Friday details

We started our Friday with a package from Grandma and Poppy. Thank you. The boys loved it (as you can tell from the explosion of "stuff" on the floor) and I loved my gifts too. It's so awesome to get packages from the states, especially ones you're not expecting. It's a little bit of home in a box...and we are really missing home these days! One of the items the boys received were WV license plates with their names on them. As soon as Shawn walked in the door from work, (which was noon, how wonderful) Caleb was begging for him to attach it onto his scooter.

We played outside until it was time to take a nap. And it was great, we ALL took a nap, is there any better way to spend an afternoon?

We had our Friday night pizza and movie ("Hotel for Dogs".....AGAIN!) and then Caleb and Shawn played a game while I folded laundry....I'm wondering when my Mother's Day weekend will begin???? Not tonight I guess, or Shawn would have been folding the laundry....

And here is what I found as the boys got bored with us....one getting into the trash and the other getting into the cabinets. It was time for bed!!

Rain, Rain, Go Away

It has rained for so many days now, that I've lost count. Other than the kids being able to go outside and play, I'm missing my daily walks. So, I'm asking for the rain to go away and come again another day. On a good note, Shawn is coming home tonight..yeah!

Dinner Impossible

Do you guys recognize this chef? It's Robert Irvine from the Food Network's show, "Dinner Impossible". We met him over the weekend at a book signing at our Navy Exchange. We tried to give him a challenge, but he cut us off and said, "If it has anything to do with these three boys, No way." He was really nice and patient with the boys. He asked Caleb if he was the captain of the crew and Caleb said, "No, I'm three." So Robert started calling him a three star and Zachary was a two star and Riley was the one star....very cute.

If you haven't seen his show, you've got to. It's fun. Did you know that he use to be one of the chefs for the Queen and the family?? Yeah, very interesting guy.

Walking baby

As you can see from the video, Riley is doing it all...walking and talking at the same time. I knew he was going to be my smart kid (hehehe). He is into everything and going everywhere! He says "mama" and "dada" and his new favorite word is, "nyo, nyo". That's right, his first word is "No". That should tell you something about his personality; He is a trouble maker. I can't turn my back for a second without him getting into something. I have to empty the dishwasher when he's either sleeping at night or taking a nap during the day because he insists on taking the knives out of the dishwasher. (He never grabs for the plastic spoons, I guess that would be too boring) If I take out the utensil rack, he slams the dishwasher racks in and out and my dishes get slammed. The more noise it makes the more he does it, so I've resorted to waiting till he's asleep at some point. He's figured out how to open the sliding glass door and go outside and play by himself, which is okay in the backyard where there's a fenced yard, but not so okay when he goes out the front and takes a stroll down the sidewalk....which leads to either a parking lot or the road...so now the sliding glass door is gated (because it has to be open in order to cool down the house since we don't have air conditioning until the base decides we deserve it...May 23nd. They call it conservation, but I call it controlling and crazy) Oh the list goes on and go...he's put his hands in the toliet while Caleb was peeing, he likes to take the toliet cleaning brush and use it to wipe the walls and floor and rug. Again, the list goes on and on...

PS. On the video, did you hear me ask Caleb not to yell? After hearing it on the video, it didn't sound like he was yelling at all in comparison to how loud Riley was talking. Riley is LOUD!

He also has stared giving hugs, which makes up for all the hardships he causes me throughout the day. There is nothing better than the tight squeeze from your baby on your shoulder. I love it. He's starting to share the love with others too. Out of the blue, he gave our little friend Zachary a big hug at dinner the other night. And Caleb gets an occassional squeeze too (he mostly saves little slaps and tugs for his brother though). He's getting so big and developing before my eyes. He went today and got his 12 month well baby check up. He weighs in at 21.6 lbs, which is only 25th percentile for his age, but his height came in at 75th percentile. Caleb was competely the opposite...short and fat. I guess Riley is going to be my long and lean baby...

It's a "Bob"

As many of you know, I have been trying to go to the gym several times a week. I've been putting the boys in the "child watch" program and Caleb has given me such a hard time about going. He's had moments where he won't even go into the gym or if he does, then he'll scream and try to run out. I've just had to force him into the room and walk out...hoping for the best and every time, Caleb eventually starts playing and having a good time and I pick him and Riley up an hour and a half later. This last time I went, it was same as usual, Caleb screamed and kicked and I just walked out and left him. I got onto the treadmill, got myself situated and not even 10 minutes later my beeper goes off.....I walk toward the "child watch" room and one of the ladies is standing there holding Riley and he's crying. She tells me that she can't get him to stop...I take him from her arms into mine and in that second he stopped, just like that.

