In an effort to look amazing when Aaron returns from R & R, I started the 30 day shred this morning. This is about the fourth time I've "started" The longest I've kept at it is 4 days, so we'll see how long I'll make it this time. The difficulty is not in the program, rather finding the time to do it.
Yes, it is only a 20 minute program, who doesn't have 20 minutes? Well, I don't have 20 minutes. Graham is usually awake no later than 0530. Kayla usually wakes up as soon as I get out of bed. Graham usually naps a few times a day, Kayla on the other hand usually doesn't, and of course on the days they both nap, it's never at the same time. Graham is usually in bed no later than 1900-1930. Kayla of course varies from 2000-2200. Even if she went to bed early enough, we only have one DVD player in our house. How crazy is that? And of course it is hooked up to the main TV in the living room, so doing it in the evenings would inconvenience the 'rents. My only option is of course to wake up at 0500. Murphy's Law dictates however that if I were to get up at 0500 to work out, Graham would wake up at 0510. I will therefore continue to wake-up with Graham, feed him and bring him downstairs with me to work out, and pray that Kayla stays asleep.
I am excited to go to California. Mostly because I want to show off Graham, my wraps, and EC. I can't wait to see the look on my in-laws faces when I tell them that Graham doesn't wear diapers. If night EC doesn't become more reliant in the next 30 days, I will of course bring diapers for night time. For the most part though, Graham does pretty well at night. We've had a couple accidents, but that is to be expected.
I have decided that it is time to sell my wraps. As far as addictions go, you can't get past them while they are staring you in the face. I will keep a couple of my babies, because of their value and so that I can continue to wear Graham of course. The next one as well. I have about 35, and I will keep 13. A bamboo blend, a cashmere blend, a hemp blend, a silk blend, a tussah blend, two wool blends, 3 linen blends, and 3 cottons. They will be listed on ebay over the next 30 days. I can only hope that I get out of them what I put in them. I will post the results here. Whatever doesn't sell on ebay, I will list on TBW FSOT at discounted prices.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Unloading
Life with a toddler is impossible. Life with an infant is difficult. Life with both is impossibly difficult. However, it is one of the most rewarding experiences I can imagine.
Kayla loves her little brother like nothing I have ever seen before. She can be screaming at the top of her lungs for one thing or another, Graham enters her line of vision and she is reduced to smiles, giggles, and baby-talk. My heart just melts. The funniest thing about it, is she tries to regress back to his age, instead of bringing him forward to hers.
For example, I am ECing Graham. For those of you who don't know what that is, EC stands for Elimination Communication. It also is referred to as Natural Infant Hygiene and Infant Potty Training. Graham does not wear diapers, except for very rare occasions such as long trips to places that a toilet or bush/tree is not readily available. When this process first began, I would occasionally hold Graham over a bowl for him to eliminate in. About a month in, Kayla out of nowhere climbs on the counter, squats over a bowl (this one just happened to have canteloupe in it) and pees. She didn't tell anyone she needed to potty, she just did it. This afternoon, Grahams little potty arrived in the mail. Kayla proceeded to sit on it, fully clothed, and pee. I had just got done saying it was Graham's potty and she had her own big girl potty. She insisted this one was hers and "proved" it to me.
The only thing Kayla has not decided she wants to do is be wrapped on me. Graham loves to be wrapped tight against my body in any number of Didymos wraps. As my best friend put it "I have more of these things than I do shirts." Sadly it is true. The worst part about it is that each wrap cots about the amount of 4-5 shirts, and $30 shirts at that. I have spent as much as $800 on a single wrap. It has become an unhealthy addiction actually. In the last 2-3 weeks, I have accumulated about 16 new wraps, and spent about $6,000. I have a counseling session on October 12.
Spending money is my way of dealing with stress. It use to be eating, but when I started buying wraps I was also dieting, so instead of eating, I buy. Now that I have realized I have a problem with buying wraps, I have quit, but I am starting to eat again. Hence the counseling. I'm guessing there are some underlying issues that need to be dealt with so that I can get on with my life, and get out of this debt I have put myself and my family into.
I want so badly to tell Aaron about it. However, I don't want to give him something else to worry about while he's in Afghanistan. At the same time, I feel like not telling him is lying to him. I also don't want him to get mad at me.
Sometimes I wonder if one of the reasons I spend so much money on wraps is because I feel like it makes me a better mom. Am I such a bad parent that in order to make-up for the things I don't do, I do the "crunchy" parenting? Do I think that AP moms are generally thought of as better parents, more in tune to their children, that if I am perceived as an AP mom no one will know how crappy a parent I really am? Hopefully the answers to these questions will come in time. Until then, I'll just keep on keeping on.
