Thoughts on Life, and other Randomness

Jake is taking his first few wobbly steps. It's SO exciting to watch him slowly let go, get his balance and then take a few QUICK steps. Today he walked 3 steps from our coffee table to our big chair. I made sure to clap for the boy, so he knew that walking by himself is a good thing. I have a feeling it won't be much longer before he's running around by himself....with me hurrying to catch up.

He's also waving "night night." It's not "bye bye," it's "nigh nigh." Last night he not only waved, but he also SAID it. It's so CUTE!!

Cameron has had a few behavioral issues lately, but for the most part, he's been good and helpful. I am getting really tired of telling him to let Jake make his own mistakes and just to leave him alone. He doesn't quite understand that he has to let Jake learn on his own. He wants to do everything for him and control his every move.

I've never been an EXCELLENT speller, but I think I'm pretty good. I have issues spelling words aloud, stemming from my first spelling bee encounter in the first grade. (I just had issues with my first grade teacher, but that's another story....) I'm watching the National Spelling Bee and I'm in AWE of these kids. They are SO smart, and SO young. There was a girl who was just a few years older than Cameron, and she knew meanings to words that I'm sure he'll not know or even CARE to know for a very long time. I wish I was smart enough to know the language of origin for most words. Maybe that would make me smarter, but then again, it might not.

I am missing my parents. They've only been on their trip for a few days, but I now miss the things they do for us. Cam and Jake LOVE going to Grandma's house and with her gone, we don't go very much. Both boys are showing their frustration with not seeing Grandma and being able to play with her. I'm also missing my friend/mom. I talk to her almost everyday, and with her not around I find I'm texting a LOT more.

Tomorrow is my sweet husband's birthday. I love teasing him. I've got to wrap his presents while he's not around, otherwise, he'll figure out what he's getting. He isn't one of those people who like to be surprised on their birthday, he likes to try and figure out what he's getting BEFORE he gets it. It gets SO hard to buy things for him because he figures it out BEFORE I can get it for him. Why can't he just be happy with whatever he gets instead of getting SO excited over his gift??

Memorable Memorial Day

What a beautiful day. We went for a walk at the river and then visited my grandma's grave. It was a GREAT evening.We were definitely tired, but happy.

My Saturday

Camping out in the backyard was okay. I will NEVER sleep in the same sleeping bag as Jake again. The kid MOVES all night long....and I didn't get much sleep at all.

Otherwise, camping in the backyard was okay. I did miss the lake and the SMELL of the mountains, but I'll get that later in the summer.

BUT, we didn't have an UNEVENTFUL day.

While taking the tent and bedding down we learned that my brother was going to be arrested. I called around and finally talked TO my brother (who I haven't heard from in a LONG time...) He stole things from his work and sold them to make money. He owed almost $500. It was NOT a good thing. Then he wanted us to help him pay them back. UH, NO! I told him that mom and dad had JUST left on a 2 week vacation (they left at 6:00 am), I had no money, and neither of my other brothers could help him...he'd just have to go to jail. I told him I was sorry and that I loved him and told him I'd pass the message onto mom and dad.

When I told my mom, she said, "Well, I hope he learns his lesson." He's old enough now (28) that he SHOULD be responsible for his own mistakes and should have to deal with the consequences. I do feel bad, but at the same time, I hope he learns and does NOT do something this stupid again.

The worst part of his mistake is that Cameron, who LOVES his uncle and really looked up to him, was traumatized by the whole thing. He was scared for his uncle and cried for him. I don't know what this will do to my sweet boy, but I think he'll be a little more thoughtful when he plays police man. Eventually he got over Uncle Shad being in jail, but it did take a good crying session.

Jake learned where Grandma keeps her sucker stash, and learned he can help himself...to peeling it open and eating it. He was a sticky mess.

Then for dinner tonight we had a fun time with Jake. It was his first time eating lasagna, and he LOVED it. All over his face, in his hair, all over his arms and chair....

I'm glad we're home and ready for bed. It's been QUITE a day!

Camping Out

Usually we've had our annual Memorial Day Weekend camping trip planned for a LONG time before we go. This year we decided a week ago that we would go camping, but in a FAR different location.

Usually we head to the hills (mountains) and enjoy a weekend by the lake, watching movies, riding 4-wheelers, and enjoying a campfire. Not so much this time.

This year my parents have decided to take an extended vacation with my grandparents. They're headed East. The trip will last about 2 weeks, in which time they will miss our Memorial Day Weekend camping trip, Steve's birthday, and Jake's birthday. (We will be missing my mom's birthday.) If I had the chance to take this trip with them, I would. But since we aren't going, I'm not sure that we could have gone camping by ourselves (I mean, we COULD have, but we would have missed the fun stuff that we do with my parents and siblings.)

