signs.  Tons of candy, mustaches on a stick, cupcakes, red bin full of cheese corn, carmel corn and cotton candy.  Gumball dispensers filled with red hots, lemonheads, and gumballs.



Daddy & Jr. Mint petting the mule?  Donkey?  Not sure.

Not so sure about Olivia the Pig.



Peeps hold the cutest bunny ever.  Not sure she ever stopped holding it long enough for other kids to enjoy.  Guess who wants a bunny now?



All the kidlets enjoying the zoo.

 I had so much fun planning this party, and seeing what I could do on a budget.  It was a lot of work, but so worth it. 


* Baker's Twine.  I'm about to blow the whistle on all those people selling baker's twine on Etsy and other places.  They are raping people with their prices.  $12.99 and up for 100 yards?  This is some shit!  I got my red and white baker's twine from a place called We Sell Coffee for $8.95.  And you wanna know how many damn yards I got?  3400.  Yes, that is THREE THOUSAND FOUR HUNDRED yards.  Now, I will be the first to admit, this place does not have the pastel colors, but they do have quite a selection.  Shipping does start at around $8 as well, but it's come from Jersey and it only takes 4 days.  I don't know about you, but I'd like to get as much product for my dollar as possible. 

So, now that this party is over, I'm full speed ahead with Chaps Buffalino.  I finally feel like the Holiday rush is over.  We went from New Years, straight to my hubby's birthday on the 9th, then Jr. Mint's on the 19th.  It's been complete chaos and I'm always rushing.  I'm looking forward to slowing down a bit and focuing on one thing.


Ciao for now...


♥
Olivia

It's 2011...Really? Shit.

I really feel behind.


So behind.
I thought 2010 flew by, I think 2011 is already exceeding it at record pace.I'm literally still on the rush from the holidays.  I've been fervently planning a grand circus birthday party for my little Junior Mint who is turning two (!) on the 19th.  Two?  Where the hell did the time go?  I've rented a ramada at a local park and I've invited tons of people.  Lots of family and then I did something very unexpected of me...I invited 24 18-24 month olds!!! I invited all the chunky monkeys from Gregory's "Baby School" (it makes me feel *thismuch* less guilty to say this, instead of daycare).  My husband looked at me with a deer-in-the-headlights look but was on board.


I'll be honest...I never really thought much of extravagant kid birthday parties.  That is until this happened.  And reading this everyday, REALLY puts thing into perspective.  I used to think big birthday parties were a
waste of money.  But, I realized that every year the Good Lord allows me to have my healthy happy babies, I should celebrate them to the fullest.  You just never know what life has in store.  I don't want to ever be in a
hospital room regretting what I have not done for my kids.  They only have one childhood, and I'm determined to make it the best within my means and teaching them lessons about being grateful in the process.  If anything, my kids will be grateful. 


With that being said, I have planned this party on the cheap.  Now cheap doesn't mean less...it just means more manual work.  Sure I could spend a couple hundred dollars on premade stuff on websites, but where is the fun in that?  I'm the crafty-type who enjoys doing things myself, even if it means a lot of work and staying up very late to get it all done. 


I'll have to post pictures later, but so far we will have gunny sack races, fishing game, ball toss, face painting, and a petting zoo.  All my games and prizes and stuff for decorations came from The Dollar Tree.  The whole purpose will be to play the games and get tickets which they will redeem for prizes.  I'm pretty excited for it.  The big ticket item was the petting zoo.  It's only for an hour, but they will bring 15-20 animals, have a hand sanitizing station, and set up with a white picket fence, and do all the clean-up.  If "they" do a good job, I will give all the info later.


In other news...January is proving to be just as busy as December.  My hubby's birthday was yesterday, Junior Mint's is on the 19th, our best friends Joel & Paty are coming in for the party, and Joel's birthday is the 20-something-th (I suck, I know!), Penelope is in the full swing of violin again, she has gifted testing sessions coming up in the next two weeks, I have a business to open (hello!), we're trying to find a house to buy, and then work is picking up pretty heavily.  I don't know how to keep up.  I literally don't have enough hours in the day. And I have a ton of l.a.u.n.d.r.y.  And yet, I'm blogging.  Awesome priorities ;)


I have a lot of goals for 2011, and blogging is one of them.  I so enjoy writing my little online diary, and if I can connect with just one person (Samara!) ;) , then I'm totally happy.


So, stayed tuned...I have a feeling 2011 is going to be a bumpy ride.  In all the right ways!

♥
Olivia

Getting Back...

In the last month or so, I've kinda quit blogging.  Not because I don't love doing it, but because it seems trivial to me...like I'm being selfish.  My topics seem so dumb because my mind is constantly consumed with my dear friend Maya and that fact that her 4 year-old son was just diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroblastoma cancer. 

