Creative Dylan

My little Dylan came with an imagination. We teach him and read to him and encourage him to think for himself, but honestly, he's who he is because of him. He came with so much of his own personality and creativity.

Sometimes I think it has it's downfalls. Dylan's doctor thinks his wild imagination may have something to do with the many sleepless nights we have had over the course of his life, but still, overall I'm very glad he's this way. He never tells me he's bored (although I bet that comes later). I play with him often, but I rarely have to give him suggestions on what we should play. He can create play out of almost anything. Much of the time it revolves around animals, cars or trains, but the play differs greatly from day to day. It's amazing how many different uses a bunch of cheap plastic animals has in our home. We play some version of zoo or safari all the time. He sets up stores and tells me what to buy and charges me for the items. We have campouts and build forts and he loves it. He searches for bugs and puts them in his bug box. He loves building towers and castles and is getting more into playdough and moon sand play (although he often wants me to make stuff...he likes the items to actually look like an elephant or a train and his playdough building skills aren't quite THAT good yet). Anyway, he's just a creative little dude. The other day, he said, "Mommy, do you want to play scientists with me." I couldn't help but smile and just say yes. What a proud Mommy moment. I figure I must be doing something right if he thinks it's cool to play scientists. I want him to want to learn that way. Then again, I probably didn't have much to do with that either.

I love to write down his funny little sayings. I think a lot of them come from his brain power too. Today our electricity was out for about an hour after church. He flipped the lights on and off a few times and then figured they had burned out. He looked around like he was nervous for a minute and then immediately went into problem-solving mode. He said, "Oh, I know what we should do." He goes over to the drawer and pulls out the flashlight. After awhile, I had to explain that electricity affects the TV, computer, oven, hand mixer, etc. because everything he was asking to do somehow involved electricity (it's amazing how much we rely on the stuff). Anyway, by the end of our discussion he understood, although he was pretty upset about the whole thing. But when he was asking me follow up questions, he kept calling it "a light tricity" Well, it makes more sense to me that way too!

Nicknames

Okay, so I've always liked nicknames. Maybe it's because for the most part I didn't have one growing up. My name is not one that typically comes with a nickname so I was always just Maria (except for little kids who couldn't say my name and high school where last names were often used instead of first names...I think that started with the football team). Anyway, I kind of thought it would be cool to name my kids and have a nickname for them so they had a formal name and then a shorter version of that. Not a big deal, but I had thought about it. Well, come down to name-picking time and it didn't really happen that way. Actually, with all the things I was worried about when it came to naming children, nicknames never really came up. But Dylan and Preston...there's not much shortening of either name. I know every kid ends up with some sort of nickname, even if it's not related to their given name. But the whole thing's just so funny to me. Most of the things we call our kids came out of nowhere. Here are just a few that I can think of off the top of my head. Keep in mind that a lot of them are Spanish words or came as a result of the Spanish speakers in our world.

Dylan: Diling ping ping, Dylan pylan (sounds like dee-lan, pee-lan), Deal-ee-bob, Dillard's, Dill Pickle, Pickles, Cabezon (it means big head in Spanish - he's always been in the 90th percentile), loquito...

Preston: Prestonian, Presto Chango, Moto (as in hello moto), Prestonio el bebonio, peloncito (baldy in Spanish), duraznito (little peach), chiquitonian (comes from the word for little-although it doesn't suit him well we use it a lot), Spencer (this one came because Esteban couldn't remember his name when he was first born and it stuck - for Esteban at least)...

As babies, both of my kids have been referred to as: munchkin, little man, misters, punkin, bubbies, bebito chiquito, sweetie, sweets, sweetness, bud, buddy...I can't even remember. A million different things.

So for not thinking our kids would have nicknames, I was wrong. They just were very unexpected ones.

Brothers

Here's a cute new picture of the boys in matching jammies.

A Playdate With Kambrie

A couple weeks ago, Anthony's parents called to say he was sick. Dylan was so sad...he'd been talking about his buddy coming over for two days. I decided to call my friend, Courtney, to see if Kambrie could come over to play. They had so much fun. They get along so well and, according to both of them, they're getting married some day. We've decided it's a great idea because Dylan would end up with some pretty awesome in-laws. The two of them played and danced and had a great time. At one point, they were dancing to the music on a Little People toy. They were holding hands and jumping around in a circle. When the music stopped, Dylan put his arm around her shoulder (as if to lead her) and I heard him whisper softly, "Come on, my princess." Are you kidding me? It was so funny. I almost burst out laughing. Instead I smiled and watched them some more. I wonder where he heard that anyway...I'm positive Marcos has never said that to me.



