Handful, Birthday prep

Oh, Aeson has been such a handful lately! He's getting 4 molars, so he has wanted to nurse basically ALLLL the time. It's driving me nuts! I'm very happy to still be nursing him but it's just how frequent it is that is getting to me.

He now knows every single thing that he's not supposed to touch.. and for a couple days, when I would tell him "no" with one thing, he'd run back and forth to each "no no," saying "no no no no no!" I'm beginning to wonder if he even knows what "no" actually means!

On a positive note, he's started cleaning up after himself! He LOVES to throw things away or put things in the sink. I think it's adorable! He's so intelligent too.. It seems like he really understands everything we say to him.

He definitely does know what "no" means when it comes to something he doesn't want too! He'll either shake his head up and down over & over or say "no!" with a quick little shake of his head. Eric thinks it's the cutest thing when he wants to nurse, because he'll sign "milk" and then sign "please" and then shake his head "yes."

We're getting ready to celebrate Westen's FIFTH birthday! I can hardly believe I have a five year old (well, tomorrow I do)! I love how every birthday reminds you of the birth experience & what that child brought to your life when they arrived. Westen's birth was awesome, and there's always something special about the first baby you bring home.

Westen's actually finally sleeping in his own bed! We moved his room around last weekend, and I think that may be why he likes it better. He's slept in his own bed before, but he's gone through periods where he wants to sleep with us and we let him. This last time, it had lasted quite a long time, and he'd cry when we'd suggest sleeping in his own bed. I was really surprised when he went to bed just fine earlier this week AND only came into our room once through the night. He's slept just fine in it since!

Earlier this week, I was out buying Westen's birthday presents and when I went to check out, I realized I couldn't find my debit card. I walked all over the store multiple times and checked the vehicle with no luck. Eric ended up having to meet me there to pay, and I canceled the card as soon as I got home. This is the second time I have lost it in just a few months! I really need to be more careful! They just called today, and a customer did find it and turn it into the desk. Since I'd already canceled it, they destroyed it, but I was really happy that it was actually found and turned in, instead of out in the world somewhere. It also made me happy.. You always think the worst when something like that happens & I was definitely worried somebody had already gotten it and was trying to use it.. but then a good person actually finds it and does the right thing! I wish we could just assume that would happen, instead of the worst!

Schooling

I ended up being more sick than I thought! I think I was just in denial and hoping it would get better on its own. I went to the doctor, and she said it had moved into my chest.. my glands were still really swollen (and the lump on my neck was in fact a lymph node).. I had fluid in my ears.. all sorts of non-fun stuff! I was put on an antibiotic, inhaler, and told to take Mucinex. I felt better within just a couple days! I'm very glad I went because of that and because the shortness of breath was a little scary! I still feel short of breath occasionally, if I really exert myself, but overall I'm back to being well again.. thank goodness! I have to say too that I *SO* enjoyed the time with only my kiddos. Most of the time, I really wish that we could afford for me to be home with only them.

Westen had a couple of issues with school lately... He hasn't been wanting to go. :-/ That always throws up a red flag for me, because I figure there has to be a reason he doesn't want to go. His teacher sent home flashcards with letters on them for him to work on, and he has absolutely not wanted to. I tried to do some fun things with them, and I've tried to work on letters with him before, but he is just NOT interested. I'm wondering now if that's why he wasn't wanting to go.

I had bad school experiences.. I loved the learning, but I hated just about everything else about it. My mom made me go anyway, and I know for a fact all of it impacted who I am now.. not so much in a positive way. She says now that she would do it differently.. and I also intend to, if it should ever come up with my kids. However, this recent issue with Westen made me realize it's much more complex than I thought! He wouldn't tell me why he didn't want to go, so I couldn't decide if he really shouldn't go or if he just didn't feel like going that day. (I didn't tell my mom at first either, though..) I ended up keeping him home one of the days, and he ended up wanting to go later! So much so that he threw a pretty big fit about it & kept asking why I wouldn't let him go! (It was too late by then, but he didn't understand that!)

I also recently read a blog post by someone who had been homeschooled and had attended school.. It was really interesting, and I wish I could find it to post the link but I can't. Anyway, I've read some about unschooling too, and it all has me questioning the whole institution.

I'm also facing this myself, since I just started school again. I do love college for the fact that it was SO much different than any other school experience I had. I was actually able to THINK and learn what I wanted to. I have also had some bad college experiences (in my first Master's program actually), though, so that plays into all of this too. I went to my first class last night, and I am looking forward to the learning and exploration... but I just don't know how I feel about GRADING and all that. Grading = Judgment. The instructor seems pretty cool, but you never know. So far, it seems much better than my previous program, so I'm hopeful!

