Sickies

I have been missing for a few days and just wanted to write a quick blog to catch you all up. Hailey woke up Tuesday morning at 5am and that is very early for her (I will tell you all about my mommy doesn't wake up before 6am rule later), but she didn't seem happy, so I snuggled her and let her go downstairs around 6am. She worried me because she didn't eat breakfast, was whiny, and lethargic, but she didn't have a temperature. I gave her motin anyway because I knew something was wrong. I called the doc and got an appointment, which was good because when we went at 1pm her temp was 102 and we discovered that she had a huge blister on her right eardrum. This is all kinda new because Hailey usually only gets little colds and has only had one other ear infection and it was so mild that we only discovered it because she was at a check-up. She is feeling better today and I think we may go to the pool this afternoon for an hour or so. She was "flying" off the couches all morning, and I need to get out, so I think it will be OK :) Max is also teething, so it has been pretty nutty the last couple of days, thus the lack of posts. I will post some pool pics soon, but for now I will leave you with a picture of Hailey riding her trike around the living room.

So cute and onrey!

Happy 6 months Max!

My baby is 6 months old today and as before...my 6 favorite things about my tiny man:

1.Max is the cuddliest person I have ever met. He loves nothing more than to bury his face in my neck and have a good snuggle.


2. He is constantly giving me "kisses". These consist of open mouthed slobbers, but I can see the intention in his eyes.

3. He loves his sister and puts up with her not sharing, and actually laughs most of the time when she is tries to crush him or randomly screams his name into his face when she walks past him.


4. He isn't shy and loves almost anyone to hold him. He is a love sponge :)


5. He is very ticklish and loves to be tickled on his sides.


6. And finally because he puts up with his tired stressed out mommy and doesn't complain when I am holding him and chasing/scolding his sister at the same time. Max is always content to be along for the ride :)

I love you Max-asaurous! You will always be my little man, and I am so blessed that you came into my life. I cannot imagine for a moment not having your sweet face to look at.
Six months ago today this was you, and I have been a goner ever since.

Sand Flea

We got Hailey a sand and water table for her birthday back in April, and yesterday I got motivated to actually get it out. The kids were angels at Lowes to get sand, and my impatient streak made me try to put it together last night. However, I soon discovered that it was going to take some handy-woman skill that I didn't think that I had, so I asked Cam to do it. He didn't (forgot), so this morning as Max was napping, I got the drill out and tapped into my inner Barb Vila :) There is a washer missing (so there is a tiny bit of leakage) and I stripped all the screws (so it cannot be taken apart), but it works and Hailey LOVED it. Luckily towards the end I got the camera and got some very cute pictures of my little sand flea.


She is so excited and having so much fun. Just look at how filthy!


You can see the damage that she did. The sand and the water were originally separate, but that was apparently not the way it was supposed to be.


She worked so hard and was so focused. I was actaully quite impressed.


As you can see, dragon had lots of fun as well :)


Last night of sleep training was good (only 30 minutes), and Max is actually napping better, so YEAH! Hope everyone is having a great week! The pool opens this weekend and I am am SO excited.

Nights 2 and 3

I thought I would update you all on my sleep training progress because based on the number of comments my last blog got, this is fascinating :) Night 2 consisted of about 42 minutes of crying and then waking at 4am. I fed him because he had slept from approximately 8:45 until 4, so that deserved a reward. Last night he cried for about 45 minutes, but after about 2o minutes he was close, but was just too stubborn and kept waking himself up. He slept until 6am and I love it! Tonight will probably be bad because I am moving away from his crib and he really flips out when he can't see me. Hailey had her worst night when I moved away from her crib too, but hopefully we will make it. I am very much enjoying my Friend-assiance, so the whole training thing is really not too bad and Cam says it is great to see me downstairs before 9:45 :)

I feel these blogs are naked without pictures, so here is one of Max trying to crawl at Hailey's family birthday party.

And Training Begins......

