OMG

I totally got the swine flu or some kind of awful flu bug from the people at the court house.  Curses Karma!

Zachary

I just think he is cute.  

traffic court, pig flu, and waffles

I had to go to court this morning for my "speeding ticket, no proof of insurance, wrong address on license" thing.  I'm so proud of myself.  Any who, I neglected to find proof of insurance until last night so I had to frantically wait for a fax this morning at the courthouse.  It all worked out fine.  They gave me 6 months of diversion.  No tickets for 6 months and this one is dismissed.

  As I was sitting there I had a thought of the pig flu.  Something like, "There are lots of people in here.  I wonder how often they disinfect the court room.  Humm.  I need to go wash my hands."  This is no reflection of the people there.  There were all different kinds.  Just a comment on how many people where there.  Also at one point I actually over heard a guy tell his buddy that I looked like a stuck up bitch.  Nice!  I'm not sure what it was about me.  Perhaps he could read my mind and thought the pig flu comment was a bit snarky.  I was a little offended.  I didn't automatically assume he was a dirty drunk asshole.  Of course, I quickly made that decision after I overheard his comment.  And I made sure I smiled really big at the guy.  

After I picked up the boys from a friend's house I decided to celebrate by making a special lunch for Nathan.  I watched him eat every bite and pretended it was me.  I'm not sure waffles, syrup, berries, and whip cream qualify as a nutritious meal, even if you make a volcano out of it.  I'm feeling like a super-duper person and mother!  

Soul food

I adore my sweet friends who keep asking me to do some art for their kid's rooms.  Thanks gals for feeding my soul!

Life is Good

Beautiful Weather

Charming Boys

Thoughtful Friends

Romance

challenge

I know we all pride ourselves on being good parents.  We all want the best for our kids.  We worry about them being bullied or not being accepted.  Some of us have conversations about our kid being the weird kid.  We talk about not wanting their teachers to kill their spirit.  We are horrified when they throw a temper tantrum at Target or they hit a playmate.  We spend countless hours drilling them on the alphabet.  We spend most of our day thinking about how to raise intelligent, respectful, responsible, socially acceptable, happy children.  

I have found a book that challenges some of the things we do as parents.  I have just begun reading it, but have read another book in the series and can say that is changing my life. Does anyone want to challenge themselves with me?  The book is Real Love in Parenting by Greg Baer.  I would love for someone else to read it and share their opinions. 

Soccer

Soccer game number 2 was better, but still a bit of  a challenge. 

Zachary

Zachary has started army crawling.  It is pretty cute!  He is 7 1/2 months old.  He has 2 teeth and 6 coming in.  He weighs 21 lbs (which is how much Nathan weighed on his first birthday).  He is 31 inches long.  He is wearing 18 month jammies.  Oh My! He is a big boy!

Thank You- Easter Bunny

Even us heathens enjoy the Easter Bunny.  We had pancakes for breakfast, I advise against trying to use plastic cookie cutters to make special Easter shaped pancakes.  Genius I know! We decorated eggs with a fancy decorating kit, thanks Nanny.  I made cookie sandwiches.  Both boys needed a special Easter Bath.  Then we had dinner with the Daniels.  A good day!

Reeeallly???

I just opened the following email from my mom...  literally 5 seconds after finishing my last blog on Belly Bling.  

Thanks Mom!

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

4 tablespoons flour 
4 tablespoons sugar 
2 tablespoons cocoa 
1 egg 
3 tablespoons milk 
3 tablespoons oil 
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional) 
A small splash of vanilla extract 
1 large coffee mug (MicroSafe)

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well.  Add the egg and mix thoroughly.

 Pour in the milk and oil and mix well..

Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again. 
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts.

The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed!

Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
EAT ! (this can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous).

And why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world? 
Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night!

Sleep

I hold sleep sacred!  I never realized how much I valued it until after Nathan was born.  Poor little guy spent 17 days in the NICU and was still very weak and little when he came home.  Since he was premature, he had sucking issues.  This made feeding exhausting.  He would literally eat for about 10 minutes and pass out from exhaustion.  I had to wear a nipple shield (this may be TMI), which meant that he got very little milk in the that 10 minutes.  Obviously, this wasn't enough to sustain a baby, so he would wake about 30 minutes later starving and we would do it all over again.  

Around 3 months, he was getting stronger and able to eat better and go for longer periods of time, but had taken a liking to sleeping with mommy.  We slept together for several months, until I got to the point where I realized he was waking up to hang out and not just to eat.  I purchased a book, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, and felt strongly that I needed to make a few changes.  So at 5 months, I feed little Nathan and put him to bed awake.  He cried off and on for 1 hour 45 minutes.  I was sure that I was killing him and that he would never trust me again. But I toughed it out.  I promptly responded when I knew he was hungry.  He ate well and went right back to sleep and didn't make a sound for 8 hours.  The next night was more of the same, a little less than an hour of crying.  The third night, only 20 minutes of crying and not a sound for 10 hours.  

Nathan has been, by far, the best sleeper I know since then.  He goes to sleep happily, never has nightmares, soothes himself back to sleep if he wakes, and plays happily in his bed until I get him out in the morning.  I'm a firm believer.

So I thought it would be easy for Zachary especially since he is such a peaceful little guy and has no trouble eating.  It was actually starting to seem like he wasn't going to need to cry it out because he was going to sleep easily.  However, over the last month a habit of frequent nighttime waking was presenting itself.   I was hesitant because he is so sweet.  However, after a weekend of extra special attention, it was apparent that I was going to have to give him the opportunity to self-sooth.  

Sunday night he cried for 50 minutes solid.  It was difficult to listen to, but I knew he was only mad because Mommy wasn't holding him.  Monday night was better, but he did wake and cry a few times in the night.  Last night, I put him to bed at 7:00 and held my breath.  He didn't make a sound until 6:45 this morning.  Eric and I were quite sure he was dead, so we snuck in his room to check on him.  Eric touched his head and Zachary popped up and smiled.  Then he laid his head back down and slept for another 30 minutes. He was extremely happy this morning and much less fussy (because he isn't tired). 

Learning to self-sooth is important.  If you don't believe me, ask anyone whose child doesn't sleep well.  For Nathan, self-soothing also translates to dealing better with bumps and bruises and other disappointment.  I do advise doing it earlier rather than later.  The longer you wait the harder it is.

C'est Mon Amie

Oh, how I wish I was cool enough to blog in a sexy french accent...

Other Blog

I've started a second blog. www.bellybling.blogspot.com It isn't anything special, just my rambling about things regarding diet and fitness.  Please don't hold it against me. 

Today, I blogged about needing a "reality check".  If you could use one, check out this website 

http://www.webmd.com/diet/calc-bmi-plus. 

Remember this is my diet and fitness website.  So obviously, this is a diet and fitness reality check.  

Boys

We made an unexpected trip to Broken Arrow yesterday to spend some time with Eric's family. Nanny and Papa's house is the perfect place for a boy to play.  There is lots of room to roam, a fishing pond, a giant dog, motorcycles, toy guns, squirrels, and much more.  Nathan adores spending time with his older cousins.  

DodgeBall

Sometimes life just comes at you so fast you have to just stand still and take the hit.  Surprisingly, once the initial sting wears off you realize your are fine.   Acceptance, forgiveness, and patience are always worth the effort.