The last two weeks have not been a good time around here. On Saturday, we all went out for a nice lunch to Olive Garden. We had a great time, and I love going there! Mike doesn't really like Italian food--yet he married an Italian girl, hmm?--so we don't go very often.
Anyway, as we were headed out, Kelly said that she had to go potty. I looked at her like she was crazy, because this was just two days after her freakout. But I took her in. Needless to say, she looked at the regular size toilets and looked back at me, and said, "No!". I wasn't surprised and we headed back out to where Ally & Mike were getting in the car.
I was holding her hand and the next thing I knew I felt a pull on my arm as we were outside. I saw her little face right before it hit the rock walkway! I scooped her up and there was blood everywhere, and she was screaming. I felt so guilty. I couldn't tell at first if she had broken teeth or just busted (bust?) her lip. I held her for a while and the bleeding didn't want to stop, but we didn't see any damage to her teeth, thankfully. Talk about a horrible way to ruin a nice lunch. Kelly had cut her lip pretty badly, and it took several days to heal up. She complained about the inside of her mouth hurting for most of the week--I think she must have cut her cheek when she fell as well.
Then, last Wednesday, Ally went to the first meeting of Bobcat Club. Basically, an afterschool club for first and second graders to have a snack and play for a while. Since the weather was nice, they were going to be outside on the playground. Mike picked her up and I was washing dishes when she came in. I thought she was fooling around when I heard her making strange sounds. But no, she was crying hysterically! She had fallen off the monkey bars right before he picked her up and the teachers were trying to evaluate if she had broken anything. We looked at her arm and the right arm just looked "off", swollen and something was definitely wrong.
Mike took her to the local hospital and two hours later she was home with a cast & sling. Ally broke her right elbow. I stayed home because I didn't think Kelly would do well waiting for hours in a hospital, but I HATED being away from my baby while she was in pain. Ally was a trooper. By the time she came home, she was fine. They even gave her a scrip for tylenol with codeine and she didn't need it, thankfully. Maneuvering with the cast is awkward for her, but she's not in pain. I am concerned about how she is going to do with schoolwork and everything.
I'm just hoping that things calm down a little around here.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Potty-training freakouts!
Warning, in case the title didn't turn you off already--this post is about bodily functions!
Kelly just turned 3 last month (yay!) and is still not potty-trained. Not a huge surprise, since Ally was 3 1/2 before she was really trained. But Kelly had actually gone both pee & poop in the potty months ago (maybe 6+ months) so I was hopeful. But alas, it was not meant to be.
So, we kept prompting and she kept saying no.
Well, Kelly started a new daycare a few weeks ago and they are obviously pushing it. Wednesday, I asked her if she wanted to try and go when she woke up, and she did! She earned her sticker--she gets 1 for pee and 2 for poop--and I kept asking her every hour or two. She went potty 5 times! After her nap and during dinner, she forgot and wet her pullup. But Kelly did amazingly well! We put her in a diaper for night-time. Then I heard her yelling at 5:45 that she had to pee...ugh. That was rough, and we both had a hard time falling back to sleep.
Thursday she was at daycare and used the potty all day long! By Thursday night, I was dreaming of finally being able to stop buying diapers FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 6 1/2 YEARS! After dinner, Kelly went into the bathroom to try and that it where the trouble began. She thought she peed, but she actually pooped. She hadn't pooped in the potty except maybe once, and that was a long time ago. When she stood up and looked in the potty, she began to cry and yelled, "I don't like that!" She completely freaked out...or you could say she "lost her shit"!
I calmly cleaned her up and showed her that we flushed it, so she wouldn't have to look at it. But she was not happy! The problem is that she was traumatized by the incident. She refuses to go near the potty now! I told her she doesn't have to poop in it, just pee. But she won't go. Not once. We were SO CLOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kelly just turned 3 last month (yay!) and is still not potty-trained. Not a huge surprise, since Ally was 3 1/2 before she was really trained. But Kelly had actually gone both pee & poop in the potty months ago (maybe 6+ months) so I was hopeful. But alas, it was not meant to be.