Sick, Master's

We're sick again! After a couple days of constant nursing, Aeson came down with a fever. He'd only have it in the evening & throughout the night, and then it would disappear all day. He had a runny nose, cough, would say his throat was 'hot,' and just looked unwell. We tried EVERYTHING.. finally, straight honey helped the cough. The fever was gone for a day but then came back again, so I took him to the doctor on Friday. She said he had some virus & that his tonsils were large. He also had an ear infection, though, so since she was prescribing antibiotics anyway, she didn't test for anything else. Unfortunately, he had the same burn-like diaper rash result from that antibiotic and the next one they tried. I took him back in Monday & she said there was still fluid in his ears but they weren't infected anymore. We stopped the antibiotic all together, and we're still waiting for his bottom to heal. :( The doctor said she didn't want to label him 'allergic' to amoxicillian, because that would count a lot of things out for the rest of his life.. But she said he is very sensitive to it, so we'll just have to remind her in the future when/if he needs medications. We're hoping the sickness stays away, because if the infection comes back, she said we'll have to do something. :-/

While Aeson was going through all this, I developed a sore throat.. that turned into congestion & a cough.. that has turned into fever, body aches, headache, sinus pressure, etc. This left me with two dilemmas. First, the daycare I run. Last week, everyone chose to find other people to watch their kids every day except for the one after Aeson didn't have a fever. I felt bad enough for that.. I mean, it was a whole week! Now that I'm sick, I hated to have them all again but at the same time, I hate exposing people (especially babies) to illness. So, I tried to have them yesterday and today (well two of the three chose to find other places, so I only had 1 extra) but it was just too much. Thank goodness for my grandma, because she suggested I send the one home, send my oldest with her, and take a nap with my youngest. I tried & did sleep off and on, but I keep waking up from coughing. Which is actually why I'm up now at 12:06 a.m.! Anyway, sickness goes SO quickly through a daycare.. I've definitely found that out since having it right here in my home! I feel so bad when I have to inconvenience parents and other family members not only when one of my kids is sick but also when I am. It's not good! Plus then I'm out income too completely, which is never good! Oh, how I miss sick pay! The second dilemma was whether or not to go to the doctor. I have absolutely no insurance, which is always scary to me, and I knew a time like this would come. Thankfully, I'm not any worse to where I HAVE to go.. But I feel pretty crappy and wish I could. I called the doctor's office to find out how much it was for a visit & it's ridiculous. They just told me the visit amount.. You have no idea how much any tests, medicines, etc are going to be. I hate that we're in this position, and I was upset about it all day. I ended up choosing not to go. I just can't imagine spending that much if it's something that's just going to go away on its own. Now, of course, I'm sort of regretting that decision & thinking I'll probably end up going tomorrow. I'd like to find out what exactly is going on and hopefully get some medicine. Even with that, though, I'm not sure what I can really be on while I'm still nursing.

Westen was oh so sweet this morning before he left. Before I'd even talked to anyone or done anything much, he asked if I was still sick. I told him yes, and he said, "I'm sorry you have to watch Aeson & Addy." Aww! He is way too smart! I thought it was just wonderful that he even THOUGHT of that.. at not even 5 years old! A little later, I was sitting on the couch & he asked if I needed him to come cuddle with me!

I wonder what he's going to be when he grows up... He's been drawing SO much lately, and he's so talented. I'm sure I've talked about it before, but he's amazing for 4 years old!

Aeson's saying even more words (hurt & down were new ones today), and his newest feat is climbing on top of his changing table! I went in to find him sitting on top of it the other day, and the next day, just in the time it took me to pour a glass of orange juice, he'd climbed up it again.

I logged onto here tonight, thinking I didn't have much to write & now I have so many things, I'm jumping all around! Anyway, I was accepted into a Master's program about an hour away, and I'm starting THIS semester! I think I already have 9 hours completed, so this will just be continuing it, but it has still been a long time since I've been in school! I'm excited, and glad to have more to do.. more to read, learn, and utilize. But at the same time, I'm nervous about spending hours away from my family (especially little Aeson), the driving, and the new classroom/students/staff. I only registered for one class this semester to see how it goes.

Lastly, my dad's cousin's wife died last week after a 17 year (I think) battle with cancer. She left behind her amazingly devoted husband and two teenage daughters. She was only 45. It was such an emotional service, and it affected me so much. I can't even begin to imagine. It makes you so thankful for what you have and the loved ones you get to see every day.

Molars, Vegetables, & Healthier Living!

My littlest is getting THREE molars! I didn't even notice until he had been wanting to nurse a LOT one day, so I decided to feel in there & one is already through! The other two you can feel and see but they haven't broken through the gums yet. I can't believe it! He's getting so big. He really hasn't been cranky and has had no problems sleeping.. just wanting to nurse more, which I'm sure is for comfort or because it feels good on his sore gums. I'm pretty sure he said "aunt" and "grandma" yesterday, and he also for sure said "truck" and "eat." His vocabulary just keeps increasing! He's also getting most animal sounds correct now.. He is one smart kid!