SO our camping trip this year will be in my parents' backyard. Yes, still in town, and not real FANCY, but should be fun. We've got things set up for a wiener roast and s'mores. I think it will be fun. A lot of work for just sleeping in my parents' backyard, but will be fun. :)

Can't Keep Up....

This kid is going to keep me moving, even if it KILLS me!!

Yes, he climbed up on this box BY HIMSELF!!!

And his new favorite room in the house is the kitchen, with pots, pans and dishes or cans of food spread out for him to play with. Good thing I mopped earlier this week.

But I'm loving EVERY minute of it. (Despite my grumbles....)

*Giggle* Do I Forward This??

Feeling Manly

Today Steve noticed we had a flat tire. (Thankfully we were parked somewhere and not ON the road.) He sighed and pointed it out to me. Because it's Sunday, I was wearing a dress, but I got over that one, and went over to help him.

He'd emptied the trunk (which was FULL of stuff) and found our donut and jack. He couldn't quite figure things out, so I started playing. I twisted the knob and found out that if I lifted it enough, the little side fell off, and that was our wrench.

Long story short, I helped Steve change the tire, and I feel REALLY good about myself. I've NEVER changed my own flat tires before, and now I'm more educated.

YAY for accomplishing new things!

Busy??

I feel like I'm talking to myself, but maybe I am. *shrug*

I guess I'll do a quick update of what's going on with my little family, and HOPE that I get some feedback.

Steve is set for his concert on Monday. He's got the tux, and in fact, since we know someone who is in the tux industry (well, she RENTS tuxes and gowns) she gave us a FABULOUS deal on a cummerbund and a tux shirt. She also, since she is SO wonderfully helpful and AMAZING, gave us a handful of button clips and cuff links. SHE IS AWESOME! Thanks to her, he's going to look spiffy! I'm pretty excited!

Cameron is continuing to do well. He's anxious about going to any more doctor appointments (he has to see his regular pediatrician for a physical since he's taking Ritalin and we need to set up an orthodontist appointment). He's doing well with his therapies, and thanks to one of his therapists (his new OT....the one we LOVE) he's tying his shoes by himself. He's not QUITE proficient with it YET, but he's getting there. Thanks to her little tool, he can feel proud to do it BY HIMSELF! I wish I knew the name of the tying tool, but it holds the "bunny ears" in place so he can work on tying instead of holding AND tying. He has an IEP meeting coming up next week, and his excitement is for a field trip to the zoo and a hike he says they're going on for scouts.

Jake is into EVERYTHING. He pulls everything out of our little hamper that we have full of toys, and then he'll pull the pillows off the couches and chair. Who knew that pillows were SUCH fun toys! He's also babbling more and is using his own type of sign language to communicate with us. When he wants food, he'll bang his hand against his mouth or smack his lips together. If he wants to nurse (which, YES, I'm still doing...) he'll come over to me and LIFT up my shirt. Thanks, son! ;)

And me? I'm just cleaning house, doing laundry, chasing a baby, and running errands. Nothing spectacular, but hey, I'm NOT complaining! I am SO blessed that my family is healthy, my kids are safe and happy, and we have a job.

I've Been Thinking....

...a little about high school. Not that I'd EVER want to go back, but I'm having some good times remembering myself when I was in high school.

I ran around with a small group of friends, and I'd like to think that we were close. (Not that I REALLY remember ANY big blow-ups, but that we were pretty good friends.) We were by no means popular, but I don't really think we were UNpopular either. Maybe you'd consider us the religious crowd, or maybe even the smart kids. Most of us were in at least ONE AP or honors class, and we were even in the honor society. We had some who were in choir, some who played in band, and some who just studied their little eyes out. For the most part, we were VERY good kids.

The thing that made us different was the fact that we called ourselves Neptunians. Honestly, I don't remember exactly how the whole concept came together, I just know that each of us were from Neptune and that we were here to help take over the world. We each had a nickname, and we used our imaginations often.

We made lots of movies starring ourselves and our little mascot, the Super Wonder Whooper. The Super Wonder Whooper was a cow. He wore a cape, and he was cute. In our movies we'd act out random things: a dating show, the killing of Julius Caesar (aka Super Wonder Whooper), and other things that popped into our heads. We were happy, weird, but happy.

Sometimes when we got together we'd sit around and just talk about whatever was on our mind, and I know of a few times that we'd have a spontaneous testimony meeting/singing time.

I don't miss high school, but I do miss the close group of girls that I hung out with. For the most part, I have kept in contact with them all, but not nearly as much as I would have thought.

You may know some of my friends. Carrie (aka Loogie), Joanie (aka Psycho), Kathrine (aka Aids), Ellen (aka Slither), Lynette, Kim (aka Beaker), Tamara (aka Wierdo).

Love you guys, please forgive me for posting these pictures, but I had to keep them in my journal.

