I'm Still Alive and Happy Halloween!

I Know I have been terrible about blogging. To be honest, I have been busy doing other things, that I took a break from the blogging world. Not sure if anyone really missed me, but... I'm baaaack. For Now.

OCTOBER.

Started off with my sister Sara being in town. She had a jam packed weekend. She took out her endowments in the Draper Temple. Then we had a bridal shower for her and she got her bridal pictures done as well. It was fun to see her, but seemed like such a whirl wind weekend.

Spencer, Sara, and Grandma Homer

Then there was a whole lotta... same old. Probably why I didn't post for so long. I was working on some projects of my own, doing a little couponing research, and just spending time with Chris hanging out. You see, we work opposite schedules - He works during the week, and I work weekends. So the only time we really get to hang out without too much interruption is in the evening after Max goes to bed. So I have been spending time with him instead of on the Internet. I'm on Facebook more only because I have an app on my phone.

Then there is HALLOWEEN.

I have to be honest. Halloween (IMO) is a kid's holiday. So before I had kids (er kid) I didn't do much for Halloween. Ya, it's sorta fun to dress up, but unless you have a party to go to or something where you don't have to do a lot of work, it seems sort of pointless to me.

I hate being scared.

I hate Haunted Houses/Warehouses/Forests whatever place makes you spend $20+ dollars for an hour of being startled by actors wearing scary makeup and carrying chain saws.

I hate scary movies. I have only seen a few. Movies like The Ring, The Grudge, and What Lies Beneath nearly made me pee my pants and they aren't "that scary" according to some people. I remember watching Disney's "Watcher in the Woods" when I was a preteen and nearly died of fright. A couple years ago Chris and I watched Paranormal Activity which silly me thought it was actually real footage and was pretty much terrified and miserable the entire show. After that I pretty much swore off the scary movies.

So that leaves.... Trick or Treating!

Which looks really ridiculous after you are about 12 years old.

That is why I haven't done much for Halloween as an adult. I actually have worked it every year since I became a nurse. Hey, I work at a children's hospital, and since I think Halloween is for kids, what a better way to spend it! I love seeing the kids in their costumes, and the ones that are able come trick-or-treating at all the units.

This is not Max's first Halloween . Last year I worked, but probably wouldn't have taken him out because he was just a baby.

So this year is the first year that I didn't have to work. I decided to get a little excited about it since I have been a little scrooge about all holidays since I became a nurse. But I want holidays to be special for my kids, just like they were for me.

So I got Max an actual costume this year, as well as one for myself. Thanks to shopping online (one of my vices right now) I was able to snag an adorable Dracula costume for Max and a Vampiress one for myself. I had to get a costume for Max that didn't have a hat/hood/head piece or mask. Which in his age range meant Superman or Vampire. We initially thought Chris was going to be gone so I didn't get a costume for him (although I highly doubt he would have dressed up anyway).

We went to my parents house for the festivities since we live in a condo and not many kids go around our neighborhood.

Little Dracula

I was going to get a black wig and some fangs... but ran out of time to go shopping. So I guess I'm more like a twilight vampire (gag).

Max was getting excited about the witch hat and made this adorable face... ha ha.

Max loves the moon. Here he is looking at it while Daddy holds him. Maybe he should have been a werewolf...

Getting a toddler to hold still for photo's is some feat.

Looking in the bucket at his goods

Excited that some people gave him candy!

Choosing his own candy!

Looking at the goods.

It was so fun to go to my old neighborhood and go to all the house of people that still live by my parents. It brought back a lot of memories of my own childhood, and it was fun to share that with Max, Chris, and my mom. And the weather was gorgeous! No coats for Halloween this year.

Definitely one of my favorite Halloween's in a long time.

Cold, Car, and 18 months.

It's been an interesting week. I caught ANOTHER cold making it my 5th this year. I wasn't ill for nearly 2 years so I guess I am making up for it. But I feel that I have filled my cold quota. I hope I dont' get sick anymore.

Anyway, I have also been having car troubles. And even though my mechanic is great, we have had a lot of hiccups along the way. So after an entire week, my car is still not running properly. Hopefully it will be done by tomorrow because I need it to be working and registered before I go back to work on Wednesday!

 But it gave me the opportunity to drop it off 3 different times and walk back (it's about 4 blocks away). Which meant lots of days at the park with Max! (We were already out anyway). He loves the park! Going down the slides and climbing and crawling into other people's strollers.

He loves going down the slide all by himself!

He's 18 months now. Actually 18.5 months. He learns new words every day. Yesterday he learned the word cracker and Two. Today it was GO!

He is starting to become a little easier. He doesn't run 50 feet away and not look back. He runs like 20 feet and then see's if I'm following. It makes it easier for me to give him a little more freedom to wander without me feeling like I am going to lose him or he is going to get in trouble if I as much as blink. He plays by himself and will watch Baby Einstein or Sesame Street so I can clean my kitchen and organize my pantry. He no longer constantly needs my attention.

