Monday, January 26, 2009

Mommy moment Monday Interrupted.. ..

BECAUSE TODAY ITS AUNTIE MOMENT MONDAY!!!!!! As of this morning I'm an auntie again!!! My sister in law Sara, and Brother in law Matt (Todd's brother) welcomed their second child together (she has one from a previous marriage). I'm so excited for them! They have yet to pick a name for the baby, but I do have stats!!!

Little baby GIRL was born this morning weighing in at 8 pounds 8 ounces, and 21 1/2 inches long!! She is their biggest baby so far!


I can't wait to get to go see her! I'm heading up with my niece and nephew this afternoon after school gets out. My kids have colds, so I don't want them anywhere near the new baby! But luckily I'm not sick, and you couldn't keep me away if you tried!!!


WOO HOO!!! Gotta love new babies!!!



****UPDATE****

Baby's name is Bridget Camryn (not sure if that's the right spelling, because they hadn't decided yet!!!)

Friday, January 23, 2009

There's something about being a mom. . ..

While going through the day to day motions the other day, I was thinking about moms. I was wondering if every mom in the world could submit ONE parenting tip to a "Mommy 101" book, what would that book look like? Because I know just from my own personal experience there are many things I could add that I didn't know before. Things that just sorta "happen" when you're a mommy. For example:

As I was eating my lunch yesterday with four extra hands, I had the thought: "Wow. I don't know if I've had a meal to just me in my own home in the last 7 years." I don't know if there has been a single meal that the food on MY plate hasn't' looked better than the food on THEIR plate, even if its the exact same thing. I've just gotten so used to sharing with them that it doesn't even phase me any more.

Or, how the mama bear syndrome is a sneaky thing. This uncontrollable overwhelming urge to protect your child even if it means putting your own life on the line. I don't think anyone could have prepared me for that feeling. And I don't think you can truly understand that feeling unless you've been a mommy who's had to stand in that position. Hearing that your child's feelings have been hurt and you weren't there to help console them. Or hearing that someone has done wrong by your child, and you weren't there to wipe up the tears. The feelings are really overwhelming in that place in time.

No one could have prepared me for the fact that I wouldn't have an ounce of privacy once my children started walking. They couldn't explain to me the sound of a 1 year olds cry as they stand on the other side of the closed bathroom door that mommy ducked into for a few moments of privacy. They couldn't explain how you know the sound of those tears, and that its your child's world totally crumbling because they can't see mommy and don't know if she's coming back. And they don't prepare y ou for the joy in those same little eyes when you open the door and they realize that their world is going to be ok all because you're there now. They also don't prepare you for the fact that you can still use the toilet even if you have two sets of eyes watching your every move. Modesty? Yeah, what's that??

No one could have prepared me for the nights either. They couldn't have told me that once you are a mom you will never again get a full nights sleep. Partly because they couldn't have told me that my bladder would never again be the same and I'd have to pee fifty million times a night. But they also could not prepare me for the checks on the kids "just to make sure they're ok" as long as you're up. The trip to tuck them back in when they're healthy, and the hours spent watching over them while they sleep restlessly while they're sick. And how your ears alert you to the tiniest little cough even if its 2 am and you were in a dead sleep. That sound on your ears is like someone blew a bull horn in your ear at full volume. They also could have never prepared me for the smell of the stomach flu while you're cleaning it up at 3 am so your bitty one can get back to sleep and get their rest.

These are all just little things that mommy's deal with on a day to day basis. And they're things you don't even think about while you're doing them. But if you take a moment to look at your day, at your children, and at your life, you realize all the things you just "do" because you're a mom.

My last one would be that no one could have ever prepared me for how I'd just KNOW what to do once they handed me that soft wiggly bundle of baby. As much as I would have liked to think that I "knew what I was doing" I don't think you really can know until you're there, and walking in those shoes! No one can prepare you for the love you feel for your child the second they are born. Or, in most cases, the second you find out they're on their way.


