A Place To Dream

Release...

2010-12-22T14:17:00.000-08:00

My word, new years resolution, my intention for 2011 is "release". So much joy will come in this new year if I make room for it. It had pushed hard to come through this past year, I want to ease the way. 2010 was a very good year but too often I didn't allow myself to really feel it. Instead I held onto those overwhelmed feelings that really don't fit my life any more. I was so used to feeling that way that I created it inside me when if I really thought about what was going on it just wasn't real. I will release old unwanted trains of thought, I will release clutter. In those 2 things I will reclaim myself, my mind, my body, my home, my time. With less time focused on putting away/stashing junk and emotions I don't need I'll have all the time I want for enjoying all the Lord's blessings. I am so excited to play more with my kids! I am so excited to feel more at ease with myself. I'm excited to let life flow instead of trying to plug leaks. I can get that by finding our rhythm. I don't know if anyone will really get what this blog is about but that's okay. It's a powerful for me to write it. I can feel a light inside me glowing, getting brighter, ready to shine.

school school what happened to you?

2010-12-20T19:34:00.000-08:00

Seems we are getting nothing done. I have to keep reminding myself this is December and this happens every yr. Sometime I wonder if we should just plan to take the whole month off! And I feel bad we haven't done more fun crafts and decorating. I often feel that way when we fly past a holiday w/out much attention. But hey we did make our paperchain count down to Christmas. That's a must in our house. The kids look forward to it every year.
But I am SO SO excitted for the new year!!! I love January, it feels like a fresh start. Almost like September. Okay I know that it sounds crazy but September is this month when school starts and you get so excited about the new school year. Well than January after Chridtmas break is like a 2nd wind. I'm really looking forward to instilling more routine into our days. Going to start small for the first month with set wakeup, meal, nap/quiet time, and bedtimes(For the kids as well as myself). I think from there we will fall into place. Also going to set some big internet use rules on myself for the new year. What about letting myself check my e-mail for 10min in the mornning and then not again online till school is done for the day. Otherwise the internet is like a black hole sucking all my time away. I also want to start doing at least one 27thing fling boogie a day to get rid of our cluter so we can reclaim our home and our free time. I need to think of more things to keep Onaleigh busy durring lesson time. Things like gluten free playdough, watercolor paints, and hey maybe a sensory table(really just a short plastic storage bin) with assorted fun ideas...water, rice, beans, stuff like that. I'm thinking it's time to try starting reading lessons with Braxton. Not so much because I want him reading but because I think it will help him get more out of his speech theropy. We'll keep it gentle. If he's not ready for book work than we'll stick to phonics games and songs. Chance is comming along in his lessons but we need to reenergise, January is a perfect oppertunity for that! LOL. Looking forward to planning more things with friends and doing more projects. 2011 is going to be a really great year!!!!

Updates

2010-12-05T20:23:00.000-08:00

So some updates!
Chance is now 8years old and having a good school year. Things seem to be clicking a lot more for him. He was baptised this past September and recieved the gift of the Holy Ghost. This seems to have had a very big effect on him. In his blessing it was said he would go on a mission one day. As each day passes I can see that in him more and more. He's very spiritual in all aspects of his life. He is a passionate kid. When he gets evcited about a topic he talks with his hands to make points. It hits me at these moments that he is growing up so fast.
Braxton will be turnning 5 this month! Wow. He is such a sweet kid. I need to help him with his self-esteem. Sometimes he can be so hard on himself. He is craving more school time with mom and I know if I can carve more time for that will make a world of a difference. Over the summer he went to speech camp at the local collage. And then this Fall he went again. He's been working on his s blends such as sp,st,sc/sk. He was going 2 times a week for an hour each and he LOVED it. I think having someones undivided atention means a lot esspecialy to a middle child. This last session is done and it will be 2months before the next session starts. So we will have to contimue to work on those s blends at home. He is very into his superheros right now. His 2 favorites are Batman and Spiderman. He says things sometimes that make me really pause and be in the moment. When he smiles it with his whole being.
Onaleigh will be 2 in a little over a month. And wow is she acting it, lol. He climbs a lot. Pushes chairs up to the counters to reach more trouble. No purse is safe! We pull her down or turn her away from one things she goes straight to another bit of trouble. Some of her words are POOP, mom, Chance, stop, bow(that's her word for dog), Dad(once in a great while). She will sometimes repeat words I say but I can't pick them out unless we are playing repeat. One of those words is Braxton. She and our dog Molly have a special bond. Molly will let Onaleigh snuggle her and she won't run.
Keith is working very hard at work. And also at home. He has been doing Chance's Math program with him in the evenings. Chance is loving it and I think Keith is feeling good about it too. I think eventully he will give this job to me. But he's getting more into our schooling. I can tell he feels good about it.
I have a new, old hobby. I got a Kindle for my Birthday. I used to read all the time but for awhile there I let the Internet take up the time I used to spend reading. It's great to get back into books Now. I'm averaging a book a week. I finnaly read Gone With The Wind, that's a book that has been on my want to read list for 15years now! Also been reading Wizard Of Oz books to the kids from the kindle. Currently I am reading "Simplicity Parenting". Looking forward to really getting into it, just started the book yesterday.
I was going to write more but I'm getting tired(it's 11:30pm). But I'll be back another day!

one of those days...remembering the little wins in the day

2010-04-21T22:00:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here at 11:30 at night still in the PJ's I put on yesterday. That's right I never got dressed today, never brushed my teeth, nor my hair. My house is a mess. I was feeling a bit sorry for myself. Seems my 15month old wanted to be my best bud today, she was at my ankles all day. So I need to look back now at my day and think of what my accomplishments were and where were the positives. Lets see

-ran my dishwasher 2 times today, washed pots and pans

-did Chance's reading lesson with him today, I'm amazed at how much better he did than Monday(Tues was Homeschool group science class, so we skipped formal lessons that day since he got 3 1/2hrs class time that day).

-got some tips on helping Braxton's growing pains in his legs. I feel impowered, thanks to my crunchy facebook friends

-feed my kids their green smoothie today. It's so cool to watch them drink that and know how much spinach, kale, carrots, etc is in there. My 15mo old loved it so much she licked her bowl. She was such a mess that I just whipped her down. Decided not to give her a bath till after lunch since we were going to have spaghetti(made that too)

-gave Onaleigh a bath

-instead of putting DD down when she feel asleep today while nursing I just held her(over an hour). I caressed her hair, breathed her in and just enjoyed it. Thinking about how fast children grow and that sometimes you need to stop and hold on to the moment. It was a good memory made.

