Saturday, May 30, 2009

Wow! 101 posts!

I just realized that my last post was my 100th! I originally intended to celebrate by writing out 100 interesting facts about myself. But seriously -- 100? Yeah, I don't think that that's possible. So I was trying to think of something more appropriate. And I'm thinking that my next post or maybe the one after my next, will contain that number of books that I want to read or have already read but am willing to read again. So if it's my 102nd post, I'll post 102 books that I want to read. Now, I'm putting this off for a later post simply because ... well, I already have a much longer list than that, and I'd rather pick my top reads off of that than try to come up with them on my own. So I'm going to go dig it out of the box it's buried in. And maybe in the next few months my goal will be to finish reading the books on that list. That'd be fun, right? :)

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Memorial Weekend -- A general update

We had quite a weekend! And it didn't end until yesterday! Unfortunately, I can't find my camera's battery charger, so I have no pictures. :(

Chris's parents got into town Saturday night and stayed until yesterday morning. Sunday we went to church of course. We went to St John's Seafood that night. Their food is always yummy and they give so much food! That night Chris grilled fajita meat for us. Loved it!

Monday we went to MOSH (Museum of Science and History). While I will say that by the end I was ready to pull out my hair due to the whineyness that is my daughter, overall the trip was good. And I'm fairly certain that most of the whineyness was due to missed naps. Chris grilled for us again that night. I love it when he grills; it's always so good!

And Tuesday Tony (my fil) relandscaped the backyard! I'll have to find the battery charger and take a picture because there is no way to explain what he did unless you've seen my backyard, but I absolutely love it! When (if?)the rain would clears up, I know that the kids will love playing out back even more now. :)



The in-laws left yesterday morning and while I loved having them here, it was really nice to get back to a semi-normal routine. Of course, Kairi and Alex keep asking for PaPa (he's a definite favorite). And since they took the dog with them, they're constantly asking for "my Tiga puppy". (Dog's name was Tiger.) We almost changed our minds and kept Tiger, but neither Chris nor I felt like dealing with her pooping and hacking up loogies on the floor anymore. Honestly, his parents are much better equipped to deal with it since they don't have kids. Oh, and it bummed me out yesterday when I realized I had to wash my own dishes. LOL ... Becky (mil) knows how much I hate washing dishes and did it for me while she was here. I love her!


I am truly lucky. While from time to time each of my in-laws get on my nerves or do something I don't agree with, I am truly lucky to have them. First of all, we all make the extra effort to get along. And I know that they see how much Chris has grown up since meeting me, marrying me, and having kids. I know that they credit a lot of that to his commitment to me, and therefore they respect my decisions and the way I handle things. Also, they have conceded that while they may not always agree w/ my parenting style (although they usually do ... just a few moments that we disagree on), they had their chance to raise their boys the way THEY wanted to, and now it's my chance to raise my own kids and make my own mistakes. Becky will frequently give input, but if I ignore her advice she doesn't get upset or mad at me. Becky and I talk on a daily basis and if I don't call her, she gets worried about us. Tony and I agree on general political topics, but frequently disagree on specifics ... so we "discuss" our differences on occasion. But I think my willingness to stick to my beliefs while still at least considering his viewpoint has increased his respect for me. We get along better now than ever. I love also that they always try to take a step back from my marriage and any disagreements Chris and I might have most of the time. All in all, I have great in-laws. :) And I know that I'm very lucky to have them. So when I say that I'm sad to see them go, it's real. Besides, who could I not be excited to have them around when I know the joy that their visit brings my kids. Kairi screeches their names and celebrates the moment they show up, and she doesn't calm down until she's asleep. :)

Friday, May 22, 2009

UPDATE!!!

Alex just used the potty!!!!!!!

Way to Go Kairi!!!

Kairi took her diaper off as soon as she got up this morning and threw it away. I warned her that she had to go in the potty. If she went on the floor she'd have to wear a diaper again today. She told me "OK! I go in potty!"

