Taking care of YOU!

Now that you are a mom it is still important to take care of YOU! I know its hard with a family and a house to take care of but taking care of yourself will make you a better mom/wife/friend and so on.

Here is a list of things I do that make me happy...

1. Exercise - 3 days a week for 30 mins (even if its just going for a walk)
2. Spend time with friends - It is so important to have some adult interaction
3. Buy something for yourself - We get so caught up in buying things for our kids and feel guilty spending money on us
4. Get a massage - Nothing beats an hour of quiet relaxation time
5. Read a good book
6. Do something that makes you feel pretty - Get your hair done, put on some make up, get dressed up
7. Listen to happy/relaxing music - Somethimes before bed I like to listen to music to help me sleep

What do you do that makes you feel good??

Back to school shopping!

*sings* "It's the most wonderful time of the year" We all know this commercial and I guess all the Back to School commercials once again apply to me but in a different way. In fact its not wonderful at all, its sad! okay maybe not sad but it sure is bittersweet. I can't believe my baby boy is 4 and ready for school!! Time sure does fly by. But with that being said we are super excited for him. I know he is going to LOVE it! We bought his backpack and lunch bag a couple weeks ago and my eyes were tearing up as I watched him walk through the store wearing that backpack and holding his lunch bag like such a big boy!  

Today we took Blake shopping for some new clothes.  When I was a kid I loved going back to school shopping and we had so much fun doing it with Blake. We bought him a jacket, 2 long sleeve shirts, 2 hoody sweaters and 3 pairs of jeans. Everything we have bought so far cost us around $120. All we need now are some indoor shoes. I can't imagine how much it will all cost us when he starts grade school and will actually need school supplies.

I will update again in two weeks when we go and meet his teacher, visit the classroom and find his cubby hole. Then again on September 13, 2011 after I walk my little man to school for the first time with tears in my eyes. We love him SO much!

Easy Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Here is my recipe for banana muffins that I make all the time!! You can make regular size or mini muffins just adjust the bake time.

3 or 4 Banana's (mashed)

1/2 cup Sugar

1 Egg

1/3 cup melted Butter

1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 cups Flour
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
1/2 package of Milk Chocolate
Chips (optional)

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Mix all the wet ingredients in one bowl and mix all the dry in another.
• Add the dry mixture to the wet
• Add chocolate chips
• Bake for 15-20mins (I usually only keep them in for 15mins max)

Enjoy!!!

Cake Smash Pictures!!!

A few months back I heard about an awesome idea called a Cake Smash Photo Shoot! Although it kind of seems self explanatory, for some reason people are still like "what the heck is that?" Well....for your child's first birthday pictures you set them in front of a cake and let them smash it!! It makes for VERY cute pictures and I knew this is what I wanted to do. So, here is a peek at what it looked like!! I can't show too much since I will be displaying these pictures at her party and don't want to ruin the surprise!!! :) Enjoy!

Although it looks like she is having fun...she cried about 80% of the time. She just HATED the feeling of icing on her feet, legs and hands!! She wouldn't even try the cake so I had to force her to eat some!! Great mom right?? lol BUT then she seemed to like it and ate some herself.... followed by more crying after she realized that she is still covered in this pink stuff! Ahhhh the things we do to our children!!! ha ha but Michelle (the photographer) did such an amazing job and was very patient even though she had one tough customer hehe!

Travelling with two small kids

WOW! It has been a long time since I was on here...oops!! Well we just got back from our very long trip and I thought I would let you all (I so badly want to write y'all but who am I kidding, I can't pull that off LOL) know how it went. We headed 17 hours East to visit my dad and step mom and we were driving since I have a slight (again who am I kidding an EXTREME) fear of flying. The drive was going well until Blake asked "are we there yet" (at this point I was asking myself if it was okay to drug your children to make them sleep...jk of course!) and it had only been about 45mins! And don't let that picture deceive you, it took him 6.5 hours to actually fall asleep lol! Chelsea would sleep for the first few hours then she would be awake the rest of the drive and the only thing that would keep her from crying was holding my hand. Now just picture bending your arm in a weird way to the back seat and around a car seat that is rear facing ....for 5 hours!!! Ouch my arm was killing me! We stopped half way which landed us in Quebec where folks don't like to speak English...great! Our hotel room smelt like BO but at this point it was midnight and we were tired!!

The next morning we got up at 6:30am had some breakfast that the hotel offered and we were off. I REALLY wanted a Tim Horton's coffee but then I quickly remembered that "Oh ya they probably wont speak English" and from my experience last year with McDonald's and a cashier that could not speak or understand English...it's not fun. I drove first because again, I knew Chelsea would sleep the first few hours then need my hand. So we left the hotel at 7:30am and we arrived at 4:00pm (But really it was only 3:00pm "our" time...darn time change) we got changed and we off to my cousins wedding! And that was the quick and dirty version of what it was like travelling with two small kids :) Oh and I left out that we did make gas stops which only took us a quick 40 mins each time haha but I guess we had to let the kids stretch, go to the bathroom and get some food :) But the trip was all worth it!! We had a blast :)

Basement Reno

We have not had use of our basement since my brother in law moved in with us (to go to school) almost two years ago. This past weekend he moved out and we are excited to finally be able to do something fun with this space. We have decided to make the basement a family/playroom and also have it be a place where guests can sleep when they come for a visit. So here is our plan and check list and I will keep you updated as things get done :)

• Prime the walls
• Paint
• Replace the carpet
• Buy a new couch/sofa bed
• Decorate
• Bring on the toys! :)

Breastfeeding, Teething, & Weaning

Today has been one trying day! Chelsea is cutting 2 bottom teeth and has been very cranky these past few days. Putting her in her own bed at night has gone out the window (thanks to teething) All she does is scream her head off until we take her out and even then she still cries. I'm still getting clogged milk ducts, in fact I have one right now but that was my fault since I went too long between feedings on that side. I am Tired! Just so tired! and I know I've said this many many times but I am starting the weaning process again!

I have such a problem with making a plan and sticking to it but my plan this time around is to only pump during the day and offer the bottle. I have a feeling that part of the reason she wont take a bottle is because she is not hungry. Unlike most 9 months olds, Chelsea is drinking all night long (thanks to bed sharing) and she probably gets all the milk she needs at night. During the day she is not too interested in nursing any more anyway. I feel like most of the time I'm "forcing" her to nurse and she just ends up sucking a couple of time then pulls off. The only bad thing about pumping is that I feel like my pump doesn't fully empty me out. I can feel my breasts getting full after just 2 hours but I am hoping this might help reduce my milk supply. This is going to be such a challenge but if I truly want to wean I need to stick to it! I'm tired of feeling so unhappy all the time, I'm tired of being stressed out. I only have a couple of months left before I go back to work and I want to enjoy this time with my kids and not have to worry about my breastfeeding issues anymore! Okay that's all for today! Thanks for listening to my venting! UGH!