Terrible Twos, Bananas, and Newborn Babies

So much has been going on lately that I haven't had a chance to keep up! I feel like I'm endlessly dumping water from the boat, but its neither sinking nor emptying... we're at a standstill! Luckily, it always happens that when I feel this way, my wonderful hubby comes to the rescue and helps bail me out until next time.


Cooper is 20 months old tomorrow and has hit the 'terrible twos'. He's such a strong-willed child and I'm having trouble disciplining him. We brought the pack n' play back out into the family room for time outs and also for a safe place for Belle to chill. So far, since its been set up, we haven't needed it for Cooper. Go figure! I'm reading a book called 'The New Strong-Willed Child' by Dr. James Dobson. I'm crossing my fingers that it'll have some clearcut advice to help us through this yucky stage. He just needs to listen!


Belle had her first experience with solid foods last night. We were going to hold off until 6 months, but lately she's just seemed like she's needed a bit more than just her bottles. She's been drinking 8 ounces 5 times a day! She's a piggy. She gobbled down her bananas and cereal so quickly and barely spit any out! She loved it! I'm glad that she did so well. I think we'll continue with it each day, but we'll just go slow... I'm thinking one new food every couple of weeks or so and then when she hits 6 months of age, we'll go full-force!


And lastly, I am an aunt! My nephew Kristopher was born July 25th and weighed 6 pounds 14 ounces and was 19.5 inches long. He looks just like his daddy! I love newborn babies! Unfortunately, it is bittersweet as my nephews parents are quite regimented as to when visitors are allowed. I'm attempting to put this nicely. Today, we called because Jerry wanted to go see his nephew (and godson), but we were turned down. Its just unfortunate that we aren't allowed to see him as much as we would like. I'll leave it at that.


Sorry for the lack of photos! I'll get to some later!

I Love Summer

Summer is definitely my favorite season.

There are so many things to do! I love all of the festivals, parties, people everywhere, and just the abundance of activity! Everything is based outdoors and its so nice to be out of the house! I guess you could also mention the fact that my birthday is in the summer! I'm still young enough to where I still enjoy my birthday!

I could have an entire calendar of events for my summer. Unfortunately, Jerry doesn't share the same passion and loves to sit around on his days off! I know I bug him about going here and there, but I just LOVE summer!

Now that I have kids, my love for summer has grown stronger! I love letting Cooper run around outside in his diaper! I love taking him to the park and letting him explore! I love going to the various sprinkler parks in the area so Coop can run and play with other kids his age! I love walking through the sand with him! I love letting him get dirty and letting him venture all over! Summer is definitely a great time for kids.

I wish I lived in a climate where my kids could do that all year round... Snow isn't fun!

A Little Reminder to Myself

I have two beautiful healthy children. I have a wonderful husband. I have a warm home. I have a wonderful support system. I have people who love me. I have love for others. I have more than a lot of people do. I have all that I need and more.

I just need to give myself a reminder of all of the blessings I have in my life. Lately, I've just been feeling as though everyone else around me is going on and doing bigger and better things and I am just at a standstill in life. I need to remember that the sacrifices in my life that I have made are minimal compared to the benefits those sacrifices have brought. I need to remember that I am young and have a lot of life left to obtain my desires. I need to remember that at this point in life, we are doing the best we can and that is all we can do. I need to remember that I need to celebrate the positive things happening in other people's lives. I need to remember to be a little less self-centered. I need to remember that I'm human and am not perfect. I need to remember that love is greater than any material possession could ever bring.

Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep...

New pictures! I had a little photo shoot with my baby girl the other night and forgot to share! Here are the new shots!

She was being such a cutie!

Blue Frosting and Hot Tubs

Sundays are great... Jerry usually has the day off and we normally spend the day doing whatever we want. Today, it just so happened that we were invited to his parent's house for a seafood boil. Oh Yum!

As per usual, we waited for Cooper's morning nap before we left. When we got there, everyone was so eager to see Belle's new earrings! They all thought she looked so cute (so do I)! We walked in their house to yet again, new toys for Cooper! Good thing all of these things they've been buying are staying at their house.

