Visit with Anita

We had an exhausting day today, too! We went to Target to get some batteries for some of the girl's toys. It was super crowded! We were in line for a long time, so I had Joel take the girls to the restroom to change Naomi's diaper and take Libby to go pee. Thanks Joel. Anyways he had to wait forever at the family bathroom to go in. A person without kids came out after being in there for 5 minutes. Seriously people, don't go in a family restroom unless you have a reason to! We FINALLY got out of there and hit up the mall. My mom (thanks mom I know you are reading), and my sister in law (who is pictured with her husband), both got me gift cards to New York and Company so I wanted to go there. And O-M-G they had a HUGE sale going on! They had shirts and pants for $3.99. I got 10 items and still have $30 left to spend. (Yay me! I can put up my maternity shirts for real this time! I have real people clothes yay!) I was having so much luck with the clothes that I lost track of the time. We were supposed to meet Joel's sister and brother in law at his aunt Anita's house around 5:30 or 6:00. Well, I assumed that 6 was still a good time so when Joel told me to hurry up because it was 5:30, I thought that I had plenty of time since they live just about a mile away from the mall. After leaving the store with some great finds, I looked down at the phone and saw that there were three missed calls. Ooops. I guess 5:30 was the meeting time so, were 30 minutes late. I hate being late for anything. I felt pretty bad when we got there. We ended up having a great visit. Libby was being extra charming, telling her great aunt and uncle about witches (The Wizard of Oz) and Doodlebops. Naomi got quite messy with her turkey and sweet potato meal. I need to give her some more greens; her nose has that orangish color to it again. Joel brought is new ukulele that my mom and I got him for Christmas. Anita put some records on (yes real vinyl) and Libby and I danced to some songs on one of the best albums ever made. Anita and Don got the girls matching pajamas, and we put Libby's on over her clothes because it is fun to dress up sometimes. Anita might be riding with us on our trip to Zapata on Sunday.I am looking forward to having fun on the road and stopping at many HEB's and McDonald's on the way. It will be fun to finally get there and visit with family and, watch Libby have fun with all of her cousins.

Merry Christmas!

I'm too tired to write about the day but, I wanted to include some pictures before I forget. I hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas! We are very blessed.

My Early Christmas Present (That Will Not Be Paid Off For 5 Years).

YaY! We got a new van!!! It is no Volkswagen, but it is perfect for us. We spent almost all day at a dealership. I loathe buying a car. I'm always worried that we are going to get screwed over, and the salespeople are almost always rather douchey. We ended up getting it for only $5 more dollars more a month than what we were paying for the Hyundai Sante Fe, which isn't too shabby. I like the new van a lot, it is a 2007 Chrysler Town & Country. I like that there is seven seats. I told Joel that this is a sign that we need more babies. I think that he is warming up to the idea more than he'd like to admit. I do not want to fill all of those seats up with car seats but, I think we need at least one more baby in the future. Maybe once the girls are out of diapers it will be a possibility. No more having them two years apart. That was a really tough transition for all of us. It was worth it but, it was really rough. I do not know how my grandmas did it. One grandma had her first two 18 months apart, and my other grandma had her first two 11 months apart! Whew. No thanks!!! Oh, and Joel found my keys for me last night. They were in the side door of the Hyundai. I guess I should have looked in there better. I am such a dork sometimes. I swear if I do have anymore kids, I will be brain dead.

"New" Pants

I finished the pants that I said I was going to make. It only took me about two hours from start to finish. I could not have done them if I had the girls by myself; it would have been too distracting. Joel was off today and played with them while I made the pants. Speaking of which, he is off of work until January 14 due to a shutdown where he works. It really blows since he does not have enough vacation to cover the time off. On the other hand, it will be a nice little break for both of us. We are going to go be leaving for his home town a couple of days after Christmas. We will be gone a week or so. I really do not know how long that we will be gone. Anyways, back to the pants....I think that they are super cute and are very cold weather appropriate. The stitching is a little messy but hey, it was my first try! It was 18 degrees this morning, a big change from being in the sixties yesterday. I love making something old into something new. I'm looking forward to making the girls new pillow case dresses this spring. I've turned my girls into baby models. I hope I don't give them a complex ;). I love Naomi's expression in the first picture. I think she likes posing!!!

