my amazing boys!

The Parent Bloggers network is having a blog blast that ends today, the topic is your child's strengths. I guess I'll do this one kid at a time!





William is almost three, he is a smart, funny child, who is very sure of himself. He knows what he wants and how to get it! When he was a year old, before he knew any words he had an entire language that consisted of grunting and pointing. He wasn't saying words but we all knew exactly what he wanted. He is an excellent communicator, and has no problems getting his point across. He has a good vocabulary, and he is using more complex words every day. This week he has been asking his daddy and I if we "rebumbra" things that happened earlier in the week.



He is very independent, and is very good at keeping himself occupied. He has an amazing imagination, and a good part of every day is playing with his cars and trucks (usually) deep in his own thoughts, complete with sound effects. He loves to do art projects, run around going "super fast". He is a natrual born leader and is pretty sure he is right most of the time ( but so does his daddy) He is good with his hands and watches everything we do, we often hear "I do it myshelf"

he can take things apart, and knows when he is in over his head to yell for help.



He is a loving child who wants to cuddle and be silly with his mommy and daddy, and to cuddle up to his baby brother. He loves his brother, is always looking out for him, and has been known when playing to look up and see Ben watching him and then bring him a toy.



This child is someone who could be very successful at whatever he put his mind too, but needs constant reminders that he isn't always in charge, and doesn't always get a say. The flip side off all these positives is that he is a very self directed child who is sure he is always right and can be demanding. It's my job to "rebumbra" the positive side of those traits and redirect him.

Ben is 5 months old, and there is a lot that remains to be learned about this guy. What I know already is he is a very content child, he only cries when something is wrong, most of the time he is happy just be nearby and watching everything going on around him. He is a sweet, smiley ,lovey, cuddly baby and so not the same as his brother was at this age! He loves to be bounced and sung too, and he gives you this amazing smile that starts in his eyes-they positively sparkle- and ends at his lips. He is not a fan of teething-none yet but all the signs are there!

He adores his big brother and I often see the two of them laughing together over some little thing! I can't wait to see what else he has to show me!

you can play along too! just check out http://blog.parentbloggers.com

and http://www.jeniferfox.com

get real time update

ok here is the thing....i mean well.


as far at the get healthy plan: eating is better, but not great-i'm trying to make sure i eat 3 meals a day instead of snacking all day on whatever junk is around, but not ever actually eating real food. i'm trying to make better food choices-we went out for dinner last night and i had talapia with rice and broccoli and it was sooo goood! (chili's firecracker talapia if anyone wants to know) just getting in more veggies and less crap in general.


with the exercise plan-the days i go to the trainer it is going really well. i'm noticing small things like pants fitting a little better ( i wouldn't say they fit, but i can get them on, that's good right?)

my 30 lb kid is feeling lighter when i pick him up, when i carry him up the stairs i'm not panting.


but i cannot get in the cardio! i mean well, i want to, it's great i'm getting stronger but i would like to see some results-like a trimmer me would be nice, that isn't going to happen without cardio.




so since i'm making this transformation a public one, here are my road blocks:









1a) my kids-i know that is obvious, but as all mom's know if you make a plan they are going to ruin it. i tried to exercise with will, because when he is napping just happens to be when i am the most tired in the whole day, i picked a family exercise video, thinking he would find it interesting if kids where in it. well he did, but he just doesn't have that kind of attention span or ability to follow direction, i'm trying to high kick, he's trying to get in front of me and get kicked...i'm trying to do a push up, he's trying to crawl under me or up my back, i'm trying to lunge, he puts his body in front of me. so that doesn't work.



my kids part b) i could just get in some cardio at the gym right? i mean i go there twice a week already, it makes sense, and i would love too, but the ymca's policy is you can only leave a kid under a year for an hour, so by the time i finish with my trainer, that's the hour. time to get my kids and go home. my mom is talking about meeting me there so i can have an extra half hour-she'll sit with the kids, but so far that hasn't happened since she had her own obligations.



my kids parts c) i could just go to gym more days a week, but between the days we go and the days i work they really need some quiet at home days in between-i mean otherwise will is horrible, cranky, throws temper tantrums, kick, hits that boy needs down time.



my kids d-z) they need feeding, changing, potty training, the baby is teething, napping, book reading, they make huge messes.....you get the idea. oh and the day starts sometime between 4-5 am for me cause the baby wakes up to eat, goes back to sleep and then will is up for the day, so getting up before them is NOT an option!





Pic of my hubby (center) brother and father-in-law when they did the vinyl siding-it now has colonial blue shutters and front door, flag pole and lantern-style front light


2)my household responsibilities- i have to clean it, pay the bills, do the dishes, do the laundry, pick up the toys rinse, lather, repeat...just like every other mom out there!