Its amazing, overwhelming, awesome, unreal, and totally unexpected at times, to be a mommy!!!!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

The great cold medicine debate

I was feeling SO wonderful that we made it all the way to December this cold and flu season before we managed to get sick. That that sick was a stomach flu, not our usual stuffy nose, ears infected, hacking cough winter. I mean by this time last year we were working on round two of pneumonia for all FOUR kid, I'd had pneumonia, and was working on bronchitis and laryngitis. It just wasn't fun. But nope, not this year. We've made it all the way into the 20's of January before we've heard our first sniffle. For that fact I am eternally grateful. I don't know if I could have handled sick kids on top of everything else we've had going on. I mean, I would have, but I think that it may very well have been the straw that broke the camels back. Ya know?

Well, that brings me to my next dilemma. Cold medicine. Its a topic on just about every news program you watch now-a-days. You hear how so and so thinks its perfectly safe used in moderation. You have another so and so who thinks all children's cold medicine should be banned because its too dangerous. And you have us mothers here on the side lines watching the match play back and fourth as if we were watching the ball of a tennis match being quickly vollied. Its so CONFUSING!!!! Ahhhh.

Dallas is sick, as is Kaleb and Kendyl. They're congested to the point that at night its darn near impossible for them to breath. When you add the nasty gunky sounding cough that they also produce mostly at night and it just makes for not much sleep. So we give them children's night time meds. And they help. That doesn't make me a bad mom does it? I think that I'm doing right by them in helping them rest to feel better. Now, with that being said we use medication in this house VERY sparingly. We save it for when its truly needed. Night time being one of those times when they're miserable. And if they need anything during the day its usually only one dose of an 8 hour children's cough/cold medicine. Again, does that make me a bad mom?

There are so many out there who would argue for the "home remedies" . Yep, been there, done that. The whole "take your child into the bathroom with you and let them breath the hot steamy air from a shower." Well unfortunately my children inherited my weird dislike of breathing hot air. Its one thing when you're IN the shower getting wet, because the air doesn't FEEL hot then. But yeah, saunas, steam baths, and breathing hot air when cold have ALWAYS been right out for me personally. We've tried with the kids, and they freak. SO I don't see how its worth it to have your child freaking out because they don't like what's happening. We've also done the plug in the wall-fill your room with vapors to help you breathe medicine. But really, are those working? I'm not 100%. We've used vicks (children's of course!), home made saline that the doctors told us how to make, warm tea, the list could go on and on really. And we've not had much luck. So, we've gone with a sure fire relief for the kids. Occasional use of cold meds.

I understand there are parents who maybe use them too much, or for the wrong reason. And I understand that that may be playing a role in why some stores are pulling the meds all together. But what about those of us who use them very sparingly? And only when all other choices have been exhausted? Where is that going to leave our children when they're sick and miserable? I realize they didn't have cold meds way back when, and people made it through. But that's the grand thing about the times advancing. We DO have relief, and we CAN use it.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong. In order to put a medication out there on the shelves for consumers to buy, ESPECIALLY when pertaining to a child, they have to be tested. And they have to be approved by the government. Correct? And to now pull them off the shelves. . .I don't know, it just seems like a waste of research and money. I understand if there is a major problem, or huge unknown side effects surface. But to pull them simply so parents can't administer them to their child incorrectly? Or over use them? I'm sorry but isn't it up to a parent to decide how to raise their child? I'm not siding with people who abuse it here. I'm siding with those like me. The moms out there who use it when their child is totally miserable and can't sleep, breathe, and is suffering.

Its such a hard thing to be a parent these days. Every where you turn there is another study about how you should/shouldn't do this activity because its bad/good for you. And for every study proven good, there will be another immediately following showing that exact same thing to be bad. And vice versa. How are we supposed to weed through it all and keep it all straight?

Well, for now I'll continue to use my cold meds sparingly and give my children relief. I truly believe they're not in danger and that they're not being harmed by the small amount of medication I've given them.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

What would you do?