Well, as you know from my last blog, I have not been getting much sleep because Max has been having some trouble sleeping. It has gotten to the point where the bedtime bottle in given at 7:30pm and he is asleep anywhere from 9:30-10pm. He no trouble sleeping while being held, but as soon as we set him down, he kicks and flails and wakes himself up. Then he usually wakes up around 1am, 3am, and 5 am, each time taking around 30 minutes to get back to sleep. Needless to say, I am exhausted, angry, and starting to have ugly thoughts about my child, so I bit the bullet last night and started the Sleep Lady Shuffle. I have heard lots of methods of sleep training and read a couple of books, but this is what I found worked really well for me and Hailey. The process is really pretty simple, there are three nights of sitting by the crib comforting (patting, gently shhhhing, whatever works short of picking them up), and this should level off each night, and then three nights in the middle of the room with limited interaction past talking or shhhing, three nights in doorway, etc. until you are putting them down and leaving. I found this preferable to other methods because I felt like I wasn't completely abandoning them, but gradually getting them used to me not being part of falling asleep. Others have said that they can't stand to see them cry and that is why they chose Ferber or other solutions, but this coupled with a schedule is what turned Hailey from a cranky, whiny 8 month old who got up 5 times a night and only took 30 minute naps if I was lucky, into a lovely baby who slept through the night and took regular 2-3 hour naps. Every child is different and all moms know what works for them and their children, but I do recommend checking out "Good Night, Sleep Tight" by Kim West if you are having issues for any young age.

So, last night was our first night and Max screamed, kicked, and flailed for an hour, but I made it armed with my portable DVD player, headphones, and season one of Friends. Max went to sleep by 9pm with minimal help from me, and slept all the way until 7am. YEAH! Tomorrow is a new night, but am I re-energized and ready to tackle this because I have hope and I have seen it work. I also have all ten seasons of Friends on DVD :) I will keep everyone updated on the ups and downs and wish me luck! Please feel free to leave comments on your own experiences. I would love to hear all about them!

This is how Max takes naps, because of his reflux he likes to be elevated :)

Comtemplative Housemommy

It has been a rough couple of days because Max hasn't been sleeping well and a playdate friend is not returning my calls, and compounded by the weather and a need to save money, I haven't really been out of the house much. This has, in turn, made me contemplate how much better I would have it if I worked and has made me feel pretty down. I love being with my kids on most days and never missing a first smile, roll, or step is amazing, but I go crazy for some adult conversation as well.
A working mom friend once went into depth about what a day in her life is like and I was overwhelmed just hearing about it, but I also found myself thinking about all the times she talked to someone over the age of two and how I bet she doesn't just think of herself as mommy, but as wife, mother and lawyer. In the past two years since I left the work force, I have tried to branch out and meet other moms like me to make friends with, but everytime I get a playdate and some hope, it is another 6 months to a year before it happens again. I think that I am pleasent and I have friends who like me, so I don't think they hate me, but I have been trying to enter a mommy-clique and I am thinking that it is not working. I reached out two weeks ago to Kindermusic moms (before I was booted) and we had a playdate, and I thought everyone had a great time. I exchanged numbers and have called them twice this week, with no call back. This has helped in me arriving at the bummed housewife place I am now. I am thinking about trying something just for me (tennis lessons perhaps), but that poses a new problem because no one seems willing to watch both kids at the same time (most especially my hubby), but I am starting to think if I don't do something soon I might just rent a convertible and dissappear forever. Just kidding, sorta :)
I need a hobby, so that is my new goal. I am going to find something that makes me special that has very little to do with being a mom. Now, what can that be? All suggestions are welcome and sorry for laying all this crap on those of you who made it this far :)

I leave you with a recent pic of Max that is so cute I should have it taped beside my TV so I can see it at 1am, 3am, and 5am when I want to give him to a nice home with a sweet tempered mommy who isn't full of frustration and anger.

Mother's Day Vacay

We had a great time on our trip to the Smokies. It was relaxing after the kids were in bed to lounge in the hot tub and the kids seem to enjoy the zoo and the aquarium. Hailey wasn't too cranky and Max was happy as long as he was in the Bjorn :) Here are some cute pics.......

Max in the brief time he spent in the stroller. He looks kinda shiny because he was just slathered with sunscreen and has drool all over his clothes. At least I got good exercise carting him around all weekend :)


They had a petting zoo and Hailey loved brushing the goats. I was amazed at how docile they were. I was a bit freaked out because Hailey is fast and Cam wasn't keeping up with her, but the goats must have been used to it because they didn't bat an eye at my little tasmanian devil.


They had a pretend cow that squirted water and Hailey tried to milk it. Mommy was squirted soon after this pic was taken.


Hailey loved the aquariam the most and spent most of the time screaming "fishies" at each tank. She was fascinted by the sharks and for her good behaviour was rewarded with one from the gift shop.


Hailey was exhausted on the way home and fell asleep like this. I thought it was hilarious and snapped a picture.


I wish I had more pics of Max but my attempts to take pics of him in the Bjorn were unsuccessful. Hope everyone had a great Mother's Day weekend and I will write something more soon. Bye!

