Not According to Plan

Teacher Conferences

2011-10-22T07:25:00.001-05:00

Friday was Parent-Teacher conference day. Both teachers were really well-organized. They performed evaluations on the girls that gave us a lot of useful information. My first meeting was for Julia. She is wiggly at story time and doesn't appear to be paying attention most of the time. When her teacher calls on her to answer a question though, she nails it every time. She is also one of the only kids that participates in group time. Julia knows all her colors and shapes, can recognize some of her letters, drew an awesome self-portrait with a head, two arms, two legs, eyes, and a mouth, and was able to write her name (sort of)! Difficulties are recognizing numbers, picking up when asked, and pronounciation of some of her letters. Numbers are something we just haven't really worked on. I admitted that with me being in school, picking up the house is just not something we are very consistent about at home. Regarding her language, she is having difficulty pronouncing the "s", "sh", and "th" sounds. She had a free evaluation by a speech therapist at her school. Their assessment was simply that her conversational speech is difficult to understand." I tried to call and talk with them about it, but had to leave a message and no one called back. Meanwhile, I went to the Internet and stumbled upon a speech pathologist's website where I found the following table.

Based on this table, I think we are going to wait until she is four to see if we can see any improvement. At that point, we'll reassess the need for therapy.

Amelia's conference went well also. Apparently (while she is noticeably less wiggly than her sister at home) she is one of the more squirmy kids in the class also. Amelia also knows all her colors and shapes, can recognize some of her letters, drew a self-portrait including a head, neck, belly, arms, legs, feet, eyes, mouth, and hair (I'd never seen either of them draw a person before!), and was able to write some of her name (sort of)! Like her sister, Amelia was unable to recognize her numbers.

All-in-all, both girls are doing really well. They are currently really interested in learning to recognize letters and learning the sounds they make and love acting out the Bible stories they learn at school and church and the movies they watch. It's so fun to watch them play together in this way.

Staycation!

2011-08-26T16:18:00.000-05:00

The girls and I all had a week off school in July (and yes, I am just now posting this). We had a blast.

Sunday - We read a book about honey.

Then we went to watch Winnie the Pooh.

When we got home we ate chicken nuggets dipped in honey.

Monday - we played on inflatables at our church and in the afternoon we made shoestring bead necklaces. The necklaces were a huge hit. We got the kit at Target for just over $5.

Tuesday - Bubble Day! This was the girls' favorite day. We read a great book from the library, "Bubbles Float, Bubbles Pop".

We made bubbles with dish soap, corn starch, and water in their little pool. Then we used their hula hoop to make bubbles around them. That was fun for about 1 minute. Then they decided it would be more fun to play in the soap. *warning to moms - this type of soap can be irritating to a little girl down south* We got the ideas for these crafts from the book, The Ultimate Bubble Book: Soapy Science Fun.

We followed up our outdoor play with their first bubble bath!

For lunch we boiled some water and looked at the bubbles to make macaroni and cheese. We drank a bubbly beverage. The girls even got to chew their first bubble gum!

We tried an our project where we bubbles in a baking pan added some food coloring and blew lots of bubbles through straws. We then popped the bubbles with a piece of paper. The theory was great, but it didn't work out. I think it would work better with paint instead of food coloring.

Wednesday - We talked about the number 10. We read My Ten Book and I Can Bowl.

We tried Wii bowling, but the girls don't quite get video games yet.

We made pudding and practiced drawing the number 10 in it.

We went bowling when Jonathan got home. This was by far the highlight. We used the bumpers, but the girls didn't care for the ramp. Amelia was ready to call it quits by the end of the tenth frame, but I think Julia would have bowled all night if we had let her. Julia was a natural knocking down 80-something pins. Amelia had her own special technique that just barely got the ball down the lane, but won her the award for cuteness. She carried her ball up to the line, put her right foot behind her left leg, and dropped the ball on to the lane.

Thursday - Water day. The girls always love water day. We read some more great books in the morning.

The Drop Goes Plop: A First Look at the Water Cycle

Water Voices

Then we went to my parent's house and went swimming.

Friday - We visited a downtown anomaly called The Center of the Universe. This is such a cool place because you can stand on a spot and talk and hear your voice echo even though there are no walls around you.

At first the girls just kept yelling "echo". Eventually they started getting creative yelling Cinderella, rock, building...you get the idea.

Hope you all had Summer's full of learning, laughing, and having fun together.

One Week Down, Seven To Go

2011-06-12T11:27:00.000-05:00

Only four classes this summer. Clinical Medicine, Epidemiology/Statistics, Human Behavior, and Genetics/Immunology. Despite starting Genetics before school started and having no class Friday, I still find myself struggling to keep up. There is A LOT of reading this semester. And while I devoured books as a teenager, it is not something that comes easily to me anymore. I'm not sure if my attention span is lacking or if I need to visit the eye doctor or a combination of both.

This semester I will have two presentations to give. We were told to select our topics by the end of the first week. No pressure. I'll be doing a Genetics presentation on the genetic variations of monozygotic twins. Should be fascinating to try to get to the bottom of how it's possible for Amelia to have a little birthmark on her right hip while Julia doesn't. My other presentation will focus on maternal and fetal safety of cesarean sections versus vaginal delivery, or something like that. I haven't quite nailed it down yet. While part of me wants to sigh in exasperation at the amount of work I will be doing over the next seven weeks, another part of me that ADORES research is thrilled. (If anyone has a link to any research on either of these two topics that would be much appreciated)

Now if someone could just tell me how to be in two places at once over the next seven weeks so I can enjoy the Summer with my family AND study, I would be forever grateful.

My Summer Vacation

2011-06-03T05:09:00.002-05:00

We got three weeks of Summer vacation from school. Three glorious weeks. Our longest break yet. Last semester was rough - really rough. So a vacation was most-certainly needed. And boy was it eventful.

Our first week off, the girls and I hosted a tea party for some of the ladies of my family. We dressed up and invited my grandma, my mom, my sister-in-law and my two nieces over for cupcakes and "tea" (apple cider).

The next week was our big trip to DisneyWorld. We went about the same time last year, but this year we had a nicer hotel room much closer to Magic Kingdom. The highlight of the trip for the girls was the pool and the character meet and greets. Of course they still had their old favorites, Dumbo and the teacups and found a new favorite in Kali River Rapids at Animal Kingdom. Amelia was really into the show in front of the castle. She is still talking about how Maleficent tried to steal her dreams.

We got home last Sunday. The plan for Memorial day was to take care of a few things around the house, do some grocery shopping, and take the kids to my parents' house for swimming and dinner. We had an unexpected change of plans.

Jonathan was out mowing the yard when I decided to leave the girls watching Cinderella so I could take a shower. Just before rinsing, I heard one of the girls crying. I called for them a couple of times and no one came. So I hopped out of the shower, threw a towel on, and ran off to look for the crying kid (thinking something horrible must have happened). Amelia was still playing with her doll while watching Cinderella, but I heard Julia crying in her bathroom. I darted in that direction and just as my still wet foot hit the tile of the entry and I was rounding the corner, my foot slid out from under me and my head hit the corner of the wall. I sat down hard on the entry rug and just held my head for a few minutes until I realized my hand was getting warm. Blood.

Amelia and I were both in our birthday suits (she had her princess dress taken away from her before my shower because hitting her sister was not very princess-like behavior), so I sent Julia in her leotard and tutu outside to get Jonathan. After a mad dash of getting all four of us dressed and ready to go, we dropped the kids off with my parents and Jonathan and I headed to the ER since urgent care wasn't open due to the holiday. Two staples by a very nice PA later and we were ready to resume our day.

So after all my years of ice skating and gymnastics, it wasn't until I had children that I injured myself severely enough to need a medical professional. The good news is that Julia is fine. We never found out why she was crying. We also still made it to my parents house for dinner and I even had enough time to make the (amazing) pink lemonade cupcakes that I promised to bring.

The rest of this week has been less eventful (praise the Lord). We picnicked at the park on Tuesday with a friend and her kids. Wednesday we made it to story time at the library. Today the girls will be spending some time with their aunt and I will be running errands and reading Genetics for my class on Tuesday.

Eight more weeks of classwork and then we begin rotations.

I'll leave you with a few pictures from one of our early days of vacation. The girls' first time waterpainting and playing outside.

Amelia

Julia

I got to read Fiction over my break!

Birthday Talk Already?!?!

2011-01-14T15:02:00.002-06:00

Yes, I am that person. I plan parties several months in advance. I just get so darn excited. I think this time it's going to pay off since I'll be knee-deep in school work in March. I already booked the party place, bought the party supplies, and we've bought presents. All we have left to worry about is food! So here's a sneak peak at our Tangled party!

The Location

The Tablecovers, Napkins, and Invitations

The Plates, Cups, and Forks

For the paper lanterns I will make

Anyone have creative ideas for a cake?

**Update**
The party went well. Everything turned out beautifully.

A classmates wife made these adorable shirts. Check her out at http://www.kallaskreations.com/Kallas_Kreations/Home.html

The cake design was based on the back of their napkins. The only close-up picture I have wants to be sideways. Unfortunately, I can't take credit for this one. It was store bought.

Musing Induced Insomnia

2011-01-10T03:03:00.000-06:00

The Mega Millions was up to $300-something million a few days ago. We played. When we play we also play the what-if-we-win game. Jonathan's dream if we win is to start in indoor kicking arena. A place where he could train people to kick (footballs) and people could practic kicking. It would have a workout facility, offer camps, have a special week for underprivledged kids, etc. Pretty awesome.

My dream keeps me awake at night thinking and planning. My dream is more eaily attainable. Someday I will see my dream become a reality. I want to be a Bradley Method Instructor. I want to educate women about all things childbirth related. The closer I get to our women's health module in school (this semester!) the more excited I get. If we won the lottery, I told Jonathan that we could buy a bigger house with a room dedicated to my Bradley Method courses. It would have bookshelves for my library of pregnancy and beyond books, comfortable seating that's easy for pregnant women to get in and out of, a TV for our movies, and an ample amount of floor space. I would use all my PA school education and the Bradley Method Training I would get and educate women about their own bodies, their developing babies, and how to make educated decisions about their childbirth experience. Maybe I would even make and sell cute crafts for new babies, become a certified yoga instructor and teach prenatal yoga, and become a doula. Three years after I took my Bradley Method class and I still feel just as passionate about it. This dream is a keeper.