-sure we didn't get a lot of school done today but the boys got lots of outdoor time. As I worked on dishes today I watched them play in the sandbox. And when the neighbor girl came out I listened as the boys and her ran and laughed. Music to my ears.

-read scriptures to the kids

So yes I am going to bed in yesterdays pj's but I guess I got more done than I thought I did. And tomorrow is a new day, Earth Day. Tomorrow I'll get up and dressed. We'll do our breakfast smoothie and hit the books. Then we'll find someway to honor Earth Day. And if for some reason I get behind again, I'll remind myself of the little wins in the day. And I'll love myself. Good-friends, focus on what matters!

It's funny how life works out

2010-03-17T21:18:00.000-07:00

It's funny how life works out. Earlier this evening I headed out to what I thought was going to be a Relief Society Birthday party at church. Even though I had already been told it had been canceled and was going to be rescheduled but for some reason even though I knew that I blanked it out and went anyway. So I called my husband from church and told him what was up. He encouraged me to go out and have some fun since I was already out. I wasn't going to but then on the drive I decided it would be really fun to go to Borders(book store). Went to look for a certain magazine(they didn't carry it) and a kid's book which they had but I decided not to get it. Then I remembered I wanted to look at beginner organic gardening books. We want to put in our first garden this year, ACK! So I grabbed a few things and then headed over to the children's section so Onaleigh could play while I looked through the things I picked out. There was another mom(Jessica) there with her little girl(older than Onaleigh). The girls played and both she and I got to look at our stuff. Somehow we eventually started talking and eventually I started telling her about Onaleigh's eczema and how we healed it. LOL, that's another blog I'll write latter. Anyway she was very interested, then a lady(Monica) walked around the corner and wanted to know more about what I did too. I told them both and gave them contact information and took the one ladies card. The lady from around the corner turned out to be an author of a children's book about Irvine Park Zoo in Chippewa Falls(we go there a lot when the weather is nice). The book is titled Emily at the Zoo and can be seen on her Web site at http://holtzcreativeenterprises.com/. She also is a contract publisher, She helps people publish books of all types. She offers one-on-one advice and assistance regarding book editing, layout, design, and printing. I thought her book was really neat so I bought it from Borders for my kids. I should have had her sign it but I didn't think of that till I got home. I absolutely love talking about food and eczema. I love being able to give people hope. Here is a link to a journal I posted about it w/ before and after pics http://www.cafemom.com/journals/read/1575018/How_I_healed_DD_s_eczema_w_diet_PICS. One of these days I want to write up another blog on it describing more of our journey. And Jessica turned out being an organic eating, extended breastfeeder, chiropractic loving mom, just like me. I invited her to check out the local chapter of HMN(Holistic Moms Network). She actually has heard of it and goes to the church where we hold our meetings. She sounds interested in the group, I hope she checks it out. Neat lady. So I had a blast, great night!

Chance 7 1/2

2009-11-02T21:37:00.000-08:00

So my baby is not a baby anymore. He has his first loose tooth! This is just crazy! He's a smart kid who loves to invent things. He even draws up blueprints for his inventions. He builds things out of random things he finds in the garage, out of knex, legos, marble maze and anything else he can get his hands on. He is SO HONEST! He tells on himself. It's so funny.

Homeschooling is going so great. I love being able to write that! Chance really likes Sonlight. He begs for the read alouds. I can see progress in his math skills. And we are now doing Sing, Spell, Read, and Write. He LOVES it!!! I was worried about how he would take it because it's a lot of work. But no he begs to do it. In fact today after doing his math, history, and literature he asked if he could go outside. I told him sure if he would make a deal with me. If I let him go out than we would have to do his reading when he came back in and it would probably be dark outside when he came back in. Told him if we did this than he couldn't complain about coming in. He looked at me SO serious and told me he would never complain, that he LIKES doing the program. I was floating on air! He gets sad sometimes on the weekends that has no school. After looking through the program that is a combo Kindergarten/ 1st grade I decided to jump in with the first grade work. He's flying, so exciting. At the begining of this school year I was concerned that we were so far behind. I thought we didn't do enough last year(his kindergarten yr) and I was kicking myself for it. Turns out when you child is ready things really do just start clicking just like all the books said.

For Halloween Chance was Optimums Prime. Keith surprised him with a costume. He bought it too small to fit over a snowsuit so this year we had to do our trick-or-treating at the mall. That was fine. Last year he wasn't home for Halloween, he went with my In-laws to visit his cousins. So having him home was even more special. He did a great job cleaning out his pumpkin, really didn't need any mom help at the end, I was impressed.

Chance has been talking about Jesus a lot lately is the sweetest ways. He was at the library the other day and there was a boy who wanted to play with the legos in his area. He wanted the space to himself. The boys mother asked if Chance could let him play with him. Chance then said. Well Jesus would want me to share. So yes he can play. Another time we finished playing his reading games. Chance won both games so he was in line to get 2 prizes from the treasure box(things like stickers in there). Braxton was sad he wasn't getting a prize. I told Chance how happy it would make Braxton if he would let him have the 2nd prize. That Braxton was sad. Chance asked if Jesus would like it if he shared. I told him yes but that this was his choice. His face got bright and he told Braxton he could have the prize. It was so sweet! Chance is becoming a fine young boy.

Another thing of recent happenings has been something sad. My brother Chance and his fiance broke up. Lauren the fiance has a little boy Landon that my boys thought of as a cousin already. The boys were very upset when I explained to them that Landon wouldn't be around anymore. I explained the best I could what breaking up was. They wanted to know if they would ever see Landon again, I told them no. Chance struggled with this. Chance had also seen me watching a show on the computer where there is a divorced couple. So over the weekend he came to me and asked if our family would ever break up. Poor kid! I promised him that would never happen. That mom and dad love each other very much and that we were sealed in the temple and we were a forever family. We are LDS, temple sealings are a part of our faith. I gave him a big hug and he felt better, just needed some reassurance.

To end I will tell you about my little geraphobe. The kid is nuts about germs. 2 weeks ago Braxton had a cough. Chance was so concerned that Braxton had sick germs that he baricaded himself in a fort. He is washing his hands a lot. He is so parinoid. So Keith decided to pick on him. The other day he gave Chance a bowl of chips and he licked some of the outside edge of the bowl!!! Chance about died but hey he still took the chips. I guess somethings are more important than germs. I am trying to work with Chance to help him relax about germs a little. My reason is my future daughter-in-law. I can't imagine what it would be like to live with a germaphobe, it would drive a person nuts! So yeah we are working on it. That said today we took Onaleigh in for her 9mo check-up. I totally took advantage of Chance's phobia. So many sick people at the clinic! We brought our own books and things and I had my bottle of hand sanitizer out anytime we touched anything. I pretty much acted like everyone had the plague. No we didn't wear masks, but the thought did cross my mind. To be honest I didn't want to touch the face masks knowing people with the flu had touched those boxes.

