It was just a matter of time...

...before it would happen. You know when you have a boy you are bound to take a trip to the ER at one point or another. I was just hoping it would have been later. Well, last night Micah was upset about being brought back inside the house and went running out in the back yard and ran smack into the outdoor bar. It is lined in metal, so his head split right open. Chad grabbed him up and ran him into the shower since there was blood every where and I grabbed Brooklyn and dry clothes for him. We jumped in the car and I called my mom bawling like a baby. I didn't want him to have to be strapped down for stitches. I still remember being in that from when I was Micah's age. It was pretty traumatizing. My mom told me to pull it together and she met us at the hospital. We went to the "Emergency" Room. I put that in quotations because I believe the term is used loosely. My child had an open wound on his head and they let him sit in the waiting room for over a half hour, they didn't even clean the wound with any medications and didn't give him a tetanus shot either! Anyways, Micah was a trooper. He did better than I did. They were touching it and mopping up the wound and he didn't even flinch. I think he was distracted by all the buttons on the bed and Spongebob on the TV. They gave him a single staple to pull the skin together and they said it can be taken out in a week. We took him out for ice cream after that and put him to bed. I on the other hand was sick to my stomach thinking about the bill that is going to arrive from this trip to the ER. We just finished paying for having Brooklyn. Maybe we should start up an account with Saddleback! I think after all that has been going on (earthquake, leaks, injuries, etc.) I need a physical, emotional and financial break!

Hodge podge

Last night was a fun girls night. It was all family and we had a blast. To be honest with you, I wasn't all that excited to see Mamma Mia since I am totally not into musicals. It just isn't my thing. I was going for the company, my mom, sister, aunts, and cousins. I actually enjoyed the movie. I didn't realize how much I liked Abba songs until I watched this. Brooklyn liked it too. She would keep turning her head to watch and only fussed for the last 15 minutes!Yesterday was a bit scary with the earthquake. Was that yesterday or the day before? Anyways, I was nursing Brooklyn when the windows started shaking. I jumped up with her in one arm and grabbed Micah by his arm and ran into a doorway. I don't think his feet touched the floor! He was pretty scared and held me tight. I was honestly shaking. It wasn't that big of an earthquake (thank goodness), but having two young kids that you are trying to keep safe on my own without warning is frightening. We didn't have any damage here, just shaken nerves!
I've decided I don't like hhardware stores very much. I went in to get some caulk for the baseboards in the house and low and behold there is an entire aisle with about 30 different kinds! I sat there with three kids trying to read each kind and there wasn't a staff member around that I could ask. Then I realized I didn't want to ask some strange guy which caulk I should get. Seems a bit inappropriate. I finally grabbed one I thought was right and ask the guy, "is this the right one I need for baseboards?" Hallelujah! I did it. Now to do the work!
I have been dealing with blocked ducts lately. Ouch, ouch, ouch! That is all I have to say about that. Luckily, I have many friends and family members that have been through this and have given me advice. I have been doing the hot massaging and it seems to be going away. I just need to make sure I don't get a fever!

Today as I was getting ready to go out with the kids Micah walked in as I was throwing a shirt on and he said "Wow Mommy, you look so handsome!" That just melted me. I love that kid. I could care less at that point what anyone else thought of my outfit or hair. He liked it and that made me happy! My mom and I took the kids up to Main Place Mall and I have to say they have some really cute children's stores. Pumpkin Patch is a brand Nordstroms carries and I had no idea they had their own store. Also, Gymboree has a sister store called Crazy 8 and they have the cutest clothes with great prices. I will definitely be going back there. By the way, for those of you who have boys and need church clothes, go to the back to school sales now and head for the uniform section for khakis. I got some today at Gymboree for $15. Micah grows like a weed and I am just trying to keep up!

Ideas?

This is my front room. It is the very first thing you see as you walk into my front door. Pretty sad, huh? When we moved from the apartment to this house, we didn't have enough furniture to put in this room. All of the other rooms were covered, but this one was pretty barren. My in-laws were kind enough to leave us the two leather couches and a coffee table that I recently repainted and the armoir was taken from my parents house. Now, I am looking for ideas. I was thinking about recovering the cornice box in a nice fabric and then getting some complimentary drapery panels. I would need a few pillows to throw on the couches to go with and of course some art for the walls. I decided I should probably get rid of the coffee table even though I just painted it because A) it will never be clean with kids and B) it is glass and metal which is not the safest thing around young kids. Anyways, I am looking for ideas and please do not suggest I paint unless you want to come over and help me paint these 15 foot walls! I do not have a color scheme in mind, but I do need to incorporate the brown from the couches. Send your ideas this way!

