Friday, Friday, Friday!
I love Fridays. My love/hate relationship with Fridays has evolved over time.
Before kids, my Fridays started like many of yours. That bell would ring and I do believe us teachers were way more excited and ready to hear it then the kids. My work week would be over!
Up until about six months ago, I HATED Fridays. I mean LOATHED them, especially during the winter months and rainy days. It was the last day of the week. The boys (and I) would be ready for their daddy to be home for the weekend. They would be antsy and “bored”. I would be tired and impatient. We all were kinda sick of each other by the end of the week.
Fridays now are low key with no schedule, except for Evan’s weekly 30 minute speech therapy, which isn’t until 11:15 so we don’t have to rush out the door in the mornings.
But then it happened!
I may have mentioned a time or two that Evan has been obsessed with Mario. We have a rule in the house that Friday is Wii day.
This way, Evan knows not to even ask to play, although sometimes he looks at me with devilish eyes and says, “you know what I’m thinking mom?”
“No, Evan, you may not play Wii.”
“Mom, how did you know I was going to ask?”
So Fridays with Evan pretty much mean, I don’t see him most of the day, except when he comes up for air, food or potty breaks. Because, you know, even though there is a bathroom downstairs, he still comes up and tells me he is going. Oh my Evan!
Maybe about October, Carter got in on the action too. He doesn’t like to play, but he LOVES to sit and watch Evan, talk with Evan and goes about his playing with his trains and cars while Evan plays the Wii.
{This next part is going to make me sound like a horrible mom, but remember it only happens once a week, so keep your judgements to yourself!}
So pretty much, I don’t see the kids all day on Friday. It’s beautiful. Yeah, I’m admitting it! On Fridays, the boys disappear into the basement and I see them only when they get hungry, thirsty or one throws a punch. And it has made Friday’s something we ALL look forward to! The boys get to veg out and stay in their jammies if they want, and I get to do the same!
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Sick of Being Sick {I Hate The Winter Time 2012 Edition}
Copyright All rights reserved by alshepmcr Flick.com
This is going to be a full-blown rant about the amount of sick that is in my house right now! Just warning you all, I am completely feeling sorry for my self and my family! Just sayin’
The boys have been sick for 3 weeks now! 3 WEEKS people. Not that 3 weeks is a big deal in and of itself. But before that, they were probably well for a week or two after another bout of illness.
You see, starting in about November at least one person has been sick in this house at any given time.
Carter, Evan and myself have all finished z packs this month. And yet, I got sick again. Evan had walking pneumonia two weeks ago and was put on a z pack, Carter then followed last week. They started feeling better when I started getting sick. I tried to fight it off, because really what mom has time to get sick!
Yesterday my fever spiked at 102 and I literally couldn’t get out of bed. So I got ANOTHER z pack (2 in one month because I am an over achiever!) and some good ol’ cough syrup with codeine.
While in a codeine sleep coma last night, apparently Carter threw up twice and Jeremy took care of him without bothering me. And this morning Evan woke up with another 102 temperature and coughing.
Fortunately, Jeremy NEVER gets sick! (You know since I officially wrote that, he will be the next victim) But thank God, Jeremy has an immune system of steal!
I’m almost to the point of giving up. I mean, come on! Enough is enough. I take amazing care of my family – not that I am tooting my own horn – but I do. We eat well in this house – whole foods majority of the time – with the occasional eating out. I make sure the kids eat their fruits and veggies and drink plenty of fluids. I don’t even let them fill up on juice, it’s water or milk with the one cup of orange juice in the morning. We exercise. We get enough rest. Jeremy and I make sure to keep a peaceful home.
So I don’t know why my kids are the sickest kids I know!
I’m done with sickness. And yet, we are one of the few families who have not experienced the apukealypse yet! As each one of my friends mention on Facebook that their family has been hit, the stress of knowing that it’s just a matter of time before I hear the dreaded, “mmmoooooommmm I threw up” in the middle of the night, keeps me awake at night!
How can one healthy family, be so unhealthy during the winter time? {throwing my hands up in the air}
Brrrrrr…..Beach Dreaming
As I sit here looking out the window, it is cold. It is blah. It is bleak.
Not that I am going to complain. I am not. We have had a warm and snowless winter up until this week. We have been spoiled. Except for the endless sickness going on in our house.
But on this Friday, I do admit, when I was snuggled up under my blanket drinking my coffee this morning, even though I am not complaining about the weather I am dreaming of this…
I NEED a beach, the sun, and sand between my toes!
Happy Friday! Where would you like to be today?
How Much Is Too Much?
If you are a parent, I know you have asked yourself this question, if not multiple times, at least once. How much is too much?
We live in a society that is fast paced and never stopping. And we as parents have been impacted greatly by this.
We want the best for our children. But what is the best?
This question has been swirling around in my head for months. It taunts me during sleepless nights, it aggravates me when we are rushed to get out the door, it guilts me when I can’t do everything that the boys want to do. And trust me, I have had to say “no” to many activities because we already do too much.
I long for the kids to have my childhood. Shoot I want my boys to have the childhood of my parent’s generation. Boys need to be busy. They need to explore. They need to be dangerous. They need to be free. But we can’t give them that in today’s environment. We can’t let them out the door first thing in the morning and not see them until dinner time. Oh how I wish we could!
My childhood wasn’t a scheduled mess. Yes, I remember swimming lessons. I started basketball at age 9. But I also remember long summer days of playing and exploring. I don’t remember watching a lot of t.v. or video games during the winter time and of course DID NOT have all the technology that inundates our children today. I was in 5th grade when my parents bought me an Atari. And that was all the technology we had. We didn’t have a home computer until after I graduated from high school. And cell phones? Ha I had a pager when I was 17 so that my parents could at least get ahold of me if they needed to.
I want the best for our children.
Monday morning, oh about 4:00, after being awakened by Carter’s coughing, I immediately started stressing over how this was going to impact my day’s schedule. This wasn’t the first morning I was fretting before the sun came up. It started last week when I was home alone with Evan getting sick and Jeremy away on a business trip. How was I going to get Carter out of the house, when Evan wasn’t up for all the scheduled (and paid for) activities on our days’ itinerary.
Fortunately, my dad and mother-in-law came to the rescue last week. And Monday my mom didn’t have work so I frantically called her to help me out (on her day off!)
I didn’t think much of it until Monday after Jeremy questioned my judgement on how I was going to handle the situation. As Carter lay coughing, the stress hit. How was I going to get Evan (and myself) to the Y for exercise and also get Carter to the doctor. Then there was basketball practice on Monday night. Then what about school on Tuesday morning? Oh the questions and the guilt! Are they too sick for exercise? Are they too sick to play basketball? Are they too sick for school? (And I have to admit that there was slightly selfish reasons involved also. I have schedule my workouts and appointments during these times also.) How much do you push a child to do so they can learn that life doesn’t stop when you are sick. And trust me, they weren’t lethargic sick. They were bouncing off the walls yet coughing non-stop and dark circles under the eyes sick. There is a difference, and no this wouldn’t even be an issue if it was the first scenario.
