Our favorite things - February

This month I'm combining our favorite things because they are the same thing.

Meet the Leap pad Explorer 2.

 Turner received his Leap Pad for Christmas and Lauren played with it so much that we bought her one for her birthday this year. They come with a few free apps and you can purchase more online or at the store. Typically, a game, video, or ebook costs around $10.00. We find that to be very reasonable.

The kids have been choosing to play their Leap Pads instead of watching television during their 'Plugged In' times at home.

They have become one of Hubs and my favorite things because we are impressed at what the kids are learning through the interactive games and videos. Turner is problem solving and doing Math while Lauren is beginning to recognize letters. We knew that the Leap Pad apps could be educational, but we had no clue how quickly they could teach our kids.

The Leap Pads have proven to provide endless entertainment and they are a wonderful learning tool.

Here is a pic of Turner and Lauren kicking back on a Sunday, enjoying their Leap Pad time in their play cottage.

We absolutely recommend the Leap Pad Explorer to any parent for their child. It's awesome.

What we're reading - February

This month Lauren and I have been enjoying The Big Blue Book of Beginner Books by P.D. Eastman.

The book includes 6 classic books I remember enjoying as a child. They are simple and fun stories that Lauren can fully understand and enjoy. We read them over and over again.

 Go, Dog! Go!
Are You My Mother
It's Not Easy Being a Bunny
The Best Nest
Put Me In the Zoo and
A Fly Went By

Turner has discovered another one of my childhood fave's. We've been reading Just a Little Critter books by Mercer Mayer. Little Critter is always getting himself into predicaments and Turner can relate to him. There are so many of these books to choose from. I love the variety!

Cake Batter Rice Crispy Treats

The kids and I made Cake Batter Rice Crispy Treats this evening.

I found the recipe on Pinterest and I had to try it.

The crazy part is that I don't even like Rice Crispy Treats, but I'm a huge fan of anything that tastes like yellow cake batter!

Ingredients:
3 tbsp. butter (I used 4 tbsp.)
1 bag of mini marshmallows
1/4 cup of yellow cake mix
6 cups of Rice Crispies

Melt butter. Add mallows. When mallows are melted, slowly add cake mix powder. Add the Rice Crispies. Once everything is well combined, stir in sprinkles of your choice. Spread mixture into a baking dish and allow it to harden. Last, cut and serve my friends!

The outcome was a Rice Crispy Treat that didn't necessarily taste like cake batter, but it transformed the original flavor of a Rice Crispy treat enough for me to say that I actually liked it!

Hubs and the kiddo's really liked them! I hope you do too.

Tyler Veronica - 2 months

Little Miss Tyler was 2 months old on Feb. 18th.

At her Dr. visit she weighed in at 10 lbs. 3 oz. She gained 22 oz. in 22 days. She is now in the 27th percentile for weight.

Go Tyler!!

She was 21 inches long at her one month wellness visit and she hasn't grown any longer. She is only in the 1 percentile for height, but that's okay. She has plenty of time to catch up and I'm sure she'll do just that.

If she's not sleeping, she's eating. Hubs and the kiddo's have seen my shirt lifted enough in the past two months to last a lifetime.

Because of Tyler wanting to constantly nurse, we decided to offer her a pacifier. Unlike my other two children, she accepted it. To be honest, it's really been a life saver. She seems really soothed by it and I like having something I can use to calm her down when she gets upset other than what is tucked into my bra.

We purchased Avent Soothie pacifiers. We went with this brand for two reasons. 1.) She will take an Avent bottle, so I assumed these pacifiers were very similar and 2.) The Avent Soothie pacifier is what the hospitals use and they seem to have great success with them.

Plus, we all like looking into it and watching her mouth suck on it. When Tyler is sucking on her pacifier, the kids will watch and every once in a while they will stick their fingers into the middle of it to feel her mouth. And, YES... I've done it too.

So, a really AWESOME thing that happened last week! My little sweetums smiled at me for the first time and she hasn't stopped since.

Tyler has her first photo session next week and I can't wait. I hope we can get some smiles out of her and they turn out well.

I love her so very much!!

 



Memory, a revised version.

As I mentioned previously, Family Game night can be a bit challenging when it comes to incorporating our 2 year-old.

Here is another revision to a game that I found to be successful. Even my 5 year-old will play along.

I'm sure you know how the game Memory works. All of the cards are flipped upside down and each player takes turns flipping cards over until a match is found. The winner is the person who remembers where certain cards are placed. If you want to keep your mind sharp, I would recommend playing this game every now and again. However, it's a bit advanced for Lauren so we had to make a revision or two.

First, I put the cards face up and then I put their matching cards face down in a pile. Lauren picks a card from the pile and finds its match amongst the face up group. She really enjoys playing this way and it's enjoyable for us to watch her as she searches for her matching cards.