One of Those Days.

Today has been pretty exhausting. It started out pretty good. Naomi slept until 8 (YAY b/c she has NOT been sleeping well at night). Libby got up at 9 and I sent her off with her Grammy since today is Saturday. I finished getting the stuff packed up so Naomi and I could do some shopping. Then my day started to go down hill. I could not find my keys anywhere. I still cannot find them. It is so frustrating. My house is not that messy. They should be here. After looking for about half an hour I gave up and called my dad. He let me borrow his car to go to the town center. It's weird driving someone else's car, and I was not comfortable. just knew I was going to wreck it with all of the crazy traffic today. I did not thank goodness! I brought it back to my dad after finishing shopping then came back home and did lunch and got Naomi asleep for her nap. Libby returned from Grammy's house around 4:30. My mom looked for my keys too, and could not find them. Where the heck are they?!? And why can't I remember to put them up on that dumb hook that holds the keys? Anyways, we had plans to go to a birthday party at the Texoma Children's Museum, but with no keys to drive my car, my mom had to take me. I felt like I was in the 7th grade getting dropped off by my mom. We had a lot of fun at the museum. Libby went off and did her own thing having fun with all the kids. I'm including some pictures of her from the museum. We had dinner there, and Naomi was using her sippy cup so well! I'm glad that they had so much fun, the museum is a very fun place to play. I'm just ready for the girl's bedtime to be here so I can relax by watching SNL (even if it is a rerun).

Meeting With Santa Claus

Today was the big day for Santa Claus to be at the library. We got there about an hour early so that I could ensure that Naomi got a nap. See, if she skips a morning nap then she won't take her afternoon nap at 1 when Libby does. I'm a happier momma when they both go down at the same time, so I try to encourage it as much as possible. The only way that Naomi will sleep if she is not in the car or a bed, is in my EllaRoo Wrap. I know that I'm the one who has made her rely on this but, it is just easier for me to be able to feed her in the wrap then let her sleep on me when we are not at home. Libby was playing with some dinosaurs and reading books and jumping on pillows while I was getting Nomers to sleep. She has a lot of fun stacking the library pillows, and jumping off. Eleven o'clock came around and it was time to meet in the big room. There was much anticipation that Santa would arrive. I think that us parents were more excited about it then our children. Santa (who was a staff member shhhh....don't tell Libby that) came in and his presence immediately sent children back to their mama's or running towards him. Libby and her BFF are smart and know not to trust old men with fake white beards ;0), so they came back scurrying to us. Santa passed out presents that us moms and dads had secured to him before the meeting. One by one Santa called out the children's names. I thought that maybe Libby's had gotten lost because I couldn't see it in that big red bag that was sitting there beside him wide open. Last but not least, he called her name and she got her "special prize" from him. She opened it up so eagerly, and found 3 puzzles which she had no interest in of course. The excitement of it all was better than the prize, and I think that is what made the day so special. I'm posting some pictures of Libby opening up her gift. I have to throw in a picture of Naomi as well. The only shot I have of her I've blinded her with the flash of my camera, poor thing.

Libby's Cartoon Twin

Libby reminds me of a character in a David Shannon Book so much, especially since she has become attached to a magic wand. Linky Poo. They are both wild and crazy, do magic and hide under makeshift tents. We are going to re-check it out from the library tomorrow. It is seriously a must read for toddlers.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

I just lurve Christmas! I love getting together with family, the good food, and oh yeah...presents. I really look forward to getting the mail during this time of year as well. Every day I wonder if there is going to be some kind of surprise in there be it a Christmas card from friends and family, a Christmas ornament that Joel's sister sends every year, or a package from my step-dad's mom, Gi Gi Sheryl. I met the mailman out at the mailbox this afternoon (can you say desperate), and he had a big package for me. Okay that sounded weird. Seriously though, it was from Gi Gi Sheryl who sent two Christmas outfits for Naomi, and a Horton Hears a Who stuffed animal and the DVD for Libby. We played baby model this afternoon and tried the clothes on Naomi. Libby is watching the movie right now with Joel and she seems to be liking it okay. He had tried taking her to see this at the dollar show this summer but, she was uninterested. I bet that she will like going to the show next summer once she is three. Anyway, tomorrow Santa Claus will be at the library so be sure to check back to find out if the toddlers like Santa, or run a muck.

