Clean Bill of Health

Yesterday afternoon we had a follow-up appointment with Fredrick's neurosurgeon to check on his skull and see if he has healed up and if his head has continued to grow the way they planned after the surgery....

And he was given a clean bill of health!! Dr. Muhonen was so impressed that his head has grown so round since he had the surgery so late (usually it is done at around 3 months - Freddie was 6 months). His head has continued to grow to the side and everywhere else it should and he has been released with only as needed follow up. When he's about 4 if he still has a small "soft spot" in the back (where the 3 skull 'plates' meet) then they'll have to go in and put some "wood putty" in the hole, but that's a minor thing.

We feel so blessed to know that he is no worse for wear after all this and that he has had what Dr. Muhonen could only describe as a miraculous recovery and outcome from his surgery. Freddie is proof that with enough prayers and well-wishes and priesthood blessings, ANYTHING is possible.

Now he just has the nifty scar to impress chicks with later in life. Luckily his blonde hair covers it pretty darn well and you don't really notice it unless you know to look for it!! YAY!!!

Church Easter Breakfast and Lowe's

This morning we headed out early (for us!!) to have some pre-Easter fun. This morning our ward had an Easter breakfast and egg hunt.

I made the chocolate cinnamon rolls that I mentioned on my Life After Diapers blog a few weeks ago....I should have stuck with the tried and true recipe for cinnamon rolls I know is awesome. Chocolate is good with almost everything, except cinnamon rolls...

Anyways, we went to the church and had breakfast, then the kids went and hunted for eggs all around the building. Surprisingly, Karyl caught on right away and walked away with a decent amount of eggs!!

Each time she picked up an egg she had to stop and check out what was in it...

I don't think Freddie was quite as excited about the eggs as Karyl was....

Then after the hunt, we headed to Lowe's, where Karyl made a Kaleidescope...it's kinda nifty for a cheesy Lowe's project!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Well, we dressed the kids in green and made some super yummy Green Velvet Cupcakes...I'd say we did our duty on this Day O' Green!!

We hope you had a great St. Patty's Day too.

The recipe for the Green Velvet Cupcakes (courtesy of my friend Jessica) is posted on my other blog, here is the link:
GREEN VELVET CUPCAKES

There I go, making trouble yet again with my opinion...

I posted this comment on Facebook last night...

"We stock up on baby food when it's on sale...I got to the checkout at Stater Bros. - Checker looked at me, back at all the jars, points and says "Is this WIC?" I had to hold my tongue and politely say "Nope, I pay for my own baby food" I was offended but yet had to laugh when I got out to the car...doesn't he know, some of us actually pay for our own children??"

Then I got lots of responses back...most of them nailing me for being insensitive or trying to tell me that WIC wasn't welfare....

So I posted this in response:

Before anyone gets too upended over my comment...I am fully aware of what WIC is - I have family members who work for WIC and I am completely aware of how the program works and how it is funded. I just get frustrated because I know of many people who use WIC who are abusing the system (and for every person I am aware of there are hundreds more that I DON'T know). To prove my point....check out Craig's list and Enfamil formula....those little cans that are being sold for about $6 a can - those are from WIC...someone who got them FOR FREE from our tax dollars is selling them for a profit....disgusting.

I've said this before and I'll say it again, WIC, like welfare, is a wonderful program that is in place to help families who fall on hard times and need some help - and to make sure that children get the nutrition they need if their parents are struggling. There was another comment on this post that was apparently deleted by the author that made some comments about not being able to breastfeed and that WIC was there to help with formula.....WIC is there to help breastfeeding moms too, but that's not the entire point. WIC is not there to cover for you just because you've discovered that you either can't breastfeed or just don't want to pay for formula now. Both of my children had to be formula fed, and with the first we had just assumed I would nurse - and when that didn't work out it was quite the blow to our financial plans that we had to buy formula. I know first hand how expensive formula is, and if you've seen our kids, they don't just drink a few ounces at a time!!! But that was our lot, and we adjusted and now plan on that added expense when we have children.