But then the guilt hit me on how much planned, paid activities are too much?
I wouldn’t be at stressing at 4 in the morning if I didn’t have them in these activities. I don’t like missing things that I’ve already paid for!
I know many of my friends disagree with the amount of activities I have the boys in. I know many friends who have their children in more activities then me. So I know there is a wide range of opinions and beliefs.
I truly believe I NEED these activities as much as the boys do! I have tried to find a balance between what is needed and what is excessive, for me and my family!
I honestly feel that each activity that the boys are in, is beneficial for them and not just babysitting to give me a break. Each activity is important and has specific physical, spiritual, emotional and educational goals attached. And as I mentioned earlier, I have had to say “no” to some activities that the boys have wanted to do because I don’t want to be in the truck all day long, transporting them from here to there and spending money that we do not have.
So I pose these questions to you, out of curiosity, my fellow parents. How many activities are you’re kids in? How much stress do you feel these activities cause you? What is your motivation for being as busy as you are?
Cough, Cough, Yawn
Two years ago it was a lovely visit to the ER with Evan for Croup.
Last year it was a lovely visit to the ER with Carter. Proving once again how glamorous parenthood can be.
Fortunately, no ER visits yet, but in true tradition of being sick and indoors ALL.WINTER.LONG, Evan was diagnosed with walking pneumonia last Friday after feeling like crap all week and hacking up a storm. And the best part, Jeremy was on a business trip all week. This mama didn’t get any sleep. And of course after I took Evan to the doctor on Friday, Carter started coughing Saturday night. So we took him in today and the doctor assumed he was suffering from the same illness but had not turned into pneumonia yet {thank goodness}.
So two boys on antibiotics and one tired mama!
Counting down the days until Spring!
Don’t Lick the Trash Can
I believe Carter has finally hit the terrible twos. He is only 3 years and 6 months old. But I guess it’s better late then never. My sweet, precious, adorable, always wanting to make mama happy boy has decided that that life is completely overrated.
In the last two weeks, he has decided that he will no longer obey ANYTHING I tell him.
“Carter, no running”
{Carter running through the parking lot}
“Carter, stay in your bed”
{Carter out of his bed at least 10 times.}
“Carter, don’t shut the door”
{Carter slams the door}
Okay, so you get my drift. I don’t know how this happened. Ha! Who am I kidding, I know this is normal, but just didn’t think that Carter had it in him! Ha! That’s just funny even to admit! I know how silly I am sounding right now!
But it is seriously wearing me out! Each night, I am emotionally drained. All day long, it is a constant battle with him. It doesn’t matter what I tell him to do, from the littlest things to important things, it doesn’t matter. At least he is staying consistent!
So I have been very, VERY tempted to play his little game with him.
“Carter, don’t lick the trash can”
“Carter, don’t shut your bedroom door and lock it” (then leave the house)
“Carter, don’t touch the stove while I’m cooking” (okay that might just be down right evil, I know!)
But then he says things like this, that can’t keep me mad at him for very long.
Jeremy sat him down earlier this week and told him that he was going out of town for a few days. Now this throws Evan into a massive meltdown! But Carter, “is mommy going with you? Oh that’s okay then Daddy, as long as I have my mommy!”
He totally knows how to work me! And I totally let him!
I have tried everything! I’ve even tried letting him learn how is actions have consequences. Like the time he shut himself outside the house, after I told him not to go outside. I sat there for a moment and didn’t let him back in, since he can’t get the front door opened by himself. He panicked for a moment while I “pretended” to leave the front room and ignore him, then he started running freely down through the front yard of my neighbor. That is as far as I let him go before panicking myself! I did that with Evan, ONLY 1 TIME. It freaked him out, not being able to get back in the house. And he never tried that again!
Or the time that I told him that the cat does not like her tail pulled. The cat turned around and nipped him on his finger. He whaled and tears were flowing. I showed no sympathy and explained that is why I told him not to pull her tail. He then went and pulled her tail again. There is a reason why he is her favorite human, but he is quickly loosening his ground with her.
HELP!!! Where did my little perfect boy go? Oh yeah, he has learned of his free will and independence.
Scheduled and Relieved
I have realized in the last few years (since having kids and not out of the home working) that I DEFINITELY need to be on a schedule. If you have young children – you definitely know how hard it is to be on a schedule around your kids’ schedules. But finally, my boys are old enough that I don’t have to be home enforcing naps which has freed up my schedule to make a schedule for all of us…;-) Are you following me?
I have DREADED the winter months since having children. The “being stuck in the house” routine has just about put me over the edge on several occasions. I hate being stuck in the house with two boys who definitely need activities to keep them busy! But finding activities for both kids has been tough. Most activities are for older children (3+) or cost money which isn’t always the best option financially.
So, a few months ago I started planning and making a schedule for me and the boys so that I wouldn’t go crazy this winter but also would allow the boys to have learning opportunities. I even made my own calendar for the refrigerator – crafty huh?
Carter was old enough to start preschool along with Evan. I had to first decide whether to send both of them Monday, Wednesday and Friday, or Tuesday, Thursday. I wanted to send them on the same days so that I could get a break for myself – selfish? Sorta! I knew Evan would thrive with either schedule and I didn’t want to put Carter in for too many days. They have 12 years to go to school every day – in my opinion. So I decided to keep the Tuesday/Thursday for both kids after discussing it with friends, family and Evan’s school teachers. Evan’s school teachers actually followed him up to Pre-K and assured me that he wouldn’t miss out on anything important if he didn’t go 4 to 5 days a week. Besides he has a mom for a teacher, so I am not too concerned about him being behind 
! Many of my friends urged me to do 3 days a week, for my sanity. But I just didn’t feel comfortable having them away from me that much.
Because I chose the preschool option of 2 days a week, I had to find some “extracurriculars” for the other days. I still want the boys being exposed to other learning experiences different from their classrooms. After researching and researching and agonizing, I found that the YMCA had the best options for the price! So I have enrolled both boys into an exercise class and swimming class on Mondays and Wednesdays. This is awesome for me too, since now I have NO excuse not to exercise while we are there – I do get 2 hours of free child care a day! A big thanks to my parents and Jeremy’s parents for helping out financially to allow the boys to take extra classes!
And I will be planning on “field trips” with the boys also throughout the cold months. This week, we went to the zoo. Jeremy took the day off for a family field trip! The boys had a blast and since we pretty much had the zoo to ourselves, we were able to do a little bit more educating while we were there. I love having a Museum pass – it makes for great, cheap educational trips to local museums and zoos!
