Funny Man

Not only is P the most compassionate 4 yr old I know, but I think he's always the funniest one I know as well. I don't know if it's because of his child like innocence or because he truly is quick witted. (If it's the latter then I can only imagine how funny he'll be in another 20 years!). Today he was on a roll and I was in stitches. It started this morning when he and my brother were Face Timing. P told him he was listening to Pandora and my brother proceeded to ask him what his favorite station was. He replied, "Uncle Josh, my favorite is the gas station."  Throughout the day he had me laughing over silly things then this afternoon he stepped it up and had me laughing hysterically. Awhile ago Rob and I decided we'd take turns putting P to bed every night. Usually P asks me early in the day whose day it is to put him to bed. Today when he asked I said, "So, does Daddy tell you stories or read you books when it's his turn?" He replied, "He used to tell me stories but now he's learning to read. I help him read my books so now he reads me books." I about busted a gut when he said that! 

He has a new obsession with storage sheds. We wants to buy one so he can live in it in the backyard. (Redneck treehouse??) Tonight, while I was bathing Easton, P decided that the bathroom closet would be his shed. When I asked how his shed was he replied, "Oh it's adorable!" The way he said it was as funny as what he said.
Around Thanksgiving P got the horrible virus Head, Foot and Mouth disease. We have since learned that some of the aftermath is losing nails. P has already lost 1 fingernail and is in the process of losing 3 toenails. Tonight one of his toenails started to come off and was bleeding. When I put him to bed he said, "Mom, I found a pattern. Look....one purple toe, one white toe, one purple toe, one white toe, one purple and bloody toe. Oh wait, I guess that's not a pattern if it's bloody. That's just gross." I am so thankful for my boys' different personalities but I am even more thankful that they BOTH bring so much laughter to my life!

Cake Smash

I had done one of my favorite photography shoots for a family member last Fall so I was thrilled when she asked me to do a Cake Smash session for her one year old (who is ironically only 3 days older than Easton). The morning of the shoot was cold so we had to move it inside. I was a little nervous because of lighting but we found the perfect place and let the fun begin. Here are some of the favorite images of this sweet, sassy, cute little girl.....

 

**Scroll down for a personal blog**

Date Night

I just realized that I'm behind on a couple blogs. You'd think with being housebound for the past 4 days that I'd be caught up on EVERYTHING.
Anyway....back in December Rob asked what I wanted for Christmas. Although there were plenty of photography things I wanted the thing I really, really, really wanted was a date with him. It had been so long since we had gone out as a couple. Christmas morning I was surprised to find that not only were we going on a date but that he had spent a lot of time, money and effort into planning this date. Last week I got to cash in on my Christmas present! My mother in law came to town to watch the boys and Rob and I headed to New Orleans for the night. We enjoyed dinner at Bumba Gumps, where I didn't have to share a morsel of food with little boys and I was able to have an adult conversation with my husband without being interrupted. Afterwards we went to a Sacramento Kings basketball game. I was excited about going to my first basketball game in years but when we got there I became even more excited. That's because Rob had got the best tickets possible...we were on the floor!! We were right behind the VIP seats and our seats were so good that we even had food service offered to us. In fact we were so close that when the Kings players came over to talk to a guy sitting right in front of us I think a few of them smiled at me (because I was the only one proud enough to wear a Kings jersey at a Pelicans game). The game was a lot of fun to watch and it ended with the Kings winning. What a perfect night! I don't know how Rob will ever top this Christmas present because it was perfect all the way around. The part I enjoyed the most? The thought and effort he put into making it such a perfect night and the time spent as a couple instead of just being parents!

I'm a Survivor

"I'm a survivor
I'm not gon' give up
I'm not gon' stop
I'm gon' work harder
I'm a survivor
I'm gonna make it
I will survive
Keep on survivin'...."