I'm not knocking anyone who's on WIC for the right reasons....so I don't want anyone to think that I'm making light of something like getting help when you need it. We all pay into WIC and welfare, and when we need the help, that's what it is there for. The problem is that more times than not, the people who do get it don't really need it, they are just taking advantage of a loophole in the system that allows them to collect. This kind of stuff is a very touchy subject for me - when my parents got divorced back in the early 90s and my mom was left with nothing but her car and us kids, she applied for welfare and was denied - because the car was worth too much....but it was paid off and my mom couldn't afford to get rid of it. We spent YEARS struggling, not having enough money for food and other necessities. My mom ended up working for Social Services after that and most of the people that pulled up to collect their welfare checks drive nicer cars than we ever did. There is a lot of abuse, and sadly those who really do need the temporary help can't always get it, but so many find loopholes and are able to abuse the system...which leaves the rest of us paying for their free ride.... See More

The reason I made the comment to the checker afterwards was because I am VERY proud to say that my husband and I work hard, and we take care of our own children. We sacrifice many of the luxuries that other people have to put food on the table. I don't get my nails done, or have salon days...we don't drive new cars or have iPhones or expensive cell phones. We don't take vacations or buy expensive clothes...all so we can take care of our kids first....there are too many people using our government resources that just do it because they don't want to sacrifice....they drive expensive cars and have expensive electronics, they wear name brand clothes and lots of other luxuries that we don't have. THOSE are the people who frustrate me the most..

But life isn't fair is it....

WIC provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk.

This is directly from the WIC website....yes, it is money granted to the Federal Government - but it is not just available to anyone who wants it....you have to meet income guidelines to be a participant, or have a child who has special nutritional needs.

WIC is an amazing program with lots of great nutritional guidance for parents. Sadly a lot of the people who receive WIC just show up and want their check, and even get upset when they have to sit and talk to one of their dieticians about food suggestions. That is PRIME information, don't these people realize that they are getting a one-on-one consultation with a professional, for free!?!?!? I would have LOVED to have had something like that with our first kid to get ideas on how to prepare healthy meals!!!

Oh, and WIC only has a certain number of spots every month for participation...so those abusing the system are taking up the spots for the mother who really DO need the help...There is a limited amount available from Congress every month, so not everyone who is eligible can participate.

I have very strong opinions about certain things, as do most of you. I try not to force my opinion on others, and to encourage free thinking and different points of view - that is what is so wonderful about our Country, that most of us can live together and be friends, but still have varying opinions about everything from religion to politics.

I did not intend to offend anyone...but if after reading my reply you still feel that I am insensitive and/or just wrong, we'll just have to cut our losses and agree to disagree.

B-Day Bash

Alright, as mentioned last Saturday was Freddie's first birthday!!! We had a great time getting together with our family and playing games and just enjoying each other's company. We had Taco Salad for dinner (when Freddie can eat it, it will become one of his favorites!!) and I made a cake for dessert. This was my first attempt at any kind of cake decorating, so while I know it looks kinda silly, it definitely tasted better than it looked (homemade chocolate buttercream frosting...YUMMY!!) and this was my first time working with fondant (which was yummy too!!). I was too afraid to cover the entire cake with it so decided to make decorations (the unevenly paved road, rocks and letters). For my first time, I think it wasn't bad - and I used the marshmallow fondant, which sticks to EVERYTHING!!! That made it even harder to work with. Next time I do this it'll be regular rolled fondant - no sticky marshmallow!!

Anyways, here are some pics from the party, enjoy!!

Happy First Birthday Fredrick

From February 2009 to February 2010!!!!

I can't believe it's been a year since we had Freddie, and what a year it's been!!

This little guy is a trooper - We still can't believe he had his surgery only 6 months ago!! He never skipped a beat after having his head opened and his skull fixed!! He's pushing 30 pounds (we'll know exact details on Wednesday at his appointment) and he's just learning and such a joy to have!!

He is crawling with complete ease now and learning how to crawl up steps....he has pulled himself up twice to stand inside his play yard. He is definitely a boy - he is 200 times more daring than Karyl ever was, this boy has NO fear!! He will put anything and everything in his mouth, he will attempt to head off the edge of anything (a bed, a step) head first without even stopping to check it out (no accidents yet, we keep a close eye on him!!). I don't think he'll be walking for a while, his balance isn't at that point yet, but that's good because he is going to be quite the handful once he's mobile on 2 feet!!!

He is such an amazing guy - he is slowly starting to talk more and very few of us can understand it...he asks for kisses, and answers basic questions with an affirmative "yes"...He LOVES to say DADDY over and over and over again....he also can ask for hugs, but he prefers kisses and you have to pay attention because once he asks, he throws his forehead straight towards your lips!! he also gives kisses with his mouth open, he's working on getting the smacking down!! He refuses to build with blocks, he wants you to stack a few then he will knock them down, over and over again. This boy is all about destruction!!