Kicked out of Kindermusic

It is official, I am a terrible mother who cannot control my crazy undisciplined child. Monday Hailey was kicked out of Kindermusic and it was all my fault.
We have been going to KM since Hailey was 5 months old and she was never a huge fan, but she seemed to like socializing and I really enjoy getting out and talking to people, so we have signed up each fall and spring since. Last fall semester was a little difficult because I was HUGE pregnant and Hailey made me carry her most of the time, and aside from her trying to kiss and pet a boy named Connor she was relatively well behaved. We started the spring semester in January and she actually seemed to have turned a corner. She was dancing to the songs, listening to the story and rocking her stuffed animal during quiet time, and Max was good most of the time so I was feeling good about it. However, near the end of March it all went bad. Hailey started climbing everything, running around and generally being crazy. Max also decided around the same time that his carrier was awful and would no longer stay in it for any time that it was not moving in the car. I have pulled her out of class for time outs and left early, but each Monday we come back and I am am hopeful that she will behave like she used to, and she doesn't. Yesterday I almost didn't go, but I did, and as her behavior went from bad to worse I finally left in the middle of class as the teacher was whispering that it may be best if she not come back for the last class. I am angry because I feel that was rude, but I am most of all mad at myself because I put Hailey, the class, and myself through this torture week after week. I know why I did it and that is why I am a bad mother. I knew that Hailey wasn't that into the class and that we should have quit long ago, but I yearned to be a part of the mommy inner circle of women in the class, so I kept bringing her in hopes of securing a playdate. I actually did get a playdate and one mom told me that Hailey's previous week's antics made for the most entertaining KM class ever and that she was impressed with my ability to juggle Max, scold Hailey, and not go insane at the same time. It made me feel a tiny bit better, but mostly just more embarrassed because my daughter is entertainment. Oh well, I guess this seals the deal on no more Kindermusic and I will be looking for a good 2 year old gymnastics class in the fall :)

I will leave you with a pic of Hailey saying cheese when I asked her to smile pretty. I can't stay mad at this face too long :)

Rice cereal is yum!

Hailey has always been very helpful with Max, so I was not surprised the other day when she insisted on helping me feed him. She actually did a very good job and I took some pictures of it.

She took the shovel-it-in approach and Max didn't seem to mind.


She was very careful to get the extra around his mouth because we don't waste food :)


Max is happy and full and wondering why Hailey has no clothes on (She had just finished eating and insisted I take off her "yucky" clothes.


We are going to Gatlinburg this coming weekend, so I will try to blog again before then, but with packing I make no promises. Later!

At Jenn's request....

It has been awhile since I posted, but things have just been a bit crazy. Nothing special really, my life is as uneventful as ever, but I suspect Max is teething, has developed RLS (restless leg syndrome, and I am kidding, I just watch too much TV), or hates me because he is not sleeping for more than 30-40 minutes at a time. (Break to get him from his crib, he has been down only 20 minutes) He used to sleep through the night and take these 2 hour afternoon naps, but hasn't for days and I am exhausted and my house looks really bad because he doesn't stay in an exersaucer/bouncy seat/on the floor/etc. for more than 5 minutes without screaming. I am sure you are thinking "she has spoiled him, he is addicted to being held", and first of all, I don't believe that is possible, but second he actually spends a lot of time crying because I can't hold him as much as I did Hailey. He is on Prevacid for reflux and it helps, but maybe it is still not enough and he is in pain still, I don't know. I seem to remember Hailey going through this around 5 months because she started rolling and moving, so I know that it will pass, it is just that while I am going through it is STINKS. I will probably sleep train him soon, but I gotta wait until after our vacation so I don't mess it up.

On a happier note, potty training for Hailey is going really well. She is completely what I call naked butt trained. We have a potty in the living room and she sits on it when she needs to go. I am so impressed and excited because it seemed like the scariest thing ever and we had some early issues, but I really think by the end of May she will be totally trained. If we really concentrated on it I think we could have it done this week, but I am in no rush. Yesterday I was making dinner and we have a bathroom off the kitchen and I put the potty seat on the real potty and showed her, hoping that she would use it there too, and she did twice! The best is that after dinner I forgot to bring it back into the living room and she stopped in the middle of playing to tell me that she had to potty. YEAH! I have been trying to get some pics of her on the potty, but she is so quick and I always forget :) I will try to post some soon.

So that is what the Petersons are up to....fascinating stuff huh :)