destructo the toddler

adios cord

innie or outie?

a strawberry went flying across my kitchen table tonight.

my eyes veered to the toddler.

the "shock and amazement eyes" that turned to "the look."

the one my parents perfected over the years that i am now working on myself.

the eyebrows and lids must be slightly lifted, with the head tilted ever so gently to the right.

sometimes a sigh may need to follow.

a lot of the time our "look" is done while choking back laughter.

in this case, the lips must curl inward to the mouth to prevent obvious smiling.

after the second strawberry flew toward the couch destructo's tray was promptly removed.

i felt like i was in one of the wells fargo "i'm there" commercials.

another place "i'm there" is diaper central.

i am AMAZED at how many times i change max, only to have her empty herself into another.

we went through 3 (count them, THREE!) diapers in under 5 minutes this afternoon.

i wish i could say i didn't put her socks and pants on after each time, but i did.

i put them back on each time.

getting more and more distraught that one child could poop that much.

i don't remember brennan doing this at all.

maybe i was just too tired to remember.

sean has just informed me that destructo the toddler has broken the drawer in our coffee table.

to which i replied, "we have to get out."

all of this COOPED-upness is driving the pork loin crazy.

and me!

thank goodness tomorrow's saturday.

plans for the aquarium have already been made.

the only thing that's still undecided is if max and i will join.

the pediatrician says to isolate for 12 weeks.

yeah right.

has ANYONE ever made it the entire 12 weeks???

if so, let me know, i'm calling the Vatican to recommend your sainthood.

and then i'm calling queen elizabeth.

if elton john can be knighted, so can you.

i lasted 5 weeks with brennan, but i didn't really want to go anywhere so it was no big deal.

i woke up with a cold yesterday, and max has a slight sniffle,

so why the heck are we staying in if we're going to get sick here anyway???

have no fear,

i'm sure i will make my decision based off of pure selfishness,

whether we go or not.

or based off of my memories of having a one year old hospitalized for rsv (click link) at primary children's a year ago next week.

i give you, destructo the toddler:

lessons learned in motherhood today...

as long as i can get my shower, the day will always be ok.

nursing is possible while standing up and cleaning mac and cheese and peas off of a bib. i did not previously believe this.

children that wake up at 6am and 6:30am are greeted by a grumpy mommy. no exceptions.

however, if children smile and are pleasant, mommy can be swayed to a "no teeth" smile momentarily (as long as a shower is soon to follow-see first lesson above).

p.s. destructo just dumped 3 cups on water onto the bathroom floor. awesome. so glad max just woke up to nurse. this means i get to bring sean a towel and go bond with my baby. go me:-)

oh weekend, i'm so glad you're here:-)

rainy day & 2 kids

what a rainy day and 2 kids looks like.
with absolutely nowhere to go.

the teacher in me was feeling sorry for our movie/tv overloaded selves.

so i got really ambitious and read books to both kids under the baby gym for an hour. this of course was only possible b/c the toddler was compliant.

thought this was interesting.

"ook buf soop"

step 1:
step 2:

step 3: step 4:

i haven't been playing with brennan very much.

even when i have the time, i find myself just wanting to do chores around the house or just sit down for a minute to watch him.

he is sitting on my lap right now pretending to each chapstick on a plate i need to return to the Quirante's.

they used to have cookies on them.

they were really good.

one second, it's my turn to sample his chapstick delicacy.

"ook" is what i just tasted.

yum.

now it's "buf soop."

beef soup?

on a plate?

who knew?!

how many more weeks until i can take max out to public places???

i am missing the aquarium this morning...

at least my stomach's full of "ook buf soop."

the scary dinosaur needs my attention.

adieu.