On Valentine's Day, Dylan took a valentine around to some of his friends. He was so excited about doing valentines this year so I bought some from the store. It was all I could do to get him to wait a week until Valentine's Day arrived. They were these gummy bug valentines and he thought they were pretty cool. They said things like "Valentine, I think you're fly" "This bug's for you" "Best buggies" and "Give me a bug hug." They were pretty cute! Anyway, he took one to Kambrie. Today Marcos and Mike (her dad) were in a church meeting together. I guess Mike was telling Marcos that Kambrie really liked the valentine. When she saw the valentine she got so excited and told her mom, "He really loves me." So cute!



While she was here playing I thought it would be fun to get a cute picture of them playing together, but they just wouldn't hold still for two seconds. Here's what I got.

Snow, Snow And More Snow!

The snow this year has been crazy, as those of you fellow Utahns can attest. Of course we don't have a snow blower or anything fancy...it's the old fashioned snow shovel for us. Needless to say, poor Marcos has had his share of snow-related exercise this year. But I have to tell you that we are so lucky! We have a neighbor who has a plow hooked onto his 4-wheeler. He came by one day and asked me to open the garage so he could back in with his machine. And unlike the friendly city snow plows, he didn't leave us high-centered trying to enter the driveway...he cleared the WHOLE thing. Dylan and Anthony were both here with their faces plastered to the window, trying to get a peek. It was so cute to watch. Marcos was thrilled that it was done when he got home from work. We made some treats and took them over to them for family night to thank them and help teach the kids that we should be grateful when people do nice things for us. I really thought it was a nice gesture and that he was just having a good day and enjoying his his iPod and 4-wheeler. Next thing I know, he's the neighborhood snow remover. He basically ends up plowing driveways for the majority of our cult-a-sac every time a big storm comes and leaves its mark. One time when he came over, Marcos was here too and Dylan wanted to go outside to watch. Marcos put his sweatshirt on and took him out to watch Brady work. Sure enough, Dylan ended up sweet-talking his way to a ride on the machine. Brady was so patient and ended up letting him ride for a couple of driveways. As you can clearly see, Dylan LOVED it! Thank you Brady! What would we do without you?

Big Helper

I have gotten a little behind on some of my pictures and posts so here is my attempt at updating my life the last month or so.

Dylan is such a big helper. He really is a good big brother. He may not be good at staying in his bed at night and his behavior is sometimes challenging, but he is an awesome big brother. He loves helping me and playing with Preston. He is so good at sharing his toys and he loves to help me give Preston a bath or feed him. Preston is getting to the age where he scoots around and wants to play. Dylan will by lying on the ground and Preston climbs on him or pulls his hair. Dylan usually just pushes his hand away or giggles, thinking it's some sort of a game. He's rarely rough with him and understands that babies don't know better and we have to teach them. I think they're going to be such good friends. So here are a couple of pictures of my big helper feeding his baby brother.

According to Dylan...

Elephants are gigantous...

Snakes are swiffery...

and food is deliciocio (instead of delicioso in Spanish)

I love kid language. Dylan says such funny things every day. My favorite is when he says something and then says, "No, actually I want this." Such grownup talk.

Kylie Danielle

So baby Uboldi is now Kylie Danielle. Like I said before, she is darling. I am so excited to be an aunt again (and I have two more nieces on the way). Babies are just awesome little miracles. They're so sweet, precious and innocent and it's amazing how close to heaven they are still. If only we could all stay that way forever. I feel a little bond to the newest Uboldi because we now share the same middle name. Welcome to the world, little Kylie Danielle!

Baby Uboldi

Amy and Esteban (Marcos' brother) had their baby today. We drove through the crazy snowstorm to meet our new niece. She is so cute and reminds me a lot of her older sister, Gabi. She was 7 lbs 1 oz and 21 1/2 inches long. They're still deciding on a name. She's darling! We were there when Esteban came back with the kids to meet their new sister. The kids were so sweet and wanted to hold her the whole time. Gabi is so good with her - she's a little nurturer. I'm guessing Amy and Esteban won't need to hold the baby too much with such a good helper. It was hard to get a good picture because Dylan had fallen asleep in the car and was a bit grumpy and kept asking where the toys were. His memory of hospitals is from when Preston was born and everyone spoiled him and bought him things from the gift shop while Mommy was recovering and Preston was in the NICU. Plus we had to hurry so Marcos could make it back in time for his Young Men's activity. But I did get a few that are worth posting.

