No More Babies: See Ya High Chair!

It's true. I have no more babies. I have two toddlers. Maria certainly did not stay a baby long. She grew up so fast, and I can hardly believe the transitions she is going through.

Adios High Chair! This past week we said goodbye to the high chair. We bought Maria a booster seat and she has loved it. Here are some pictures of the big girl experiencing her first meal at the table!

She was a little confused with the plate action.

Mom...too early for the camera!

Breakfast is so good!

Professional table and plate eater after 2 minutes.

Breakfast buddy Greg!

No ER...but...

...this happened last week. Coffee table...meet Greg's eye!

Seriously! This is how swollen it got just seconds after he nailed the coffee table. He was not running. He was not going crazy. He was seriously 3 inches away from table and fell into it, hitting the bone above his eye oh so perfectly!

See the bruise already forming seconds after the fall? I really thought I was going to be going to the ER (on a day that I had not showered and was still in my pajamas). I decided to call the pediatrician instead, and they assured me that the immense swelling and quick bruising was normal for the head. She said to take him to the ER if he showed signs of a concussion or was vomiting. Thank the Lord these things did not happen!

He is doing better. The next day the swelling was just slightly noticeable. Currently it looks as if he is wearing purple eyeshadow on his eyelid that fades into a lovely green yellow as it moves toward the brow.

Visiting with Evan!

We had the wonderful privilege to watch our sweet Godson, Evan, last week! Little Greg had so much fun and was so sweet to Evan (if only he were that sweet to Maria!).

This is about as far as he got away from Evan. He wanted to be close with him at all times...until they both went down for their naps.

Sharing Ernie and talking to Evan about all things boy.

Greg was excited to show his truck to Evan. Evan clearly was not as interested!

We had a great afternoon with this sweet boy. Maria was not as pleased to have another baby around, but she got over it fast!

My pics are kind of blurry since they were taken with my phone....oh well!

Grammy Heaven

A new evening ritual is watching Disney Sing Along Songs. It is the ONLY time Greg will sit still and watch something on TV longer than 10 minutes. He loves the music and dancing, and let's be real Mommy loves Disney Sing Alongs just as much! Many of these were from my own childhood and are now available on DVD. They bring back memories of Jonathan and I growing up! :-) They are a perfect wind down to our super active day since they are just about 30 minutes and we watch them while having out snack and milk.

Sing Along time is even more special with Grammy. Grammy just loves these two little pumpkins and is in Grammy Heaven when she has both of them sitting with her.

Seriously? Who wouldn't want these two laying still on them!??

SO sweet!

Dear Kelly...

For those of you who know me well know that I do not get tied up into the world of celebrities. These same people who know me well will also tell you that I do have an (unhealthy) obsession with two people who I don't know. Tina Fey and Kelly Ripa. I like to pretend that I am just as funny and witty as these two women, but what I love most is how down to earth and true to themselves these women are. I know this based on what I see on TV...haha! Maybe sometimes I pretend in my head that we are friends...whatever.

Anyway....

I watch Live with Kelly pretty much daily and she announced in December that she was having a Girls Night Out in NYC! I could not wait to apply me (and my 4 friends) for this all inclusive getaway trip with spa treatments, dinners out, Broadway shows, a night out with my BFF Kelly, and an appearance on Live with Kelly (perhaps the closest I could have been to my SNL dream). I had to write a letter and include a picture as to why we deserved the Girls Night Out! Here is my letter:

Kelly!

Between the 5 of us, we have 8 kids…all under the age of 3…with half of them being under the age of 1. Is that reason enough for a NYC getaway?

The 5 of us have not all known each other long, but Mommyhood has brought us all together. Some of us have known each other for years; some of us went to high school together (but didn’t really know each other in high school); some of us recently met within the last 3 years. Our Catholic faith, hubbies, and sweet babies have given us plenty to talk about as we have grown together as friends.

I am a stay at home mom who sells Mary Kay on the side. Lauren is a stay at home mom who has worked hard succeeding with her Tupperware business. Rebecca is a stay at home mom who works the late night shifts at a local grocery store to add to her family income. Michelle and Danielle stay home part time with their girls as they balance a part time job in their careers. We all put everything we have into being the best moms we can be while doing all we can to help our families remain financially stable.

On top of jobs, parenting, husbanding (because they require time and energy, too), and getting things done around the house, we try hard to get together. But let’s be real…with 8 small children running around on a play date there is not much time for girl time. It is always something…keeping the boy toddlers from harming each other as they wrestle on the ground, feeding babies, trying to sooth crying tiny babies, playing protector of the girl toddler who is being picked on by the boys (because gender battles begin at the age 6 months J ), and playing toy referee because none of the children have yet to truly understand what sharing is, and feel that grabbing a toy violently is appropriate social behavior…and the list goes on. Girl time certainly does not happen on play dates.

