Weird

Okay, I have something weird to say.
Or ask.
Or maybe I'm just looking for reassurance that I'm not the only person that feels this way.

I like the day the Christmas tree comes down as much, if not more than the day the tree goes up.

It's weird.  I like the day it goes up.
It feels like Christmas, you start wanting to sing and bake and shop.
And then the days go by, and you realize this tree is kinda annoying.
I mean, it takes up like 5 feet of your living room.
The needles drop (although this year, our $13.50 tree was stellar, and hardly dropped any needles).
And the tree becomes like another pet.  You have to water it, and look after it, etc.
And your furniture is all rearranged and just not normal.
And things just always feel cluttered.

And then on the day you take the tree down, you miss it, and the feeling of Christmas, but boy are you glad to see the stupid thing go.

Because everything is back where it belongs, and you are back to only looking after 4 living things.
And life is once again normal.

But it is weird how every year you forget, and buy a new and start the whole crazy process again.

And you might suggest that we buy an artificial tree. Or not get a tree at all.
But truly, I like having a tree.
But not as much as I like getting rid of the tree.

So...anyone agree?

Sunday Update

1.  I really enjoy working out in the morning.  Not because I like working out.  Not because I like mornings.  Mostly because I like getting it over.  And I like only "getting ready" once.  I try to do this on the weekends, and I would love to do it during the week too.  But I just can't drag myself out of bed, early and cold to do it.  Also, I seem to have that "running on empty" feeling when I work out in the morning.  Any suggestions?  

2.  My boy loves popcorn.  He calls it "pop pop".  He really likes the hot air popper, and yells and screams "yeah yeah woah woah" when it comes out of the popper.  And he shovels it in by the handful.  

3.  I'm having trouble getting the documents needed to get an IL license.  I'm missing 2 critical documents, and I have been calling and calling.  I also check the mail thoroughly, and still no paperwork!  How is it possible that I can get everything else in the mail, but not those two papers???

4.  I had a hugely successful shopping trip to Walgreens today.  I spent about $21, and came out with $60 store credit.  I am going to use my credit to buy a few things that I have been to cheap to buy.  I want to buy a thermometer for Noah ( a digital thermal or ear one).  Any suggestions?  Ae have made it this far in his life without having one, but I really should have on on hand.  Also I need to buy a charger for my ipad.  I left mine in the cabin in Kentucky, and with Jeremy taking his to IL before me, I need to replace mine!  I can get one for about $14 at Walgreens.

5.  I got Beagle this toy.  There are 5 holes, and 6 covers.  The idea is that it challenges your dogs brain to figure out how to get treat out of the holes.  I was really excited about it.  We all know that Beagle needs a little challenge in his life.  Well, he mastered it in 29 seconds flat.  5 holes emptied in 29 seconds.  So much for that.

6.  My boy bit a kid at Chick Fil A.  Up in the tubes.  I saw the whole thing, but it was kind of slow motion.  The other kid had Noah in a head lock, and Noah bit him.  I don't blame him.  I didn't even discipline him.  On a side note, are you one of those parents who send your kid into the play area and sit outside?  Maybe, when Noah gets older, I will be too.  But at this point I just don't get that.

7.  Noah is at a really fun (and yet very challenging) point in his life.  He is really starting to mimic things, such as dancing, kissing, marching, clapping, yelling, and repeating.  It's so cool to know that someone smart is really in there!  I feel confident I know what he likes, when he doesn't like, when he is tired, when he is frustrated, when he needs a little exercise.  It is ever changing, but it is really fun.  That being said, it is also a challenging stage.  He gets upset easily, he can't express himself, and he acts aggressively at times.  I'm working on increasing his sign language "vocabulary".  We have added "book", "stop" and we are working on "help".  But boy do we have to discipline him.  Sometimes he looks like he is having a little too much fun in "time out".  I have tried moving it around, facing in, facing out, corner, other room, etc.  I guess it is a work in progress too.

8.  It has been a really cold week here!  Nothing compared to how it will be in IL, but still, I'm cold!  It has been in the 30's!  Brrr!  At night, I sleep with 3 quilts, a down comforter and an electric blanket.  Do you think that is enough?

9.  I tried this recipe for weight watchers chicken parmesan cutlets.  It got great reviews online and WOW it was really good!  And really easy too!  No MC tonight!