Silly Westen... We were cutting vegetables the other night and I picked up the onion, asking if he remembered it. He said, "Yes! That burns your eyes- I'm not looking, Mom!" hahaha! I told him that it's not looking at it that does, it's the smell. :) Later, we were munching on cold veggies & he told us how much he missed broccoli! He always makes me laugh.

We're still doing well on our new year's resolutions. It's amazing how your thinking can just change. I've learned so much since being at home. Our food choices have continued to change. We've been making better choices for quite some time, but we continue learning & finding new things all the time. We've been trying to stay away (as much as we can) from preservatives, artificial coloring, nitrites, and high fructose corn syrup. There's really easy changes anyone can make.. These are some of the things we've done (besides just making more homemade foods)...

-We stopped buying lunchables or any type of pre-made meal like that at all. They're full of bad stuff & to top it off, lunchables containers are made with BPA! There's actually a different brand at Hy-Vee that is in a non-bpa container, so we do get those occasionally. Along with this, we try to buy more fresh & frozen, instead of stuff in cans or plastics.

-We buy real cheese.. not cheese product or whatever other words they use to describe something that is NOT cheese.. Same goes with butter.

-We buy meat with no nitrites or preservatives. There's a kind that is in the sandwich meat section & it stays good for a long time, so I'm not even sure what the point is! Westen loves hot dogs too, unfortunately, but luckily for us there are some made without nitrites as well!

-There are actually really good veggie chips, teddy graham-like crackers, and even fruit snacks without any of the 'bad' stuff. I'm so happy we've found them!

-We buy ketchup with no high fructose corn syrup.. There are also little packets of cookies that come with none AND we tried the Simply cookies the other night & they were SO good!

-We always, always buy 100% juice. Luckily for me, Westen always got used to me adding water, so he even ASKS for me to add water now!

I'm sure there are many other changes that I'm not remembering.. We've bought whole wheat flour, we always buy wheat products & try to buy the freshly baked stuff, we of course buy everything we can from the farmer's market. This coming year, I hope to start a garden and I also hope to get more wooden toys (shying away from all the plastics..) and more organic clothing. Clothing is one thing I had not thought of. We already cloth diaper, and we do have some organic jammies for the kids, but I saw on The Talk the other day a guy talking about all the chemicals in our clothing & how it would take years of washing every single day to even start to get rid of them. I haven't seen many options for organic clothing, but those are just some of the goals I'm working toward!

It's a new year!

This is the first year I can really remember not really wanting the year to be over. 2010 was pretty good to us! The thing I'm most, most thankful for is Aeson's bloodwork and sonograms regularly coming back normal. I hope that continues for all of 2011 and beyond, until he's done with them. I'm also so, so thankful that I was able to be home with my babies ALL year! I've now started my SECOND year doing daycare. I've learned so much over the past year.. so much about babies and so much that they really end up teaching us!

The thing that I'm most nervous about that will be coming in 2011 is Westen starting Kindergarten! It just doesn't seem possible. I really don't think I'M ready for him to be gone all day every day either. I'm trying not to worry about it too much, and hopefully it will turn out better than I'm expecting. I'm not looking forward to the change in school and classmates.. but you have to do what you have to do, I suppose!

Eric and I went out for New Year's with some of our friends.. The same ones we spend almost every new year's with! We had a good time and were happy for the time away from home. Sometimes I wish we had more time just us.. just to go out for dinner or whatever.. and Eric pointed out the other day that we've NEVER really had alone time (since Westen was already here when he came along).. BUT I just think about all the years that we will be alone in the future. It already almost makes me cry, just to think of my children being grown and out of the house!

We have 3 main New Year's resolutions this year. First is to be nicer to each other and no yelling! I don't 'yell' often, but when I do, I instantly regret it and feel horrible. I saw something on tv the other day about how we yell when we feel we aren't being heard.. So we just need to find different ways to BE heard. This happens with Westen most often, because I'll tell him things when he isn't really paying attention or whatever and then by the time I've told him several times, I'm frustrated. So, I'm going to be working harder to make sure that he's listening when I tell him something. And as for the nicer part, I think we could all use to be a little nicer to each other.. just more thoughtful, kind, etc. Second, we WILL be getting control of our budget! I want to be accountable for every penny we spend. I want to figure out our interest rates on debt and start getting those paid off better. I want to SAVE. So far, we've done really well. The last thing kind of ties into this and is something I've continually been working on.. and that is eating healthier.. finding new recipes and less eating out! We've already chosen not to eat out twice when it would have been easier TO, and I'm really proud of us for not!