If you've ever had a sick child you understand why this has been my theme song for the past couple weeks. I thought that, after dealing with my firstborn being so sick, it'd be easier with the 2nd child. Wrong! I don't know if it's because I can't automatically "fix" him, which doesn't bode well with a control like myself. Or because it's taxing mentally. Or because I feel like I'm doing everything I can and he's getting worse instead of better. Or because I feel like a horrible mom to P because he hasn't had any attention from me the past couple weeks. Or because we've pretty much been housebound for several days. Or because the dr's office is closed and I can't take in the samples I needed to be tested for Easton so I have to start the "collection" process all over again. (Gross!) The whole situation is frustrating to say the least!
Today is a "Survival Mode" day. A "Put on a movie so I can have a few minutes to myself" kind of day. A "If anything else goes wrong I will burst into tears" kind of day. A "I want to crawl in bed and pull the blankets back over my head" kind of day. It started at 5:30am when both boys decided that'd be a good time to start the day because Daddy was going to work. I got Easton back to sleep and, in hindsight, if I had known that was the only peace I would've had for the morning I would've cherished it more. After Easton woke up I was encouraged that he ate breakfast because he hasn't eaten much in the past 3 days. He didn't eat a lot but enough. I gave him his medicine and we had just started Facetiming my mom when Easton started coughing. The coughing turned into gagging. The gagging turned into projectile vomiting. It was ALL over me, him, the carpet and in our hair. We both required baths and I had to clean the carpet and do a load of laundry. After his bath I asked P to keep him entertained while I tried to get clean clothes on him. It was going good until P started swinging Mardi Gras beads and accidentally whacked Easton with them. Easton was crying so hard that he wasn't making noise. At that point I wanted to throw in the towel because I felt like I had worked a full 8 hours day with 25 kids instead of 3 hours with my own 2 kids. Sometimes being a SAHM is hands down the hardest job I've ever had (Thankfully the good FAR outweigh the bad)!
To top it off Rob is most likely not coming home tonight because of the "big storm". My MIL is probably up to her ears with police related stuff due to the "big storm" they're having and the roads will soon be closed from their house to ours. So I'm in it alone. I am not really complaining because even with Rob and I tag teaming everything last night it was still very chaotic until the boys went to bed. We both felt like we were being pulled in every direction. The joys of parenthood! It is one of those days, however, that if I lived closer to my parents I would call them up and tell them I'm coming for a visit. Actually, on second thought, I probably wouldn't. I wouldn't think twice about doing it in a FOOT or two of snow back home but I'm not about to endanger my boys' lives driving in an INCH or two of snow here. So I'm going to put my big girl panties on, power through and survive the day just like millions of women do EVERY day with worse conditions. Because you know what? Sometimes being a mom simply means you are a "SURVIVOR"!

Life Of a Snowbird

I grew up in sunny California. I specifically remember it snowing TWICE in the 30+ years I lived there. Going to the snow was a huge treat because it was not something I saw often. So when Rob and I bought a house 2000 feet above Reno I was petrified. Not only did we get a lot of snow up there but we had to drive 7 miles up and down the mountain on switchback roads. We moved in in February and the first Winter there was the worst. I remember many tears, gnashing of teeth and downright old fashion temper tantrums, trying to get my little Honda Accord to and from our house in several feet of snow. I got my car stuck on more than one occasion and couldn't believe we had actually paid money to live in an area that had snow on the ground October-June! But, after the first Winter and a "new" 4WD SUV, I learned to love the snow. I'd always get excited for the first snow fall and one of my favorite places to be when it was snowing was sitting in my big overstuffed chair with a cup of coffee or cocoa in hand, looking at the snow fall on the mountains. Although I always feared black ice, I grew to have a healthy respect for the snow covered roads without fearing them. (I did fear other drivers, however, once I got down the mountain) It wasn't uncommon to have 2 hr snow delays when there was a lot of snow coming down but I don't remember ever having more than 3 snow days a year in my 4 years of teaching and that only happened one year. Snow was a way of life in the high desert. People didn't think twice about it unless they had to.
Now that we live in the South I thought I wouldn't see snow again (unless visiting home). So I was very excited to know that snow was in the forecast for the first time in 4 years here! I went to bed last night, excited that we could possibly wake up to snow in the morning. Schools and state offices announced they'd be closed today because of the snow so I was thinking that, although there wouldn't be as much as back home, there'd be snow sticking to the ground. I woke up at 1:15am, 3:30am and 5:30am last night, looking outside every time in hopes of seeing snow. When Rob left for work at 6am I turned on the news to see that several roads had been closed because of the slick conditions. I thought, "Wow, it must really be coming down now since there wasn't any snow earlier." Wrong! There was barely a skiff of snow on the ground and the only way I knew it had snowed at all was because of our neighbor's roof. That's why I found it downright comical when I called the dr's office to ask if P could get in when Easton had his appt this morning and I was told that they were cancelling all appts because the doctors couldn't make it in due to the weather. WHAT? Thankfully one brave doctor made the treacherous trek into the office so my boys could be seen. (Along with the other people's kids who braved the horrible road conditions as well.) **Yes, those last 2 sentences were oozing with sarcasm.**
Now I will tell you that LA has the worst drivers in the nation even when the sun is out (That is not just my opinion but what a Geico rep told me when I asked why our rates were going to skyrocket after moving here). So when I pulled onto the main road and saw a car flipped upside down in the ditch I figured the roads were going to be horrible. Wrong again! It was just like driving in the rain. Imagine that! The freeway was closed so I had to take the backroads but I got to the dr's office in record time and even had enough time to spare for a quick trip into Walmart. While the boys were being seen I asked the doctor if she was going to leave early and she replied, "Oh yes. It's worse than previously forecasted and I need to get home before it gets really bad." I politely smiled, bit my cheek to keep from laughing and thanked the good Lord that He doesn't let it snow too often in LA.