So, we kept prompting and she kept saying no.
Well, Kelly started a new daycare a few weeks ago and they are obviously pushing it. Wednesday, I asked her if she wanted to try and go when she woke up, and she did! She earned her sticker--she gets 1 for pee and 2 for poop--and I kept asking her every hour or two. She went potty 5 times! After her nap and during dinner, she forgot and wet her pullup. But Kelly did amazingly well! We put her in a diaper for night-time. Then I heard her yelling at 5:45 that she had to pee...ugh. That was rough, and we both had a hard time falling back to sleep.
Thursday she was at daycare and used the potty all day long! By Thursday night, I was dreaming of finally being able to stop buying diapers FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 6 1/2 YEARS! After dinner, Kelly went into the bathroom to try and that it where the trouble began. She thought she peed, but she actually pooped. She hadn't pooped in the potty except maybe once, and that was a long time ago. When she stood up and looked in the potty, she began to cry and yelled, "I don't like that!" She completely freaked out...or you could say she "lost her shit"!
I calmly cleaned her up and showed her that we flushed it, so she wouldn't have to look at it. But she was not happy! The problem is that she was traumatized by the incident. She refuses to go near the potty now! I told her she doesn't have to poop in it, just pee. But she won't go. Not once. We were SO CLOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Dreaming
I have a problem. I had a dream several months ago. A nightmare, really. It is honestly still scaring the crap out of me. I dreamed (or is dreamt the correct term?) that I was in someone's driveway--I think it was supposed to be mine. You know how dreams take pieces of real life--your house, your school, work, your neighbor's house etc and combine them into one insane collage that makes sense in dreamland? Anyway, it wasn't my real driveway but it was mine in the dream. So, I'm backing out of the driveway and looking in the rear-view mirror. As I look back, I see two girls suddenly appear in the mirror. I slammed on the brakes and I think that I avoid them. But I don't. I hit one of them.
When I looked in the mirror, the girls were NOT my kids. However, I felt the "thud' for lack of a better term as I hit the girl in my dream and woke up. As I was ripped out of the dream, the child that I hit changed to Kelly. I think that she died in the dream--I didn't just hit her foot or something. Needless to say, there was no going back to sleep that day.
So, many people would just chalk it up to a bad dream. But for some reason this is haunting me. I'm now worried that it is some sort of premonition and am super alert anytime I am around a school--which isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, I dropped Kelly off last week and looked down from the wheel for a second. I heard a child scream and my heart dropped. Then I realized that I was driving past their fenced-in playground and the kids were screaming in fun! A few weeks ago, I took Ally to camp at the Y and was in a hurry. I didn't do a thorough job of checking before I backed out, and worried that maybe I hit somebody. I STILL remember the feeling of that dream and it was at least 2-3 months ago. Being a careful driver is one thing, but being obsessive is another.
When I looked in the mirror, the girls were NOT my kids. However, I felt the "thud' for lack of a better term as I hit the girl in my dream and woke up. As I was ripped out of the dream, the child that I hit changed to Kelly. I think that she died in the dream--I didn't just hit her foot or something. Needless to say, there was no going back to sleep that day.
So, many people would just chalk it up to a bad dream. But for some reason this is haunting me. I'm now worried that it is some sort of premonition and am super alert anytime I am around a school--which isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, I dropped Kelly off last week and looked down from the wheel for a second. I heard a child scream and my heart dropped. Then I realized that I was driving past their fenced-in playground and the kids were screaming in fun! A few weeks ago, I took Ally to camp at the Y and was in a hurry. I didn't do a thorough job of checking before I backed out, and worried that maybe I hit somebody. I STILL remember the feeling of that dream and it was at least 2-3 months ago. Being a careful driver is one thing, but being obsessive is another.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Overprotective much?