Thursday Night

So Thursday night I had one of my crazy organizational moments of mine that drive Marcos crazy. I was rearranging furniture and organizing stuff until midnight. I finally talked myself into going to bed, knowing I had to go to work in the morning. Sure enough, the second my head hit the pillow, the baby started fussing. I went in to put his binkie in his mouth and turn his music back on and I couldn't find the dang binkie. It was under him. By the time I found it, he was awake so it took a bit to get him back to sleep. Next thing I know, Dylan is starting to stir so I tip-toe out of there. He comes into the room wanting a sippy cup or to lie by me or whatever and I walk him back into his room and tuck him in. A half hour later, I hear his foot steps and his little voice whisper, "Don't worry Mommy. I'm just going potty, okay?" So I wait for him to finish, help him put his diaper back on, and tuck him in again. Maybe a half hour later (around 1:30) I watch him walk into our bedroom with his blanket and pillow and lie down on the floor next to Marcos' side of the bed. I pick him up and take him back into bed. Ah, the sleep issues this kid has! I still have yet to fall asleep. Just before 2, I see a light flip on in the hall and can't figure out what's going on. I decide to ignore it and hope he'll go back to bed again. I can't tell if he's wanting my attention so I'm going the ignore him direction now. Five or ten minutes later, the light is still on and I hear a little tapping sound so I peak out my bedroom door. He's in the playroom with this little leap frog Money Match game. It's basically wooden coins and dollars and little cards that have grocery items on them. The cards say how much an item costs and then show you two or three ways to make that amount of money. So bananas are $.20 and you can buy them with two dimes or a dime, a nickel, and 5 pennies or a dime and 10 pennies. Something like that. He loves it. So it's now 2:00 a.m. and he's just buying things from the store, setting each wooden coin on the box to count out the right change for his purchases. I tell him it's night time and he needs to go to bed. He says, "Mommy, when's it going to be 7?" I respond, "In 5 hours. You need to go to bed." He knows he isn't supposed to get up until 7 now so he'll ask what time it is. So that was my night. I made the mistake of letting him take the toy into his room thinking he'd fall right asleep and I could just set it back on the ground. Twenty minutes later, I go in and he's got the game sitting on the edge of his firetruck bed, still matching the coins with the items. So I take the toy away, tell him to go back to bed and I go into my room. At that point I woke Marcos and told him it was his turn to help. Just in time for the baby to wake up again and not want to go to sleep. Marcos had been asleep since 9:30 or 10 so I figured it was time to disrupt him so I could get maybe 4 hours of sleep. What a nightmare. Needless to say, I had like 6 diet cokes at work on Friday. I was able to get through the day and got a ton of work done, but I was so exhausted and my body hurt from not sleeping enough. So there's that. Why doesn't my soon to be 4-year-old sleep? I have no idea. All I know is it's Marcos' fault. Marcos either sleeps and is completely out or he's awake and can't sleep. I could sleep in so late if it weren't for kids. I LOVE to stay up late and sleep in. I think that's the pre-kid thing I miss the most. I am determined to teach these kids to sleep through the night though and we'll get there at some point. I just hope it's sooner than later.

I HATE DELUXE CARPET!

