Hell Hath Frozen Over

Remember how much I hate crocs? And then when I was pregnant with Ardyn I bought a pair of Athens sandals by crocs (which look NOTHING like crocs, mind you) and they were so fabulous and comfortable that I lived in them that whole summer? And the summer after that, and the summer after that? Yeah.

Well, they keep making crocs look a LITTLE bit closer to something I might actually wear. I think crocs are adorable on kids and ya'll know that Ardyn had them in every freaking color last summer. Well, cheap generic ones at least.

I accidentally ran across a pair of Crocs that I like. I tell myself that I will only wear them around home. Because I am in the yard with the kids alot and it will be nice to slip them on and off. But then I think "well, I would wear them to take the kids to the park...." and I just KNOW that I will end up living in them, and looking like a total dork all summer. But anyway, these are the ones that I got. And I hope that they are cool and that they fit. LOL. I guess I'm just old enough to not care if I look like a retard? Ha. They remind me of my old chuck taylors...
Alright. Let me have it.

You can shop for anything online!

I often joke with people that I am currently "church shopping." It's a long long story, but it boils down to the fact that I want to find (I think) a church that I feel comfortable and at home in, and who's pastor I can identify with and learn from, and which has programs and a nursery that welcomes and loves my children. Well, sounds simple, right? Ha.

Over the years a person comes to find that there are more to churches than meets the eye. Sometimes I think that the church that I am looking for doesn't exist. Especially not here. But that is when I tell myself that church is, as always, inside of me and that my relationship and beliefs do not need to be perfectly mirrored in my place of worship... which leads me to again question IF and WHY I actually need a PLACE of worship. I am still undecided.

I told myself in the fall that I would start to investigate churches and pick some that I would like to attend (sans children) and then start to get a feel for what I liked and didn't like about each one. Then once I had narrowed it down I might take Ardyn with and see how it went. I started reading Ardyn bible stories meant for toddlers (I have LOTS of books for her with bible stories :) and I taught her Away in a Manger for Christmas, and we got her the Little People Nativity and explained everything to her. We read books all December about Christmas and Jesus Birthday, and we used Nativity Window Clings to remind her about the shepherds and the wise men coming to visit baby Jesus. Being a 2 year old, her understanding is limited. What is important to me is mostly that she be given the tools and education about religion that will allow her to form her own beliefs and make her own decisions, and that she be instilled with morals and compassion and kindness for living things.

So far I have in fact investigated several churches. Through my MOPS Group I have been able to meet moms from several different churches, and have visited a few (during non-worship times.) and I often pick up Sermons on CD's, or church directories, or even bible reading schedules and bulletins. I like to check out their nurseries and see what they have to offer for Children's Ministries.

One thing that, until this evening, I never thought to do.... was to visit their websites! Why in the WORLD would I not realize that I could shop for churches online?? Wow. It makes sense. One thing that I immediately noticed was the churches mission statements and beliefs are usually listed online. I was immediately reminded of why I do NOT feel a full sense of comfort with organized religion... most organizations do not allow for an interpretation on the part of the parishioner. Well, if they do, they certainly don't talk about it. I find it annoying that a church as a whole thinks they can make one broad statement (which actually ends up being fairly specific) and that it will (or should) cover the beliefs of such a large body of very different and mostly intelligent people. I find it frustrating that a "Community Church" can state that they

offer Christ’s transforming love and healing to all wounded and broken people, including those who habitually engage in various sexual sins, heterosexual and homosexual alike.

Acknowledging the high calling of the church we oppose the ordination, or recognition of the preexisting license or ordination, of any person practicing, affirming, endorsing and/or celebrating adultery, fornication, gay/lesbian/bisexual behavior, or any other practices that are contrary to God’s creation intent as defined above.

This is telling me that they believe that homosexuals are broken and wounded and need to be fixed.... which I don't believe and I find incredibly demeaning, and I don't ever want to make anyone think that I am guilty of those thoughts be association, and most importantly this includes the values and compassion that I want to instill in my children.

So then I was lucky enough to stumble across a church whose statement of faith says

.....proud tradition of spiritual and social activism, including a number of historic firsts: the first African American ordained by a Protestant denomination (1785), the first woman since New Testament times ordained as a Christian minister (1853), and the first openly gay person ordained as a Christian minister (1972).

The Church today remains diverse. Historic statements of Christian faith, such as the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed, are honored in the United Church of Christ. However, the Church respects freedom and diversity of individual conscience, and we do not use a creed or catechism as a test of faith for our members.

..... is an Open and Affirming church. That means that we make a public statement welcoming persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities into the full life and ministry of the church.

Now THOSE are the types of values that I want to instill in my children. Of course this in itself has not made my decision, but I think that it certainly makes me feel better about the possibility of finding a church that I can enjoy, be proud of, and that will allow me to have my own thoughts and interpretations of what religion should be.

In sickness and in health

You know, generally I am a fan of seasons. I have always been okay with Winter. But the older I get, the crankier the prolonged season makes me. I guess that's why all the ole folks retire and spend their winters heading south. Winter is really fun for a while. BUT when winter lasts 4-5 months, it starts to get old. I think that by January, most people are feeling kinda "blah" about winter (at least here in Illinois!) It's just that kinda icky month. It's frigid cold, there's snow and ice and sleet. The car washes are frozen and you can't get the salt off your vehicle. Everyone seems to either be sick, be getting sick, or getting over being sick. Apparently our house is no exception.

Pretty much the DAY that Evan started to finally feel better, Ardyn woke up with a really throaty cough and a runny nose, that progressed throughout the day to end up with a raspy voice and finally a fever. By bedtime that night she was full on "sick" and just one day later while she alternated between happily medicated and drastically dramatic and feverish, Marek woke up with a cough which progressed into a low grade fever. He took FOUR naps that were at least an hour long. Poor guy. He was especially clingy and cuddly and I just spent the day laying on the couch with him and catching a bunch of movies on Netflix.

Of course, when Evan got sick, I was very upset, especially knowing that we could get sick next, and that he wouldn't be able to help with lots of upcoming things, and then we had such a busy week this week.... it's just a Murphy's Law kind of thing. So on Monday our kitchen got cleaned and we took the kids to Menard's with us and picked up the paint and stuff we would need to paint it. That was the day that Evan was recovering and Ardyn was catching her cold. Tuesday Evan started painting, leaving us without kitchen access. We had originally planned on going to his parents or even mine (by we I mean me and the kids) during the painting, but now that BOTH kids were sick, and I wasn't really feeling all that fabulous myself, we just stayed home. So Tuesday night I couldn't go to Breastfeeding group, and Wednesday we had to cancel our lunch with my friend Dorene. When we still had fevers and coughs last night, I canceled the playdate that we were supposed to be hosting at our house this morning. Ugh.

Of course then yesterday we had an ice storm, and so by nightfall it was pretty much worthless to go anywhere else, even if we DID feel good enough to go. The power flickred and surged all night, and then of course at about 2am it went out for good. I have a not-so-funny-but-oh-so-hilarious story with that one. I have been pretty anxious and on edge with everyone being sick, so I have really been lazy (by lazy I mean not doing anything besides caring for two sick kids and feeding them whatever I can get them to eat.) and just trying to chill out and lay around with them as they rest. My throat has been really sore, and I have been achy, so I have been taking it as easy as I can, hoping that I won't become full fledged "sick." Well, when the power went out, I had only been asleep about an hour, so I was in that zone of complete exhaustion and disoriented. Each kid was in their respective bed, and when Marek started crying, I thought that his fever was back up and it was about time to check him. When I opened my eyes, everything was black. And I don't just mean dark. I mean BLACK. No light anywhere. No clock. No moonlight. No Streetlights. It was so pitch black that the first thing I thought.... "Oh my God, I am BLIND!!!" Seriously. This is not an exxageration. I had that full on panic that I had somehow gone blind in my sleep. I closed my eyes, shook my head, and opened them again, still black. I tried to sit up in bed, and couldn't see my clock, or the electric blanket, or ANYTHING. OMG. I was freaked. Then my eyes adjusted a bit and I realized that I wasn't BLIND but the power was out. Talk about freaking scary. I yelled at Evan (who was of course in his own "bed"- the couch) and he knew it was out because it had been surging so bad that he got up to unplug some stuff. So then I had to make my way to Marek's room. I got him and Evan brought a flashlight to me so that I could check his temp in the dark. He didn't have one. I nursed him and he snuggled into bed with me where it was warm and I could be near him to make sure he was okay (since he can't have blankets or anything!) Evan checked on Ardyn again and we decided to just add more blankets and snuggle down and see if the power would come back on. Neither of us was thrilled with the prospect of having 1 hour of sleep, packing in the dark, and taking two sick kids out in an ice storm to get to a family member who had power. I do remember waking up a couple of times and snuggling in deeper because it was getting colder in the house, but it never got bad enough to chase us out. The last time I woke up cold, it was because the power came back on and I heard everything kick in... and then it surged off again and I remember going "ohhhh! Man!" and then around 4-5am it came back on for good. That was a good thing. I think that I will have to make a point to bring the coleman rechargeable lantern out of the camping stuff and keep in in the house for the winter :)