P during the big 2014 snow storm in LA

Last year around this time in NV, when most of the snow had already melted.

Another Angel....

My heart is breaking. A former co-worker, dare I say friend, lost her 5 1/2 yr battle to cancer early this morning at the young age of 44 yrs old. That is tragic enough. The fact that her boys are now parentless due to their father's tragic death on Nov. 12, 2011 makes it 100 time worse. I have been shedding many tears, not because she is no longer suffering but for her 3 boys who will spend the rest of their lives without either of their parents.
Her cancer story goes back to 2008 when she was first diagnosed with breast cancer. Fast forward to December 2010 when I first got to know her. I stopped her in the hall at our school one morning because I felt compelled to ask how she was doing, despite the fact that she had been in remission. She informed me that she had just had a scan and the dr had found something. But he thought it was because of her new braces and that he wanted to wait 6 months to redo the scan. 6 months later I once again felt compelled to ask her how she was doing because she seemed "off". That's when she told me that she had just found out that the cancer was back, that it was now in her bones and that the dr was giving her less than a year to live. I was the only staff member that she had told, other than the principal, at that time so I listened as she told me that her oncologist told her that she could not leave his office until she repeated after him, "I will die from this cancer." She said it was the hardest thing she'd had to say in her life not because she was worried about death but, at that point, she was worried about her boys being raised with just one parent. Little did she know that her husband's life would tragically be taken 5 months later as he left an UNR football game (ironically the first one Rob and I had been to....and right around where we had parked our car- only 2 hrs after we had left the game.). I knew Jaimie was a fighter but it wasn't until after JK died that I realized what an inspiration she was. The rest of 2011 and most of 2012 was hard for her not only because of her husband's death but because every time she went to the dr it seemed she was getting more bad news. But she never gave up. She was always so optimistic, even when she had tears streaming down her cheeks. She fought to make sure the man who killed JK was given community service instead of jail time since he was a young man with a young baby who made a stupid, deadly mistake (in case you're wondering he was drunk driving). After she went through a couple months of depression and anger she came back to work. She held her head high and continued to be an awesome teacher. By the time we started the new school year in 2012 we were a Kindergarten team with 3 other teachers- she taught next door to me and we did all of our curriculum planning together. For some reason she talked to me more than even her own teaching partner. Maybe she knew it was because I wasn't afraid to go to bat for her with the principal. (Once the principal started to reprimand her for her lack of attention in a staff development when I told the administrator to back off because Jaimie was having a hard day emotionally and physically.). Maybe it's because I listened more than talked- for once. I don't know the reason but I never took for granted the times she'd open up and talk to me about her medical condition or the trip she was planning for her boys or how she remodeled her house because she couldn't afford to buy a new one but hers held too many memories of JK or how she was training for a half marathon or how one of her boys kept giving her trouble because he was having a difficult time dealing with his dad's death or how she had a great support group of friends and family that would shuttle her to dr appts in the Bay Area and keep her company when she was having a really bad day or how she didn't want to teach for the rest of the year because she felt guilty every time she had to call in a sub (which was a lot). The last time I saw her was at our pediatrician's office last Spring right before we moved. She looked great and was so optimistic despite troubling numbers from her last dr's appt. She was planning on going back to teaching this upcoming Fall because she was confident that the experimental treatment she was trying in San Francisco was going to be a success and because she missed teaching.
 Little did she know.....But I can say that she fought until the very end. She gave 110% of herself to fight this ugly disease and she did it with honesty and a beautiful smile on her face. My heart breaks that heaven got another angel tonight but I know that she's happy to be with JK again, her high school sweetheart and best friend. You'll be missed Jaimie. Thanks for being an inspiration to so many!

