La, la, la, la, Hallelujah

Isaac looks like he is in a recording studio with these headphones!

Fairy

Their Nana's favorite song to sing to them is playing in the background!

I Miss My Peeps

I have to wait an entire month longer before I get to watch TV again at night and actually enjoy something! Aside from the occasional reality show series, we do not watch nightly tv because frankly we find it either boring or trashy. However, there are two shows that keep me glued every week in the fall line-up. ABC's Brothers and Sisters and NBC's The Office. I will talk more about what I love about these two shows as the month progresses and my waiting becomes frantic. The Season Premieres are Thursday Sep. 25th and Sunday the 28th. And so I wait...

Random Summer Pics

With the school year coming up, I realized I better go ahead and post some pictures I haven't gotten to yet! So here you go!

A little thank you pic for Aunt Virginia and Aunt Vicki!
Vivi is ready for her toddler preschool after we had a Mommy/Daughter shoe shopping day at the mall!

And here is Isaac sitting on their stash of new school clothes compliments of Nana and Padre! We love our new clothes and are so thankful that we could participate in tax-free shopping this year! I was also thankful to my parents for keeping the kids and my niece and nephew, so my sister and I could shop and lunch alone together- something we only get to do about once a year! The kids are all set! Gotta love those Grandparents!

Vivianna loves to help clean-up...

most of the time! (See video below) hee hee...

Anything But Mickey!!

And here is Vivianna taking issue with a Mickey getting put away....the camera shut off before she sprawled out on the floor kicking. I was so sad we missed that part!! :)

VIVI!!!

Among the list of mischief that this child gets into, we can add "getting into the dryer". This was the scene that greeted me when I entered the kitchen the other night after Vivi had her bath. I guess she was trying to dry off! Oh my goodness, girl! You are going to give your mother an ulcer!

Meet the Teacher

Today was meet the teacher. I don't have pics of the kids with their teachers because I was really preoccupied with my toddler room and greeting all of those kids- but there is always the first day of school! Above are the little handsoap gifts I gave to their teachers and aides. They are apple...I thought that was an appropriate scent for the beginning of school!
Vivi was so exhausted when we got home she went down for a nap right after her snack. Isaac stayed up and enjoyed a letter "P" lunch (veggie pizza, popcorn, and a pickle!), on a puppy placemat with a pig watching...in the living room, which he never gets to do! When he brought his plate to the sink he said, "that was fun, Mom!"

I am a bit sad that Isaac has a child with peanut allergies in his class, so no more PB & J's for his lunch box. I guess I can do cream cheese and jam- he likes that. Plus, there is always his thermos.

School Prep

My aide and I met up at the school today to prep our toddler room for Meet the Teacher on Thursday. I did the billboard above, boring- I know but hey! I've never taught before. I've got to ease into this!
Our September theme is apples so my aide did this great tree on our room door, with the kids names on it. Now that is talent!

And she did little nametags for the cubbies. I brought the ABC border you see under the cubbies and did the pictures of babies and toddlers since our September themes (along with the running apple theme) is All About Me, Families and Friends, and Community Helpers.

I have to say I am a bit overwhelmed about this teaching position. I know it is only toddlers and its not like their college performance rests on my shoulders, but it is still a bit scary.

My next task is to make Green Apple playdough, buy some apples at the store, and make apple cut-outs to hang down like a mobile. School starts a week from today. Yikes!

Paige and Jarrett

The kids LOVE Paige and Jarrett. I was their nanny for 7 years. And I had them several times a month this summer. We did lots of fun things which I may post about later. But I just wanted to give a shout-out since the summer is over and today is their first day of 2nd and 7th grade. Wow- I can't believe how they have grown and changed.

Hope you guys have a great school year!

These are pics of Paige and Vivi this year and last! They both look so much younger.
Jarrett and Isaac...as goofy as ever!

Doesn't Vivi look so much older in this pic! Those LONG legs!!

Here is Vivi on Paige's bed this August...

and last August...the bed and baby have changed!!

The Puppies are Growing!

We saw the puppies for the last time before they are sold to their families. (See our July archive post titled "Puppies!") Three have already left. Vivi was thrilled once again to have this interaction with her favorite animal. They were so calm and not a single one bit...which was wild to see because the litter this dog had two years ago were fiesty!


Here is one several weeks ago

And NOW! Don't you just love puppy faces!!
Viv sure does!


Bye, puppies! We love you!!