Braxton (soon to be 4yrs)

2009-11-02T15:26:00.000-08:00

Braxton is such a fun kid! For Halloween he decided he wanted to be a bat. I have no idea why, maybe he got the idea from Magic School Bus. Had to make his costume. So I bought him a black coat, pants, and shirt. Some black polar fleece and black cat ears. Halloween was a busy day to say the least. Keith was working from home so he was here but busy. I carved pumpkins with the boys and then I tried to work on his costume. But of course I couldn't find my sewing kit when I needed it. Eventually after getting frustrated I came up with a plan. I would cut out the wings and then on the way to the mall we would pick up a sewing kit at Walgreen's. So I ran and gave Onaleigh her bath and then got to work. I had no pins to cold it together so I grabed clothes pins off the line and measured and cut them. I also took chalk to color on the boning you see on bat wings. Got us all dressed, Keith finished work and off we went. I found it funny to be sewing his costume in the parking lot at the mall but hey it worked! Braxton was thrilled about his costume and the great part of it is besides the ears the rest of the costume is all clothes he can wear. I just did a slip stitch on the wings so they will come off really easy and then we have a spring coat. Rock on.

When I had the Nutritional Response testing done on Onaleigh I had Braxton done at the same time. His results really surprised me. His big stressors are not food but instead preservatives, pesticides, and formaldehyde. Those are probably because of vaccinations(he is fully vaxed except the FLU shot). I ordered 2 inexpensive vitamins that are supposed to help his body ride himself of them. The hope is that one he gets this taken care off that he will stop wetting the bed. I sure hope so. Braxton potty trained at 21months. Chance didn't like going to the bathroom by himself so he would bring Braxton with him. And before I knew it he was potty trained way before I was ready! LOL.

Braxton tags along while I homeschool Chance. I ask Chance questions and Braxton loves to answer before his big brother can. It's funny. He really wants to do school too so I give him some spare workbooks we have. That makes him feel a part of things. He also plays our games from Chance's reading program with us. I'm not officially doing school with him but he is catching on just from being near us. We'll keep going like this with him for this year, real relaxed. He amazes me everyday with what he knows just from being there.

Braxton reminds me of pig pen from Charlie Brown. He is full of energy and loves to wrestle. When he gives you a hug he presses his cheek to yours. He is easily distracted, I swear his brain falls out every so often. It's part of his charm. I love the way he talks, laughs and gets so serious. He's my little boy!

Onaleigh 9 1/2 months old

2009-11-02T14:37:00.000-08:00

Onaleigh is 9 1/2mo, with no teeth. She gets around a lot. Crawling like a pro. She loves to pull herself up on things but can't get down. That doesn't bother her, because she never wants to get down! That is unless she accidently starts doing the splits, then it's time for a rescue. She loves to explore so we have to be very careful to make sure all the doors are closed. The best is when you can see she's on a mission so you run to the door and shut it. She instantly puts her head down on the floor in her sad crumble, poor kid. She loves her brothers and in particular has a thing for Braxton. If he is on the floor than she is on top of him. He can get her giggling like no other.

For Halloween Onaleigh's first Halloween she was a fairy. We found wings and a tutu like thing at the dollar store. We went trick or treating at our local mall. She got lots of compliments. But no candy(I wouldn't allow it). She wasn't so sure of all the masks so she was pretty serious for most of it. Chance accidently scared the day lights out of her with his Optimus Prime mask.

Onaleigh has atopic dermatitis, in other words severe eczema. From the top of her head to her feet. I took her to a woman and had Nutrional Response Testing done. It came back that her stressors are sugar, brown sugar, cane sugar, eggs, whole wheat, sprouted whole grains, rye. She also needs to take daily probiotics. Much of those things I had already eliminated from my diet. She is a breastfeed baby. Sugar was new though and wow eliminating it from my diet has been an emotional process. Proud to say I made it through Halloween without a single bite of candy! I have been sugar free since her testing. Topically after trying a few different oils I am slathering her with avocado oil a few times a day and then putting California Baby Super Sensitive no fragrance lotion on her. For the laundy we use All Free &Clear and I double rinse all her clothes. No laundry softener. Her torso is red dry and flaky. But the welt like rash has toned way down. Today I took her in for her 9mo well baby check up. Her pediatrician wrote her a prescription for a steroid cream and told me to go buy Vanicream or CeraVa. Not Eucerin because it contains lanolin which some people are sensitive too(me for example!). I need to research these creams, they do not contain parabens but I want to know about petroleum and mineral oil. He also wants us to see a dermatologist, so he put Onaleigh on their cancellation list. It can take a log time to get into the derm so this way makes it go faster. I'm not sure how I feel about all this. I really do not want to do the steroid cream. What I want to do is handle this holistically. I am going to fill the prescription but I haven't decided if I am going to use it. Other than her skin she is in perfect health. She weighs 15lbs 2oz and is 26in long. Her head measures 43cm. She is a little thing :)

As for solids we aren't giving a whole lot. Mostly if I am eating something she can eat I give her a little. Like carrots, potatoes, apple sauce, etc. With the eczema I am leery to do many new foods. I want to clear up her skin more first.

She used to be a great sleeper but not so much anymore. I think part of that is because of the eczema. We'll see!

Last month was her baby blessing. It was very special. She smiled so big after, my heart just melted. I found her a pretty little white cotton dress at a local consignment shop for $8! She looked so sweet. Still can't believe I have a girl, it's a whole new world after 2 boys.

A really nice day! Staying in the Moment.

