I love firsts

This was the first time my husband has made green chile. (And for those people that do not know my husband, he is an excellent cook but he is not capable of making food in small portions). This batch of green chile was 2 stock pots full to the top!

Since we really needed to find a way to preserve his massive amounts of food, I asked for a pressure cooker for Christmas.

And so...this weekend was the first time we used my pressure cooker.

It was such a success that we are ready to make more vats of delicious stuff.

14 jars canned (in picture), 10 jars not canned (not in picture)

I heart my wheat grinder

Some people thought it strange that I got a wheat grinder for Christmas. But I LOVE it! I use it at least once a week. I think its the greatest. And yes, I've been mocked for my love affair.

I just think its stinking awesome that I can take this...

And turn it into this...

 

Which in turn makes this...

and this...

and this...

I'm thnking about doing a series of posts on wheat. Please step out of your lurkingness and let me know if you would be interests in more posts about wheat (educational focused ones).

I am not a vegetarian

We like meat. We eat meat. And today we purchased some meat. Yeah for meat!

Here is what a whole cow looks like on my driveway.



We divided it up between 3 families.

I like buying meat from a real farmer and then taking it to a real butcher. Its way more yummier. It costs less money. And my freezer always has a plentiful supply of yummy goodness waiting to be grilled, smoked, baked...

Mr. Fixit

 

About an eon ago, Lster put a nickel in the door hingey thingy peice. He's been bugging me ever since to get it out. I tried a few times to use my finger, a screwdriver and even a knife to no success.

One day whilest drying my hair Lster brought up the nickel dilemma yet again. I told him that someday we would probably have to take the whole thing apart some day.

That some day was yesterday. While I was dealing with the attack of the killer homework downstairs, Lster found a screwdriver, took out the screws and proudly got out his nickel.

Laundry Detergent by ME!!

A year or so ago my sister-in-law blogged about making her own laundry detergent. I thought that was an interesting concept but at the time had about 10 bottles of detergent tucked away in my laundry closet and moved on to other important matters in my life, like which child had the balloon first.

Jump forward a year and I couldn't find a laundry detergent deal and I was down to one bottle. I decided it was time to try out the new recipe. IT WORKED!!

Not that I didn't trust her...I just have this trouble with doing new things and changing my pattern and I get so excited when I do something new and it works. So yesterday I went and made a little bit more with my supplies. (Of course because deals always come around I picked up some new detergent yesterday for $1 a bottle but I'm pretty pleased that I have my homemade concotion as a backup when I need something to tie us over till the next deal since my husband has this funny request about wearing clean underwear to work. :)

The Recipe:

1 Cup grated Fels-Naptha soap
1/2 Cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
1/2 Cup 20 Mule Team Borax

mix

It takes 2 TBSP per load.

My Life as an Open Book

I've been contimplating reentering the blogging world for over the past few months. The problem is that I always kept coming up with ideas for what I would blog about. Like, I'm super into healthy eating and I was thinking about writing a blog about healthy food. But...I'm also super into not spending too much on stuff, so I thought about writing a blog about being thrifty. I've also set some new goals for my life so I thought I could use the blog to help with the goals. And it seems my kids are always saying these amazing snippets of random hilarity or wisdom that I never track (if you don't count texting my husband, daily).

So I've decided that instead of a themed blog of one of my interests, I would bring back the blog about me. Squishy! (Sadly a little more squishy than I'd like). I'm going to change the layout, change the content, and hopefully blog often. The posts may be short as my life seems to run in 10 minute sprint, but there will be posts.

Thanksgiving Jar

Our family did a Thankful Jar this year. We had one week to fill the jar with tiny peices of thanksgiving papers.

Our List:
yummy food
princess guitar
lincoln
snow
my wife
michelle
miss. colburn
food
friends
grandma
kian
chocolate banana shake
our house
nathan
tv
ensign
volleyball
spiderman game
massages
homework
guitars
learning the piano
macaroni and cheese
chapstick
the weather
sleep
go diego go
thankful jar
mommy
mommy and daddy
medicine
music
my husband
kristen chenowyth
savannah and ellie
drinks
monster trucks
the friend
my chitlins
home
temple
princesses
hearts
music
friends
church
kian
days off
pie
family
candies
lincoln
flowers
food
a job
leapfrog
me
auntie lissa
daddy
popovers
prayer
emily
sleep
cooking
mommy and daddy
toys
the dishwasher
michelle
cars
animals and wall stickers
the heater
mommy
homework
michelle's smile
kian
mariokart
kian
family
soup and tv
daddy
hugs

My Day

I'm writing this post for my own record. So when my kids are grown and I look back and wonder what I did with myself, I'll know.

6AM - awake with Lster, read books
6:15 - Mster wakes up, continue to read but add in a game they are making with the reading
6:30 - Kster wakes up, nurse
6:40-7:15 - feed all three breakfast, empty dishwasher, make Msters lunch, make dough for bread, clean kitchen
7:15- Family scriptures
7:20 - get Kster and I dressed
7:25 - get kids in car to take Mster to school
7:26 - knock at the door from roofers who need me to move the cars
7:30 - leave to drive Mster to school
7:35 - watch kids play "sweet ol' tag" with Msters classmates while they wait for the doors to open
7:50 - eat breakfast, feed Kster a snack, put in a load of laundry, clean basement bedroom, teach Lster the new wii game, roll out dough for bread
9AM - put Kster down for a nap in basement bedroom because roofers are really really loud
9:15 - exercise
9:55 - shower
10:05 - forget to put bread in oven, race to get it in. finish getting ready, check email.
10:15 - get a snack for Lster and get him ready for swim lessons
10:30 - wake up Kster
10:35 - take bread out of oven (pray its done)
11:00 - swimming lessons for Lster, I walk with Kster who wants to practise walking all around the pool over and over again.
11:40 - 12:35 - help Lster after swimming, go pick up coupons, get home
12:35 - lunch, check email, get canning stuff together, switch laundry around
1:00 - go to friends house to can peaches (1st time for both of us)
2:55 - realize we are not going to finish before I have to pick up Mster from school, realize I need to clean my friends bathroom and change a certain boy of mine before we can get Mster from school.
3:00 - race home to make the change
3:10 - leave to pick up Mster
3:20 pick up Mster
3:30 - get kids a snack, bathe Kster and Lster, switch laundry around
4:00 - leave for Msters gymnastics
4:15-4:30 - participate in parent involvement portion of gymnastics (struggle with Kster who just wants to crawl all over the equipment)
4:30 - 5:00 - Costco trip
5:00-5:15 - back at gym, helping Lster with schoolwork, try and watch Mster, keep Kster away from the water fountain
5:30-6:00 - make and eat dinner, get Mster started on homework
6:00 - get tired of Kster screaming put him to bed (note: no afternoon nap)
6:20 - help Mster with homework, clean kitchen from dinner
6:45 - FHE, and bedtime for kids
7:00-bed - paperwork and some tv and folding 3 loads of laundry

Things I'm Thinking About

Thing I'm Thinking About...in no particular order

Healthy eating
Exercise
Educating Lster
Getting Kster to nap
Spending time with Mster
Hair accessories
Learning piano
Practising piano
Budgeting
Shopping responsibly
Cleaning my house
Christmas presents
Being an Aunt
Being a fun Aunt
When my Amazon present from Mothers day is going to get here

Pretend Play

Mster: Are you coming swimming today?
Lster: No. My mom said no.
Mster: I thought your mom was dead.
Lster: Wait...you're right...she is...I can come.

We're starting to eat real food again

I've been on a little bit of a kick lately. After Kster was born I was in survival mode and dinner was whatever I had that I could make in just a few minutes at the last minute. But now things are starting to go back to normal and we are actually cooking again.

Last week we ate a meal everyday of the week.

Sunday - Short Rib burritos
Monday - Almond crusted Tilapia, mashed potatos and pineapple
Tuesday - Green eggs and Ham
Wednesday - Chicken Penne
Thursday - Chicken, potatos and salad
Friday - Sloppy Joes
Saturday - date night
Sunday - Homemade spaghetti and meatballs (incl. homemade spaghetti)
Monday - nacho mountains
Tuesday - oven baked fish and salad

I oftentimes had dinner all ready prepped and Cster came home and just finshed it off or made the whole thing. Is been great. Its workng.

I'm also posting this because we are having visitors this weekend and already we are planning pizza and going out so I just wanted to remind myself that we are doing good.