And then ... she really did! She was crawling on me and suddenly looked at me and said "I want go potty." So we set down and she went. :D Hurray! It's not that she doesn't have control or know what to do ... we conquered that a long time ago. It's that she's not had the desire to do it, and I wasn't willing to push her.

Of course, as soon as Alex saw Kairi on the potty he wanted to sit there too. This is his 3rd time to sit on it. Nothing happens when he does, but it's more about letting him get used to it. He's showing interest so much earlier than Kairi did.... Hopefully this means he'll train sooner!


HURRAY! I love feeling like there's an end in sight to diapers. :D

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

The Monster Has a Name

The monster I dubbed "pain" was finally named today. To refresh your memory, the family blog talked about it here, here, here, and this blog mentioned it here.

Basically: my joints hurt. My hands hurt. My feet hurt. Some days are worse than others. Some days I can't move, others I can. Last fall it was theorized that I was experiencing lasting effects from a virus I had when I was in high school. Sorta makes sense -- except for the fact that some of my symptoms started before I had the virus. New doctor I saw last month sent me to a rheumatologist. I saw him today and he was able to put a name to this beast.

And the name of the monster?

Fibromyalgia


From the National Fibromyalgia Association's website:
Fibromyalgia (pronounced fy-bro-my-AL-ja) is a complex chronic pain disorder that affects an estimated 10 million Americans. While it occurs most often in women, it strikes men and children, and all ethnic backgrounds. For those with severe symptoms, fibromyalgia (FM) can be extremely debilitating and interfere with basic daily activities.

I start taking Lyrica tonight and doing yoga every day starting tomorrow. I see the dr again in a month. So between now and then, let's hope that I start seeing some relief. And as I learn more about it, I'll continue to update.



Oh, btw, the blood test on that last link came back clear. I have the mutations that could lead to hemochromotosis, but I do not currently have it. That's good news. :)

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

So that straw I was talking about ...

While the rest of the family didn't feel it, I did Sunday night. Not going into details, but basically I spent all Sunday night and all day yesterday bawling. I'm feeling a little bit better about it right now. No one died or got sick -- just a situation that I'm not completely comfortable with occurred. Thankfully, as soon as I got home Sunday night, Chris recognized how upset I was, and he held me for 30 minutes while I cried and yelled and cried some more. His shirt was drenched in tears, and I looked like a raccoon by the time I was done. But I was so thankful that he was home to listen.



~~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of him being home: The reasoning behind THIS POST, where I blogged about having to accept things no matter how hard they might be ... isn't going to happen! This I CAN now tell you about.
That morning Chris was at sea with the ship. He emailed me with the news that there was a chance that he would be deployed apart from the rest of the ship on July 20 for 383 days, including training time. He would be going to work at an Army base in Afghanistan. That scared the crap out of me. There were 3 ships that had to put up someone to go, then after those people were voluntold volunteered, someone higher up would select which of those three would go. Chris' ship already has lost 13 people this way, one of those from his division. Apparently, the higher ups agreed that Chris was needed on his ship because of this. So he's not going! HURRAY! HURRAY! HURRAY! I'm so thankful that he'll be home until the original deployment date. And thankful that original deployment is as short as it is.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Prayers please

I won't describe the longness of last night. Let's just say it was a bad one. But to make it even "better", I got a call at 1:30am that I wanted to ask for you all to pray for.


My grandmother was taken to the ER last night when her blood pressure reached 219/92. She was also struggling with a few other things that have been diagnosed in the past, but have never been as bad as they were last night. They spent several hours there, and finally made it home right before I was called. She now has to find a doctor (as the dr the whole family has seen for over 20 years retired recently) and see about getting these things under control.

It's been a hard year for my grandparents, on all counts. I really don't think that our family can handle anything else going wrong. It seriously feels like one more straw and the camel carrying all of this is going to collapse.




Now I'm going to go try to prepare for a day with the kids and a night out with Chris. Thanks for thinking of us!

