Awesome!

So it's a little retro, but it just seems to sum up the last few days.

We closed on our house- Awesome!

How was my Mother's Day? Awesome.

What does it feel like to be the mother of such amazing little girls? Awesome.

The girls were playing with stickers yesterday and Bailey put one on my nose. Do you know what it said? That's right...Awesome.

Skylar had surgery to remove her tonsils and adenoids. How is she doing? Awesome.
Just look at this little face.



I will post some pictures of our house soon. For now, we are focusing on Skylar's recovery. Thanks for all the prayers. I know that tonsillectomies and adenoidectomies are "common" but putting my baby under general anesthesia, having her intubated, and cutting part of her throat open is not "common" for me. By and large our children have been VERY healthy. We are extremely blessed that we are not familiar with surgeries and tons of dr visits. I was a little anxious but definitely felt the peace of all the prayer being sent up for us. She came through with flying colors and even asked for french fries when she woke up. :) All the nurses commented on how beautiful her big blue eyes were (I know...they're awesome) and how well she did. She drank two glasses of gatorade, ate two popsicles and then promptly fell asleep in my lap (as did my hiney in what turned out to be the most uncomfortable chair!). But I enjoyed just letting her sleep in my lap. I watched The Little Mermaid (and finished her french fries). And the Dr. just called. From his cell phone. On his way home. He's awesome.

SOS, part deux

Betcha thought I forgot! Technically it's still Saturday for one more hour here.

This morning I was contemplating who I would like to give a Shout Out to this week. There were a few that I could choose from.

First, I thought about giving a shout out to the folks that helped us finish our loan and actually CLOSE on our house yesterday! Let me tell you, it was no small feat. Short of asking for blood samples or our firstborn, the mortgage company had some amazingly ridiculous requests (no offense if you work for a mortgage company). But, our broker and the escrow officer pulled some late hours and focused solely on our file for a few days in order to speed us through the process. Woot Woot! We closed yesterday and have already begun tearing down wallpaper, picking paint, carpet, and reveling in the glory that comes with knowing a small piece of real estate is "ours" (in 30 years).

Second, I thought about giving a shout out (in the most sarcastic of ways) to a fellow mother in Reagan's classroom. This past week, my parents were in Cabo San Lucas on vacation so I had to take all three girls to Reagan's school in the morning. I have to walk her to her classroom and then I read a book with her before leaving. While reading, Bailey and Skylar play with the blocks or books. The other mothers love to see them (as well as the other kids) as I am one of the ONLY moms with a baby. If you know me, you know that I am fairly strong-willed; which means I'm rarely wrong. :) I don't like it when others question the way I do things. So, the following conversation bothered me in ways I can't begin to describe:

Other Mom: Wow, Bailey is walking?! How old is she now?

Me: 14 months. But she started walking at ten months.

Other Mom: 14 months? Don't you feed her? She's so tiny (hahahaha)!

Me: She eats constantly, but since she doesn't stop moving, I think she burns it all.
(not to mention the fact that ALL my children have been small for their age because THEIR MOTHER IS SMALL AS WELL!)

Other Mom: How much milk is she drinking?

Me: I'm still nursing.

Other Mom: OH! Well, my kids always had that healthy fat but it may have been the formula and then real milk.
(REAL milk? As opposed to the FAKE milk that my body produces? And HEALTHY fat? Are you saying my baby isn't HEALTHY?)
Other Mom: Is there really any health benefit to breastfeeding after a year? I heard it only has health benefits for the first six months.

Me: No, I'm pretty sure it continues to provide the necessary nutrition as long as they nurse, as well as the immune system support.

What frustrated me at that point was not having the true medical knowledge to give her. So, after I abruptly ended our conversation by walking away and grabbing my malnourished, overactive toddler, I went home and promptly started researching the health benefits beyond a year.
So, why would she deserve a shout out? Well, because I learned a ton about breastfeeding past the first year of life thanks to her insensitive and ignorant questions. Don't get me wrong; I'm not a 'nurse until they are four' kind of gal. But my baby is far from four. She doesn't even have molars yet. There are a number of organizations and researchers that recommend NOT introducing solids until a baby has their molars. So I'm not a total nutjob....yet. I also learned that even the American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends breastfeeding for a year at MINIMUM. AND, for each month over 12 that a child nurses, you diminish the occurrence of ear infections by approximately 10%. The La Leche League has some good info about nursing past a year too. You can read it too here
Plus, she's my last baby. And I like it. So there. :)