2009-06-25T20:30:00.000-07:00

Today turned out to be a special day. It's funny how a errand can end up creating memories. My poor husband hurt his foot. Poor guy couldn't walk on it and by morning the pain got to be too much. I talked him into going to the doctor for an x-ray. We decided to drive out to Arcadia(a 1hr drive). That is where he he works and the company he works for has a Wellness Center where you pay a base 10 co-pay that covers EVERYTHING, even any prescription given. Much better than going to our local doctors office. We had a nice drive with beautiful views of green rolling hills country side. Made us dream about our goal of moving out to the country. Once there we got into the waiting room and my husband was called in for his appointment. So there we were with a couple of TV's, magazines, and children's books. We left the TV on our side of the waiting area off and jumped right into the books. Quite a feat for a woman with a cold that involves a sore throat but how could we resist? We read all the books that looked interesting. And played. Then we discovered the drinking fountain. That was fun. Bonus they had small paper cups.... I showed the kids the fun of balancing them on their heads, LOL. They loved it. Eventually Braxton(age 3) lost interest so we read another book and paged through a sports magazine. That lasted a little while when I was inspired to show my action loving Braxton some clapping games. Those 2 boys can really get you! I tried to show them some clapping songs like "This Old Man" and a few others. It was fun. I showed them how to sit in a circle and clap each others hands in a wave like motion. We looked pretty funny ;) They kinda got it. We needed something we could do with a little less thinking so we jumped up and played "Ring Around The Rosie", and "London Bridges". The smiles on their faces were priceless the whole time. Eventually we dug into the bottom of the diaper bag looking for forgotten toys. Onaleigh particularly liked the light up match box cars. It was great to release my stresses and just play with my kids. They were SO good. It was all about taking the time to connect with them. I remembered a great a lesson today one I once knew but let myself forget. Be in the moment. I got down to their eye level really enjoyed our 1 1/2hrs in that waiting room. Not till right now did I realise I could have turned on that TV and plugged them in, while falling into a magazine. If I had done that I probably would have spent more time fighting with the kids instead of making a memory. It was a very quiet day in the waiting room today. But there was a woman who took the time to come and tell me I had really great, well behaved kids. I felt on top of the world at that moment. A smile is spread across my face as I write this. Chance(soon to be 7) was a great helper. He enjoyed all Mom's silly games and worked hard at them. Braxton was full of smiles, and Onaleigh(5mo) let out a more than a few giggles. When my husband came out on his crutches with a booty on his foot, we were happy to see him. He has has been referred to a podiatrist(I told him that is what would happen-I had foot issues when I was younger). They think he has some sort of bulging nerve in his foot. Poor guy but hey we are moving forward. We piled in the van and started our drive home. Stopped at a gas station for a loooong potty trip for Chance. Braxton entertained both his Daddy and his little sister. Happy faces all around. The drive was quiet all 3 children slept. When we got back in town back in town we decided to stop at the pet store to look at puppies, then picked up bubbles at the Family Dollar. Once home we discovered something wonderful, a large check in our mail box from our midwife, it was the insurance reinvestment from our homebirth, $3,185. Went and deposited it in the bank and I got to take 185 of it to go towards our 2009/10 school year. Rest went in the bank to pay back the credit cards we took out to afford the birth. Keith is so excited for the check to clear and to pay off some our debt. I am now they only one up, the house is quiet. Flying high off a really great day!

Little Boys Are Odd!

2009-04-17T09:11:00.000-07:00

Last night I listened to me 3yr old going potty. Really you don't have a choice we live in a small house and you can hear everything in the living rm that is going on in the bathroom. He was doing his usual pee, pinch to stop and pee pinch, pee and so on. Sounds like a squirt gun getting fired over and over. So I said to DH why oh why does he do that, I wish he would just go normally. Braxton(my 3yr old) yells out, "I have to shot the bad guys!". So that's what he's doing in there, LOL!

Toys

2009-04-04T20:12:00.000-07:00

Today I ordered Onaleigh's first doll for her. It was really important to me to be the one to get her, her first doll. I loved dolls growing up. I wanted her first doll to be a Waldorf doll. No plastic, no bottles, no pacifier. This is the one I ordered if you want to go have a look http://www.amazon.com/K%C3%A4the-Kruse-74198-Nicki-Baby/dp/B000FGISVW/ref=pd_sim_t_1 I even have the doll picked out that I want to buy her for her first birthday or next Easter. When it comes to dolls I plan to throw away bottles or pacifiers that come with them. I like toys that feel good to the touch. I really want too get her some wood toys as well, but I'll wait a little longer for that. I am just so tired of all the plastic and with all the things in recent years about plastics(BPA etc.) I think it's better to be safe than sorry. I want to do a lot of decluttering. And to reward my children and myself I want to get more Waldorf inspired toys. I also want to buy more of the wonderful books from all my book lists. Right now I am collecting them from thrift stores, garage sales, and used book sales. Here is a link to a wish list of books we would love http://www.amazon.com/wishlist/2APV4YO70WUJS. I know very little about Waldorf as an educational philosophy. But it's view on toys hits home with me. Here is a few of websites full of beautiful toys
http://www.magiccabin.com
http://www.novanatural.com/
http://www.threesisterstoys.com/
Of course my sweet husband loves transformers and has shared that love with our boys. It's a fun father and sons thing. He even has transformer books. I have told the boys that those books are special to read with Daddy. Ha ha, but hey he likes them and I'll stick to the classics. They even like to play pretend together. It's so sweet to see my husband down on the floor playing transformers with the boys. Makes my heart melt. I love my family.

Diet change for my family

2009-03-12T19:14:00.000-07:00

Braxton has had this rash for 2weeks now. His arms and legs have these little red dots. Then this morning I noticed he now has 2 red pimple looking things on his face. He has been scratching himself to the point that he now has scabs. This rash I think started the same time that he started eating bread all day(we went through 3 loaves last week and ran out before the week was finished), he eats it plain. So I've come the conclusion that I think he is developing eczema. I have wanted to try taking my family gluten free but I was holding back because it well sounds like a lot of work. We are already dairy free and now going off wheat that makes food hard. This is a major diet change to accommodate while having a new baby in the house. Means making food from scratch when we are having a hard time right now getting the convenience food on the table. I have to say this sucks. I am trying to figure out what to put on the grocery list for next week. I started looking for recipes online when I remembered one of my favorite websites godairyfree.org. I went on there to look up recipes and wow there are so many that are dairy, nut and gluten free. Wish I would have remembered that website when people were asking me what foods they could bring us after Onaleigh was born. Oh well.

My messy house is driving me crazy. It makes me feel so scattered. I'm overwhelmed by it. I can't live this way anymore. We have started back up with homeschooling. It has made my moods improve getting back into it. We now need routine desperately in our day. It's the only way we can make all this work. I'm thankful I know about flylady, that will help immensely but it's still a big transition. How do I get over this overwhelmed feeling so I can dig in instead of throwing up my arms in defeat and not doing anything? I need to pray to Heavenly Father to help me with all this.

Fun With Onaleigh

2009-03-12T09:14:00.000-07:00

Here is a video clip of my baby girl. She was 7wks 3days old. I took it on 3/10/2009. She is such a happy baby!