There you have it! I am SUPER excited to be on a schedule! I feel like a heavy weight has been lifted and my life is getting a little bit more controllable. I am fully aware that come May, I will be yearning for a schedule free summer of playgrounds, play dates and swimming. But right now, bring on the consistency, schedule and a little “me” time as an extra bonus.
What do you do to stay sane with your kids during the cold, snowy months of winter? I would love to know so that I can add them to my arsenal 
?
Should I Admit…
…I love the new schedule with the boys in school? There I said it! To all of you who are about to tell me that, “I will look back one day and realize the time I spent raising my boys is only a small fraction of my total life and that I should relish in it as long as possible”, don’t bother. I totally know that!!!
But surprisingly, when I dropped the boys off at the first day of school on Tuesday, not one single tear fell from my eyes! I was more excited to have some free time then anything else. But for the record, when I arrived to pick my boys up, seeing Carter sitting in the circle, waiting patiently for me to arrive, I shed a few tears.
Right at that moment, I saw my baby boy and my growing-up-to-fast boy all at once. And I did get a little verklempt.
But that feeling passed and I am ready to have a few hours a week to myself. So far this week, I had coffee with my dear friend Jenny, had a great workout, and went grocery shopping. And it was heavenly!
I may be in the minority here, but I’m cool with it! Tell me: are you an emotional wreck when your babies go to school the first time or are you excited for some time “off”?
Are You Going to Jail Mom?
The day started off like any other day. We had to go to Evan’s yearly wellness appointment and afterwards I decided to take the boys to the park. The boys’ pediatrician office is in an area that we don’t visit often, so I decided to find a park on the GPS. I often do this, just to break up the monotony. As we pulled up to the first park, I noticed there were only 3 slides so I explained to the boys that we would go find another park. So I looked up a new park and headed that way. A few minutes down the road, I noticed that the new park would be taking me out of the way. So I again, re-entered to find a new park. The third park was too secluded. By now the boys were a little antsy. So I promised them that the next park we found, we would stop.
So I followed the GPS into an unfamiliar neighborhood. After a few moments of winding roads and many turns, I found this park. I turned onto the street and happened to glance in the review mirror before pulling over to park. And there they were. The heart stopping red and blue lights.
What did I do? I truly had no clue. I actually for a moment, thought that the cop would drive past me but unfortunately that wasn’t the case. Because seriously, how could I NOT see the police following me?
I sat there for a moment in disbelief, when Evan unstrapped his seat belt. I quickly snapped at him to “put it back on” because I could get in trouble if he didn’t have it on.
“Mom what’s going on, why aren’t we getting out of the truck, I WANT TO GO TO THE PARK!!”
“Well boys, mommy broke a traffic rule and I have to talk to the police officer when he comes up to the truck.”
“What rule did you break, Mom?”
“Well, Evan, I’m not quite sure.”
Then after sitting for a few more moments, I thought I should probably get my license and registration together. I HAD no idea what I am doing. Did I mention I haven’t been pulled over in 17 years! So without thinking, I took my seat belt off and bent down to get my wallet from the floor board.
OH CRAP! I just took my seat belt off and bent over. The cop is going to totally think I am pulling a gun out or trying to hide something.
I quickly sat up and put my seat belt back on! And encourage the boys to sit still until this ordeal was finished.
The cop walks up by my window and I look at him.
“Excuse me ma’am, do you realize that you were going 41 in a 25 mile an hour residential area, along with not using turn singles for the last 2 turns.” {holy crap, how long had he been following me, anyway! And seriously I didn’t notice?}
“No, SIr. I wasn’t aware that I was speeding.”
“Is there a reason your were going so fast? Because I usually give drivers a 15 mile an hour cushion.”
“I am so sorry sir. I was just really focused on trying to find a park for the boys and watching the GPS.”
“Hmmm, I see. I will need to see your insurance card.”
“Oh, okay” I start fumbling through all my cards, praying that I had the insurance card. I did! Whew! I squinted to see if it was the correct card, because I had to wear my glasses for several days due to an infection. And I so can’t see with my glasses on!
“I think this is the correct card.”
“Yes, ma’am this is an insurance card but it is expired, {um hello, it expired 3 MONTHS AGO} why don’t you continue looking while I step away.”
He walks back to his cruiser and I text Jeremy immediately. Because now I am REALLY FREAKING out! I just know that I am going to get arrested for having an expired insurance card.
Jeremy quickly calls me to see what is going on. I give him a few details but quickly hang up so the police officer doesn’t think I am cool enough to be on the phone. But before I hang up, Jeremy jokingly says, “at least I got the tags renewed.”
You see, Jeremy totally forgot to get the tags renewed on both vehicles before his birthday 15 days ago. He remembered on Friday! Can you imagine what kind of pickle I would be in, if he hadn’t of remembered last week!
After several painful minutes, the cop came back to the truck.
“I am going to let you off with a warning today, ma’am, since you do not have anything on your record.”
That is when I started crying. Yeah, I’ll admit it! Tears started flowing! I just couldn’t control myself.
He then started to preach about not speeding in residential areas and blah, blah blah. This was after he informed me that he wasn’t going to preach at me. He finished up and started walking away.
I reached my head out the window, and told him that my boys would like to say ‘hi’ to him. I rolled down their windows and the cop was nice enough to chit chat with them for a few moments. Come to find out, he has a 4 year old daughter and another daughter on the way. I congratulated him and he went on with his business.
“Finally Mom! Can we now go to the park?’
Yes, Evan, we can now go to the park.
And by the way – that park stunk too!
Sleep Is Soooo Overrated (Transitioning from the Crib)
As promised yesterday, here is how Carter’s first night in his big boy bed went. Haven’t I mentioned that Carter and Evan ARE COMPLETE opposites. If I haven’t, I’m saying it now! Trust me, they don’t look the same, they don’t act the same, and they are on opposite sides of the spectrum on EVERYTHING. So since Evan did so well transitioning from his crib to his bed, I should have known that Carter would be the opposite. But I was hopeful! But he didn’t prove my theory wrong either.
All day Sunday, the boys were excitedly reminding me that that night they were sleeping in the same room together. By about 5ish, I ran it past Jeremy that we should wait a few days since both boys were dealing with a cold and were coughing a lot during the night. But when the boys heard that I was thinking about postponing the festivities, Carter looked up at me with his big blue eyes and said, “but you said I could sleep in my new bed!”
Fine! Against my better jugdement, but whatever!
So bed time came. The boys got baths and Jeremy read a story, did prayers and started to tuck them in.