thumb

i sucked my thumb until i was 14.
around age 2 my parents tried everything.
the gross liquid you paint on the thumb with a brush to make it taste disgusting.
i washed and sucked it off.
the nasty taste was worth sucking my thumb.
duct taping socks around my hands at night.
i remember that approach in elementary school.
offering me rewards.
nope.
threatening me with taking things away.
nope.
my dad sneaking in after i'd fallen asleep to pull out my thumb during the night, only to find i had put it back in hours later.
there was nothing that was going to get me to stop.
except....
a BOY.
of course.
what 14 year old girl isn't motivated by a boy?!
well, i guess some aren't, but i was.
brian.
that was his name.
i wanted to "go out" with him.
there was of course no actual "going" anywhere.
it was just the term we used.
it was more of walking around school holding hands, passing notes, awkward hugs at the sound of the bell, and standing around next to each other in groups with our friends.
a symbol of true maturity and "grown-up-ness," lol.
i was MORTIFIED that he wouldn't want to "go out" if he knew that i sucked my thumb.
so after 14 years of hard core sucking, i quit.
cold turkey.
on the spot.
and have never sucked since.
so as i was watching the men's figure skating last night (particularly loving the skeleton costume the best and NOT being a fan of the hot pink tastle), i looked down at max in my arms to find her...
SUCKING HER THUMB.
part of me wanted to pull it out and shove in a binky.
a binky can be cleaned.
a binky can be taken away.
the fear of having a thumb sucker jolted through my mind!
panic!!!
but then i remembered how absolutely amazing that thumb used to taste to me.
so i cuddled the blanket a little closer to her face, sang her a song, and kissed her on the head.
we'll worry about the repercussions later.
you only get to be a baby once.
good thing we have 15 different binkies in the front closet...oh well.

breastmilk and cookies

i put breastmilk in my toddler's sippy cup yesterday.
before you let your face pucker in judgment here was my thinking.
pumped.
painfully.
baby doesn't need extra after nursing like her big brother did.
didn't have the heart to throw it out.
not enough worth storing.
toddler's cup was sitting on the counter.
so i poured it in.
and he drank it.
vwallah.
and then we ate cookies.
chocolate chocolate white mint chip ones.
...
motherhood lessons learned today:
routines are best achieved when everyone leaves and you're all on your own.
today is a GOOD day:-)
and there's air in the stroller tires.
yeeeeeessssssssssss!
wearing the same outfit two days in a row saves on laundry.
go me!!!
hey, my options are still limited!!!
it's like i've forgotten how to dress like a non-maternity person.
and i don't want tight.
hormonal sweating while sleeping and drying your hair makes for a super workout.
did i mention it's sunny today?!

slow motion

(proof that she really does have 2 eyes under those lids!)

i need an outing.
by the time we are all dressed, fed, watered, milked, and ready, it's time for the toddler to be fed again and put down for a nap.
not that we have a plethora of options for outings by any means.
seeing that the newborn is still under isolation restriction.
i keep thinking up options in my head:
store
aquarium
discovery gateway
book store
walk (need air in tires)
store
store
store (we are almost out of diapers and fresh fruit-EMERGENCY!!!)
backyard (no sunshine today, would have to find batteries for monitor if leaving newborn inside...seems easy so why can't i get the dang things out?)
store (diapers, diapers, diapers, fruit)
and by the time i have run these options through my mind throughout the entire day it's time for dinner, bath, books, and bed.
this i attribute to my inability to currently make decisions.
all decisions are put on the back burner to nurse, eat, sleep, nurse, eat, sleep, NAP.
i'm feeling rather proud of the naps i have been clocking, but it's leaving no time for outings.
outings during toddler's nap don't count.
those would be rushed errands, and they are no fun.
half of my options would not include the newborn b/c of their location.
the other half are one option (store) that also does not include the newborn.
i want fresh air and scenery, so a walk sounds like the winner.
but no air in tires.
working to coordinate toddler waking up and newborn needing to be fed must also be included in this option.
along with daylight savings time.
i think i'll have a baby in summer next time.
i'm getting nowhere with this.
which is why when people ask "what's it like having 2?"
i respond, "sllllllloooooooooowwwwwwwww moooooooooottttiiiiiiooooooon."
eventually we'll get our groove, but until then it's back to outing options.
i think i'll just take a nap for now...
(sean said we can fill up the tires. i think we'll attempt a walk. or fall asleep trying.)
...
in other news...
i pumped this morning thinking it would give me some relief after kinz decided she was full.
i was SORELY (pun intended!) mistaken.
i hope i never have to pump again.
how did i do that so much with brennan??
my hair is greasy on the top, despite my recent shower 2 hours ago.
i'm chalking it up to hormones and may even treat myself to another later today if the outing falls through.
i got the night sweats again.
also hormonal.
at least i hope!
haha.
i'm making cookies.
and delivering them.
the end.

finger's crossed!!!

i hope he says YES!!!

(now, hurry to get my hair dried before the boys get home from church. this getting ready with 2 kids stuff is tough!)

kinz got her first bath today too.
happy 1 week miss max:-)

my valentine's gift to sean.
awwwww...

and she smells like baby lotion too;-)