Pictures of Onaleigh birth to 4wks

2009-02-27T13:58:00.000-08:00

Pictures of my baby girl Onaleigh. She was 6wks old this past Wednesday.

It's a girl!

2009-01-14T08:51:00.000-08:00

Baby girl born at 7:21am at home. Waterbirth. 6lbs13oz, 20in long. 4 1/2 hr labor. No stitches! name still to come. Baby is a breastfeeding pro!

Pregnancy and birthing preparations

2009-01-13T16:40:00.000-08:00

Today's my due date, can't believe it. With my other two children they were born at 38weeks. So I have to say I thought this one would do the same. Nope! This one is too comfy in there. When we missed 38weeks I then predicted that baby would be born on the 11th, it was a full moon. Had a friend to acupressure on me to encourage baby to come Sunday(the 11th) and no, baby decided it needed more time. I give up, no more predictions from me! Baby will come when it's good and ready.

Had my midwife appt today. I did have growth. I have been measuring small, today I measured 36weeks. Now I know from my first 2 that I tend to stay small in pregnancy. But I can't remember if I actually measured small as well. She said at the last visit that she would like me to get an ultrasound if I didn't have enough growth. My poor head worries, because that's what I do. So to help me feel better about things she set up an ultrasound appointment for me for Wed. She wasn't pushing for one but she wants to put my mind at ease. Would you all believe this is my first ultrasound this time around. I didn't see a need for any earlier unless it was going to tell me info I needed to know. And my midwife was on the same page as me on that one. I didn't want to know the sex of the baby and there is no way I would ever abort because of a defect so I decided I didn't need that ultrasound. I also would never consent to an amnio so that is further reason why I decided against it. Why am I doing one now? I just need to be reassured everything is okay. The measurements bug me. Wish I wasn't such a worry wort! I don't mind being pregnant still. Really, I still feel great. Thanks in BIG part to my wonderful chiropractor. In fact I teased my chiropractor that the reason baby has stayed in longer is because my body feels way too good to be this pregnant! She got a chuckle out of that. I didn't have chiropractic care with my first 2 children and oh I so didn't know what I was missing. I now find it essential to a comfy pregnancy. My feet, ankles, and yes my lower legs are swollen. But not as bad as they used to be. Not since I figured out drinking a ton more water makes all the difference in the world! I never swelled with my first 2, this baby is going against the grain.

I have had the birthing pool set up since Christmas Eve in the classroom. I thought for sure I was going to go early, what can I say. Glad I didn't though. I have had more time now to make the classroom feel more serene. Cleared off the long table and put candles on it. Put blankets over the windows and over the metal shelving. Took down the maps and educational posters. Feels much better in there now. Less like my midwife should be using a laser pointer teaching anatomy, LOL! Now it feels like a room a baby could be born in.

Had a Birth Blessing back on December 28th. Oh that was so wonderful. Because it was so close to Christmas many could come. Still it turned out so nice. The 2 friends that came also have had homebirths. One gave me an amazing foot, lower leg and hand massage. Wow, that felt so good. I felt so pampered. They made my a birth necklace that is very special. The weight of it on my chest reminds me of snuggling my mom for some reason. I love it. We talked about positive birth experiences. Read some birthing type songs, and just felt good together.

So that's my update on baby.

Side note: I had a craving for Chocolate Cupcakes. I made them today and forgot to add the salt. Pooh! Hope the frosting will make up for it!

OH and Braxton(my 3yr old) came up to me this morning, hugged me and told me baby is coming. It was just so sweet. I hope he's right!!! I'm just so excited to meet this new little baby.

I won a new baby sling!

2009-01-01T16:02:00.000-08:00

Raspberry Hemp Sling from TaylorMade. Look what I won today!!!! I just can't believe it, I feel so very blessed. Baby #3 is due any day now and I had no carrier. Well I do have my old faded black baby bjiorn but from my research I found out that it's not very good for baby. We really didn't have the money to go buying a new carrier. Thank-you cafemom for putting a link to this contest in your daily buzz a couple months back. http://www.babywearing.com This website gives away a different type of carrier each month. Can you all believe it? People really do win these kinds of things! Here is a pick from the website of what I won..

Braxton turns 3

2008-12-16T17:54:00.000-08:00

In the morning we went out to run some errands. We needed a couple cake ingredients and we needed to get his birthday balloon. He got a Nemo Happy Birthday Balloon but sadly it's popped already. He did have a blast playing with it though! Daddy had to work late last night so I had the boys take late naps so they could stay up and do cake when he got home. Braxton requested a snowman cake so that took a bit of figuring but we got it. The boys enjoyed eating the decorations as I was putting together the cake. Braxton ended up getting more than I plan for his birthday. We gave him a small backpack(he was always trying to snitch Chance's). He got the book Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak(Braxton has a huge thing for monsters and bad guys). And then Keith decided Braxton needed a toy too so he gave him a transformer. Here are some pictures of the fun.

When Birthdays land near Christmas

2008-12-15T17:08:00.000-08:00

It's Braxton's Birthday today, he's 3! I'll blog more in detail about it latter. For now I want to talk about a topic that is close to my heart. Soon I will have 2 children with birthdays that fall at this special time of year. I strive to make the birthdays special and separate from the holiday. Birthday presents are never wrapped in Christmas paper. We usually wrap birthday gifts in grocery bag paper. The child who is not the birthday kid gets to decorate it with markers and stickers. Our birthday traditions are a cake made by me and then the children help decorate it. A birthday balloon, a special dinner, and a birthday banner. After cake we do do the birthday present. Sometimes Grandparents come but usually it's just my husband and my children. So I just wanted to share that and this article I found online about this subject...

Tips to Celebrate a Child's December Birthday
Have Yourself a Merry Little?Birthday?
By Laura Hill, Birthday in a Box?s ?Party Pro?

The month of December is a joyous time of year, full of friends, family,
fun, good food, and great gifts. In the midst of all of this holiday cheer, however, many holiday babies get the short end of the peppermint stick. Instead of being thrown separate birthday parties, their celebrations often get lumped together with Christmas parties, Hanukkah dinners,
and New Years Eve gatherings. Then there?s the ever-sore subject
of presents, which are often doled out with the illogical logic,
?Why buy two when one will do?? Even worse is when these ?combo?
gifts come wrapped in holiday paper?presented after birthday pie, no less.