He has started throwing tantrums if he doesn't get what he wants. And he kicks his legs violently if you pick him up when he doesn't want to be picked up. He doesn't like his diaper changed and will run away and hide when I try to change him. He loves to play hide and seek as well!

His Vocabulary includes: Ball, car, kitty, bubble, momma, dada, hi dad, cracker, GO, blue, purple, banana, two, poo poo, cucca, star, dog, all done, key (for blankie or monkey), cheese, shoes, cookie, eye, ear, "O", what's that? (sounds like Widget?) and he has said Nigh Nigh. He barks and moo's. He can point to things when I ask him where it is even if he can't say the word. He signs: eat, milk, bath, baby, all done, and more.

He will give us a kiss whenever we ask. He waves Hi, Bye, and when we say Night Night. He is a pleasure to have and we love him very much!

Is that what I think it is?

Everyone probably has a funny story about when they were a toddler. Mine was when I got into the cabinet and swallowed a bunch of black pepper and started sneezing like mad (to this day I don't like black pepper).

My little sister's was when my Dad was watching her at church and during one of the meetings she reached into her diaper and pulled out a handful of contents and lifted it up to my Dad and said "Poo Poo Daddy!"

Well Max had his own little experience.

Last Sunday started out as a typical Sunday. Woke up, went to Church, Chased Max around, tried to leave him in nursery, incessant tears fallowed, stayed in nursery, tried to make him sit down during singing time, spilled his water all over his clothes during snack time, ate another little girls cracker, played with the dinosaurs and the balls, ran away the first chance he got, then we came home.

Needless to say, I was exhausted. So I put Max down for his nap. I hurried and changed him into a onesie from his church clothes so he would be more comfortable when he slept. After I got him down I was tired so I decided to take a nap myself. Chris was at his Elders Quorum meeting so the house was really quiet. When I woke up 2 hours later I flipped on the baby video monitor and saw Max standing up in his crib. Whoa I thought, I overslept! At least he wasn't crying.

When I got into the room I saw that he was wiping something on his onesie. I flipped on the light and to my HORROR I realized what he was wiping all over his onesie...

Yep..... You guessed it....

POOP!

He had thrown all of his toys out of the crib and must have gotten bored so he went digging in his diaper. It was everywhere! All over his hands, on his legs, on his blankets, on the curtain by his crib, on the crib... EVERYWHERE. I frantically picked him up with both arms outstretched as if he were toxic and ran to the bathroom. I started running the tub with him in it as I tried to undress him with the water running. When he sat down I realized the water was rapidly turning brown. This wasn't working. Poop was still everywhere.

So I drained all the water and turned on the shower. Luckily we have the kind of shower head that you can hold. I thoroughly hosed him off, just dreading the mess I would have to face in the other room.

Just then Chris came home. He was obviously wondering why I was showering Max in the middle of the afternoon. I told him what I had woke up to and how mortified I was. He just started laughing. Feeling a little better that at least my child was clean I started laughing too. At that moment I realized, this was one of those stories we would probably always remember and tell him when he was 15 to embarrass him. That's when I wish I would have got my camera out instead of reacting so frantically to get the poop cleaned up.

Chris got him dressed as I gathered all the linens to be washed and cleaned the crib with Lysol wipes. Lesson learned. No more oversleeping. I am setting my alarm the next time I decide to take a nap the same time Max does! What a STINKER!

Confessions

Some true (and sometimes embarrassing) facts about me

I like cheesy music. I was a big fan of Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, and Britney Spears in High school. And I still like to rock out to them in my car. I also love me some Journey, Hart, and Cindi Lauper from the 80's. For the most part I like pop punk - like Yellowcard, The Starting Line, and Paramore. But every once in awhile I will be driving in my car, and a song will come on the radio that I will find catchy and it will be from some cheesy teenie bopper that is the latest fad among 12 year olds. Sad... but true.

I pretty much hated high school. I had some fun times and good friends and I loved going to football games, but for the most part it was not my cup of tea. Popularity was emphasized way too much. If you didn't feel part of the "popular" crowd you felt awkward. I was shy and quiet and awkward. I remember stressing over what my hair looked like, if i had too many zits, and if my makeup was OK. Girls would spend all their time in between classes and at lunch in front of full length mirrors fixing every little flaw they could find. It's a lot if pressure and I hated it. And after attending my 10 year reunion I think I'll just stick to keeping in contact with my high school friends that I still love and and leave everyone else in the past. Now college on the other hand were some of my FAVORITE years!