He loves to sleep with blankets because he plays with the edges of them and if you ask him if he wants to take a "nappy-nap" he will say yes, you can lay him down and you won't hear another peep!! He eats bananas and kiwi, and LOVES Cheerios!! His most favorite thing of all though - his big sister. If you want to get him so excited that he shakes - let Karyl have a few minutes with him!! He gets so excited when they are playing that he tenses up and shakes, it's hilarious once you realize that he's not having mini seizures!!

We are so blessed to have this big guy in our lives. He is so happy and when he giggles you can't help but laugh too, it's infectious!! He is such a wonderful addition to our family (even though he refuses to snuggle or sleep in my arms....) we definitely have won the lottery when it comes to genetics and babies. He is our beautiful blond-haired, BLUE-eyed man and we can't wait to see what the next year brings us as far as his growing and learning.

Also, as a side note before closing - thank you again from the bottom of our hearts to all of you who said prayers for Fredrick, sent his name to the temples all over the world and sent your words of encouragement and happy thoughts - without all of you he would have never made such a miraculous recovery and been as well-off as he is now. We owe it all to our friends and neighbors, you guys each helped to make our son who he is today and we will never forget that!!

I will post pics of Fredrick's cake that I made when I can find the elusive camera cord!!!

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY FREDRICK!!! We all love you more than you will ever know =)

Kids say the darndest things...

Karyl and I were playing Hi Ho Cherry-O this afternoon after her nap, and she has it in her head that after each round we have to switch to a different color tree.....well, since I usually lose and still have all the cherries on my tree sometimes I don't want to bother to take them all off and put them on another one....today was one of those days...

We were playing....she won....and she said "alright, time to change trees" and she proceed to switch her yellow tree for the blue one. Then she set it down and stared at me.....I asked her "what" and she said Mommy, you need to switch to the green tree" - I told her that I didn't want to change colors, I liked my red tree...and then she looked down at her tree and to herself said this:

"Rule of life #21: When we play the cherry game, mommy may not want to switch her tree when she should..."

I stifled a very loud giggle and looked at her in the eyes...I asked her where she got that from and she acted like I shouldn't have even heard it. I asked her if that was something Olivia would say and she just ignored me.

If your kids don't watch Olivia, then you won't get it...but if you've seen the commercials for the cute cartoon you'll see why it's so funny.

Oh Karyl - what will you say next??

Actually, she made me laugh earlier in the day too, but I couldn't fully appreciate the humor in what she said until my heart stopped racing and I stopped shaking -

We were in my room and I heard a weird coming from the ceiling - I started looking around and said out loud "what is that noise?" Karyl looked up at one of the recessed lights in our room and said "mommy, it's one of those flying bugs you don't like" I immediately pieced together the noise and possible culprit and got her out of the room. I then closed the doors and got the vacuum.

She then asked me if she could see the bug after I suck him up...I said sure and headed to the office to plug in the vacuum and prepare for battle. I then took about 4 deep breaths, made sure I had a good grip on the hose, and opened the door. Luckily the wasp had settled on the ceiling above the bed and he was easy to get too - I think when they come in through the lights they get burned and injured (or at least shocked) enough that they don't do much flying. So I extended the pole until I was just close enough not to alarm him and hit the go button and sucked his little buzzing butt up!!! I then closed the cap on the hose and took the vacuum outside where Karyl insisted on looking at him. I hadn't even found him when she pointed him out "mommy, there he is - he's playing in the dirt in the vacuum." Yeah, she thinks he's playing, I'm thinking that he deserves to be writhing in there for sneaking in to my bedroom.

So, I took the canister out and put it on the front porch with the opening down so he can't get out...Greg can empty it when he gets home.

I figure I'm not a very demanding wife and I try to help as much as possible, but this is one area where he can be the man and handle it. We need to find some sort of cap for the can lighting in the attic...surprisingly they don't sell anything like that at Home Depot. I found something on line that would work, but that involves ordering, and waiting...I'm sure Greg can think of something - but we need to block off the lights from the attic. While I hate bees and wasps and fear for my life around them, I'm glad that they are only showing up in our room and not through the lights in the kitchen or hallway....near where the kids are. If anyone is going to get stung, I'd prefer it be me and not one of the kids.

And people wonder why I'm not a nature person - because the little buggers insist on invading my space.