Its not always trying

I just wanted to write that my life is not always trying. So, this is me acknowledging that I have good days. I just don't want my mark in the world to be me griping about how life is hard, because there are moments in life which make life really great. Its those moments that often get lost in the day to day of motherhood.

One Pound

Some weeks are more trying then others. I decided to write down a couple of memories of this past week. There are some good times and bad times. Its been a bit of a long week.

1. My children played a game where their bedroom was full of hot lava and they were on fire and had to get out. (I swear they haven't been watching the news)

2. We spent the weekend drawing with markers. I originally had let the kids use the markers whenever they wanted but got very tired of giving timeouts for inappropriate marker use. I brought them out this weekend after a long hiatus to a supervised marker time. Lster drew a picture of his family and then proclaimed "This s me when I was daddy and you were in my tummy."

3. Kster moved from a tummy position to a sitting position after attempting to crawl.

4. Kster decided he didnt like egg yolk so I mashed it into a banana and he ate it fine.

5. In the car, Lster asked me to let him know when we were going to get to a red light so he could eat his booger. Then immediately told me to "nevermind".

6. I asked Mster if she could pick out every food that was in her dinner...and she did it. We had a baked ziti (with penne noodles). She picked out celery, spinach, meat, noodles, sauce (made with tomatos). She did miss the 1/2 cup of cauliflower puree that I added to the sauce.

7. Lster got croup

8. Lster swallowed a penny.

9. Cster went to St Louis for 6 days.

10. Mster decided to wash the table with a green cloth. She picked a green cloth because it was Lsters favorite color and he would be really upset if she got something green dirty. (that was pretty indicative of how the 2 got a long all week.)

11. Mster got her finger stuck in a hole in her car seat. It required a very nice neighbor who coaxed her fr 10 minutes to wiggle it out whilst she screamed bloody murder.

12. I finally figure out that when Lster asks if I want him to try to go to the bathroom the answer is no, I want him to go to the bathroom.

13. Bedtime got pushed back an hour...permanently.

14. The kids divised a game where Lsters clothes had to go to jail. These would be the clothes he was wearing.

15. I got put on antibiotics that make me have a constant headache, no desire to eat and big desire to vomit.

16. I deep cleaned the entire upstairs of the house and 1/2 the main floor.

And after this entire week of craziness, I stepped on the scale this morning and had lost 1 pound. Sometimes its the little things that we have to give thanks for. I could have gained a pound this week.

Lster writes

Here is some of Lster's chalk writing.

He wrote "walk", "hop" and "jump"

pajama fun

Lster why are your pants inside out? - Me

Because I couldn't get them inside in. - Lster

I love Lster's randomness

Mster and Lster are playing school.

He just wrote out the alphabet. Here's how it goes.

Me: ABCDEFGHI "Hey Lster, what's this you wrote next?"

Lster: Its a funny boot. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

I Can't Do it All

My house is rarely ever clean. And by rarely I mean there has never been a time except when we did a walk thru when we first move in that every room in the house was spotless.

The problem is that I always get distracted by motherhood. Like as I type this Mster is lying on the couch battling death and asking me to read her stories and Lster is climbing off the couch head first begging me to "pull (him) up". FTR I've read lots of stories today and already pulled him up numerous times. Kster's finally asleep with his second nap. For his first nap I spent the entire time playing games and then doing science experiments with both of them.

So I just don't know how to do it all.

I wake up in the morning with great ideas of what I will accomplish housewise but the list is never done.

One morning this week I sat down for my 5 minute breakfast and was just about to get up and fold laundry for Kster's nap when Lster asked me to play flash cards with him. Lately he has been obsessed with learning. Its a good thing. Its a great thing. I have never been one to force learning on my kids. They just beg for it. I don't buy flash cards. Stuff like that just falls into our hands. These flash cards were a part of Mster's Valentine's Day cards from kids in her class and Lster loves them. (sidenote they are princess cards which makes me kind of laugh). So we sat down with our beans and practised adding and subtracting. He's been trying to figure it out for a few weeks now but it hasn't sunk in. This week it sunk in. He figured out how to add/subtract 0 and 1 and he learned how to add doubles (3+3, 5+5). FTR...he's 3. He's not even 3 1/2. And I just don't know what to do with him but hang out with him and keep teaching him stuff. But that means that my laundry area is perpetually covered in clothes. The bathrooms are not cleaned as much as they need to be and I often forget to think about dinner till 5pm.

I know that a perfect house is not important but I just haven't figured out the balance. Like how dirty is it okay to leave my house? or how many days in a row can I forget to cook dinner? or how often do I need to change my clothes when I get spit up on at least 6 times a day and so walk around the world with perpetual puke on my shoulder and leg.

And so my house will never be perfectly clean. It will not only never be perfectly clean, there wil always be a room that is in desperate need of cleaning. But my family is happy. My kids are polite, intelligent, funny, well rounded (but not perfect by any means and I can guarantee I'm ready to explode between 4-5pm everyday - that's another post) and that's what being a mom's about.

The Valentine Weekend Read-a-Thon

Its Scholastic Book Fair time at Msters school. Normally, I'm generally frustrated with all the fundraising that goes on throughout the school year. For the most part fundraising through the school envolves one of these principles:

1. Get the kids super hyped to sell a bunch of junk to their friends/family in the hopes up winning prizes.

2. Get the kids to buy crap at a ridiculous price to give to other people as "presents".

3. Sell crap at a ridiculous price.

But this post isn't about fundraising...its about the Book Fair (another attempt at fundraising which I've decided to support. Books are not crap.) As part of the hoorah of the event the students are invited to participate in a Read-a-Thon. Students from each grade are competing with each other to see how many books they can read in a certain amount of time. The winner of each grade gets to have ice cream with the principal. Mster thought this was a pretty cool idea so I decided to go all out and help her win.

Over the past 2 weeks we've gone to the library twice (we used to go weekly but we've been slacking) and took out loads of books. After we read them all and there was just the weekend left I started to think of ways to encourage reading and not have to check out the entire library. That's when I came up with the idea of reading all of our kids books in one weekend. I wasn't sure we could do it but I figured it was worth a try. Mster was excited. It seemed like a great idea.

And we had a super fun weekend reading. There was fort building, hot chocolate drinking, popcorn popping, Olympic breaks, pizza dinners, and all in all we read 147 books over the 2 week period (probably 110 of them this weekend). We didn't read all of our books. We probably still have 30 more to go but I'm pretty proud of us. Nobody said "I don't want to read anymore". They just kept listening to the stories and Mster even read a dozen or so books herself. I told her if she wanted to count board/easy books she had to read them herself.

And so the weekend o' reading fun is done but what I think is awesome is that winning the competition will just be icing on the cake because we truly had a great time. The house is trashed beyond belief but we had a great time.

9 Days

Its been 9 days and I'm still sick. I'm done. Seriously. I feel like I haven't gotten a break.

Csters been super busy coaching a mock trial for high school students. He's been gone the last 2 saturdays and was gone 3 nights this week too. Thats leaving work to go straight to the events. 3 kids when you are sick, sucks. And then when the trial was finally all done yesterday and I was going to have my support back a stupid restaurant gave Cster food poisoning.

So I should probably stop whining now.

The good news is that Lster is well on his way to saying goodbye to diapers. This is VERY exciting news. Being home all week has been good for something. :)

Sick Little Baby

It seems that I have a head cold. It sucks. At the same time I was getting my head/chest cold Mster and Lster decided to get the stomach flu and couldn't keep anything down. They are done and healthy but I, sadly, am still living in a big daze.

What is super sad is that I seem to have infected my sweet Kster. Everytime he coughs (and its a yucky cough we have) he gives off this little pouty face and cry and looks at me in a way that says..."why, mama, why." I feel the same way when I cough. But with him it makes me sad.

Today I am finally feeling like I can get vertical after an almost full day of horizontal yesterday. Part of this is because poor Kster is sleeping. Yesterday he took a 3+ hr nap and last night he slept for 12 1/2 hrs without a feeding. I woke up at 4am and had trouble getting back to sleep but that was still 6 hrs straight sleep. I finally did get back to sleep for another hour and was ready to get my baby when he woke up at 5:30AM. It may seem early to you but 6hr of uninterrupted sleep was heaven.

He has already woken up from his morning nap and it was only just over an hr so I'm not sure we'll get a repeat tonight.

But until then...6hr!!!!

(he has slept for more than 6 hr before I just was poor at timing it with my sleeping. I put him to bed at 5pm, because that's when he wanted to go, and then I went to bed between 10-11 and he woke up at 1AM for a feeding. My issues of late with his getting up was that they were even more frequent than the 1AM feeding. A 12 hr stretch is exactly what I need :) )

Sleep, Precious Sleep!