For more information about the Bradley Method
www.bradleybirth.com
Facebook - The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth

Another Semester Survived

2010-12-21T14:11:00.000-06:00

Two semesters of class work done, two to go. Then I get to start my rotations. We fell into a better groove this semester that we will continue next semester. I am a morning person. My brain doesn't operate at night. So I get up at 4am each day and go to school and study until class starts at 9:00 or 10:00am. Hubby drops the kids off at daycare on his way to work. I get out of class at 4:00pm and pick up the girls and we go home and make dinner and spend the evening together. I feel like I've found about as a good a balance between school and family as possible. Now I just need a house elf to help me keep the house clean. As it is, I struggle just to keep up with the laundry and dishes.

Right now school is out and I get to savor every moment with my family with minimal study stress in the back of my mind. And to make things even better, I did all my Christmas shopping online this year and started shopping super early, so I am completely done with gifts wrapped and under the tree.

Today little Amelia and I are having a Mommy and Amelia day while Julia is in school. I was going to take Amelia back in time for lunch, but my poor girl is not feeling well. She is running a low-grade fever and skipped lunch in favor of a nap. She's not been my normal happy, bubbly Amelia. Hopefully she'll be feeling better by tomorrow so Julia and I can have our scheduled Mommy and Julia day.

Hope you all are enjoying your holiday as much as I am! God bless.

Facebook Friday

2010-08-13T10:51:00.000-05:00

For anyone that didn't catch it last time I did this, Facebook Friday is a review of my Facebook statuses for the week.

Tuesday - Amelia informed me last night that she wants me to buy her a pillow pet - this was not following a commercial for said product.

Tuesday - Cleaning out the girls closet. One trash bag full of shoes to donate. One trash bag full of clothes to donate. Two bags of size 24 month and 2T clothes to lend to family and friends. Maybe I should open a consignment store.

Wednesday - Kitchen and bathroom are now clean. Moving on to the dreaded chore of hanging my clothes.

Wednesday - Tackling the office. Last room of the house to clean.

Thursday - Still trying to sell our Graco DuoGlider (double stroller) with SnugRide car seat and two bases. http://tulsa.craigslist.org/bab/1886095367.html

Thursday - The girls slept past 7:00! First time in a long time that has happened. Now I need to convince them that wearing clothes is a good idea, so I can take them to school.

Thursday - My kids pretend to take each other's noses and now heads. It's all fun and games until they won't give it back. Is it wrong that I just laugh while they scream, "My head, my head! Sissy take my head!"?

Thursday - The girls saying bye to their Aunt Autumn: Bye, Ottoman!

Friday -The girls slept until 7:30 today! I was able to remove the switch plates and hardware from the bathroom walls and start taping off so I can paint. Sleeping in is great while I'm not in school, but could become a problem next week.

A Little Update

2010-08-09T09:31:00.000-05:00

Today is my first day since having my kids that I have the house to myself and no schoolwork to do. I am looking forward to deep-cleaning my house! I know crazy. But it hasn't been cleaned properly since sometime before I started school.

Friday was my last day of Summer semester - and boy was it a rough one. Going to school full-time has been a huge adjustment. I knew it would be hard to put the girls in school full-time, but that I could handle it. What I didn't anticipate was how little time I would get to spend with my husband and kids in the evenings. My typical day went something like this:

6:00am - get myself dressed and ready for school
6:45am - girls wake up and get them ready for school
7:15am - drop the girls off at school
8:15 -5:00 - school
5:30pm - home to eat with the family
6:30pm - shut myself away to study
7:30pm - help hubby put the girls to bed
8:15pm - more studying
10:00pm - sleep

And despite all the time I spent focused on school, I still struggled to pass all my class. I was an emotional wreck for probably the last month and dealt with overwhelming anxiety for the entire two months (by the week before finals, I had a perpetual eye twitch). I regularly questioned why I was putting myself and my family through it all. All my reasons for doing this seemed so unimportant when faced with the fact that I missed my family so much and I wasn't even excelling at what I was doing. Then we had to go to the clinic one night and shadow an attending doctor. I shadowed an amazing allergist. She taught me so much including how to perform skin testing! I was asked to look in ears and noses and read testing results. I had such a great time. And when I finally got my grades last week, I passed all my classes and I felt so good about what I had accomplished this past semester. I took Biochemistry and Anatomy in 8 weeks in addition to two other classes and came out on the other side. I survived the difficult transition into full-time school and being away from my family - and they survived it too! I only have three more semesters of class work before I begin my rotations. That's just one year. I will graduate and go on to have a fulfilling career and teach my children that with hard work and perseverance one can overcome much. But when coupled with prayer and being in God's will, one can do anything.

The Beginning of the End

2010-06-12T13:25:00.001-05:00

Several people have asked me how school is going so far. It's time for a serious update. I know. I still don't have a New York or Disney post, but I seriously didn't have time to get on the Internet outside of school-related stuff last week.

Monday was day one of our 30 month adventure of Mommy in PA school. I woke up bright and early at 5:30am to get dressed and ready to go. Made my lunch like a good girl and woke the girls at 7:00am to get them dressed and ready to go. We were out the door by 7:10 and at their school by 7:25. Leaving the girls at school was not made any easier when they both looked up at me and said, "Mommy, wanna go home." My heart still shatters into a million pieces when I think about that moment. Thankfully there were no tears as I walked out the door.

I made it to my school by 7:45, which gave me plenty of time to find my building, find a parking spot, organize my things and put on a brave face for Anatomy Lab. We were divided into six groups, one for each cadaver. All was well until we opened the lid on our cadaver table. That is a smell that I don't think I will ever get used to. I tried to be brave and get close, but then I started feeling the blood drain from my face. I sat down to avoid passing out. I must have looked pretty bad because several people asked me if I was okay. When a girl in my group offered me a piece of gum, I took her up on it and the smell of WinterFresh immediately replaced formaldehyde. By the end of the class, I was watching my classmates dissect, but was not yet ready to actively participate.

After lab, we have lecture. This is the schedule everyday. It's a teleconference with a professor in Oklahoma City. Questions are harder this way. Nobody is thrilled with it. Apparently the Anatomy professor from last year went in for a procedure shortly after the Spring semester let out and didn't make it. Another example of why I believe that one should consider surgery thoroughly before jumping under the knife.

After lab is lunch and then we have another lecture. Depending on the day of the week it varies from 2-4 hours long. In addition to Anatomy, we are taking BioChemistry, Professional Issues in Medicine, and Public Health. Yesterday we took a Medical Terminology test and assuming I passed, that will be the last I will have of that class.

We didn't get the car seats in for Jonathan's car until Tuesday, so I had to pick the girls up from school Monday and Tuesday. Now it's Jonathan's job to pick them up. This gives me a little flexibility so I can spend quality time with the cadavers (I am fully capable of participating in the dissection of Fiona now - Fiona because her skin is a bit green) Thursday evenings in preparation for our weekly Friday lab exams. Fill-in-the-blank. Ouch. There's no guessing. You just either remember what you are looking at and the term for it or you don't. Pretty sure I passed, but most likely won't be hanging that grade on the fridge.

I did a good job this week of making up a list of easy meals and shopping for them over the weekend. I came home and knew exactly what my options were and had everything on hand. Hopefully I will remain diligent with that. Despite all my preparation and the support of my amazing husband, I have been experiencing a lot of anxiety. The kind that twists my stomach in knots and makes me wonder just when I will toss my cookies. Also, even though I am a (nearly) 30-year old student with a husband and two kids, I feel a bit overlooked by some of the other students - it's like high school all over again. Hopefully, as my anxiety passes and I get to know everyone better, this too will pass.

As for the girls, they don't seem to be any worse for the wear. They miss us, but seem to have fun at school. They only cried two of the five days we went to school and I'm sure that will improve when they get used to our new routine. I'm not happy with the foods they are fed (taquitos, pancake-on-a-stick, pop tarts - seriously?), but their school is clean and the teachers are nice and they have been napping.

Prayers are appreciated. This is going to be hard on all of us.

Just When I Thought I Was Going to be Productive...

2010-06-02T06:58:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I finally caught up on all my blog reading, so I thought it was (way) past time for me to update the world on my May. Pictures of the girls, trip to New York, and trip to Disney World. It's been a busy month. Just as I was about to put the SD card into the laptop, it turned itself off. What?!?! The only things running on my computer were my picture album and Internet Explorer with three tabs open. I checked to make sure it was still plugged in since the battery doesn't work anymore and the blue light told me it was. Yet, the darn thing won't turn back on. I push the button and nothing. I hold the button down and nothing. I'm at a loss. All I know is that ALL the pictures of my girls are on there and if I lose those I will be extremely upset. So any computer saavy people out there with any suggestions for me? I suppose I will just take it to the repair shop later today. If I am able to get my pictures back, any suggestions for how to handle digital photographs in the future? Thumb drive, CD, external hard drive? What's the best option? Any suggestions for new lap tops? Preferrably ones that don't shut themselves off randomly and refuse to start again.

Okay, must rescue my office from my coloring kids.

Loving The Word

2010-05-22T07:12:00.000-05:00

Julia found my Bible in my purse the other day and was carrying it around like a prized possession (she's so smart). Both girls received two Bibles (Gideon sized) as gifts when they were born, so I pulled them out and let them each have one. Now they both carry them everywhere with them and ask me to read it to them. Of course I oblige. The part that really makes me laugh about the whole thing is that when Julia says Bible, she says it like she's from the deep South. She also regularly looks for the pictures. It goes something like this:

Where pictures go?
Where go?
No more pictures.
Pictures gone.

Now Momma needs to take a lesson from her girls and pick up her own Bible more often.