Breaking Habits

I've heard that if you do something 21 times/days it becomes a habit. Well, I guess doing something several times a day from the end of 2012 to the beginning of 2014 is really a habit that's hard to break. Some of the best  parenting advice I've ever been given is to break kids of their pacifier before they can verbalize what it is (around 1 yr old). It worked for P and I had no doubt it'd work for Easton as well. After consulting with his pediatrician at his 1 yr wellness appt, I was determined to wean him this past weekend. But, both he and Rob came down with a horrible stomach bug and nursing him was about the only fluid and nutrition he was receiving. He was better Monday so as of Tuesday, Easton has been weaned from everything! I thought it'd be hard for him but the only time he has a hard time sleeping without his pacifier is during his morning nap time. Other than that, he's a big boy and goes to sleep, cuddling his stuffed birthday penguin, pretty fast. He now sleeps 11 hours straight (HALLELUJAH!!), giving me several hours of uninterrupted sleep every night for the first time in a year (I feel like a new person getting so much sleep!). The habits that I'm struggling to break involves getting out of the nursing mindset. I keep monitoring my caffeine intake only to realize it doesn't matter anymore. I woke up with my allergies bothering me this morning. I immediately thought, "Oh, I wish I could take something to make them better." It wasn't until after breakfast that I realized that I could. I sure enjoyed nursing so much more this time around but I won't lie- it's nice to have my body back and be able to eat/drink what I want without worrying about how it'll effect someone else. Habits are made but habits can be broken.

Monday Mornings

As a teacher, Monday mornings were always my least favorite day of the week because no matter how much I prepped and prepared on Fridays it seemed like I was always rushed until the bell rang come Monday mornings. Add rain to that day it was one I wouldn't even want to get out of bed for. Apparently, that goes with being a SAHM as well. This morning was anything but relaxing. Our puppy doesn't like the rain so he was whining to come in shortly after letting him out. My 4 yr old let him in and then yelled that he was having an accident in the house while I was "making" (does popping Eggo Waffles in the toaster count as making??) breakfast. While we were eating breakfast I noticed the puppy was nowhere in sight....never a good thing. I found the 2nd accident before I found him. After cleaning it up again and finishing breakfast I proceeded to have my 4 yr old pack all his stuffed animals in garbage bags after he disobeyed me and ripped his stuffed animal net from the ceiling, creating a huge pile of animals that took up a good part of his room. (That boy has WAY TOO many stuffed animals!). From there I went in my room to finally get something productive done only to see my 1 yr old throwing up after putting an air freshener in his mouth. I cleaned him up and decided I would take a couple minutes to decompress from the last 20 minutes and enjoy a cup of hot coffee. Nice thought but my coffee was cold by then. My 4 yr old then broke my one solitary moment of peace by yelling that my 1 yr old was playing in the toilet water (Thankfully it was clean water!!) and pulling the toilet paper from the roll. Luckily it was his nap time so I put him down and told my 4yr old I needed a few minutes to take a bath. He asked if he could have some leftover birthday cake or a cookie and I quickly told him no as sugar and him are not a good combo first thing in the morning (or ever). He knows he's not to interrupt me when I'm taking a bath unless it's an emergency. So when he came in the bathroom with a sheepish look on his face and white stuff all over his face I knew my "relaxing" bath was quickly coming to an end. He's a pretty sharp cookie but not sharp enough to wipe off the evidence of birthday cake from his lips before meeting me face to face. He got mad at me when I told him he could not have any snacks, juice or treats for the rest of the day. When I took the garbage out he followed me out of the house, where he informed me that he'd lock me out of the house for punishing him. Wrong thing to say on this rainy Monday morning!
I thought we had turned a corner when we ran errands because he was actually behaving (for the most part) but as soon as we got home he disappeared only to return a few minutes later covered in head to toe mud! Normally I'm not the kind of mom to worry about kids playing in mud after it rains. That's part of the fun of rainy days. But the barefooted, muddy, defiant kid that stood before me with a smirk on his face just put me over the edge with everything else I had dealt with already (On top of the chaos throw in a 1yr old that is getting over a stomach bug and still has disgusting diapers to change....every 15 minutes). When my 4yr old kept interrupting a phone call and jumping on the dogs after I asked him not to he was sent to his room for a long, much needed rest time (for him and me both!). All 2 legged and 4 legged creatures are now sleeping and I'm finally getting some quiet time for the first time since my day started at 6:18am. Am I complaining? Not really. It's one of those days that I'll look back on and laugh about in the very near future because in the whole scheme of life none of this stuff was a big deal. But because I'm not active on FB anymore to rant and I don't really keep a journal this is my way of documenting my sometimes not-so-perfect days.
Here's to hoping that your rainy-or sunshiny-or cloudy-or foggy Monday morning has been a calm one for ya!