Yep, we're still here. As usual, I have mentally prepared posts long before I have the inclination or time to type them up.
One thing that Mike and I have been talking about lately is whether we have been too overprotective of Ally. She is our first baby, and of course, you are always learning the ropes with the first. We fully admit we have sheltered her, but I just wonder if it has been too much. For instance, when we read fairy tales like "Snow White", I omit the part where the huntsman is to kill Snow White. Ally has such a fragile grasp on what death is (though she understands a little more after my grandfather & aunt passed away last year) that I didn't want to explain why someone would want to murder another person. Was I wrong to do that?
With regards to tv, Ally watches mostly PBS with the occasional Mickey Mouse or Dora thrown in (more for Kelly). Oh, but her new fave is "Jake & the Neverland Pirates"--anyone else watching that? Anyway, it is mostly educational stuff. However, we remember watching the Bugs Bunny cartoons with all the violence! But my SIL supposedly lets her kid, who was 4 or 5 at the time, watch True Blood. WTH? I still maintain that is way off base, but I wonder what other kids her age are watching.
At this point, I think Ally is overly sensitive like me. She was scared of the villain in the Care Bears movie, and wanted me to sit next to her. Needless to say, when they watched "The Lion King" at school, she was terrified! I don't know if she is innately sensitive, or if it is because she hasn't been exposed to those kinds of things.
A few months ago, Ally started asking all kinds of questions at night. These questions were out of nowhere! She asked "What if someone broke in and took all our toys?" and the one that broke my heart was "What if someone came in and stole my sister?"!!!!!!!!!! We don't let her watch the news, because of scary stories like that. Mike & I both have OCD tendencies, so I don't want her to be afraid of the world. But hearing her ask those questions made me wonder if she was already anxious about the world. Thankfully, Ally seemed to trust me when I said they were safe and stopped asking those heartbreaking questions.
We do discuss "stranger danger" and that there are "mean" people who can hurt you. We don't want her to be completely naive, but where is the line???? What do you all think?
One thing that Mike and I have been talking about lately is whether we have been too overprotective of Ally. She is our first baby, and of course, you are always learning the ropes with the first. We fully admit we have sheltered her, but I just wonder if it has been too much. For instance, when we read fairy tales like "Snow White", I omit the part where the huntsman is to kill Snow White. Ally has such a fragile grasp on what death is (though she understands a little more after my grandfather & aunt passed away last year) that I didn't want to explain why someone would want to murder another person. Was I wrong to do that?
With regards to tv, Ally watches mostly PBS with the occasional Mickey Mouse or Dora thrown in (more for Kelly). Oh, but her new fave is "Jake & the Neverland Pirates"--anyone else watching that? Anyway, it is mostly educational stuff. However, we remember watching the Bugs Bunny cartoons with all the violence! But my SIL supposedly lets her kid, who was 4 or 5 at the time, watch True Blood. WTH? I still maintain that is way off base, but I wonder what other kids her age are watching.
At this point, I think Ally is overly sensitive like me. She was scared of the villain in the Care Bears movie, and wanted me to sit next to her. Needless to say, when they watched "The Lion King" at school, she was terrified! I don't know if she is innately sensitive, or if it is because she hasn't been exposed to those kinds of things.
A few months ago, Ally started asking all kinds of questions at night. These questions were out of nowhere! She asked "What if someone broke in and took all our toys?" and the one that broke my heart was "What if someone came in and stole my sister?"!!!!!!!!!! We don't let her watch the news, because of scary stories like that. Mike & I both have OCD tendencies, so I don't want her to be afraid of the world. But hearing her ask those questions made me wonder if she was already anxious about the world. Thankfully, Ally seemed to trust me when I said they were safe and stopped asking those heartbreaking questions.
We do discuss "stranger danger" and that there are "mean" people who can hurt you. We don't want her to be completely naive, but where is the line???? What do you all think?