3)my jobs- i do not work as often as many, many other people out there, but when i do it kills an entire day- i leave at 6:30 am and come home sometime between 8-9pm, if i pick up shifts at the per Diem hospital i work 3-11pm, so i get to bed between 1-2am, then the kids get me up between 4-6am.



so these are things constantly getting in my way, when spring comes i want to get outside with them, but since cold, wet, frozen or muddy are the best descriptors for the weather that just isn't going to happen yet.



any suggestions? besides a maid, and a nanny? i cannot have gym equipment here because we are just plain out of room.



this post is not meant to be complaining, just me laying it all out there in writing so i can figure out some solutions! where there is a will there is a way! it may not work out the way i want it to each week, but that doesn't mean i'm going to stop trying. as a matter of fact, i'm buying some more sessions with the trainer tomorrow cause we have some money coming in, and i plan on purchasing 15 sessions which will get my butt out of bed and to gym for another 9 weeks!

contest winners!

I know, I said winners !

This was too much fun to have just one winner, so I plugged you all into a randomizer, and the winners are:

Mighty Morphin' Mama

and

kimbearly123

They both win a book of their choosing from the sidebar amazon thingy! I will be emailing you both!

Thank you all for playing and stay tuned for a similar contest in a few weeks!

an appreciation of science

I am no scientist, but I have always appreciated and been in awe of the world around us, and even more amazed that people have been able to figure out how and why things are the way they are.

I would like to pass along that appreciation to my sons, as well as the concept that the world will be theirs to take care of. My boys are young-almost 3yrs and 5 months old., so we are starting small. When it rains, or snows or it is really windy I bring them to the open sliding door, or out on the the deck so they can see and feel it. I have always explained to Will that snow or ice is frozen water, I have even brought in a cup full of snow so he could watch it melt and turn into water. Will loves the moon and we talk about the moon and the sun whenever the opportunity presents itself. He has been exposed to the concept of space, in a book we have, on tv watching rockets blast off, and of course-can't forget dora!

We also talk about animals-diego is a big influence here-as well as the national wildlife federations magazine animal baby. We take trips to the zoo. Occasionally we catch Bindi the jungle girl as well.

Like I said, I am no scientist, but I do try to show my son(s) the world around them, to draw their attention to things they can wonder about. I think for now that is enough. I hope it leads them to an interest in science when they get to their formal education.

This post is part of the PBN blog blast for Zula Intergalactic Inquirer at this link: http://campaign-archive.com/archive.phtml?cid=8NuPBVjl6O

you can check out the parent bloggers network here:

http://blog.parentbloggers.com/

the weather here today:

is it monday already/enter my contest!

what a weekend! friday we had a big family birthday party, which was a blast! saturday i worked 7-3 then a friend filled in for me so we could take will to see go diego live! it was so fun to see him clap and yell along with the show! we met my brother there with his family, so the cousins got to see each other twice this weekend. I worked 7-7 yesterday but ended staying until 10pm because the nurse that replaced me had a personal issue to deal with.

so i'm tired-i got to bed at midnight, ben woke up again at 3:30 to eat, the dog made a bunch of noise when i ran downstairs to get a bottle, Will woke up and has been awake ever since. I cannot wait until nap time! me and ben are going back to bed!

a few funny things will has said this morning:

the yinnow(window) is broken, i fix it! Bang, bang(pretending to hammer) screw,screw. all fixed, good as new! what do you think mom? -I swear that is direct quote, i have no idea if he meant to rhyme

and he told me-"daddy fixed the dingbell (doorbell), i hear it ding! ding! in my ear. "

in other news my contest(to win a chlildrens book) is supposed to be ending tomorrow-so far the one person who entered is going to be the winner-not much of a contest-so scroll down and leave a comment on my post-i'm thinking i'm going to extend it until friday.

It's get real time.

Lately something has just clicked in my head. I need to be more healthy. I would also like to be thinner-who wouldn't? plus the all the jeans I own that fit my thighs and butt size 18 (old navy) will not zip since i had Ben-that second c-section is a doozy, love that belly flap! So I am wearing size 20 jeans that literally fall down and add lots of extra fabric in butt and thighs so they will close, add in that I have to roll them since I am so short-yeah pretty. I've also been feeling very dumpy lately, clothes that don't fit right, tired all the time, you know the drill. I kind of think 31 is a little too young to no longer feel sexy.