Today Gabriel was our only kiddo in school. Dallas was sent home "sick" yesterday. (they read his temp at 101.5, I got him home not even 20 minutes later and it read at 98.5. In his defense it DID go up that night to 100.3, so I let him stay home today to recoop) So anyway, skip to the end of the day. Dallas had laid down to rest because he wasn't feeling the greatest. I asked my sister in law if she could give Gabe a ride home, since she'd be there to pick up my nephew Kyle. Gabe gets home, and I noticed right out of the car that he had on a different hat than his own. When he came in I asked him about it. He said that the people at recess told him to put it on to wear because his was gone. I then asked him why his own hat was gone. He told me that at breakfast that morning a "big kid" came by him, took his hat off his head and claimed it as his own. I asked him if he told anyone. He said yes, he went and told G. the lunch room aid. I then asked him what G. did. He said G. asked him what color the student was (we have a very diverse school here), what grade he was in, and what color Gabe's hat was. Things didn't go farther than that. So, when it came to recess they told Gabe to use a lost and found hat to keep his head warm.

My question to you is how would you have handled the news? I was VERY upset to hear what had happened. As I think any parent would have been. But what would your next step have been?

My next step was to email his teacher, to see if I could see what she'd heard of the situation. I didn't want to pursue anything any farther until I'd confirmed Gabe's story. I mean, after all he is only 6, and the hat he came home with was batman. Batman just so happens to be his favorite character. I could see it going something like this: Gabe lost his hat in the morning. Gabe saw a batman hat that he wanted. Gabe told a story to the lunch aid and got the hat use out of the deal. I talked extensively to Gabe before sending the email. Telling him I was going to email his teacher about the problem. I told him that after doing that the teacher would likely email G. to see what happened, and how things were followed up with. And that if he was lying, now would be the time to tell me because one way or the other I'd get the truth from G. He assured me he was telling the truth and that G. would confirm that. So I sent the email. His teacher emailed me back with this:

Jamie,
Thank you for writing! I can tell you are upset and I hear what you are saying. No one should be bullied and Gabe should not have his hat taken by someone at breakfast. No, I didn't hear about this but I was in a meeting this morning and had a sub in the classroom. By the time I got to the classroom Gabe probably forgot. Even if he remembered to tell me, I'm not sure I would have found the hat or the boy but I would have followed up and checked it out.

I am forwarding this on to G., Mr H. (Dean of Students) and Mr R. (AP) hoping this email raises awareness at a minimum or preferable a solution. Thursday I will not be in school but I will follow up through email.

Please let Gabe know this was bullying and bullying is not ok. He was right to tell an adult and this is something he should be persistent about communicating to the teacher (me) with an emphasis on "someone took my hat off my head and kept it!".


So, now I'm waiting to hear what happens. I don't expect to get the hat back. And as I told the teacher, its just a hat. But the hat isn't the matter I'm concerned with. I'm concerned with the ACTION. When Dallas was in Kindergarten at this school he had a BRAND NEW COAT stolen. Never to be seen again. I know that these kids don't stop with a hat. And to be so bold as to take it OFF HIS HEAD??? Wow. I mean, come on. Kids can have the same hats! Parents can shop at the same stores. What gives him the right to just TAKE it? Even if he DID think it was his (if he'd lost his, I don't know) what gives him that right? Its a total bully move, and NOT ok in my book!!!

What would you as parents do from this point??


Ok, on a lighter note, I have a cute thing to share from my night. At dinner time the kids and I were sitting at the table eating. Dallas and I sit on one side, Kaleb and Kendyl on the other, Gabe is on the end, and Todd's spot would be on the other end, between the babies and I. So, on any given day if the twins have something stuck on their face I'll tell them "wipe your cheek" or something of that sort. Well, if its something big that they're not getting, I'll ask their twin to look at them and wipe it. They happily do this. Well, tonight it was Kaleb who had something on his face. And I was trying to show him where to wipe it. I told him "Kaleb, wipe your nose with your napkin." And do you know what the twins did? He looked at Kendyl and she looked at him, and he goes to wipe her nose! It was just instinct for him to do it. He could SEE her nose. It gave Kendyl and I the giggles, and he looked at me like "what??? I'm wiping my nose!" She then took her napkin and wiped his nose for him! Ahhhh, twins. I love it!

Way back Whens-day. . .a classic series of twins!