Something totally unrelated... I videotaped Aeson pointing out all of his body parts and doing some of his signs, and for some reason the computer won't let me transfer it! It won't even let me open the program.. I hope I can figure it out! :-/

Christmas 2010: The best Christmas EVER! :)

We spent Christmas Eve at Eric's parents. It started snowing before we left, and I ended up having to drive both there and home verrrrry slowly! We had a wonderful time with them and got so many nice things. Westen's most favorite gift was a Lego airplane, which he & Eric put together the next day. Westen also got a bed tent that he loves, dinosaurs that hatch in water, a how-to draw book, and a whole bunch of other things. I got a mat that I've been REALLY wanting for right inside our door and a whole bunch of other nice things. I can't really remember everything off the top of my head, but basically we all got LOTS of VERY nice things! We went to church with them that evening, and Westen wanted to hold the candle when it came time for that. He repeated the end of the prayer after the pastor, which I thought was too cute! He didn't want the candle to blow out, so he carried it very carefully until we were about halfway to the car & then it blew out. We went back to open stockings after that, and we just had a wonderful time with everyone!

I had to drive back by myself, because Eric had had to work that day & had just met us at his parent's. I was so nervous! I hate driving in weather like that, and it feels like it takes FORever to get home. I got a bit tearful on my way home too, thinking of how thankful I am for the life I have now. I'm so, so, so very blessed.

Christmas morning, we woke up early & opened gifts! Aeson was really into opening this year. He even helped everyone else open theirs! We got the kids a swingset for their big present together. Westen got a T Rex, a hex bug, a zhu zhu pet, a new Magna Doodle, and several other things. Aeson got a Power Wheel (that he loves!), a tent with a tunnel, a dancing Elmo, and lots more. We also got them bathtub crayons that they REALLY love. I got Eric a Patriots zip-up, a couple pairs of lounge pants, the Harry Potter video game, a really nice hot/cold Cubs cup with a lid, and an ornament- plus little things in his stocking. Eric bought me a Kindle! I LOVE it! I've already read a couple of the free books. It is so much better than reading an actual book! He also got me a candle and some other little things like that for my stocking.

My sister and I prepared lunch this year, and we had it at my house. Mom bought Westen a new bike, Aeson a wagon with all terrain wheels, and got them several smaller toys. I can't remember what all Aunt Chels got them! They got WAAAAY too much from everyone, that's for sure! I'm struggling with how to teach them not to be greedy and to be very thankful for what they get. Lunch was very, very, very good and it was nice to relax with the family afterwards. It's nice being here too, because Aeson was able to take a nap & so was Bentley. Bentley sleeps in Aeson's crib since Aeson never does!

Late that afternoon, we headed to my dad's house. They got Westen a Steelers jersey, a book, and I can't remember what else! Aeson got an outfit, a book or two, and again I can't remember what other thing. Eric got a couple gift cards, and I got a hurricane and photo album. We went to my grandparent's for dinner and got a few more gifts there. The country roads were covered in drifting snow! Thankfully, they only live about a mile outside of town. Everything was sooo pretty both nights.. I wanted to get out and take pictures!

We were absolutely exhausted by the time we got home that night. Sunday, we spent most of the day taking things out of their packages, playing with the kids, cleaning, and organizing.

This week has been pretty typical. Westen stayed all night with Eric's parents a couple nights ago. We had my Aunt Gina's birthday party on Monday night. I started watching my nephew Bentley on Tuesday & that went a little rough! Hopefully he'll get better!

So anyway, overall, it was an absolutely wonderful Christmas. It was so fun with the boys. I loved how 'into' it Aeson was this year, and Westen kept saying "This is the best Christmas ever!" We had such a wonderful time with ALL the family, and got more things than we should have! We're so very, very thankful for every single person and for all the things we got. We are very, very blessed!

December Daily 23: Preparation

What a day! The days have seemed so long this week. Eric had to work on his day off (Monday), he's gotten off late almost every night, and he's been so busy during the day that we haven't been able to talk much.

I baked LOTS today! Finally got rid of ALL the monster cookie dough. It took forever, though! We ran last minute errands tonight. (I lied. We weren't done Christmas shopping!) We got all of our gifts ready to go for tomorrow. Eric has to work AGAIN, so he's meeting us at his parents. I'm hoping for good weather, since there's supposed to be a snowstorm coming. :(

I remembered the things I was going to write about Aeson.. He's figured out how to turn the water on on the bathroom sink. He's always loved to brush his teeth but now he especially likes turning the water off and on! He's also able to open the bathroom door now (groan!) AND the refrigerator. Oh, and the front door! I have to keep the front door locked most of the time, so he can't run outside! He's just too big for his britches!