We are supposed to have more freezing rain and drizzle tonight, so hopefully we keep power. With the kids being sick and so much going on, I am so far behind on laundry it's ridiculous. I literallly can't walk through the laundry room. Every single diaper is dirty. And I mean EVERY single diaper. I have been using random inserts and things for the past week, and have exhausted my entire prefold supply (which I use as backups and with diaper creams.) I think I have something like 26 Goodmama Fitteds (all dirty) and all my PUL covers are dirty.... and I probably have nearly 8-10 of those. And then I have lotsa BGOS 3.0's and they are all dirty (maybe 20-22 of them?) and also about 16 prefolds.... all dirty. So, um, Yeah I am behind. Every wetbag is dirty. Both pail liners are dirty. I EASILY have three loads of diapers to do. Perhaps four. The GOOD news with that is that Marek's diapers are SO much easier to deal with than Ardyn's ever were (can you say SOLID!?) and that this will allow me to empty the hot water heater quickly, which is important.... because this morning we got a new Water Softener Installed! A very nice twin tank system from Culligan. I already adore it. Why- because lots of the guesswork is taken out of the management, it saves money on salt over a traditional unit, as well as water because it only regenerates when necessary, and because with the twin tank system, you are NEVER without soft water, because it switches between tanks and the other side regenerates.... which is awesome. We use alot of water, between dishwasher loads, baths, and to ever popular LAUNDRY. I am totally excited about this because our softener hadn't been working for a while, and it had caused lots of issues with buildup on our dishes. Also because it's easier to get diapers and clothes clean with soft water. Yayyyy! And of course we just got the new dishwasher installed on Friday. Sears FINALLY honored the warranty (after 4.5 months of trying to repair the damn thing) and we got a very similar model, but this time I opted for a stainless steel interior and it is also a bit quieter. And everything is CLEAN! yay!

Except the house is totally a disaster. I have the majority of my kitchen in the dining room on the table and chairs. I have a box full of party supplies for Marek's birthday on my mini-scrapbook table. the loveseat has a whole pile of clean clothes that need sorted, folded, and hung.... The excersaucer is stacked on top of the jumparoo.... both items that I asked my husband to take to the attic almost a month ago.... because Marek doesn't use them anymore. There are smooshed banana nut muffins and random cheerios on the coffee table, and Ardyn has turned the couch into sick camp, surrounded by pillows, blankets, stuffed animals, kleenex, and TV remotes. Marek's high chair is filthy and needs scrubbed. Marek shredded and chewed a bunch of paper on the dining room floor, and the kitchen is covered in drop cloths, cleaning supplies, and painting stuff. And I thought we were having a playdate this morning? Ha. Well, it would have worked. the kids could have still played in Ardyn's room no problem, and I would have put the moms to use folding my laundry. Ha!

So. That's this week in a nutshell. Tomorrow I have a doctor's appointment and a scrapbook night, so hopefully kids are feeling much better and mom can get out and get some much needed breathing done.

Is everyone else healthy?

Cut short....

My mind is not working at full capacity today, so you will have to forgive me if something I say makes no sense to you. I am also trying to write while the dishwasher install is happening 4 feet from me in the kitchen, and while Marek and Ardyn are laying down for what I am hoping is a synchronized naptime. Marek is crying (which he always does when being put in his crib these days) and so I am trying to distract myself. I can't load the dishwasher, or do laundry (he's blocking the door to the basement anyway) and so I am just kinda sitting here trying to not be anxious about all the things I could be doing. It's not working... in case you were wondering.

I have diapers to wash, and we are having the kitchen cleaned on Monday so that we can paint it this coming week. It's getting scrubbed down top to bottom, ceilings, walls, floors, cupboards. It really NEEDS to be done badly, and I can't do that AND watch two kids... so we will head to grandma's house while the kitchen gets a makeover on Monday.

The week will be a little less busy than this one was. We did lots of fun things! I went to my first BUNCO night with the girls (yay!) and we went to a playdate at Elizabeths. Katie and I also got together and took Kelsie and Ardyn to see their first movie in the theater! We saw Alvin and the Chipmunks the Squeakuel... and it was a ton of fun. We went to the Apollo theater in Princeton, and I hadn't been there in YEARS and it was so nice. It was also extremely inexpensive! Since Ardyn is younger than 3, she got in for free, and it only cost me $3.50, which was AWESOME! The staff were super nice and the popcorn was delicious. The snacks were inexpensive and we were so thrilled over the whole experience. We will certainly be frequenting that theater!

Fast forward... dishwasher installed and running it's first cycle and Ardyn and Marek are asleep. Oh wait, Marek is asleep. Ardyn is being a clown in her room.

Busy Day at home....

Well, it's 11:30pm. Early for the old Meagan, but late for the new Meagan. It has been an insanely productive day. I am still pretty shocked at what I accomplished! Although Ardyn did watch more TV than I would have liked.... but I got lots of cooking done.

I have settled into bed with the electric blanket warming up, the laptop on my little cherry lap table that my sister got me long long ago, and have taken all my medicine and two Tylenol PM. I will blog until I can't stay awake I guess. I just heard the Roomba finish up it's vacuuming of the living and dining rooms, and the dog is happily asleep on the couch after a whole night of being my shadow. I did remember to scratch him behind the ears twice. Poor old guy... his life just ain't what it used to be.

My skin is so dry (damn you eczema!) and I am pretty sure that the whole-house humidifier is not working right. But when the weather is below zero, it's just hard to keep things moisturized. I would kill for an hour long full body massage right now. I have been waking up SO achey in the morning, and the pinched nerve in my hip is acting up again, and so I know that I am out of whack somewhere in my back. Heaven would be a chiro adjustment followed by that massage. I am wearing a cotton nightshirt/gown that I got for $2 at the evil Wal-Mart. I got a whole slew of them on clearance, and it's awesome because no matter what gets spilled on them, they were only $2. But the whole time I was buying them I kept telling myself that the carbon footprint to produce these things must have been HUGE, and here they are practically giving them away for $2. It was upsetting.

I could write for days, but I prefer to just focus on today and leave it at that, because that's about all my brain can handle right now.

Before bed I picked up the living room and dining room, had the roomba run.... and then as I was trying to force myself to slow down for the night so I would be able to SLEEP, I remember things like "are the cordless phones on their chargers? Are the doors locked (check check check triple check.)" and then there are those things like "I could put those three towels away." and "I should wipe down the mixer." I could do that kind of shit all night. That's why I have such a hard time getting to bed, let alone to sleep.

Today I do recall that I sat down twice (once to rock Marek and once to do sandman on Ardyn before bed, and once again at bedtime) okay three times... and I did lay down with Marek in my bed once to nurse him and cuddle him while he went to sleep for a second nap. BUT I heard the kitchen timer go off so I snuck out and punched my dough down, and made it into loaves for the second rise, and then before I knew it the pizza dough was needing punched, and although I fully intended to go in and lay down with him again and nap, next thing I know he was awake. I must have sat down one more time because I assume that I nursed him at least once other time besides breakfast, nap, nap, and bedtime. Hmmm.

Today I had several goals and I got through all but two. I wanted to wash diapers and cook the 10 pounds of chicken breasts, which I didn't get to. Tomorrow. I DID get a load of kid laundry done (I have at least two, thanks to Ardyn refusing to wear a pull-up at naptime and peeing the bed) and I baked two loaves of Honey Wheat Bread from Scratch, and made my first ever pizza dough today also (Three Crusts to Freeze and one that I then turned into supper :) I loaded the dishwasher, cleaned the kitchen, and ran the same load of dishes through the dishwasher three times to get them clean (although they never did dry) and was mentally reminded that I need to get to Sears and pick out a replacement dishwasher (They finally broke down last week, after 3+ months of issues and well over $650 in just parts installed, and decided that they would replace the damn thing. Now I just need to get to the store, sans screaming children, so I can make a logical decision and order a replacement.)

Then after all the baking, I cleaned the kitchen AGAIN and unloaded and re-loaded and re-ran the dishwasher again. Ardyn wanted to play "No More Monkeys Jumpin on the Bed" and I feel badly, but it was like 35 minutes till bedtime, and I wanted to get the mess I was making all cleaned up, and the bread cooled, sliced, and put away... and supper mess picked up... so I told her she could watch Scooby Doo until I was done. I need to unwrap that game and read the directions so next time she asks, I am better prepared and we can hopefully play.