It?s not surprising how often these holiday birthday missteps occur.
After all, few people have money to buy twice as many presents or time
to throw two or more parties during this hectic season. Even so, if you have a holiday baby in your family, you should always do your best to make their special day, well, special. Here are a few great ways to do this without breaking the bank or running yourself ragged:

1. If at all possible, plan a separate celebration around or on your child?s birthday, and invite a few of his or her favorite friends and family members. Select a theme and complimentary decorations that are very different from the standard red-and-green, holly-trimmed Christmas designs, or blue, white and silver, dreidel-imprinted Hanukkah designs. Instead, consider the birthday child?s favorite activity, story, TV show, movie character, or anything else that his or her heart desires. Be creative, and have fun with this process! (For other free theme-related decorating, game, and activity ideas, check out Birthday in a Box?s Party Planning section.)

2. When funds are limited, consider asking family members and/or friends
to pitch in on one bigger gift that the birthday child has requested.
Or, purchase a gift card with everyone?s contributions, and then plan your child?s special day around shopping for presents. Invite one or two of his
or her closest friends, treat everyone to lunch, and spend the afternoon on a shopping spree. Wrap things up by taking the kids back to your house to make ice cream sundaes and watch a movie.

3. If you?re overwhelmed by the thought of having a house full of kids during the hectic holidays, have a small family gathering around or on your child?s actual birthday, and then throw a bigger party with his or her friends halfway through the year. Two parties are always better than one!

4. For a low-key and inexpensive home party, invite several of your child?s closest friends for a sleepover. Play traditional games like Telephone and Name That Tune, make popcorn, watch a movie, or tell spooky stories. Before the children leave in the morning, serve them Funny Face Bagels or Smiley Face Pancakes. (For more sleepover ideas, check out Birthday in a Box?s Slumber Party Planning Guide.)

5. Take your child and a few friends on a birthday outing to an ice skating or roller rink, a museum, an aquarium, an arcade, a bowling alley, a movie theater, a salon, or anywhere else that the kids might enjoy.

6. If worst comes to worst and you can only fit in a combination birthday and holiday celebration, make strides to single out the birthday child and make him or her feel special. Give your child a special hat or pin to wear, hang a personalized birthday banner in the main party area, make a production of opening birthday presents (which should definitely be wrapped in birthday paper and given separately from holiday gifts), and serve a birthday cake in addition to other holiday treats. Make sure that at least one of your child?s friends is present if at all possible, too.

Whichever option you choose?whether its one of these or an idea of your own?just make sure you deck the halls with streamers and balloons instead of holly this December, and make this the first of many unforgettable birthdays for your holiday baby!
http://www.amazingmoms.com/htm/partytips-december-birthday.htm

Welcome To The Show

2008-12-13T19:21:00.001-08:00

My Boys put on a show for us last night. It made me smile!

Wrestling with Daddy

2008-12-12T16:29:00.000-08:00

Here is a video clip of my crazy boys beating up on daddy.

annoyed w/ myself and what flylady would say

2008-11-30T16:41:00.000-08:00

So today I got bored and I finally tackled cleaning and organizing my linen closet. I swear it has been nasty for over a year. Things fell out when you opened the door. Door wouldn't even close most of the time. I had so much crap in there that the towels didn't even fit in there, so I put them in the top of the boys closet. Icould never find anything in there except maybe toilet paper. So I did it, finally tackled the project. It looks so great and so does the above the toilet cabinet(doing both gave me places to put things). And you know why I feel annoyed? I should be happy I did it, that it looks great. Instead I'm peeved at myself for not doing it sooner. Peeved at all the stuff I kept still after throwing so much out. It wasn't that hard! Flylady would tell me she absolves me of all my guilt for not doing it sooner. You are not behind, jump in where you are. I really need to listen to her. Already typing this out is helping. All I can say is thank-you flylady for being that voice in my head that talks me back up.

Eventually when I'm up to it I'll declutter some of the things I kept that I don't need or use. Like hair care products that I don't use and all that scented stuff that gives me a headache. But until I'm ready for that I'm determined to feel good about what I did do. I gave myself less frustration, I gave myself back a linen closet. I am going to tell this guilt to shove it!

Flylady is a lady that helps you organize your home. Her help is free. You can learn all you want from her website http://www.flylady.net/. If that doesn't do it for you you can listen to her on http://www.blogtalkradio.com/stations/flylady/flylady. And if all that is not for you try her book, check it out from the library if you want. Sink Reflections by Marla Cilley(aka flylady). But I bet after reading it you'll be off buying it for yourself!

Little Boys and the Dishwasher

2008-11-30T10:24:00.000-08:00

Here are 2 short video clips of my boys unloading the dishwasher. They think they are so cool when they can help. I think it's so cute, just had to capture it. Chance age 6 and Braxton soon to be 3.

weird quiz that is right on! neat

2008-11-26T18:47:00.000-08:00

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz ...
You Are an Audrey!

You are an Audrey -- "I am at peace"

Audreys are receptive, good-natured, and supportive. They seek union with others and the world around them.

How to Get Along with Me
* If you want me to do something, how you ask is important. I especially don't like expectations or pressure
* I like to listen and to be of service, but don't take advantage of this
* Listen until I finish speaking, even though I meander a bit
* Give me time to finish things and make decisions. It's OK to nudge me gently and nonjudgmentally
* Ask me questions to help me get clear
* Tell me when you like how I look. I'm not averse to flattery
* Hug me, show physical affection. It opens me up to my feelings
* I like a good discussion but not a confrontation
* Let me know you like what I've done or said
* Laugh with me and share in my enjoyment of life

What I Like About Being an Audrey
* being nonjudgmental and accepting
* caring for and being concerned about others
* being able to relax and have a good time
* knowing that most people enjoy my company; I'm easy to be around
* my ability to see many different sides of an issue and to be a good mediator and facilitator
* my heightened awareness of sensations, aesthetics, and the here and now
* being able to go with the flow and feel one with the universe

What's Hard About Being an Audrey
* being judged and misunderstood for being placid and/or indecisive
* being critical of myself for lacking initiative and discipline
* being too sensitive to criticism; taking every raised eyebrow and twitch of the mouth personally
* being confused about what I really want
* caring too much about what others will think of me
* not being listened to or taken seriously

Audreys as Children Often
* feel ignored and that their wants, opinions, and feelings are unimportant
* tune out a lot, especially when others argue
* are "good" children: deny anger or keep it to themselves

Audreys as Parents
* are supportive, kind, and warm
* are sometimes overly permissive or nondirective

Take the quiz yourself at http://helloquizzy.okcupid.com/quizzy/take

School Of Rock

2008-11-21T20:33:00.000-08:00

Friday night we watched School of Rock. When it was over I suggested the boys dance. It turned into a show. Funny little boys! Forgive my odd giggles!