I feel guilty rambling on about my newest recipe or that fact that I am an official GLEEK! and my full fledged obsession with Sue Sylvester.  But I've been thinking about it, and Maya used to enjoy reading my blogs, and even though her "normal" no longer exists, it's okay that mine does.  But this situation has changed my life.  For a long time I've wanted to pour my heart and soul into a charity that meant something to me.  Now I can and I know my time and efforts will make a difference.  I've signed up to do the Relay for Life event on October 2-3rd, and my team is currently in 1st place! Yes!  And, I've been asked to speak about Ronan's story for the "Survivor Segment" of the relay.  I have to tell you...I am petrified of public speaking, but what an honor, huh?  An opportunity to spread the word about Ronan is an opportunity I don't want to miss.  I'll probably be a blubbering fool, but as my husband told me, "No guts.  No glory."  My soul purpose is get as many people praying and sending good vibes to Ronan as possible.  I'm also a part of The Ronan Thompson Foundation that Maya and her husband set up.  All proceeds for the time being will benefit them for their medical expenses and neuroblastoma research.  They have huge plans for this foundation to help fund research and help other families out that are going through the same thing as they are now.  I am so excited that I will be a part of this.  It is truly an honor.  To follow their story, please visit Rockstar Ronan.

In other news...

Penelope has been in kindergarten for a little over a month now and she amazes me.  She's already reading 3-4 word sentences, she's growing up so fast, and she's fiercely independent which makes so happy, yet scares the hell out of me all at the same time.  Time goes by so fast...trying to soak up all those little moments while I can.

My little Junior Mint (my nickname for Gregory since he is a Junior) is getting totally big too.  Just found out today that he has an epigastric hernia that will require surgery.  It's minor and I'm thankful, but I've been sweating bullets for a few weeks now from first seeing his pediatrician, to the radiologist to finally the pediatric surgeon.  The pediatrician couldn't feel or see anything, the ultrasound technologist made me feel crazy because she couldn't feel or see anything and the ultrasound came back negative, but the surgeon immediately felt what I had seen and confirmed that something wasn't right.  Mother's intuition is never wrong.  So, we have outpatient surgery scheduled in October. 

So, as always, thank you for stopping by.  Try not to take people for granted...be thankful for your health...give those little ones an extra hug and kiss, and allow peace to fill your heart.

xoxo-Olivia

Are You Done Yet?

I just had the insane pleasure to experience what I affectionately call the "Neverending Poo". Baby G sure knows how to lay it down for Mama.

Sometimes I feel like I'm an "experienced" Mama...since this is my second child and all. And then I have nights like last night, and diaper changes like the one I just had and my reality is put into check and I realize I'm really not the one in control...the babe is.

I was holding Baby G when he started laying down the deuce and I thought that I had given him ample time to finish considering he was passed out a.s.l.e.e.p. on my chest.

Yeah, not so much.

So 3 diapers later, he is fast asleep.

Yes, every time I got him cleaned up and was ready to secure a new clean diaper he would keep pooing. And then, he proceeded to pee all over me and the wall.

Yep, Rookie Mama today...forgot to cover up that part.

Baby Love

So, it's been almost 2 weeks since I gave birth to my baby boy, Gregory. He is simply amazing, and like when I had my daughter, I have no idea how I existed in life without having him before. Gregory was named after Daddy, and he was born on 1-19-09 weighing in at a hefty 10 pounds, and 20.5 inches long. Thank the Lord for c-sections :) I've learned a lot from my first pregnancy and birth to this one. I am no means an expert at being a mommy, but the following are some points that I have learned. While, it may help no one, I think it will be beneficial for me to look back on these points someday. Birth is hard. Even when it's a planned c-section. It's okay to feel weak (mentally & physically). There is no need to feel like SuperMom within the first days of your baby's life. Crying is therapeutic and it's okay to give into the urges whenever they arise. This was hard with me the first time around, and even a bit this time around. When you are pregnant you have a flooding of hormones, etc. and then the minute you give birth, they get depleted, which leaves you feeling very emotional. I guess it's what they call Baby Blues. I don't feel it's post-partum, as I never have had thoughts of harming myself or my baby, but there are times, when you just feel like crying. At first I thought I was weak and not a good mom. Now, I know that's not the case. And, after every good cry, you always feel refreshed. Babies have a mind of their own. Although I'm a big advocate for getting babies on a schedule as soon as possible, sometimes it just doesn't happen every day and that's okay. Babies know when they want to eat and sleep. Don't listen to everyone and their experience. It's been a long time since some of these women have given birth. I'm still amazed at the feeling I experienced when I heard both my babies cry for the first time as they breathed their first breaths of life. It's so overwhelming in the most amazing way. My husband has explained it best...it changes the very core of who you are. Never in my life have I experienced complete and utter unconditional love as I have when my babies are born. Being a mom is hard, but the most rewarding experience of my life. It's a constant balance between worrying and joy. I worry about leaving them at daycare, not spending enough quality time with them, if they are eating right, if I love them enough and they know it. It's also joyful watching them grow, watching them develop into little people...my little people. Each time I fall more in love with my husband. He is the best husband and the best father. He is helpful, fun, my meaty shoulder that catches my tears, my rock, my best friend. And, he doesn't shy away at all from poopy diapers. I love being a mom. Plain and simple. It is and will be my greatest accomplishment in life.

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