Making Something Old Into Something New

Yesterday I went to a monthly La Leche League meeting. The leader's daughter was wearing these adorable pants. I knew they were probably homemade because, she is so crafty. Here is what I am talking about: My Next Project. I think/hope that these will be easy enough to make. I have some old sweaters sitting around that can finally go to some good use. Yay! I'll post pictures as soon as I finish. It will probably be next week until I start them since I am usually too busy to bust the sewing machine out on the days that Joel works.

Keeping it Real

OR

?!?

Twice this week I have felt like I had a heavy decision to make. The first time was at the post office. I was wanting to buy some Christmas stamps so I asked the lady to show me what she had. She whipped out a book of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus, and a book of holly jolly Santa Claus stamps. I immediately felt like I was in the scene of a movie where a devil is on one shoulder and an angel was on the other. You know what I'm talking about right? I thought that the Santa Claus ones were really cute and festive. On the other hand, I am trying to teach Libby the real reason why we celebrate Christmas because, I think that is very important. I opted for the Jesus stamps since it felt like that is what I should do. Then today at Wal-Mart I had to buy some more Christmas cards because, I thought that I had some left over from last year but I obviously did not. I stood in that aisle for a good five minutes trying to decide which ones to get. I think that they are more than just Christmas cards and should send a message. I opted for the Jesus version again. In my prayers every night I pray to become a better Christian. Not that Christians are "better" but, that I am a happier person now that I know and trust God and I just wanna keep up the good feelings ya know? I figured that this is a great way to turn over a new leaf, and a way to teach Christmas's history to Libby. I do not have anything against the cute Santa cards, or the Frosty ones either. But for my family, we are going to try to keep Christ in Christmas as much as we can. I'm feeling pretty good about that. We are still going to tell Libby and Naomi about Santa as well, because there is something magical about it that I do not want them to miss out on. It is just that I don't want it all to be about Santa, shopping, and candy canes. Ya know?

Sunday Afternoon

So Peter Pan was great! I enjoyed it and it was fun watching Libby watch it. I even cried a little in the end. She is getting to be such a big girl and sometimes I wish that she didn't have to grow up just like Peter Pan. Libby didn't act a fool even though she had skipped her nap, and Naomi was all smiles when I got home. Joel said that she was asleep from 2:15-3:45, which was almost the whole time I was gone. Now we are getting ready to go to a Christmas party at church. It does not start until 6:30, so I will have to leave early to get the girls ready for bed. Naomi has been going to sleep at 9:00 (a lot better than midnight ey?) I would just skip it altogether but, Joel is playing the ukulele with Shish (Shirlee) and Casey. They are playing a few Christmas songs together. I'll bring the video camera to capture the festivities. I'm posting a few pictures of me and Libby. The play was at Denison High School which was where I went to school at, and is probably where the
girls will go too. So it was kind of cool to take a picture of her on the steps.

Ramble On

After seven months of nursing Naomi in the rocking chair, getting her to sleep, and then trying to put her down only to have her immediately awaken, I figured out the trick. I have to lay down with her then , sneak off after she stops eating vigorously, which is about 10 minutes. I've been reluctant to try this in the past because, I don't want to get into the habit of laying down to get her to sleep because, I usually multitask when I'm feeding her (i.e. surfing the web). But hey, it turns out I end up having more time to goof around since she is actually staying asleep. I still do not understand how Joel can get her to sleep 99% of the time by just patting her but, if it's me she wants to eat. I guess she just gets too close to the buffet when I'm holding her.

