Slacker

Yes, I’ve been a slacker… but for good reason… I have three kids now. 

Here is a photo from Easter… aren’t they cute?

Kids are doing great and I am finally getting into the swing of things. 

Speaking of swings – I borrowed swings for my last two kids (then gave them back), so I didn’t have one for Natalie.  This kid NEEDED a swing… she hates the vibrating chair, and was not too keen on the bouncer we were given.  I had a hookup that ended up not working out.   Yesterday I went on Craigslist and was able to find the exact one I was looking for.  They were going for about $80, but then I found someone the next city over who was selling hers for only $40!  We rushed up and got it, and let me tell you, it is a Godsend.  Baby is happy and quiet and I’m actually getting a few things done today.

I’ve been reading up on all of you with my Google Reader, but don’t always have a chance to comment.  Hopefully that will change.

Have a great day!

35 days and counting!

I’m down to 5 weeks left of this pregnancy. Thank God! I have to say it’s been the easiest of all three… I didn’t have all of the crazy side effects like last time, which I am VERY happy about.

I’ve already told you about the amazing deals we got in regards to baby stuff. I just have a few more things to get and we will have everything but the baby. My husband keeps telling me he’s going to laugh if it’s a boy. I keep telling him I’m going to punch him if he laughs. I went with that ’70% chance’ that it’s a girl and ran with it. Everything I bought is pink & brown. All of the clothing I have is pink. (all secondhand)

We will be scheduling the c-section for the week of March 30th. While I thought it would be fun to go with April 1st, I’ve since vetoed it. Knowing my luck, it WOULD be a boy and the joke would be on me. LOL So there you go. I’ve been doing some nesting (if you call doing my regular chores nesting), have moved Grant into Katie’s room, and have all of the new baby’s things all set up.

So… if you don’t hear from me too much, it’s not for lack of love – I’m either running after these two rugrats (Grant RUNS now!), on Facebook, OR taking a nap.

Maternity Clothes

So, of course a few months back I gave away ALL of my maternity clothes!  And now I’m prego again.  I certainly don’t have it in my budget to buy all new clothes!  I was lucky enought the second time around to get a huge bag from a friend of mine. 

This time, I found someone on craigslist.com who wanted to sell some of her clothes for $75.  We emailed back and forth and I asked if maybe I could do it in trade (scrapbooking/stamping items), since I was low on funds.   She ended up just giving them to me.  Whoo hoo! They are moving cross country this week and we made the switch yesterday.  I offered to make her a scrapbook album for her kids and she said not to worry, that she’d rather see the clothes go to someone who needs them than have someone buy them for cheap and re-sell them (apparently someone offered her only $30 and was going to re-sell on ebay).  She also said maybe if I have the time, I could make her a book and she would pay me.  Awesome. 

The Big Guy Upstairs is clearly looking out for us.

ps… Major tip of the day for parents on a budget… if you have a service to offer in lieu of money, it doesn’t hurt to ask to buy something in trade!

Summer Activities

Now that we are more settled in our new place and baby is on a schedule, I’m ready to get Katie into some summer activities.   She loves being around other kids, and certainly loves to perform.  Just last night at Target, she held court in the accessory department with a crowd of about 5 watching her sing into a little microphone and dance around.  As she ended each song, she would shout ‘HEY HEY!’ and then bow.  People walking by would clap and say she should be on American Idol.  My little performer.  Andrew suggested we put out a little hat for tips.

I signed her up for a ‘Storytelling, Singing & Dancing’ class that starts in 2 weeks - a few days after we get back from our vacation.  It is for one hour each week for 5 weeks.  This girl LOVES to sing and dance, so I think it will be perfect for her.  Also, I lucked out and the classes are held about one block from my house, so we can walk to and from (thus saving gas and parking fees.)  If you are from California, you know we drive EVERYWHERE, so walking the block will be a new experience for us (and GREAT excersise!)

Once those classes are over, I enrolled her (just this morning!) in swimming lessons.  It would have been nice to get them before the vacation, but that is okay.  She’ll still have one on one time with both me and Andrew in the pool/lake this coming week.  She is like a little fish already and LOVES to be in the water, and can get around pretty good with just her floatie jacket on.

What are your kids doing this summer?

Five months and growing!

My baby boy is 5 months old today!  Do you see those little creases on his thighs!?  LOVE EM!

• He rolls over all of the time now… it is so fun to watch. 
• I’m looking forward to feeding him baby food.  I’ve tried rice cereal a few times but he wasn’t very impressed with it.
• He loves his big sister and watches her every move.  Even if it means losing the bottle and getting whiplash as she darts around the room dancing.

I’m so blessed to be able to stay at home and take care of them and watch them grow.  It may mean we have NO money to buy ’things’, but it is sure worth it!