After much training, my 2 older kids are great sleepers. They sleep 12 hrs a night, well probably closer to 11-11.5hr and are happy and smart and yeah for them...

But they had a heck of a time getting to that stage. And Kster seems to be heading in the same direction.

I think I jinxed myself when I kept telling everybody he was my best sleeper. But he was. He once slept for 11 hrs. Unheard of in my other two at the same age. But mostly he would sleep for 8-10 hrs, eat and then go back to sleep for 4-2 hrs to make it 12 hrs.

And then Christmas happened and we went to family and he was up all the time eating and eating and eating and I finally gave him cereal (far earlier than my other ones because I figured he must be hungry). He eats it and loves it and we were doing better for awhile but now we're back to very frequent wake ups. My problem is...Kster sleeps on his tummy and has since he was born. He recently figured out how to roll from his tummy to his back and likes to wake up, roll over, realize he doesn't like being on his back, get stuck and scream till I go in there. He hasn't developped the roll from front to back skill which is much harder (musclewise) and usually happens at 7/8 months.

So I'm left trying to figure out what to do. I can just let him try and figure out how to sleep on his back (but I did try one night to let him cry and he bellowed for 90 minutes straight. When I went in he was on his back. It was the first time it happened). or I can wait it out till he can roll himself back.

In the long run it doesn't seem like a few months is a big deal but I need sleep. I like sleep. I don't like to get up repeatedly to soothe a baby back to sleep only to have him wake up again 2-3 hrs later.

I like sleep. I look at some of the older ladies that go to my church who have older kids (and no babies) and I think to myself that that will be me one day. Sleeping whenever I want....

And on a side sleeping note - I do find the fact that I am even debating what to do with Kster funny because anybody that knows me knows that I am a strict mom when it comes to sleeping. Let them cry. Make them go to bed and stop coddling in the middle of the night. I've helped numerous moms in the past, which I say this not to brag but to reiterate that I have very strong feelings about this, which is why my debate is so odd. I guess I just feel that its not right to make him be on his back, crying when he is physically incapable of fixing himself. It doesn't seem fair. Make a child learn to sleep but make sure he has the tools to actually accomplish the task.

And now I'm rambling.

Maybe this will be funny at a later date

So today Lster has interrupted the napping process for Kster, on both occasions. I'm not really happy about it. I now have a tired, cranky baby who wants to be held and I need to figure out what to do with him. Do I just throw him in his crib and hope he cries himself to sleep or have a ridiculously early bedtime which means he won't sleep in which means I won't sleep in tomorrow morning and probably will get up extra early.

In the midst of all this Lster had 2 moments which will probably be funny when I'm old and gray.

Me: Lster it smells. Did you poop?
Lster: Nope
Me: Don't lie to me. You did. Did you poop in the car or while doing a puzzle? (I'm trying to get him to recognize when he is doing it in hopes of getting him to recognize that he needs to and will not go in a diaper)
Lster: I didn't poop.
Me: Well then what smells really bad? (by this time I've checked and he's clear)
Lster: Maybe its you. Maybe you should check your bum.
Me: Really? You think its me?
Lster: Yep...its you.
Me: I don't know. I'll take a shower in a bit, I guess.
Lster: Okay...you should take a shower.

5 minutes past.

Me: Lster it really smells. Are you sure you don't have to poop?
Lster: I didn't go poop
Me: Get over here again. I'm going to check again. (This time he was not in the clear)

What is slightly humorous about this is that he actually had me believing that I was the one that smelled.

And second moment...

After being really upset about the meltdown that caused Kster not to sleep, I decided to have a serious talk to Lster about the importance of Kster's naps and the importance of letting me put him down and not interrupting the process. He took that moment to interrupt me with a burst out laughter and the exclamation that he farted.

Lunch

Today I asked the kids what they wanted for lunch. One picked peanut butter sandwiches and one picked Mac N Cheese. I told them I was not making their own lunch each and that they had to go away and decide amoungst themselves what we were having.

They came back with this idea:

They would each have a peanut butter sandwich while they waited for the Mac N Cheese to cook.

Whats going on in my life?

Organizing House - I am determined to get my house in order. I am exhorting all of my family members to hold on tightly to all that they hold dear because there is a lot of purging going on.

Exercise - After enjoying p90x, Cster bought me Insanity for Christmas. I am really, really enjoying the workouts. They do not kidd...it is INSANE!!

Mster - She's reading!!! Her teacher has given her a real book to try out and a spelling list. I always just thought Mster was just a smart little kid (which she is) but this week I realized that Msters a hard worker and really wants to do well. I love watching her work.

Lster - I'm just trying to control him and the Wii. I could not have done better at describing my interactions with Lster regarding the Wii any better than my friend. I'm excited for Lster to start at the Little Gym this week. He loves his friends and he'll have so much fun.

Kster - Kster is the one that is truly keeping me on my toes. He's such a good sleeper at night (knock on wood) but he does not want to nap. This leaves me with a bit of juggling to do during the day. But he has the best smile ever and he loves me (even if it is because I feed him). I think he's the best.

I've got other goals and activities that I'm working on that I may share in the future but I'm just really excited for this year. Its starting off a little chaotic as I try and get things in order but I just feel this is going to be a great year for our family.

Its not too late to get excited for 2010. In fact now that you've been in it for awhile it might be a good time to actually sit down and think about what you want for the year.

Why I love Mster!

Today on the way home from dance...

Mster: Did you notice that I was spending a bit of time with the a girl at the beginning of dance class today?
Me: I didn't. Why this girl?
Mster: Because this was her first time at dance and I really wanted to make her feel like she had a friend.

Leaving aside the fact that she shared her good deed of the day probably with the hopes of getting a pat on the back, I just think she's really great.

Oh my...

Overheard...

Lster: Mster. I want some almonds. Can you open some for me?
Mster: Well...I want you to practise.

Would you rather go to a birthday party or to the dentist?

Lster has a birthday party today. Mster has dentist appointment. They are both very excited.

Lster ran into the room at 6AM this morning shouting "Its a 6 on my clock. Lets go to the party."

Mster came in shortly later, dressed. When I asked why she exclaimed she was worried she would be late for the dentist. She is currently coloring a picture for her dentist and proclaiming that her teeth hurt...alot...so its really good that I got her an appointment. (FTR its a checkup and we've had no real mention of teeth hurting previously).

Its going to be a FUN day!!!

PS - I did eventually find the Christmas Spirit.

PPS - I've had a sore throat for over a week now. Its now travelling to the right side of my head towards my ear. That's bad, right?

Christmas Spirit, Where Art Thou?

I'm having trouble getting into the Christmas spirit. I'm not a grinch by any means. I'm super excited about the presents we are giving this year. I'm super excited for all the festivities but I just can't seem to actually get into the swing of the spirit.

At first I thought maybe when its December. But December came and I still wasn't feeling festive. Then I thought if we decorated but we decorated and I still wasn't feeling festive. We made Christmas baking. We got all the presents. I even started wrapping last night. I just can't find it.

And then this morning I started to clean. Really really clean. I cleaned out the fridge. I cleaned a bathroom. I cleaned the kids rooms. And magically I started to feel better. I'm eager to attack the rest of the house to see if I can be in full blown Christmas cheer by the end of the day.

Puj Tub

I'm not good at trying new things. I'm one of those people that likes what she likes so why bother fixing whats not broken. But my static ways have slowly been changing this year with my introduction to couponing. I've tried a couple of new products because they were free and I now don't know how I lived without them. So I'm growing and I actually am starting to like to try out new products (or at least new to me). And it is with this newfound love of trying out new things that I agreed to product test some products so that others could hear about great new products that they might not normally think of buying.

A month of so ago I offered to try out the new Puj Tub. All I knew was that it was a baby bath tub. Last thursday I recieved my Puj Tub in the mail.

I think the concept is pretty AWESOME!! It stores flat and easily assembles into a bath tub that fits in your sink. Its so easy my 5 year old figured it out without any help.

I liked how the tub fit snugly and didn't move around. Part of it was the size of the bath tub and part of it is what the puj tub is made out of.