I want a camera. A really nice expensive DSLR camera. I have been eyeing one from Costco for months now. Not because I want to become a professional photographer. But because all my photography friends take really nice candid pictures of their kids. I want to have nice pictures of my family, especially my kids as they grow up. I have had my Camera for 6 years now and it takes OK pictures, but I am always trying to adjust them with my photo shop program and the shutter speed seems to get slower and slower the older it gets. That is not conducive for a very active toddler. I have tried to explain to Chris how important this is to me and how just because his phone camera has 8 mega pixels that is somehow "good enough" to take our family photo's (insert my eyes rolling). I think he just sees the expensive price tag and thinks we should spend our money on other things. So if anyone wants to donate to my camera fund, it's wide open :)

I think the older I get, the pickier I get about food. It's not necessarily that I stop liking one food (example I hate green peppers and pretty much anything with them in it) but that I will only like one certain brand or type of food. Example, if I am going to eat American cheese I will only eat Kraft... the other stuff taste funny. I only like Cache Valley String Cheese, Best Food's Mayo, Hidden Valley Ranch (made from the packet with Best Food's Mayo). On the other hand I have learned to like (and even Love!) mustard, onions, avocado's, asparagus, Sushi, cashews. All things I used to hate (or never tried) when I was little.

I love sleep. I sure do miss sleeping in.

My back hurts a lot lately. I think it's from carrying my 28+ lb son. Now I only try to carry him when he tries to run away from me or is not cooperating with where I want to go. Which is ALL THE TIME. Maybe I should get him a leash...

I started couponing after watching the TLC special (NOT the series) on extreme couponing. Not because I want to be an "extreme" couponer. Although it would be nice to save hundreds of dollars on a REAL shopping list (ie. fruit and veggies and milk... etc) instead of just buying toothpaste and Gatorade with 75 coupons. BUT, it really opened my eyes how much I could save on items I already buy. And when you find a sale on items that you also have coupons for it makes it satisfying to be able to stock up on items such as toilet paper, shampoo, and laundry soap and know you don't have to buy it for months. For the past couple of months I have been below our budget for food by doing this. (Maybe some of that money can go toward my camera :))

I miss my sisters. Why do they have to live in California?

Even though I don't want to work full time... I really like being a nurse :)

Things That Must Go

In X-96 fashion, MY LIST of things that MUST GO:

Vague Facebook posts. Like when people just write how they are feeling. "I'm pissed!" or "Lost and Confused" or "I can't believe that just happened to me". Sure we all like observing a little drama or juicy piece of gossip every once in awhile (Why are reality television shows so popular?) BUT If you are having these feeling and aren't going to elaborate on them, then maybe you should go talk to your Mom or best friend or something. Don't let the people that you knew and haven't seen since high school that you are lost and confused. Because frankly we probably don't care...

The name NEVAEH. Ya it's heaven backwards and sounds somewhat normal. But guess what? You aren't being creative. I'm pretty sure this name is becoming as popular as Brooke or Olivia. And if it is so cool to have names of words spelled backwards how com there are no EPOH's (hope) or EVOL's (love). Oh ya because they sound ridiculous. (and Evol sounds like evil.... hmmmm) In addition, I tend to see the Nevaeh's from the NICU that are typically the screamers. Not a fan.

The Terrible Two's. (or in my case the terrible 18 months) Pretty sure Max has selective hearing. Not sure if it is a two year old thing or a Male thing (because Chris suffers from the same problem). He doesn't listen, he gets ENCOURAGED when he does something naughty like it's a fun game, and if he doesn't get what he wants he cries and cries. I know it is part of his development and it is only going to get worse, but I'm ready to be done with it.

My iPhone. It's slow, the apps crash, it freezes, it takes F o r e v e r   to load, it shuts off whenever it wants, buttons are falling off, it has cracks, Max likes to suck on it (that probably doesn't help it's functioning), it is 3 years old and I'm ready to lay it to rest. Just waiting to see if the iPhone 5 is worth it of if I will be converting to the Droid.

Headaches. Especially the one's that linger for days. Really, cant you quit hurting?

The Hot weather. I am sick of sweating all the time. I'm sick of getting in my car and wanting to die. I'm sick of taking Max to the park, only to bring him home 20 minutes later because he is flushed and I'm worried he will overheat. In a state that experiences temperatures anywhere from 0-100 degree's you would think we could have a couple of weeks of 70 degree temperatures. But no. We go from 50 degree June to 90+ degree July and August. Where is my nice weather?!?! Here's to hoping for this fall...

BYU fans that truly HATE the U. Sorry, but I don't hate the Y. I think it is a good program, a good school, I know some great people that are BYU fans and I love them. I understand the rivalry and I do stand by my Utes and even make some comments during rivalry week. But come on. The people that root for EVERY team that plays against the Utes. I don't do that. Then when BYU plays some really good team and wins they say "In your face Utah". Like somehow that proves that they are better than Utah WHEN THEY DIDN'T EVEN PLAY UTAH. Whatever. I just roll my eyes. (And I love you all my Y Fan friends!)