“Me time.” What is that? Me time has turned into folding laundry, dusting, cleaning, dishes…and maybe we drink a little (or a lot) of wine while doing these tasks. A good day of me time may consist of reading a few pages in a book before falling asleep or catching up on the DVR, but it seems that even these nights are consumed getting other things done.

It would be nice…almost unimaginable…to put on clothes for 5 days in a row without fearing it might be destroyed by projectile spit up, food, snot, etc. It would be nice to put on jewelry without the fear of your toddler strangling you with it as they try to rip it off your head. We love our children dearly, but to sleep in until 8:30 for a few days in a row would be a blessing. Not to mention a few nights out on the town enjoying girl time without worrying about feeding a baby, bed time routine, or waking up at the crack of dawn would make for 5 happy Mommies.

Why no video with my letter? I barely had time to comb my hair and brush my teeth…or use the bathroom by myself today. If you need a video…I will be more than happy to throw a little something together, though! J

For the sanity and the much needed recharge of 5 mommies…choose us!

Alyshia (Rebecca, Lauren, Danielle, and Michelle)

Sadly we were not chosen for this night out. Lame, I know! Her loss! HA! Rebecca, Danielle, Lauren, and Michelle: love you girls, and I promise when I win the lottery we will do Girls Night Out in NYC! :-)

Snip-Its...

Snip-its from Maria's BIG day!

We had around 60 people over at our house to celebrate! Most of the guests were kids, and most of them were under the age of 4!

Praise God for wonderful outside weather!

Maria and Heather.

Snack Time! Greg eating with Geoff, Ava, and Jasmine.

Cake time!

She ate like such a lady.

She only ate the icing. Mommy's girl, for sure!

MMMM....GOOD! (So nice out. Naked baby. In January. Outside.)

The cake...after I started pulling it apart.

He is so cute. He was such a good boy at the party and did GREAT sharing all of his fun toys with all of his friends.

Godmommy Kaitlin helping Greg wash his sticky hands!

Present time.

Mommy and Daddy bought her a crib for her babies!

Such a good Mommy!

A wonderfully blessed day celebrating the life of Maria Grace! Thanks to all who could come out and play with us! We love you all!

He's Lucky He's Cute!

This little cutie gives me a run for my money!

Last night, I laid Greg in his room to go to bed. After his normal 15-20 minutes of reading and playing in bed, he began to settle down. He was REALLY restless getting to sleep. Finally at 8:45, nearly 30 minutes past his normal bed time, I hear, "Mommy!" Great. I had just come back from weekend number 2 on retreat and really just wanted to go to bed early. I pretended I was asleep. This tactic usually works. He was persistent. "Mommy, Mom, Elmo, Oh no!"

So down the hall I went to make sure Greg and Elmo were okay, and to tuck them both into bed...again. As I approached his door Greg looked shiny. Oh no? Is he sweating? Fever? Vomit? He held out Elmo who is covered in something...I assume vomit. LOVELY! And then I got closer. Greg and Elmo were covered in A&D ointment. How did this happen? I flashback in my brain, remembering Maria taking it into Greg's room while I got Greg out of the tub. Clearly it was left there and not in a place I would see when walking in and out of his room for bed time. Good job, Mom. An entire just opened tube....EVERYWHERE!

So off we went to the bathroom. It took me three washcloths to get the GREASY ointment off of Greg's hands, face, and hair. I tossed his jammies in the hamper and dressed him in new ones. He told me thanks while I was doing this. I checked Greg's mouth to see if he ate any...well ate a lot because I know he probably had some. I then went to inspect his bed. Elmo was already waiting in the hallway. I also had to take out a pillow pet with a little A&D on him, Maria's Elmo that Greg also has to sleep with, a truck, and some train cars. I laid Greg back down and kissed him goodnight. As I shut the gate, I realized the entire gate was covered in A&D. Gross. (I also have found some on his crib and on Maria's door since the incident) By the time I dropped the toys off in my bathroom, and looked in the monitor he was out.

I talked to GAR on the phone and told her this crazy story. She asked if I called Poison Control. Um, no. I hadn't, but I guess I should. PC told me I had nothing to worry about...just expect some greasy loose stools tomorrow (they were right....Gross!). Maybe I lied to the man, and told him Greg broke into his closet and got it out. Unreliable childproof knobs was my story line...I was in no mood to be judged.

Elmo and company? Well the trains and truck were easy to clean. The pillow pet and both Elmo's were thrown into the washer in pillowcases. They were then scrubbed with dish soap. Pillow pet was saved. Elmos not so much luck! The grease was not coming out. Greg woke up asking for Elmo, and Grammy came to the rescue today with two new Elmos to replace greased Elmos. I cannot get the smell of A&D out of my nose...although my hands have been super soft.