As a new parent bathing your child can be very daunting. I'm a parent of 3 and I have to admit that I still wanted Csters help with bathing Kster when he was first born. I'm always worried that the baby's going to slip right out of my hands. I'm worried about their head. I'm worried about their belly button, or their circumcision. I'm just worried. This bathtub, would, I feel, eleviate a lot of that fear. There is so little water actually in the tub that you could bathe a newborn in their without worrying about getting the stump wet. And I think its so snug you wouldn't have to fear supporting the head the entire time you were bathing your baby. (Kster's past the floppy head stage so its hard for me to judge)

So onto the practicality of the product. As AWESOME as I think it is, the bath tub did not work for us. The product says its for babies aged 0-6 months but as you can see my 3 month old Kster is way to big for the tub. He's holding onto the faucet and to get him in and out I had to maneuver around the faucet. There really wasn't enough water in there once Kian got in to do any bathing.

I later tried the Puj in my kitchen sink. It worked better. I could move the faucet away from the Puj and it fit a little nicer but Kster was still too big to actually get water onto him. Again, little water is something you want with a really young baby. You can see the holes just beside him that let all the water out if you try to fill it too high. (And I didn't want to get him naked again to try it out. Its freezing here in Colorado.)

So my final verdict. I would definately use this bathtub with a newborn but the age range is really not that realistic.

And here's a picture of us product testers to prove we're real. :)

Check out the Puj Tub for yourself at the new web site exclusively for baby bath tubs!

A day at the store

The other day I had to go to a certain store to pick up a prescription. Kster had spent the entire night either crying, throwing up, or wanting to be in the perfect position on me to sleep. Usually he is an awesome sleeper so this was highly unusual and meant that when he wanted to take a 3 hour morning nap, I let him.

But a 3 hour morning nap means shopping in the afternoon with all 3 kids.

We arrived, and I picked up my prescription. Mster said she had to go to the bathroom and Lster then yelled "I HAVE TO GO PEEPEE TOO!!" (FTR he's not potty trained, by his own stubberness). So off we went. I couldn't even get the troops organized because once we opened the bathroom door they both ran to separate stalls, locked the door and proceeded to go. Both of them. I'm deciding maybe I need to try a different technique with Lster in potty training. Instead of staying home for a few days we are going to just hang out at the store for a few days because he will only go to the bathroom in a public restroom.

After the bathoom adventure we went to the womens' delicates to get me some nylons. While trying to find them Lster decided to kick his boot as high as he could off his foot. It came down on a display of lingerie underwear which showered upon him producing peels of 3 year old laughter. I finally found the nylons and while I was trying to find the perfect pair as fast as I could, Mster turned around and found the thong display. "Hey mom...look...swimming underwear. I need some swimming underwear. pleeeaaaaase."

Phobias

I never really had a phobia. There are things I don't like but I breathe a bit and get through it and move on with life.

Last week I found my phobia.

I was in my storage room and smelt something rank. I knew. I knew we had a dead mouse. I had to clean the room out because we were having guests coming that night and they needed a place to sleep that wasn't filled with the stench of rotting rodent carcass.

So I started moving stuff around and I found the mouse. It was definitely dead. I screamed. I threw a suitcase in the direction of the mouse and ran away, crying, up the stairs to the kitchen where my daughter looked at me with the widest eyes possible.

"Did you see something scary Mom?" she asked. I gasped out "yes" and continued to hyperventilate. I calmed down enough to realize that I would not be able to dispose of the dead creature. Just thinking about it made my heart palpitate at an unhealthy rate. So I called some friends whose husband is sometimes home during the day but there was no answer. I called a couple of other people whose husbands do shift work in hopes that somebody would be home. With every call I got support from the woman but no husband. She told me I could do it and gave me a big pep talk full of ideas on how to get rid of it without having to touch it.

Mster watched me the entire time. At one point she opened the knife door and suggested that she take a knife and stab it just carry it outside. Yep she did.

And I called Cster too but he was trying to get everything done at the office because he was already taking the rest of the week off. He suggested that I let Mster dispose of it if I was really freaking out (which I was) and she wanted to.

So I told Mster that she was going to be the lucky girl to get rid of the mouse. Immediately her face fell and her eyes started filling and my heart broke. Of course I didn't make her do it but that still left me with only me to do it all.

I armed myself with a broom covered in a plastic bag, a cardboard box and a piece of heavy paper and made my way to the basement bedroom. When I got into the bedroom (the storage room is off the bedroom) I again started to hyperventilate and cry and turned right around and ran (yes ran) back upstairs.

I finally went through the Church phone list desperate to find somebody who would be home and a name popped up and I called him and he said he would be right over. When he came I gave him all my "tools". He looked at me like I was on crack and asked for 2 paper towels. I looked at him like he was on crack and gave him 2 paper towels. He did the job and I was ever so grateful.

And I now know I have a serious fear of dead mice.

Futility

Lster or Mster: mom can you...?
Me: You are going to have to speak up. I can't hear you.
Lster or Mster: MOM!!!! can you.....?

______________________________________

And the conversation I just had while typing this post.

Mster: What day is it tomorrow?
Me: Saturday
Lster: Sunday
Mster: um...what day is it tomorrow?
Me: Saturday
Lster: Sunday
Mster: No Lster, its going to be Saturday.
Lster: Mom, what day is it going to be?
Me: When?
Lster: on Wednesday?
Me: Wednesday
Lster: Oh it will be Wednesday.
Mster: No it will be Saturday.
Mster: What day was it yesterday?

Create

We do not have cable. We do not have direct tv. We do not have a DVR. But what we do have is an antennae. We watch a lot of PBS. We like the cooking shows. Well, we like most of the cooking shows. Some of them are interesting and educational and some of them make us look at each other and say, "really", like the guy from Norway that picked a bunch of vegetables and blended them with a raw egg and called it vegetable soup.

What makes me write a post about the Create series on PBS is that Mster loves to watch the cooking shows too. She asks for them. She can recognize chefs by name. I even overheard her pretending to be Katie Brown during a playdate (The other girl just looked at her like she was crazy). I just think its awesome to see her develop a passion. She loves to cook and loves to be in the kitchen. And she's good at it.

Last week we were in the Health Clinic to get the kids shots and they had the Food Network on. I told Mster to check it out and that it was like another version of Create. I watched it with her for awhile but it soon lost both of our attention. It was not as great as PBS. It made me happy for our antennae which introduced us to a world of small, but wonderful, choices in daily tv entertainment.

Sometimes Deals are just too Good

I've slowly been getting back into getting some good deals. This week is a week of inspiration. Thanks to the help of my good friend I scored some extra coupons and am planning on some crazy deals.

Last night I stopped off at the store to get a headstart. Here's what I scored:

4 rubber gloves
1 can evaporated milk
1 gatorade
3 boxes swiss miss chocolate
1 activia yogurt pact (4ct)

all for $1

I look forward to going back today for other deals.

Mster Musings

While changing Lsters bottom...

Mster: WOW...that is really smelly. Good thing you're a mom and you don't mind that sort of thing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mster: Is this all real?
Me: Is what real?
Mster: This...Life.
Me: Yep this life is all real.
Mster: Wow life is going by so fast.

Some days are not your own.

I'm just saying...

Its almost 11pm and I haven't showered yet today. I should probably go do that since I see no reprieve tomorrow.

I'm attempting to potty train again.

At one point today I had all three kids in the bathroom with me. Lster was on the little toilet. Mster was doing her homework. I was feeding Kster. I turned away from Lster to help Mster with a question. I turned back to see a fountain spray getting all over Lster, the pillow I was using to nurse, the floor, the toy Lster was playing with, and I think you get the gist.

And to add a little irony to the day...while calling Cster to announce his triumph of actually using the potty, Lster peed himself.

Lster "Wuvs" Halloween

Lster is cracking me up.

Its his birthday this saturday. It is also our church's halloween activity this friday night. We spent the better part of the afternoon trying to find supplies for both festivities. For the record I did 3 stores with 3 kids and lost my sanity at store #2. Also for the record I was not trying to be frugal (read cheap) by doing 3 stores, I could not find a costume for poor Lster anywhere.

So store #1 I thought I could get most party supplies and hopefully finish our halloween costumes. Didn't happen. No costume for Lster (he really wants to be Spiderman) and no makeup for Mster (she's going to be a glittery witch). Also no great supplies for a 3 year olds Soccer party.

Store #2 Here's hoping...spiderman costume has a big ol' full head mask and there is a strict no mask policy (and apparently a no cross dressing policy) for friday night and I didn't want him to have a half a costume so no go. Although this store's spiderman had built in super huge muscles. This made me laugh. Super huge muscles and Toby do not go together. We did however find a soccer ball pinata.

