Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Letters to Seeley

Seeley boy, you have blown my mind this month!  I can't get over what a big boy you have turned into.  Every single day you come up with something new, and it just makes me so happy.


Even when the new things you learn aren't exactly awesome in Mommy's opinion. Like peeing outside. Yes, I know you're a boy. And yes, I'm sure it's totally awesome to just whip it out whereever you want. I can understand the appeal. But, we really need to work on the timing. Doing your business when no one is around-cool. Doing your business when a parade of cars is going by- not so cool.

But, I'm also beyond excited that you're actually going somewhere other than in a diaper. So, I'm ignoring the sudden interest in peeing outside and keeping my eye on the prize. I'm shooting for a diaper free house, and with the exception of night time we are there! Yay! I've got to admit, I was starting to get a little worried. You just didn't care about potty training, period. There was lots of bribery at our house this month. The promise of some new Batman toys finally convinced you that the potty was pretty cool. Thank you Batman!

And I completely adore you in your big boy undies.

Speaking of Batman- you are all about some Batman here lately. You want to play with your Batcave every single day. And you insist that whoever is playing with you has to "sit in floor". In the exact place you tell us to. And we only get to play with the action figures you give us. You're pretty generous with me; I usually get a Batman and a pretty good villian like Bain. You don't let Daddy play with Batman and I think that's awesome. I like to rub it in! :) Daddy usually has to leave the room when I play Batman with you though. Apparently I don't stay true to the characters. According to Daddy, the Penguin and Mr. Freeze can't team up. Or fight against each other. Or apparently do anything that wasn't previously in a comic book. You and I like to make it up as we go. We're "outside the box" thinkers like that!

You also learned how to operate the Blu-ray player. I've watched The Lorax, Toy Story, Monster House, and Thomas the Train until I know every word. And the songs from The Lorax are pretty catchy, in that annoying can't-get-it-out-of-my-head kind of way. I caught myself humming one today at work.

Other big things in your world lately:

Mud riding.


A sudden obsession with belts.

Rubbing your naked bottom on people. Especially Emma. She screams like you're killing her and you chase her through the house laughing like a loon.

Just being naked in general. Usually from the waist down. Don't ask me how this little obsession got started. I can promise you that you haven't observed it from the rest of us.

 Your smiles and hugs make my day and never fail to make me smile. Thank you for being the sweet boy you are. I love you "this much"!



Love,
Mommy

Letters to Emma

Sweet pea,
A funny thing happened this week when I was going through your Spring wardrobe. You've grown!! How did that happen? We like to tease you because you are so tiny compared to other kids your age, that we tend to forget that you are still growing. So of course I get a harsh reminder when you go to put on your last clean pair of pants and they look like high-waters. (Don't worry, I never let you leave the house like that. Daddy is a different story though.)

A huge first this month was that you lost your very first baby tooth! You were sooo happy! And I just stood there in shock while you reached right into your mouth and yanked it out. Like a big girl. Who pulls her teeth every day. As soon as it was out you started talking about wanting more teeth to be pulled. Luckily I convinced you that you needed to wait before pulling any more teeth.

 
 We've also been working on some "big girl school" stuff this month. Just some loose ends, like tying your shoes tight, etc. You are beyond excited to be starting in Kindergarten next year. Actually it's a toss up between who is more excited, you or MeMe. MeMe is all over this stuff and has even requested a teacher for you already. Nice little perk of MeMe working at the elementary, right? Mommy is going to need a little time to get used to you being a Malvern Leopard. It just seems weird. But I guess you need to have grown up in "the Cove" like Mama in order to appeciate the weirdness.

T-ball practice has started and you are pumped! It is like night and day from last year. We met with Preslee and her mom and dad to practice last weekend and you were awesome! Your batting has improved so much (and it was really good last year) and you were fielding balls like a pro. Mommy and Daddy were so proud! You seem to like sports quite a bit, and that makes me happy. I want you to be able to enjoy playing as a team and being active and healthy. And of course, you get Hobo Joe's after practice.

We also changed up your asthma medicine this month. We had a scary hospital stay in January and your asthma doctor has decided that the once-a-year trips to the hospital need to stop. Mommy and Daddy agree 100%! You gave us quite the scare! You started having trouble breathing and the hospital in Hot Springs couldn't get your oxygen flow regulated; you were having to work super hard to breathe even on a a whole bunch of oxygen. Mommy was so scared! You wound up being med-flighted to Children's Hosptial in Little Rock and they put you on this high-flow oxygen mask that finally helped get your oxygen level back up. We spent a long 5 days in the hospital, and I discovered that you aren't exactly a good patient any more. It took 2-3 nurses to hold you down for ANY oral medicine. Bless your heart, you are just sick of being sick! I'm really hopefuly that this new medicine will keep us out of the hosital-cross your fingers!

 

I love you so much my sweet girl! You make me so proud, and happy, and I just love to see your smilig face every day! Don't ever change!

Love,
Mommy

Thursday, March 7, 2013

The power of "to-do" lists

Somehow, over the course of the past forever, the ol' blog has not made it onto my to-do list. So now I have Mom guilt, since this is how I try to chronicle important things for the kiddos. And with every day that has passed, I've been more and more hesitant to pick back up the ol' blog because I am sooo far behind! Who wants to write (or read) about Christmas in March?! Well, that's how far behind I am. So I think if I just wipe the slate clean and start new today, maybe I can do better.

So, I'm creating my own weekly "to-do" list. How pitiful is it that I've got to have a to-do list for EVERYTHING? Well, that's how my life has been lately. Work, grad school, quality time with the kiddos, travel, work, t-ball, gymnastics, work . . . and the list goes on and on. And yeah, I know I mentioned work a million times. It was intentional. With all the craziness going on lately in my world, I've forgotten to do those little things that make me a happy and sane woman. And more importantly, a better mom and wife. I've gotten so bogged down in the day to day junk that it's time for a reality and priority check.

So, as part of my new attitude, here are the things I'm adding to my weekly to-do list:
  1. Take a lunch break, for crying out loud!! This may sound simple, but work has been beyond hectic lately so I can't tell you the last time I haven't scarfed down something while sitting at my desk and working. Not healthy for the mind or body.
  2. Work out 4 days a week, at least. Due to some recent health issues, my weight has gotten out of control. Like seriously out of control. And that crap stops NOW. It's time to do some serious damage control.
  3. Weight Watchers. I'm going to just suck it up and commit. I've been able to lose excess weight in the past (from babies) fairly easily. Not so much now. So, desperate times, desperate measures and all that. Time for a little help.
  4. No homework or work on Sundays. At least until the kiddos are in bed. I officially declare Sunday family day and Lord help the next person who calls my cell on a Sunday with a work related crisis. It will not be pretty.
  5. Blog updates and write-ups for the kiddos. Once a week. Enough said.
  6. Get organized. Chaos drives me crazy, and right now chaos reigns supreme at my house. Closets need organized, papers, bills, etc. So once a week I'll pick an area (or item) and get that crap in line.
I think that is probably enough to keep me busy for a while. And since accountability is key, guess progress reports will be coming soon. Aren't you excited?!