Shots DO hurt!

So, today was the day that Alora, Piper and I had to get our flu shots. I know, it's pretty late to be getting them, but I like to wait a little longer since peak flu season isn't until Feb/March, but anyway...

She wanted me to go first, so I decided to be brave and do it. I will admit, it actually hurt more than I remembered, but I promise I didn't cry! Then it was her turn and she was being quite brave until that alcohol wipe hit her leg! She didn't freak out, just tried to pull away and said she didn't want to do it (can't say that I blame her!) She tensed up pretty good, which didn't help matters any, but I'm proud to say that my big girl didn't cry!! We had brought in her special bandaids from home, so the nurse put a Barbie bandaid on her and she was all better! Then it was Pipers turn and she got mad for about 5 seconds, but then, in usual baby fashion, forgot all about the trauma!

The deal with Alora was that if she was brave during shots she would get to pick out a prize at the store. Last week she had already decided on a new Barbie and she was pretty excited about the thought, but on the way home from the Dr's office, she changed her mind and decided that she wants bandaids! Really? Bandaids? Oh well, that should save me some money anyway! We'll see if she changes her mind again when we actually go to the store. My prize is chocolate... I was a big girl for my shots!

I'm so excited that tomorrow I get to see my oldest sister that I haven't seen in exactly 4 years!!! She lives in Oklahoma and I've missed her and her family terribly! They will only be here for 1 day because they're just stopping by on their way to Christmas in Montana, but I'll take what I can get!! My nephew is going to be 16 in Feb (that makes me feel old!) and my niece is 12!!! I love the holidays and this is promising to be the best one yet!

Oh What A Night....

Late December in 2010!Okay, I'm done singing now! :) At least once a week I am awoken by Alora in some kind of crisis, whether she is scared or thinks that there are ants on her, it's always something. Last week, for instance, at about 2:30 AM I was awoken to a bloodcurdling scream, the kind that no mother wants to hear, the kind that makes you leap out of bed before you're even awake. So I ran into her room where she was screaming in panic and I couldn't find her. My eyes were not quite adjusted to being awake and I rubbed them because I couldn't figure out why she wasn't in her bed when I could clearly hear her. So I said, "where are you?" to which she replied, "I'm stuck!!!" I looked down at my feet and that's when I saw her legs sticking out from under her bed! Now keep in mind that this is a toddler bed and there is only about 6 inches between the bed and the floor so I couldn't just yank her out. I lifted the bed up (I would like to think that the adrenaline had lent me super-human strength, but I must confess that it is a plastic bed and only weighs about 15 lbs!), and told her to scoot out. When she had done so, I scooped her up into my lap and asked her what had happened. She then told me that she woke up under there (Lord only knows how she got there!), she thought "there was another bed on top of my bed and I couldn't get out!" At this point Troy was awake and had come in to see what was going on and he took over comforting Alora while I went in to take care of Piper who had woke up as I made my Superman-like exit from the bed. She was wide awake and just looking around. I think she's already gotten used to her older sister's nighttime antics at only 7 months of age!

So that was last week, and this week was no different... Last night I woke up to the sound of Alora wimpering (you know, not all-out crying, but upset,) and I let it go for a while because it was 8 AM and I wasn't really ready to get up (I know, that's sad!), but she just kept going so I got out of bed to see what was going on and I find her sitting in bed with all of her blankets on the floor and one mitten on. I asked her what she was doing and she says to me, "I can't find my other sparkly mitten and I'll be cold!" So I found her other mitten (I have NO idea how she got those mittens into her bed!), put it on her and got her all covered up (she made me take off the top blanket because she wanted to see Dora's head - who is on her comforter!) and tucked in and I went back to bed and got another hour of sleep (YES!!!!).

There is never a dull moment in our house and I wouldn't have it any other way. These beautiful babies of mine make life worth living and certainly give this time of year an excited youthfulness that we could all use a little more of. That's it for me for now... Good night and God bless!

Alora's Letter to Santa

For some reason, it seems that kids don't really write letters to Santa Claus like we used to do when we were young. It's kind of sad when you think about it. I even saw a blurb on TV the other day about the lates "app" that allows kids to enter their Christmas wishes on a data phone, Ipod, Ipad or computer and email it to Santa...really? I mean, I get that it's kind of neat, but I still miss the old fashioned pencil and paper letters that we used to put a stamp on and give to the Postman!