This is where the subject heading comes in (for those that were wondering where this was going). Lster had no clue what a pinata was. I explained it to him. "Lster, you fill it with candy and you hand it up and you whack it as hard as you can until all the candy falls out." With a big grin he announces "he wuvs halloween", followed by a procession of all the other things he "wuvs": soccer, candy, spiderman, his friends, etc. Oh he makes me laugh.

And I'll just leave it at that. Store #3 was a success at finding his spiderman costume. It also produced some glitter makeup but I would like to publicly state that there is a severe lack of glitter makeup this year. I should not have to buy 10$ worth of face makeup just to get a small tube of glitter in a combo pack and this should not be my only option. I'm just saying.

And I'm off to charge my camera for our "wuv" fest this weekend.

Exercise and Shakes

Sometime during this past pregnancy I longed for the day when I wasn't tired and could actually move my body anyway I wanted. It was at this point that I decided the moment I felt ready to start exercising again, I would. And it wasn't just going to be a little running or walking. I wanted to get in shape. I didn't just want to lose the weight I wanted to be strong and have energy.

And so began my patient wait to start p90x.

Cster had boughten it last spring and we decided that when I was ready we would do it together. That day was 2 weeks ago.

I am loving exercising everyday and I am loving exercising everyday with my husband. Its really fun. Its kicking my butt. Although I have to admit I'm trying really hard to be smart and not let it kill me because I do have 3 kids to take care of during the day one of whom likes to be held all...the...time.

Speaking of Kster he started out a sleepy baby (like most are) but soon turned into the crying baby. He would sleep but during the day he sure liked to cry and cry and cry. He expecially liked to cry at 6pm. We could set our watches to his crying. The doctor told me to stop eating dairy, caffeine and chocolate. After one week we've seen a serious improvement in Ksters demeaner. Its not perfect yet but he's at least not screaming.

But...this means that I can't eat cereal in the morning (or anyother time for that matter). I'd been thinking of eating protein shakes like Cster but they honestly scared me a little. This seemed like a perfect opportunity to start. So for the past 3 days I've been drinking protein shakes with spinach and I have to admit they are not that bad.

Here's my recipe:

1 scoop of protein powder
1 banana
1 1/2 handfuls of spinach
orange juice
ice

The magic ingrediant in this mixture is ice. The first day even though my oj was cold the shake was too tepid. Now with the ice its much easier to get down. Its my green slushie. Mmmm...

More pics

The Times They Are A Changing

Mster is going to a charter school. She's in Kindergarten. I don't remember how I got to and from kindergarten but I do remember that for most of my school age life I either walked or took the school bus to school. Since Mster's school doesn't bus kids its up to the parents to pick up and drop off their kids. Carpooling is encouraged but I don't know anybody so we are flying solo.

I'm amazed at the organized chaos that is getting your child to and from school.

All children are given a number. The number is on a card that you need to bring when you come to pick up your child. You show them your card, they give you kid. Most days this is not a big deal. You drive up (sometimes I drive aways away and walk up and we walk back to the car) and wait in the car line as they put the kindergarteners into cars one by one. But on friday the school has early release so the whole school gets let out at the same time. The lineup to pick up your kid is blocks and blocks long. The same thing goes for dropping off your kid. I do not do the car line. We park close by and walk up and I can walk her right to her classroom. But if I did the car line I would be in a line blocks and blocks long. I would pull up right in front of the school and a teacher would get the kid out of the car and make sure they are walking inside the gate to the door to the building.

I seriously remember standing by myself waiting for the school bus.

the times they are a changing.

Things are getting better

We had a rough bit with Mster when Kster was born.

I finally realized why awhile ago and things are starting to get better. They aren't there yet but at least I recognize where her frustration is coming from.

Her frustration is coming from her precious 5 year old head that she was going to take care of the baby. So when Kster and I came home and she wasn't able to put clothes on him and change his diaper or be allowed to hold him without supervision or be allowed to take him up to her room to "play", she got frustrated.

Kster's older. There isn't a big black knob threatening to ooze until it randomnly falls off that we have to worry about. She can hold him with me sitting beside her now and not with me holding him also. She's figured out that she's the only one that can sing and jingle a very annoying toy at him that sometimes calms him down.

She's figuring out the big sister role just as we're figuring out everything else involved in having 3 kids.

Pictures are always good.

I haven't really felt like I had anything to post about lately. This, I find humorous because we've increased our household recently and there are always baby poop and puke stories. We've sent our oldest to Kindergarten and well there are things going on.

And then there were 5

We have a Kster. We like him. We've decided to keep him. :)

What's going to happen with 3 kids?

Mster: Lster's going to poke something into my nose and I don't want him to.
Me: Don't poke anything into Mster's nose Lster.
Lster. Okay.

Waiting

Right now we are playing the waiting game. Some days I have this ridiculous burst of energy and desire to get everything done and other days I can barely make it from the shower to the bed. Today is a desire to get everything done day. I've already:

• done 3 loads of laundry
• washed children
• washed myself
• cleaned the kitchen
• cleaned the front hall
• cleaned the living room
• cleaned the fridge
• cleaned a bathroom
• washed the baby's car seat
• written a grocery list

And I'm still going. But yesterday I couldn't move. I'm very interested to see what the doctor says today.

Spending more than 20$

I was a little shocked at my bill tonight when I went grocery shopping. I didn't do a full trip and was only getting some items that were on sale or we really needed. My bill came to 45$ and then I sat and thought about it and realized I didn't do too bad.

18 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 lbs of strawberries
8 bananas
1 cantaloupe
6 cans of black beans
6 small containers of Haagen Daas
5 bottles of Santa Cruz Organic Lemonade
6 quarts of ice cream
2 boxes of ice cream treats (2o fudge bars, 20 something else)

Lster and his snacks

Lster does not like lunch or dinner. He likes snacks. If you call his meal a snack he is way more likely to eat it than if you announce it as a meal.

Me: Hey Lster...its lunchtime. Lets have peanut butter sandwiches.
Lster: No I don't want lunch, I want a snack.
Me: Okay. Lets have a snack. How about peanut butter sandwiches?
Lster: Okay

Mster Musings

I deemed the last few days cleaning days for Mster and Lster. Lster is pretty good at cleaning (for the most part) but Mster hears "clean", "tidy", "put away" and immediately curls up in a ball and shakes and puts up her "cleaning is the hardest thing in the world" front. As you can imagine this made the last few days a joy.

It ended yesterday morning when I told Lster and Mster that they had to clean the basement (their toy area) by lunch or they couldn't go to a BBQ at the park later that day.

Mster would randomnly come upstairs and share special musings...

Mster: Mom I can't clean anymore. It makes me so sad.
Me: Oh really?
Mster: Yes. Cleaning makes me think of my cousins and they moved away and it makes me so sad so I can't clean anymore.
Me: How exactly does that make you think of your cousins?
Mster: Well...they LOVE to clean.

And if any of you believe that a family of kids ranging from 9-16 LOVES to clean you would probably be wrong. :)

How I get my deals?

There are a lot of ways that I get good deals.

One is that I live in the US and we have way more coupons than up in Canada. Then, I am very aware of the different grocery stores in my area and what deals they have every week. I, for the most part, buy the produce that is on sale that week. We still get a variety because every week is usually different and my family eats a ton of fruit and vegetables. I then match the deals of the store to what coupons I have and voila...free stuff or cheap stuff.

For example:

A toothbrush is normally 1.99$ each (on average). But...routinely one of the local grocery stores will put them on sale for .99$ each. And then I will have a coupon for .50$ or .75$ off a toothbrush. Most of the grocery stores in my area double coupons up to a dollar. So a .25$ coupon is really .50$. A .50$ is really a $1 and a .75$ is really a $1. So that coupon that you think is only worth .50$ is really worth a dollar and I use it at the grocery store when the toothbrush is a dollar and that is how I get free stuff.

I am part of a coupon group which I never thought I would ever do and we meet once a week the day after the grocery deals come out. We go through the ads and figure out what is the best deals and what we have coupons for. Then we trade coupons. For ex: Some people are brand specific for toothpaste so they trade all their crest coupons to somebody who doesn't want colgate toothpaste. You end up getting more coupons for the same item. So instead of 1 toothpaste you might get 2 or 3 free ones.