I have to take a minute to vent. I had such a bad experience with this company, that I have to share so hopefully nobody else has the same bad luck. It's my own stupid fault. Dylan is at the age where he thinks he should answer the phone. I usually try not to answer when telemarketers call because I just get all frustrated. Well, Dylan picked up the phone last week and it was Deluxe Carpet calling. Now, I've been needing to get my carpets cleaned and the last time I paid to have them done by ChemDry, I ended up spending a fortune. So I decided to take a chance on this random company because they've been in business 49 years and guarantee their work, plus they weren't super expensive compared to what I had paid before. The guy shows up a half hour late smelling like smoke and acting all put out and annoyed when I tried to help him move the rugs and things out of the way. He was texting people on his phone the whole time and started at one end of the room and then ended at the other end. He didn't spend any extra time on the high traffic area (the only part that really needed it). So when I asked him about it before he left (since they guarantee their work and I didn't want him to have to come back) he told me it's because my carpet is old and worn out. He said, "I did the best I could. I've been doing this ten years." It was totally awkward. Stupid punk kid (although he probably was my age if he's been cleaning carpets for 10 years, but his pants were falling down with his boxers hanging out, multiple piercings and tatoos decorated his young physique...so he seemed like a punk kid to me. Sorry for the judgmental comment, but he did. Oh, and his name was Bill. I told him I'd see how it looked when it dried because he tried to give me this whole lecture about how one side of the carpet is darker than the other side. Whatever...I vacuum my carpet pretty much daily (or twice daily) so I think I understand the carpet color. All I know is that 5 or 6 months ago, I rented this stuff from a company called The Vacuum Store. It's called Host Product and it's kind of like sawdust. It's just barely damp. You sprinkle it on your carpet and use this machine thing with a brush that spins around to kind of grind the dust deep into your carpet. You let it sit for like 15-20 minutes and then you vacuum the dust up. I used more on the high traffic areas and went over it a couple of times with the machine, but it worked so well. The high traffic areas looked the same as the rest of the carpet and the carpet was so soft when we walked around barefoot. So why didn't I just do that this time? First, I was lazy and wanted someone else to do it. And second, the host product doesn't seem to do spots and stains as well so I felt like I would need to buy some spot cleaner stuff and clean a few of my spill areas first and then do the carpet cleaning. But I will definitely do that next time. For now, I can't decide what to do. I've already paid the punk. It's crap! Even the areas that look normal are crispy, not soft so there's probably tons of soap still in the carpet. I don't really want to figure out what to do with my kids again while some other punk kid comes to go over the high traffic area again. So I think I'm going to call and complain Monday morning and then I'm going to tell as many people as I can to not use them...because they SUCK! So in case you care, that's my carpet-cleaning story. What a waste of time, money and mental energy.

Dylanisms

Here are some of the funny things Dylan has said the last couple of months. I keep them in journal format to put in his scrapbook so they are written "to" him, but you should get the point. He can be so funny sometimes.