Friday, May 15, 2009

Kairi and Alex interactions

Kairi and Alex were watching Handy Manny this morning when suddenly that room was quiet. I went in to find out what was going on just in time to hear Kairi tell Alex "Don't push buttons. Go tell Mommy you pushed da button." Alex just looked at her like she was crazy. Quickly I realized that he had turned the satellite box off. Going to correct it, I also told Alex that he doesn't need to push buttons. At which point he looked at me and pointed to the tv and says:

"Uh-ooooooh!"

Then he held his hands up while shrugging his shoulders as if to tell me that he has NOOOO idea how it happened. And then he hugged his sister and walked off grinning.



~~~~~

Yesterday Alex hit Kairi in the head with a toy. Kairi grabbed the toy from him, said "No hitting!" and then ran to me and said "He hit me! Tell Alex say sorry and hug me!".

She knows the process because she's been the culprit waaaay too many times.



~~~~

Because I do make the kids immediately say sorry and hug the other person as soon as they hurt each other, Alex has begun to believe that a hug rights all wrongs and heals all hurts.

Yesterday Alex was trying to get Kairi's attention. He just wanted to play. He was calling "Sis! Sis! Sis!" as he squatted into his concentration-pose looking straight at her, but she wasn't turning around. Probably because it was the first time he'd ever said "sis" and she didn't know that that meant her. She kept playing with her music toys, completely oblivious to the start of the sound of desperation in his voice. Soon he was sobbing while trying to get her to turn around and pay attention to him. Finally, he walked up to her, bent over so that his face was inches from hers and goes "Sis!!! Hugga!!!!!!!" and then he started crying, until she hugged him. As soon as he got his hug, he grinned and they went hand in hand to her room to play.




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Check out the giveaway posted HERE!

I'll post soon ... but in the meantime, A Giveaway!

One of the blogs I stalk read is Rock and Drool. I've posted a few of her giveaways before. When she does one, I almost always love what she's giving away, and this giveaway is no exception. :)



Ziggy Marley has produced a family/kid friendly cd with all sorts of fun featured artists on it. And with as musically focused as Kairi is, you know I am always looking for new types of music for her to experience, mimic and dance to. This sounds like a great cd for that. The cd, Family Time, hit stores May 5 but you don't have to buy it just yet ....

Melissa over at Rock and Drool is giving away several copies of the new cd as well as an IPOD shuffle! So run on over to her blog and comment to enter!

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Playing with the camera...

What do you think?


Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

Pleeeeeease

Sunday while at the zoo, Chris and I ran into a couple with a child Kairi's age. They heard her talking to us and were amazed at how well she spoke. While marveling over her (which yes, she speaks well and I'm super proud of her ... but it's not something to throw a party over), I was able to witness something that helped me have a little insight into why Alex is so grumpy. Their son wanted a drink, so without having to ask for it, he whined and hit it in his dad's hands. They gave him the drink while asking if he was thirsty -- never giving him the chance to respond. He wanted out of the stroller, so he starts shrieking and trying to get out, and they let him out without him ever having to say what he wanted. We did hear him say a couple of words to Kairi, so I know that he's able to speak, but he wouldn't around his parents. And I hypothesize that it's because he never HAD to say anything. How does that relate to Alex?

One of the reasons Alex is becoming more and more unbearable is that he's realized that we don't understand what he wants most of the time, so within seconds of us not understanding him he's screaming. I know he's frustrated, and I do feel for him. Can you imagine what it's like to know what you want and know that you would be allowed to have it if you could just some how let the people that love you know what you want -- but you can't get them to understand? You'd be pretty frustrated too, right? Now that I've recognized that that's one of the reasons for his constant whinyness, I've decided to treat it the way I did Kairi at this age. Granted we were already doing this ... but I'm becoming more insistent and consistent with it.