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
The play's the thing
In high school, I was a member of the International Thespian Society. In other words, I was a theater geek! Loved it! Worked mostly backstage, but dabbled in acting. It truly was a haven for me in high school and my best memories of hs are from theater. Needless to say, I want to impart that love to my girls.
We are lucky to have La Comedia Dinner Theater relatively close to us, and Mike and I have visited several times. The food is usually really good, as are the performances. The first play we saw there was "Miss Saigon", and it was okay. I thought it could have been better, but still had a great time. We went a few months ago and saw "Phantom". Phenomenal! The story, the singing, all of it was amazing. I had goose bumps by the end!
So, I wanted to have some special Ally and Mommy time and saw that La Comedia was putting on "Cinderella." Now, how could I go wrong with that??? We went on Sunday and had a great time. Lots of little girls were all dressed up like different princesses--adorable. I've never seen so many cute kids. Ally was so excited and behaved perfectly. The best part was when the Prince was searching all of the land for the woman whose foot would fit the slipper. He actually came out in the audience and tried it on a few people--including Ally! He took her sandal off and put it on. Of course, it was too big, but he said "Maybe next year!" So cute! I was beaming and laughing at the same time, while she really didn't get the fact that it was special that he picked her. We stayed to chat with the cast, and got a few pics. They were all awesome!
Ally, the stepsisters and stepmother
The fairy godmother!
And of course, Cinderella and the Prince!
We are lucky to have La Comedia Dinner Theater relatively close to us, and Mike and I have visited several times. The food is usually really good, as are the performances. The first play we saw there was "Miss Saigon", and it was okay. I thought it could have been better, but still had a great time. We went a few months ago and saw "Phantom". Phenomenal! The story, the singing, all of it was amazing. I had goose bumps by the end!
So, I wanted to have some special Ally and Mommy time and saw that La Comedia was putting on "Cinderella." Now, how could I go wrong with that??? We went on Sunday and had a great time. Lots of little girls were all dressed up like different princesses--adorable. I've never seen so many cute kids. Ally was so excited and behaved perfectly. The best part was when the Prince was searching all of the land for the woman whose foot would fit the slipper. He actually came out in the audience and tried it on a few people--including Ally! He took her sandal off and put it on. Of course, it was too big, but he said "Maybe next year!" So cute! I was beaming and laughing at the same time, while she really didn't get the fact that it was special that he picked her. We stayed to chat with the cast, and got a few pics. They were all awesome!
Ally, the stepsisters and stepmother
The fairy godmother!
And of course, Cinderella and the Prince!Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Swamped--part 1
So, once again, I have been absent from posting for a long time. I am swamped with housework and feel as if I am drowning in toys, paperwork, and crap. The mess really takes a toll on my psyche and I have no energy to do anything else. I play around a little bit on facebook, but I almost feel as if that is my socialization. Without that, I would be a total looney-tune. I try to maintain a clean house, I do, but I feel as if I am treading water, about to go under.
I grew up in a messy house. I hated it. I would come home during the summers and try to go through the obvious stuff--I couldn't deal with my parents paperwork, obv. There would always be stuff everywhere. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not talking about an episode of Hoarders or anything. Just really messy. So, you would think that I would be a neat freak in response, but it just hasn't turned out that way. Even before we had kids, the house was a little cluttered. Since kids, we have just added way more stuff to our house! Ally doesn't keep her room cleaned, and Kelly thinks its fun to throw all the toys back out of the box that Mommy picked up. Yes, I know this is normal kid behavior, but it is frustrating!
So, once the kids are in bed, I feel sapped of motivation. I want to relax and watch an ADULT tv show. I want to read. I want to scrapbook (another source of the mess--huge piles of pictures!). I want to talk to my husband. Instead, we bust our asses washing dishes, doing laundry, picking up toys, dealing with paperwork, etc etc etc. Or if I'm lucky, I get to go to the grocery store at 9pm. Woo-hoo. (insert sarcasm). I feel like we are always in survival mode, with regards to cooking and cleaning, and don't get a chance to delve into handling the messes that get pushed to the side.