Now I have to be responsible if I am going to post about these dogs. I do not support back yard breeding and I think $600 for a dog is highway robbery. These puppies are adorable and we were thrilled to have 10 minutes with them, but puppies are NOT easy to take care of. They chew up stuff, they need lots of exercise, and they grow up FAST. Not to mention how expensive they are to care for properly! Everyone wants babies, but babies grow up and then you have an entire life time (up to 15 years for most labs) to take care of this dog. And if you bring a dog into your home, you are responsible to that dog for a lifetime...even if you move into an apartment!

My friend Brooke fosters for a lab rescue organization and she sees often the outcome of irresponsible dog ownership. So if you want to add a furry family member to your mix, please go with a rescue dog! Just google your area and the breeds you are interested in and there you go! You can also go to Petfinder.com. That is how we brought Oscar home! Please do not go to a pet store or look for ads in the paper (unless the pet is free). This just encourages these breeders to keep breeding if they can make good money doing it.

And please spay and neuter your pet! All it takes is a trip to your local animal shelter to see there are more animals in this world than people to take care of them. Okay...I'll stop my Bob Barker impersonation now!

Getting Into A Routine

My third installment of my Back to School Series will focus on Getting into a Routine. It may be common in your household for the kids to go to bed anytime during the summer, stay in their pajamas until noon, and eat whenever and wherever you happen to be. This can make it difficult to get into a routine once school starts back up. My children are still young and wake me at the crack of dawn every morning ready for breakfast, so I don't anticipate them having a problem with getting ready in the Fall. It is ME I am worried about! In the summer some days I don't shower, the dishes don't get put into the dishwasher till lunch, and I haven't done a ton of meal planning. This school year, three days a week I will have to prepare up to 3 lunch boxes, shower and do my hair, and make sure we all have a decent breakfast. How will I accomplish this, you ask? By getting into a routine!

I recently typed up a schedule for how the school day will look in my Toddler class. It included diaper changes at a certain time, playground, and various learning activities. It was down to the minute! Not that we will be doing it by the minute, but having that schedule will keep us on track. I have never been a scheduling mom. I didn't feed my babies by the clock, but I have always been into routine. This happens after that, predictability. I think it creates a sense of security for children who have no control over their environment. I am considering doing a schedule for mornings during the school year, however. It would look something like this:

6:30- Mom wakes up and showers

6:45-7:00 Kids get up and we all eat breakfast

7:00-7:15 Clean up and pack lunches

7:15-7:30 Make beds and straighten rooms and living room

7:30-8:00 Get dressed and ready to go

8:00-8:15 Gather all supplies and organize backpacks

8:15- Leave for school

Of course I expect this to change as the year goes on. But its a good start.

HERE is an article about this topic.

I have always felt the key to getting your child to wake up fresh and in a good mood in the morning, is to put them to bed early. Our children have always gone to bed by 7:30. We eat dinner early and begin the bath/reading/snuggling routine at about 6:30. This prepares them to settle down. Now often they aren't tired this early but we feel it is important for the whole family that children retire early, so we put books on tape in their room for them to lay quietly and listen to. This has always worked well for us and we have never had to wake them in the morning. OF course the drawback is long gone are the days of sleeping in...ever! But it is worth it to have a couple hours of peace and free time to look forward to at the end of the day- and well rested kids come morning time!

Well that's all I've got on getting into a routine. Any tips out there would be greatly appreciated!!

Yep, I'm 30!

I made my grand debut into this world on August 19, 1978.

And what a life it has been!

I will say that the very thing I wanted to be doing with my life at the age of 30, I am.

The journey to 30 was full of twists and turns, all with a beautiful outcome.

And in many ways I feel like this marks a beginning of my journey into true adulthood.

I spent my 20's finding my place in this world and now I am here- a wife and mother of two. I know my responsibilities to God do not end here or He would take me Home today. So I look forward with anticipation upon the next leg of my journey into what new adventures await.

Birthday Milestone

Tomorrow I turn 30!(I'll post more on my thoughts about that tomorrow) This past weekend my friend Jen took me to the lovely Gaylord for a very fancy dinner buffet. It was resort-style. We were surprised by a fireworks show in the center...indoors!! That was a first for both of us! There is a little video capturing a part of our after dinner entertainment!
They had a very pretty fountain. I told Jen that my favorite part of the Riverwalk at the Gaylord is that is air conditioned! Jen also spoiled the kids with presents before our girl's night. We love you Jen and Jay!!

On Sunday, we met my family at the Magic Time Machine for lunch. The kids got a kick out of the bus tables. And my sister made me wear a flashing tiara and necklaces. The waitress put a balloon on my head. Great.

MICKEY!