10.  The boxes keep getting packed, and things are starting to pile up for our move.  I'm looking forward to
    a.  Spending a little one on one time with my boy while I job search and daycare search.
    b.  Living close to a CVS for couponing!
    c.  Living on a street with sidewalks and running paths.
    d.  Having carpet.  That may change on the first rainy weekend, but right now I'm excited about it.


So that is what is going on here!  Happy Sunday!

Fuselage

This is a big moment.  

Jeremy has completed most of the fuselage, and was able to flip it right side up.

Those are the seats (or will be), right where Jeremy is standing.

Thank you in advance for sympathizing with me over having that large item in my house.

It has taken over 700 hours of work.

That completes the wings, the tail and the fuselage.

3 out of 4 of the kits.

It sounds like we will be flying any day, but in reality he is about half done (time wise).

But it is coming right along!

It is a proud moment...it should be, he has worked so hard!

Same Story

This same time last year (Dec 30th), we made a trip to the Urgent Care, and then again to the hospital (Jan 1st).  He had some sort of respiratory virus.  After a week of snot, wheezing, and coughing, we finally brought him in for the magic antibiotic shot.

Fast forward 1 year...exactly the same story.  Pediatrician closed for the holidays, snotty, wheezy, coughing 1 year old.  Trip to urgent care.  It was not an emergency, but needed to be addressed.  Respiratory infection, antibiotic shot, antibiotic medication, breathing treatments (ps- still hates it as much as he did last year).  :)

So crazy that I could pretty much write the same story on year later.  I'm hoping our trip to Urgent care today eliminated the hospital visit.

And I'm SO ready for the yellow snot to go away.  And I'm ready for my baby to breathe normally again.

One the positive side, daycare is closed anyway.  I don't think he is contagious.  He is a little extra snugly.

I hope my boy perks up soon.  There is a marching band parade waiting for him.  :)

Christmas Day

We had a quiet Christmas at home today.

That wasn't the original plan, but a wheezing snotty kid changed things.

Last night we went to church.

We should have probably kept our snooty kid at home, but since he didn't have a fever, we decided to try it out.

Two months before we move, Noah has decided he doesn't hate the church nursery as bad as he thought he did.

I'm really glad about that.

We had a cake for Jesus for breakfast.

And opened some gifts later.

We still have plenty under the tree, but one at a time is more than enough!

We gave Noah this Mickey Mouse marching band kit.

He loved it.

Worth the $5 that I paid for it.

We has several parades around the house.

Brought back old memories.  :)

Hope you enjoyed Christmas too!

Hard to believe that next Christmas we will have a 2 1/2 year old running around who will really begin to understand the meaning of Christmas!

Changes...

It is amazing what 4 years will change.  Today I was thing about all the different things that we are looking for in our next house.  SO different from what we were looking for when we bought this house.  Heres some of the things that are different:

1.   Four years ago we were looking for a quiet house with land in the "country".  Now we are looking for a cul de sac, side walks and a playground.
2.  Four years ago, we were buying big comfy furniture that was meant for hours of lounging around.  Now we want furniture that doesn't stain after graham crackers and milk are jammed into it.
3.  Four years ago, we wanted no carpet because of the dogs.  Now we want carpet so we don't have to hear beagle tap-dancing in the morning.  Gotta soak up every minute of sleep you can get.
4.  Four years ago, the two story home didn't really bother us.  Now we want those bedrooms and laundry room and bathrooms on the same level.
5.  Four years ago, I wouldn't have given a bathtub a second thought.  Now I have to make sure the tub will be feasible to scrub the dirt off my boys toes.
6.  Four years ago, I didn't think about steps, sharp edges, fireplaces and other dangerous things.  Now I'm on high alert.
7.  Four years ago, I didn't mind that Jeremy's shop backed up to my bedroom.  Now I want to make sure nap time (noah's and mine) happen quietly!
8.  Four years ago, I didn't understand the value of a garage parking spot.  Especially when it is cold, and especially when it is early.
9.  Four years ago, we wanted a fixer-upper.  One we could spend time and money on.  Now we want a low maintenance rental.  One we don't have to spend any time and money on.

We found a house...a rental in a town slightly (10 miles) north of the base.  It is close to Target, Walgreens, Starbucks and Moes.  Yum.  We have a contract on it, so it looks like we are set to go at the end of Feb, first of March.  It meets most of our needs, and we are excited about it.  The boxes are getting packed, slowly but surely...we will be ready for the big day!

Wonder what we will be looking for at out next move...

Ready or Not

How weird is this?  

We no longer have a dining room. 

We have a room beginning to fill with moving boxes.

I'm starting to get excited about our move.