I've been getting a bunch of stuff lately at Target. I'm not sure Canada even has Target yet let alone SuperTargets but Target allows you to match a Target coupon with a manufacturers coupon. (There a bunch of grocery stores here that allow you to do that). Here is an example of something I did at Target last week. A few weeks ago I was shopping at Target and with my receipt the cashier gave me a Target coupon for a buy 1 get 1 free Smuckers Ice Cream topping. I knew that I had some Smuckers coupons. So...the next time I went to Target I checked out how much their syrops were. I got the biggest kind and they were 2.26$ each. I grabbed a caramel and chocolate. At the register it came to 4.52$. I handed over my Target coupon which took off 2.26$. I then handed over 2 manufacturers coupons for $1 each. That makes my bill for caramel and chocolate syrop .26$ or 13 cents each.

It helps that I have friends that are into saving too. There is a new store that I just haven't had a chance to get to. A good friend is going today and is going to get me a box of peaches (.39/pound) and a box of pears (.33/pound) and grapes (.59/pound).

And that is how you get deals.

Years Supply - Toothbrushes

Toothbrushes
We have 26 adult toothbrushes. (way more than a years supply for 2 adults)
They were all free.
The kids bathroom has become my storage for all things bathroom supply related.

My Years Supply - Paper Towels

I've decided that for now I'm going to do a post per item. I'll tell you how many we have and how I got them and where I've put them. I think those are the main questions with regards to food/supply storage.

How much do I need?
Where do you get (insert product here)?
Where do you put it?

Paper Towels
I got 20 paper towel rolls at Target. They are Bounty Basic rolls. I figure that's just under 2 rolls a month and last year I bought a big package from Costco and we still have some of those left so this might even last us more. The paper towels cost me between free and .25$ each. Target has single rolls of paper towels on sale for $1. I used a 25 cent manufacturers coupon and a 50 cent Target coupon. The free ones are too complicated to try and write out but its the same concept of matching coupons. I've put the majority in my garage and a bunch in each bathroom closet so that I can be lazy and don't have to go hunting for a roll when I decide to wash mirrors. Oh and there is always a roll under the kitchen sink.

Deals of the Week!

Its been awhile since I've posted some good deals lately. I've been dealing with school starting and supplies and uniforms summer reading lists and being 9 months and a house that is never clean and kids who want to play outside (as they should) and lots and lots of pain.

But I have gotten some good deals.

12 pencils .01$
free shampoo
Kleenex - I bought 13 boxes of tissue which I consider a years supply over the past 2 weeks. I got the good kind with lotion added for around .50$ or less a box.
5 tubes of toothpaste - free
6 bottles of Santa Cruz Organic Lemonades - free
more ice cream - free

Anniversaries

I can't remember if we've ever actually gone out for our anniversaries.

For the most part Cster cooks. And here is why.

We ate:

bbq'd Sirloin Steaks
Sourdough bread Salad
bbq'd Prosciutto wrapped peach slices
homemade peach sorbet with fresh raspberries

and this meal cost us under $45 (not that it really matters) and was more delicious than anything we could have ordered at a restaurant.

"Because I don't want to"

Lster's response everytime he says "no" and I ask "why?"

Rock Obama

Mster has always referred to President Obama as Rock Obama. Whenever she sees his picture she points and shouts out his name in glee and excitement that she recognizes someone in mainstream media.

Today while we were driving to the library Mster informed me that she was mistaken and we did not just pass by Rock Obama's house. I asked her what she was talking about.

Mster: No mom, I was wrong. It wasn't his house. That one was red and white.
Me: Um...okay. Are you saying this because Barrack Obama lives in a white house.
Mster: I just told you that wasn't his house.
Me: Alright. And by the way his name is BArrack Obama.
Mster: Rock Obama
Me: No BArrack Obama
Mster: Rock Obama
Me: Ba
Mster: Ba
Me: rack
Mster: Rack.
Me: Barrack Obama
Mster: Rocko Obama
Me: There's a B in the front. Barrack Obama.
Mster: Barrack Obama?
Lster: Rock Obama. Rock Obama. Rock Obama. ROCK OHHH...BAMA!!!!

A Year's Supply of...

As I've been working on finding good deals and using coupons and such I've decided to start getting a years supply of (enter product here) for as many items as will store for a year.

I'm Mormon and we are encouraged to have a year's supply of food and necessessities for whenever and whatever might happen. Whenever I think about getting a years supply of anything I remember being a missionary in DC and being ask to guest teach a univeristy class on comparitive religion. At the end of the class we (the missionaries) opened it up to questions. Most of the questions were moral based. Do you believe in euthanasia? What is your position on...? Then one lady raises her hand and says..."what's up with the years supply thing. My neighbor has a basement full of food. That's weird."

But its not weird. I know of many people who have lived off of their food storage when times have gotten tough, jobs lost, etc. And so...I've decided to work on it. When I get a great deal, I buy lots of it (if it will keep) and I realized today we are doing really well.

I'm going to have an active list in my sidebar so I can keep track of what I have. I'll start putting it together in the next few days.

Hair Clip Update

Um...I don't know what to say but its crazy beyond my imagination. I mean I guess I could be making thousands of clips and have a staff or something but for me just sitting on my couch making clips to one store the success has been phenomenal.

I took a little break this spring and finally got motivated to make more clips in June. Bella had been asking for a sports line for a few months and I realized it was time I got my act together and started making some more product.

So I worked my tail off and brought them what I thought was a reasonable amount of clips. They loved them and made some more requests for new hair clips. I then got super motivated and a week later I came in with over 120 clips I had made in the past week. Some of them were new clips and some were to restock items they had sold recently. They bought them all and made even more requests for different styles of new clips. I got to work again and called the store to set up a time to bring them the clips but apparently in the week or 2 where I had brought in all the other clips they had sold out of a bunch of them. So I went in that afternoon and took inventory to see what they needed.

Today I went in with around 70 clips and they yet again made more suggestions on clips they wanted me to start making. I went home a pretty happy girl and started making dinner. The phone rang and it was the store. They wanted to tell me that a lady had just come in and bought out a complete style (I had just brought it in a few hours earlier).

I was going to take a night off and get some other things done but I'll be at it again on Monday filling the orders they just keep placing. I can't even imagine what I would do right now with another store to stock.

I put a link to the store on the right hand side bar. Check them out! Good prices and GREAT people. They will eventually do online purchasing and I know they are going to include my line in that endeavor.

Things that only work at a 5 year old bday party

When it came time for cake I couldn't find anything to light the candles with. Other adults in the room distracted the children with a game of "who likes...?" while I franctically ran (read: waddled) around the house opening drawers and cupboards.

So...I came downstairs and said "Who likes to play pretend?" Every 5 year old girl yelled a resounding YES!!!

So I pulled out a plastic french fry and introduced everybody to my "match". I "lit" the candles, we sang Happy Birthday and Mster blew them all out. We cut the cake and nobody made any comment about the fact that there wasn't actually fire.

Where was that again?

Today Mster and I were talking about Adam and Eve. I asked her which garden they were in (she gets all the gardens confused) and she hummed and hahhed for a bit. I told her it was the name of her good friends little sister to which she immediately shouted out...

THE GARDEN OF ASPEN!!!

(this will probably be more funny to those of you that know the family because her friend really does have a littler sister called Aspen)

Cupcake?

Apparently there was a record broken this weekend for the worlds largest cupcake. Not to be picky about it but isn't a cupcake just a smaller version of a cake, like lets say about a cup? So anything bigger than an average cupcake could probably fall into the category of oh, I don't know...cake!!

I like to read

I like to read. I don't always read as much as I'd like. I let other priorities get in the way but I do enjoy a good book.

The author of a book I enjoy died today. Frank McCourt. I really liked Angela's Ashes. I'm also the type of person that if I like a book by an author I will read everything else they've written too. I enjoyed his other books, Tis and Teacherman, but I liked Angela's Ashes best. I read it years and years ago and it was like nothing I had every read. It was depressing. It was interesting. It was voyerism. It was a world I knew nothing of.

If you haven't read it are in the mood for a depressing biography of an ordinary boy living in Limerick, Ireland with a drunk of a father, a desperate mother, a house full of siblings and some catholic priests than read away in his memory.

Things you don't want to hear from your 2 year old

"Uh oh...its in my nose"

It was a dry pinto bean. Luckily I got it out quickly and he hadn't jammed it in there but I sure hope this is not a start to other nose (or ear) situations.

You tell her Lster!

While I was shaving Cster's head we heard some chaos and yelling downstairs in the kitchen followed by crying. Shortly after, Lster came into our room with tears rolling down his cheeks. Apparently he was putting his noodles in Mster's bowl so she knocked him over onto the ground. He calmed down pretty quickly when he realized all the coolness of shaving a head.

Then, out of the blue, he leaves the room and yells from the top of the stairs.

"Mster...you have to go to your room you should not knock people over."