Kayla loves her little brother like nothing I have ever seen before. She can be screaming at the top of her lungs for one thing or another, Graham enters her line of vision and she is reduced to smiles, giggles, and baby-talk. My heart just melts. The funniest thing about it, is she tries to regress back to his age, instead of bringing him forward to hers.
For example, I am ECing Graham. For those of you who don't know what that is, EC stands for Elimination Communication. It also is referred to as Natural Infant Hygiene and Infant Potty Training. Graham does not wear diapers, except for very rare occasions such as long trips to places that a toilet or bush/tree is not readily available. When this process first began, I would occasionally hold Graham over a bowl for him to eliminate in. About a month in, Kayla out of nowhere climbs on the counter, squats over a bowl (this one just happened to have canteloupe in it) and pees. She didn't tell anyone she needed to potty, she just did it. This afternoon, Grahams little potty arrived in the mail. Kayla proceeded to sit on it, fully clothed, and pee. I had just got done saying it was Graham's potty and she had her own big girl potty. She insisted this one was hers and "proved" it to me.
The only thing Kayla has not decided she wants to do is be wrapped on me. Graham loves to be wrapped tight against my body in any number of Didymos wraps. As my best friend put it "I have more of these things than I do shirts." Sadly it is true. The worst part about it is that each wrap cots about the amount of 4-5 shirts, and $30 shirts at that. I have spent as much as $800 on a single wrap. It has become an unhealthy addiction actually. In the last 2-3 weeks, I have accumulated about 16 new wraps, and spent about $6,000. I have a counseling session on October 12.
Spending money is my way of dealing with stress. It use to be eating, but when I started buying wraps I was also dieting, so instead of eating, I buy. Now that I have realized I have a problem with buying wraps, I have quit, but I am starting to eat again. Hence the counseling. I'm guessing there are some underlying issues that need to be dealt with so that I can get on with my life, and get out of this debt I have put myself and my family into.
I want so badly to tell Aaron about it. However, I don't want to give him something else to worry about while he's in Afghanistan. At the same time, I feel like not telling him is lying to him. I also don't want him to get mad at me.
Sometimes I wonder if one of the reasons I spend so much money on wraps is because I feel like it makes me a better mom. Am I such a bad parent that in order to make-up for the things I don't do, I do the "crunchy" parenting? Do I think that AP moms are generally thought of as better parents, more in tune to their children, that if I am perceived as an AP mom no one will know how crappy a parent I really am? Hopefully the answers to these questions will come in time. Until then, I'll just keep on keeping on.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Day 6
Today was a very busy day, it seemed to pass very quickly. I got up about 8 and was out the door an hour and a half later. First stop was ACS to get the needed signatures for the EROD paperwork. Second stop was the Newborn network. We did infant massage, Graham really seemed to enjoy it, until he realized it was time to eat of course.
We stopped over at Sarah's house when we got home at about 12. Abby looks great and was as happy as ever. Next stop was Lori's. I had to do my check ups to make sure my friends were doing all right with their husbands having left early that morning.
At about 1 we made it home, hoping to talk to Aaron online. No luck, but Kayla did fall asleep so I had some free time to get a quick workout in, or so I thought. 10 minutes into it Graham started crying and wouldn't let me put him down. I never got to finish, but I did get to clean the kitchen just a little bit and do a little laundry.
When Kayla finally woke up we went for a walk and to the playground. Overall it was a great day.
We stopped over at Sarah's house when we got home at about 12. Abby looks great and was as happy as ever. Next stop was Lori's. I had to do my check ups to make sure my friends were doing all right with their husbands having left early that morning.
At about 1 we made it home, hoping to talk to Aaron online. No luck, but Kayla did fall asleep so I had some free time to get a quick workout in, or so I thought. 10 minutes into it Graham started crying and wouldn't let me put him down. I never got to finish, but I did get to clean the kitchen just a little bit and do a little laundry.
When Kayla finally woke up we went for a walk and to the playground. Overall it was a great day.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Day 4 and 5
Day 4, which was Sunday was a pretty easy going day. I actually got to do the complete shred workout, and I felt amazing afterwards. We went grocery shopping for the week, stocked up on lots of good food. Still no word from Aaron since Friday.
Day 5
It was freezing cold this morning. We laid in bed until about 10 then I tried to get ready and get out of the house in time to go to the clinic before meeting Pam for lunch, no dice. The clinic waited until after lunch. Lunch was a ton of fun, the DFAC was celebrating the Army's 235th birthday so there was lobster and shrimp, delicious! I could have gotten a workout in at about 10 pm but I was exhausted! We'll try again tomorrow. I decided not to EROD, I'm just going home for the deployment once Graham's passports arrive, which is hopefully this week.