If you have a toddler, I definitely recommend picking up the game, Memory. You can find it pretty much anywhere for around $15.00.

Lauren, searching for a match.

Tornado's in a jar

Last night, my Sis brought over my niece and nephew for our weekly playdate. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to share a book and activity I've been wanting to do with the kiddo's for quite some time.

Turner was gifted the book Otis and the Tornado and it's become one of our favorites. I was also on Pinterest the other night and found out how to make a tornado in a jar. I thought it would be perfect to combine the two and share with the kids during our next get-together.

So, we read the book which is about a tractor named Otis who tries to become friends with a mean bull on the farm. The bull rejects the tractor. One day a tornado comes and Otis the tractor gets all of the animals to safety. He saves the bull too, even though the bull was always mean to him. The farm gets destroyed, but the animals stayed safe and the bull becomes their friend after all.

After the story was read, we got to work on our tornado's!

First, we collected our jars. I used smaller jars that the kids could shake easily. (taco sauce jars worked perfectly)

Next, we put a drop of food coloring on the bottom of our jar. (This wasn't necessary, but it made it more fun for the kids to pick out their own tornado color.)

Then, we filled our jars with water leaving an inch on the top.

Last, we added a squirt of dish detergent to the jar and waited a minute to allow it to settle to the bottom of the jar.

We swirled the jars around and watched our tornado's appear!

We even got creative and added a little animal toy to our jars to see what happens when objects get too close to a tornado.

The tornado in a jar project was a success. It was simple and extremely inexpensive.

We'll definitely do it again, but maybe next time we'll add glitter and maybe read a story about Tinkerbell and pixie dust.























































































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Housewife porn - February

This month I'm featuring Hubs cleaning out our oven.

I'm embarrassed to admit that our oven has not been cleaned in over 10 years. You can only imagine...

Great job my love!

Popcorn treat

I jazzed up two bags of popcorn last night by tossing in a bag of plain M&M's and drizzling white chocolate over it. Not the healthiest treat, but it's definitely one of the most delicious I've made in a while.

Catapult!

Today we spent the morning playing with our catapults we built using craft sticks, rubber bands, glue, and a soda cap. We launched mini marshmallows at targets and even competed for height, distance, and speed.

The kids really enjoyed it and it has to be one of the least expensive we've done so far!

Turner's Valentine's Day box

This year, I was able to work with Turner to create a card box for his Valentine's Day party at school.

I was PUMPED!

Hubs built the previous two with him and I finally got a turn.

We decided to do a dragon and I must say it turned out better than I thought it would. The best part is that he LOVED it!

Tyler's first Valentine's Day

I love this pic. It looks like she's reaching out for a hug, but really she got startled before I took the picture and threw out her arms in surprise.

Regardless, she still got a hug. Lots of them.

FAT Tuesday

Last week the kiddo's decorated masks in celebration of Mardi Gras.

Lauren had so many feathers glued to hers, that I had to remove some so she could see. Turner, on the other hand, used the "less is more" approach.

Lauren's 2nd Birthday!

We spent the weekend celebrating Lauren's 2nd birthday. It was a lot of fun!

Lauren received a couple of early gifts from my Sis. When early gifts for the kiddo's arrive at our house, I will typically give them to them immediately. I know that they will be receiving more than their fair share of presents on the day of their birthday and at their party, so I allow them a couple of early ones to enjoy.

Lauren bathing her baby in her new baby bathtub.

 

Lauren jamming to Princess tunes with Turner.

We had a celebration at home with brownies, ice cream, and a gift from all of us. I got a little nervous about her party because when we sang her Happy Birthday, she started crying. She was happy again once we brought out her present.

 

 

 

The day of the party, she was all smiles. She did very well opening her gifts and blowing her candles out. It was a fun day for everyone. Even Turner and Tyler left with a few gifts of their own! Our family is the best.

 



Shuffle

I haven't been getting much sleep lately. Yes, sometimes it's because of the Newb... but I can't blame her completely. In fact, Tyler has been sleeping for almost 2 hours now and I'm still up. I can't bring myself to sleep when the baby sleeps. I feel like there is just too much to do. Plus, I only get "me time" when everyone is in bed.

I'm a little embarassed to admit this, but I'm currently OBSESSED with the game Tetris. Gotta love old school! I have it on my phone and I began playing it while I nurse Tyler and now I don't want to put my phone down. Hey, it's better than staring at the wall or flipping through television channels... or is it? Don't judge. (Not that I have much time to do any of  the above.)

You know what Hubs said to me last night? Of course you don't. If you did I would be really freaked out. Anyway, we were having a nice chat and he told me that he thinks I'm amazing with our kids and do a great job raising them. Um, can a Mom get more of a compliment than that?? Hello! What a wonderful thing for him to say. Hubs has been the best thing to happen to my self-esteem since I grew boobs my sophomore year of high school. LOVE that Man!