Tonight Evan had band practice, and so we were alone. It was a pretty quiet night, and day really. The kids played well together although Ardyn did end up in time out at least three times, and mostly it was for beating on Marek. Her new antics involve pushing him down when he is standing, or leaning over him and then smooshing his whole body down to the floor with her body weight, much like a toddler body slam. His retaliation includes biting and pinching, or screaming like his limbs are being crushed. My retaliation includes forced apologies and kisses between them and time outs for her. I had time to play with them and feed them, and put them both down for their separate naps when my various doughs were rising. It really is easier to make more than one type of dough at once, because then everything can be messy, all your tools and ingredients are out, and everything is rising at once. It's great. They do really well playing on their own, and often they play on the kitchen floor. Luckily (?!? sometimes ?!?!) our house is small enough that I can hear them and/or see them from pretty much any location on this level, which is good (although I can also never get away from them.)

I think that I was able to have a very productive day because I was gone to my friend Katie's house almost all of yesterday, and then had a great MOPS meeting last night... so I was able to focus and not feel cooped up. I had gotten that break that I so desperately needed. Unfortunately I also forgot entirely that I had an appointment with the photographer (and my friend) and was going to order OUR photos for the house, and I felt TERRIBLE when I realized that I had essentially wasted her time and stood her up. Man did I feel badly. I am NOT that type of person, but somehow I just plain forgot and even overlooked it in my planner! Grrr.

We are supposed to have three activities tomorrow, a lunch date with friends, a visitor in the afternoon, and a beading excursion just for mommy tomorrow night, but there is a winter storm warning on for us, and we are in the 6-12 inch range of accumulation with single digit temps and high winds and blowing snow, so we might not be going anywhere. As long as the power stays on, I don't really mind. The kids and I will do our cozy homebody thing and I will try to get caught up on laundry and will ABSOLUTELY get those chicken breasts cooked, weighed, and packaged/frozen.

Well, it's midnight now and I need to catch some Z's. Marek has been waking up earlier every day and I know I will be sore again tomorrow. I have much more I could say, but I need sleep worse! Take care!

Resolutions?

Oh the difference a year can make. Do ya'll seriously have an idea of how fast this past year has gone? For me I mean. I don't care about you. (I do, I do, I am sorry. Harsh. Kidding.)

Something really interesting happens to you when you have your kids close together. I think that it leaves you a bit touched. Knowing a mom who had 5 kids under the age of 5 at one time, sealed the deal for me. I knew that I wanted my kids to be close together. Maybe not THAT many kids THAT close, but I wanted that bond that her kids had. They looked out for each other, they entertained each other, and they were very self sufficient and kind children. But what I never realized was that they were the reason that, even in complete silence, she had a difficult time finishing a sentence. Because her brain was scattered, and her mind was elsewhere, and her duties were many. Sometimes, blogging becomes difficult to me. Because I like to go On and On and the kids like to suck out of me that life and energy that allows my brain to put those thoughts down. SO sometimes (okay, I lie. ALL times) my brain is blogging.... but my fingers don't have time to get it all out.

I have to say that I have never classified myself as a "writer" but perhaps it's time that I did? I love to write. Things that I see and things that I hear and do go through my mind and come out as a blog. I don't just mean sometimes. I mean ALL the times. My mind is constantly commentating. A blog is the outlet that I have for that commentating. And although it is rewarding and connecting to have people who enjoy reading it... contrary to popular belief, I do not blog because I want to have people following me. Nope. Because een way back when I thought no one was listening... I blogged my little heart out. Because it's a release. Because I was somehow, born to blog. I see similar behavior in the way that Ardyn commentates and narrates her own "adventures" and I realize that there is something about a writer that aches to put their commentary down on paper. Whether it be commentary about their own lives, or the lives (fact or fiction) of others... it's about having that mental state where you are constantly blogging in your head. Might as well put all that down, right?

Now. Let's be honest. (By this I mean I am being honest. But ironically, I am pretty much always honest... so don't be all amazed) This past year was by far the most difficult year of my 30 year life. It was joy and stress and millions of minutes of my brain spitting out sentences that, despite my best efforts, were constantly interrupted. I feel like my life is in a constant state of interruption. My responsibilities are absolutely overwhelming. Two demanding children under 2 was about more than I could take. My brain and my body were in a constant exhausted state of overload. I was in high demand. On Call. CEO. My husband became that shadowy figure on the edges, that sometimes came into focus and just about when I was ready to reach out and touch him... I was interrupted again. Naptime became a mission. If I took a nap I felt guilty. If I didn't, then I was exhausted and although I had done a TON of things, it didn't even make a dent. Laundry piled up as far as the eye could see. Dirty piles. Clean piles. Unmatched sock piles. The hardest thing was that no one in this house but me even seemed to notice... at least that's how it seemed. Because certainly if they noticed, they would HELP me, right? RIGHT? (no. for your own future reference.)

What I most look forward to in the new year.... is change. I don't even care if I meet HALF of my goals. If it gets easier, I will be happier. I am already seeing hints of the changes. Everyone sleeps through the night (unless they are sick.) Everyone can eat the same meals (unless there is honey, yogurt, or nuts involved.) No One has an extreme food allergy (yet.) Only one person is in diapers (two if you count Ardyn still overnight.) The house is now fluctuating between a state of absolute disaster and a state of potential. I occasionally see light at the end of the tunnel (or literally speaking, I see at least one, if not two or three, horizontal surfaces!) I find that I am able to pass by a mirror and notice how bad my hair is sticking up, at least ONCE before the kids go to bed. I notice that I am able to laugh about some things that previously would have brought me to tears. I have found many new mom friends in REAL life in addition to my large network of online mom friends. I thank MOPS and Facebook for the connections that I so desperately needed. I thank MOPS for playdates and activities with women and their families, especially women whose situations are practically mirror images of mine. I see their imperfections and love them all the more because they are like me.

I see Ardyn learning to recognize more letters of the alphabet, and trying to dress and undress herself, and be independent in things like potty breaks and sharing. I see her learning how to turn lights on and off, how to open doors, how to navigate stairs and slides and climb up into her own carseat. I see Marek standing and waving, clapping and signing for Milk. I hear him laughing at things he sees, at the dog, at his sister... and I hear him trying to imitate words and sounds. We hear the occasional "mamma" or "daddy" and see him rocking to music. Every single day is new and wonderful. It always has been, but I feel like some of the fog of "2 under two" has past. (of course, she's not under two any more, so that DOES make sense.)

I wouldn't do it over any other way. I see them playing together and loving on each other. When I hear Ardyn call Marek her "Bub Little Lovey" it just about bursts my heart wide open... When I see him bite her and let out a high pitched shriek of anger when she won't give his toy back... I have to shake my head and smile.

I know that having kids close like this isn't for everyone. I know that it leaves some of us a bit scarred... but it brings such immense joy when you see two people so close together, so identical in so many ways... be so amazingly DIFFERENT from each other. Wow. It still stuns me.

For the new year, I see lots of positive change. I hope to start remembering what my husband looks like. The one that I had BEFORE these two kids came along, and the even better one that two kids have made... (a daddy!)

I hope to get a handle on my house. Maybe I won't need that new sign out front after all? (Who am I kidding. It will say "My house was clean yesterday, sorry you missed it!" because that is the ABSOLUTE truth.) I hope that I can get more support and assistance from others. I don't do well with asking for help. I guess I always figured that if you are drowning, someone will surely see, right? But there are no lifeguards on this coastline folks. These are turbulent waters. I hope that in the new year, I don't feel that when asking a grandparent to keep a grandchild overnight (is ONCE a month too much to ask?!) they respond like I have asked for their severed dominant arm. (seriously, are my kids THAT bad?!) I hope that I can make it through the long Illinois winter months without going stir crazy, and that I can find that delicate balance between raising hermits and exposing my kids to every playdate and doctor's office germ that will infect our entire household like a wave of plague.

I hope to be more organized, but in a BETTER way. I know that most of you might be laughing hysterically at ME being more ORGANIZED? You mean there is something in my house that is NOT labeled?! Yep. Purging. Things need to go. We are so overwhelmed with posessions, and crammed into this house, it's stifling. It's hard to keep your cool when you trip every 5 minutes. It's hard to be romantic when you can barely wade to your bed each night and you sleep next to a pile of unfolded laundry instead of your husband. I hope that to be BETTER organized, we will have LESS to organize, and that EVERYONE in this household will participate in keeping and maintaining a sense of organization, without having to be nagged and pestered, or without having to see me in nervous breakdown mode in order to help out around the house.