Sidenote: I am not saying that breastfeeding is the ONLY route that folks should take. I completely understand that it's a personal choice and some have a need for formula. I am not judging those folks or saying that their decision is a poor one. I am simply defending my OWN personal choice to breastfeed. :)

But, since you all probably won't be reading this until Sunday, I decided to go with my third option: Moms. That's right. No sarcasm. No research needed here. Just moms. All the moms I know, and all the moms I don't. We have the hardest job on the planet and most days we have folks that will tell us a hundred ways we are doing it wrong. But not on Mothers Day. Today is for us ladies. My Shout Out today is for you. For all the things you do without people knowing. For raising little people that will someday rule the world (or blow it up as it may be). For all the icky sticky messes, the tears, the tantrums, and the whining. For all the times we have been puked on, pooped on, peed on, and drooled on.
For my mom. The best example I could ever ask for. And the most amazing 'Yaya' to my precious blessings. For you girls...the moms in my life that make me laugh, remind me to enjoy each day because they grow so fast, and keep me sane when I reach the end of my rope. May your day be blessed and blissfully quiet. Or at least be filled with 'I Love You's and chaos that makes you smile.

Crazy 8's

I'm new to this blogging world, so I'm not sure what tagging is, but I'm a pretty smart girl and figure that it means I'M supposed to do this too.
I was 'tagged' by my dear IRL friend at Mommy Madness
So, here goes...my first tagging (sounds so illegal, doesn't it?)

In no particular order, here are my 8's...

8 Things I Look Forward To

1. Owning our own home again
2. Summer! (maybe a vacation)
3. Bailey to be done with teething
4. Fitting back into my skinny jeans
5. Hanging out with my girls
6. Date nights with my husband
7. My morning coffee
8. Dessert!

8 Things I Did Yesterday

1. Took Reagan to school
2. Filled out paperwork for new school
3. Went and picked out carpet samples at Home Depot
4. Took my sweets out for a date night since daddy was working late.
5. Cleaned up puke from a dog that got into the garbage! YUCK!
6. Packed lunches
7. Bathed some filthy kids!
8. Realized at 11pm that I had not showered :)

8 Things I Wish I Could Do

1. Sleep in!
2. speed read
3. eat without consequence
4. make money without taking time away from the kids
5. freeze time
6. protect my kids from hurt and mean people
7. stop taking things too personally
8. be content

8 "Grown Up" Shows I Watch

1. American Idol
2. Dancing With The Stars
3. Survivor
4. The Office
5. House Hunters
6. Biggest Loser
7. So you think you can dance
8. Amazing Race

8 Bloggers Tagged For The Task

1. Beana: No Cryin Mama

2. Peapod Four

3. CABean03: You are the Sunshine of My Life

4. Jaimie: The Wonder Years

5. Jennifer: The Middleton Family

6. Amy: One Day at a time

7. Nikki: The Williamsburg

8. Amy: Park City Girl

*********
Have fun with it ladies!

In other news...tomorrow is the 8th...the day we FINALLY get the key to our new home! I will post pictures soon. Just know that they will be the "before" shots :D

I can do it!

Skylar dressed herself today. That's not out of the ordinary. She dresses herself a lot of the time, but today it was especially comical. I put her clothes on her bed for her (I do that now since her dresser fell over on her!) and told her to get dressed and meet me downstairs. She did just that. Except when she came downstairs, her clothing was on completely backwards. I chuckled (all the while flashing back to the 90's and that terrible Kris Kross fad), and said "Skylar honey, your clothes are on backwards."
"No they're not" she said.

"Yes, they are. See, the tag sticking out the front?"

"oooooh, they ARE backwards! That's ok. I don't mind it like this."

So, she stayed like that. All day. When we got home from our errands and the park, she was taking her clothes off for bathtime and said, "Mommy, my tag has been scratching my neck all day!"

"Really?" (laden with sarcasm) "Maybe if you had listened to mommy and put your clothes on the correct way, your neck wouldn't be all scratched up."

"Next time I will listen."

I laughed (knowing well enough that we would have this discussion again...and again....and again).