I'm going to miss Mississippi though.

I'm going to miss our friends, our job, our church.

But Illinois has two Targets.

And a Starbucks.

So that will help in a major way.

Here is a picture of my living room.

I'm planning to take pictures now and then as it starts to fill up with boxes.

:)

2.5 months...ready or not, here we go!

Too Cheap

Okay, so I splurged.  I bought myself 3 Bath and Body Works candles.  They cost $20 normally, but I got three for $21.  Then I had buyers remorse, because I never ever spend money on things like that (that I don't need and that are not cheap).  But I brought it home and lit it.  and Oh. My. Gosh.  I am so in love.  It is so pretty, and smells fabulous.  I hope the other 2 are just as good.

 

Also, thank you to Aunt MaryBeth and Uncle Chris.  I was too cheap to buy this for my son.  When we saw the amazon receipt in the bag, we tore into your gift right away.  He LOVES it.  He brings it to me at least twice a day.  He is a little obsessed with putting all the people and animals on the top of the stable where the angel belongs, but he is learning.  He knows "Jeez" (jesus).  Well really all of the people are "Jeez".  Thank you so much for this thoughtful gift!!!

Grandparent Vacation

We have been so blessed to have visitors for the past two weeks!

Noah is very much enjoying having his grandparents here.

Papa has been raking and pitch forking and gathering pine straw for days.

He will be dreaming of pine needles for weeks I'm sure.

All the pictures, clocks, shelves were taken down and holes were filled.

All my china was wrapped and boxed up.

Today a new tile was laid, and a brick on the fireplace was replaced.

It has been really nice having them here.

Gotta love that little grandparent vacation!  ;)

Fish Tail

I am SO relieved to tell you that the fish tail has been found.

We lost it about a week ago, one day during some serious playing.

And it has been stressing me out ever since.

I've looked EVERYWHERE.

Over and over. 

Jeremy said "it will turn up".

But it didn't.

So today, I was making a cup of coffee, and right there in the middle of my k-cup carousal, there was the fish tail.

So thank you all for listening to my plight of the missing fish tail. 

Now we can all sleep soundly tonight!

Growing Up

My boy is a great sleeper.

I'm not bragging, cause there are lot of things he is not so great at.

But he is a great sleeper and I appreciate every second of it.

So when he woke up crying only 1 1/2 hours into this 3 hour afternoon nap, it caught my attention.

I watched him on my stalker baby-cam, and after a few minutes I decided to take a walk up to check on him.

He seemed okay, just restless.  

I laid him back down, and he settled down.

But after one sneak-out attempt, in which i got caught, I gave up and decided a little bit of snuggling my rapidly growing baby wouldn't hurt anything.

And I was kinda tired anyway.

So I scooped him up and snuggled him up good into our recliner.

And I closed my eyes and tried to ignore those big brown eyes staring at me.

But they eventually closed, and there we slept for an hour.

It has been a while since I have done this.

At least 2 or 3 months.

So it shocked me at how BIG he was in my arms.

And how heavy.

And how grown he was.

When did this kid triple his birth weight?

When did he grow up so much?

I don't know when it happened....and I've been watching very closely!

I'm not encouraging bad sleeping habits.

But if he ever wakes up like that again...you better believe I'm gonna scoop him up and snuggle him so good, he won't even believe what happened to him.

8 Things

1.  My child has discovered his love of peanut butter.  Seriously, 6 months ago, I was nervously giving him his first bite of peanut butter (expecting an immediate respiratory reaction).  I was disappointed that he didn't love it.  I was dreaming of how wonderfully easy it would be to whip him up a PB and J.  Fortunately, the PB grew on him (with the help of Nutella).  The bowl of PB that Grammy gave him this weekend with a pretzel to dip sealed the deal.  Today alone, he has broken into the pantry and brought me the PB and nutella 3 times.  Might have to find a higher shelf for that.

2.  I'm really bummed about the customer service/warrenty service that I got from Reeds Jeweler.  Jeremy bought me a bracelet there for my birthday, and the little diamonds are falling out.  After going in today, they cut my out of pocket cost for the repair down to $20, but I'm still frustrated that I have to pay anything...especially since the bracelet is only 6 months old!  But, said the district manager, she doesn't follow me around every day, so she doesn't know what kind of wear and tear I place on it.  Whatever.  I wrote a letter to corporate, so I will report the results when I get them.

3.  I testified in court last week.  I really can't go into many details....it didn't have anything to do with me.  I was kind of like a by-stander who has called in to report what I saw.  There was a full jury and everything.  It went really well.  What a great learning experience!