Showing off his new Lightning McQueen pillow
Evan just showing off
Just hanging out like the big boys do
Trying out his new digs
At this point, the story takes a turn for the “this could be a long night”. Carter “nee-ee-ee-ded Mommy” and I came in to snuggle with him while Jeremy attended to Evan’s needs. It was a circus to say the least.
Evan asked for a drink.
Carter then asked for a drink.
I left the room to get Evan a drink, Evan jumped down from the top bunk and ran into the kitchen with me.
Carter got out of bed and followed.
Jeremy and I tucked the boys back into bed.
Carter needed to go potty.
Which meant that Evan needed to go potty.
So they both got themselves un-tucked and hung out in the bathroom for a little while.
Jeremy and I, again, tucked the boys in bed.
We said our goodnights, gave hugs and kisses, then left the room.
Ten seconds later, the door swings open.
Carter in a whisper, “I neeeed mommy!”
So off I go again to tuck him in and assure him that he was okay in his big boy bed.
I left the room and off he came again.
This time complaining of monsters in his room. Jeremy and I headed in and sure enough, he had a valid point. The night light that I put in there, has a freshner, and the freshner when lit up kinda looks like a face with a turned down mouth. I could totally see why Carter was a little freaked out!
So off I went to get another night light. And in the time it took for me to get a night light, both boys were out of bed again.
This time, we kinda laid down the law and put them back in bed.
They tried the alternating visits a few more times before we heard NOTHING! No boy came out to say something to us, no chit chat sounds coming from the room. Nothing! SILENCE!
So after about 30 minutes of silence, Jeremy and I decided to check and make sure everything was okay. This is what we found:
Evan snuck down to be with Carter and apparently both fell asleep while hanging out! Jeremy and I had our “awww our boys are just precious” moment. Then left them alone to sleep the night away.
11:30 (an hour after we took that photo) – Evan awakens as if he is in a night terror. Flailing around and screaming. We immediately took him out to the living room to help calm him down. And nothing we did soothed him. And every time we tried to take him back to bed, he would start screaming hysterically upon entering his room. Eventually, he screamed that his ear hurt, so we gave him some medicine which was fun considering his state of being, he screamed and kicked and punched while we tried to give it to him. This is NOT his typical behaviour and this was not my normal boy! It was down right scary to see him like this. But once the medicine starting working and he woke up a little bit more he became a *little* bit more negotiable with us. Around midnight, I asked him if he would go back to his bed, if I slept on the floor. He agreed and we moved him back to bed and moved in the futon matteress. Normally Jeremy would get the honor, but the next morning he had to leave earlier than usual so I took one for the team.
And boy did I ever! About every 15 minutes, one of the kids coughed. And this went on the entire night. I physically looked at the clock every 15 minutes hoping that I had fallen asleep and it had been longer than 15 minutes. But no, I was not that lucky.
Around 2:00, Carter awakened and informed me that he was going to sleep with me. He rolled out of his bed onto mine, with a thud! He then passed out on MY PILLOW and wrapped himself in MY BLANKET!
I cuddled with him for another hour or so, when I thought to myself, “I could sleep in Carter’s bed”. But I had promised Evan that I was sleeping on the floor so he could see me. And by some strange chance, I didn’t want Evan to wake up and not see me and panic all over again. So for about another hour I laid there, completely uncomfortable, debating whether I should move to the bed or not.
Finally at 4:00, I made the decision to move. The boys continued to cough and stir for another hour or so, before I finally dozed off. I had heard Jeremy crack open the door before he left for work, but was too tired to open my eyes.
I literally got no more than an hour of sleep.
The boys awakened grumpy, in part from the lack of sleep but also from being sick. We lounged around for most of the day. And once again bed time came. It was Jeremy’s turn. I went to bed and turned the monitors off so I could get a full night’s rest as he had done the previous night. But of course, after the initial 4 times out of bed routine, the boys fell asleep and stayed asleep, so Jeremy got off the hook! And Carter slept in until 9:30 the next morning. 2 and half hours after Evan got up, crawled down the ladder and slammed the door shut behind him! AND has slept in every morning this week! Apparently he enjoys his new bed !
By last night, the boys finally have got used to the new routine. We tucked them in and shut the door. And silence. Sleep!! And maybe now I can catch up on a little bit of sleep for myself. What? A mom can hope can’t she?
The Beauty That Surrounds
*Trust me there really is a point to this some-what long post but I needed to fill you in to the evolution and history before getting to it *
When we were purchasing our first home, we didn’t really have many necessities we were looking for. We kinda just went with something that had some character and had enough room for Jeremy and myself and of course the pets. We were sorta planning for the future and knew that one day we could have kids so we made sure we had a couple of bedrooms and I wanted a basement for entertaining and/or kids! When we first saw our house, it was in pretty decent shape but what really wooed us was the backyard! It was spacious and fenced in.
The yard was the selling point. And over the years, the frustrations of owning a home that was built in the ’40s has at some points brought us to tears! I can say that I HATE my house. I mean, I am very thankful that we own a home and we have shelter for our family, but I really wish we could move! There are too many things that need to be fixed and just not enough money in the budget to fix them!
The yard has transformed many times in the 8 years of living here. The first year, my neighbor informed me that she and the previous owner had gardened together and that the yard had a variety of many beautiful plants and trees. To a young, career oriented woman that meant nothing to me. Actually, I recall telling Jeremy that “I WOULD NEVER” garden and I started pulling plants out that I didn’t want to keep up.
The next summer, the gardening bug hit me. And HIT ME HARD! I started to research plants that were native to our area and were perennials. My dad and I tore out large amounts of shrubs and trees that were over grown and a nuisance. Let’s just say, that when Jeremy went to work one morning we had several mulberry trees in our yard and when he came home there were NONE! My dad and I decided to dig them out ourselves. I started planning out more and more flower beds and purchased more and more plants. Let’s just say that Jeremy wasn’t amused since he just saw a lot of work involved.
For a couple of years, the backyard evolved into a beautiful landscaped oasis that I could retreat to. I did most of the up keep myself and enjoyed working the soil and bringing beauty and wildlife (birds and butterflies) into our own little piece of Earth.
Then my whole world flipped upside down! Evan arrived! And my little Eden turned into a forgotten wasteland, as my focus turned to dealing with a newborn.
My backyard deteriorated that summer and weeds took over and plants went crazy. That first summer, I had a really hard time multitasking. I admit it! Evan wasn’t much for hanging outside while I worked. Saying that he would scream and cry the whole time would be an understatement. I tried, I did. But it was much easier to stay indoors and keep my little man busy doing other things.
The second summer after Evan was born, I was having Carter in July. So we all know that I was HUGE and wasn’t going to be out in the heat while carrying a baby that was making my stomach measure as if I was having twins (No joke!!), and besides the heat can you see a overly pregnant woman bending over and weeding! No thank you! So once again, my once beautiful oasis became a breeding ground for weeds and overgrowth.