THE END

Etsy

I know most of you know about etsy.com. For those who don't, you need to visit it! It is like an online craft fair. I would go on and look for headbands and I really had no clue how expansive this site was. That was until yesterday when I noticed the Pounce feature on the home page. That shows you items that have just sold along with others that are still for sale. There is art, clothes, purses, shoes, soaps, frames, fabric, dolls, even fudge! Here are a few things I have my eye on right now, which are all under $20:


If you are up for a good laugh you might want to check this listing http://www.etsy.com/view_transaction.php?transaction_id=9657890

Etc.

Not a whole lot going on for us. We had a mellow weekend. Saturday I just run around getting errands done. It's a good thing Brooklyn isn't on a strict schedule yet because I am taking her everywhere! We also went out to Cheesecake Factory to celebrate my dad and brother's birthdays. I went out on a limb and tried a new cheesecake. Chocolate coconut cream is great. It tastes just like a Samoa Girl Scout cookie. Sunday I had fun getting Brooklyn all dressed up for church. We just had to do a photo session!
Then after church we went out with my family for a picnic in Dana Point. Micah enjoyed the chocolate chip cookies a little too much!
Today I decided to get crafty. SO many of my friends are incredibly talented and I decided I wanted to attempt a project. I have been looking at getting some art for Brooklyn's nursery and I liked these pictures from Pottery Barn Kids, but wasn't thrilled with the price. So with a little scrapbook paper, decoupage paste and a canvas, I got this: I think next time I will paint the background and do tulips. We'll see!

Four years later...

Yesterday was our four year anniversary. Wow, time has gone by so fast. We have really been together over eight years, but married for four now officially. It is starting to show too! In the morning we wished each other a happy anniversary and went about our day. I packed the kids up and we went to the Spectrum to do some shopping. I wanted to get Chad a cupcake, so I stopped at Lorraine's cupcakes near the ferris wheel. The strawberry cream cheese is amazing. I also picked him up a new shirt because he needed one so bad. Earlier I had gotten Sparkling Apple Cider and strawberries, so I thought we could have a romantic evening. Well, Chad gets home and since I have a nursing baby, we took the kids with us to get sushi. Micah was bouncing off the walls and I couldn't sit down to eat because Brooklyn was on me in her carrier. Super romantic, huh? Anyways, we headed home and Micah was still hyped up so the boys played video games while Brooklyn and I dealt with her colic. Finally, around ten o'clock we had both kids down. This is where we are about to lose the PG rating, right? Well, we cuddle up on the couch and watch Boston Legal (our favorite show) and I fell fast asleep. Yep, I didn't even make it through the whole episode. So today the Sparkling Apple Cider is still in the fridge and the strawberries are still uneaten, but I am still just as in love as ever with my sweet husband. Love you babe!

Feeding the Obsession

Chad and I are usually pretty predictable, but we decided we would take Micah out to Fuddrucker's for dinner because they have a car show there every Tuesday night. Micah is OBSESSED with cars. You can give him a car and he will be busy for hours. He loves them so much he sleeps with them! Anyways, he just flipped out! He was so excited and we could hardly get him inside to eat. This was a pretty cool car and when the guy saw us taking this picture, he asked if Micah would want to sit inside. That made his year! What was cool was the guy who owed it looked like he came straight out of the band ZZ Topp. Full bear and top hat. So funny!Micah driving!



This morning I heard this conversation between Micah and my niece Shelby. Shelby, where Taura go? She's at work. Oh, where Chad go? He's at work too. Where Ashy? She's at work. Where is Ghee? In Utah. Where Grandma and Papa? They are coming home. Shelby, where my spoon? Random, huh?
In other news, we are in the market for a double stroller. Hopefully, that will make our outings a bit easier. With the age gap between the two kids, I was leaning towards the sit 'n stand type. After a lot of research, these are my final contestants:
1. Black Joovy Caboose for $149. I have heard great things about them.
2. The Baby Trend Sit n' Stand in Everest $159. The back seat can be taken apart to become a bench seat.
3. The Baby Trend Sit 'n Stand in Vanilla Bean $119. I am not sure which one I want to get yet, but if you have any experience with these brands, or input, let me know. I wish I had just gone ahead and gotten a double stroller when I had Micah. Most of us know we are going to have a second kid, so why do we bother buying a single? Yes, the double is a bit bigger, but in the mean time you can use the extra seat to put your diaper bag or shopping bags. You will get around to using it when that second kid comes around and then you will be thankful for the money saved!

Too cute at two months!

Look at how big she is getting! Brooklyn is officially two months old today and it is going so fast. She is filling out and getting longer. She outgrew all of her newborn clothes about two weeks ago. It is a little sad, but I also love to see her grow. She is slowly outgrowing her colic. She will have one night a week where she will be screaming, so that just means we get some girls time walking the neighborhood until she dozes off! Her belly button is going in. I don't think I have mentioned this before, but Brooklyn's belly button stuck out for a while and over time it is sinking in. Yay! She is such a smilely girl. I love seeing her smile. When it is really big she will only open one eye. My mom called it a Popeye smile. We just love this little girl so much!