Random August thoughts

Just what I'm thinking about...

Max is busy. Like SO busy. Like I feel like I am the only parent whose kid would run 50 feet away and wouldn't even turn back to see if I was still there or following. He just wants to roam and run free. It's his fearlessness that scares me the most. No Fear = Trouble. And if you are going to tell me that every kid is like this... they aren't. I just went to my work summer party and there are like 5 women with children around Max's age and the majority are boys, and I was the only one running up the hill to capture my child before he joined the pee-wee footballers or ran into the street. I feel completely exhausted if I take him anywhere. I feel bad sometimes because I feel like I have to conjure enough energy/motivation to take him anywhere. Anyway, I'm exhausted.

Sometimes I feel like I am ready for another baby. Then I have an exhausting day with Max and I can't even fathom ever having any more. The women who have 5 kids under the age of 5 must have really good babies, or are really brave (or CrAzY). I can't even imagine being pregnant/having a newborn with Max the way he is. It makes me tired just thinking about it.

Max is smarter then I realize sometimes. Every night before he goes to bed (between 7:30 and 8:00) he gets a bath. So every night before his bath I do the sign (as in sign language) "bath" as I run his tub. Well last night it was about 7:20 and he comes up to me and does the "bath" sign. I was like, "Oh it's time for your bath!" So I ran his bath. I thought it was so cute. He knows his routine well. He also tells me when he wants to eat and when he wants his milk without any prompts. He just signs. He has also learned the word Dog, Cookie, "What's that?", All done (he also sorta knows the sign), Bubble, Key (for blankie), and he jumps if you tell him to. He loves to jump.

I feel less stress now that Chris is working. The unknown was always hard for me, as well as the pressure to provide the primary income for our family. Especially with my work being slow and them calling off nurses often. I was getting more stressed about money, but I don't feel that pressure as much anymore. While we still have Chris's student loans to worry about, I feel better having both our income's to manage that. And we are working on getting me to 2 days a week.

We, like many other Americans, are stuck where we live. Not that we don't like where we live. It is actually a pretty good place, with a great ward, and a lot of amenities. But we want a house, with a back yard. Alas, if we sold our place now we would probably lose money, money we don't necessarily have. So we are stuck here. We have a little room to grow, but not much more. And I want a yard. A FENCED IN YARD, to keep my adventurous child from wandering into the road, or the Jordan River, or out of my sight.

Chris is enthusiastic about his job. I love that. He is studying hard for a certification test right now. He is getting paid to get certified/educated instead of us paying for it. I like that too. It seems like EMC is a good fit for him and I think he will do well, be happy, and have great opportunities for growth and advancement. It is crazy, in this economy, that this company is doing so well. They are a powerhouse for technology. I'm so grateful this opportunity came to us.

Anyway, life is good. I'm grateful for what we have, for Max (even if he is exhausting), for Chris and his hard work and intelligence, and for my parents and Chris's mom who have been so great at helping us with the transition to 2 full time working parents (for the moment) and being able to watch Max. Instead of being scared of the future, I'm actually excited for it!

Why All the Screaming?

While vacuuming my front room today Max was running around screaming. Screaming at the top of his lungs. I was trying to figure out if he was scared, or just trying to be louder than the vacuum. Though I highly suspect the latter.

He has been screaming a lot lately, mostly when he doesn't get what he wants or has trouble communicating with us. I have read that this is a normal part of his development. He is discovering his voice, what it can do, and what he can get from it. If you don't want to reinforce the behavior you are simply supposed to ignore it. If you respond emotionally i.e. hurry and run to his aid, or scream at him yourself, you only make the problem worse. So you just ignore it... which can be very hard to do.

That got me thinking. You know when you are in public and some kid's screaming at the top of his/her lungs or crying and it seems like the parent is just ignoring it!?! Well, that is what the parent has been conditioned to do. Ignore it or don't respond too emotionally. So they may in fact not even realize it is happening, or don't want to reinforce behavior they have worked so hard not to at home, in public. The best thing to do is for the parent to remove the child from the situation to a calmer, quieter, less distracting area (TIME OUT) until they are able to calm down. It can be difficult to find this place when you are in an airplane, or the checkout line at a grocery store.

I think every parent would like to think they have control over their children, but you don't. They are going to be their own little person. Some kids are easier than others. Some kids aren't screamers. And some are. Some are biters, and some aren't. Some wouldn't dream of disobeying their parents, while others look for any way they can rebel. We all have our challenges as parents. And every stage in life brings on so many more and different challenges.

Anyway, next time I'm in a place where a child is screaming or being disruptive, I will try to keep my judgements/disgust to myself. Because it could so easily be me trying to control my disruptive child.

 Is it too much to ask for everyone else to do the same?