Money

2008-11-12T14:35:00.000-08:00

Somehow it will all work out. It'll just take time. Thanksgiving is coming up, thank goodness we already have a turkey(free from DH's work). Now comes all the trimmings. How much will all that cost. Next comes Braxton's birthday. What to get him? I really don't know, I'm so sick of toys. But will it be disappointing if all I get him is books? Recently I went to a really great homeschool seminar with DH. She gave us some great book lists, so many of them I would love to own. Braxton is turning 3 so I might get away with it. Next is Christmas, which is going to be so small this year. The trouble with it is Chance my oldest is 6 and I'm afraid he'll be disappointed if we don't really get toys. Again I would love to get books. Ahh a dream would be a nice new bookcase too. And now for the reason Christmas money is tighter than usual. Our 3rd child is due Jan 13th 2009. I may go 2 wks early(I did with my first 2 children), exciting. We have gotten credit cards to pay for the birth and prenatal care. You see I will be having a homebirth. My sweet husband has been selling plasma to pay those new credit card payments. After the birth insurance will hopefully reinverse for some of it. Crossing our fingers! Normally he finds a little extra money in the budget to help me buy for Christmas but this year that money is just not there. Currently I am feeling this strong urge to get the house in order for baby. That means I really need a dresser to start unpacking baby clothes. Wish I had the money to go buy that dresser now! We have all boy clothes so if we have a girl(we don't know), I'm hoping for friends and family to buy us some pink. Please no polyester, my children tend to be allergic to it. I want a Moby baby wrap. I also need a new glider rocker. We haven't been able to get a nice one with either of our boys so they break before the next child is born. I have to be honest I blame my husband(DH) for the breaking chairs. He's hard on furniture. Something about the way he sits or something. You should see my poor kitchen chairs(I'm down to 3, he breaks them). I really should reread Living Simply with Children, by Marie Sherlock for some inspiration. I think I would be fine about everything if I could just get that dresser and glider. My husband is going to talk to his parents about borrowing one of their older glider chairs for until tax returns come so we can wait on that purchase. I would love to get started buying some cloth diapers. Not sure if I like how this blog is coming out. Sounds materialistic. So I'm just going to end it this way. Stuff is just that, stuff. It really will work out. The Lord will provide. I'll turn my worries over to him. That felt good to get out.

After the holidays are over I'm hopeing to be able to save some money up to buy a few things for our little homeschool. A math program and a reading program.

UPDATE... 11/27/08
we got the dresser! Walmart had a great deal and we ate a lot of sandwiches for a wk to save on food. Thanksgiving worked out, plenty of food. New issues that we are working through, our washer is broke. It agitates but doesn't spin. Hope we can work this out. Worried about getting the midwife paid in 2 wks. We still have a lot to pay. But hey an update to an update. DH just said we have a credit card coming in the mail this wk. Don't know what the limit will be till it comes. We will be using that to pay midwife bill. Hope it's enough to pay the bill. Stinky thing is I am the one who has to pay the monthly payments till we get some of the other credit cards paid down. When I say I have to pay it means it comes out of my weekly household budget, not the house bills budget. POOH! We are not fans of credit cards but we did it to get the birth that is so very important to me. We would normally go without before using one. Hope the insurance reinverses quickly after the birth and hope that tax returns will get them paid off. We got an old glider from my inlaws to borrow till we can get a new one. It squeaks but it will work for now. New maybe problem. Molly(our dog) had 2 potty accidents in her crate today. This is VERY unusual for her so we will be calling the vet in the am. And a final bit of news... Monday I will be 34wks. With my first 2 children I delivered at 38 wks, so if we go with that only 4wks left come Monday! WOW! I'm excited.

too many blogs

2008-11-12T14:16:00.000-08:00

Seriously I have too many blogs. And too many online networking things. It all started with Myspace, then myhomeschoolplace.com, then cafemom, then facebook, twitter, and blogspot too. We won't even talk about my yahoo groups. I should really condense them all at least too a point. Like I could get rid of myhomeschool place and do that on blog spot. You know how on online forums they have a PIOG-Posted in Other groups, I have one of my own PIOB Posted in other blogs. I tend to just copy and paste most of my blogs around. There are certain things for certain places though. Like on cafemom I vent about whatever I want because I have no family on there that I could offend or worry. Myspace is where I tend to upload the most pictures. It's easy there, plus I like that I can put them in albums. I really don't have time for all this though. With homeschooling, being a mom, keeping house, and soon a new baby it's all just too much. I need to declutter online the same way I'm doing in my home. It's hard me though, not sure why. Oh and on top of those blogs I also keep 3 handwritten journals. One for each one of my children. I even want to add more of those to my life. A faith/prayers journal would be neat, personal history book, and maybe even just a plain old personal handwritten journal. Why? I Must be crazy. I just needed to get that all out... Seems like kind of a pointless blog moment.

Kids....little turds

2008-11-12T12:35:00.000-08:00

Okay do all kid's cut hair around kindergarten age? I want to know! I myself did. What spurred this wondering. My 6yr old, Chance told me yesterday he really wants to cut hair when he's older. One of his very many future aspirations. So he was cutting a craft feather. Fine, that's okay. I did however explain to him he should never cut anyones real hair, or a stuffed animals hair, or even a pets hair. So today we were sitting on the couch cutting out #2's to put on his number 2 poster. I'm sitting right beside him. I turn my head for a sec, look back and he's holding a piece of his hair that he cut. Are you kidding me??? I was sitting right beside him. I tried to be so serious and explain to him why we don't cut hair, all the while I'm just trying to keep a straight face. Because I'm thinking yep this is kindergarten and I did it too at his age, but I did worse damage. Ahh kids.
Oh and another gem from Chance. That kid makes me laugh. He came to me telling me his little brother hurt his "foot fingers". He has insisted that is the correct terminology for toes for as long as I can remember, no matter how many times I tell them they are toes. Kids!
And a little thing about my almost 3yr old, Braxton. My Chance comes running to me telling me his brother is spraying chemicals at him in the bathroom. All I can say is thank goodness I clean with vinegar. I ended up getting sprayed too. Little turd! That's what I get for talking on the phone.