Day 5
It was freezing cold this morning. We laid in bed until about 10 then I tried to get ready and get out of the house in time to go to the clinic before meeting Pam for lunch, no dice. The clinic waited until after lunch. Lunch was a ton of fun, the DFAC was celebrating the Army's 235th birthday so there was lobster and shrimp, delicious! I could have gotten a workout in at about 10 pm but I was exhausted! We'll try again tomorrow. I decided not to EROD, I'm just going home for the deployment once Graham's passports arrive, which is hopefully this week.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Day 3
I think I have a problem, and I'm obviously not handling Aaron's deployment as well as I thought I was. Today all I did was eat, and I wasn't eating healthy food per se. It tapered off by noon, but the damage had already been done. Seeing that I also didn't get a workout in and tomorrow is a weigh-in day, I'm gonna be in trouble. I also tried to think of some more stuff I could purchase. Those are the two things I do when I'm stressed, eat and spend money on things I don't necessarily need.
Graham scared the crap out of me today. He coughed up a little bit of blood. I was seriously freaking out for about 5 minutes.
Graham scared the crap out of me today. He coughed up a little bit of blood. I was seriously freaking out for about 5 minutes.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Day 2
Today was harder than yesterday, I had Kayla all day. She seems to have a hard time listening to me recently. I think she is pushing the boundaries to see just how much she can get away with. I'm trying to start a schedule during the day and hopefully reintroduce nap time around 1 pm. She has been passing out about 4 the last few days, and she naps for 2 hours. It's great because I get some down time, but then she is awake until 10 and I'd like to have some down time in the evenings before I go to bed as well as during the day.
I was actually able to get the full workout in today of the 30 day shred. It was tough, but I felt really good afterwards. I even had extra time to grill some pork chops and eat one before Kayla woke up.
Today we walked to VES for field day. Instead of watching the events, we helped bag 625 bags of popcorn! We had fun. Kayla was practicing catching tossed food in her mouth, she's getting pretty good at it! My neighbor told me her goal was to teach Kayla how to spit in the grass. Seriously, that's the best she can do. Teach a 2 year old girl how to spit. Real Klassy, with a capital K!
We were able to chat on Yahoo with Aaron today. We tried to skype but his internet connection was too slow to support it. I wish he would call I love hearing his voice, it makes everything better.
I got a new wrap in the mail today. I absolutely love it! There are about 4 more that I'd like to purchase, then my set will be complete. Yes, 8 woven wraps are not enough! There are just so many variations, and they are so versatile. I put Graham in a back wrap today. I did well the first time while looking at the instructions, the second time without looking didn't go over so well. It will take a couple more times of practice and then we are on our way!
I was actually able to get the full workout in today of the 30 day shred. It was tough, but I felt really good afterwards. I even had extra time to grill some pork chops and eat one before Kayla woke up.
Today we walked to VES for field day. Instead of watching the events, we helped bag 625 bags of popcorn! We had fun. Kayla was practicing catching tossed food in her mouth, she's getting pretty good at it! My neighbor told me her goal was to teach Kayla how to spit in the grass. Seriously, that's the best she can do. Teach a 2 year old girl how to spit. Real Klassy, with a capital K!
We were able to chat on Yahoo with Aaron today. We tried to skype but his internet connection was too slow to support it. I wish he would call I love hearing his voice, it makes everything better.
I got a new wrap in the mail today. I absolutely love it! There are about 4 more that I'd like to purchase, then my set will be complete. Yes, 8 woven wraps are not enough! There are just so many variations, and they are so versatile. I put Graham in a back wrap today. I did well the first time while looking at the instructions, the second time without looking didn't go over so well. It will take a couple more times of practice and then we are on our way!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Day 1
I only broke down once today. I was waiting for the doctors to get Graham's ultrasound. I just wanted my husband there with me. The doctors were talking about keeping Graham for 24 hours so that they could put some wire down his throat and measure the acid levels, I was not okay with that, especially without Aaron.
I tried to do the shred workout this morning, but of course as soon as I started it Graham woke up, and I never got another chance to complete it. I'll try again tomorrow.
I took some great photos of Kayla today, and I got one of Graham wrapped up on me while waiting for the paperwork at the hospital. I also saw a spider with one of those mosquito killers caught in its web, by the time I grabbed my camera the spider was no longer attacking it, but I took a picture anyway.
It was super hot in my house today, which is probably why I wasn't inside much today. I can't wait to experience air conditioning again. 90 degree days with no AC is awful!
I tried to do the shred workout this morning, but of course as soon as I started it Graham woke up, and I never got another chance to complete it. I'll try again tomorrow.
I took some great photos of Kayla today, and I got one of Graham wrapped up on me while waiting for the paperwork at the hospital. I also saw a spider with one of those mosquito killers caught in its web, by the time I grabbed my camera the spider was no longer attacking it, but I took a picture anyway.
It was super hot in my house today, which is probably why I wasn't inside much today. I can't wait to experience air conditioning again. 90 degree days with no AC is awful!
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