Hip-hip-HOORAY!

I woke up this morning in shock.

It was 6am and I realized that both kids slept the entire night though!  It was a revelation that made the skies open up and angel sing HALLELUJAH! 

I was even able to take a shower before they both got up.  (I usually have to wait until the baby is napping, then take Katie in the bathroom with me and lock the door so she won’t go messing with him.)

Grape Milk

This morning when I was feeding the baby, Katie decided to get into the fridge(a big no-no) and pour the remainder of the milk into the grape juice pitcher.  My friends suggested I have her drink it as her punishment. 

Of course, when I did just that, she got a big smile on her face and said YUM.  Gross.

My new apron!

I’ve been wanting to buy an apron for my uniform as a homemaker, but haven’t had the money to get a really cute one.  Then I remembered I had some cash in my paypal account.  Yippy!! I found one I loved on Etsy.com and just got it in the mail.  It is so beautiful, I have to post the link in case any of my readers wants to get one!

Momo’s Retro Fashions

And here is a picture of the lovely apron.  (That’s not me modeling… it was the photo from the etsy page.)

I think for Katie’s birthday, I will get her one too, so she can help me in the kitchen.

This second picture has been added for morethananelectrician’s benefit.  She must have gotten back into the house just in time to save the apple crisp!

No electricity!

They are turning off the electricity in our area from 8-4 today.  I’ve got the fridge part taken care of so the food won’t spoil, but it will be interesting trying to entertain my daughter with no PBS today. (and no computer for mommy!)   That also means I can’t do much work… no lights, dishwasher, oven, stove, crockpot or washing machine/dryer!

It wouldn’t be so bad if I weren’t feeling a little stuffy-headed, because then I’d just go out for the day and play.

…and when she was bad, she was horrid.

Wednesday was the worst day being a parent thus far.  Here is what my daughter put me through:

• Picked up baby out of his swing and DROPPED him on my hardwood floors.
• Ran around the grocery store picking fruit and eating it before I could catch her, taking flowers out of their bucket and spilling water all over the floor, running up and down the aisles, and getting into the cash register station next to our aisle.
• Pouring a bottle of water out in our car.
• Closing the door and locking me out of the house when I was getting the baby out of the car.

Next time I go to the store, I’m bringing duct tape with me.

PARENT – Job Description

POSITION :
Mom, Mommy, Mama, Ma
Dad, Daddy, Dada, Pa, Pop

JOB DESCRIPTION :
Long term, team players needed, for challenging, permanent work in an often chaotic environment.
Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call.
Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities!
Travel expenses not reimbursed.
Extensive courier duties also required.

Balancing Act

I’ve been married five years, and a mom for almost three of those years.  Before I was a mom, I worked full time, and since becoming one, I’ve worked part time.  I stopped working October of last year, and with the move and the new baby, we’ve had a LOT of changes going on.  It’s always been important to me to be able to stay home with my kids, and our finances changed drastically when I went from FT to PT and now to NO TIME.

I am officially a Full Time Homemaker/Mother/Wife.  And juggling these new roles is not easy!  I can be a slacker and spend lots of time on the internet, talking on the phone and/or reading books, but quite frankly, that is not what I signed up for.  Staying at home is no easy task, and making the transition is going to take some time and effort. 

I’m going to attempt to use the Flylady as a guideline for keeping house.  I’m re-reading my New Bride Guide book given to me by a friend before I got married.  And I just ordered a few books from Amazon to help me with my budgeting, living on one income and spirituality.

At some point this year, I will pick up some side work to bring in some extra money.  In the meantime, I’m going to focus on my new Full Time job and give it all I’ve got.

Bossy Kid

The other night, Katie snuck into bed with me (Andrew fell asleep on the couch).  So early in the morning, I woke up to the baby crying, and I figured I’d lie there and wait a minute before running to get him in case he went back to sleep.  This is what I hear from the little voice next to me…

Katie: Mom… the baby is crying.

Me: I know, honey.

Katie: Well get up and take care of him!

Homemaking Meme

Stolen from Trail Mix Up.

Copy it to your own blog and leave a comment.

Aprons – Y/N? If Y, what does your favorite look like?
I never wear aprons, but I’ve found some boutique shops online that sell them and I may just order one up.  Cute!

Baking – Favorite thing to bake
I’m not big on baking, but I do love to make pumpkin bread every once in awhile.

Clothesline – Y/N?
My very own washer and dryer… finally!

Donuts – Have you ever made them?
In high school Home Ec.

Two little monkeys….

My daughter is obsessed with her feet and always has been.  She can be found at any given time inspecting her feet and picking her toe jam.

This morning as I was changing the baby’s outfit, Katie discovered ‘baby toe jam’ and proceeded picking his out as well.

Lovely.