A Winter ONEderland

Although our youngest turned one last month, we had his official birthday party today....a Winter ONEderland theme (Wouldn't you know it was the first warm day in about a week! Ha!). Neighbors and family came to celebrate his life and all seemed to have a good time. Between the cookie decorating table and the trampoline and the kid friendly food and the plethora of toys to choose from the kids had a lot of fun things to keep them entertained.
Easton was not feeling 100% and had a rough night last night but he still enjoyed the attention. His favorite part? A ladle I had to buy for the Hot Cocoa Station (He's obsessed with big plastic spoons). His big brother's favorite part? The stuffed animals that were given as party favors. As a photographer, I always think of the pictures I want to get beforehand. Unfortunately,  I didn't get 2 pictures that I really wanted: a picture of him with his Frosty cake and him with his birthday cupcake with the lit "1" candle on it. But I captured enough other memorable moments and here are some of them....

 

Happy Julyanuary!

Oh wait.....I mean Happy New Year! (My parents and P may be the only ones that get that.) Ah, the day of reflection that some people yearn and others dread. I can't say that I did much reflecting today as I am still exhausted from last night. Fun party? Time with friends? Nope. Just trying to get little ones to sleep while it sounded like a war zone around us. Don't get me wrong. We enjoyed fireworks with our neighbors....at 6:30pm! Our neighbor is a single mom and deathly afraid of lighting fireworks. So she offered to pay for all of them if Rob would light them. A win/win and the boys really enjoyed them, even Easton, which surprised me. He was pointing and "oohing", especially at the loud big ones. He didn't seem to enjoy them all that much, however, at 11pm when they woke him up. Or at 12:15am when they were still keeping him up. But I cherished the fact that he actually allowed me to share a bed with him last night. He's not a cuddler. share his space kind of kiddo like his big brother so when I have moments like that I enjoy them.
OK, back to the new year. You know, as someone pointed out on FB, it's just another day. Some people use it to make big life changes....that usually last less than a month. I, on the other hand, am hoping to work on a couple internal changes and a couple professional goals. We'll see what happens.
One thing I am hoping for this year is stability. In 2012 I found out I was pregnant, we sold our house, I quit my job and then I had Easton at the end of the year. 2013 was crazy chaotic with a very unexpected move 2300 miles from home so Rob could take a new job. Next year may be crazy because we may be moving back home (The jury is still out on that one because I haven't decided if I like BR or not yet). So this year I just want CALM. I know the Fall will bring a huge change with P starting Kindergarten, something I am not ready for and do not want to think about. It may bring me to go back to work but time will tell on that one as well.
For 2014 I want to enjoy the little moments. I want to not always get caught up in doing housework, errands, my phone, Facebook. I just want to be in the moment, creating memories instead of reading about everyone else's. I want to get out of my comfort zone and meet more people and go exploring. I want to give this year my all. And to think that's not even my new year's resolutions!
I'm going to bed to try to make up for my lack of sleep last night so I'll leave you with a few pictures I took of our (early) firework fun.....