-Mommy is now the Valiant 10 teacher in the ward with a very difficult class. I was having a difficult day with the kids and a very negative moment and was telling Papi I didn’t want to be a teacher and didn’t think I could do it. I didn’t even think you were listening. You said, “Mom, do you not want to be a teacher?” Oops! I said, “I had a bad day, but yes I do want to be a teacher.” You said, “No, I don’t want you to be a teacher. I want you to be a Mom.” It was so sweet.
-Abuela made all you older kids capes and costumes to wear. You had yours pinned on at her house and were running around yelling “Super bunny.” It was cute. I knew you were playing Max and Ruby, but was surprised when Amy asked if that’s what it was. She knows your show too!
-You are getting to be such a cute big cousin. Amy tended you and Preston last week (the middle of October) and said you played so well with Mason, Diego, and another 4-year-old boy named Cole. I am so proud of the big boy you are becoming. You were also so cute with Kamyn and Jett when we went up to Grandma’s house. You brought down toys to share with both of them and you lead them around by the hand when you wanted to show them something or play with them. Now that you are one of the “big” cousins, the little ones are sure started to look up to you.
-We went to the park to feed the ducks. They were pretty aggressive and one of the swans loved your bird backpack. You could feel it pecking at you. After Mommy got the swan to back up a little you said, “Hey, why was he ‘nicking’ at me.”
-I asked you to do something and finished it by saying, “Okay, Dill pickle?” You said, “Okay, Mommy pickle.
-I fixed a yummy pot roast in the crock-pot. Apparently I don’t cook enough because Papi couldn’t stop talking about it. He kept thanking me and telling me how delicious it was. You were sitting at your seat with your head leaning on one hand and said, “Mommy, this is so delicious. Thank you so much.” It was cute!
-You have such dry lips this fall. I pulled out the chapstick to put on your lips and you said, “No, not chappy stick.”
-We were driving to Treehouse Museum and got into downtown Ogden. You blurt out, “Hey, this is Arctic City.” What? I have no idea if that’s like Arctic Circle or what, but that’s where you thought we were.
-I came down the stairs for church November 4, 2007. You were in the booster seat on time out (which is where we currently put you because you can’t undo the buckle and drive us crazy). You looked at me and said, “Wow, Mommy you look like a princess.” Apparently the pink shirt and long, white skirt gives me the perfect princess look.
-I tucked you into bed one night and you said, “Be a good ‘grill’ mom.”
-You asked me one day if you could have a “drink of my sip”.
-You wanted some cheese and I tried to cut you a piece. You said, “No not like that. I want the skrunky cheese.” What? You were asking for shredded cheese, but it took me a minute to figure that out.
-We were having syrup and you asked me if you could have some “syrsup”.
-You asked me when the “za-zan-ya” (lasagna) was going to be ready.
-We were talking about caterpillars turning into butterflies. You were talking about the “callapitters”.
-You were telling Great Uncle Ed about something at our Thanksgiving party and you said, “We were ‘figure outing’ it.”
-You were so eager to play in the hot tub at Grandpa Mike and Grandma Suzanne’s. You asked if I was coming in the hot tub and I told you I was. You said, “Yeah, because you’re a ‘dote’”. You meant that I was an adult because you had been told you had to wait for an adult to get in the hot tub with you.
-We were in the hot tub and you were looking up at the sky. You said, “Look, Mommy, the moon’s moving.” The clouds were moving very quickly and it looked just like the moon was running away.
-The nursery leaders told us a funny story about you. You and Kambrie Hagberg are good friends. She tells people you’re her boyfriend and when asked, you say the same about her. It’s a cute little thing. I guess she was telling you over and over again today in church that she was going to marry you one day. You just ignored her, but eventually turned to her and said, “No I’m not. You’re too bossy.” Holy cow, the whole thing makes me laugh. Where did you get that? And why is it that it only takes boys 3 ½ years to think women are bossy? Funny!
-You were eating two pieces of bread at a time. You had your hand on your hip and just looked at me and said, “Look at me. See?” I said, “What?” You said, “I’m growing. I’m so big and strong.” We always tell you to eat your food so you can grow big and strong and I guess you thought we could see it happening. You stood still waiting for us to comment on your growth.
-I had the Cheerios out and was giving Preston one at a time. You were excited to feed him so you gave him one at a time like I told you. You would eat a handful and then you gave him one. He has two teeth on the bottom and one coming in on top and he bites down all the time. I guess he bit you pretty hard. At first you were mad at him and wanted to punch him, but after I explained why he did it, you took a different approach. A minute later I heard you talking to yourself saying, “Hold it flat” and opening your palm to be flat and put the Cheerio on it. You were feeding Preston the way Grandpa taught you to feed horses so they can’t bite your fingers. Smart little guy!
-You had just gotten out of the bathtub and wanted the “green” lotion instead of the pink lotion. I told you I would use green lotion (a Vaseline gel) and you said, “Yeah, because green’s my favorite color…and blue, and lots of colors of the rainbow.”
-I was trying to set up a home video for you to watch and the phone rang. You were going to go get it for me, but I saw that it was a telemarketer so I told you that you didn’t need to answer because it was a wrong number. You looked over at the answering machine and said in a loud voice, “Thank you for leaving a message on our machine.”
-We were trying to put some gloves on you one night when it was really cold. You said, “Oh, these are very interesting gloves.” Honestly, sometimes you sound like such a grownup.
-You were stalling one night and didn’t want to go to bed. You were begging me to stay with you in your room. You said, “Mom, please. You’re my best ‘grill’”. I’m not your best friend, but I’m your best girl. At least I made the list!
-Mommy cut her hair quite short in December 2007. You saw the hair on the floor and said, “Let’s just put it back together, Mommy.” You weren’t sure about the haircut, but Mommy told you it would grow again. For several days you woke up asking when my hair would grow. I finally told you it would grow when you were 6 years old. Ever since then you don’t ask every day, but you often say, “Your hair’s going to grow when I’m bigger. When I’m 6.” You’re so funny.
-You have been obsessed with Santa and reindeers. Your prayers were so cute. You said our family prayer before bed and said, “Thank you that I could feed the reindeer a carrot and put carrots on the snowman’s nose.”
-You were pretending to be a reindeer one day and wearing my necklace around your neck. I was Santa riding a sleight and had to hold the reigns. I kind of drummed on your head over something and you said, “Hey, don’t bonk my horns.”
-You call the hazard lights in the car “tick tock clock.”
-One day driving in the car you said, “Mom, those are wonderful sunglasses.”
-You were looking at the exhaust pipe in the car and said, “Mom, is that smoke?” I told you yes. You said, “I’m scared” and I asked you why. You said, “Because it will cough us.”
-We couldn’t find our car at Gateway after you had gone with Abuela to see a movie. Laura and Abuela went the other way and we walked and walked trying to find the car. You said, “Don’t worry, Mom. I will look for Gabi. I will put on my raccoon eyes.”
-That same day, I called Abuela to tell her we were lost. Luckily I found the car before she picked up the phone. After I hung up the phone you said, “Did you talk to Abuela? What did she say? Turn right, then left?”
-You were getting low on pants to wear because I hadn’t done the laundry yet. I pulled out an old pair of hand-me-downs that had patches on the knees. You said, “No, not the ones with the bandaids.”
-You came to give me a kiss while I was in bed and not feeling well. We have so much static electricity around the house and it shocked your lips when you kissed my cheek. You looked at me and said, “Mom, you sharpened me.”
-After your bath one day you coughed. I still had the stomach flu and was doing the best I could to take care of you while Papi went to a meeting. You said, “Mom, I have the cough and you have the flu.”
-You climbed up on my lap one day and said, “I need my bubbas.” That is something I always say when I need a hug from you or something. I asked you what your bubbas was and you pointed to me. You just wanted me to hold you. Sometimes you are such a big boy and something you are still my little baby. You’re caught right in the middle.
-I was scooping some ice cream for you and it was so hard. You could tell I was struggling and you said, “Mom, just be strong like a Dad, okay?” So much for girl power. Apparently you’ve already figured out that Papi can open things that Mommy can’t.
-You got out a little plastic container with nails in it one day and set it on the counter. You said, “Mommy, can I just leave that out so Papi can build me a bunk bed?” You are obsessed with bunk beds now that Diego and Mason have them and you can’t wait until Preston is a little older so you will have a bunk bed too.
-We had Kambrie over for a playdate. You two were playing with a toy that makes music and dancing around so silly. You were holding and swinging your hands together. Then you put your arm around her and said, "Come on, my princess." It was so funny. You were being such a little gentleman.