Love,
Dweeb

Mothers' Day

I had a wonderful Mothers' Day. Steve gave me a fun card (that sings Rascal Flatt's song Melt), a book about mother's of prophets and a beautiful set of earrings. I was happy to get the earrings because I was going to wear them to church with a necklace that Cameron had made for me at scouts. (With my mom's ward, not ours.) Then came Cam's present to me.

He had been with my mom on Saturday and was sneaking around to keep me from seeing his "present" for me. He really didn't need to worry, I've gotten to the point that I don't really care if someone says, "Oh, I've got a surprise/gift for you, and you REALLY want to know what it is, right??" Usually I'm pretty content to just wait until I get it.

He pulled out a red box with a black bow on it. It was a set of earrings and a HUGE necklace. The earrings were butterflies and the necklace was a flower. Now, anyone who knows me KNOWS I do NOT do necklaces. I like them, they're pretty, but I can never find one that's long enough to go around my neck, and is complimentary to my personality. I just KNEW that I could NOT disappoint my excited boy. He was really excited to see his mom wear the present he had picked out specifically for me. So I wore it. And surprisingly the necklace fit fine around my fat neck. And I think I looked pretty cute. (Gaudy jewelry and all!)

That evening I was at my own mom's house calling my youngest brother who's on his mission to the Philippines. He'd told me in a previous email that he was nervous about calling because he was afraid he'd be homesick. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. BUT we had a hard time communicating with him. His English was halting and he couldn't quite think of things to say. He's doing well, and is excited to be transferred from the office (he hopes!) And for some reason, in my weekly emails to him, I'd neglected to tell him about Cameron and the pretzel. I told him the story and he was laughing SO hard. I guess I really should remember the funny, quirky things that my kids do, so I can make him laugh like that at least once a week.

Overall it was a VERY nice day, and I'm glad to have such good kids and a WONDERFUL mother.

Random Movie Review: Fireproof

Tonight I watched a movie with my sweet husband. (I'm actually quite surprised he watched it with me, usually he avoids "chick flicks" like the plague.) I'd heard over and over that the movie had a good story, but the acting was a little cheesy.

I have to say, I didn't notice any cheesy acting. BUT I loved the movie. LOVED IT!!

It's not necessarily one I would have watched without the previous plugs from friends and family. BUT, again, it was VERY good.

Any movie that makes me suck air, and I don't realize it....has my heart.

This story of a struggling married couple and their road to self-awareness and happiness is MARVELOUS!!

If you haven't seen it, please do. You will come away with a great desire to be more involved and happier! I know that I hope to have a marriage that is fireproof. Not immune to fire, but will withstand when the fire comes.

This and That

We bought Steve a tuxedo this last month. He's in a choir that practices ONCE a week (unlike the plays he's been involved in in the past where they practice several times a week) and they have an upcoming concert soon. He has to have a tux for the performance, and since I approve of the choir, and hope that he'll continue to be involved in this, we decided a tux would be cheaper to buy than to rent. He looks good! ;)

We cut the baby's hair on Monday. I've been complaining about it's length for a while now, and my mom, who I'm sure was tired of hearing me complain, grabbed her scissors and she cut while I held the boy down. He was NOT impressed. :P

In the end it was pretty cute, but now instead of looking like a baby, he looks more like a little boy.

Before:

After:

Cameron and Jake are playing well. I'm SO glad. I do get annoyed with saying, "You're NOT in charge." or "Put him DOWN!" over and over, but at least they get along. There are MANY times I'll hear the two of them laughing and it makes me VERY happy!

And Jake's a pill. He's begun throwing more tantrums. And he's got two more teeth. He bites, HARD! But there are moments, usually at the end of the day, when he winds down and will cuddle. I like those times, but they're very few. Usually he's crawling away from me, turning around to get my attention, and when I say, "HEY, STOP!" He laughs his little giggle and turns and crawls away as fast as he can. What a little button pusher! :P

Spending the Day in a Room with No Windows

Today was Cam's dental surgery day. UGH!

Last night I had PLANNED to keep the kid awake for as long as possible, hoping that he'd sleep in this morning and wouldn't think about not being able to eat or drink until his appointment at NOON! We'd rented a movie at the RedBox (first time....) on free Monday. (Such a cool thing!) Then we set up an inflatable mattress in our bedroom (in case the boy woke up earlier than I did, so I could hear him.) Then we attempted to watch the movie. Our dumb DVD/VCR that's upstairs!! I was ready to shoot the dang thing! It took us a half hour to load the movie. Even cleaning the thing didn't quite work.

Cameron and I stayed up watching "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium." (Cute movie, very kid-friendly!) We were awake until 12:30! I turned off the light and we were asleep.

I woke up around 6:30 to call the school and transportation to let them know that Cam was not going to need to be picked up, then I attempted to go back to sleep....did NOT happen.

