Last Thursday was simply a bad day. I had the stomach flu something terrible, my Grandma Donna passed away and, when I was on the phone with my mom, I fell down the stairs of our trailer and buggered up my back. I was so scared, and the first thought I had when I realized what had happened was "Oh my God, the baby!" I burst into tears because by that point I was simply overrun with emotion. I was sore, and I hurt, but that had nothing to do with my tears. My tears were coming from my heart, a mother's heart, and a heart that was (at that time) full of fear. I gathered up my phone, let the dogs in, called my mom back for just a second, called and left Larabee a crying-barely-understandable message on his phone, and got out the phone book. Kyle was napping, so fortunately I was able to focus all of my attention on finding a Dr that would see me that day. Since I don't have an OBGYN yet it wasn't like I could just call her/him and have them squeeze me in. Fortunately I found a place that not only got me in within an hour, but also gave me an ultrasound no questions asked. I got to see that little bean in my belly that is just growing and growing. I got to see that wonderful heartbeat, and hearing it was just awesome. We (the ultrasound tech and I) even saw the baby wiggle around. Yay!
So everything ended up OK. My bruises are even pretty much gone at this point and I have one scab on my back from a bad scratch. Other than that, I am good to go. According to the measurements of baby on the ultrasound I am 8 weeks and 5 days into my pregnancy. 2 months. Hard to believe. I am so thankful.
These are the ramblings of a mostly work at home mom, college graduate, wife, referee...um...Mama, and lover of laughter. This is my cathartic slice of heaven; a place where I can say what I want when I want and nobody can tell me any differently. I am such a rebel...
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Hugs
Is there anything as precious as a hug? Can anything lower your blood pressure more quickly than a hug? Can anything make the world right again like a hug? I think not.
Kyle has recently learned how to really hug, you know, by actually squeezing his arms around your neck. It is wonderful. Every time I change his diaper I stand him up and he just hugs me and hugs me. It fills my heart with an unexplainable joy because Kyle has never been a cuddle bug. He is way too busy for that, so the fact that he takes time out of his busy day to give his Mama a hug (which sometimes lasts for 2 or 3 minutes) makes it all the more special.
My heartstrings are being tugged just thinking about it!
Kyle has recently learned how to really hug, you know, by actually squeezing his arms around your neck. It is wonderful. Every time I change his diaper I stand him up and he just hugs me and hugs me. It fills my heart with an unexplainable joy because Kyle has never been a cuddle bug. He is way too busy for that, so the fact that he takes time out of his busy day to give his Mama a hug (which sometimes lasts for 2 or 3 minutes) makes it all the more special.
My heartstrings are being tugged just thinking about it!
Getting our bearings
A new city, a new routine. I am such a routine oriented person that it is really irritating to break routine or change routine. I am not having such a hard time this time around though, which is surprising. Maybe I am simply glad to be here. Maybe I needed a change. Maybe I will be able to be more efficient this time around. Not a bad thing if you ask me.
I have scoped out the Library, which we went to today for story time. Kyle had a blast playing with the other kids close to his age and I really loved watching how well he interacts with everyone. He is such a little love. I always joke that he is forever running for Mayor. He will go to anyone, is perfectly sweet and adorable, and leaves a group gushing. If that doesn't scream politics I don't know what does. As long as it only ever goes as far as class president.
So now we get to get into the routine of being here. I am glad because I was tired of my Texas routine.
I have scoped out the Library, which we went to today for story time. Kyle had a blast playing with the other kids close to his age and I really loved watching how well he interacts with everyone. He is such a little love. I always joke that he is forever running for Mayor. He will go to anyone, is perfectly sweet and adorable, and leaves a group gushing. If that doesn't scream politics I don't know what does. As long as it only ever goes as far as class president.
So now we get to get into the routine of being here. I am glad because I was tired of my Texas routine.
Our big move!
I know I am a few days late in posting this, but better late than never, right?
We are finally out of Texas. I hate you Texas. I love you Texas. I never want to go back. I miss you. It is complicated. I miss the winter weather (which is like summer at home) and I never want to see the summer weather again (which is somewhat like living on the sun).
Our family made a lot of wonderful memories in the state you don't mess with. Kyle spent the better part of his first 15 months of life there. He learned how to crawl there. Though he learned how to walk in good 'ol Idaho, as any good Idaho boy should. He got to go to the ocean, to amusement parks, and to the Zoo. He even acquired a new dog there. We naturally referred to our trailer space as home, however temporary it was, but if you ever ask me I will tell you that I never lived there. I just stayed there for a while. I believe 'a while' is an undisclosed amount of time, so it is still true.