It's no easy task to get myself and two kids ready and out the door and to the gym by 9:00. Add the hassle of Caleb screaming and kicking, and now, Riley having separation/stranger anxiety, only to workout for 10 minutes...at this point of our lives, I'd have to be crazy to go back. So,I've just been trying to tell myself that this is my life right now and it's a small sacrifice to make and blah, blah, blah...until I seen an ad for a used "Bob" Revolutionary Duallie jogging stroller. I thought, "what in the world is a "Bob" stroller and what makes it worth $350 USED!!" I mean, I have a Sit and Stand stroller right now that someone gave us and I don't think much of it. As soon as Caleb sits in it, it's almost impossible to maneuver. So I went online to do some research, more out of curiosity than anything else, because I never thought I'd pay that kind of money for a used stroller. First of all, this stroller retails for over $600 new. The tires are air filled and it has an awesome suspension system. It's light weight, yet can hold up to over 100 pounds. It's suppose to be the best of the best of strollers...still this didn't mean much to me until I was talking to my girlfriend who takes walks every night with her 3 year old and her newborn in a Graco double stroller that broke a wheel...wheel snapped right off. When I asked her how much she paid for it ($200), that's when I decided that I was going to make the call. And I am so glad that I did.

So, I bought the "Bob". (Don't worry honey, I haggled and got a good price for it) And I have used it every night since. I love it!!! It rides so smoothly and Caleb fits perfect in it. And I can't tell his 41 pounds is only sitting on one side. I can take curbs with ease and corners with precision. It's awesome! I love walking with the boys and I am looking forward to building myself up to being able to jog around the track with it.

I love my Bob!

Better Today

Oh what a better day today was. The weather was beautiful, the kids played outside, and Jacqueline and I took the kids out for bowling and dinner.

Caleb was beyond excited to go bowling. At 1:00, I told him we'd leave for the alley at 4:00. He stood under the clock yelling, "Go clock! Go clock!" and then every hour there after he'd go back and yell at it again. It was too funny!

Caleb insisted on carrying Synclair's ball out to the lane for her when it was her turn.

Everytime Caleb put his ball onto the ramp, he'd say, "On your mark, Get set, Go!" He was really his own cheerleader.

And everyone else's too.

In a two hour period, we were able to finish one game, eat dinner, and chase after Riley, who wanted to crawl down our lane, down other people's lanes, around the alley, under people...you name it, he wanted to be there.

We had an awesome time.

Longest Day Ever

Have you ever had one of those days that the hours seem endless?? And the madness seems just as endless?? That was my day yesterday.

1. First on my list of things to do: mail out Mother's day gifts. Nope, couldn't happen because....
2. Constant down pour of torrential rain outside. I knew by the time I got two kids out of the car and into the post office, that is after finding parking in the 5 spaces available at the post office on a Saturday...I'd be soaked, the kids would be soaked, and the packages would be soaked.
3. So, I decided I'd do some laundry, which only added to the already wet floors from the humidity of the rain.
4. I couldn't put clean clothes away in Riley's room because I hadn't packed away clothes that he's outgrown. (which seems to be a weekly event and I was several weeks behind) So that task would have to wait.
5. I decided to pull out Riley's clothes and started a big pile on the floor, only to have Riley want to take a nap, so that task was put on hold.
6. So then I decided to clean out the refrigerator (which looked like it hadn't been done in 6 months) only to have Caleb standing behind me saying. " I want juice now. I'm hungry" while he's trying to push me out of the way so he can see inside the refrigerator to scope out what he wanted.
7. I finish the refrigerator and it looks so nice and white and bright and CLEAN.
8. An hour and half later, Caleb decided to take out a juice box and blow air into it (which all moms know is a terrible mistake) and juice squirted all over the refrigerator...
9. Riley wakes up from his nap and I go finish his pack up of clothes. The question now is, "Where do I store them?"
10. And then that starts the debate in my head of: "Do I really want to have another baby?" I'm kinda at that stage where I'm thinking I really like that we're going to be done with bottles and burp clothes and changing tables soon. I could actually start getting rid of baby furniture and clothes and bouncy chairs, that kinda makes me excited, but......I don't know if I'm ready to say, I don't want anymore babies.
11. So, at this point I'm trying to stuff a bag of 6-12 month clothes into the top of Riley's closet. Of course, the next time someone opens that door, the bag of clothes will probably topple out and give that person a concussion (which will probably be Shawn and I then I'll have to hear about how disorganized I am). I am disorganized though, how does one with babies be organized? Have I ever been organized? Have I ever been able to finish tasks with some success? What is success? Successful sure does have a different definition these days. Oh my gosh, I'm getting anxious just talking about it. As long as I have waited to be a mom, nothing (NOTHING) prepares you for how your life changes with kids.
12. Anyway, this is how my day went. I won't bore you with the rest of the endlessness of it, but Caleb never changed out of his PJs and then wore them to bed again, I never got a shower or combed my hair, and the laundry never got finished.

Today, we are getting out of this house!!! I don't want to be reminded of all the things that need to be done by being surrounded by them all day!!!