BUT the tides were going to turn. Last summer, my dad couldn’t stand it any longer! He knew how beautiful my yard once was, and he definitely has a green thumb! He enjoys being outside making nature around us beautiful – even though he is known to complain the WHOLE time he is doing it – we know how much he truly enjoys it!
That summer, he weeded EVERYTHING, trimmed back all my plants and cleared out our overgrown woods at the end of our yard. He worked pretty much the whole summer. And boy was it beautiful again!
This summer, the boys are finally old enough to play together and not have to be watched constantly. So I was looking forward to getting back out there and enjoying my yard again. But then early in the spring, I made a realization. And really the whole point of the this post.
Most of my good friends, do not have yards that are child friendly, let a lone parent friendly. And I have both. I have a large, fenced in yard. And I have a covered porch where the parents can sit under and relax.
The first couple of times friends came over, comments were made about how lucky I am to have such a wonderful yard. So I decided to make it my mission, to keep my schedule as flexible as possible so that my friends could come over anytime they want. It kinda feels like my special way of giving back and blessing those moms in my life! And besides, having them over makes my days so MUCH EASIER! I get to have some quality time with my girl friends and the boys get to run off their built up energy with their friends!
I also have realized that the beauty that I once worked so hard on – the flowers and shrubs – pale in comparison to the beauty of friendships that were beginning to bud and blossom. The conversations and fellowship that happens in my backyard are much more a blessing then the surroundings. But the hard work of making our little plot of land beautiful, has paid off in ways that I never would have thought. Our yard is inviting to kids but also the beauty of the yard invites parents in and says “welcome, put your feet up for awhile, drink some coffee, listen to the song birds and enjoy the beauty of God’s creation.”
It is my little oasis that I now get to share with those special people in my life! A true blessing indeed.
Here are the views from the back porch:
And as if my backyard couldn’t get any better, Backyard Discovery asked me to be an Ambassador! Which meant, I was given a beautiful cedar play set. This was my moment of realizing that maybe God did have a special plan for my backyard! It made my backyard complete.
The kids in my sons’ lives now ask to go to “Evan and Carter’s Park”. My friends will text and ask if they can come over to “Loyd Park”. I love it! And of course we love that fact that we have a restroom that isn’t a porta-potty and a (usually) stocked kitchen for healthy snack times!
I also try to keep stocked with extra bubbles, bubble wands, bug catchers (because this summer the boys have decided that digging in my flower beds for insects is cool), water guns, sand toys and an extra dose of being care-free. Because kids plus plants usually equals trampled and wounded plants – HA! But that is okay. We are building lifelong memories and friendships!
So if you are in the neighborhood, stop on by, put you feet up and enjoy a cup of coffee!
Photo Taking With My Boys
The boys were dressed pretty darn cute yesterday, so I thought I would attempt to get ONE decent photo of them together… Knowing how this venture would go, the boys did not “disappoint”.
Here is how it went down:
Welcome to my world!
If You Can’t Beat ‘Em
I have mentioned it a time or two - about how my boys are CONSTANTLY picking on each other! I mean ALL. THE. TIME!! They at least take turns starting the fights. Evan will be intently watching a cartoon and Carter will run by and hit him in the head. Or if Carter is playing with one of his many Lightenings, Evan will run by and grab the one he is playing with. Every play time ends up with an all out grudge match.
So last week my mom had a surprise for the boys when we came over.
It’s brilliant! Bull-eyes and soft balls!! They can run around, throwing balls at each other without any one getting hurt!
Well that’s until Evan tackles Carter and smashes his face into the dirt! Not that Evan EVER does that or anything!
Tuesday Love
I love Tuesdays! Why? You ask? Well ever since I can remember, over the past 4 years, my gracious MIL takes the boys EVERY Tuesday (unless she is out of town or sick). This has been such a gift to me! I look forward to packing them up and getting them out of the house – is that wrong for me to admit? Oh well, I just did! HA!
Most Tuesdays, I try to get stuff done that is more difficult with 2 kids running around your ankles, usually laundry or grocery shopping. Sometimes I go window shopping or head to the coffee shop to work. But this Tuesday I did something that I rarely do…
I TOOK A SHOWER!!!
Okay, okay, don’t fret! I take showers regularly. But this past Tuesday, after doing the bills, I was sitting staring out of our bedroom window at the deluge of water that was raining down, contemplating the rest of my day. It was too soggy to go grocery shopping, or do anything that required actually going outside. So my thoughts headed toward doing the laundry. But unfortunately for Jeremy (since he didn’t have any underwear clean – TMI?), he laid flooring down in the kitchen Monday night and I was technically not allowed to walk on it for 24 hours. And since I have to walk through the kitchen OR go outside and through our garage to get to the laundry room, I decided that I didn’t *want* to ruin the new flooring .
So as I gazed out the window, it dawned on me. I could take a shower. You know moms – A SHOWER – a shower “like before having kids” shower! A long, care free, hot shower. A shower that didn’t require having one ear out of the shower listening for screams or thuds. A shower that didn’t have little fists banging on the bathroom door. A shower that didn’t have little voices in a monitor screaming your name.
An all out, CARE FREE, I can take AS LONG AS I WANT, hot, long (water wasting), stand under the nozzle until your skin is red kinda shower!!
And if that wasn’t enough, after I took a shower, I jumped into bed and watched daytime T.V.!
It was AWESOME! And even better, I didn’t even feel guilty about the laundry or the dishes. I just enjoyed the pampering I gave myself.
What have you done recently, just for yourself? I would definitely recommend a shower !
Sleeping Beauties
Okay, so I’m not too sure if I should call my boys “beauties” but I’m rolling with it – considering most of this post will have a tint of sarcasm with it – ha!
We have been having a struggle with sleep schedules recently.
On one hand you have Evan who NEEDS sleep. He has always been my perfect little sleeper (if you don’t count the first month of his life that he screamed 24/7). He was the child that everyone marveled at how well he napped and slept – the poster child of schedules! Man, he made me look pretty darn good ! He was EXACTLY what the “experts” wrote about in the sleeping books. He napped beautifully until we took the bink away around his 3rd birthday. Which was okay since he decided if he napped then he wouldn’t have to go to bed until midnight. This mama needs her kids in BED at 7:00!! So I now only make him take a nap if I know that he is worn down or if we will be out late.
But my little perfect sleeper now seems to think that he is old enough to choose his bedtime. Okay, so that is a weeee bit of an exaggeration on my part, he hasn’t verbalized that to us. But he does EVERYTHING in his power to prolong the bedtime ritual.