No, we are not going to Disney World. This adorable picture of the Big Mouse himself is my current laptop wallpaper. Every time I open the computer Vivi says "Mickey!", so I thought she would want to see his face. This character is her obsession...her first real crush. She carries her dolls around every where we go. When we leave the apartment without him, she will cry "Mickey!" all the way down the stairs. I will post a video of her watching mickey online and how she trembles and gets so excited to see him. IT is hilarious!

Aren't they cute?

And growing up too fast, I might add.

Packing a Healthy Lunch

Here is my second installment in my Back to School series. If you know me, you know this is the topic I am most passionate about! Parents magazine has some great articles on this: Sandwich Ideas, and other lunch options.

From my own experience, I have found that if I pack too much- Isaac will spend his time only eating the side dishes. If I pack a small main course, one side, and one fruit- he will usually eat everything. I try to stick to this basic layout for his lunch:

Whole grains

Protein

Veggie/Fruit

Calcium

Around this parameter, I can mix it up. For instance, if I pack a water bottle or Mott's for Tot's box instead of milk- then I will pack cheese or yogurt.

Isaac loves sandwiches and tortilla rolls but I also like to mix it up with some warm meals in a thermos. I will pack vegetable and chicken soups, mac n' cheese (see below), and various other warm items, liked mixed vegetables w/garlic seasoning. He also likes carrots and crackers to dip into hummus and light ranch dressing.

"Desserts" may include sugar free pudding cups, animal crackers, graham crackers, Jello, yogurt raisins, flavored applesauce. I don't pack cookies or chips.

Some of the things I pack in Isaac's lunch are pictured below with the corresponding websites:

Morningstar farms soy corn dogs.

Motts for Tot's juice boxes. It is 40% juice because the rest is diluted with water. Cuts back on the sugar!

Horizon Organic milk (2%- the flavored milk has too much sugar) and cheese sticks. Dole fruit cups and individual packaged grapes and apples.

Stoneyfield farms yogurt sticks that I freeze to keep everything cold in the lunch, they will thaw out by lunch time.

Annie's Cheddar Bunnies cracker packs and Mac n' Cheese ( in a thermos w/ pureed cauliflower mixed in)

I also found this great article that applies to Preschool children and gives parents tips on how to pack their child's lunch. I will continue to pack my children's lunches into Elementary and Middle School because those cafeteria options are nothing but junk! There are a lot of websites educating parents on how to advocate at their kid's schools for healthier lunch options, and a ban on vending machines and soda. I will be taking part in this as much as I can when they go off to school.

Happy Lunch Packing!!

More fun on video!

They were getting the biggest kick out of the game "Don't Break the Ice", but I had to wonder why they call it this when the entire game is spent breaking the ice. Hmmm...

Saving Big on Fall Clothes

(Vivianna last November, decked out in her fall attire.)

Okay, I am kicking off the series with one of my favorite hobbies...shopping! If you haven't heard, this weekend August 15-17th is TAX FREE WEEKEND in Texas. This is for all clothing including shoes, backpacks, and I've heard...diapers! Last year I took advantage of this weekend and it paid off once the weather turned colder. Now you may be saying to yourself...8% isn't really that big of a savings, but what you have to remember is that the stores are competing for your business and will run awesome sales!Plus, I currently have 3 of the leading kid's clothing stores 20% off coupons in my wallet, so that would be an even bigger savings. Unfortunately, we are strapped and I won't be able to participate this year...but I LOVE tax free weekend!

On the topic of coupons...I found Vivi some shoes on sale at JCPenney plus I had a $10 off coupon so that made them 50% off the original price. Gotta love that!

The other way you can save big on fall clothes is to shop for your child a year in advance. I love to shop sales at the end of the season for the following year. This saves me 100's of dollars and gets me prepared way in advance. I've been asked if I buy clothes at resale shops, and although I have no problem with hand-me-downs, I have found that oftentimes these stores are over priced and the clothes look over used. When I can go to Old Navy in January and buy a size larger sweater dress for $4 brand new...I say "forget you!" to the resale shops.

And the final way I Save Big on Fall clothes happens to be at my favorite place to shop for kid's clothing...Grapevine Mills!! They have every kids clothing store under the sun (besides the fancy boutique type) and they are oftentimes outlet prices. Here is a list of my favorites: GapKids Outlet, Gymboree Outlet, The Children's Place, Carter's, Old Navy, OshKosh B Gosh...and several more. ALL in one convenient location! I am not a huge fan of the mall layout or the crowds that flock to this mall...but the prices can be truly amazing!

So that is it!! If anyone would like to add to this topic, I would LOVE to hear all the ways you Save Big on Fall Clothes!!