So weight loss is a desired outcome, but to be honest I'm a little more worried about my overall health-I didn't take my prenatal vitamins like I should have with Ben, or even now that I'm still breastfeeding. I definately eat horribly, either pick all day on nothing the least bit healthy, or not eat because there is nothing I can pick up and just eat. I get almost no exercise in my day to day routine (unless I am working).

Most of all though is my family history-and that is what scares me. My dad is 53 years old, two years ago he was complaining about angina-chest pain with exertion, but did nothing about it. So when Will was one he had the heart attack I knew was coming, apparently he had many areas of his heart either mostly or completely blocked and needed four stents. He ended up having many complications but the biggest was a stent that shifted, causing him a second and much worse heart attack, being rushed back to the hospital while he turned gray, developing a severe case of neutropenia-and a severe infection that almost killed him.

Did I mention that he is a diabetic whose blood sugars are frequently in the 400-600 range? that he has hypothyroidism? and that there is heart disease on my mothers side as well?

When I reported my dad's heart disease to my doctor he told me that woman generally get about another 10 years before they have a problem. That makes me 60. That puts my kids in their 30's. The time in their lives that they will be getting married, having kids, buying houses, establishing careers. Do I want my kids to have to have to interupt this stage of their life to rush to a hospital because mom didn't take care of herself when she could? What kind of grandmother do I want to be? Do I want to get on the floor and play with my grandkids?
Do I want to be physically able to take care of them so I can help my kids?

Here is the thing-while many other 30 year olds I know still feel they are young and they have time, I'm a med/surg nurse. My dad is the kind of patient I take care of, but I get to see them at 60 and 70 and 8o and 90. I know exactly what I'm going to look like by then if I choose not to do something about it...and that isn't what I want my future to be like.

This isn't just about wanting to be thin, (but i do) this is about making a decision right here and now, that I will not accept that as my future and the future my loved ones have to deal with because I chose not take care of myself.

there are a few mommies in the blogosphere that have made similar decisions for their own reasons you can visit them here:
http://amommystory.blogspot.com/2008/02/turning-point.html#links
and here:
http://cheatymonkey.com/?p=1000

for my part I'm getting real-I'm good at real. I'm going to share with you what I'm up too. At this point my focus is on getting more active. I will work on food, but for now I'm just trying to make some better choices and eat meals at meal times. No more pressure than that. I'm not really even weighing myself so far.

I'm thinking I will add something to my sidebar that I can post updates, I'll try to figure that out later today.

overheard at my house

will has been spending a lot of time playing with water lately. every time i turn around he is in the bathroom trying to fill one of his little cups from his play kitchen, or fooling around in the dog water. yesterday morning i heard him playing near the dog bowls so i told him to stop it as i walked over to him. when i got there he stood up, and said

"BUT MOM....It's hot in the desert!"

apparently he wasn't playing in the dog water-he was filling his canteen!

today we had a some friends over to play, as we often have before the kids went up to will's room to play while the adults stayed downstairs with the babies. when it was time for them to leave we called them downstairs.

my son apparently had climbed up on top of the toilet and gotten on the bathroom sink, he opened the cupboard got out the bath crayons (that i keep up there so he won't get into them) then he colored all over the light yellow walls every twelve inches all the way down the hallway and down the stairs, and a little in his room. it came right off-love those clorox wipes-but geez that kid!

contest time!

OK! For my first ever contest on my blog, it's an easy one. Give me the names of your top three favorite childrens books in a comment to this post. You have until midnight on tuesday, february 19th.

The prize?
One winner (by random drawing) will get to pick a childrens book from the amazon list in my side bar and I will send it to you! The list contains 59 titles, so i'm sure there is something there for everyone!

If you read but don't comment...this would be a great time to start!
Spread the word!

edited to add: i'm going to extend the contest until friday 2/22 to allow more time for people to enter.

bedtime tonight

scene-bedtime tonight, rocking in the glider rocker and singing

i chose this old man because it uses numbers and i'm really tired of frere jacques the current fav.

he has parts that are his and he knows them, i sing "this old man he plays.." and hold up one finger, Will says "one!" i sing "he played knick-knack on my..." and hold up a thumb, he says "thumb!" i get as far as two when he interrupts me. "i know mom...sing about a truck!" I don't know any truck songs so i adapt wheels on the bus, i start to sing, and he interrupts again to tell me that he wants me to sing the horn goes beep, beep, beep. as i'm singing that he interupts again to tell me he wants me to sing about a fire truck, i again adapt wheels on the bus, as i try to sing about the siren he interrupts again to tell me about the horn going beep beep beep.

i give up!

i switch back to "this old man he played three..."
he interupts to tell me he doesn't have a bone
i get as far as "this old man, he played seven, he played knick knack up to heaven"
he turns to me and says "who"
i said "who what?"
he says (arms open wide now, palms up) "WHO!"
this is starting to feel like a bad who's on first routine.
i said "who what? What are you talking about?" "do you mean what is heaven?"
he says "yeah!"
i tell him heaven is up in the sky and that is where god lives.
he says "God?"
yeah remember i told you god lives up in the sky and takes care of us?
he says "oh yeah " I tell him god sent the snow that is falling right now.
He starts talking about going outside tomorrow to build a snowman

i get through the rest of the song, he asks for the barney song, i mix up the words(wasn't paying attention) and get a knick knack padywack in there, he giggles. "thats not the words mom!"

he finally settles down and goes to sleep

the books we love!