I wouldn’t mind being a little flexible with his schedule, if he would give us something in return. Let’s say…. oh maybe NOT getting up at 7:30 EVERY morning, regardless of what his previous bedtime was. If he goes to bed at 7:30 pm, he gets up at 7:30 am. If he goes to bed at midnight, he gets up at 7:30 am.
And he has been tired. Which means he has been a *charming* 4 year old to deal with. And the fact that he has had deep dark circles under his eyes for a month. I promise I don’t keep him up all night partying!
Then you have my second born! Aww my little life of the party. Carter has never been much of a scheduled person. I mean, he has ALWAYS slept well at night. The kid was sleeping through the night at like 4 weeks old. But naps were another thing all together. He wasn’t much of a napper. He pretty much decided from the beginning that he was going to PROVE every sleeping book wrong. But then again, I was a weeee bit less structured with my second born. And pretty much threw out all the “parenting” books and just parented by my gut! And besides, when you have an 18 month old, running, screaming and banging through out the house during baby’s nap time, it’s kinda pointless to try to keep things structured.
These past few weeks, Carter has decided he is a “big boy”. He tells me this often now. And I guess in his mind, a “big boy” doesn’t need to take naps either. You know, since his brother doesn’t take naps.
Which, really, doesn’t bother me too much. Because selfishly, it’s easier for the boys to entertain each other than for me to have to keep Evan quiet during Carter’s rest time. And it frees up my afternoons more. And he will go to bed earlier. Selfish?
Unlike Evan, Carter would sleep all morning long if it wasn’t for a loud older brother waking him up.
But all of this to say, that Carter is getting a little sleep deprived also.
Last night, I was making dinner around 5:00. I turned on Blue’s Clues (Carter’s new fave) from Netflix (which is THE BEST THING EVER). It was awfully quiet in the living room, so I tip toed in, to see if everything was okay.
And there Carter was, sitting straight up with his legs crossed and blanket in hand, on the couch, COMPLETELY asleep. The poor kid had fallen asleep sitting up. So I picked him up to see if he would wake up, because let’s face it, 5 o’clock nap time means midnight bedtime.
He nuzzled his face into my shoulder and started snoring. I held him for a little while, selfishly of course, to get some extra snuggles in. But then gently placed him in his crib. I left the door of his room open so that he would wake up gradually.
Did he wake up? NO!!!
The kid slept from 5:00 last night to 7:30 this morning. And that was only because Evan had to get up to go to school and once he awakens, EVERY one must get up.
Did I sleep that well? NO!!!
Because as a mom, guess what I was doing? I kept getting up to check the monitor. I worried all night wondering if he was coming down with an illness. I snuck into his room to see if he was breathing.
So, the moral of this story…the darn kids need sleep. AND no matter what the sleeping situations are of your kids, mom’s are not going to get ANY sleep until those kids are out of the house in 18 years!
The Winter Blahs
Mid January in Ohio is never fun. Not that I mind a little snow, but a little snow along with bitterly cold temperatures just makes it down right annoying to take the boys anywhere. So this “can’t stand being at home” mom is staying home a lot more than I would like.
And if I am staying at home all. the. time, why get dressed, put makeup on, or even fix my hair? I have kinda embraced the sweat pants and pony tail look.
But apparently I have embraced this lifestyle a little more than Evan would like.
Last night at the dinner table, he came over and climbed up in my lap. He laid his head on my shoulder and started playing with my pony tail with his hand.
“Ummmm, mom, I really don’t like your hair like that. I like it when it is not like that.”
It was in a pony tail.
“Yeah, mom, I like it down and around your face. Can you make your hair like that again?”
Broken
After having a wonderful heart-to-heart with the ladies in my home church last night, it shocked me to think that many of them thought I was the “put together” one. How did they get to this very wrong assumption?
They read my blog!
What goes on in my head and in my life on most days doesn’t match my blog and twitter. You see, the beauty of having a blog is that you can share ONLY what you want. And if those stories are only the good, happy or productive ones, most of your readers think your are perfect put together. You can be whatever you want others to think based on your stories on the ol’ blog. Besides, when I started this thing, called a blog, I wanted to document my kids lives so that they have a story, written by their mom, of THEIR childhood. Not document how crazy their mom really is.
My blog has taken some twists and turns along the way. And although, I may not write about my kids EVERY day, I want what I do write about them to be significant and meaningful for the day they do get around to reading it. Hopefully, they will be out of the “embarrassing easily” stage since many of my stories can be quite that.
Therefore, I stay away from the ugly. Who wants to read about the ugly, day in and day out? And I am not one to share the ugly with ANYONE, except with God and Jeremy. So if I don’t want to share the non-perfect with my friends in real life, why would I actually write it where anyone in this world can read it?
But after my evening with some amazing women I thought I would share just a little bit of what goes on in my mind and life most days (maybe not all of these everyday but a lot on most days). Because, we are more similar than meets the eye.
- I am broken
- Most days I feel like a failure. A failure as a mom, a failure as a wife and a failure as a friend.
- I yell
- I lose my cool
- I cry
- I disconnect myself from other people
- I disconnect myself from my kids
- I hurt
- I’m apathetic
- I’m angry
- I’m jealous
- I worry
- I’m stressed
- I’m anxious
- I’m lonely
- I’m crazy
- I’m broken
You see, I hide all the ugly. I much rather people think I am well put together and a snob then to show them how messed up I really am. And apparently, I have succeeded in that goal, because my friends, that I shared with last night, had no idea how much I struggle, day in and day out! That is, until last night. They saw the ugly, the crazy and the messed up!
What happened after?
We cried, we laughed, we empathized. They thanked me for being real! We are all broken in some way. We bonded knowing that we are MORE similar than meets the eye! I can’t wait to see the journey we are about to embark on…..And as we agreed last night, “We AAALLLLL be crazy up in here.” And I’m cool with that!
But don’t worry y’all, I’m not going to post about my crazy every day. Maybe occasionally…
Are We There Yet?
Yesterday morning we crawled out of bed around 3:30, packed up our final belongings for our trip to Florida, and crept quietly in the boys rooms to transport them into the car.
Jeremy had the awesome idea to leave in the middle of the night, so that the boys would sleep for a good part of the 15 hours in the vehicle. The night before, we clothed the boys in comfy outfits so that they wouldn’t have to wear their pajamas in the car for 15 hours and so that we wouldn’t have to try to dress them in the FREEZING cold. Because, our first trip during the holidays EVER, is to Florida which means that the warm weather of the south would disappear and it would SNOW the whole way down.
But anyway, I digress. Where was I at? Oh yeah…
We crept in the boys rooms and gently picked them up. Eyes POP open and both began to squeal. They knew we were going to see cousin Kaden soon.
We placed them in the warm truck, covered them up and gave them the essentials. Pillow pets, binkies and blankets.
It is 4:00 am.
4:30: “Are we there yet?”
4:45: “Are we there yet?”