Things Going on in my house

2008-10-15T14:10:00.000-07:00

Things going on in my house. Well I got my birthing ball(ie exercise ball), in fact as I type I'm sitting on it. Not sure what it's doing for me but hey I got it.
I went through the boys dressers and took out all the clothes that didn't fit. Chance is pretty set. But I still want to get him some more cotton exercise pants. I think they will make good PJ's as well as what to where for PE class. I really need to dig in my 3T box to see what other clothes will fit Braxton right now. He's got plenty of shirts for everyday. Would love to pick up some cotton play pants from Kohls. It's been a lot easier to get them dressed everyday now that I can put things away and find things easier. And then I want to find them each cute shirts to wear when they go to see Santa. Maybe green flannel shirts. I just love when they match.
Decided to add some art to our world. The local library has art pieces you can check out for up to six weeks. Chance picked out a very bright mostly orange print for our living room. He says it makes him want to paint. Personally it makes me want to poke my eyes out, LOL JK. I also picked up some $2 picture frames to put some 8 x 10 photos on the walls. They are not my favorite look but hey they could have worked until I could afford nicer frames. It was a bust though because it turns out they don't have hanger things on their backs. Need to return them and find another cheep option. My walls are so bear, they need paint and more but I don't think I could handle the fumes pregnant. I'm trying to give them more life with no money. LOL, we'll see how I do!
I'm really excitted about a homeschool seminar that is going to be near me on Nov. 1st. The speaker is a big fan of Charlotte Mason method. Keith was supposed to work that day but he worked it out so he can go. We both really need some inspiration and direction for homeschool family. Now the hitch is finding someone to watch Braxton and our dog. I'm really hoping my mom can do it for us. It's going to be a long day, seminar runs from 9 to 5 and there is travel time involved. Chance will be in Ohio with his grandparents visiting his cousins.
I got my hypnobabies home course in the mail. I'm supper excited about it. The trick will be trying to find the 30 minutes everyday to practice it. I need a guaranteed uninterrupted 30min everyday for it. Preferably when I won't fall asleep listening to it. It's hypnosis so you can imagine it's real easy to fall asleep! This will be tricky as a sleepy pregnant SAHM!

Homeschool Apple Orchard Field Trip

2008-10-15T13:25:00.000-07:00

Tuesday after our homeschool PE class at the local collage we went to an Apple Orchard. I hadn't planned to go until another mom made a point to invite us individually. I thought that was so nice that I couldn't resist. We had originally planned a trip to the Children's Museum that day. Anyway off we went. We meet all at one of the mom's houses and followed to the Orchard. Turns out the owner of the orchard is a homeschool family. Grandpa seems to run it, a family kind of thing. We had a pretty good turn out. 6 moms, 15 children. Mostly boys in the group. My boys had a blast although they were not used to how rough other boys can be. Lots of wrestling which we normally do not allow at our house. For the most part they had fun and a few tears when the others got rough. Still it was all done good naturally so I allowed it. We had a hay ride around the orchard and stopped to do picking. The boys loved that they could eat as many apples as they wanted. Both boys took advantage of that! Braxton looked so cute picking and eating it right away. He looked up and asked if it was okay every time. Cute. We picked Regent apples for the most part. They are really good!!! And some apples called Macfree. Those were really good too. We brought home a bunch of apples and the boys think it's so cool that they got to pick them. So it's an apple fiesta at our house. The boys are really getting their fill. I'm glad we went, such a special day of picking and playing. My only regret is I forgot my camera! POOH!

preparing for baby#3 and wishlist

2008-10-08T14:51:00.001-07:00

So here I am.... So much going on. Life feels like it's speeding past me but at the same time standing still. Can't believe I'm already 26wks along in the pregnancy of my third child. Is this really real? I know we planned this baby but sometimes I'm still in shook that we are actually having another baby. We are letting this baby be a surprise. But since we already have 2 boys I'm just planning for another boy. Still I should really get one or two girl newborn sleepers for just in case. Along with 2 caps. One pink, and one blue. The reason for a girl outfit would be for baby's picture of course! We are planning a homebirth, but I still want to try to take that newborn picture like they do when you are at the hospital. To put up on the wall andpass out to family. Keith, my husband will have to go to the photo place to print up all the sizes. I should probably think about how many and what sizes I want in advance. Goodness knows I won't be able to think when the baby is actually here and husbands can't figure something out like that on their own. Or maybe he could but the control freak in me wouldn't allow it! So a homebirth, I'm trying to get in the right mind set so I can face labor without fear of pain. I ordered hypnobabies to help with that. Can't wait till it comes in the mail!! I need to go buy a birthing ball so I can start doing some of the tricks to insure baby will be in the optimal position for birth and to help loosen my pelvis. I could really use a few long sleeve maternity tops. My old one are too big or something.
Then there's the things I would like to buy for the baby. I would like to get something like a hotsling(http://www.hotslings.com/) they actually sell them at the Target near me. I also want a Moby wrap(http://www.mobywrap.com/). And then when the baby is a couple months old I have heard the Ergo baby carrier(http://www.ergobabycarrier.com/) is really great. Umm is that too many baby carriers, LOL! Oh course we will probably need a new dresser for baby. I would love another one just like we have for our 2nd son. Will have to then get it at Shopko. We'll need to buy baby socks(cat sole most of the olds ones, she loves baby socks). And then maybe onesies but we'll see about that when I start pulling things out. Of course to do that I'll need to do some major decluttering in my the kids room. Anyone want to help me? It's really crazy in there. I need to save up some money for cloth diapers and settle on a few to try. I have to stay away from wool, lanolin and polyester(including in the thread) due to allergic reactions that runs in my family. That may get tricky. Here's to hoping people give us cash as a present when baby comes so I can up my diaper stash. This child will be my first to cloth diaper. I think it would be neat to try. I'll get some disposable newborn diapers though because I don't want to be going up and down the steps to wash them in the early days, have to give my body a little time to recover! I want bed rails for the bed, added safety(we co-sleep). I need a new glider rocker. DH buys me one for each baby because he always buys me crappy ones that break before the next baby comes along. Third baby means third chair. Personally I really think he is the reason they break. He is just plain hard on furniture. I need some new nursing bras and breast pads.
I'm nervous about money so I need to try to budget better. It always works out, I just need to believe. It's tricky with money right now because I would love to buy some things for the school room(we homeschool). What I wouldn't do for bookshelves! I need organization and I just don't have it in there. Then there is new clothes needed. Kids keep growing!!! Luckily my mom helped by buying a bunch of clothes for my oldest and a few new shirts for my soon to be middle child. And then there is the dog. She could use a couple things, plus her nails clipped(they are way too long).
I want to write more about what's up with my older 2 boys but I have to run. I'll try to get to journaling about them soon!

A new place to learn, our home.

2007-08-24T12:59:00.000-07:00