Mster must have questioned his authority because the next line he said was...

"No I told you to go to your room."

Deals of the Week - Update

I haven't posted any of my latest finds lately. This one is a few weeks old.

• 10 boxes of poptarts and 10 boxes of fruit loops for... $3.55

Some may ask what in the world we will do with 10 boxes of fruit loops. Cster did. And to all I reply they are our church snack food. The kids have to eat somewhat healthy cereal for breakfast but I let them eat sugar cereal as treats during church and only church.

Yesterday I got 90 Luv diapers for $6.50.I realized I need to get on buying baby supplies relatively soon considering I'm due in a month and was pretty proud of myself for snagging such a great deal my first week of trying. I used both a manufacturers coupon and an online coupon from pgesaver.com along with a store sale to snag the great deal.

I'm on my way today (hopefully) to get $.50 Kashi crackers and cereal and $.25 bounty paper towels. I went to Target and couldn't find the paper towls but I got 2 boxes of Kashi Cereal Bars and 2 boxes of Kashi Cereal as well as a Coppertone sunblock face stick for $2.85.

I went with Mster and we stopped off at 7-11 on the way home because every year on July 11 they give away free slurpees. Of course since it was 6:30pm they were out but the clerk was super nice and gave Mster a free one anyway.

Water

I've decided that water is key to all things summer fun. If I put my kids in a bathing suit and put them near water we have hours of entertainment. It can be at our house, at a splash park, in the pool, it doesn't matter, water is fun.

Yesterday we went to this park

We've spent some time in our pool in the front yard.

We've gone here.

Things that make me smile

I found a new website that often brings a smile to my face.

http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com/

Not every picture is funny but it makes me laugh, most of the time.

Oh Canada!

It could have happened on Canada day but apparently we weren't around to answer the door to our postman who would have handed me Lster's Canadian citizen card. But, its official. Lster is Canadian. Yeah for Lster!

NYT - Best Children's Books

This post is more for me than you. I wanted to have a record of the list.

1. Charlotte's Web
2. Hardy Boys
3. Wind in the Willows
4. Freddy the Pig Series
5. Alex Rider Series
6. Harry Potter
7. Gentle Ben
8. Anne of Green Gables
9. The Dog Who Wouldn't Be
10. Little Lord Fountleroy
11. On to Oregon
12. The Prince and the Pauper
13. Lad, a Dog

Confusing the General Population

FTR I turned a year older a few days ago. :)

Confusing a 4 year old

Today I turn a day older. Mster's a bit confused. She's wondering why I'm not taller than yesterday.

Deals of the Week!

This was a big deals of the week.

My tip of the week is that you don't have to get the sunday newspaper to get deals. I got all my powerade coupons and haagan daas coupons from 7-11. They just had them on the fridge door. I still have 16 haagan daas coupons left to get free ice cream and I think at least another 4 coupons for powerade to get them at that price. You just don't buy those products at 7-11. Go to your grocery store do use them as they are cheaper there.

Free:
11 deoderants (I'm done getting deoderant now. They do expire)
9 Haagan Daas Ice Cream Cups
Snickers
Twix
15 boxes of pop tarts
2 boxes of Fruit Loops (the kids eat them as snack at church)
2 dove face bars
4 gold bond powder

Good Deal:
8 boxes of Fruit Loops - .50$
25+ bottles of Powerade - .30$
Hand Soap - .20$
6 Purex Detergent - $1
Ragu - .35$ (sorry Cheetah, we're not all authentic :) )

And I'm at a loss for the rest of my purchases. I will say that the lady behind me at Safeway today told me I was her hero. I'm glad she's setting the bar high. Although my bill did come to 65$ and I paid $3.55

Like Mother Like Children

Every since I can remember I have fidgeted uncontrollably while on the phone. I usually walk around the house with the phone to my ear. But...if I must sit down while chatting my hands are busy doodling, ripping paper or fulfilling other unproductive projects.

Yesterday Lster got the phone and asked to call his Grandma. I let him and even let him be the first to talk (a very important honor in our house). The moment the words "Hello Grandma" left his mouth he was off. Literally. He spent the entire conversation walking in circles in our living room.

Mster does exactly the same thing. As soon as she gets the phone she takes off to go pace the house and do laps in our living room.

I think its hilarious. It drove my dad crazy when I did it as a teenager and it kind of drives me crazy when they do it but there is nothing I can do about it but laugh and laugh.

Ice and a Positive Attitude

We have never had good ice in our freezer. It tasted bad and couldn't be used in any drink, flavored or not. Over the last few months we've noticed a significant decrease in our fridge's ability to keep things cold. I tried everything I could think of to avoid calling a repair man but alas on Monday I broke down and called a guy to come make my milk cold.

He came. He fixed. He didn't charge us an arm and a leg and magically we have ice that doesn't taste horrible. Its the best bonus EVER. Now instead of leaving glasses of water all over the house half drunk I can leave half glasses of ice water all over the house half drunk.

---------------------------------

Lster has a morning problem. He likes them. No matter what time I put him to bed he wakes up anywhere between 5:15 and 5:45AM. The other day he didn't come get me till 5:50 and I thought I was in heaven. Now most people know that I usually put my kids to bed early. Really early. They don't feel like I should complain because if I put them to bed when every other kid in the world sleeps they wouldn't wake up with the sun. I've tested it and it doesn't work. We arrived after 8 hours of driving (and Lster waking up at 5:30AM) at our friends house at 9pm. the kids didn't get to bed till past 10pm and he was still up before 6AM. He hadn't even napped in the car. Then that whole week he went to bed later than normal and every morning he was up bright and early ready to start his day (and mine). And if something fun is happening we prolong bedtime only to find he wakes up early the next morning and is grumpy all day.

This is slightly frustrating. This morning my kids were both up and yelling and crying and slamming doors at 5:40AM. I'm really trying to find a way to have a good attitude today. Its already been a long morning.

Cereal Anybody?

I probably should have taken a picture of my trunk. One of my local grocery stores was having a deal on a variety of cereal that we actually eat and is a good size box for $1.75/box. It just so happened that I have about 60 coupons for a dollar off all those cereals too. So I just bought over 20 boxes of cereal for .75$ each.

I brought my sister-in-law with me to help out since you could only buy 8 boxes a transaction and I'm going to admit that I was really tempted to fill our carts one more time and buy 16 more. But I didn't.

I guess we'll have to make do with what we have.

One year older and wiser too...

This week I turn as many weeks pregnant as how old I am. Right now I'm wishing I was a little older.

Last week I swore off all things free and cheap and couponny. I caved one day and went to a store I hate just because it was a really good deal and it turned out that they were out of stock and there was crap on the floor. By crap I mean poop. I still hate that store and wished I listened to my inner swearing off self.

This week I have to buy some stuff for our vacation next week and so I actually checked out deals and started doing some shopping. I didn't do too much because the next weeks grocery ads come out tomorrow and I'm really buying for next week anyway.

But...

Free:
2 chocolate bars
2 pineapples
1 travel first aid kit
1 travel size contact solution
1 box Kelloggs Crackers
2 Glade Candle Tins (well they were .15$ each)

Budding Biologist

Mster enjoys drawing on tissues with markers. She then gives them to me so I can have something pretty when I need to blow my nose.

Today she handed me her latest creation and announced it was a butterdeer. She explained that its what you get when you put a butterfly and deer together.

Deals of the Week

Free:
**16 Dove Facial Towellette cleaners (travel size) - she doesn't know it but I'm giving some to my mother in law for her upcoming camping trip. I'm also going to let Mster use them to wash her face since I'm sick of the wadded up face clothes in the sink.
**7 Oral B Toothbrushes

I had another week of not using too many coupons. In fact, for my main grocery run I only used 7 (all for the toothbrushes) and the rest was just me shopping what was on sale at that store. I knew we needed fruit and veggies so I picked the ones that were the best deals. Usually when I do this I get a variety every week since it differs.

I spent $30 and saved 40% (toothbrushes not included) and got:
7 toothbrushes (look to the end of the post for that story)
4 lb strawberries
10 Kiwis
7 apples
3 green peppers
2 lbs of carrots
2 cucumbers
3 tomatos
2 - 1lb lunch meat
18lb bag of charcoal
3 dozen eggs

I guess I do have to admit that I spent 135$ this week at Costco. It was mostly stock up stuff that was on sale and I can't remember the last time I spent over $100 but it still hurt to punch in my pin on that one.