As of now Texas is simply a memory. We may have to go back someday, but I will be the first to say that I hope we don't ever have to. It is hot, it is dirty, and it is just not home.
Now we are in Salt Lake City and I am ever so glad to be closer to home. I know it is still 11 hours away, but it is much much closer than San Antonio. When we crossed into New Mexico, my heart sang. When I first saw real mountains, snow, and beautiful landscape, my soul rejoiced. I feel whole again. I feel like myself. I feel as if I have snapped out of a mundane existence and back into real life. It makes me sad to know how uninspired I was in Texas. I need visual stimulation, I need nature at it's finest, and I need fresh air and open spaces. We have only been here three days and it already feels more like home than San Antonio ever did. That seems strange to me. Perhaps it is because we are now in more of a groove and not so homesick. I think that the way the economy is we have stepped away from the 'woe is me' attitude about not being at home and stepped into the idea that we are truly thankful that we are still surviving. We are blessed.
We are finally out of Texas. I hate you Texas. I love you Texas. I never want to go back. I miss you. It is complicated. I miss the winter weather (which is like summer at home) and I never want to see the summer weather again (which is somewhat like living on the sun).
Our family made a lot of wonderful memories in the state you don't mess with. Kyle spent the better part of his first 15 months of life there. He learned how to crawl there. Though he learned how to walk in good 'ol Idaho, as any good Idaho boy should. He got to go to the ocean, to amusement parks, and to the Zoo. He even acquired a new dog there. We naturally referred to our trailer space as home, however temporary it was, but if you ever ask me I will tell you that I never lived there. I just stayed there for a while. I believe 'a while' is an undisclosed amount of time, so it is still true.
As of now Texas is simply a memory. We may have to go back someday, but I will be the first to say that I hope we don't ever have to. It is hot, it is dirty, and it is just not home.
Now we are in Salt Lake City and I am ever so glad to be closer to home. I know it is still 11 hours away, but it is much much closer than San Antonio. When we crossed into New Mexico, my heart sang. When I first saw real mountains, snow, and beautiful landscape, my soul rejoiced. I feel whole again. I feel like myself. I feel as if I have snapped out of a mundane existence and back into real life. It makes me sad to know how uninspired I was in Texas. I need visual stimulation, I need nature at it's finest, and I need fresh air and open spaces. We have only been here three days and it already feels more like home than San Antonio ever did. That seems strange to me. Perhaps it is because we are now in more of a groove and not so homesick. I think that the way the economy is we have stepped away from the 'woe is me' attitude about not being at home and stepped into the idea that we are truly thankful that we are still surviving. We are blessed.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Have money? Dont spend it when you can save it.
Everyone knows that the economy is in the crapper right now. Jobs are being lost by the thousands, more and more people cannot pay their bills, and those who used to think they were in secure jobs are starting to sweat. All hell has broken loose on the financial front. It is just not good.
So far our family has been extremely fortunate, thank God. While we have had steady work so far we are realistic. We know that it could end because right now, anything is possible.
Today I decided that I wanted to go shopping just to go shopping. I know that Kyle is quickly growing out of, well, everything and that I am picky about clothes. Because of that, it is best to shop early in anticipation of him outgrowing things. I also wanted to look for a few things for myself.
So I loaded Kyle into the car and we set out on our journey. We looked at some things from Old Navy, some from The Children's Place, some really cute Levi's, and some things from boutiques that I have never even heard of. Some things were cute, some looked a little cheesy, some were just to die for!
However, I did not actually GO to Old Navy, or The Children's Place, or any boutiques. I went to a thrift store. Yes, a thrift store. At this time in our lives we actually COULD go to those places and spend $15+ on any given shirt and more for pants/shorts. Honestly though, Kyle grows out of things so quickly, what is the point? And I am so hard on clothes (stains, holes, etc) that I feel guilty when I ruin a shirt I got at Wal*mart, so I cannot imagine how guilty I would feel if I had gotten a new shirt from somewhere expensive.
Yes sirree, I am a bargain shopper. I cannot bring myself to spend more money on clothing than I need to, and when there are perfectly good clothes at thrift stores still in great shape that have a lot of wear left in them, I feel like I am being extremely wasteful buying clothes somewhere else. My job is to save this family money whenever I can. That means home cooked meals instead of eating out, fixing rips in pants a few times before throwing them out, and cutting costs for food and other things we need. I will, on occasion, buy clothing at full price. At Wal*mart. I figure $8 for a brand new shirt is not bad. But I don't do that often. I feel really good when I go to a thrift store and can get a cute shirt or a great pair of pants for $2-3, even less if that color tag is 1/2 off that day. Super score!
