TGIF!!

What a week it has been! It's finally Friday and everything seems almost back to "normal"! After Hannah staying home sick on Monday, then school being canceled on Tuesday and Wednesday due to ice, then Ethan home sick on Thursday it has been a LONG week! I am so happy that today everyone was well enough to get back in the groove and allow me some sanity back! It's just Andrew and I this morning and while yes, he is quite a handful, I feel much calmer today to not have chaos ensuing in here! Andrew is finally old enough (and big enough) that Ethan likes to "wrestle" with him. They are constantly chasing, screaming and tackling one another. It's actually pretty cute, and I love that Ethan has a buddy to do "boy stuff" with - loud as they may be, I am grateful! I am also grateful to have a daughter that is SO animated and dramatic. Yes, she has been known to make me want to scream a time or 10 with her over-dramatic interpretation of most everything that I say but she also makes me laugh like not many people can. What did I ever do before I was a Mom?

I will end this post with some highlights from this week. Yep, it was a long one but an entertaining one!

BUSTED!!

Now, get down!!

Silly Girl!!

Ode to.... Oswald?!

This is who currently brightens Andrew's day.  Not Mommy.  Not Daddy.  Oswald!  If Oswald is on then all is right with the world... for Andrew anyway.  If you aren't living in toddler world I'll fill you in.  Oswald is a big blue Octopus that lives in Big City and has great whimsical adventures with his friends; pet hotdog Weenie, a finicky penguin named Henry, and an energetic flower named Daisy.  I remember this show when Hannah and Ethan were younger but they never cared much for it so I assumed the same would be true for Andrew.  Well, was I WRONG.  We happened upon it one day several months ago and things haven't been the same since.  It comes on four, yes four, times a day and somedays we watch it EVERY TIME it's on!  When he hears the theme music he goes crazy, running around in circles, squealing and pointing to each character as they come on the screen.  He can watch the same episode 10 times in a row and now get tired of it!  I love how he is so easy to please.  I mean, he loves Oswald almost as much as he loves chicken nuggets!

"Dude, where's my cupcake?"

 We had a (short lived) great start to the weekend Friday when the kids got their report cards and they both did SUPER!!  I was so proud of their hard work and perfect attendance that I decided to reward them with cupcakes.  This is a rare occurrence in our house, so rare in fact, I couldn't tell you the last time I made

them so the kids were thrilled!  Chocolaty goodness in the palm of their hands - what could be better?  Neither one of them had any homework so they had the afternoon free to argue and pester one another, which I must say they are nearly perfect at!  Kris ended up getting a late afternoon appointment so I decided that since I had been feeling a little under the weather that I would just take the kids to McDonalds for dinner and be done with it.  

 

Sunday Hannah started running a fever and feeling crummy.  I knew it was serious when she decided she wasn't up to going to church (which is the highlight of her week).  Hannah is NEVER sick so she has been a little out os sorts and not quite sure what to do.  Since Kris had a confirmed case of the Flu last week I went ahead and took her into the doctor on Sunday night just to be sure that she didn't have it as well.  The test results were negative for the Flu so we are going to assume that it's just a virus.  We were instructed to come back in if the fever hasn't subsided by Wednesday.  

 Throughout the last couple of days I have noticed that Hannah has added a new word to her vocabulary that I am not very fond of.  Not because it's a "bad" word but because it brings back some horrendous memories of an era that I hope never comes back in style.  The word is Dude! ICK, UGH, EWW!  I know, I know, She's in the 4th grade and she is probably saying it because the "cool kids" are saying it but..... She says it all the time.  Ethan is no longer Ethan he is Dude.  If I hear another "come on dude" or "awe, dude" I might gag!  In an effort to kick the habit I told her earlier today that every time she said it she would have to put a quarter in a bucket.  Within the first 3 minutes the bucket had $1.75 in it.  Since she only has $18.71 in her purse I realized that this wouldn't be effective for very long.  I refunded her her money and decided I'd have to think of another way to dissuade her from using "the word" but I'll probably just suck it up and live with it.  Heck, I may even teach her some more hideous slang from the "old days"!  

      I am off to check in on Hannah and her still present fever.  She missed school on Monday but thanks to an "ice storm" ( we are in Texas - are there ever really ice storms?) school was canceled today so it won't be another absence.  Pray that I can keep these rowdy boys entertained today so they don't drive me (and Hannah) crazy!

Not me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

So, without further ado.  Some of the things that I did not do....

I was not so desperate to get some medicine into Andrew to help with his congestion that 

I made him a chocolate milkshake with a "shot" of medicine in it.  And I most certainly did not allow him to have that for dinner!

I did not spend Saturday morning lounging with the kids watching the Disney Channel and eating chocolate chip pancakes instead of doing all of the chores that needed to get done.  I find nothing entertaining about these childish shows and spent my morning being productive and responsible.

I also did not help them build a fort using the couch cushions because everyone knows that I am constantly telling them not to do that because it will ruin the cushions.  Plus, what kind of mother would I be if I wasn't consistent with the rules?  

I did not stop to take pictures of Andrew during a massive temper tantrum that he decided to grace everyone with at the park the other day.  That would be inappropriate.  Everyone knows you should ignore a temper tantrum as to not reinforce the negative behavior.  So, I do not have proof of that tantrum!

I did not spend Sunday afternoon watching movies after Kris took Andrew out for the day so I could get caught up on some things around the house!  I did not get further behind on the laundry and have a sink full of dishes that evening.  AND, it was not TOTALLY WORTH IT!!!