4.  Recently I started doing a little couponing at Kroger.  It is going pretty well...I saved 50% today!  I don't know any of the grocery stores in IL...Schnuck's and Dierburgs.  But there are 2 Targets, a Walmart and a commissary, so I doubt we will go hungry.

5.  We have been looking at houses online.  It is a little early (2.5 full months away), but we have found a few prospects.  I'm sad about leaving this town, my job, our friends...but I am looking forward to new opportunities in IL.

6.  I am DONE Christmas shopping!  Yes, yes, you are looking at my blog.  Me, the girl who used to go out Christmas Eve and "wrap" in plastic bags.  Also, everything that had to be mailed has been mailed!  Thank you Terry for taking a load back to Arizona!  And also thanks for dipping lots of pretzels!  It was nice to have the help!

7.  Noah is headed back to daycare tomorrow.  After a whole week off.  Of sleeping in.  Of wearing his PJs till 10.  Or later.  Of hanging out and getting hugs from his mommy all day.  I made sure he was in bed on time tonight so he can get that WHOLE 12 hours.  I'm sure he will need it!  Hopefully he won't bite or fight anyone tomorrow.

8.  One more thing about N.  In the last 2 weeks, I have seen a HUGE jump in his development.  He has actually started talking...I am adding "up" "hot" and "hi" to his list of words he says on his own.  I can't even list the words that he is repeating though!  Everything from "papa" to "rino" to "quack quack".  His language has really taken off.  Also, I have seen a big jump in his cognitive skills as well.  He is starting imaginative play.  His cars are driving, and his plastic animals are walking across the floor.  He is very interested in learning...especially reading.  He constantly brings me books, and loves to hear all the animal sounds.  He takes my hand and pulls ms where he wants to show me something or to help him.  Sometimes I will ask him to bring me something or do something, I'm SHOCKED that he understands and actually does it!  What a wonderful stage!  I love watching him learn right before my eyes!  (PS- not every moment is that wonderful!  :)  We have more than our share of time-out too!)

Guess I better get myself in bed on time too.  I'm gonna need that whole 8 hours myself!

Whats Been Happening

Over the last few days, we have had a lot of activity here!

Jeremy's mom and dad arrived on Friday, and over the past week, there has been lots of playing, laughing, walking, running, strolling...you name it, it happened. 

Noah enjoyed the week with his Grammy.  He smiled so big in the morning when he saw her...NOT typical of my grumpy-morning boy.  

Grammy was behind the camera for the most part, but we did manage to get one picture of her and Noah together!

Terry headed home on Friday, and I got the day off to spend with my little man.

Today the men got to work...doing yard work all day...and then airplaning by night.  I think Ken is going to be running away real soon.   

We are so grateful for the company and for the help! What a nice little break for us!  We are so glad that you guys came to visit!

First Haircut

Thank you Miss Tisha for getting rid of my child's rats nest.

He had a big one growing in the back of his head, and he had some major comb over happening at the top.  Also, there was a little tail growing too.

We signed in with Miss Tisha at 5pm.  Noah knows her from the daycare.  She is the teacher of the 2 year old class. 

 You can't tell from these pictures, but he actually did really well.  He started signing "all done" a few minutes into the cut, but with a little distraction, he made it the whole hair cut without a tear.

 I probably could have managed myself, but it wouldn't have looked as good, and I'm positive that it wouldn't have been tear-free.

 I'll post an "after" when I get the kid to sit still enough to take one, but it looks really good.  Makes him look really grown up.  :)  

Tisha was so kind to save a little bit of Noah's hair and give him a "first haircut" certificate.

Thanks for the great experience.

Jump On

Yeah, we got the kid a bouncy castle.

He loves it.

It was a Christmas present, but we figured we better give it to him will the weather is nice.

He gets so pumped when the castle blows up.

He claps his hands and starts screaming.

He can't climb in independently yet, but he sure can climb/dive/fall/jump out.

He loves to run and fall all over the place.

We are hoping to use it for birthday parties and little get togethers one day.

But until then, jump on, little one.

:)

And you better enjoy it, cause that was "Santa's" one and only visit this year!

Take 2

Take 2:  Kid vs. 4 adults.

We won.

Don't even have a bad picture to post.

18 Months

Love this kid.

Jeremy's parents are here this week, so I have a LOT to update.  Noah is smitten.  He is staying very busy and having a great time with his Grammy and Papa.  :)