It Drives Me Crazy!

I hate human nature. The older I get, the more it annoys me. It doesn't seem to matter how much time we have or how much money, we fill our time with stupid things and think we're busy no matter what. And the second we get a raise or a new job or whatever, we start spending more money. I don't know how much of that is human nature and how much of it is our materialistic culture, but it seriously drives me crazy. We are bringing in a little more money right now, although it may very well be a temporary thing. It may be a 9 month gig and then we'll be back to one income again. You'd think I'd plan for that and try to pay down the car a little bit more or save some money just in case, but no. I don't know where it goes. Somehow we always manage to pay the bills and avoid credit card debt, but the math here just doesn't add up. I've really got to start a better savings program and stop buying pointless things and eating out every time I feel too lazy to think about cooking.

The same thing is true of our time. I hear people saying how bored they are and they want to get together and the next thing you know, you can't match up one date in your schedule to spend time with them. You finally do get together and they've got to rush away because they've crammed their schedule so full that they have 25 things to do in an hour. I just don't get it, but I wish we were a little less inclined towards filling our time completely up and using every cent (or more) of the money we earn and just learning to be content. I've learned this a little from Marcos. Latinos are much more inclined to spend hours on end sipping some drink (in Argentina it's mate) or eating some local pastry or favorite food and just chatting. The kind of friendship chatting that used to take place before TV started drowning out our memories. I seriously sound like I'm preaching, but I really think it's a problem. Not only are our relationships not the same, but I have heard it said more than once that time (or lack thereof) is one of Satan's greatest tools these days. We fill up our time so much that we can't slow down enough to think, ponder or meditate, not to mention finding the relationships that help get us through the trials of our lives. It's just too bad. I love TV as much as the next guy, but I do find that's what I have to cut out if I'm going to get my list of things done every day and still have quality time with my family.

Okay, back to the being content comment. I'm not sure, but women may be a little more inclined to feel this way. I'm trying to figure out what that means. I talk to friends of mine and many of them get this way. I have to stop myself from thinking I need new couches, new light fixture, carpet, tile, a van, etc. I have to stop and think about how much I have and how lucky I am to have a home that I take care of (or try to with crazy kids messing it up all the time) where I can be safe and sheltered and build memories with my husband and children instead of thinking that I need new things all the time. It just drives me nuts! I guess that's the natural man I will be fighting forever. Nuff said!

Buddies For Life

This is the montage I made for Anthony for Christmas. I thought I'd share it with those of you who may want to see it. Anthony is a little boy I tend two days a week. He is 15 months younger than Dylan and he and Dylan are good buddies. Sometimes they seem more like brothers than friends. I've been tending him since he was 11 months old so he really is a part of the family at this point.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Grandpa Barney

We went to the mailbox yesterday and found a letter from Grandpa Barney. Nothing too fancy, just a handwritten note on regular notebook paper. Dylan was beside himself. I told him it was his letter from Grandpa and he couldn't believe it. Why he sent me a letter? Grandpa sent me a letter? He held the unopened envelope on his lap the whole way to Target yesterday. I asked him if he wanted to open it and he finally agreed. I helped him open it, but he wanted to take it out of the envelope. He proceeded to read me the letter. This is how it went according to Dylan.