5:00: “Are we there yet?”
Boys GO TO SLEEP!
Carter finally falls back to sleep around 6:00. But Evan, Evan decides that sleeping is over rated. Each time I think he has fallen asleep, I peak around the head rest and two little eyes are staring at me.
Carter awakens around 7:00.
Carter maybe says 5 words the WHOLE trip. If only we could be so lucky with Evan.
After Evan badgering me for hours about where we were at, I finally declared that he no longer can ask me, “If we are there yet?” Because Evan will one day be a lawyer, he redirected his questions, making sure he didn’t ask “are we there yet?” Instead he managed to spend the REST of the trip asking the same question in as many different ways as possible.
2:00 pm: “Mom, Are we in Florida?”
2:15 pm “Mom, Are we out of Tennessee yet?”
2:30 pm: “Mom, What state are we in, because you know Kaden lives in Florida”.
…
…
…
4:45 pm: “How much longer until we are in Florida.”
…
…
6:15 pm: “Are we leaving Alabama any time soon. I HATE ALABAMA. ALABAMA is soooooo LONG. ALABAMA goes on forever. I wish there was no Alabama.”
WE KNOW KID!!!!!
7:00 – WE ARRIVED!!! hallelujah!!
Remember I mentioned that Evan didn’t sleep at all for the WHOLE trip…
He and his cousin, played and ran around until 11:00 pm (Ohio time), and awakened at 6:30 to continue where they left off this morning.
Oh boy, wish me luck today and pass me a cup of coffee.
Because I Couldn’t Just Buy Cookies…
I am completely OUT. OF. CONTROL!!!! Last week I needed to sign up to bring something for Evan’s Preschool Christmas Party. It was at the beginnings of the Cinderella Cake, and I was feeling all crafty and creative, so I decided to volunteer to bring cookies. I have wanted to try my hand at replicating the gorgeous cookies from our local bakery.
I knew I couldn’t replicate them on my first shot, but I was hoping to come close. And since I have said it more than a couple of times, you are aware that I am *slightly* a perfectionist.
I think this perfectionism toward all things baking is going to kill me, and most likely, kill me pretty soon. So this week, I have been scouring the internetz for sugar cookie recipes and icing recipes. After trying several recipes, yes you heard me right. I tried several recipes this week, before landing on one that was close to my dream.
Needless to say, the boys have loved my trial and errors.
By about 4:00 yesterday, I was VERY, VERY tempted just to go buy some @%*$ cookies. But I persevered and ended up with these:
Not bad, right? And according to the 3 men in the house, they tasted pretty good too !
But, because I am always looking for the “right” recipe, if you have a wonderful go-to sugar cookie recipe and / or icing recipe, HELP ME OUT! Why doncha?
Outnumbered!! The Christmas Tree is Chosen!
Well, this weekend we ran out to get out tree. I can get a little bit stressed about trying to find the perfect tree. I know, I know. You are all shocked right now. But it is true.
Unfortunately, as fate would have it (or fortunately for the boys, I guess), the sun was starting to set when we finally made it to our destination. So no,” long, drawn out, circle the farm 10 times before finding the perfect tree” trip for us this year. The boys were focused. Well Evan and Jeremy were. Carter and I were enjoying a fun game of “Hide and Go Seek Christmas Tree Farm Edition”.
Apparently, I missed the memo about what type of tree Jeremy and Evan wanted. So no short needles, the boys wanted a long needled tree. Ummmm….not what I had in mind. But Jeremy insists that our troubles began when we started purchasing short needled trees. What ever?!?!
But because I was unaware of the arrangement, each time I picked out a tree, Evan shook his head at me, “Ummm Mom, that’s not what we are getting.”
Humph, he is so bossy all. the. time sometimes.
After walking up the huge hill, in the mud. We came to the first batch of long needled trees. And within a minute, Evan declared he had found our tree.
The chosen!
I tried to state my case and explain to them that the tree they chose, was, well, UGLY, but apparently since I am the only estrogen filled person in this family, I get no say in such matters as this. The men decided that “This is the tree we are getting. Period.”
The Conquered
And Jeremy got lucky, because the sun was setting and it was getting dark. And of course when Evan’s dimpled smile comes out, it is hard to resist…
I'm in TROUBLE!
Perfection and Crackers
When I was a child, I had a game that I adored. And up until now, I haven’t seen it around the stores {Not that I look often but when I do, I haven’t had luck}. Until when we were Christmas shopping for the boys a few weeks ago. Jeremy was trying very hard to keep me focused on only the items that were on our list, because I kinda could go out of control buying gifts *ahem*.
But when the clouds opened up and I heard angels sing, he had no other choice but to get me “Perfection”. I know, you all are ALL shocked that my favorite game growing up has to do with Math .
And the boys love playing it too, that is when I let them play. Because after all Jeremy got it for ME, not them!
Which brings me to another discussion about my obsession with shapes. Many of you are not on Twitter, and sometimes funny conversation happen on Twitter. So I thought I would let you all in to one of those “Crazy mom moments”.
Last week, Carter and I were eating Cheez-it crackers which are his new favorite snack. Evan was at school.
Carter asked me, “What’s this mama?”
“That is a cracker.”
With a sparkle in his eye and a grin he responded, “Noooooo, mama, it’s a square.”
Impressed, I agree with him.
A few moments later, he asked for a octagon. Of course, we didn’t have any octagon crackers. He began saying that the Cheez-its were octagons. And trying very hard to state his case.
After a few moments of arguing with my 2 YEAR OLD, I asked him if he wanted to go to the store and find some octagon crackers. Because come on, no son of mine can confuse octagons with squares.
So off we went and off I tweeted. Here is a partial of that conversation (the tweets are in descending order so read from the bottom up)…
So in case you guys want to have a yummy math lesson about shapes here’s what I found (all at Kroger).
Octagons: Carr’s
Octagons
Hexagons:Keebler Wheatables (oyster crackers are also hexagons)
Hexagons
Squares: Cheez-its
Squares
Rectangles: Kroger Baked 100% Whole Wheat Crisps
Rectangle
Circles: Nabisco Better Cheddars
Circles
Can you say “crazy mom”?!!?!?!
Keeping Your Word…Stinks
Before I begin, let me say, I am NOT perfect. And I am not tooting my own horn.
With that said, when I became a parent, one very important goal of mine was to always come through on my word. When I was teaching, I saw the effects of parents not keeping their word and it really had a lasting effect on me.
So from the beginning, if I told the boys I would do something (good or bad), I made every effort to come through. And I can honestly say, that there have not been many instances that I can remember, that I didn’t follow through. Because of this, my boys trust me. If I say that I will get them something, they know I will. If I inform them that they will be disciplined when we get home, they know they will be. If I promise to do something, they know I will do it.
But keeping your word really stinks. Let’s face it, there are times that you just don’t want to do something after saying that you will.
You are too tired.
Too stressed.
Too busy.
On Monday, I took the boys shoe shopping. Evan especially needed some new shoes – I don’t know what they are doing in preschool, but his shoes are completely torn apart. But I digress..
While we were at one of the shoe stores, Evan came across some hideous Spider Man socks. He begged and begged. So of course, I splurged and bought him the socks. Unfortunately for Carter, there were no other socks that he liked. He kept asking me for “choo choo socks”. So I got down on his eye level and explained to him that there were no socks, but I promised I would get him some.
He was cool with that. He didn’t throw a fit.
So that begun the quest. It was lunch time. It was nap time. And I was coming down with a nasty bug. But I drove on over to the mall, to quickly run into Sears. For some reason, it made sense that Sears would have Thomas items.
We parked, where I thought was the closest entrance and ran into the store.
We of course, parked as FAR away from the children’s department as possible. Navigating through the store with two hungry, tired boys and no stroller for Carter was about to throw me over the edge.
I told Carter, that if Sears didn’t have “choo choo socks” than we would have to postpone our search to another time, because I they needed to eat and take a nap.
We FINALLY made it to the children’s department and there the clouds opened up and light shone down upon Thomas socks. Carter giggled and giggled! He was so excited. I was excited too because they were on sale and cheaper than Evan’s Spider Man socks.
After a complete slight meltdown from my son who RARELY has meltdowns (Evan) we headed to the checkout and waited in line. The young girl scanned the socks and proceeded to ask me a million questions. After answering all of the question, she told me the price.
I reached into my purse to pay…
And I didn’t have my wallet!! Are you freaking joking me. I left my wallet in the truck, parked as far away as possible with 3 starving and tired people.
I couldn’t go back. I was too beat. So I knelt down and explained to Carter that mommy couldn’t buy his socks because I left my money in the truck. His lip started quivering and a couple of whines came out. And then he was okay.
“Okay mama!”
I felt horrible.
So Tuesday morning came. I knew what I had to do. On a cold and rainy morning, Carter and I drove 20 minutes to pick up a stupid pair of socks.
But with a kid like this…I have to say…it was worth it. Even though I am SO AGAINST my boys wearing character clothing which is a post for another day. How could I even think about not going back when I said I would.
What have you done for your kids in the name of parenthood? I would love to hear that I am not the only one who will drive out of the way for a pair of socks?
I’m Gonna Need a Wig
I wish I could say that most days look like this:
Or this:
Or even this:
I wish I could say that my boys, my boys that I planned 18 months a part for a reason, were best of friends. Brothers who actually got along more than once a week.
But most of the time, they look like this. Ignore my foot in the picture. But like most moms, I don’t take many pictures of the boys fighting, so I have to use what I got:
But they don’t. I have tried EVERYTHING.
I have tried disciplining.
I have tried separating.
I have tried negotiating.
I have tried persuading.
I have tried discussing.
I have tried convincing.
I have tried ignoring.
NOTHING has worked.
Now don’t get me wrong. Evan is a very protective big brother to outside forces. If I could only get him to be a loving and patient brother all the time. And it has gotten worse now that Carter is old enough to instigate and that Evan is now in preschool.
They are non-stop picking on each other. Both equally.
Help! If this continues, I will need to buy a wig because I will have pulled every last hair out of my head. Mom of boys, please tell me it’s a phase, that eventually, it clicks, and they stop picking. Or at least tell me, this is normal between brothers. Or you can just lie to me !
Going Alternative: The Assessment
As you may remember, about 4 weeks ago, I went to a Chiropractor, Nutritionist and Wellness Doctor to see if we could figure out what was wrong with me. I had my follow up appointment this week where we discussed his findings based on my blood work, hair sample and urine. Fun stuff, right?
Well, the good news is, is that there is nothing drastically wrong with me. Although that is a relief, because really who wants to be clinically sick, I admit I was a little bit disappointed because there wasn’t a clear answer of what was causing all my symptoms. I wanted it to be clear and precise. HA! I knew that wouldn’t be the case, but I was hoping !
But the doctor did find some things from my tests. There are many (about 50% of the 52 items tested) that were slightly lower or higher then they should be. And a few essential elements that are completely out of whack! Interesting enough most of the items that are off a bit are associated with fatigue, inflammation and joint pain. So I was at least reaffirmed that what I have been feeling, hasn’t been “all in my head”.
I also tested hypoglycemic. Which this one really shocked me because I rarely feel that I have low blood sugar. I actually thought I did well without eating since there are many times that I “forget” to eat when taking care of the boys. I don’t get the “shakes” or dizziness but I have been moody, depressed during times and agitated more over the past few years then I have ever been before. But come on, I assumed that was because I am constantly running after 2 small children, like most moms.
As for my feet? There isn’t an answer for that yet 
. But instead of jumping the gun, the dr. wants me to go 2 weeks strictly on this new regimen he has me on and see if that helps. He is hopeful that my feet pain are associated some how to what I have been eating or lack of. If I am not feeling better after 2 weeks, I will go back in and discuss more options (and $$$$) to find a reason for my feet pain.
So where does this leave me? Well here is the fun stuff that I get to do for the next 8 weeks (*sarcasm of course):
- The doctor believes I may have a milk or soy allergy, presenting itself in the form of my “seasonal allergy” symptoms and migraines. He has decided to take me off all soy and limit my milk to minimal consumption. But pretty much I need to try to stay away from milk products also, but if I consume a little bit he isn’t too worried.
- He has put me on a hypoglycemic diet. Which means I have to eat a few bites of food every 2 hours!! This is going to be a hard one for me! So I have set my phone to go off every 2 hours as a reminder, that is if I have my phone on me when it goes off! Which is another issue all in itself!
- I am allowed to eat only 1 fruit a day due to the hypoglycemia and the rest veggies! This one bummed me out the most I think, because I am more of a fruit eater than a veggie eater.
- He has me off all enriched ingredients (such as enriched flour). So pretty much it has to be completely whole grain or I can’t eat it! So no more cakes, cookies or other yummies at least for the next 2 months.
- I have to drink 3 quarts of water every day.
- And lastly I get to take a boat load of vitamins, minerals and supplements and when I say boatload:
15 different varieties
Five day supply (AM, lunch, PM)
So that’s where I stand right now. Fun isn’t it? But I keep telling myself it is only for 2 months! Right? I can do that. Especially if there is any chance of my body getting back to the way God intends it to be!
So call me quacky, but I’m going to do it!
Since I have to do this for 8 weeks, I will be keeping you updated with all my quackiness, trials, mess ups and successes!
Next up: finding the right foods (oh it has been a fun journey so far *sarcasm again )