Turner graduated to yet another swim class. That kid is really getting some skills in the water. Sure, it's costing us $50 per month, but we feel that it is essential that a person know how to swim. And, the best part is that Turner loves it. The energy burn is just a bonus. On the Tuesday's and Thursday's that he attends school and has swim lessons, I can pretty much count on him to be fairly low key at home. Tonight, he ate two helpings of dinner and we didn't have to discipline him at all. Usually, the kid eats a few tablespoons of food and is wound up all evening until bedtime. We all appreciate nights like tonight.

Lauren is in "terrible two" mode. Having experienced this with Turner, I'm not as uptight about it as before. I know it's temporary and it will pass. It doesn't, however, make it any easier and the tantrums still suck; but I definitely have more patience. Besides, I think that the entire third year of a child's life is dedicated to acting out and testing parents. The year Turner was three was one of the most difficult years as a parent thus far.

Remember last month when I said I was going to start working out? Yeah, well I don't know what happened to my motivation. I probably ate it along with everything else in our cupboards and refrigerator. I don't know what happened. I was all "I'm going to get back in shape" and then my belly was all "we can workout tomorrow, let's have some ice cream." I'm not talking having a snack here and there. I mean, I am going to add some serious weight to myself if I don't get it under control. For example, Hubs picked up a bag of Reese's peanut butter cups and I single-handedly ate the entire freaking bag in 24 hours. Gross. Maybe this is the big binge before I get on track? I certainly hope so or I will be back in my maternity clothes for sure. That thought is pretty scary. I need to get it under control. Stay tuned...

Speaking of maternity wear and anything else that has to do with having a baby, I received a good report at my 6 week post-delivery appointment last week. I received the go-ahead to have some sexy time with the Mister. I'm also going to add that I'm scared to death of getting pregnant again. This past pregnancy was such a shock and the labor was a bit traumatizing. I don't want to have another baby. EVER. I love my little Tyler dearly, but three children is more than enough for us. Hubs was pro-active and picked up a box of condoms. Yuck. I was pro-active and had my Doc prescribe a birth control pill that is safe to take while breastfeeding. So why am I still paranoid? I'm going to have to get over it soon or I'm going to have to start taking a taser gun to bed. (Even with my eye-glasses, retainer, sweatpants, and the smell of benzoyl peroxide; I'm STILL too irresistible! it's a curse! Why am I such a goddess-like temptress? When will I stop being so damn attractive? I guess it's just another burden I must endure.)

Our taxes are completed and filed! I don't want to waste your time blogging about taxes, but it's a fantastic feeling to have them out of the way. The best part is that we are receiving a good return this year and will be able to complete the construction that we started in our home. Yay! Our first priority is finishing the playroom for the kids. They need more space to run and play and we'll finally have an essentially toy-free living room. I can't wait! Oh, the things I get excited about these days.

I registered Turner for Kindergarten this week. He's SO excited. I can't help but be excited for him. I know I will probably tear up on his first day, but he's on his way to being a big kid and doing big kid stuff. I'm really looking forward to seeing him make new friends and learn new things. However, I won't deny that I'm going to miss him like crazy. I'll just have to plan more Mother/Son date nights to get my fix, that's all.

Well, it's almost 1 a.m. and I need to try to get some rest. Tyler will be up soon to eat and she will need to eat again around 4 a.m. Turner doesn't sleep in past 7 a.m. so I'll be up early with him. I've got a fun day planned for us though and time will pass quickly. It always does. That's one of the perks of being a zombie on crack so busy.

Good night and I hope you have a great tomorrow!



 

Portrait

Turner drew a picture of me!

They play cards in Heaven

I had a dream.

It was in color.

I always dream in color, do you?

Typically, I only remember my dreams in bits and pieces, if I remember them at all.

In this particular dream, I was visited by my husband's deceased grandmother, Momo.

She came to me to teach me how to play Bridge.

She wants me to know the game before I go to Heaven, that way I can play a full game and they won't have to teach me when I get there.

She led me to a table full of her friends. They were all her age and although they didn't speak, they smiled and I could tell they were very nice.

There was an empty chair at their table.

The chair was mine.

They are waiting for me.

She also let me know that time is different in Heaven. A year to us only feels like a few hours to her. That way, the wait for loved ones to arrive to Heaven doesn't seem so long for them.

Momo and her friends pass time by playing cards. They play Bridge. They also pass around a bowl of mixed nuts and share stories about their lives on Earth.

They laugh and smile a lot.

Maybe Momo visited me in my dream...

or maybe I just need to lay off the spicy food before bedtime.

Regardless, she was in my thoughts all day today.

We miss you Momo.

Thinking Pink

We're kicking off the month of February by adding some color to a classic. The kiddo's and I will be baking again this weekend and I'm excited to see how these will turn out.

Oh, Chocolate Chip Cookie...you are so pretty in pink!