Catching Up

2010-05-20T14:10:00.000-05:00

For those of you that have been following the story of my frustration with my doctor's office, I finally have resolution for you. I went with the calling three times a day strategy until I got some answers. It took three days before I finally got to talk to the nurse. She said that all my results for all my lab work were good, except there was one that my doctor was unsure of and wanted to review with another doctor. She told me that he said it was his fault he hadn't done anything on it yet and that he planned to do it before noon that day. So I said, "Then theoretically I should get a phone call before the end of the day today?" I'm told yet. Good thing I didn't hold my breath. So I resumed my three times a day calls until I finally received a phone call 13 days after my blood was drawn for my titers. They thought my Hep B titer had come back negative. Turns out they ran the wrong test on it. And it apparently took them 13 DAYS to figure this out. Fortunately the lab girl I spoke with was surprisingly helpful. She told me they wouldn't charge for the test I didn't need done (gee, how sweet) and arranged for me to have it done at an office very near my house the same day. I tried to get a babysitter for the girls, but it was short notice, so I braved the trip to the office with the girls. My normally wild, all-over-the-place girls were angels. I put on my bravest face and smiled through the whole thing and told the girls exactly what was happening. Julia stuffed all her fingers in her mouth at once and cried the whole time my blood was being drawn. I kept telling her it didn't hurt and that Mommy was okay, but she was very upset for me. Amelia just stared and wasn't quite sure what to think. When the phlebotomist wrapped my arm in guaze they were afraid that I had an owie. "Just a little one," I told them. "It will be all better by the time we get home." The next day I was able to go pickup all my paperwork from my doctor's office, so I can finally get it to my school.

In more interesting news to all my Mommy readers out there, we have been working on potty training at our house. The girls were telling me they needed to potty often - and by often I mean that I felt as though I was spending my day in the bathroom. I wouldn't have minded if they actually did something up there aside from playing, but they weren't. It was just an excuse to get Mommy's undivided attention. In an effort to reward good potty behavior and curb "bad" potty behavior, I started giving two Reeses Pieces every time they actually did something on the potty. This seems to be working. Now we go diaperless most of the morning and part of the afternoon and both girls are really getting the hang of it. Julia has even started asking to go when we are out in public! This should add an unexpected twist to our Disney trip, but I think it's well-worth it.

Now for a laugh: Julia is still really enjoying her "Little Bunny Poopoo" song and both girls have added motions to it. They are really working hard at making bunny ears with their fingers. I had no idea it was all that tricky until I watched them try to do it.

Lastly, pray for wisdom for us as we go through the process of accepting and declining student loans. What a headache.

Countdown

2010-05-07T12:51:00.000-05:00

Six days until I leave for NYC to celebrate turning 30 with three of my girlfriends.

Eighteen days until I leave for DisneyWorld with the hubby and kiddos.

Four weeks until orientation.

One month until school starts.

Thirty-one months until graduation.

Sweet Sisters

2010-05-04T13:43:00.000-05:00

My girls had a stomach bug last week. Julia woke up at 12:45am Friday morning. At 1:00 I had to change her sheets. At one point I brought Amelia into our bed to sleep because she was so uncomfortable and just needed to cuddle. I heard Julia get sick again and jumped out of bed. When I tried to put Julia back in bed she wouldn't go to sleep because she didn't know where her sister was. "Sissy. Sissy," she kept crying out. Meanwhile, Amelia had heard her sister crying and was on her way to help her. I returned Amelia to her own bed so they could be together again. Later, Amelia needed to go to the restroom to throw up. Right after she got sick, she heard her sister crying in their room. "Sissy, crying," she said as she ran in to check on her. She gave her a little pat as her sister got sick in her bed. Not a night I'd like to relive, but even in those terrible few hours, I was offered the fleeting opportunities to see just how much my girls love each other. It's times like that I feel beyond blessed to have been given twins.

In unrelated news, if you really want a laugh, ask Julia about Little Bunny FooFoo and she'll tell you all about Little Bunny PooPoo.

An Update on my Frustrations

2010-05-04T13:33:00.000-05:00

Let's see. When I last left you with my angst, I had gone in for my lab results last Wednesday only to be told that the doctor was reviewing them and I would get a call when he was done. Guess who never received a call? Yup. That's me. So yesterday I called around 1:30. I was told they would leave a message for the nurse and she would call me back. No call.

Bear in mind that not only have I been asking for lab work from my blood draw on April 21st, but I also had lab work done April 7th that I still haven't heard anything on. AND, I have told them repeatedly (as if they care) that this stuff is for paperwork that has to be turned in May 1st. Guess who didn't get her paperwork turned in on time? So not my style.

So I called this morning at 8:40. "I'll leave a message for the nurse", says Candy the receptionist. Thank you, Candy. That's the same run-around garbage I've been told everytime I've called. Of course I didn't say that. I was polite. It's not Candy's fault my doctor's nurse lacks follow-through.

I called again at 1:00. This time I spoke with Cliff the receptionist. "Hi, Cliff. I called this morning to get my bloodwork results from April 7th and April 21st. I've been told multiple times that I would get a call back and have yet to receive one. I'd really like to know what's going on and at this point I feel like I have to pester you all to get any kind of answer. Can you, please, tell me what's going on, Cliff?" Cliff lets me know that the nurse is on lunch, but should be back in 15-20 minutes and he'll leave her a message to call me. Thanks, Cliff, but your messages are apparently worthless because it's now 1:30 and the nurse still hasn't called me.

Do I need to call everyday three times a day to find out what's going on with my blood work? Do I need to allow my two year-olds to run amuck in their office to get some answers? What would you do if you were in my shoes?

Kitchen Makeover

2010-04-28T13:43:00.000-05:00

We got granite - and a new sink - and a new faucet. They are lovely. Being without countertops, a sink, and the dishwasher for multiple days was not-so-lovely - but it was worth it.

Before

After

Before

After

Before

After

Quick. What's a stronger word for frustrated?

2010-04-28T13:26:00.001-05:00

I'm frustrated. That's an understatement.

I went to the doctor about 3 weeks ago for a physical. I figured I hadn't been since I went off to college in '98 so maybe before going back to college I should go again. I assumed I would need some immunizations for school so my doctor asked for my records to see what I would probably need. His staff told him that my records had been destroyed. He was pretty miffed since I was only 17 last time I had seen him. He gave me the DTaP since we knew I needed that one and told me to check and see if my parents have copies of my immunization records.

The parents had some - but not my Hepatitis B records. Doh. I checked with my high school. They destroy records after 2 years. I checked with my college. They destroy records 10 years after they receive them.

By this time, I've received the official paperwork I need to fill out and return to the school by May 1st. I need to get a varicella titer (shows that I have the antibodies to fight off varicella, aka chicken pox) and TB test. I call the office to schedule those. I get there and the nurse says she can only do TB tests on Mondays and Wednesdays. It's a Thursday. So why did they schedule me for a Wednesday? Frustration is mounting. I go ahead and have the blood drawn for the varicella titer and make an appointment to come in Monday for my TB test. Later that day I realize that I can probably just get a Hepatitis B titer also. I call the office and ask to speak with the lab. They have me leave a message and tell me they'll give me a call later. No call. I call the next day and they have me leave another message and they tell me they'll give me a call back. Now it's Friday at 4:00pm and still no call back. I call again. This time the receptionist calls the nurse who gives some non-answer like, "I assume it was done."

Monday morning I go in for my TB test and am told that the lab was able to do both varicella and Hep B titers with my blood draw. Yay! So I go back today to get my TB test results (negative) and my titer results. I'm told that my doctor pulled my labwork and is looking over it and they will call me when he's done with it so I still don't have proof of my Hep B vaccine or that I've had chicken pox. I get home and tell my mom what's going on and she calls my dad to see if he has any additional information. Dad and my doctor are good friends and because the office was giving me so much grief I had asked my dad to make sure the doctor knew what was going on. Dad says that my Hep B titer came back negative and my doctor is checking to see if the lab work was done properly.

AHHHH!!! I know I had the Hep B vaccine because in psychology class my senior year of high school we had to write in a journal. I stumbled across that a few days ago and read through it. In an entry dated April 10, 1998, I wrote that I had the last round of my Hepatitis B vaccine the previous day. So either something was wrong with the vaccine, something was wrong with the titer, or my body doesn't build anitbodies to Hep B. This can't be happening.

Meanwhile, I got an email last week stating that I need to get a white coat from a specific uniform store in town. I email the shop and ask what information they need from me for this coat. They tell me that they need me to verify my name as it will be embroidered on the coat and they need my size. They also tell me that I am welcome to come in to the store to try on so I am sure to get the right size and gave me their store hours.

I went in Saturday and was told they were completely sold out and they should have a shipment come in Tuesday. Great. I decide that since it is close to my doctor's office, I will go in today. Still no shipment. She says it should come in today.

Did I mention that my doctor's office and the uniform shop are a good 20-30 minutes away from my house? And that doing these things with two two-year olds is difficult to say the least. Okay. End rant.

A Week in Facebook Statuses

2010-04-28T12:40:00.000-05:00

Tuesday: No nap for the girls again today. This resulted in a very frustrated momma and Julia full out crashing in the car at 7:00pm.

Thursday: Lesson of the week: Make sure you keep a copy of all your immunization records because doctors offices and schools like to destroy them.

Friday: Amelia threw a 5 minute tantrum because she DIDN'T want the pretzles I offered her for a snack. Seriously, kid, a simple "no thanks" will suffice.

Sunday: My kids can finally say their own names. Woohoo!

Monday: My children have an abnormal affection for our minivan. They don't stop at just hugging it regularly, they also accompany it with an "Awww."

Pitching the Paci

2010-04-17T07:30:00.001-05:00

I wrote yesterday about how we had started paci weaning. Well last night was a big night. We had two pacifiers left. We brought a trashcan into the girls' room and showed each of them that their paci was broken. We then asked them to throw their last remaining pacis away. Both girls happily followed directions. Amelia asked for it once when I was kissing her goodnight. I reminded her that it was broken and she threw it away and told her that we didn't have anymore. She seemed satisfied with this answer.

We kissed the girls goodnight at 8:30pm. It's now 7:20am and I still haven't heard a peep from their room. Maybe, just maybe, this won't be as hard as I thought it would be.

In other "Big Girl" news, Amelia has stopped calling me Mommy and has instead shortened it to Mom. That was one milestone I wasn't looking forward to.

Julia showing some serious paci love at 20 months.

Amelia at her 2nd birthday party.

Edit: The girls woke up about 7:30. The latest they have in probably a week. Amelia greeted me with an enthusiastic, "Mommy!". Julia has already looked in the trashcan for her pacis. Fortunately I was smart enough to move them to the big trashcan with the lid. There were no fits. She just needed to be reminded that they are gone.