Naomi and I did not go to church today because she has a hard time taking her morning nap when we are there, and we are doing something different this afternoon so I did not want to totally screw her up. They are having a production of Peter Pan today at Denison High School at 2. I am taking Libby to go see it. She has not seen the movie (she's getting it for Christmas), but we have read a book about Peter Pan. At the Denison Christmas parade there was a Peter Pan float. She was amazed at the Indians and pirates. Libby is going to skip her afternoon nap to go but, that's not really a biggie since she doesn't have a melt down if it's only once in awhile. Watch today be the day that she does have one. I'm leaving Naomi with Joel for the longest time ever to take Libby. That is why I did not want to take her to church today because, I am hoping that if we stick to our routine, she will take her usual nap from 2-4 today and won't even know that I am gone. I have some pumped milk in the freezer but, we have had no luck with getting her to take it. It's not like I am going to be gone for a century, so even if she refuses it I'm sure things will work out okay. Yeah, I am a little worried though. I rarely leave her, so this is going to be interesting. Joel does great with her, even better than me sometimes, so I really should not worry.

And for the record....Those "Breathe Right" nose strips to help a person stop snoring DO NOT WORK!!! We (er, me) are having some major issues with Joel's snoring. I had dreams of people snoring the other night only to wake up to have Joel blasting his snooze decibels in my left ear. Speaking of dreams, last night I had a dream that I was shopping at Babies R Us. The store was nasty and they were selling groceries (what is the relevance to that?!?) as well. I pulled the manager aside to complain of the filth and she just shrugged me off. Weird.

I better go finish some laundry and start on lunch. Joel and Libby will be back soon from church and I need to make it look like I've been doing something. :)

Merry Christmas!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Lazy Day

I think that this is my sixth post since starting this blog yesterday. When I was a little girl, I remember getting a diary. In the first few weeks that I got that thing, I would write in it like crazy. After the newness wore off I would write in it sporadically, until I eventually gave the whole thing up for whatever reason. That's probably how I am going to be with this blog as well, just because I am a little cooky like that.

(Look at how cool our sidecarred crib --->
is. Joel rigged this up for me and it has made co-sleeping so much easier. Here is how we did it: http://www.freewebs.com/sidecarcrib/index.htm)

Anyway, the point of this post is not to write about the diary I used to have. Although, I do wish I knew where that thing is.

K, on topic now... On Saturdays my mom takes Libby for the day and me and Naomi sit around the house like bums until she decides to take a nap. I took some pictures of her to post here. I need to get some more of Libby up. That will happen soon I am for sure.

Sell Out

<---My fantasy van now

<--- My fantasy van 10 years ago

I was sitting here daydreaming about getting a new van. It's not like we can afford one right now but, hey I can fantasize can't I? Then I started thinking about what I would want in a van and I found the one of my dreams. It's funny how things change. Have a Nice Day :)

Hammer Time

This sums up how I feel this morning.

"...It is the year after the baby comes that is like someone hitting you every day in the face with a hammer"-Tina Fey

Dressing Room Fun (For Everyone Except for Naomi)

So today Libby woke Naomi up from her nap. So instead of hanging around the house with a fussy baby, I decided to go to J.C. Penny's. I needed a new warm snowsuit for Naomi. We leave the house regularly for playdates, shopping and such in the cold weather, so this is a necessity. I never had a snow suit for Libby (when she was a lil' o baby) but, I was a hermit who never left the house much. I took some pictures in the dressing room. I thought I would share them here. Whatcha think of the snow suit? I love it! I hope that it lasts all winter.

Dear Joel,

Thanks for our home.

Four Minutes

I've got four minutes to write a first blog before Libby is destined to wake up from a nap. I'll have to stop and restart later, because I don't sit on the computer while the babes are up.

So anyways...I started this blog about an hour ago but, I spent a lot of time verifying accounts with that weird scripted code. I must be blind, because I never get it right the first time.

A blog isn't a blog without pictures, so here is the most recent picture that I have of Naomi. That was Libby's outfit that her Gi Gi Sheryl got her. That is the one and only time that Naomi got to wear it. Her heiney is too big and the buttons just kept popping off. And btw, it is 4 past 3 now...I guess Libby is taking an extra snooze!