And that was my day....I didn't need to exercise, my heart raced out of control for about an hour after the wasp incident, and then I cried like a baby for about 5 minutes, which burned quite a few calories I'm sure.

Kids say the darndest things...

Videos!!!

I LOVE that I can just upload vidoes to YouTube and then share them here. Granted, it takes forever to upload them to YouTube, but once you do it makes life much easier for sharing them!!

So, here are 2 videos from the past week. One is Freddie showing off his ability to practically shake his crib to pieces, and the other is Karyl and him goofing off and at the end, he shows off his new trick - he tickles himself!!

Enjoy!!

Yet another milestone...finally...

As most of you know, Freddie has started crawling forwards and is only getting faster and into more places he shouldn't be...

But this afternoon he did something new....he pulled himself up. He was in his "baby jail" (the big plastic fence/play-yard) and lately he has been doing a lot of pulling himself up on his knees and shaking the railings on his crib and the plastic fencing....well I went into the other room to get something, came back out and heard Karyl say "Mommy, Mommy, Freddie is standing up" and sure enough, he was. He looked a little shocked, and hasn't done it again but he's finally put his skill into practical application!!!

Oh it's only a matter of time until this little bundle of all-boy energy starts running through my house.....

Here it is

So I got the cord out of the van when I said I would, but then I couldn't find the camera...then I lost my enthusiasm and once I found the camera it took another few days to get the fire back.

It never came back, but I felt guilty lying to everyone so here I am...

Oh so much has happened and I have chosen my favorite pics to post. I don't think they'll be in order, and I'm just fine with that - I'll try to put dates on here so that I'll know in the future but that takes work and research (turning the camera back on and looking up the dates).

These are samples I made for the Teen classes I'm teaching at JoAnn's...headbands and a picture made entirely of duct tape. I don't know who came up with these ideas, but let me say that the duct tape picture was a pain in the butt to make!!

January 6, 2010 -

As a reward for being potty trained, Greg told Karyl she could pick out any toy in Target...she wanted a Dora bowling alley, but I artfully steered her towards a more practical gift - a Dora tent. She loves this thing...it's in the middle of Grandpa B's front room right now. It's huge for a kid her size - and it creates static electricity like nobody's business. Greg took these pics and they are some of his favorite pics of little K.

January 3, 2010 -

Karyl's first day as a Sunbeam. She loves her new Primary Class!!!

Ironically (and to my excitement) this past week I have been "promoted" from being the primary chorister to being in charge of the Ward Choir (I'd much rather lead adults than kids...and funny enough, the lady who was doing the adults would rather teach the kids...) sometimes calling really do prove to be an inspired idea.

February 2, 2010
Karyl loves to be Freddie's "Big Sister" and apparently part of her job description is helping Freddie when he cries...he was crying, so she reached over and held his hand. We only noticed because he went from crying to laughing in a matter of seconds, we turned back and this was the scene!!

February 6, 2010 -

Good ol' Home Depot...this is a rack for all of Karyl's Matchbox Cars...I think this will get better use in Freddie's room in the future.

January 9, 2010 -

This was a Lowe's Coin Bank...I don't know how accurate it is, but it has lines for each coin slot to indicate how much money you have!!

January 23, 2010 -

This week she made a travel wooden tic-tac-toe game. She loves to take the pieces out and just put them on the board. She doesn't quite get the concept, but she loves the colorful pieces!!

January 21, 2010 -

Welcome to our backyard mud pool....The water in our backyard during these past few storms has been unbelievable. The water over by the easel is about 8 inches deep. Until we get cement back there, this is what will keep happening - the curse of home improvement.

And this was taken just the other night...I saw this idea on like 13 different people's blogs so I decided to try it out. I am about 3/4 of the way done as of last night. You cover the entire heart with these felt circles and it looks super cute!! I can't wait to show you the finished product!!

So, there are a few of our favorite pictures from the last month or so. I will try to be better and blog more often like before, this past month has just been really weird in terms of my motivation to do anything other than sleep. I guess it's the weather and being stuck inside.

I also have a few nummy recipes that I made over the past whiel including my mother-in-law's delicious meatloaf (I have a picture-by-picture guide to making it), a peach dump cake and our favorite pie around here, my peanut butter pie - which made me realize that my Vidalia Chooper is good for more than just veggies!! So, check out my Life After Diapers blog later today for those!!

I'll be back...

I know, I know...it's been like a month since I last posted.

My camera cord is in the van, in a green re-usable JoAnn's bag with some knitting....