Today's way back is one of my all time FAVORITE series of the twins. I used to set them in the chair, and try to THAT picture, the one I could send on to the many relatives who wanted the "perfect" picture. And in turn I wound up with many that were perfect for me!!! I love how expressive Kaleb is. He has been that way from the moment he was born!!! ANd Kendyl was always a hard nut to crack. She's just sit there, double chin sticking out like "what are you looking at!?!?!"

These pictures are from September 2005, so they would have been 2 months old. And captions are a MUST on these!!!!

Kaleb- Pssst, Kendyl check it out!!!

Kendyl- I don't WANT to check it out
Kaleb- You're mean!

Kaleb- I don't know what I was looking at before but this is SO much better!!!

Kaleb- EEEEWWWW! She's touching me!

Kendyl- Hi mommy!
Kaleb- Suck up!

Kaleb- You talkin' to ME?

Kaleb-Ok, ok, I take it back! You're not mean!! please forgive me!


Ahhhh, its hard work to be that expressive!

My little camera ham

The very hard to capture princess!


Its Wednesday! Time for a little way back fun!!! If you'd like to play along, or see other way backs, head on over to Twinfatuation and join in!!!

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Two for Twos-day. . .a war is waged!!!

Its Tuesday, which means that its time to play along on Two for Twos-day with Eight is Great! Head on over there to check out more wonderful twosomes!


This picture was just taken last night! Its a picture of the war that's been brewing in our house for the last couple of months! Dallas is in the green, Gabe in the black.
Yes, you're seeing right! That's a war! A CARD game of war! The boys have learned how to play it in school and have been having a blast playing with each other! They recieved an actual "war deck of cards" for Christmas which is nice, since its a little bigger than a normal deck!!! We've tried to learn old maid, and crazy 8's, but war is what they always come back to!!!! Ahhh, the good old SIMPLE games of childhood!! Gotta love it!!!

Monday, January 19, 2009

Mommy moment Monday.

Is it really Monday again? Man, it amazes me just how much the time flies away from me! I swear since the second I found out I was pregnant with my first baby time just goes so fast!!!!

I have a couple mommy moments this week, but I, unfortunately, don't have the time to share them! With today being a holiday, the kids have the day off, and are DRIVING ME NUTS!!! They've got cabin fever in the WORST way and it seems to be coming out in ways of trying to annoy their siblings, screaming at the top of their lungs, and crying. Ah yes, it is a Monday, and I AM a mommy!!!

So, today instead, I will be leaving you with two poems I got about being a mommy this week. They came to me via email and I found something to love in both of them!!!!

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.


Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.


Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.


Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.


Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.


Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love,
the heartache, the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom
.


So very very true isn't it? How many things you didn't realize BEFORE you were a mom that you do now!!!

And this next one really hit me in the opinion of a mom. . .so true isn't it? How we come back around to realizing just how right our mom was all along!!!!!!!

MOTHERS

Real Mothers don't eat quiche;
they don't have time to make it.

Real Mothers know that their kitchen utensils
are probably in the sandbox.

Real Mothers often have sticky floors,
filthy ovens and happy kids.

Real Mothers know that dried play dough
doesn't come out of carpets.

Real Mothers don't want to know what
the vacuum just sucked up.

Real Mothers sometimes ask 'Why me?'
and get their answer when a little
voice says, 'Because I love you best.'

Real Mothers know that a child's growth
is not measured by height or years
or grade...
It is marked by the progression of Mommy to Mom to Mother...

The Images of Mother

4 YEARS OF AGE - My Mommy can do anything!

8 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!

12 YEARS OF AGE - My Mother doesn't really know quite everything.

14 YEARS OF AGE - Naturally, Mother doesn't know that, either.

16 YEARS OF AGE - Mother? She's hopelessly old-fashioned.

18 YEARS OF AGE - That old woman? She's way out of date!

25 YEARS OF AGE - Well, she might know a little bit about it!

35 YEARS OF AGE - Before we decide, let's get Mom's opinion.

45 YEARS OF AGE - Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?

65 YEARS OF AGE - Wish I could talk it over with Mom.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes,
because that is the doorway to her heart,
the place where love resides.
The beauty of a woman
is not in a facial mole,
but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.
It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she
shows,
and the beauty of a woman with passing years only grows!