How do you handle the housework? At night? On the weekends? Do you forgo sleep? (BTW, that sure as hell ain't happenin'!)
I grew up in a messy house. I hated it. I would come home during the summers and try to go through the obvious stuff--I couldn't deal with my parents paperwork, obv. There would always be stuff everywhere. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not talking about an episode of Hoarders or anything. Just really messy. So, you would think that I would be a neat freak in response, but it just hasn't turned out that way. Even before we had kids, the house was a little cluttered. Since kids, we have just added way more stuff to our house! Ally doesn't keep her room cleaned, and Kelly thinks its fun to throw all the toys back out of the box that Mommy picked up. Yes, I know this is normal kid behavior, but it is frustrating!
So, once the kids are in bed, I feel sapped of motivation. I want to relax and watch an ADULT tv show. I want to read. I want to scrapbook (another source of the mess--huge piles of pictures!). I want to talk to my husband. Instead, we bust our asses washing dishes, doing laundry, picking up toys, dealing with paperwork, etc etc etc. Or if I'm lucky, I get to go to the grocery store at 9pm. Woo-hoo. (insert sarcasm). I feel like we are always in survival mode, with regards to cooking and cleaning, and don't get a chance to delve into handling the messes that get pushed to the side.
How do you handle the housework? At night? On the weekends? Do you forgo sleep? (BTW, that sure as hell ain't happenin'!)
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Project Fail=Success!
So, how have you all been? When I posted that I failed at Nablopomo, I really didn't intend to disappear for a couple of months. I guess if you are going to do something, even fail, then go all out! :o) I even started this back in Jan, and never finished it.
Just a quick note to let you know that I am still here. Things around here have been chaotic, as usual. Does that ever change? My mom is one of 5 kids, and my dad is one of 7 kids, and I just want to scream thinking about that. Having *2* kids has made me lose my ever-lovin' mind, so I don't know what you do with that many. Though, from watching some of the show with the Duggars, I guess the older help take care of the younger kids. On a side note, Michelle Duggar makes me feel truly inadequate as a mother. I think she must be a saint because she seems so patient, and even-tempered while dealing with ALL.THOSE.KIDS. Always smiling, and laughing, and loving. Is that for real or for the tv?
Anyhoo...back in October, Mike and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary! Some days it doesn't seem possible that we have been married that long (and yet, there are times when it seems like centuries!). I have not yet come to grips with the fact that I am in my 30s, so the fact that we have been married for that long is just weird! I don't feel any older than 27 or so...maybe I'll stay that age for a while.
During my hiatus (ha), Allison turned 5 (!) and Kelly turns 18 months old next week. I am currently in the midst of organizing 5 years of digital pics, and hope to post some good ones soon!
Just a quick note to let you know that I am still here. Things around here have been chaotic, as usual. Does that ever change? My mom is one of 5 kids, and my dad is one of 7 kids, and I just want to scream thinking about that. Having *2* kids has made me lose my ever-lovin' mind, so I don't know what you do with that many. Though, from watching some of the show with the Duggars, I guess the older help take care of the younger kids. On a side note, Michelle Duggar makes me feel truly inadequate as a mother. I think she must be a saint because she seems so patient, and even-tempered while dealing with ALL.THOSE.KIDS. Always smiling, and laughing, and loving. Is that for real or for the tv?
Anyhoo...back in October, Mike and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary! Some days it doesn't seem possible that we have been married that long (and yet, there are times when it seems like centuries!). I have not yet come to grips with the fact that I am in my 30s, so the fact that we have been married for that long is just weird! I don't feel any older than 27 or so...maybe I'll stay that age for a while.
During my hiatus (ha), Allison turned 5 (!) and Kelly turns 18 months old next week. I am currently in the midst of organizing 5 years of digital pics, and hope to post some good ones soon!
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