Cameron woke up shortly after 7:00 (his usual waking time) and was UP! I told him that because he'd been up late the night before he REALLY could sleep in, but he said he was fine.

I did our usual morning things, and even snuck in my watching of Dancing With the Stars from Monday night. Then it was time to get ready to leave. I bathed the boys, and noticed Cam was SEVERELY pale. His eyes even got a slight pink tint around them. I worried that he may throw up, but he was just REALLY tired and pretty hungry. I let him lay in my bed while I got myself cleaned up.

When I was ready, I dragged Cam, who at this point was INSISTING he needed a nap, to the car and we were off.

Thankfully, my angel of a mother said she'd watch Jake for us, so we didn't have to try and entertain the baby as well as keeping Cameron calm. So Steve dropped Cam and I off at the facility and went to drop off the baby. (As well as pick up my book I was going to bring. I had set it out with Cam's DS, but the ONLY thing he was interested in bringing was his OWN stuff!)

We signed in, filled out papers and waited. Thankfully, this facility has little individual waiting rooms for the patients and family members. So Steve and I spent the majority of the day from around 11:00 until 3:30 in a little room with no windows.

Cam started getting anxious when the nurse came to get his vitals, which is his typical thing. I'd discussed with the nurse and anesthesiologist Cam's typical reaction to the anesthesia (nausea and vomiting...) and they assured me that they'd make sure he got the extra dose of the anti-nausea medication. Then came the time for him to go to surgery.

He cried....he whined....and finally he BEGGED for us to walk back with him. The sweet nurses made sure he was taken care of, and *tried* to alleviate his fears, but as the doors closed I could hear his cries. Poor kid!

I went back to the little room and snoozed on and off while Steve flipped through channels trying to keep entertained.

Several hours later the dentist came in telling us everything went well. Cam had come out of anesthesia fairly well, and was in recovery. Then he told us that he had to pull one of the boy's molars (no big surprise...the kid's ALWAYS having issues with his teeth...) I asked if the tooth had been loose, and the dentist said it hadn't, but according to the x-rays there was an abscess underneath and he treated the infection. He had even put in a little stitch, but didn't have to numb his mouth, so whenever he was ready to eat, he could. (Which was nice, because we'd bribed him with a trip to Wendy's if he was good.)

A while later, probably at LEAST a half hour, they wheeled my grump back into the room. We tried and tried to get the boy to drink something, but the apple juice they'd provided did NOT taste good. (Both Cam and Steve agreed on THAT point.) So we asked for some soda. He took that a little better. Eventually, the nurse said he could change back into his clothes, and she'd check back in on us. He sat up and said, "Whoa, I'm dizzy..." then he laid back and threatened to puke. I hurried to grab the emesis basin, and then ran out to get a washcloth. After calming him down, and placing a cool washcloth on his head, he seemed to settle back down.

Soon enough, we'd decided it was time to leave and try to nap somewhere else. He wasn't too terribly wobbly, and we were off to veg at Grandma's house.

Thankfully, Jake LOVES Grandma, and I was allowed a nice nap. (THANKS MOM!)

We also took the boy to Wendy's and he ate like he usually does.

I'm glad that's over. I hate it when he's put under with anesthesia, but I'm getting used to it.

Next: take the kid back in to see the dentist for an additional cleaning. *sigh*

Mother's Curse?

When I was growing up, it wasn't uncommon to hear my mom say, "Someday, I hope you have a kid that treats you EXACTLY the way you treat me!" (Usually, it was after I'd said something HORRIBLE to her, like, "I HAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTEEEEEEEE YOU!!!!!!!" Yeah, I was a HUGE brat!!)

I always figured the mother's curse was just something to say to kids like a scare-tactic. Never would REALLY happen.

HA HA!

Cameron has covered MY mother's curse (He has said "I hate you" to me MANY times, and thankfully, I'm not as soft as my sweet mom was. I know he doesn't mean it....just as I'm sure SHE knew I never hated her...)

BUT...

We have another curse coming into play here: STEVE'S mother's curse.

Thankfully, I've had two children, which means that my kids will each fulfill their destiny with our curses. Jake has inherited his father's curse. He throws tantrums.

WHY do I get to deal with HIS curse??

Let's ask the man himself, "Steve, why do I have to put up with YOUR curse?? What did I ever do to your mother??"

His response: "You married me."

Thanks, love! *eye roll*

Tantrums are a constant thing now. If I put the boy down, he squawks and bends his body backward. If I pick him up when he's getting into something he shouldn't be, he bends his body backward yelling. If he's put in a play pen or crib or car seat against his will....a complete 180 degree turn.

I'm sure he'll grow out of these tantrums SOMEDAY, but for now, I'm cursing the mother's curse.....and PROMISING my future daughters-in-law, I WILL NOT curse my sons. I don't want YOU to suffer...just them! ;)