Things that Make Me Laugh

2010-04-16T13:58:00.000-05:00

The girls now sing their own special rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle.

Julia: Twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, star

Both Girls: How are you? How are you?

Amelia: Up above the world so high. (while Julia sings gibberish)

Both Girls: *Gibberish to the appropriate tune*

It's awesome.

A beetle crawled across the hallway this morning. Both girls start panicking and saying, "Bug, bug!" - repeatedly. This is especially funny to me because while Julia was "helping" me plant flowers on Sunday she played with a baby worm. I guess worms are okay, but beetles are just icky.

Last night we were driving in the car when I hear, "7, 8, 9, 10." This morning Julia counted four pacifiers. Apparently my children can count, but choose not to do so when I ask them to.

I've been weaning the girls from their pacifiers this week. One day I cut a horizontal line across the tip. The next day, I cut a vertical line across the tip. Today, I cut a little bit of the tip off. Julia brought me four pacifiers and told me they were broken. It was naptime, so I told her we would have to throw them away later. She thought right then was a better time and chunked them into the trash can. She laid happily down in bed without one and I haven't heard a word from her since. I hope it will really be that easy with her, but I'm not holding my breath.

Mom, don't panic. We know it's a mess, but doesn't our cuteness make up for it just a little?

Where Have You Been, Young Lady?

2010-04-12T06:20:00.000-05:00

I know. I've been pretty neglectful of posting lately. I've been studying for a test that I have to take today.

Amelia's really been staying on top of me to get my work done. The girl is tough.

Julia has been singing me some hymns to help me relax a little. They sound a little funny when sung upside down.

Okay. Maybe these were taken a couple months ago and I just wanted an excuse to share them. Isn't it fantastic that wearing Potato Head glasses is timeless. My daughter wears them as did her mother before her. If you had a Mr. Potato Head you probably did it too.

Office Update and Bulletin Board Makeover

2010-04-08T14:41:00.001-05:00

Hubby and I painted the office. Nothing exciting since we plan to sell the house shortly after I graduate school. This room used to have nicks and scuffs all over the yellowish walls. The furniture was haphazardly squeezed into the room wherever there was space for it at the time. When we cleared out the furniture, we moved the treadmill into our bedroom and when I moved the furniture back in, I added a couple of club chairs and the girls' easel. I didn't snap a before shot, but here's the after.

Love the new "reading nook". Ignore the boxes under the chairs. They'll be gone when I clean out the closet.

Notice the new bulletin board. It used to be a plain cork bulletin board with a white frame.

I covered the cork with paper and painter's tape and spray painted the frame. Then I cut a piece of super cool fabric the size of the cork and sprayed the back of it with adhesive spray. Then I just layed it on the cork, smoothed it out and here's the close-up!

I love it so much that I almost don't want to put anything on it.

Their 3rd Easter

2010-04-07T06:59:00.003-05:00

The girls are more afraid of the Easter bunny this year than last, but they had fun collecting their eggs and asking me to "ope" them so they could eat the hidden treats. The bunny brought them sidewalk chalk this year, which they think is fantastic. They've been hard at working transforming our back patio into a work of art. I might be having fun helping.

Amelia (left) and Julia (right)

Insanity at it's Finest.

2010-03-31T12:33:00.000-05:00

I was changing Amelia's diaper and she was squirming and wiggling and just being difficult. When I got to the point where I felt like I was wrestling an alligator, I said, "Amelia, if you don't quit moving your legs, I'm going to cut them off." She just looked at me like, "What are you talking about?" She must have understood that her leg wiggling was a serious source of frustration for me at that point though because she behaved for the remainder of the diaper changing.

What's is the craziest thing you have said in a moment of frustration?

Learning Styles

2010-03-31T06:29:00.000-05:00

Having twins can be such a cool thing for many reasons. One of them is that I tend to pay more attention to the little things about them that I wouldn't notice if I had a singleton. Since they are identicals, I think it's fun to try to find the differences in them. It ensures that I treat them as individuals rather than as a unit. I was recently telling someone about some of their differences when I realized that I already know their individual learning styles and I have really known them since they were very young. I just didn't put it all together until this recent conversation.

When the girls were learning to roll over, Amelia tried and tried and tried. Julia never did. One day Julia rolled over. The next day Amelia did.

Amelia took her first unassisted step at her first birthday party, but really didn't perfect walking until about 13 months. Julia was happy to use her walker to keep up until she just started walking (quite well) one day when she was 13 months.

Since we introduced the potty (around a year old), Amelia has wanted to practice sitting on the potty and can now use it when she wants to. Julia didn't show much interest in it until recently and she has begun using it at will.

It's probably not as obvious by reading this as it is having been there watching it happen, but Amelia most definitely learns by doing while Julia learns by watching. I feel like I can parent so much smarter just by having realized this because now when I teach them I can do so by showing Julia as I do it with Amelia. Okay, in all honestly, I've been doing that pretty instinctively anyway just because Julia doesn't want to do things right away. So this really just means I can be more intentional now.

Domestic Diva = Mundane Momma

2010-03-26T13:24:00.001-05:00

Julia has been running a fever for the last few days, so no pilates for Momma and Kid's Club for the girls and we had to cancel our playdate. The girls have been mostly good while I've been trying to do a bunch of things that I've been needing/wanting to get done for awhile. This morning we did a couple loads of laundry, then I shipped the girls out to the sunny backyard so I could make some crockpot banana bread. I got the recipe from here. I'll have to let you know how it turns out. After mixing my dough, I made some mac-n-cheese for the girls. While they were eating lunch, I vacuumed the living room and kitchen. Once I laid the girls down for their nap, I mopped the kitchen floor and now, despite pre-naptime yawns from both girls and nearly an hour in their beds, they are still not asleep.

Plans for the remainder of the day include getting my bedroom picked up and making a trip to Wal-Mart for an Easter project. Assuming all goes as planned (did I seriously just write that in a blog entitled Not According to Plan?) I will share my project on here when I finish.

While I've had a productive day, I think the girls are feeling a little neglected. Maybe we can all play outside together if they ever decide to take a nap.

Like Father, Like Daughter

2010-03-25T06:57:00.000-05:00

My dad has a lot of great qualities. He is a big picture thinker with the ability to be completely objective. He is really great with all four of his grandgirls and he's always been there for me when I needed something.

When I was in elementary school though, I commented to my dad that it was chilly outside.
He quickly responded with, "Are you sure it's not spaghetti?"

I was pretty sure it was the lamest thing I had ever heard.

Last night when Jonathan said that he didn't hear a peep from the girls room I quickly responded with, "Well I should certainly hope not. They aren't chicks."

We always knew I was my father's daughter, but apparently I am becoming even more so with age. Wow.

Love this picture.

The Perfect Easter Shoes - or not.

2010-03-25T06:37:00.002-05:00

I ordered the perfect Easter shoes for the girls at Target. Not only were they cute, but they were only $9.99 and buy one get one half off. The shoes came yesterday. Aren't they cute?

Too bad they don't fit. That little elastic strap is super tight.

Now I'm on a quest for these from Payless.

Wish us luck.

Edit: We found the shoes! Payless is awesome because if they don't have your size (or enough pairs in your size) they give you a $3.00 coupon and a list of nearby stores that do have them in stock. I am much happier with the quality of these shoes and the girls love them so much that they wore them to Target last night and at 7:43am already have them on again today.

Unexpected Issues

2010-03-23T12:49:00.000-05:00

When thinking through the perks of having twins I usually always thank my lucky stars that nobody has the "oldest child" syndrome. If you are an oldest you know what I'm talking about. That horrible jealousy that you have because you were suddenly pushed out of the center of Mommy and Daddy's world. I also thought it was great because when the next kid comes around (not any time too soon), the girls will completely grasp the concept of sharing with each other (not that they will). What I didn't expect to happen was the following scenario:

My mom was watching my niece, who is almost two years older than my girls, and she wanted to come over to play with her cousins. All was going relatively well until Amelia pulled out her Magna-Doodle. Julia was playing with another toy. Halla wanted to play with a Magna-Doodle too, so I got Julia's out for her. Amelia came unglued.

"NO! Sissy's! Sissy's!"

Then at the library today, the girls climbed the stairs in the children's section to the platform with the silly mirror. When other kids would try to climb the stairs they both yelled, "NO! GO AWAY!"

Apparently it's okay if Sister is up there, but other kids are not welcome.

Don't we have an awesome children's section?

I guess since I think of my girls more as individuals than twins, I failed to realize that they are the only members of an exclusive club. Starting daycare in June might just be a good thing for them.

All Mixed Up

2010-03-21T07:27:00.000-05:00

We've been having some trouble getting the girls to go to sleep for naptimes and bedtimes. You wouldn't believe the amount of screaming and giggling that comes from their room after lights out. When I say lights out, I mean pitch black. If there is any light they don't sleep, they play. So after several weeks of us having to get very angry before they finally lay down and go to sleep, we decided Friday night to just leave them be until they finally put themselves to sleep. Before Jonathan went to sleep he went back to check on them. He came back and told me that Julia was asleep, but Amelia was standing at the door and seemed very confused, but he put her to bed and we didn't hear another peep out of them - until 1:00am. That's when I heard a kiddo whining at her door. I opened the door and saw Julia standing there - but her bed was already occupied. Yup. It was Amelia that Jonathan saw sleeping in Julia's bed, but because his eyes weren't adjusted yet, he just assumed it was Julia. When I tried to lay Julia down in Amelia's bed, she pointed down at the mattress and said, "Bed?" in her cute little confused voice. "I know this is Sissy's bed," I told her, "but she's sleeping in your bed, so you'll have to sleep in hers." I guess she just needed to hear that it was okay because she finished off the night there.

About my Blood.

2010-03-19T14:58:00.002-05:00

I know this won't interest most of you, but for those of you that are interested in medical conditions this might be fascinating. I'll try to define all the medical terms so everyone can understand.

I have a genetic disorder called Beta Thalassemia Minor. My grandpa had it, my mom has it, my aunt has it, my brother and my cousins on my mom's side all have it. My medical terminology textbook defines it as a hereditary form of hemolytic anemia in which the beta hemoglobin chains are defective and the production of hemoglobin is deficient, creating hypochromic microcytic red blood cells.