Your turn.  What are some things that you did not do.....

Wordless Wednesday!

......the strong, silent type?

Well, after much anticipation, Andrew finally had his assessment with the Speech Therapist that he was referred to.  It went really well.... I guess.  For those that spend a significant amount of time with Andrew you may have noticed that he is a man of few words.  By few I mean at 2 years old he has a vocabulary of only about 10-15 words.  I began to have some concern at around 15 months but chalked it up to his motor mouth siblings speaking for him and my amazing ability to translate his pointing and grunting into meaningful conversation.  At that point his pediatrician wasn't worried so neither was I.  As the 2 year well check approached with no change and no new words I decided that maybe it was time for my little man to not only be seen, but heard - and the doctor agreed!  So off to the Speech Therapist we went yesterday morning.  He immediately warmed up to the therapist and happily "played" with her.  After her evaluation she explained the results and what she recommends.  Basically,  Andrew is right on target for his age as far as recognition. processing. etc.  he just isn't verbalizing for some reason.  She said that his verbal skills are that of a 9 months old - ouch! That was hard to hear for some reason. I think because I have not done anything differently with him than I did with the other 2 kids and they didn't have any verbal delays. So now I find myself wondering what I did wrong or what I could have done differently this time around.  The good news however, is that there is nothing developmentally preventing him from talking.  So, as soon as our insurance company approves it he will begin speech therapy twice a week to get back on track.  She also recommended enrolling him in a Mother's Day Out Program so he can interact with children his own age and hopefully gain the motivation to talk.  This is something that I have contemplated for some time.  But I have gotten the impression when I have mentioned it before that Kris thinks that since I don't "work" then there is no reason for any of the children to need alternative childcare.  Whatever the case may be,  I will do whatever is recommended to help Andrew become more verbal.  Plus, I think that partnering the therapy with a M.D.O class will mean less therapy in the long run.   Ideally, I would like to arrange it where he goes to school three days of the week and to therapy the other two so he has that stimulation and reinforcement everyday.  I really think that once he is around children that are speaking it will just be natural for him to follow suit.  I plan on going to check out a couple of programs next week to hopefully get a head start before his therapy starts in February.  I am so excited to finally hear what my little guy has to say!

Not Me! Monday

Hey everyone.  It's Not Me! Monday.  A chance to tell the world some things you definitely did not do this week because if you actually had done them you would be completely embarrassed or even ashamed of yourself!  For a complete list of the "rules" visit MckMama's blog and she'll explain everything! .  So go ahead, play along.... you know you want to.  

So here they are.  Some things that I definitely did not do this week! 

I did not have to wear an old pair maternity jeans that were packed up in a bag to be donated the other day because when I went to the closet to get dressed realized that I had forgotten to do my laundry that week!  What responsible adult would forget to do their own laundry? Nope, not me!

I did not let Andrew take 3 baths in one day just because he wanted to play with his new Dora the Explorer bath toy.  That would just be ridiculous not to mention a complete waste of water! So I definitely did not allow it!

I did not sit in the car line at the kids school and pull out every single gray hair that my eyes could see.  That is just silly.  Everyone knows that that will make more grow back.  Plus, I plan on aging gracefully and don't have a problem being "graceful" at 31!! Plus, the 30's are the new 20's.... THEY ARE!!!

I certainly did not purposely put off going to the grocery store all day just so I could go after Kris got home from work so I could go all by myself!  That would just be selfish not to mention completely ridiculous for me to have to sneak around to to get time to myself.  I am so glad that I do not have to do that!

Andrew did not have to wear a swim diaper this morning because I was too tired to go to the store last night to get diapers.  That would never happen because the grocery store is a mere 1 block away.  

So, what are some things that you did not do this week???

We have a bleeder!

Well, I am sort of figuring this site out and can now even change my font color. Yay me! So, last night the boys were playing ever so nicely (yeah right!) in Andrew's room when all of a sudden I hear a thud, see Ethan bolt out of the room, then I hear ...the SCREAMS! I ran to the scene of the crime bedroom and found Andrew flat on his back with a lot of blood coming out of his mouth. Luckily for me I don't really have a weak stomach - not with my kids anyway! Now, I'm not saying that Ethan had anything to do with Andrew's "accident" but he sure did flee the scene leave the bedroom at a high rate of speed! I'm just sayin'..... Anyway, back to the bleeder. I scooped him up off of the floor to inspect the damage (and to check for missing teeth) and discovered a gaping cut on the inside of his upper lip along with the flap of skin that used to reside there (Which was now just left hanging)! So I carried him to the freezer and got him the Smiley Face ice pack that he sucked on until he fell asleep. I normally wouldn't have allowed him to take a nap at 5 in the evening but it was either that or watch him try to figure out what in the heck this thing was hanging from his mouth and why Mommy wouldn't let him touch it! After he fell asleep I called the E.R. to ask if they thought I should bring him in for a stitch.... or 5 and I was advised that things seemed to be alright as long as the bleeding had stopped and the "flap" didn't continue to bother him (which it didn't). Thank goodness for that. I was absolutely dreading the though of having to take him in for stitches. I have horrible memories of my brother having to have his mouth stitched when he was around Andrew's age. He was so traumatized afterward that he would not let anyone change his diaper for fear that they were lying him down to give him more stitches. Needless to say my dad learned to change his diaper with him standing up. So today it looks much better, just a little swollen and the "flap" either reattached or fell off. Yay for that. Although I never did really get a confession to the bottom of what happened everything turned out to be fine and Andrew is on the mend!