Isn't that just how it is with our relationship with the Lord though? When I was in high school, I asked my youth pastor why God would want to save us. I didn't understand the WHY part. Why had he sent his son to die for us? Why did he want to give us grace so that we wouldn't have to spend an eternity in hell? His answer was "When you are a parent, you will understand." And I think I am starting to "get it." I would give anything to save my children from suffering. I want only the best for them.

The flip side of that is that we ARE God's children. And like my children, I try to do things myself (knowing well enough that His way is probably better). My conversation with God might look very similar to one I had today:

"Heather, your way is backwards."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is. See how you messed up before?"

"Oooh, yes I do. But it's ok. I like it my way."

And the Lord will say "Ok, do it your way" knowing well enough that He and I will have this discussion again...and again...and again.

Just one of the many examples is the closing of our new house. I wanted it to be finished two weeks ago, but because it has been drawn out, our interest rate actually went down. The Lord's timing IS perfect (even if I don't always "get it" in the midst of things).

Deuteronomy 32:4
He is the Rock, his works are perfect,
and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
upright and just is he.

SOS

I've noticed a trend on blogs where folks do a "theme" day. I'm not normally the bandwagon type, but I think it's a pretty cool idea. So, today is officially the first "Shout Out Saturday." Each week (if I remember), I will give a "Shout Out" to someone that has impacted my week.

This week, I would like to give a Shout Out to my wonderful husband. He works way too hard without much recognition and affirmation. In the words of Donna Summer, "He works hard for his money" (ok, so I took some creative license with that one, but you get the idea). Last week alone, he worked late two nights, and then worked all day on his day off. This week he worked straight through the week with an icky cold. Some folks would use it as an easy excuse to take a "day off" but not him. I know his work ethic is something our blessings will admire once they are older. I know I do.

So, here's to you honey. Thanks for working hard. You are a wonderful example to our girls (and anyone else paying attention) of how to work hard, earn respect, live with integrity, do what's right, and not ask for anything in return and without complaining.



Daddy with his Eagles fans

p.s...I reserve the right to use humor in future SOS posts. Not all SOS posts are created equal. Some will be serious. Some will not.

Why?

I have a fun game that I like to play with the girls called "Why?"

It started when I would get a million "why" questions and didn't have the energy to answer all of them. No worries. I actually DO answer a lot of the "why" questions. But sometimes they would ask silly "why" questions on purpose just to get me to laugh. So, we turned it into a game. It's kind of like "I spy." You ask "why" questions based on what you see outside the windows of the van while driving.

Example:
Me: Why is the light red?
Reagan: Why is that guy on the bike not wearing a helmet?
Skylar: Why does that lady have green shoes?

You see...we don't answer them. We just keep asking. Eventually we all start giggling because the questions get silly. Especially today. Here's how the conversation went:

Me: Why does that car have its lights on?
Skylar: Why is there a banana on that sign? Ha! Ha! Ha! (funny kid)
Reagan: Why is that guy peeing in the trees?
Me: WHAT?

I looked over on the side of the road, and indeed, a man was urinating in the trees. Thank you Mr. Pee-in in the trees Man. You have opened the door for me to have the all important "why we don't pee in public" conversation with my children. Somebody should give you a medal.
Or a cup.

Oy vey!

Happenings

We have been busy bees lately! Last weekend we went to the strawberry fields in Carlsbad and picked our own fresh berries! For the last few days we have enjoyed strawberry pie, strawberry smoothies, strawberry milkshakes, and strawberry shortcakes. Mmmmmm! (So much for the four pounds I had lost....)





We also took a "personal" day and went to SeaWorld. Since Reagan had her hearing loss during her Spring Break (and there was no way I was going to take her to a crowded theme park when she couldn't hear me!), we decided to do something fun and take her out of school. It was unseasonably warm and thoroughly enjoyable.

My girls LOVE LOVE LOVE to do crafts so this past week, we made candles! It was fun and easy (and not nearly as messy as it could have been thanks to some tips from Tamara) We even added some "scent" to the candles so they would smell nice while burning. By far one of the favorites so far!! We've had "candlelit dinners" most nights this week.





In an attempt to be organized, I packed our first few boxes. I filled five boxes with toys from the playroom (although you can't really tell if you look in there now). Five down, 200 to go. Sigh. Moving is good. Moving is good. Moving is good.

We are hoping to close on the house by Thursday of next week! Prayers would be appreciated! :) Then the real fun begins!!