I hope that we can get into a better routine that will allow each child more one-on-one time with mom and/or dad, so that I can do things like read to Marek and do Hooked on Phonics and crafts with Ardyn. I hope that we can get more sleep (by we I mean ME) and remember that tomorrow is another day and it's OKAY if not everything gets accomplished before I sleep. When we get more sleep I hope that we are more comfortable with those morning playdates that everyone seems to DEMAND we have (why oh why must we be somewhere before 10am? It's against every fiber of my being.) I hope that the new friends we have made can result in more playdates PERIOD and I hope to see Ardyn form some real friendships with friends whose names she can actually remember, and that she will WANT to remember (and who will want to remember hers!) I hope we can work on her SHARING and her LISTENING. I hope I can work on my PATIENCE and my newfound talent of reasonsing without a toddler without screaming.

Most of all, I hope that I can work on my relationship with my husband. And I am thankful that despite the shell-shocked state we have been in this past year (two years?) we are still married at all :)

My goal in 2010 is to be the best mom, wife, and friend that I can be. It's to enjoy every moment, because I have already seen that they go by so quickly.

Happy New Year!

BEWARE THE DOWNGRADE FEE! Comcast Raised MY Prices, then Charged me a DOWNGRADE fee?

Yeah. So many of you probably know (?) that I recently decided to cancel our cable service. We previously had a bundled package with Cable TV (Basic, but we added the family package for more cartoons) that ran $99 a month. Well, of course, the deal was too good to be true, and I believe that about 6 months AFTER I signed up for that, someone explained that it only lasts for 12 months (which is better than nothing, I guess.) and so I have been waiting for the moment when the price went up. You see, we have had VOIP for a while now, starting out with Vonage, because our cable company didn't offer it.

When Comcast decided to carry VOIP, we stayed with Vonage, where I was *almost* perfectly happy, until we were told that Comcast had the new "bundle" that allowed us to save about $10 over the price we were currently paying for everything now. So we switched to the Comcast "triple play" bundle. FFWD for 12 months. The bill increases- but instead of scaring the crap out of me right away, they decide to "ease" us into the transition, giving me a "special discounted rate" for another 3 months that was only $114.99- when the price would soon be raising to $150.60 a month. Seriously? That's almost a van payment. I can not afford that for something that we do not NEED. So we started to do research, and I started to watch as much TV as I could online. I discovered that in addition to the "network" websites, there are cool sites like Cast TV (I love it) where you can make an account and see ALL TV EPISODES in one place, and add them to a favorites list, which is pretty cool. I have a few cranky points with their website, but for the cost (FREE!) and the fact that there are NO COMMERCIALS??! Yeah. it's great. Then We decided that we would sign up for Netflix at the mid-grade package, which allows us 2 DVD's out at a time, it really DOES take 1 day for the DVD's to get from Bloomington to us and Vice-versa, and I can stream THOUSANDS of movies and TV shows (including almost all the sprout TV shows and several great kids shows and movies) right to our laptops, AND right to our TV through the Playstation3 that Evan acquired used.

So, for $13.60? a month we can have unlimited streaming and unlimited DVD's with no late fees. Totally worth it. And so I call the cable company, and cancel the cable last month. They keep me on the phone, passing me between a few people, who are all trying to smooth talk me OUT of canceling the Cable TV portion of my service. I wasn't going to be "talked down" so when the suave (or so he thought) guy on the other line kept asking me questions, I just kept answering "I'm calling to cancel my Cable TV service." and he kept pressing me and I kept saying "Cancel my cable TV" and then he said "well, I don't have the authority to make that change" and then I had to keep telling him to transfer me. How annoying is that? But even more annoying, he focused all his time on trying to "change my mind" when he spent NO time telling me that they had every intention of charging me a $10.99 DOWNGRADE fee for changing my services.

When I finally was transferred to someone who could make the changes to my account, she was telling me that the phone and internet would cost me like $89 a month without the cable TV. Seriously? So I started to ask about the individual prices, and discovered that they actually have more than one telephone package and of course they automatically (without even asking me or giving me any details on what waas involved or what each package costs) put me into the highest price package. Come to find out, they actually have a CHEAP VOIP Package that allows you unlimited local calls. But they had no intentions of telling me that.

So after some time on the phone, I finally get down to a new service package that goes from the price of $150.60 a month to $69 a month just by cancelling my Cable TV service. So. Huge savings. Then they tell me that sending a service person out is REQUIRED and that the man will pick up our Digital boxes and remotes when he comes to shut off the cable TV.

And then I get my "adjusted bill" a month later and find that they have charged me the $10.99 Downgrade fee, which I feel should be ILLEGAL (nevermind the fact that I find it highly unethical) and when I do some online searching I find that Microsoft has been SUED for charging a Windows XP Downgrade Fee, and that several other cable companies raise their prices in the times of "recession" and then charge their customers a Downgrade fee if they decide to change their services to make them more affordable.

When I called, I was very happy that they credited my account without even acting like it was any big deal, but I pointed out that I would be switching my internet and VOIP service if they did not credit me, because the charge was not appropriate and is certainly not how you treat a customer that you appreciate. But what about those of us (me!!!) who usually don't have time to read the detail of every single bill? What about those (elderly?) who don't even UNDERSTAND the bill? Seriously, it's criminal.

My Review of Traveler Safe-Er-Grip

Originally submitted at One Step Ahead

Safety-proof any tub, anywhere, with our portable bathtub grab handle! It's just as budge-proof as our best-selling Safe-Er-Grip, but small enough to tuck in a suitcase. Helps kids maintain balance and avoid slipping (an even greater risk in unfamiliar bathrooms). Holds on tight, but removes ea...

Traveler Safe-Er-Gripâ„¢

This is AWESOME!!!!!

By dazed81 from Illinois on 12/31/2009

5out of 5

Gift: No

Pros: Convenient, Easy Use, Portable, Easy Setup, Durable, Lightweight

Best Uses: Toddlers, Travel, Kids, Daily Use

Describe Yourself: Parent of Two or More Children

This is the BEST invention! I bought this when my 2 year old wanted to get in and out of the tub without my help, and she was dangerously slipping and sliding all over. After a couple of close-call falls, I saw this item and LOVED that it was quick to install and remove if necessary. This thing fits our standard tub wonderfully. We don't put it right in the center (that makes no sense to me?!) but a little to one side and it is just perfect. She can hold on and get in and out without a problem and is so pleased with herself.
We also found that when our 8 month old started to pull up, it was excellent for him. Instead of trying to pull up on the slippery side of the tub, he naturally grabbed for the handle. He loves to stand alongside the tub and watch his sister take a bath or wait his turn. I have NEVER had this come undone, and have left it on for months on end. I did remove it recently to do a thorough cleaning, and it went right back on and has stayed secure ever since. Not had a single issue and have had it for close to 6 months now! I am considering buying a second!

(legalese)

Three, Three, Three days in one!

I am so far really lovin Netflix. Everything has been going smoothly and the movies arrive quickly and best of all I don't have to pay any postage! I have watched Benjamin Button, I Love You Man, and I have Slumdog Millionaire here but keep putting it off because I am afraid it will be depressing and sad. I like funny laughing movies that help me ESCAPE from reality. LOL. But I will watch it. Maybe this spring? Thank god there aren't late fees! haha!

The Secret Life of Bees is on its way and will be here tomorrow, which is cool. I have read the book a LONG LONG time ago. So long ago that I barely remember it. I was ecstatic to see that Netflix has all of the Tori and Dean season's on DVD, so I can catch up on Inn Love which I never saw.

This evening was our 2nd round of H1N1 shots for the kids, because they are young they need boosters. It was really slick, we went to the clinic that is at the pediatricians and it was in and out.... really quick. Both kids did really well. Of course, now that we are home, Ardyn is being hysterical about everything (unrelated to the shots and more related to the fact that she's ornery and didn't nap much (just the ride to the Doctor's)

I am noticing that Marek is not putting up with her crap anymore, and is very vocal (growling, squealing and screeching in general when she tries to take something or do something that makes him angry) and I am laughing. But tonight he bit her (lol, can't help but giggle) when she took a toy away from him that is HIS, and then she hit him in the head in retaliation. We had a discussion about Marek being a baby and that he doesn't understand that biting is wrong. We included that next time Marek bites her she should come tell mommy and not hit Marek (right) and that if she doesn't want Marek to touch her or her things, then she should take them into her room and play there. (riiiiiight.) So, the fun continues for the next, oh 30 years, right?