Cooper ran around outside for a bit and I got some great shots of him playing outside. I mean, some really great shots! I've been so proud of myself lately! My portfolio is definitely coming together... even if it is mostly shots of my own kids. My nephew will be born within the next two weeks, so I'll really get some good newborn/mom/dad shots! I can't wait. Anyhow, here's my favorite shot from the day... I haven't had a chance to take any editing to it, so be gentle!

When we came back in, it was time to eat. Cooper gobbled up some shrimp and Jerry and I gobbled up everything else! It was SOOO yummy. If anyone is looking for a good seafood boil recipe, Tyler Florence has a great one! My inlaws watch food network a lot and my mother in law decided it was time for her to make the boil that she's been wanting for a while! I'm glad she made that decision, although my breath tonight has left something to be desired! After dinner, Grandma and Papa had a blue cookie monster frosted chocolate cupcake. This thing had more frosting on it than cupcake! Cooper dug right in and enjoyed eating all the frosting and leaving the cake! HA! He made a big old mess but was cute as can be!After Coop made his gigundo mess with Cookie Monster, we wiped him up as best we could and headed him right to the hot tub to rinse off. He loves playing in their hot tub. I couldn't leave little Belle out, so she got to play in the hot tub too! That girl LOVES being in the water and she just kicks her little feet the entire time she's in there! She really enjoys being mesmorized by the light dancing with the motion of the water...

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

My cousin's baby will not live outside the womb. She just found out Thursday. Her baby has been diagnosed with holoprosencephaly... a big word for the lack of her baby's brain to develop normally. Her baby has the most severe type.

She is a mother already... She loves her baby more than words can say. Her little girl is still alive as long as she is in mommy's womb.

Please pray for both Mommy and Baby during this time.

I LOVE YOU RACHIEL AND I LOVE MY LITTLE 'NIECE'! Let me know if you ever need anything... I'll be there for you!

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Dylan Thomas

Isn't She Lovely!

Belle looks SO stinkin' cute with her new earrings! We went to Claire's to have them done and the girl that did them was so nice and she did a great job. She seemed VERY comfortable with infants and knew all kinds of things to do/check to make them just perfect.

I was so nervous for her! She washed her ears with the disinfectant and then she made her dots for where the earrings were to go. She loaded her guns and did her ears one at a time. I asked if they could do them both at the same time and she said it isn't a good idea as most of the time, the holes end up uneven. She did the first ear and it took Belle a good 5 seconds before she let out the BIGGEST scream. I swear she had tears streaming down her little cheeks! She did the next ear and Belle just kept on crying! I felt SO bad. The bottle that we prepared was useless... she just wanted snuggles! After about 2 minutes, she was done crying and smiling at Jerry. So, a few tears and $40 later, Belle is donning an adorable pair of pink ice earrings! I was going to go with her birthstone (aquamarine), but Jerry had to remind me that most of her clothing is pink, so the pink ice would be a better match! :)

She may be bald, but now she's got some earrings and hopefully people can stop telling me how cute 'HE' is when she's wearing a pink dress sitting in a pink car seat...

The 'Belle' Will Be Ringing

We're taking Anabelle to get her ears pierced today. I'm nervous for her! I hate making my baby cry, but I know it'll be shortlived. I love how little girls look with pierced ears and I can't wait for Belle to join the club! She's going to be such a little princess... well, she already is!

Depending on how the ear-piercing goes, we'll probably head to the beach to let Cooper play at the sprinkler park afterwards. Cooper loves that place and has a riot every time we take him. We try to let him socialize as much as possible with other children since I am a stay at home mom. He really doesn't know how to react to other kids his age. He'll play perfectly with older kids, but rarely does he know what to do with a baby his size. We're hoping that as we bring him more places to socialize, he gets more comfortable!

A friend of mine approached me to watch her 8 month old daughter 5 days a week from about 7:30 till about 5:30. I used to watch kids in my house like that before I had my own kids! The extra money will be great for us, but I'm just nervous that I won't be able to handle them all. I've also agreed to watch my newborn nephew in September when my sister in law has to return to work. Am I nuts agreeing to watch 4 kids under 2?