Hemoglobin is the compound in blood that carries oxygen to the cells from the lungs and carbon dioxide away from the cells to the lungs. People have both alpha and beta hemoglobin chains so there is also an Alpha Thalassemia Minor.

Hypochromic means that the red blood cells don't have as much color as they should.

Microcytic means that the red blood cells are smaller than they should be.

This really affects my day-to-day life very little. Apparently I don't have as much energy as most people and I definitely get "head-rushes" when standing up too quickly more easily than others. I am still able to donate blood though.

Here's where things get tricky. I went to my doctor awhile back because I was feeling very nauseous in the mornings. I was fine as long as I was in bed, but the minute I got up I felt like I was going to lose the previous night's dinner. I was always fine after eating. It was very similar to pregnancy-induced morning sickness, but I was pretty sure I wasn't pregnant. So when I went to the doctor he thought it was probably just a little stomach bug and gave me some Prevacid, but had me get blood work done just in case.

A couple weeks later I got my blood work results in the mail. They put my results in one column and the normal range in the other. More than HALF of my results were not within the normal range! I was told that I have mild anemia and that I should take an iron supplment daily and have my blood work checked again in a month. This seemed odd to me, so I went to the Internet to do some research on my Beta Thalassemia Minor and iron-deficiency anemia as well as blood work results so that I could decipher all the codes. Turns out lack of hemoglobin affects many parts of your blood, but doctors like to label you iron-deficient if your Hgb (Hemoglobin) levels are lower than "normal". This is a good indicator of anemia in most people, but low Hgb levels are normal when you have a defective beta hemoglobin gene.

So when my doctor's nurse called after I got my paperwork, I reminded her that I was Beta Thalassemic. She had never heard of this, couldn't say it back to me, and had no clue how to spell it. She said she would talk to the doctor and call me back.

Two weeks later I finally got a call back. Now the doctor wanted me to take two iron supplements daily and have my blood work done again in two months. So I told them I would try, but if it made me feel bad I was going to quit because it is entirely possible to overdose on iron. I usually forgot to take my night pill, but always took my morning pill and had my blood work done again after the requisite two months.

I got my results back and low and behold my Hgb levels were exactly the same after two months of iron supplements. So I now know that I do not have iron-deficiency anemia, but just the Beta Thalassemia Minor that I've known about since birth. What a waste of money. In all fairness though, a lot of Beta Thalassemics are also iron-deficient. Couldn't they have just tested my iron levels though?

Anyone need some Slow FE? I have half a box that I no longer need.

Putting it all Together.

2010-03-19T07:18:00.001-05:00

Last night we started eating before Jonathan got home from work. Julia pointed at his chair and said, "My daddy's seat." Her longest (English) sentence yet.

Trying on a birthday gift.

Eating birthday cake.

My Beautiful Family

2010-03-18T13:16:00.000-05:00

From Left to Right: Lailie (niece), Autumn (SIL), Kyle (brother), Mom, Amelia, Halla (niece), Dad, Me, Julia, Jonathan

Far from perfect, but improving with age.

The Second Birthday: A Pictorial Review

2010-03-17T13:28:00.001-05:00

The Food

The Cakes

Opening the Gifts

The Mess

Julia blowing out her Candle.

Amelia blowing out her candle.

There were so many good pictures. I'll post more as an album on Facebook after Easter.

Many thanks to Allison Pollard for her photography.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

2010-03-16T07:41:00.001-05:00

The girls' vocabularies are exploding. It's awesome.

Amelia is always "tuck" in her carseat, her booster seat, when she wedges herself between the couch and the ottoman.

Julia loves to let us know that "It's mine." You really have to hear her say it to fully appreciate it. She is very emphatic about it and even points at herself just to make sure she's getting her point across.

Amelia enjoys her babies so much that she has started throwing the word baby in her phrases. "Hi, Baby", "Bye, Baby", and "No, Baby, No!" are some of her favorites. The thing that makes it especially funny is that she says these things to Jonathan and I.

We took the girls to the zoo yesterday with their Aunt Audrey and their Aunt Adrienne. While they enjoyed the animals, they were really excited about watching all the airplanes take off and land at the very nearby airport. Every few minutes we heard two little voices shouting "Airplane!".

The Second Year: A Pictorial Review

2010-03-15T17:00:00.000-05:00

Time flies when you're having fun...

13 Months - Julia in purple and Amelia decked out in beads

14 Months - Apparently the pool is just as much fun upside down as it is right side up.

15 Monrhs - Obviously a favorite activity.

16 Months - We love America, Huggies, and grapes.

17 Months - First Hug

18 Months - It's hard to be mad when they are just so darn cute.

19 Months - My little Thing 1 and Thing 2.

20 Months - Planning a trip to Disney World. This is serious work.

21 Months - Opening presents is the best.

22 Months - Too cute.

23 Months - Who needs a bed when you can sleep in drawers?

24 Months - Swinging like big girls on our new swing set.

Stats as Promised

2010-03-08T06:28:00.000-06:00

The girls had their 2-year-old check-up Friday. The doctor confirmed what we already knew. They are perfect. Both stand 35" tall. Julia is 27lb 4oz and Amelia is 29lb 6oz. So if it's true that you double their height at two to determine their adult height, they should reach approximately 5'10". I guess I better enjoy not being the shortest in the family while it lasts.

We survived!

2010-03-03T06:52:00.000-06:00

Today Jonathan and I are celebrating surviving two years of twin parenthood. While the first year of their life was hopefully the most difficult thing I'll ever go through, this second year has definitely had more good than bad. I love (most of the time)...

:: that the girls are fully mobile.

:: that they are able to communicate most of their wants and needs.

:: that Julia loves airplanes and Amelia loves babies..

:: that they give each other and us sweet pats on the back.

:: that they laugh when they toot.

I'll post the girls stats after their doctor's appointment on Friday, but suffice it to say that they are in size 3T now. I've got some big girls.

Happy Birthday, my two blessings, my little angel monkeys.

Pictures to come soon.

Binoculars

2010-03-02T14:12:00.000-06:00

My girls brought home a craft from church Monday. Toilet paper tube binoculars. Aren't they fun?

It looks like they just decorated two toilet paper roll tubes. Not sure if it was finger paint or stamp pads, but you could be creative. Stickers, glitter glue, whatever you have lying around. Then they taped them together with what looks like painter's tape. I'm sure you could use duct tape, packing tape, or masking tape too. What a cheap and easy project and the girls love them!

The Making of the Dresses

2010-03-02T14:04:00.001-06:00

The long-anticipated (okay, maybe not) how-to for making t-shirt dresses for toddlers. I'm not big on "patterns" in the traditional sense. I just like to figure out what I'm going to do, measure, cut, and sew. My mother thinks I'm crazy. She's probably right.

1. Pre-wash all your fabrics and iron.

2. Determine how wide you'd like the waistband to be and add half an inch for seam allowance. Measure the diameter of the shirt where you'd like to place the waistband. Add half an inch for seam allowance. Use these two measurements to cut two identical pieces of fabric.

3. Determine how long you'd like your skirt be. Double that number and add half an inch for seam allowance. The width will be double the width of your the waistband pieces. Use these two measurements to cut two identical pieces of fabric.

4. Fold your skirt pieces in half lengthwise with the wrong sides together and iron. This way you won't have to sew a hem on the bottom of your dress and your skirt will be double-sided. No ugly back side of the fabric will show no matter how much your little ballerina twirls.

(Not sure why this is sideways. I'll work on that.)

5. Put the two right sides of your waistband pieces together and sew one of the short sides. Do the same on your skirt pieces. Iron the seams open.

6. Pin the right side of your waist band fabric to your shirt so that the seam of the waistband lines up with one of the seams of your shirt and sew. Fold the waistband fabric down over the seam and iron the seams down.

7. Take your skirt fabric and baste all the way along the long open seam. Do not backstitch and leave your thread a bit long. Hold one piece of thread and gently pull the other piece of thread to gather the fabric.

8. Pin your skirt fabric to the right side of your waistband fabric so that the seams line up and adjust your gathering so that it is even. Carefully sew these two pieces together. Fold the skirt fabric down over the seam and iron the seams down.

9. Turn your dress inside out and sew the final seam together. Iron the seam open.

10. Embellish in any way you like.

(Sideways again? You're killing me Blogger.)

Close up of my embellishment

I'm sure I didn't explain this well. So if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask and I'll do my best to clarify.

A Sunnier Outlook

2010-03-02T13:18:00.000-06:00

Feeling better since the last post. The girls are well again and I have several things checked off my to-do list.

Yesterday I did five loads of laundry, worked on the girls' birthday dresses, did my homework, and bought the batter for the girls' cakes.

A how-to on the making of the dresses to follow.

Here We Go Again

2010-02-24T22:10:00.001-06:00

So we spent all evening in a nasty after hours clinic so my girls could get diagnosed with Hand, Foot, Mouth for the third time in their two years. Not only that, but Julia was diagnosed with her third ear infection since Christmas. What kind of Pediatric clinic doesn't put outlet covers on the outlets in their offices where they make you wait with your child(ren) who are bored out of their mind and trying to touch everything. Those outlets just look like the perfect place to stick their saliva-drenched fingers. Nightmare.

This was exactly what I didn't need. Here's why.

Amelia is cutting her final teeth, Julia is cutting 17 and 18. Thank God an end is in sight there.

Nobody is sleeping well at night. Seriously, do they make a drug that helps you fall back asleep after your daughter wakes you up to find her pacifier in the middle of the night? She's out in a few minutes. Last night it took Jonathan and I two plus hours.

I am trying to get everything lined out for starting school in June. That means finding a daycare, making appointments for a physical, an annual, a haircut. I'll have to make an adjustment to my FAFSA. Depending on my schedule, we may need to buy two carseats for Jonathan's car...

The girls' Super Sweet Second Birthday is right around the corner. For some reason I decided it would be a good idea to make them dresses for the big day. Why, why?!?! Oh, I also need to buy them forks still. Neglected to do that when I bought plates and napkins. Then there is the food. Sam's here we come.

Saturday is my last cake decorating class.