If you have been reading my blogs for a while (this one or here http://rnmom.spaces.live.com/)
then you know how important it is to me that my sons appreciate and are comfortable with reading.

I have loved to read my entire life. My mom always ordered Dr. Seuss books in the mail which we would sit down and devour when they arrived, usually three at a time. We would read them over and over until the next batch came. When we got older she introduced us to chapter books, we read Charlottes Web, The Trumpet of the Swan. I branched off into Little Woman, Little House on the praire, the Anne of Green Gables series. I learned early that the books were always better than the television show or movie! I was delighted by books the way kids are now about technology. I became a very fast reader, and that has served me well in high school and through nursing school.

My husband comes from a reading family, but he himself is not a reader. He is a doer. I don't know if or how much my In-laws put emphasis on it. He only reads if he absolutely has to, and it is never for enjoyment. We laugh that the only book we both read as children was the Indian in the Cupboard-and we both liked it! He tells me he never read the assigned books at school, he just skimmed enough to pass the tests or write the book report. When it came to higher education he quickly decided that it wasn't for him a few semesters in, and chose to work with his hands, which he loves. But he works hard and doesn't have anything on paper( a degree) to back up the vast amount of knowledge he has. I fear if he were to be injured, or work slowed down how he would find a job that would pay him for his skill level without it.

It became quickly apparent to me that my son was not the type to naturally want to pick up a book, he is a doer like his dad. At first when I tried to sit him down and read him a story he would take the book out of my hand and throw it, then he would go back to his first love, his cars! I realized over time that if something didn't play directly into his interests he wouldn't look at it at all. Then we went to library and I harrassed the sweet and helpful librarian. We left with a large stack of books that day, mostly about cars and trucks. I started leaving books in his crib so that he would be more likely to pick them up, it worked! Some books he loved so much we had to buy because he would not let them go!

This experience taught me a few things! I learned how my sons little mind worked and what I would have to do to encourage him. We have a large selection of books that have captured his imagination as he grew and developed, and a large amount of favorites. When he was about a year the Touch and Feel books by dk publishing were a big hit for my little doer, along with the Pat the Bunny book someone was kind enough to give us. Another early favorite was My Car by Byron Barton. Once he could handle a little more story Sandra Boynton was a huge hit.

In the last three years of this little boys life I have become a self proclaimed expert in what might get a little guy to love his books. This all got me thinking that maybe there were other little boys who just needed a push in the right direction, books on their favorite topics. How many little boys go go go all day and love things on wheels that go go go too? I thought about compliling a list on my blog of books we loved, but I couldn't figure out how to keep it easy to use, and hold a large list of books. This week I stumbled across a blog that had a link to amazon books she loved, I did a little more digging and figured out that I could have something in my sidebar that my readers could look at and link directly to those books, and that I could type in my own thoughts on them, as well as add new ones as he grows! So I am now an amazon associate, if someone where to actually buy a book they viewed through my site I would receive 4%, and I don't really expect this will ever happen (it would be neat though) , but I get to share with you something that is very important to me, that I know a little about, and that I greatly enjoy. There are currently 60 books listed, and I will be able to add more as we discover them! Also, we don't read books based on tv shows-trust me we watch far too much tv all day, I want him to see something new when we read!

Will is now a reader, I keep a large selection of books about things that interest him on each level of our house, where he has easy access to him. He asks to read everyday (sometimes more than I have time for), he has started to "read the pictures" to himself, or if is a book he knows well, "read" the story. I am now trying to teach him the connection between letters and words. I tell him that the letters make words and words tell the story. I have to tell him because he is not intrested unless he knows how it relates to him! I have started teaching him computer skills so he can play letter games online-http://www.starfall.com/-this is an amazing free website that address many levels of reading skills from pre-readers up to I can read!

It has taken some effort on my part and I know it always will, but I invite you on my journey to raise readers!

edited to add:
I just thought of a great idea for a contest to win a book from my list, give me some time and check back for details!