I will post photos of Belle with her new earrings when we return!

I Told You This Would Be Comical

Good News! The kids slept in, which meant that I snoozed an extra hour or so myself! I think that is where the good news from this morning comes to an end! Belle started stirring, so I hopped out of bed to make her a bottle before she started crying so Cooper could sleep a little longer. I brought her out to the family room and started feeding her. She does her wiggle, wiggle, shake, shake move that means she has a burp. I tip her up and BLAH she pukes all down my pj's. Yuck. She started crying for her bottle, so I propped it up for her to eat while she was in the swing so I could go change. I peaked in Coop's room and he was still sleeping! Belle was making some more uncomfortable noises and so I grabbed her back up and burped her... this time I had protected myself! I wasn't taking any chances!

Fast forward 30 minutes... I'm sitting here watching some dull morning show and eating my cheerios. Belle is in her Bumbo chair just chatting away at this firefly rattle. I hear stirring in Cooper's room and could hear his little feet coming down the hall. He pop's his head around the hall corner....

GROSS!

He has something white smeared all over his head, chest, and of course, his hands. I'm was sitting there having insane flashbacks from the vaseline incident. Ever since then, I've been extremely cautious about the items that we leave within Cooper's reach in his room. Obviously, I had left something that he could get. Did I also happen to mention that he was butt naked?! That little turkey. So, I head to his room to investigate. Once I got to his room, there was NOTHING in there! What the heck did he get into? Just as that thought crossed my mind, I saw the soaked diaper from last night that he obviously took off of himself. I remember that I had put some Triple Paste on his little toosh last night because it was looking like the beginnings of a rash...

DOUBLE GROSS!

He was playing with diaper rash ointment out of his urine-soaked diaper! I grabbed him up and stuck him right in the bathtub... scrubbing him head to toe!

I think I might start duct-taping his diapers on him at night time.

I'm getting the 'oh thats nasty chills' just writing this. There's just something wrong about that boy playing with something that came out of his diaper... although, I'd take diaper rash ointment over something else that could have come from his diaper! **Shudder**

So, that was my morning... Belle is still in his Bumbo and Cooper is clean as a whistle watching Teletubbies. I suppose its my turn to shower and get all of this baby puke washed off!

I never thought I'd have something this good for my second post!

Everything Starts Somewhere

Well, this is my first post in my new blog. My intention is to document my life as a stay at home mom. I'm sure this will be quite comical and will most likely deter more people from having children so close in age!

I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Steph. I hate being called Stephanie. It reminds me of my mom yelling at me and just seems to formal. I'm not a formal person. I'm going to be 25 on August 24th. I got married to a wonderful man on October 9th, 2004. He is Jerry and he is 25. He is the love of my life! Jerry is an absolutely wonderful chef and I cannot wait until he gets the opportunity of a lifetime to take his dream to new heights! I stay at home with our two children. Cooper is 19 months and was born on December 1st, 2005. He's a little ball of fire.... catch him if you can! Anabelle is our little princess. She was born March 6th and is just barely 4 months old. She's definitely asserted herself as the little girl of the household. Cooper loves doting on his little sister and he loves being able to help when she is crying.

A few snipits from my life before I submit my first blog into the cyberworld...
~I am passionate about my children.
~I use cloth diapers.
~We put ethanol in our car and are silently boycotting oil fuels.
~I don't agree with the war.
~I like Dr. Phil and the View.
~I am passionate about car seat safety.
~I love reading books to my kids.
~I can't stand laundry, but I don't mind washing my cloth dipes.
~I know I need to lose weight.
~I'd love a few more children... just not in the next few years!
~I love when my hubby cooks for me!
~One of my vices is good ice cream.
~I do a lot of research on silly things.
~I LOVE photography and would love to start my own business.
~I spend too much money on my children.
~My mom is my hero.
~I enjoy crocheting and love giving baby blankets to expecting moms.

OK... that's it for now! Next blog to come soon! I really have to do some exploring and set up the rest of my blog!