I know I said that online class was awesome. Now that I've been in it for a little longer, I have to amend my opinion. While the whole not having to arrange for someone to watch the girls is awesome, I failed to remember that I suck at testing on a computer. I also lack the motivation required for studying for an online class. Did I mention that my next test is next week?

I'm sure things could be significantly worse. Like I could be reliving the first month of twin parenthood. Still, I'm a little overwhelmed and stressed at the moment. Even though I gave up Facebook and haven't updated this thing in quite some time, I still feel like I can't get anything done. Deep breath.

Time to study.

Crying Over Spilled Milk

2010-02-19T13:46:00.000-06:00

I know we aren't supposed to cry over spilled milk. But I seriously think some spilled milk situations merit a good cry. For instance, the few times that I spilled the freshly pumped breast milk in the first six months of my children's lives. Or today...

We came home from the grocery store with a brand new gallon of milk for the girls. I set it on the kitchen counter and went into the living room to turn the TV on so that the girls wouldn't cling to my legs begging "up-e-o" (pick me up) while I made their oh-so-delicious, but not-so-nutritious mac & cheese. Then I hear a crash, followed by a tell-tale bubbling. Yeah. They pulled the milk off the counter and it busted right along the seam. To make matters worse, I'm frantically telling the girls to get out of the kitchen and go in the living room while pouring what's left in the jug into the old jug and grabbing for towels and Amelia just keeps standing there saying, "Messy, messy, messy."

Yes, Amelia, it is messy. Please go in the living room.

Messy, messy, messy.

AMELIA, GO INTO THE LIVING ROOM!

Messy, messy, messy.

AMELIA, GET IN THE LIVING ROOM!!!

That last time I screamed it at her. And she started bawling. Broke my heart. I couldn't do anything about it until I dammed the grout-made milk rivers though. The milk was heading straight for the fridge and THAT would have been disaster. So once I got the rivers dammed, I talked to Amelia about following directions while I gave her hugs and kisses and made everything better.

Two bath towels and a hand towel later and the mess was cleaned up. Thank goodness I was already doing laundry today.

On a more positive note, the weather the last couple days has been so phenomal. Two days ago I braved taking the twins for a walk, sans their leashes (Julia's broke a few months ago). In the 15 minutes that we walked, the girls chased an airplane, Amelia made a mad-dash for a Weimereiner (sp?) being walked on the other side of the street, and they got a friendly hello from a school bus driver. We all survived and I think the Vitamin D did us some good.

Yesterday we drove over to the neighborhood park and played for half an hour. The girls got wet and muddy, but we all had a great time. I can't wait until we have consistently pretty weather and can spend more time outside.

And what's on my mind and heart right now? While going to PA school is, for lack of a better description, a dream come true, I am totally in mourning about the time I will miss with my little monkeys.

Accepted

2010-02-18T13:03:00.000-06:00

I just got a phone call. Probably the best phone call of my life. It was OU. I'm starting PA school in June.

As soon as I heard her voice I knew exactly who it was and why she was calling. Then I could hardly respond to anything she said because I was fighting back tears. I can hardly believe it. All my hard work in my classes. All my mom's babysitting my kids. All my husband's supportiveness and help with everything. It all paid off.

Praise God. His blessings are more abdundant than I am capable of putting into words.

Aw, thanks!

2010-02-17T13:41:00.000-06:00

Thanks to Rachel at The Happiness in Headstands for my very first blog award! What a compliment. I made a spot on the side of my blog to show it off. So cute isn't it?!?!

If you receive a blog award, you are supposed to
a. Put the logo on your blog or within your post
b. Pass the award onto 5 bloggers
c. Link the nominees within your post
d. Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

Five of my favorite blogs in no particular order are...

Doula Momma - Very informative blog primarily about childbirth

Life is Bliss - Desiree is a work-at-home mom with an almost 2-year-old, a baby on the way, and a husband in med-school. She manages her busy schedule with a sense of humor and a big God.

50 Sticky Fingers - Martha is the mom to five beautiful kiddos. Her youngest two are twins just a few months younger than mine.

"All Chalked Up" - Anna is a creative and curious stay-at-home mom to two kiddos. I think most of all, I love her honesty.

From Z to A - Jacquelyn and I have been friends since I asked if I could sit at her lunch table our sophomore year in high school. She is a stay-at-home mom to two handsome little boys. As a former preschool teacher, she has a lot of insight into all things toddler.

Sometimes giving something up means gaining so much more.

2010-02-17T12:34:00.001-06:00

Today is Ash Wednesday and while my particular denomination does not emphasize Lent much, I have chosen to participate this year. Several years ago, I gave up cheese for Lent. I am a cheese addict and restaurants put cheese on everything. But, everytime I said no to cheese I remembered that Jesus spent 40 days fasting in the desert and then he was crucified. Gave me a little perspective and I really felt the significance of the Easter holiday.

This year I've decided to give up Facebook for Lent. Facebook is a source of a few arguments for my husband and I. He isn't into social networking sites. And admittedly, I do spend too much time on there. In addition to giving up Facebook, I have decided to take on the book The Love Dare. For the most part, I have an excellent marriage, but I want to learn to love my husband better and I want to make sure that I keep God at the center of our relationship. Since it is a 40 day challenge, I thought Lent would be the perfect time to do it.

Today's lesson was "Love is Patient". The lesson emphasized that anger often occurs when we don't get something we want. Rather than reacting in anger, the message was to react with patience. This keeps us from saying things we will regret and brings peace to a household. The dare is to say nothing negative to our spouse today.

Are you participating in Lent this year? What are you giving up and why?

Waitlisted

2010-02-10T13:34:00.000-06:00

I got a letter in the mail from OU on Monday. It felt too thin to be an acceptance letter and too thick to be a rejection letter. Upon opening it I discovered that I have been waitlisted for the Physician Assistant program. Let me explain. This will only be the third year for this program in Tulsa and because they are in the accreditation process they are only allowed to accept 24 students each year. I was not one of those 24. However, should someone decline to accept their invitation into the program, an invitation would be extended to someone on the waitlist. They will not tell us where we are on the waitlist. I could be the very first person, the last person, or somewhere in the middle. I also don't know how many people are on the waitlist. I do know that once an invitation has been extended, one has ten days to accept or decline.

I have no idea how to feel about this. I mean on the one hand, I'm disappointed that I wasn't selected. On the other, there were 240 applicants, 103 of which were interviewed and to even make the waitlist is pretty awesome. It also means I am still in limbo though. This is probably the hardest part for us. We have to still plan like I am starting school in June, but we also have to come up with a solid backup plan. That's where things get tricky.

The options we are considering as backup plans are:

a) wait and apply again next year. This pushes all our plans (another child or two and a bigger house) back a full year, which stinks.

b) apply for nursing school next year. If I did this, I would graduate about the same time as was originally planned and be an RN. Then, if I wanted to, I could go back to school later and become a Nurse Practitioner (similar to PA) or pursue a number of other Masters or certification options available to nurses.

c) we could have another child now and wait yet another year for school. This means money and space would be tight for awhile, but I wouldn't have to put the next child in daycare until they were a year old and I'd never have to put the girls in full-time daycare.

So much to pray about, so many details to consider, and the waiting game continues. "Not According to Plan" seems such an appropriate title for my blog right now.

The First Year - A Pictorial Review

2010-02-07T06:11:00.002-06:00

I had a really hard time bonding with my girls in the beginning. I'm such a planner and nothing was going as planned. I was still trying to grasp the fact that I had two babies and mourning the loss of participation in childbirth. Compounding that, perpetual exhaustion left me irritable and somewhat irrational. While I loved my children, I was completely jealous of women that got to experience one newborn at a time. When I was caring for one baby, there was another one begging for my attention. I felt like a failure.

The first month I cried out to God every ngiht that He promised He wouldn't give me more than I could handle and I just couldn't handle this. Julia wasn't latching properly so I was pumping. I felt like a dairy cow.

We got the latch issue fixed. Praise God for Mona, a lactation consultant at St. John's. Things were getting better.

The girls slept through the night as their Mother's Day present to me. I couldn't have asked for a better gift.

This was the month they were dedicated. Thank you, Donalyn, for sewing the frill down around the neckline of their dresses so they looked like angels rather than clowns.

By now they could roll over.

They perfected sitting on their own this month. Julia became a much happier girl when she reached this milestone.

By this month they had discovered that they could really get placing by rolling.

By nine months they discovered that they could pull themselves up and loved nothing more than standing.

Sadly I don't think I have any ten month pictures.

Let the climbing begin. They climbed into their stroller, up Jonathan's night stand, into drawers, etc. They still couldn't walk, but they were fully mobile.

Let the cruising begin!

Happy 1st Birthday girls! Amelia took her first unassisted step at her birthday party. Julia kept up by using her walker.

Gradually things got better and better throughout the year. I made amends with God, I was getting more sleep at night, I didn't feel like a constant failure anymore, and I was fully able to bond with my children. Looking back on it, I probably had Post Partum Depression. Praise God for all my friends and family that stuck by me through everything. I know I wasn't pleasant to be around and I certainly had nothing to give anyone. And yet my closest friends and most of my family were very understanding. Thank you!

How It All Went Down: The story of my pregnancy and childbirth - Part 4

2010-02-05T13:23:00.001-06:00

March 2, 2008

(I don't think this shirt could stretch anymore and these were Jonathan's pants)

Monday, March 3, 2008, we went to the hospital bright and early. After a long wait, I was prepped for surgery and then taken to the OR. The anasthesiologist had a hard time with my epidural because I have slight scoliosis, but managed to get it in on the second try. He apologized for the pain, and I joked that since I had prepared for a vaginal delivery, this was nothing. They laid me down and I looked up into the light where I could see the reflection of what the doctors were doing. Jonathan was holding my hand and when I saw them start to pull Amelia out, I made him watch.

The nurses took the girls to cleaned up and Jonathan followed them out. I listened to my OB and the assisting OB chit chat about their families while stitching me up. Several minutes later a nurse and Jonathan brought the girls in for me to see. The first time I saw them they were all wrapped up in blankets with hats on and my arms were numb from the epidural so I couldn't touch them.

I was wheeled into the recovery room where a lactation consultant and Jonathan helped the babies nurse. They had to position my arms to hold them because I still couldn't really move them on my own. After just a few more minutes I was wheeled into my hospital room. The girls were given just one bassinet which they refused to lay in. So the entire time I was in the hospital the babies slept on either me or Jonathan.