So anyway, all of Kyle's pants and shirts in 18 month sizes are used. Someone else's castoffs. And to be honest, most looks unworn. I have found 2 pairs of pants that still had the tags on them. 1 pair were Faded Glory ($2 used, probably at least $10-12 new) and 1 pair were from The Children's Place ($2.50 used, at least $15 new). Just with those two pairs of pants I saved our family a minimum of $20 so that means that I 'made' $20 at my job today! Yay for me!
If you are smart you will take my advice- buy used when it will do. Or take the Duggar's advice and "buy used and save the difference." Either way, your long-term financial goals will thank you!
*NOTE* All the pictures of Kyle looking super duper cute in this post contain USED, SECOND HAND clothes. Can you tell? Didn't think so!
So far our family has been extremely fortunate, thank God. While we have had steady work so far we are realistic. We know that it could end because right now, anything is possible.
Today I decided that I wanted to go shopping just to go shopping. I know that Kyle is quickly growing out of, well, everything and that I am picky about clothes. Because of that, it is best to shop early in anticipation of him outgrowing things. I also wanted to look for a few things for myself.
So I loaded Kyle into the car and we set out on our journey. We looked at some things from Old Navy, some from The Children's Place, some really cute Levi's, and some things from boutiques that I have never even heard of. Some things were cute, some looked a little cheesy, some were just to die for!
However, I did not actually GO to Old Navy, or The Children's Place, or any boutiques. I went to a thrift store. Yes, a thrift store. At this time in our lives we actually COULD go to those places and spend $15+ on any given shirt and more for pants/shorts. Honestly though, Kyle grows out of things so quickly, what is the point? And I am so hard on clothes (stains, holes, etc) that I feel guilty when I ruin a shirt I got at Wal*mart, so I cannot imagine how guilty I would feel if I had gotten a new shirt from somewhere expensive.
Yes sirree, I am a bargain shopper. I cannot bring myself to spend more money on clothing than I need to, and when there are perfectly good clothes at thrift stores still in great shape that have a lot of wear left in them, I feel like I am being extremely wasteful buying clothes somewhere else. My job is to save this family money whenever I can. That means home cooked meals instead of eating out, fixing rips in pants a few times before throwing them out, and cutting costs for food and other things we need. I will, on occasion, buy clothing at full price. At Wal*mart. I figure $8 for a brand new shirt is not bad. But I don't do that often. I feel really good when I go to a thrift store and can get a cute shirt or a great pair of pants for $2-3, even less if that color tag is 1/2 off that day. Super score!
So anyway, all of Kyle's pants and shirts in 18 month sizes are used. Someone else's castoffs. And to be honest, most looks unworn. I have found 2 pairs of pants that still had the tags on them. 1 pair were Faded Glory ($2 used, probably at least $10-12 new) and 1 pair were from The Children's Place ($2.50 used, at least $15 new). Just with those two pairs of pants I saved our family a minimum of $20 so that means that I 'made' $20 at my job today! Yay for me!
If you are smart you will take my advice- buy used when it will do. Or take the Duggar's advice and "buy used and save the difference." Either way, your long-term financial goals will thank you!
*NOTE* All the pictures of Kyle looking super duper cute in this post contain USED, SECOND HAND clothes. Can you tell? Didn't think so!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Oh Gracious
My poor boy is so miserable with his molars coming in. He is so crabby and unlike his normal, happy, giddy self. I miss my baby! Sometimes he comes back, once the Tylenol and baby orajel kicks in. Poor baby...
Poor Mama! I have been listening to crying, screaming baby for days and I will be the first to say it is grating on my last raw nerve. I am so thankful that Larabee has ALL weekend off this week and I will get a bit of a break from the monster that has taken over my son. Or at least help wrangling that monster LOL.
Poor Mama! I have been listening to crying, screaming baby for days and I will be the first to say it is grating on my last raw nerve. I am so thankful that Larabee has ALL weekend off this week and I will get a bit of a break from the monster that has taken over my son. Or at least help wrangling that monster LOL.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Ears, Nose, Toes, Piggies
You are thinking right now, what do these things have in common?
Well, I will tell you.
Kyle can show you where all of these things are on himself and on others! I am so proud! Especially about the ears since he cannot see his own but he still knows they are there. Also, being able to show you his toes AND his piggies is big too because they are the same thing. He understands that things can have more than one name. Yay for my big boy! I am such a proud mama right now!
Well, I will tell you.
Kyle can show you where all of these things are on himself and on others! I am so proud! Especially about the ears since he cannot see his own but he still knows they are there. Also, being able to show you his toes AND his piggies is big too because they are the same thing. He understands that things can have more than one name. Yay for my big boy! I am such a proud mama right now!
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