Dear Dylan (long spaces inbetween each word). When Heavenly Father made the earth and then Baby Jesus came down...I am a child of God... I have no idea what else he said. After that my grin was way too big to contain and I wasn't paying close enough attention to remember the words, just the way he made me feel. Such a proud Mama! He was telling a little church story in his letter. I told him it was a great letter and asked him if he wanted me to help him read it. The actual letter went something like this:

Dear Dylan, I love it when you come to visit Grandma and me. I love you very much. You are a great friend. I like to go feed the llamas and the horses with you. I like to play outside and jump in the snow. I like elephants too. They live in the zoo and so should you. Please come and visit me soon. You make me smile, Dylan. I love you. Love, Grandpappy Barney Bumbleberry

It was so sweet. After that, Dylan made me read each line one at a time and he would repeat it until he pretty much could recite the letter all by himself. This morning Preston found the envelope, ripped it in half and took a big bite out of it. Dylan was devastated. Luckily it wasn't the letter! What a cute experience. Dylan and Grandpa are such good friends and I'm so glad they are! Thanks for the letter, Grandpa Barney. Who knew such a small gesture would mean so much to an almost 4-year-old boy? Who needs fancy toys anyway? I'll take a great relationship over stuff any day!

Precious Preston

My baby turned 10 months old on the 15th. I cannot believe how time flies! I took a few pictures the other day that I wanted to share. He is just such a cute little thing. He is so sweet and curious. Ten months is such a fun age too. He rolls and scoots around everywhere and wants to get into everything. He's such a wiggle worm. He throws his quick little fits and then they're gone again. Oh, how I wish that 3-year-olds could forget things that quickly. He claps his hands and is so pleased with himself. He's just a cute little dude. He has five teeth now and is working on the 6th, 3 on top (almost 4) and 2 on the bottom.

Long Days, Longer Nights

Man, I am such a blog slacker. I always want to post a little something, but I find two problems. One, I am completely exhausted and decide it's not worth staying up for. Two, I have a hard time posting negative stuff and it's been a rough few weeks. Routine, routine, routine. I've been running from one thing to the other. Two days at work, two days tending Anthony, one day of extracurricular classes for the kids. Phew, just thinking about it makes me tired. No big deal though. Nothing most people aren't dealing with. You make the schedule work. Then there's the gym. I've made it a goal to get back to the gym, even if that means after the kids are in bed. I just can't have it be the very last priority any more. I can't seem to make 5:30 a.m. happen so I go in the evenings when Marcos is home or when I can't swing that or need to spend some time with the kids, I wait until they go to bed, run to the gym and come back to throw myself in bed (after a much needed shower). So that's all working for me. Then comes then dreaded night. Preston has been going through a phase here and there where he wakes up. He is impossible to rock or comfort in the middle of the night without milk so I've stopped that horrible habbit and let him cry it out a bit. Luckily, he wasn't so far gone that he has to cry too long. I usually end up putting him in the playpen in the toy room so he won't wake Dylan. And then there's Dylan. He just won't stay in bed. We have a great bedtime routine and always have. We are consistent and he goes to sleep like a happy little boy. He sleeps 4-6 hours and then he is awake. He wants chocolate milk in a sippy cup or a stuffed animal or a book and a flashlight. So here's the problem. First, I can't cope at 2 a.m. when I've been doing that for nights on end. I am so behind on my sleep I don't know how I manage to get up in the morning. Something tells me there's no other option so I keep going, but honestly, it's going to catch up to me. I try to quietly walk him back into his room, put on his music and tuck him in. Usually I end up doing that a million times. Last night, he was just not taking no for an answer. He decided he wanted to sleep in my bed and was determined to do that. Either that, or negotiate for something he wanted more. So I can't figure out what's going on. Part of me thinks it's just a control thing. Another part of me thinks it's related to his needing to go to the bathroom and it wakes him up and he doesn't know what to do (he still wears pullups at night). Another part of me wonders if he's got something wrong with him, either medically or psychologically that is not allowing him to sleep at night. Whatever it is, I feel like a horrible mother who doesn't know how to raise her kid. I mean, what almost 4-year-old can't sleep at night. He doesn't act like he's afraid of anything. It's more that he decides he doesn't want to be in his room anymore that night. And I am just not in the right frame of mind to deal with it when I have not had a full night's sleep in ages. I think it also ends up affecting our days because both of us are overly tired so he is closer to a meltdown and I am closer to a reaction to any potential meltdowns. It's rediculous! Any words of wisdom?