I was hooked up to a catheter and inflatable balloons were on my ankles to keep me from getting blood clots. I was not allowed to eat anything all day. I wasn't detached from all this until about 11:00pm. Then I had a nurse coming in to make sure I was able to pee again. There were also nurses that came in every hour to check if the babies were eating and having dirty diapers. We were exhausted and unable to keep track of everything, and the nurses started lecturing us about the importance of tracking all this. I was so tired that I nearly fell off the bed a couple of times because I was falling asleep while I was trying to nurse. In addition to all this we had visitors almost all the time. We were thrilled to be released from the hospital Wednesday evening.

We just had one glitch before heading home. The only clothes that would fit were my nursing pajamas. I was so swollen that I couldn't even wear my own socks. Jonathan loaned me a pair of his and I wore my houseshoes home. I looked and felt terrible.

How It All Went Down: The story of my pregnancy and childbirth - Part 3

2010-02-05T12:25:00.000-06:00

My doctor told me that if there was anything abnormal about my ultrasound I should get a call from her office. I'm thinking twins are pretty abnormal. Two days later. No call. So I call and talk to the nurse. I don't remember what she said except that the ultrasound showed that they were both perfect. Big sigh of relief. Of course I had been researching multiple pregnancies in every spare moment of my time and knew every risk there was. I had to wait to talk to my doctor until my next appointment.

Jonathan and I showed up for next appointment eager to get answers to all our questions and find out what I should be doing differently with a twin pregnancy. We found out that they were in fact identical girls. What we didn't expect to hear was that she didn't want us to have sex anymore and she wanted me to have a c-section. After recovering from the shock of this, I asked why a c-section would be necessary if both babies were head down. Her response was that she felt confident that she could get a baby out no matter what position it was in, but that there was an increased risk of placenta prevaria with a twin pregnancy and that meant my placenta could detach between the birth of Baby A and Baby B and Baby B could die. I had never heard of this before.

So I researched. And researched. And researched. Until I finally found a study that gave me actual numbers of what the increased risk was for multiple birth pregnancies to have placenta prevaria. Turns out the increased risk she was so concerned about was something like 0.08% greater than the risk for a singleton pregnancy. In addition, in most of these cases the placenta only partially detached and the babies were born healthy. In fact, in trying to find the previous study, I ran across a study conducted between 1997 and 2000 that says there is no greater risk. So I'm thinking, "I know that a c-section is considered a "routine procedure", but the risk of something going wrong there has to be greater than this." I told my doctor that if it was physically possible, I was delivering my babies vaginally. To this she told me that I would have to deliver in the OR and have an epidural. At this point, I was willing to negotiate. I should have just switched doctors.

One month later, the morning of a scheduled appointment, I woke up with mild cramps. They weren't really painful, I just couldn't get comfortable. I decided not to call the doctor since I would see her later that day, so I got dressed and went to work. When I mentioned them at the appointment she sent me directly to the hospital. I was terrified. They took a urine sample and had me hooked up to the fetal monitors. I was there all day. I was finally told that a bladder infection had caused my cervix to shorten. I was sent home with a prescription and put on strict bedrest. I was to lie down at all times except to use the restroom and take a 10 minute shower each day.

I was devestated. I am a very active person and this was like a prison sentence for me. My husband had to bring me breakfast and dinner and my mom came over to get me lunch each day. Thank God I had such a great support system. I had to stay that way for one week until I went to see my perinatologist (I started seeing him when they found out there were twins). He did an ultrasound of the inside of my cervix and determined that I was still closed up tight inside. At this point, I was allowed to sit, but was otherwise still restricted to my bathroom breaks and 10 minute showers.

Despite my bladder infection healing and no further change in my cervix, I was ordered to remain on bedrest until I was 36 weeks pregnant. I was forced to go on short-term disability and wasn't able to tie up any loose-ends at work. I did the remainder of my registering online and watched as Jonathan set up the nursery. I refused to open more than one of each thing for fear that both babies wouldn't make it. We were really blessed in that we had a large group of people taking turns bringing us meals three nights a week. This continued until after the girls were born.

This was at one of my showers in early January - about 2 months before the girls were born.

(I made bedrest exceptions for showers)

At 36 weeks, I was thrilled to resume my normal activities. I went back to work, started mall-walking to get back in shape, and since both my babies had been head-down since 27 weeks, I continued to look forward to the vaginal birth of my children. At 37 weeks that all changed. During an ultrasound with the perinatologist the girls moved. Now both heads were in my right hip and all four feet were in the left side of my rib cage. They were oblique. At my OB visit that week, my doctor sent me to the hospital to have a biophysical profile. This is simply an ultrasound to determine a baby's (or babies) development. Mine showed that everything was functioning properly and they could come into this world at any time. It also showed that Julia's shoulder was now lodged in my cervix.

They called my OB and told her and then everything became crazy. I was going to have to have a c-section. My OB's husband had an out-of-state surgery scheduled for Monday so she asked if I wanted to deliver the next day. The next day was Leap Day. I didn't think it was fair for my twins who already have to share a birthday to only get one every four years, so I nixed that idea. Then she asked if I wanted to do it that day. Are you kidding me?!?! I came into the hospital still thinking I was going to deliver vaginally. I needed some time to process. She told me that I would have to call her office the next day (Friday) and schedule a c-section with the on-call doctor. I agreed to this.

The next day I got a phone call from my OB's office. Turns out her husband's surgery was postponed, so she could do my c-section Monday. I walked and walked and walked all weekend trying to get my babies into the right position so that maybe we could do an induction rather than a c-section.

How It All Went Down: The story of my pregnancy and childbirth - Part 2

2010-02-03T07:44:00.002-06:00

The first trimester of my pregnancy went really well. I was nauseous a lot, but never actually sick and I didn't gain any weight. My OB told me that I had a "generously-sized uterus". I thought this was strange considering that I've always been such a small person, but didn't think too much of it since my OB didn't say anything more about it. At 13 weeks, I felt my first kick. Not just a little kick, but a jab to the ribs that made me nearly jump out of my seat. The kicks continued through the staff meeting where I was trying to type minutes. Everyone said that was really early to feel the baby kicking.

Shortly before my 20 week ultrasound, my belly grew like crazy and I started packing on the pounds. I figured my body was just playing catch-up since I didn't gain any weight my first trimester.

Jonathan and I had been going to a Bradley Method class with the hope of having our baby naturally (i.e. vaginally and without drugs). I was following the Brewer diet eating lots of protein and I still felt pretty great. At my appointment before my ultrasound, my OB briefly found the baby's heartbeat just under my rib cage, lost it, and then found it again really low. So I know the baby can move around a lot at this time, but that still struck me as odd.

Finally it was time for my 20 week ultrasound. Jonathan and I brought both our moms to see their new grandbaby. The tech joked with our moms about having to pay admission to come in. We were all very excited and anxious to hear that the baby was healthy and find out the sex. This is where it gets crazy.

Tech: Here's Baby A's head...

Us to Tech: Excuse me?!?! Baby A?!?! No, no. There's only one baby. One of those round things is a head and the other is a bottom - right?

Tech: Didn't you know you were having twins?

Us to each other: Do you have twins in your family?!?! NO!

The poor tech spent the remainder of the ultrasound proving to us that there really were two babies. I didn't believe it until he showed me the profile of both of them in the same shot. I felt like I was witnessing a miracle - and at the same time, I was panicking and full of terror at how this changed everything. The only experience I ever had that was the least bit similar (and even this is a stretch) is standing at the alter on your wedding day. So many emotions all at once.

Now that we knew there were two we really wanted to know the sex. He told us that he could tell that one was a girl for sure and he was pretty sure the other was also a girl even though he couldn't see it. I assumed this meant identical girls, but he wasn't allowed to tell us anything more.

How It All Went Down: The story of my pregnancy and childbirth - Part 1

2010-02-02T12:37:00.000-06:00

In June of 2007, my husband and I decided to throw caution to the wind and I quit my birth control pill. We weren't "trying" to get pregnant (you know what I mean) - we just put it all in God's hands. Later that month, Aunt Flo didn't show up at her usual time. I was sure she was just a little late, but I peed on the infamous stick that evening just to put my mind at rest. It was one of those stupid plus/minus tests. And there it was - a faint plus. So faint that I was sure it couldn't be right. So the next morning I took another test (your urine is supposed to be more concentrated in the morning, afterall). Still too faint to be believed. That afternoon I went to the store and bought a test that actually says "pregnant" or "not pregnant". I'll never buy another kind again. This result was one I couldn't question. Before I finished peeing on the stick it said "pregnant". Um, did this seriously happen to us this quickly? Logistically we were ready for a kid, but mentally we still weren't quite used to the idea. So while we were excited, we were also more than a little shocked. Just nine months into our new marriage we learned that in another nine months we would be new parents.

Oklahoma's Version of a Snow Storm

2010-01-30T14:18:00.000-06:00

In Oklahoma (at least in the Southeast portion) we aren't lucky enough to just get snow storms. Nope. Apparently God thinks we need a challenge, so he gives us ice before the snow. I took a few pictures yesterday and today of the progression of our latest winter weather.

These were taken yesterday around lunchtime.

These were taken this morning.

And the view from my front door this morning.

My Little Picassos

2010-01-30T14:12:00.001-06:00

Playdough meets Mr. Potato parts.

We used the kool aid playdough that I made a few days ago. It wasn't at all difficult to clean the playdough off the Mr. Potato Heads parts.

Pancakes Made with Love

2010-01-30T14:09:00.000-06:00

Everyone in our house loves my pancakes. They are made with love. Okay, maybe I just add 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinammon.

Cakes and Kiddos

2010-01-26T07:11:00.003-06:00

Cakes

I love making things beautiful. The reason I prefer baking over cooking. I have been playing with cake decorating for a long time. Just on my own. I bought some icing bags and tips and whipped up a couple of creations. Well, now I'm finally enrolled in a cake decorating class! It is a four-week Wilton class taught at Hobby Lobby. I found a 40% off coupon on Hobby Lobby's website, so I bought the big cake decorating caddy with 50 tools. It's fantastic. This Saturday we will be decorating our first cake. I'll post pictures of my latest works of art. Here are two that I did in the last few years.