In other news, I have no money. LOL. None. zip. As in "we need bread, but how in the WORLD are we going to get it?" kind of broke. As in "how long can we live without power?" broke. It's just one of those "lotsa bills" weeks. Ugh. So you know that yesterday I made bread. Well, I am pissed at Betty Crocker. In the Betty Crocker cookbook, there was a recipe that I thought I would try for wheat bread because it's been so long since I MADE wheat bread that I don't even know what recipe I used. The directions were all screwy, and told me to heat the water on the stove until it was 225-230 degrees and then add it to my yeast? Um. No!? I have made plenty of bread and anything above like 110-115 degrees is too hot and will kill the yeast. That's just Breadmaking 101. but then I did that thing where you second guess yourself. You know, where you say "come on, this is Betty CROCKER here. Seriously, how could Betty Crocker screw up something so basic as the temperature for water added to yeast? And then I worried that my memory for water temperatures had been erased by double pregnancies and whatever brain cells I may have burned during natural childbirth and sleepless nights. So I thought, Betty must be right.... Right?

No. As soon as I sunk my hands into that dough, I just was NOT feeling it. It was too hot. it just did NOT feel right at all. I had a baaaaad feeling. This dough was not going to rise. And two hours later, I decided it wasn't going to happen. So I made another batch, which I did completely differently (added ingredients more to my liking and experience, and added water to yeast at 110 degrees.) and it did rise. But I was still seriously unimpressed with the dinky loaves and the taste was too heavy and dry. Then in frustration I found a new recipe online that I am going to try hopefully by Wednesday (because we are out of bread. LOL)

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Fast Forward to Tuesday night.
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Got my hair colored today. I think I mentioned that I am "swapping services" with my hairdresser Kelly, to get my hair colored for "free." It turned out awesome. She asked me what color/s I wanted and I told her that she could do her thing. She has excellent taste and talent and knows what I like. And of course it turned out awesome!

Tonight Evan is "Christmas Shopping" and I am hoping for fabulous gifts from my list like hot glue sticks, brown acrylic paint, a scissor sharpener, and a nursing tank top. (yes, I am serious. All the things that I like.)

I should be sewing. I should. I still haven't sewn stockings. Or Allison's iSpy bag. I am a bad bad person. Santa hates me. Michele hates me. Hates. I will get to them. Tonight after bed we open gifts. And I don't mean our own gifts. I mean the kids gifts. Take them out of the packages and get rid of all that cardboard and those crappy choking hazards (twist ties, strings, plastic waste, etc) and prepare them to be given and played with in an instant. This morning Ardyn discovered that a drawer in her bedroom was still home to a secret stash of mommy's barbies. It took her over two years, but she found them. She got out every tiny barbie shoe and perfume bottle. I had two barbies in boxes that I had bought on clearance about 10 years ago for $5 each. They came with full wardrobes... I thought they would be good to have on hand for impromptu gifts or if we had someone over who needed entertaining. Well, Ardyn was super excited when I told her we could open one. It took me FOREVER to unstitch the poor doll's hair from her box. When Ardyn finally got ahold of her first ever barbie, she walked her over to the couch and said "Hello Barbie, How Very Nice To Meet You! I'm so glad mommy cut you out of that box!" I laughed. How cute is that?!

I have heard in the past that Santas elves deliver toys to good little girls and boys that are unwrapped and unpackaged, all joyous and ready to be played with. So this year I am taking a hint from Santa's crew and going to have everything ready in advance, to be sure that we don't have Christmas morning meltdowns, and parental headaches, and then everything will be primed to play with and fresh with batteries. Ahhhh.....

Fast Forward. Wednesday after lunch:
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This is why I can't blog. I can't finish one complete thought, let alone a whole post, without being seriously interrupted! Last night was a serious case of the toddler meltdowns, brought on by the issue where MIL doesn't want to make Ardyn nap, and therefore poor child had been up since 7am and and fell asleep on the couch before supper (after I got home from getting the hair done.) I was blogging while she napped, and did NOT want to wake her, but then she peed her pants and woke herself, and then went right into hysteria.... complete with excessive snot and tears, and completed with the refusal to eat supper.... which she punctuated by throwing up on the dining room table because she had herself so worked up that she choked on her own snot. Yep. Attractive. Pleasant. Exactly how I like to end a nice relaxing day away from home. By this time Evan had bailed to do his Christmas Shopping, so it was a one woman show. Marek was very clingy because he was afraid that I might leave with my boobs again. I fed him supper while Ardyn napped, and then she woke up and I attempted to feed her.... she ended up being so worked up that she went right into bed with a few drops of Bach's Rescue Remedy and some requested Scooby Doo on TV, which calmed her down to the point of finally being able to form a coherent sentence. Then while she chilled down a notch, I took a nice hot bath and read some of my book (Love in the Time of Colic by Ian Kerner and Heidi Raykeil) and then when I got out, she was happily playing in her room and ready for storytime. Just then Evan arrived home complete with his shopping, and bringing supper for the two of us. So I read Ardyn about 5 or 6 Christmas Stories, and then Evan and I settled in for supper and some "elf work" before bed. And I was tired. So I climbed into bed and then remembered that I was "chick of the week" on my mom's board and probably had a few questions to answer. So I pulled the laptop into bed and spent an hour and 20 minutes answering them, and then collapsed.

This morning Marek woke up with a snot fountain and a fever. Poor guy. He is really not feeling well. Sleeping and waking alternately, very lethargic and just cuddly. He doesn't really care for much of anything, but I do get some smiles and occasional jabber out of him, so I am not overly concerned. Just a cold it seems. After nursing him this morning, He lay right down next to me and fell asleep. When he woke about an hour later, his fever felt higher, and so I checked it at 101.3, and decided that he was now miserable enough for Tylenol. I gave him 3/4 of a dose and then about 90 seconds later he threw up all over me (freshly bathed) and the sheets on our bed (freshly laundered.) Too much snot I believe. So a call to the ped to see if I can re-dose him after he puked up the drugs, and then Evan moved the rocking chair from the nursery to the living room, where I have spent the last 6 hours alternately nursing and rocking him to soothe his ailments. Oh and putting saline spray in his nose, sucking out snot, wiping up sneezes, and reinserting pacifiers. And don't forget a couple of temperature checks. Ardyn was pretty chilled out so we just hung in front of the TV and watched BOLT via netflix. It was good. She enjoyed it. Then we watched Kipper's Christmas episode and then lunch. Luckily Marek went down for a real nap (meaning he actually let me put him down) and Ardyn and I ate and now she is in the tub because she had spaghettios from her head to her feet. What is it about the phrase "don't touch anything on the way to the bathroom" that makes a child put her icky hands right on the white wall or the doorknob, or my shirt? Yeah. Or in my hair. Did I mention I just took a bath LAST NIGHT!

So now I am sitting on the bathroom floor in front of the heater with my laptop while she swims and floats and swishes like a mermaid. She just counted to 10, and then 16, 14, 16. LOL. She doesn't know it yet, but her nap is on the horizon. I have the dishwasher running, and although I wanted (needed) to wash diapers and bake bread today, I am not sure that is going to happen with Mr. Cling in the house.

Oh well. Hopefully at least she can nap and he can be awake, and be rocked and soothed.

So that's the story. Sorry it took so long to come to a close!

13 Days till Christmas!

Well, it's Saturday night. This house is SO quiet that it's eerie! I am watching Jim Bob Duggar go bungee jumping. I am trying to get my fix of the TIVO'd shows before the beginning of the week because WE CANCELLED OUR CABLE!!! Ahhhh! I know. Evan laughs and several months ago I told him that I thought I could easily live without cable. He said if I think we can go "off the grid" that he is all for it. The cable bill was getting INSANE because the 12 month pricing of Comcast's Triple Play Package was over. I think the total monthly bill for Internet, Cable with a DVR Box, and VOIP phone was reaching $150 a month. Seriously, that's a van payment, and that is what I could use more money for! So. We decided to cancel the cable portion and just keep the internet and phone. And in the process I discovered that they had signed us up for the more expensive phone package, $24.99 a month, when there is an unlimited local calling package for $10 a month. And Local calling allows you to call anywhere within a 15 minute area. So we are totally covered. I mean, we each have a cell phone if we need to make long distance calls.... so we cut our cable bill from like $150 a month down to $60 a month. We decided we would try Netflix for a while, because for $13 a month we can have unlimited monthly rentals without late fees (they pay postage both ways!) and also stream TV and Movies directly to our laptops and to Evan's Playstation. Now THAT is cool. And then I can watch all my normal TV shows online, with the exception of a few cable shows.... because TLC doesn't stream their shows unless you pay for them. But I could pay for each episode for less than I could pay for cable. So, right now I know that I am going to miss The Duggars, and Tori and Dean, and the Girls Next Door. But there are worse things in life. Like, say, not having a van to drive or heat or groceries! LOL.