Madness!

A lot has been happening here, but with all the craziness, I haven't had much time to blog. I'll start from today and make my way back. Today, I stopped by the mall with the kids. We were just strolling through when I ran into this:This is the line to get the new iPhone. It goes out the Apple store, across the bridge, along the front of Abercombie and around the corner. I didn't even see where it ended! The store emplyees were handing out drinks to the people in line. I guess they had been there a while! Chad is planning on getting one with our long awaited stimulus check. Get in line bud! As a side note, there are INSANE sales going on at Nordstrom, Old Navy and Naartjie. I actually got myself some Bermuda shorts at Nordstroms that I thought were $35 and when I went to pay for them, they were $10!
The other day I came home totally burnt out from a long day and so Chad was nice enough to take him and Micah out to get dinner so wouldn't have to make it. They came back with In n Out and they gave Micah this hat. I thought it was so cute!I have been busy with Brooklyn because she has days where she can be colicky and that means I am holding her most of the day. We go out and go for walks just to get some peace and quiet. Poor baby!

On Sunday we had Brooklyn blessed. It was really sweet. She looked adorable and was great during the blessing. I was afraid she would start to cry, but we didn't hear a peep out of her! It was so nice to have family and friends there to support us. Chad's mom and dad made the long trip out from Utah to be with us. Micah LOVED being with them for the weekend. Anyways, we took this picture afterward and it made me realize that I need to start doing some exercising. I am not looking that great. I have a totally different body after having Brooklyn and I have to start reshaping it! I am not looking for compliments, I guess I just needed to see myself to get motivated. It is hard though because I am nursing, which means I need to eat and extra 500 calories a day, but if I want to lose weight I need to cut back. How am I supposed to do that? Also, I can't be eating a bunch of sugar substitutes while nursing. I am sure they aren't good for her. I have also have sugar cravings like no other since being pregnant with her. Anyone have any advice on how to lose weight and still nurse?

Micah lately...

So Micah is the type of kid that always wants to have his boo boos kissed to make it better. I love how he can come running to me in tears when he gets hurt and asks me to kiss it and as soon as I do he is just fine. It is like they are convince that mom's kisses have completely cured the problem. So over time I have kissed knees, elbows, cheeks, shoulders, fingers, and I have even kissed his bum when he fell on it. I just found out the other day that this may need to change when Micah decided to climb the shower walls and fell onto the spout. We heard yelps and cries and went running to him. What did he ask for? A kiss on his pee pee because it got hurt. Sorry buddy, that is where I draw the line! Not happening! A kiss on the cheek will have to do. Poor kid!

Sunday as Chad was getting Micah dressed for church he started picking his nose. Yuck, I know. Anyways, he picks out a nasty brown one I am guessing was dried up blood from previous excavations. He looks at it and wipes it right on the shoulder of Chad's shirt. He then looks at the mess he made and asks, "Chad, you got chocwit?" Yum, who is craving chocolate now?

Ever had one of those days...

When you have been covered in spit up and pee and you are pretty sure you got some poop on your finger? Still haven't showered, but have wiped yourself down with baby wipes throughout the day? Haven't even gone to the bathroom without a child with you or crying for you? Making dinner and wondering if you got something done today? Yep, I am having one of those days. I can't wait to shower!

The 4th!

We took it easy for the Fourth this year. Ghee and Papa took Micah during the day, so I headed over to my parents to help out with some projects. We Did some painting and cleaning, wait isn't this a vacation? Anyways, Chad and Micah joined up with us for some quick BBQ and the we went to Laguna Hills Community Center for fireworks. We got there early, so we walked around to see all the rides and booths. This is how Brooklyn spent the day. We decided she needed to wear her own firework.

Micah saw this semi on the other side of the park and went running. He could care less about any of the games!

Waiting for the sun to go down with Grandma and Shelby.

They shot off a few test fireworks and Micah practically clawed his way up Chad!

Then he really liked them and was shouting out the colors and shapes.

Even Brooklyn watched with Papa.

This is a project I have been working on for a while and FINALLY got it done. I am so glad there is something up on the wall now!

Brooklyn seems to like it too!

By the way, you might have noticed Brooklyn's face is cleared up now. Thanks to my mom's group for giving me great advice to get that nasty baby acne to go away. For anyone who might need to know: Don't use lotion on their face and then use a bit of anti-fungal cream. Done!

Such a girl...

Who do you think I got this fabulously girly headband from? Of course it was Val. I just had to put it on her for a photo shoot even if is the same size as her head! Even with all that nasty baby acne, she is still cute as a button!