Another Holiday Slideshow

Crazy Mom

Okay, I am a bad mom. I swear I try and I try, but sometimes I just can't do it. Yesterday was a horrible day. I wasn't in the best mood anyway and had a million things to get done. I needed some sort of a pick-me-up and just couldn't get it. You know the kind of day where you wake up negative or sad or just down about things and can't get past it? Maybe it was the snow. Whether Dylan fed off of my negativity or what, I will never know, but that kid about drove me crazy. It was a long hard day - the kind you see on Super Nanny. Dylan wouldn't even stay on time-out. It took me at least 45 minutes to get 3 minutes out of him. Ahh....I was so ready to freak out. At one point, I put him in the car for time out because Preston was asleep so I couldn't put him in his room. Honestly, am I the only one with this problem? He is an awesome kid, but can test me more than anyone. I finally asked Marcos to come home and help. I got the kids fed and then went to the gym for an escape. I was gone an hour and called to check in. This is how the conversation went: Me: Hello, Marcos: What is going on here? I can't handle this anymore. You need to come home right now. Dylan has peed all over the house. Me: I'll be home in a minute. So much for R&R at the gym. At least I got my workout in, but so much for my sanity. It was there and then gone again. I don't know what the deal was. He was reacting to something I'm sure and sometimes he just wants attention, even if it's negative attention. Oh, how I try. I read all the books, all the articles, watch and follow advice from people like the Super Nanny...I'm consistent, stern and loving. Hmm...I don't know what the problem is. He is an angel for almost everyone else, which makes me wonder if I'm doing something wrong. I've been told that many kids are that way and have their struggles at home, but I have got to figure this out if I'm going to be even close to a sane mother. Any thoughts? Maybe I need to trade kids with someone with a similar problem. If he's good for everyone but me then maybe a break from me is the answer. Just kidding. I don't know what to do, but I'm going crazy here!

Post-Christmas Cleaning Projects

Wow, I've been such a slacker posting. I just haven't gotten around to accomplishing anything the last little bit. Oh well, sometimes that happens. So, I finally got around to putting my Christmas stuff away this weekend (thank you snow storm). Marcos and I put the totes away Friday night, but didn't have the energy for anything else. Saturday took forever. Between cleaning, dusting, putting decorations back (or changing the decorations) I just couldn't stop. That's why I put stuff off. Once I start, I just can't stop. Now, the main floor is finally done and all I could do was stay up and start moving stuff around in the office, formulating a plan for how I was going to make that space more usable. Moving things in that room left me with a standing shelf unit in the laundry room so the reorganization of that room began...moving cleaning supplies, paper towels, lightbulbs, batteries, food storage, diapers....what a long weekend. So now the living area of the house looks pretty good (minus kid mess that never ends) and I'm right in the middle of the laundry/food storage and the dreaded office. I think I'm going to go looking for the perfect desk (or maybe have it built) and put some shelves up so I can get all my crafty junk out of totes and into an area where I can be productive. Oh, my projects. As if I don't have enough to do right now. I drive myself crazy. Actually I drive Marcos crazy. As long as the house is tidy, he's happy...organization is not really a strength of his so to even attempt to understand why I would pull things out and mess up the house just to have to clean it all up again makes no sense to him. And don't get me started on moving furniture around. He thinks I'm nuts, but always thanks me later. Anyway, just thought I'd share my border-lined OCD weekend. Hopefully I get over it soon. I'm exhausted. Between cleaning, lifting and being up late and then having kids who don't want to sleep (but never at the same time), I'm so tired. I don't know how many hours of sleep I got, but I know it's nowhere near the recommended 8 hours. What did I do wrong? All the other people I know with 3 or 4-year-olds have no problems. Dylan is just the worst sleeper ever! We have done everything they tell you to do and it doesn't matter. Routine, no sleeping with us, charts, etc. He wakes up 2-3 times a night anyway. The baby only does once if that...although he's going through some weird stage now too. Oh, I hope that doesn't mean he's turning into a horrible sleeper too. I just cannot survive with two kids waking up all night long. If you see me with big dark circles under my eyes, now you know why. Oh well, something has to be cut out and there's not much left besides sleep.