So, we have had a busy week. Monday we had our friends Kristen (a MOPS mom) and Eli over to visit and play. Eli is almost two. On Tuesday we had Jennifer and little Emma over. Emma is almost 3 months old. I also closed my Usborne Book Show, and got $50 in free books and $74 in half price books. Those should be in Monday. Wednesday I was supposed to have an appointment to get my hair colored. I haven't been coloring my hair since I started staying home with the kids, because I can't afford it, and especially can't afford to maintain it. My natural hair color isn't a whole lot different than how I color it (usually it's just the addition of s funky highlights and lowlights via foils) but after each pregnancy my hair has changed. Actually, DURING pregnancy, my hair grows darker than it does normally. And then when I am not pregnant, it goes back to previous. So I have these sections that are different colored from having two pregnancies close together. And as I get older, I am "losing my red pigment" (in the expert description of my hairstylist) and so my hair looks more of a dingy grey-blonde. It isn't true gray hair, just that dishwater blonde that sometimes looks so BLAH. Luckily my hairstylist would like some computer assistance, so we have decided to swap services, which means that I can get my hair colored for free. Otherwise, it wouldn't be something I would be able to afford right now. Yay! I think it will make me feel brighter and merrier this Christmas season.

Well, anyway, we had the snowstorm that came through on Wednesday, so I rescheduled my hair appointment for this coming week. This Thursday I got groceries in the afternoon and Thursday night we had Elizabeth come over with Jadeyn (6 months) and Kelsea (3 years) and had a really nice night at home with visiting and the girls playing. We talked about cloth diapers and I showed Elizabeth some Bum Genius and we tried them on Jadeyn. Then on Friday I was preparing for the big MOPS christmas party and Santa visits. I had planned on making sugar cookies. Cut outs, but not the regular cut outs, a new recipe that is "supposed" to mimic the big poofy fluffy cookies that you buy in the store. I had all the ingredients, and bought the lemon extract I needed, and was going to mix and chill and bake on Friday. Except I really didn't think about the "chill" part and didn't plan accordingly to allow extra time. So on Friday, I fed the kids breakfast and lunch, and then I mixed up the dough. Marek watched from the kitchen floor. For some reason the dough was so crumbly and wouldn't stick together. I was pretty worried. I looked over the recipe and couldn't figure out what I did wrong. I decided to chill it and see if it improved. Then, I realized that I didn't HAVE three hours, and so I put it in the freezer, put the kids down for naps, and took a bath. Before hopping in the tub, I posted on Facebook what my issue was in hopes that some of my baking friends and Pampered Chef friends would have some insight or had made that recipe before. Sure enough, a friend from my girl scout days mentioned remembering the eggs. I remembered the eggs. Once again I thought of the things that would add moisture to the recipe. Eggs (check.) Butter? Well, this recipe was for Shortening (check.) and Milk? Well... the recipe didn't call for milk. Hmmm. OMG! The BUTTERMILK! I forgot the buttermilk! When i double checked the recipe, whoever had typed and sent it to me had put the buttermilk in the ingredients list, but when giving step by step directions on what to add and when and in what order, Buttermilk was skipped. Oy. So I decided to mix up the powdered buttermilk and add to the dough, even though it had already been Chilled. This instantly improved the consistency and it was what it should have been, but it was now not chilled enough, and therefore, I wasn't able to cut it once I rolled it out. Back to square one and officially NOT taking cookies to the Christmas Party. Yep! Oh well. So now I have cookie dough that I need to roll and cut out, but have been busy today and putting it off again.

The MOPS Party was great. Evan got home and showered with Marek and we all got dressed nicely. The other kids were all wearing pajamas for pictures, but I wanted to have a formal photo with Santa like we do every year. The Easter Bunny and Santa are the only two times we dress the kids up nicely and get photos, so I wanted to take this opportunity to do this. We had planned to put the kids' Christmas outfits on and then take pajamas with us to put them in after seeing Santa. I was hoping that we would get the photos of our kids taken first, as soon as Santa got there, and before everyone else's kids arrived. We got to the church early (which is a miracle for us with both kids) and when Santa arrived, I was still having a few issues. The doors which we were taking the photos in front of were BEAUTIFUL ornate wood doors with greenery all around them, but the camera flash was glaring against the wood finish. Oy. No matter HOW I set the flash and the shutter speed (which I am NOT a professional at by any means) the glare was there. Eventually I moved the Christmas Tree to try to eliminate the problem, and it DID eliminate most of it, but not all of it. Then the tripod would not hold the camera completely vertically, and so the photos were slightly crooked. Evan finally was able to rig it to work, although anyone looking at the tripod sitting crookedly probably thought we were drunks. Then Santa (who was by far above and beyond awesom) asked me for a glass of water, which I found, but then he placed it on the floor behind his chair. So in nearly EVERY photo, his glass of water was showing. Grrr. For a perfectionist like me, that's a real issue. The other problem I had was that to the left of Santa was a gorgeous Christmas Tree, and to his right was a blank wall with a framed drawing of Jesus and a pedestal with the Church Guestbook. When Santa had a child that wouldn't sit on his lap, or a large family with lots of children, instead of asking them to stand on the side of the Christmas Tree (hello, PHOTO OP) He asked them to stand over on his right, which then included the water glass, his sack of candy canes, the drawing of Jesus, and the Church Guestbook in the photos. I tried to not have my head explode, and in fact did lots of creative cropping. I was able to get the guestbook and such out of nearly every single photo. Nearly. These small things can really bother an OCD person like me. Santa was wonderful with the children (as of course, Santa is) and he read them all a story (Twas the Night Before Christmas) and also chatted with them and took a large group photo with us.

Ardyn had absolutely no fear of him, and as soon as he arrived she was the first to march right over to him at the stairs and shake his hand. She told him that she liked his gloves, and his black boots. Santa told me that he had a "shadow" (referring to Ardyn, who was with him EVERYWHERE) and when she heard him say that she said "I have a shadow too!" and looked down and stomped to show him that her own shadow moved. LOL. She was very upset when she couldn't just stand next to him the whole time, and Evan had to take her and Marek into the sunday school room for treats and crafts while I took pictures. I was hoping that Evan would watch both kids without any issues (after all, that's what I do every day and at every activity we attend) but he was mostly tied up with Marek and therefore when Ardyn started running rampant, that's exactly what she was going. We have no idea how many cookies she ate, and Evan told me later that she was taking bites of them and putting them back up on the trays and tables. Oh. this made me feel like a HORRIBLE mom. Especially when she was moaning in her sleep the whole night and I was worried that she had a tummy ache. Next time I will specifically ask a mom who perhaps only has one child she is responsible for, if she could be exclusively responsible for Ardyn. I normally wouldn't do that, and maybe it's unfair of me to ask someone else to do that, but when I am tied up taking pictures and Evan is tied up with marek and unable to keep up with Ardyn, I am really nervous about WHO exactly is watching her. I don't know what the best way to handle something like that is. I guess I will learn as I go with this whole multiple child gig.

When Santa got ready to leave the festivities, Ardyn started getting hysterical and crying. She had the real crocodile tears going and said "No! Santa Please Don't GO!" it was heartbreaking. LOL. She was really attached to him. I uploaded the photos that I took to Flickr and to Facebook and Picasa.

I have been working VERY hard to keep this house in order and stop it from falling apart the past two weeks. I have been consistently having people visit, which has been wonderful, and has been a nice incentive to keep things clean and picked up. I have been making Ardyn pick her toys up on a daily basis.... with the goal being that if her room is a mess, so be it, but all her toys need to be IN HER ROOM at least once a day. This allows me to vacuum and keep the table cleared so that we can eat meals... and I have been running the dishwasher and keeping the kitchen clean and clear so that I can do some baking and make meals without having a terrible mess in there. I've also been trying to keep clean laundry put away and not in piles and baskets, and keep the bathroom tidy and the toothpaste funk out of the sink. So far, so good. Only problem is, I have dirty laundry up to my eyeballs, and the master bedroom is a disgrace. And tonight the kitchen is a mess, Ardyn's room is TERRIFYING, and the cookies are still not baked.

Today Ardyn went with Aunt Liz to see Santa again. Aunt Liz came over this afternoon. She was going to pick Ardyn up at 1:30 and so I gave Ardyn a bath and put her in a cute Christmas Theme Outfit, and then put a matching korker bow in her hair. And then, she peed in her outfit. Grrrrr! At least I had a spare Christmas Outfit (I had bought two on clearance at Target last year!) and a spare matching bow. LoL. I put her in a Pull-Up this time and changed her clothes. Then at 1:30 she was waiting by the door for Aunt Liz. She was so excited! And THEN at 2pm Aunt Liz texted and said she had fallen asleep and that she wouldn't be here till 2:30. Imagine telling a 2 year old that she has to wait an hour as she stands by the door ready to leave to see Santa and you have been telling her since 10am that she was going to see Santa after lunch. Poor kid. But she really had a great time, and Liz said she was once again attached to Santa and telling him how Mommy and Ardyn are going to make him cookies and leave food for the reindeer and a glass of milk for him, and how she wants Hungry Hungry Hippos. Liz said Poor Santa didn't know WHAT to say to her.