Alex wants a "coke" (drink of any sort is named coke). He knows the word coke, he also knows how to say please. Instead of him just bringing me the drink, or instead of him just yelling coke, he has to do the following to get something to drink:
Bring me the cup and tell me coke please. When we first started this, 90% of the time, he'd do one, but not the other. Or he'd tell me coke, but not the please. Or the please but not the coke. And we were/are battling over it. And once he's got his coke, he has to say thank you, or he doesn't get to keep it. I know it sounds strict. But here's the result. This morning he had finished his drink and was still thirsty. Without prompting, he brought me his coke and said "coke leeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaasssse Nonny!". I quickly refilled it for him, and he with the biggest grin chanted while walking into the living room, "tank oo! tank oo! tank oo Nonny! tank oo! tank oo! tank oo Nonny!". :) Melted my heart. He knew what he needed to say to get what he wanted, and he did it. And all frustrations melted away. Not only that, but he was polite.

We are also working on other words. Book and read -- if he wants us to read he needs to say book please or read please while handing us the book. Pacifier -- he has to ask for his pacifier before bed with paci please. Up please. Down please. More food please. Draw please. Help, truck, name of whatever toy he wants, go, church. We're insisting that he use the real words. And while I know it frustrates him right now, before long I know he'll be proud and grinning because he was able to say what he wanted to say. Kairi has a bad habit of trying to tell me what it is he wants while he's crying (I swear they have their own language, similar to a twin language), but I'm refusing to respond unless it's Alex that tells me. And it's working.

As I mentioned earlier, we did this with Kairi while I was living in Texas, and I think it worked. I frequently hear compliments on how polite Kairi is and how well she speaks. But I will say that just because she can say the above does not mean that I'm stopping there. It frustrates Kairi as well, but I'm insisting that she attempt whole sentences. Instead of just coke please, we have an entire process we go through. She says coke please, I tell her to ask like a big girl and say "Please may I have coke Mommy?" and she usually repeats back "Please may coke Mommy?" or something similar. She adds in a new word to the sentence on a regular basis. And again, we insist on thank yous.


I don't think that this is necessarily the only way to do things or even the best way, but it works for us. And I'm so proud of my little man. This morning he's been able to ask me for more food, more coke, and a toy he couldn't reach. And all three did not involve any screaming or whining. :) Ahhh ... the sound of sweet success. Pleeeeease. :)

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

I hate days like yesterday

When I first got up yesterday morning, I was hopeful. I was hopeful because despite a not great night of sleep, it had still be more that normal. I was hopeful because despite hurting, I didn't have any plans that would kill me to cancel so I could stay home, get caught up, and hopefully stop hurting before long. I was hopeful because I had planned to make homemade pizza for supper with all of Chris' favorite toppings. I was hopeful because I knew that sometime between 2 and 5 Chris would come home. I haven't had him home on a Monday night in a couple of weeks. And I was hopeful because I had Ladies Devo scheduled for 7pm that night and Chris would be home to watch the kids so that I could go.


And then it started. The whines, and hits, and shoves, and screaming, and yelling. All of those came from my children. After every picture I edited I was having to stop and break up another fight. I finally gated the two into separate bedrooms for 5 minutes because I couldn't get either child to stay in time out for anything. When I let them out, they ran to each other, hugged, and then started fighting again. *sigh*

My mom tried to encourage me that after a good nap, the kids would be refreshed and in better moods. Yeah ... didn't happen. The whining -- oh the whining. I wanted ear plugs. And I'm certain that today I will find bruises on the kids from each other. It was that bad.

Chris came home finally. Around 4 -- which was good because it gave me a little extra time to pick up since I'd spent the morning with pictures instead of cleaning. The whining let up for maybe 5 minutes. Maybe. Then he did it. Chris instead of asking me to run to Sonic for a drink and a chili cheese coney for him, he handed me his spending money, and a coupon, and pretty much TOLD me to go. Ummm... yeah, that didn't go over so well. Yes, I was more than willing to go get it. But don't tell me to. Ask me.

I had been planning on starting the pizza dough around 4, but was distracted by the above situation. So when I got home, Chris had started putting the stuff into the bread machine. I helped him finish up and realized that it wouldn't be ready until 10 till 6. Oh well, at least supper would be done by 7 and the kids in bed by 7:30.