My awesome new cake decorating tools. I've always loved a good tool box. I might be an organizational freak.

This one was for Mother's Day last year. My mom's favorite flower is the Hydrangea, so it's supposed to look like that. My cake cracked down the middle, so this one was a challenge.

This was the girls' 1st birthday cake. Homemade banana cake with cream cheese icing. This was my first attempt at a specific design on a cake.

Kiddos

The girls have been growing up like crazy lately. They went to a birthday party Sunday night and Julia gave Amelia a hug TWICE! We'll pretend that she didn't hit her sister directly after the first hug. Amelia has recently learned how to say, "Thank you." She does it unpromted almost everytime I hand her something she's asking for. It's precious. Both girls recently learned to say, "I you" (their version of "I love you") and "Happy to you" (their version of Happy Birthday to you). They are pretty stingy with the "I love yous, but it's pretty darn cute when they say either.

Last night shortly after the water finished draining from the tub, I noticed that Amelia had an awfully serious look on her face and was being quite still. Considering that we had a "pooping incident" a couple nights ago, I didn't want to take any chances so I swooped her up and sat her on the toilet. Jonathan took Julia into the living room so Amelia wasn't so distracted and we read her potty book for awhile. Then she actually peed in the potty! We cheered and she was happy to get to wipe, flush, and wash her hands. I braved a pair of Elmo panties on her in lieu of her diaper thinking she could make it an hour or so until we put the overnight diaper on her. Wrong! She soaked through the panties. She soaked through the fleece footed pajamas and there was a puddle on the floor. How can such a little person have so much pee?!?! So we probably aren't anywhere close to potty-trained, but we are making progress.

Attacking Daddy.

The Interview

2010-01-22T21:36:00.001-06:00

Today was the big day. My interview with OU's Physician Assistant program. It was surprisingly informal, which was nice because my stomach was all tied up in knots with nerves. I managed to smile at my fellow interviewees, but I couldn't manage small talk. We were told how to apply for financial aid, given a brief tour, and allowed to ask all the questions we could think of. After all this they called us out of the room individually for our interviews. I went into a small room where I was interviewed by three people - two younger women and an older man. The older man was awesome. He led off the questions by asking me what went through my head when I was told I was having twins. Haha. It was a great question that helped me open up and be myself. The next question was how I've prepared for becoming a PA besides my prerequisites. I talked about my shadowing, told them I already had the girls on a waiting list for a daycare, and then talked a lot about my work with the underserved. OU's program is based out of their school of community medicine. They strive to help equalize the disparity in healthcare in our community. I figure anyone can come in with a great GPA and lots of medical experience, but this could be the thing that sets me apart. I talked about how I began by helping in a food pantry in elementary school and, then did my first inner-city mission trip to Houston, and finally told them a little about my time in Philadelphia. Apparently there were 210 qualified applicants, 103 interviewees, and they can take 24 students. I should find out if I am one of those 24 before the end of February. The most awesome thing about the day was that I remembered how badly I want this. When I'm away from the program, it's easy to lose focus. Everytime I go to campus, I am reminded of why I am doing this though. I really do want a career in which I can make this world a little better. In which I can show people the dignity and respect that society as a whole so often denies them - helping them to heal in more ways than one.

School Update

2010-01-20T13:05:00.000-06:00

I am in week two of my first ever online class. I thought I would have a hard time with this, but I think it may actually be easier for me than going to class. My fear was that without going to the classroom, I would neglect my schoolwork. This class (Medical Terminology) has two assignments or more due each week and that keeps me on top of everything. So the new semester has begun well.

Friday is the big day for me though. My interview for the Physician Assistant program. I have been told to show up at 2:30 for registration. They will begin with opening remarks, financial aid information, a tour and then I will interview at 4:15pm. There were over 200 applicants for 24 openings. I don't know how many of us they are interviewing. If you think of it, please lift up a prayer for me that I interview well.

Edible Playdough

2010-01-19T13:19:00.001-06:00

For those of you that have kids that still think the world should be taste-tested, I've perused many edible playdough recipes and tried out a couple that I love. Both of these recipes are taken from http://www.familycorner.com/

Kool-Aid Play Dough

1 cup flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup salt
3 teaspoons Cream of Tartar
1 package Kool-Aid Mix (any flavor of unsweetened)
1 tablespoon cooking oil

Mix dry ingredients together in a large saucepan. Slowly add water mixed with oil and stir over medium heat until mixture thickens to dough. Turn out onto a heatproof bread board or counter top and knead until cool enough for children to handle. Dough will be the color of the Kool-Aid mix and will smell like the Kool-Aid mix. (Can be stored in a tightly covered container for up to six months)

This one is so colorful and the texture is just like the store-bought stuff.

Peanut Butter Play Dough

1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup honey
2 cups powdered sugar

Mix all ingredients in a bowl, using your hands. Dough should feel soft and pliable. Storage: When not using, MUST be stored in an airtight container.

This one is a bit oilier than the store-bought stuff and it's not as pretty as the kool-aid kind, but it is really tasty!

Amelia

Julia

Finger-Lickin' Good Paint

2010-01-15T07:08:00.003-06:00

One of my go-to activities for my girls on days when they are restless and I don't have the energy to get on the floor and play with them is edible fingerpainting. This is an easy project.

1. Whip up a batch of vanilla instant pudding and divide into a few smaller bowls
2. Add a couple drops of food coloring to each bowl and mix until evenly distributed
3. Let the fingerpainting begin!

I just strap my kids into their booster seats and put a dollop of each color on their trays and let them have fun smearing it all over their tray. If you use paper, the pudding will dry like fingerpaint. This is a great activity for teaching colors and what happens when you mix them.

Julia

Amelia

Homemade Thanks

2010-01-10T21:19:00.002-06:00

These cute thank you notes were a big hit and so easy that my not-quite 2 year olds were able to participate. I just had the girls finger paint with red and white on green paper. I cut several Christmas trees out of each finger painting and let the girls help me glue the trees on blank cards. We got the prefold cards with envelopes in a pack of 50 from Hobby Lobby for $5. So cheap, so easy, so cute.

Double twos

2010-01-10T07:14:00.011-06:00

Second birthdays are right around the corner. Two months is right around the corner, right? My husband thinks I'm crazy because I've already started planning and shopping. This particular post will be edited regularly as a landing place for all my birthday ideas. And the theme this year is....drumroll, please?...

Kermit the Frog! The first character that my kids became obsessed with. Our Muppet movie collection started with Muppets Take Manhattan, The Great Muppet Caper, and Muppets in Space. We have since added The Best of the Muppet Show, Muppet Christmas Carol, Muppets Christmas Letters, and Kermit's Swamp Years. There was a period of a few months when they wanted to watch Muppets Take Manhattan or The Great Muppet Caper ALL DAY LONG. Thankfully they've since discovered Cars, Elmo in Grouchland and the ever-popular Mickey Mouse. So when we find ourselves singing of Miss Piggy's love for Kermit when the movie isn't on we can take a break for a bit.

Now for the good stuff - Birthday Brainstorming! Bullet-pointed for ease of reference.

First the overall scene. The party will most-likely be family at our house for cake and presents. The colors will be lime green and hot pink.

Bought lime green plates trimmed in white with lime green and hot pink polka dots from Hobby Lobby. Will use hot pink beverage napkins left over from our wedding
Will buy lime green ~~and hot pink~~ latex balloons and hot pink curling ribbon
Can use hot pink squares of fabric from wedding
Wrap gifts in lime green paper with hot pink ribbon
6" round cakes for each of the girls embellished with their first initial. Chocolate cake with mint icing for Julia. Strawberry cake with vanilla icing for Amelia. Cupcakes in the same flavors for the guests all with home-made kermit cupcake picks.

Make first initial dresses for girls with felt flower at waist and matching felt flower barretts. My girls' dresses and barretts will look something like the following, but fancier (taken from http://myhalfofthebrain.com/category/childrens-clothing/ and http://whipup.net/2008/11/07/felt-flower-tutorial/)

Still need to work on invitations and party favors

These are the actual plates and fabrics I bought.

New Beginnings

2010-01-09T07:26:00.001-06:00

First post in a new blog seems a bit daunting. A little about myself. I went to college straight out of high school and like most kids had not a clue what I wanted to do. After changing majors several times (8?) I ended up with a Bachelors of Business in Meetings and Destination Management with an emphasis in Meetings Management. That's a fancy way of saying event planning. Had a great internship with Dr Pepper/Seven Up during a hiring freeze. Came home and looked for a job for three months right when a major company laid off most of their experienced meeting planners. I wound up as the sales girl for a high-end flower shop. Unfortunately this pays next to nothing, so a couple years later I took a job as an administrative assistant for my church, which paid slightly more than next to nothing. Next thing you know I'm married and we decide to send me back to school so I can have a career in which I feel like I am better using all my gifts and can get paid a decent amount. So I start prerequisites for a Physicians Assistant program. Meanwhile the alarm on my biological clock is going crazy knowing that I am going to be in school so long and not wanting to wait to start having kids after I'm 30, so we decide to have one before I start my PA program and another after I'm done. God had other plans. In October of 2007 we went to my routine 20 week ultrasound and the tech says, "There's Baby A's head..." Excuse me?!?! He spent the rest of the time trying to convince us we really were having twins. I'll most likely give more details of my pregnancy and childbirth experience in a later post. Suffice it to say for now that I had two perfect baby girls in the Spring of 2008. Although now I was faced with a new delimma. When the plan was one baby, I was going to find a daycare and go back to work. Now I had two babies and still very little income from my job and it just didn't make sense to go back to work. Identity crises. I suddenly felt like a daycare worker that never got to clock out. Two years later, I have regained my sense of who I am, finished the prerequisites for my PA program and have regained a shred of my sanity.

I have had a Xanga blog for almost 7 years, but reading back on it, it's embarrassingly immature and serves more as a silly rant on the minutia of life with a few sparkling musings sprinkled in. I would like to be a bit more focused in this one and a bit less autobiographical. This is where I plan to share the antics of my children, my journey in higher education (...again), and my crafty creations. I know, I know. Still not all that focused. This coupled with my poor writing skills (just ask all my high school English teachers) is why I will never be a professional writer. Although I suppose I should have learned by now to never say never...