Having said all that, I came upstairs from work the other night and my wonderful husband had sat down with Alora and created a Christmas list. Keep in mind that this list comes directly from Alora's mind, Troy just wrote it down...

Dear Santa,
I would like the Twilight movie - the one with Jacob in it, a princess crown, a purple and blue necklace and a princess book. I would also like a whistle, a red fire truck, a pink fire truck and a purple fire truck.
Alora

Yep... that's my daughter! I'm not even sure where the fire truck idea cam from, I'm almost thinking that my husband is trying to live vicariously through our daughter and suggested the fire truck idea!

I think it is so important to keep Christmas traditions alive that don't involve modern technology. One of my favorite traditions that I've started with my family is that we have a box of Christmas books. Each year we get a new book and add it to the box, but we start reading one Christmas story each day beginning on Dec 1st through Christmas Eve. My hope is that these stories become treasured memories for my children and when they have their own children someday (at LEAST 20 years from now!) I will pass the books on to them to read to their kids.

I also want to start having each of the kids pick out their own ornament each year to add to the tree. I have a friend who has done this with her kids through the years and it is so cute to see the ornaments and how her kids have changed based on the ornaments they picked! I'm also going to reinstate the whole, "milk and cookies" tradition on Christmas eve. I remember doing that as a child and it was so exciting!

I hope you can all start a Christmas tradition this year that you and your family will value for many years to come! I also want to make Jesus a birthday cake this year to help us remember what this day is all about! So have a joyous and blessed Christmas and God bless you all!

Baby And Toddler Arm And Leg Warmers Cheap

I absolutely LOVE Baby Legs!! If you've used them then you know how awesome they are! Not only do they keep Piper's legs nice and cozy warm, but they are so cute! There a tons of different patterns so you'll never run out of options. I've also recently discovered some slightly cheaper brands of legwarmers that I'm totally going to try! I'm not usually the trendy type, but these little buggers totally captured my interest and I'm glad I gave them a try! I love them so much that I actually wrote an article all about them! Here's the link if you want to check them out:

Leg Warmers For Babies And Toddlers - Get 'Em Cheap!

If you want to read any of my other articles, you can find them HERE

Some days you remember why you had children!

So I was having an argument with my husband last night and I got frustrated and went into my daughters room to get away for a while. She is sitting there and she looks at me and says, "Mommy, you can stay in here with me and you can talk to me too!" I just hugged her to me and smiled - aren't children wonderful??

Two days ago I was sitting on the couch and I hear Alora say, "Oops Mama!" She walks into the room with a pen and has scribbles all over both cheeks. Okay... "Oops" might be one mark on one cheek but you don't accidentally draw all over both cheeks! Then that night as I was getting her ready for bed, I pulled her shirt off and there was ink on her belly too! That's quite an "oops" if you ask me! Kids...

The First Post

Ah yes... motherhood, is there anything so wonderful and precious?? HA! I always prided myself on the fact that it was nigh impossible to embarass me - although many have tried, VERY few have suceeded... then I had children! My 3 1/2 year old, Alora, can make mincemeat of my pride with a few well chosen words in the grocery store. Why, just a few weeks ago we were happily traversing the aisles and she stops, turns to me and says, "Hey mommy! I tooted!!" She was so proud and I was so mortified! The sorts of things that are funny when you're in your own living room don't hold quite the same humor when your out in public.

Then there's my littlest one... Piper. Born just 8 weeks ago and so sweet. What could she possibly do to embarass me you ask? Oh... plenty. How about her thunderous bowel movements that sound like a machine gun? Or how about when I'm sitting in Church and all is quiet during the prayer and my sweet little angel is nursing and making sounds like someone slurping the last of their soda through a straw?? Yes - this child is getting an early start, this should be interesting!

I recently became a stay at home mom and I created this blog as a place to release some stress should I feel the need and maybe to make some other moms feel like they're not alone because, YES, we are all a little crazy and all of us have patience the size of a sesame seed! So come on back any time you need to feel a little less nuts and I'm sure after reading this you'll feel better about yourself! God Bless!