The Toothbrush Story
I've been waiting and waiting for toothbrushes to go on sale because I had a .75$ off coupon and I knew that one of the stores would have them on sale for a $1. And it happened. (It usually does the week the coupon expires and mine were for 5/31). So I had over 12 of these coupons and my neighbors also had a ton too. One of them stayed home and watched kids (they took "sand baths" and are filthy and very happy) while 2 of us went shopping with all of our coupons pooled. I also had to do my regular grocery shopping so I gave my toothbrush coupons to my friend and she went off to go buy them. This store only allows 3 coupons per item so it can take awhile. She went to the self scanner, scanned 3, gave the coupons to the checker and paid the tax, repeat 7 times while I went to go pay for my groceries. We divided the toothbrushes up afterward. This was so smart. We were in and out of the store so fast. We got everything we needed. We had no kids and we all got a ton of free toothbrushes. And the kids had way more fun playing with their freinds then shopping with me. Friends are great.

Princesses

"True princesses are magical." - Mster explaining how princesses can come back from the dead to her friend today.

(PS - The end of princesses, blogged earlier, was shortlived)

A good Mom

This past weekend a girl Mster's age was eating fruit snacks outside. One of them, unbeknownst to her, dropped on the grass. I let her know and she promptly picked it up and gave it to her mom.

This morning Lster ate a cookie out of the garbage.

I Love my New Shirts

A friend of mine recently told me about a company called Downeast Outfitters. I'll post a link later. They are having a bunch of stuff on online clearance right now and have a maternity section too. The thing that is GREAT about this company is that all their shirts are SUPER long. I hate shirts that ride up and show your stomach and back and I think pants are being made lower and lower and that is not a good match. But these shirts looked awesome and they came highly recommended and ranged from $5-$10.

I sadly realized that I'm a little chicken to buy some clothes online and deal with returning them if they aren't what I want but I found out they have stores in Utah and so I went to day and I LOVE THESE shirts. They rock. They were having a special in the store too...buy 2 shirts get a pink one for $2. So I ended up getting 4 shirts (1 maternity, they are that long that they work for me) and the $2 one was a super cute cami with a lace bottom.

Check it out online.

Sister Burrito

Lster has taken to calling me "Sister Burrito*" I'm not kidding. Mster tried called me Squishy at this age but I stopped that right away. Lster is determined.

"Um...Sister Burrito...can I have a drink?"

He gets the Sister because we call each other Brother and Sister at Church instead of Mr. and Mrs. so all the kids that come over call me Sister Burrito.

Today on the way home from the park he called me "Squishy". I finally put my foot down and said "Stop it Lster. My name is Mommy. You can not call me Squishy." His response? "Um...Sister Burrito..."

This is no joke but its stinking hilarious and I can't stop laughing. But I'm trying to curb the laughter so as not to encourage. Oh my.



*and by "Burrito" I mean my real last name.

Weekend Deals

I can't find the link but I've head that Old Navy is selling their solid color flip flops for 1$ this Saturday. My favorite reebox flip flops broke this week and I really want a good pair. I'm sure these ones are the cheapo plastic kind but I might consider getting some just to tide me over till I get the more sporty kinds that I like.

Apparently Krispy Kreme is selling a dozen glazed donuts for 99 cents on Saturday too. I'm not a super fan of Krispy Kreme but I know some people LOVE them.

And for my Canadian readers I don't know if this is USA only. Sorry.

Deals of the Week!

Free Stuff
12 packs of Mentos Gum
8 boxes of Johnsons Bath Buddies (my new favorite bath product that may just get a post all on its own) - bars of soap covered in nylon material so that they don't slip out of 4 year old hands.

This week (although its only Monday) I decided that the sales weren't super great and so I was going to go to one (1) store and do all my shopping there.

I was still pretty shocked and impressed with my purchases and the money I paid at my one store for the week trip. It goes to show that you don't necessarily need coupons to be a frugal shopper. I only had coupons for 3 items (crackers, gum and cereal) this week.

Total Bill (incl tax) : 26.14

3 boxes of Kix
2 italain sausage rolls
celery
3 tomatos
1 cantaloupe
2 cucumbers
2 lbs of cherries
red/yellow/green pepper
5 boxes of wheat thins (garden sensations are Lsters and my favorite)
12 packs of Menthos gum
4 lbs of grapes

On a going green and being frugal note most grocery stores will give 5 cents per plastic bag you don't use in their store. It doesn't even have to be one of those reusable bags that you use. You can bring in your own plastic bag. 2 weeks ago there was a grand opening of a grocery store and they had reusable bags for 50 cents each. I bought a bunch and finally ditched most of my plastic bags in the recycle bin. I've already gotten credit for using them 12 times so I've gotten 60 cents off my bill in 2 weeks. That's the cost of one bag. And I don't have to feel guilty about using the plastic ones anymore.

I did however need a plastic bag on the way home to throw up in so I'm not completely green yet. :)

Things that make me happy, mad and sad

It makes me laugh that my sister-in-law assumed that because I didn't post an update to "Freaking Out" I'm okay. It is true. We are fine and nothing happened but it still makes me laugh.

What doesn't make me laugh is that a church building in her stake burnt down this morning during stake conference. That's sad.

It makes me laugh that Lster can only distinguish between 3 emotions: happy, sad and mad.

It makes me mad when I can't get internet in my bedroom.

Freaking Out!

I'm sitting here trying to figure out if I'm a criminal.

Our area has had wicked wind storms this winter/spring. Everything has gotten blown everywhere. We lost our garbage cans on one of those days. We also gained a plastic pool. One day a blue plastic pool showed up in our backyard after an extremely large bout of wind. I thought about it for a few days. What should I do with it? I wasn't going to lug it to all my neighbors and ask if it was theirs. That's a long walk (if you knew our house placement situation). I thought it kind of silly to post signs and if so where? On their doors? On lampposts? There weren't really that many options. And my indecision led to doing nothing and months went by. Eventually the weather warmed up and my kids started playing in the backyard and that pool became an important part of all things play. They filled it with rocks. They filled it with water. They filled it with everything. And it got holes. Lots and lots of holes. Last weekend Cster tried to throw it out when we were doing yard work but I wasn't ready to get rid of it yet. The kids played with it a lot.

Then tonight happened.

I'm sitting alone minding my own business when our backyard neighbors are clearly throwing a party. Cster is out golfing and the kids are asleep. Last summer they had a couple of big parties and it wasn't every weekend so I didn't think much of it. But the noise seemed to be getting louder and louder. I peaked out my back window and noticed 2 kids in my backyard right by the blue pool. I went downstairs and opened the back door and asked what they were doing. That is when I noticed 2 other kids up on the fence (between the 2 yards) and an adult male holding them up. They replied that they were getting their pool back. They saw Lster playing with the pool (had to be days ago) and they wanted it back. I apologized profusely. Explained that it blew in months ago and I didn't know who it belonged to and of course they could have it back. I showed them where the holes were and helped them carry it to the fence. At that point I came into contact with the adult male. If by contact you mean we were in close proximity to each other. He told the kids he was holding up he had to put them down. I then proceeded to repeat myself and apologize profusely while hoisting the pool over the fence. The man didn't look at me. He didn't speak to me. He didn't acknowledge my presense at all.

And now I'm kind of freaked out because I'm alone and pregnant and they are still really loud and there are a lot of people over there drinking and who knows what is going to happen in a few hours when they decide they are really pissed off that there are holes in the pool and they decide to do something in a drunken stupor. Why didn't they come get the pool when they saw it originally?

I feel like a criminal.

PS - Our calling 911 count in St. Louis was like 3 times. Our calling 911 count here has been 0 and I'd really like to keep it that way.

Actually...

Mster likes to argue everything. Unless she REALLY REALLY wants to do something she will argue a discussion until I finally scream. She used to preface everything I said with "actually".

Me: Here's your water.
Mster: Actually, I want milk

Me: Time to get in the car.
Mster: Actually, I want to play with my friend.

And the list goes on. But now she has dropped the preface and doesn't always use actually.

But...Lster has.

He just doesn't use it in exactly the same argumentative way.

Me: Do you want some water?
Lster: aaaacccttuualeeeeeee...yes.

Me: Go get me a diaper?
LSter: aaaacccttualeeeeee...no.

He draws out actually for as long as possible and I never know if he's going to say yes or no. So I have to wait for the answer to come.

Actually, its slightly annoying and cute at the same time.

Mud Fight!

Mster got a little dirty on Saturday. Instead of telling her get out of the mud we decided to let her go all out. Then Cster got involved and, if possible, she got dirtier.

Before Daddy

After Daddy