The bag is underneath the 300 pound double stroller in the back of the van...

I really am too lazy to just pull the stroller out and grab the bag. I figured I would wait until we pulled the stroller out and grab it then....but we haven't pulled it out - too much rain, so we haven't been out much lately.

I have LOTS of pictures...Home Depot, Lowe's, our newly remodeled garage with carpet and my "mini-gym", our mud farm in the backyard...

I am writing this and making a public promise...tomorrow I will suck it up and get the cord and post pictures because I also have some yummy recipes for my other blog to post and if I don't post them soon I will forget and then I will be sad...

Have a great Sunday and I promise, there will be pictures soon!!!

Oh what a difference a week makes

So this past Monday I decided that I was going to buckle down and make yet another attempt to potty train Karyl. I set the rules in my head...every 30 minutes she was going to sit on the toilet...and then we'd go from there.

I've done this before, and with working at the same time it's kind of difficult to check every 1/2 hour...but I did it....and at the beginning there were tears and screaming (from her end) but eventually she did it once, and then again...

And now it's almost a week later and guess what?? KARYL IS POTTY TRAINED!!!

This is the most amazing thing...we thought she'd be 4 before she decided to give in and use the toilet...she just refused to see the benefits (faster than changing a diaper...no more red butt...) and apparently this time was the time it clicked!!

I apologize for the lack of posting this last week but I've been dealing with the potty training...and while I have LOTS of great pictures from this past week (Karyl in her new Dora play tent, and Karyl at the Lowe's Kids Clinic yesterday...) we left the camera at Greg's parent's place....so we'll get it back when we see them on Friday (I think that's the next time we're going).

So, no pics, but I am SO proud to share that little K is officially potty trained!!! We can already hear the money going back into the bank account!!

Potty Progress

This morning I decided enough was enough...it was a rough morning filled with lots of crying and yelling (from Karyl...) but every 1/2 hour she was on the toilet...and we've had a dry diaper ALL day and 3 pee-pees in the toilet. This last time she even came up to me and said she needed to go, and she did. Then she asked for her big girl underwear...so we have the padded cotton training underwear on her now and I'm waiting to see what happens. Maybe, just maybe ONE of my New Year's resolutions will be fullfilled...and that would be great because diapers are EXPENSIVE!!!

Wish us luck...maybe we'll get this down finally!!

UPDATE:

We got through the rest of the day in big girl underwear (not Pull-Ups, we decided to go without a safety net) and we had NO accidents!!! YAY!!!! This is the furthest we've come with her as far as potty training. She even told me twice that she had to go!!

Finally, it looks like our 3 year old will be saying bye-bye to diapers. I swear, we tried everything from the 3-day potty training to rewards to punishment to everything inbetween. Sometimes you just have to adapt for your kids and none of the advice out there will work. At least we did it.

It's C..C...C...Cold....

So our heater went out yesterday.....yep, during the stretch of coldest nights we've seen this winter.

I got up yesterday morning for work and turned on the heater...about 20 minutes later I realized I wasn't hearing anything...so I tried again, nothing.

Then I thought "well, forget the auto, let's try just turning it on"

Oh the blower turned on, and I thought "yes!!"

Nope...I walked by a vent and it was the same air blowing out that was being sucked in....

So...now we wait. The repair guy is coming today to check it out. Luckily we renewed our home warranty so this is covered, which brings me to share what I hope the repairman will say today when he comes...

"I'm awful sorry Miss, but this heater's busted. You're gonna need a new one...and since the entire A/C unit is connected you'll need a new one of those too."

(I don't know why the repairman has a Southern Gentleman's accent)

I know, you're thinking "you're crazy, do you know how much that would cost??" And my answer is yes, I do...hence the reason we renewed the home warranty...for THIS exact reason. See, our A/C and heating unit is the ORIGINAL one from when the house was built, almost 40 years ago. This thing has no safety mechanisms, it is DEFINITELY not EnergyStar approved and, well, it's ugly. Heck, there's a pipe/line for something (I think it's the gas) that's being held together with vice grips that are just sticking up from the connection...and when we moved in we had an expert come and fix the REALLY dangerous broken parts, and the sad part...he left the vice grips, said that was the best way to solve that particular problem.

So, here I sit...with cold hands...waiting for the heater repairman to come and decide our fate.

We've been eyeing up those portable heaters at Costco over the past few weeks for The Man Cave, and I think we may be getting one sooner than we thought.

I hope you're having a nice warm day wherever you are....