She was fortunate enough to get a great goodie bag with an apple, orange, banana, hershey bar, pack of gum, and a jingle bell on a red ribbon. She also won the door prize! Apparently she has her mother's childhood luckiness... I used to win all KINDS of prizes as a kid.

When she arrived home with Aunt Liz, Grandma Deb had stopped for a visit. She wasn't home 20 minutes when Grandpa Bob and Grandma Susan arrived to whisk her away for an overnight at their house. So, It's been a quiet night with Marek and myself. Well, quiet if I held him constantly. Because he knew no one was in his way, he insisted that he needed me to hold him. Evan made breakfast for supper again and it was delicious. Then I made some new tags for Marek's Diaper Bins in his nursery, and cut and sorted coupons into the couponizer (see previous post.) I keep telling myself I need to be doing laundry and cleaning the kitchen and organizing Ardyn's room and packing up some toys to start a toy rotation. But, here I sit. I just don't feel like spending my quiet night without kids and a husband cleaning my house. Is that so wrong?

Well, I should at least start ONE load of laundry. LOL. And I guess I should go to bed early, or at least go read in bed for a bit.

I hope everyone's Christmas Shopping is going smoothly and you are enjoying all of your holiday parties. I have to admit that I really do NOT miss having to attend two work Christmas Parties. I LOVE my coworkers, but it's kind of nice to not be running and running this holiday season. Winter Nights spent by the Christmas lights in a warm house are a-okay with me!

Let's Talk about my new Couponizer, and about Coupons in general....

So, tonight I opened my Couponizer. In case you don't follow me on facebook, you might not know that I joined Swagbucks, which is the most awesome thing since sliced bread (as mom would say.) I have been a Swagbucks member for about, oh, one-two months and have already earned $30 in Amazon gift cards. I used some of those gift cards to order my Nordic Naturals Fish Oil (Omega-D) which I order from Amazon because it is cheaper than the local health food store, and also cheaper than ordering direct from the company's website. (That's the brand I choose because it is recommended by my midwife, and because I met several of the company's reps at the Chicago Green Festival. They are the only fish oil that comes from the Nordic waters and is third party tested and therefore contains low levels of things that could be especially harmful to a pregnant or nursing mother/baby... like Mercury.) Sorry for that Ramble. But because you have to spend $25 to get free shipping, I also used Amazon gift cards to order the Couponizer, which was something that I have wanted for a LONG time but just haven't justified the cost. But hey, if it's for FREE (thank you swagbucks!) and it will help us save MORE money, then it's a good thing!

So, anyway, I got my couponizer opened up, and I was actually pretty impressed. I don't know WHY, but when you buy a product like that, all they show you is the cover. And then you hear vague promises like "The Revolutionary Way To Organize and Shop with Coupons and Discounts" and you think, what in the F*%# does that really mean? What are you selling me? What does the inside look like? What does it provide me with? And I hate things like that. I feel that there are one of two things going on here... #1, It doesn't really work and if you saw what's inside you would be disappointed and wouldn't buy it -or- #2, It does work, but it's like a trade secret and if you looked inside, they'd have to kill you (or perhaps you would recreate the same system for much less than $20, and then they wouldn't be able to sell you one.)

Right off the bat, I can tell you that the coupon sorting mat was completely different than the one I saw in online photos. I am not so sure that it's better. In fact, I instantly disliked the shape of it, but I got along okay and I liked that the categories on the mat were in the same alphabetical order as the book itself, so once I started putting my sorted coupons into the binder, it was a cinch. What I DID like was the clear plastic cover to the binder, and the elastic cord that keeps it shut. What I also liked were the little round nosed scissors, and the perfect little clear plastic bag, which will also allow me to keep my WIC coupons and information right along with my coupons, which is where I like to keep them. It's a little less "tacky" then my gallon freezer bag. LOL. I also liked that there were two coupon "pages/pockets" that were facing each other, one for "coupons to be used this shopping trip" and another for "Coupons to use at checkout." Yeah. Finally someone who understands that even though you may have set them aside to use this shopping trip, doesn't mean that you actually use it... (might be something cheaper on sale, or perhaps you change your mind, or perhaps it's not in stock at the store you are at.) and therefore this really eliminates (I hope) some of that "coupon-losing, hair pulling, head exploding drama" that I get when I am trying to sort out coupons and keep everything straight when there is no horizontal surface in a store or in your slotted wire shopping cart in which things can be sorted. Grrr. Especially with 4 little sticky hands and 2 paper-eating drooling mouths.

Something that would make it better? a neat little place to store that coupon sorter, within the binder, so I don't loose it (because I will. I can already feel it.)

Okay, now let's talk about coupons in general. I love them. I really do. But the key to actually saving money with coupons, I believe, is only using coupons on things you were going to buy/use anyway. It is difficult for me (and I know that is the reason that manufacturers PRINT coupons) to not buy something just because it's a "good deal" or because it's a "lower price." It's difficult for me to say "yeah, but we don't NEED (insert name of particular brand of food that is too expensive and convenient and that I was raised NOT to expect)" And therefore, I am often torn between my NEED to coupon and my DESIRE to coupon. And then, here it comes, the problem with brand versus generic. Yep. I said it. I am a generic girl. I was raised to adore the yellow can of pop that said one word on it in black letters. "Cola." I was raised on mayonnaise and therefore hate miracle whip. I had potato buds and dislike real mashed potatoes (I am not kidding here.) and I prefer generics of several foods to the actual brand name product. And as an adult, when it came time to make my own decisions, I have found a few brand name products that I prefer. It took me years to find a generic Shells and Cheese that is every bit as good as Velveeta. Centrella Brand has it all the way. That is the ONLY store brand shells and cheese that I can bring myself to buy. And when it comes to Pop, it's 7-up and Coke. I was raised on generic, and that is just something I like to have. I don't buy generic doritoes or cheap oreos. I generally like expensive chips, unless they are plain old rippled chips or cheesy poofs (which I prefer generic.) I prefer generic strawberry frosted pop tarts. I don't prefer generic unwrapped cheese slices. but other cheese doesn't bother me no matter what brand it is.

So. A lifetime of discovering my own preferences, and preferences of my family. And a lifetime of discovering the HUNDREDS of dollars that I can save if I buy all the generics I can handle. Light bulbs. Paper Plates. Napkins. Paper Towels. Suave Shampoo. Equate Detangler and Generic Alleve. Until I started using Ziplocs for freezing things, I would always use the cheap ones. But now that Wal-Mart has revamped their "sams choice" line to "Great Value" they have done something worse to their zipper storage bags and I returned several boxes of them to buy ziploc brand, because there is nothing worse than having 10 pounds of precooked ground chuck get freezer burned because I was too cheap to buy a bag made to withstand the abuse of freezing.

So, where am I going with this? Well, how do you save money with coupons if there are no coupons available for generic items, and you tend to buy generic? How do you save money with coupons when the a name-brand product is priced so much higher than the generic, that with the coupon, the price is then equal to or greater than the generic price is every day? I spent all that time collecting, clipping, sorting, and using a coupon just so that I could have a name brand items instead of a generic? That's okay if you really LIKE and WANT that name brand item, but what if you don't? I am happy to have coupons for Pillsbury Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls, because the generic cinnamon rolls just aren't the same. But a situation like this isn't something that I run into often. And then I run into the problem that the name-brand Items I DO like and intent to purchase, I can NOT find coupons for!?! I don't see coupons for Coke or 7-up. Rarely I find coupons for Quilted Northern. Don't find them for our dog food. Don't find them for our toothpaste. Sometimes when I am on the ball, I will make a habit of checking all the coupon sites, and the inserts from the papers at our MOPS meetings, and start online searches for specific products that I know I am going to buy. But I rarely find coupons for the items that are name brand that i actually want to buy.

I love to look at my receipt and see how much I saved. but it doesn't help me to save $10-20 if I spent 20-30 more than I normally would buying products that I normally wouldn't even use or give a second look to. Whew. Anyone have any thoughts on this? I love to shop Aldi like we did as kids.... and there aren't coupons for those items. I do like to buy Centrella or Great Value brands, and Equate, and often store brands.... and so I don't know exactly HOW I can save money and still buy generic. I wish that there were store coupons for generic items.

Okay. So those are my thoughts on the Couponizer, and I can't wait to use it!

My Review of RoomMates Celestial Peel & Stick Appliques

Originally submitted at Toys R Us

Decorate in seconds with these large appliques from RoomMates! Simply peel and stick to any smooth, clean and dry surface. Unlike traditional stickers, RoomMates remove instantly without damaging the surface or leaving sticky residue. Works on walls, furniture, mirrors, windows, ceramic tiles, a...

RoomMates Celestial Peel & Stick Appliques

These are AWESOME!!!

By dazed81 from Illinois on 12/9/2009

 

5out of 5

Pros: Cute theme, Durable, Playful Design, Easy to use

Cons: Many Loose Pieces

Best Uses: Decoration, Sleeping

Describe Yourself: Parent of Two or More Children

I put these in my two year old daughter's room. Her nursery had clouds painted on the ceiling, but when her brother moved in, she went to a plain white room. She loves these on the ceiling. It took a while to get them applied because there are lots of little pieces, but I appreciate the creativity that it allowed me, as I am particular and wanted it to look realistic. They stay put and they are beautiful in the dark. They DO glow. We have had no issues with that, but yes, it does have to be dark. I love that these make such an impact in the dark but aren't obvious in the daytime, and that they allow me to remove if necessary without damaging paint. yay!

(legalese)

Snow Day

I am hoping, briefly, for a little bit of peace. Marek is playing on the floor, Ardyn in her room, and I am parked on the couch watching the Duggars on my DVR.

This morning I am in plenty of pain. I have been having issues with what I believe to be a pinched nerve that is causing my hip to give out and sometimes makes it practically impossible to walk. After a couple of trips to the chiropracter last week, it was fine, but over the weekend it seems to be slipping back out of alignment, and the chiro is closed on Tuesdays (which of course is when I always notice that I need an adjustment) so today I need to go out in the cold and snow and try to get adjusted because this morning I couldn't sleep and then when I tried to get up, couldn't walk either. It's a total pain, and I mean that both literally and figuratively, because I can't do things like carry Marek or lift Ardyn onto the potty or anything like that. I can't wait until this goes away!

Right now sitting on the couch seems to be the best thing I can do, and so I am hoping that the kids cooperate and stay out of trouble. And as I type this, there goes Marek.... out of my sight. Ugh.

For some reason the kids were really wound last night. We did get in a much needed late nap... but they were still going at 10pm and showing no signs of stopping. We were kinda waiting for Daddy to get home, he's been in the fields trying to get everything done before the storm hit. Well, at just after 10pm, Marek started to show signs of exhaustion so I just put them to bed. I was exhausted myself, and really thought that I would be in bed shorttly, but I started working on folding and stuffing Christmas cards, and putting return address's on them, so pretty soon it was midnight. Then I went to bed. But since my hip had been bugging me, I didn't sleep very well. And then Ardyn woke up at 7am! She hadn't even had 8 hours of sleep. So I am already dragging today. Whenever I don't get enough sleep, I tend to get a little nauseous. I don't know why, but it's happened ever since I had the kids. So, it's not shaping up to be a fabulous day.... but oh well.

Hopefully everything will straighten out soon.

It is snowing more, but not a ton. But any snow is nice before Christmas. It puts me in good spirits.... as long as I don't have to bundle up kids and drag them around in it (in the van I mean.) We did play outside a couple of days ago. I meant to take them out yesterday, but we had a visitor, and it just ended up not happening. Today it's REALLY windy, so I don't see that happening. Not to mention that I can't WALK. LOL. I could easily lay down and sleep right now. I am hoping that since we have been up since 7am that by noon both kids will be in nap mode and I can nap also. That will really help me to feel normal again! The hard part is not nodding off while being stationary on the couch!

Yesterday we had a "christmas miracle." We always have two Christmas Eve's to go to each year, and they are always at the same time. For the first time in the 13 years we have been together, one side of the family has decided to have their celebration earlier, which makes us able to go to BOTH without rushing and stressing. I am so pleased about that!!!

I don't know what else to talk about, but this is the only thing keeping me AWAKE right now. Whew! Well, I guess I will go help Ardyn search for "Wendy" before the whole world ends over her absence.

Homemade "Giraffe Stopper" (draft stopper)

Well, if you've ever been here, you know that we have an AWESOME front porch. Beautiful windows, natural light, and it is also heated and cooled.... but has really neat old windows that open the whole place up in the spring and summer. We have white wicker furniture that is on the porch, but in a previous post, I talked about how for the winter, we decided to convert it into more of a play area. I have my sewing stuff out there now that we have two kids, because it was too difficult to get to the sewing room in the basement with both kids, and every time there was an issue (potty, diaper change, naptime, meal) we had to take a bunch of trips up and down the stairs with two kids who couldn't GO up and down the stairs without assistance. Logistically, it just did NOT work.

So,now that everything is up here, it works so much nicer, and I get a ton more actual sewing done. I also have a white table that folds in half and so I keep that out on the porch for impromptu projects, like our recent "popsicle stick Christmas trees":

And Marek's 8 month handprints that are "in progress":

And the three painted frames that I just made for Marek's room:

And even laying out large sewing projects like my mom's curtains, and the kids' "car blankets." Marek's is shown because I can't find the picture I took of Ardyn's, and they are both IN the van right now and it's freezing and the place is covered in snow, so no matter how much I want to show you, I am SO not going out there to get it to take another pic right now. They are David and Goliath cotton knits prints, with a core of "warm and natural" blanket batting, and a backside of beautiful minky fabric. I had to order all the fabrics online to find what I wanted.... and Ardyn's is pink and chocolate brown print with "chocolate chip cookies" that have muscles, and say "one tough cookie" and the backside is a pretty minky print of white with brown and two colored pink dots. Marek's in a black print with alarm clocks that says "you snooze, you lose" and has a bright kiwi green minky on the backside:
Anyway. It also houses things like the kids' "tree tent" and the Little Tykes Activity Garden, Ardyn's Desk, Marek's Pack n Play, and All the Little People toys.

So, the problem with our fabuous porch? It's rotting. Well, it's past rotting. It was rotting when we moved in here 9 years ago. The windows are so rotten that the wood is crumbling. The door has never been an "exterior door", it's just a metal storm door that leaks very badly. So, keeping it "heated" is pretty much impossible. We have all the windows covered with plastic, and we use a little ceramic heater out there when we want to use it. It's not efficient. The windows and door are scheduled to be replaced next spring and I can NOT WAIT. So because there is a big gap under the front door which allows a serious cold front (and snow) to come inside, I decided to sew my own "draft stopper."
I just made a tube of fabric. Inside I needed "weight" so I used a 1lb bag of Pinto beans. I put divided the beans into two ziplocs and put one ziploc inside on each end of the draft stopper, with poly stuffing in between. of course i ran OUT of poly stuffing, so I ended up using fleece remnants to stuff the last 12 inches or so. Then I just quick serged it shut (not pretty, but quick and functional!) The whole time I was making it, I was explaining to Ardyn what It was going to be, and no matter how hard I tried to get her to say "draft stopper" she would say "giraffe stopper" and I knew she didn't understand because she kept telling me that giraffes live in the jungle and that I was making a giraffe puppet. Yeah. eventually, I did get her to say "draft stopper" and then I showed her where it was going and the difference that it made in the amount of cold air "sneaking in" under the front door. Of course, while doing this, I was thinking about how I could sew a giant "front door" out of fabric and velcro it over the opening. But then I realized what a dork I was and how fabric really isn't going to provide much insulation.

So, we've been busy here. I apologize for not blogging more, but that's the way it goes. Hopefully more will come soon! We had playdates today and another today (at our house0 and we have played outside in the snow, and we have a visit with Santa this week and Evan is in the fields trying to get things finished!!

My Review of Ski Gear Snow Pant Womens

Originally submitted at Dick's Sporting Goods

Ski Gear Snow Pant Womens

These do NOT fit as expected! Junior's?

By dazed81 from Illinois on 12/7/2009

 

2out of 5

Waist: Feels too small

Inseam: Feels true to length

Describe Yourself: Casual/ Recreational

I purchased these snowpants because I was looking for something inexpensive that I can wear in the snow with my kids. I didn't want bibs, and I wanted something that is warm and comfy, as we are in Illinois and weather can get quite cold, especially with windchill. I ordered a size XL. I wear a Large or XL in women's athletic and lounge pants, and size 14/16 in jeans. When these arrived I was so excited, but when I put them on, they fit everywhere, but the waist waas literally about two sizes too small? Now I know that I am not a tiny person, but I was shocked. These are NOT a true XL. I believe these are not women's, but more like Junior's sizes. I just want those of you who might wear a bigger size to be aware!

(legalese)