At 6 I walked into the kitchen wondering why the bread machine hadn't said that it was done. I looked into it. All the ingredients just set there, like the machine had never been turned on. But it WAS on. Chris came in to see what was wrong. We figured it out, and the pizza dough was restarted. But it was 6. If we waited to finish the pizza for supper, it would 8 before we were even sitting down to eat.

So I left. Again. I ran to Food Lion, which I hate, to pick up Voila's Garlic Chicken frozen meal and some Texas Toast. There were a couple of other things I needed, but I figured that I'd be gone at most 25 minutes. Supper would be ready by 7 and the kids in bed by 7:30, just like originally planned.

But they were out of the Garlic Chicken. I was frustrated and trying to decide what to do instead when a stocker found me. He quickly reassured me that there were more in the back and that he could grab some for me. He told me to give him 2 minutes. 15 minutes later he found me (I had given up on him by then) in another part of the store w/ 3 bags of my garlic chicken. I pulled my basket into one of the two open lines. Both were lined into the aisles. As soon as I was close enough to put my groceries onto the counter, another register opened. And another one. Gee, thanks.

I got home at 7 just as a thunder storm was hitting. Storms mean no satellite. Chris had finally gotten both kids in a good mood by sitting on the floor and signing and watching Dora with them. But the minute the storm hit and the satellite was off, the fighting and whining started again.

Supper was ready by 7:30, and so was the pizza dough, by the way. One thing I will say for eating so late -- the kids ate! Well, Kairi refused to eat her broccoli, but her carrots and corn were devoured! Alex ate EVERYTHING.

Kids were finally in bed by 8:15. And they were still fighting, whining, and crying as we tucked them into bed.


Obviously, Ladies' Devo did NOT happen. After putting the food away, I looked at my messy kitchen, turned off the light, and walked out. I grabbed an ice cream sandwich and a book, and then curled up on the couch and read until 10.



Thankfully, they seem to be in MUCH better moods today.
So here's the plan for the day:
~Clean that kitchen that I should have last night.
~Reclean the kids rooms.
~Start the laundry.
~Park this afternoon -- maybe Chris will be home in time to go with us!
~PIZZA FOR SUPPER! lol....

Monday, May 11, 2009

Picture Post 5 of the Day

Here are what I think are the last of them for the day. It's a compilation of pictures stretching from February through the end of March.

What happens when Daddy leaves butter on the island -- Kairi plays.
Photobucket

Big grins
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

He's so handsome. :)
Photobucket

When you tell Kairi to make funny faces, you get:
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

He loves that blankey.
Photobucket

Caught tickling Nana. :)
Photobucket

Lounging with Daddy before bed.
Photobucket


Photobucket

I'm cute...
Photobucket

With Nana at Pop-pop's.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

With Pop-pop.
Photobucket

About to go to bed....
Photobucket


Arg! I be a tired Pirate!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Every pirate needs her sword.
Photobucket

Mommy! I'm stuck! Don't take pictures of me!
Photobucket

His toy makes farting noises. He loves it. It has to be a boy thing.
Photobucket

Look Mommy, I can stir! lol...
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Mother's Day Zoo Trip -- Picture Post 4 of the Day

The Jacksonville Zoo offered free admission to all mom's on Mother's Day yesterday. So Chris and I loaded the kids up, took them out, and completely wore them out. :)

Here's our trip:

Sting Ray Bay
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Watching elephants
Photobucket

Photobucket

I see birds!
Photobucket

Look Mommy! That's a BIG snake!
Photobucket

If I hold on real tight, maybe I can get out of this thing.
Photobucket


Photobucket

Photobucket

The jaguar completely fascinated the kids. Especially when he got very close.
Photobucket

Otters!
Photobucket

The water fountain that the kids loved.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

I'm telling! She splashed me!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

There's also a water park at the Zoo.
Photobucket

Alex thought that this was his personal fountain. :)
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket