oh, well...maybe not

i'm not back after all :( i took my stitches out tonight, and my cut has not healed. elliott and i have it pulled closed with a bandaid that is held in place with surgical tape. hopefully, this will work and i won't have to go back to the ER. so, my hand is all bandaged up since the chance of infection is higher now that the wound is open, and typing with one hand is slow and annoying. i have so many posts to write, but it's not going to happen tonight. hopefully, i'll be back on schedule with daily posts by the end of the week. see you then :)

I'm Back

Thanks for all of the comments on my Unintended Break post. My finger is on the mend, and I should be back to regular blogging soon. I was supposed to get my stitches out today, but I accidentally popped one this morning and my finger didn't look healed enough to have them all removed. I'll probably clip the rest of them tomorrow. I'm trying to talk O into helping me (since she loves to pretend to be a doctor), but she's not interested. She said "I'm just a little kid. I'll be a doctor when I'm bigger." I asked when that would be and she said "when I'm 6 or 7 or maybe 9 or 10."

New Blog

I've started a new blog, and I wanted to share the idea with you (but not the blog!). I've always kept handwritten journals for my girls, and my goal has been to write in them weekly. That never seems to happen, and I'm lucky if I write in them once a month. I realized that keeping journals for the girls would be much easier to do on a more frequent basis if I started a blog of letters to the girls. So, that's what I did!

Every couple of days, I'll write a letter to each girl or one to both of them. I tell them what's going on in our lives (boring details that I wouldn't include on a public blog) or my feelings about them or things they have done. This blog is completely private, and it's freeing to write and know that no one is reading it (yet! I'll print copies for the girls one day). I've always kept a journal, and this blog feels very much like journaling to me since it is private. I'm still going to write in their handwritten journals, but now the pressure is off and I can write in them when I have time and don't have to feel obligated to keep them up weekly. I'm really hoping that I'll be able to get Elliott to write letters to the girls, too. I'm not holding my breath, but maybe he'll at least write to them on their birthdays (and I think that once he does it once he'll be hooked).

So, now I have 3 blogs to keep up with...I wonder if I can do it :)

Learning to Sew

Guh-guh has been teaching O to sew on the sewing machine. They made an Angelina Ballerina pillowcase for O, and O was so excited that she insisted that they make one for Baby Sister, too. She's such a sweet big sister!

Lately, O has REALLY enjoyed watching the dvd that came with my sewing machine. When I was sewing a few days ago, she came and sat on my lap so she could show me what to do. She already knows more about my sewing machine than I do!

Updating My Link List

My link list is badly in need of updating. I'm planning on cutting a lot of the links and adding a few. If I have a link to your blog on my list and you'd like for me to keep it, please let me know by commenting on this post. THanks!

I guess it was a good idea...

Judging from the response to my Confessions... post, it seems that it was a good idea to post about all of the things that I don't do. I guess I should have written something like that before, but I had no idea that anyone would be interested, and I did not realize how I was perceived. I feel sad, disappointed, and guilty to read about how reading my blog is the low point of some people's days and that it's a guilt inducing read. I hope that you realize that has never been my intention. I write the blog simply to document our activities for our own use and for the grandparents to enjoy and to share ideas and inspiration with other mamas.

Happy 1/2 Birthday to O!

O turned 3 and a half yesterday, and it was a fun excuse to have an small impromptu party. We made homemade ice-cream and chocolate cake in a mug. We used substituted half of the flour with whole wheat flour, and it was a mistake. I also divided the mixture between 2 mugs because O's mug is rather small. That was another mistake. The cake was a little rubbery. It tasted good when mixed with the ice-cream, but it was not good by itself. O said she liked everything about her party except for the cake :)

You can't really tell in the picture, but one of the candles is a half :) O was thrilled to hang the birthday banner, wear her birthday crown, and have everyone else wear hats. She asked me to wear a pink crown "so everyone will know you are mine." We are looking forward to E's half birthday celebration in a couple of months!

Confessions...

After reading this post over at The Snail's Trail, I thought it would be fun to write a confessions post. These are the things that I don't say or show on my blog because I don't think you are coming over here to read about the things we don't do...you are stopping by for ideas and inspiration which is what I try to provide. However, the post (and comments) at The Snail's Trail lead me to believe that some readers might enjoy this post :) So, here I go...

I work on Thursdays and on most Wednesday nights I realize that I haven't brushed my hair since the previous Wednesday.

If the weather is slightly bad (cold or wet), we don't go outside. I'm relieved that I have the weather as an excuse so I don't feel guilty about not going outside (this happens MUCH more since the baby was born, and I am REALLY trying to play outside more as she gets bigger).

One reason that I am happy to stay inside all day is then it's ok for us to wear our pjs ALL DAY LONG! We've been having REALLY cold weather for the past few weeks, and on most days we just stay cozy and comfy in our pjs.

O loves to dress herself and her choices are VERY interesting. I wish that I shared pictures of her on this blog because her combinations are hilarious. She almost always has on a costume, leotard, etc and rarely wears "real" clothes at home. I let her wear her choice of clothes when we go my mom's house, but I try to give her some direction if we are going out and about.

My baby rarely goes to bed before 11 pm. It's 12am now, and she is sleeping peacefully in my arms. I've been rocking and nursing her for almost 3 hours. I love it, and I don't want to put her down. However, it would be nice to put her down occasionally...

We live in the middle of nowhere with no neighbors and no kids nearby. I worry about O not having friends to play with. We are looking for houses in a small town about 30 minutes away because we don't think it's such a good thing for our kids to grow up in such an isolated area. However, there are not many houses for sale, and I am feeling very discouraged.

On Wednesday nights when I am getting things ready for work the next day, I often feel a sick dread of leaving the kids. However, a not so small part of me looks forward to going to work because work is so much easier than being a SAHM. I enjoy talking to my work friends, and I love what I do (I'm a School Psychologist).

I sometimes dread looking at the blogs on my google reader because I know there will be so many things that I want to do that I don't have time to do. I'll keep putting off checking it, but I don't want to miss any great ideas, so I try to catch up late at night after everyone is asleep. As I'm reading the titles of posts, I try to click on as few as possible. I have SO MANY starred items that it is ridiculous, and I almost cringe when I star more posts.

When reading other homeschooling blogs, I occasionally feel a sense of panic when I see something that I haven't done with O. I talk myself down by reminding myself that she is only 3, and the most important things that we do are reading and playing. All of the other stuff is just filler :)

My house (especially since the baby was born) is often a disaster. I'm less stressed when it's clean, but it seems impossible to get a handle on things. I don't remember the last time I mopped. It's been a LONG time. I realized today that I'll have to start mopping regularly once the baby starts crawling...maybe she'll be a late crawler like her big sister (10 months) :)

I REALLY want to be organized, but organization eludes me.

I'm really bad about starting projects and not finishing them for months. I have file folder games that I printed in MAY that I have not finished making. That's just ridiculous.

I have many more boxes of craft supplies than I have room for. One of my New Year's resolutions is to use what I have instead of buying more craft supplies. However, that requires organization in order for me to know what I have...

Although, I've never let O watch tv during the daytime, I've started letting her watch 2 videos (Letter Factory and Signing Time) during the afternoon instead of taking a nap (every other day).

O is a candy fiend. We don't let her have candy often, but she loves it. We have a container of candy from Christmas in our pantry, and we've been letting her have one piece a day. I'm not even sure how that started...

I don't like to cook and I hate baking. When I cook, I cook a lot, and we eat leftovers for as long as possible. I really love my crockpot because I can cook healthy meals without feeling like I'm cooking at all.

I hate to dust, so I don't...my house is very dusty :) I'm teaching O to dust, and I'm hoping that she'll love it!

I still have Christmas crafts to do (photo ornaments mounted on foam core board and memory book ornaments). I'm hoping to finish them by the end of January.

We have JUST gotten O on a consistent bedtime schedule. She goes to bed around 8:30. We are still flexible, but we all like having a set bedtime for her, and we really enjoy reading together as a family every night.

We use disposable diapers when we are on vacation or are out and about. Sometimes it's just easier to throw the poop away.

It's not uncommon for me to realize late at night that ALL of E's diapers are dirty. (I just sent Elliott to find diapers for me to have for the night and there are none...guess it's sposies tonight).

We had a mouse in our house. He's gone, but we are still finding evidence of his existence. He wreaked havoc on my many bins of craft materials.


We've gotten incredibly slack with EC since it's been colder. I don't remember the last time I put E on the potty. I'll do better once it warms up...

I sometimes realize that I'm doing something just so I can blog about it. I HATE that, and it makes me think I should stop blogging.

I started this blog to document our activities (to one day turn into a book for the kids) and to share ideas. It started off being lots of fun, but lately it often feels more like an obligation than fun.


Ok. That's probably enough. This was fun to write...kind of like a catharsis :) Feel free to chime in with your confessions...I really like comments!

Let's Explore...

is closing :( Everything is 40% off, but you should hurry because there's not much left.

Thanks!

Thanks for all of the kind comments! My girls are feeling better, and we haven't had to do a breathing treatment with E in over 24 hours :)

I'm beginning to think I should've never taken a blog break since it's so hard for me to get back to it :) However, my OCD need to document our activities will not allow me to completely stop the blog. I have SO many things that I'd like to blog about...several handmade gifts that I haven't yet shared, many product reviews, fixing cloth diaper elastic, E's Montessori bedroom, our winter activities, our Montessori activities rotation system, etc, but I just haven't had the time to take pictures, and I only have about 3 minutes at a time on the computer...usually late at night when I'm too tired to do much. So, I will be back, but it may be a few days or a week before I'm up and running again. I'm hoping to find a block of time to write about 20 posts at once (set to post once a day) so that I can sit back and be a lazy blogger again! Thanks again for your words of support.

Happy New Year!

It's been a rough week. Both E and O are sick, and we have to give E breathing treatments every 4 hours. Hopefully, both girls are on the mend and next week will be better.

It's been nice to not think about this blog, and I'm feeling a little ambivalent about continuing it. However, I'm sure that I'll get back into a blogging mood eventually...

Taking a Break

Just wanted to let you know that I'll be taking a break from this blog for a while...probably until the New Year. See you then :)

On Vacation

We've been on vacation since the day after Thanksgiving, and we're having a wonderful time. O has enjoyed flying her kite on the beach, digging in the sand, writing her name in the sand, playing on the treehouse playground, swimming in the heated pools, and hanging out in the apartment.

We've taken her on 2 Mama, Daddy, & O dates, and she's thoroughly enjoyed herself. She tried lots of new foods at the Japanese Buffet (sushi rolls, crawfish, blue crab, seaweed, etc.). She said she didn't like the texture of the seaweed :) She enjoyed the Christmas Show and didn't hesitate to go on stage when they called for the children to join them for a song.
Tonight we took her to see The Polar Express at the IMAX3d...bad idea! It was extremely loud, intense, and scary. She hid her head and even cried a little. Luckily, we were on either side of her, and she took turns cuddling in our arms during the scary parts. After it was over she said it was "great," but then she said she didn't have a favorite part because it was too scary :(
We started our advent activities today, and I'll be posting about our daily advent activities as well as our daily work on handmade gifts soon.

Another Blast From the Past

This woodsey playset is one of my all time favorite toys from my childhood. I remember asking my mom to read the book that went along with it over and over again. I'm SO glad that my mom saved this playset and now my girls get to enjoy it (it makes a nice fairy house!). For those of you whose moms didn't save all of your childhood toys, you can find this playset on ebay :)

Ohhhhhhhhh, I had this glowworm, too (the purple one) and this doll. I need to go up in the attic to find the rest of my toys!

Charm Necklace

Remember this??? This is my charm necklace from about 25 years ago. I was very proud of this necklace and thought I was so cool when I wore it :) Luckily, my mom saves everything, so now O loves the necklace, too (and I'm sure Ema will love it in about 3 years!). She especially loves the pretend lipstick, and she insists that the record is a frisbee. I guess I need to show her a record since it obviously a foreign concept for her!

2.99 Shipping at Let's Explore

Let's Explore has 2.99 flat rate shipping until November 8! I love a good deal on shipping!!! (Thanks to My Boaz's Ruth for pointing this out in the comments section of the Spinny Speller post!)

Balancing a Broom

We did it! After seeing this balancing broom trick on Pink and Green Mama, we decided to give it a try! After a few tries, the broom balanced perfectly. We left it up to surprise Guh-guh, and she WAS surprised!

Our 1st EC Success!!!

We've have been cuing and watching Ema's potty signals since she was about 3 weeks old. Today I held her over the big potty for the 1st time. O and I cued her and she pee-peed! We were so proud :) O was especially excited! Click here to learn more about EC. I highly recommend this book if you are interested in using this method with your baby. We were lucky that our local library had a copy!

Lots of Unschooling this Weekend!

O is obsessed with all things medical, and she LOVES to play "first day" (first aid). We were on vacation this weekend with her grandparents, and she was thrilled to play "first day" with her grandaddy for hours and hours. Her grandaddy is a volunteer fire fighter who has a well stocked first aid kit. O had a great time "organizing" it, and she taught Ema all about gauze, blood stopper, sterile bandages, eye irrigation, thermal blankets, etc. I have to admit that I was a little surprised when O excitedly asked to play "heart compressions!" She often plays "broken leg, broken arm, and having a baby," but I'd never heard her ask to play heart compressions. Funny girl!

She is also VERY interested in learning about electricity, so she was thrilled to wake up on our first morning at the beach to find a bucket truck working on the power lines directly in front of our house.

There were lots of other fun learning experiences this weekend, but these were the highlights!

Playdough Storage Update

We've recently discovered that storing playdough in the metal IKEA containers is NOT a good idea, and I thought I should let everyone know... The playdough dried out on the edges, and the homemade chocolate playdough had some kind of strange chemical reaction with the container. It turned black in a couple of spots and seemed to burn a hole in the bottom of the container somehow. Very strange. I guess it's better to store playdough in plastic containers after all :(