James was by far the most traumatized, even though it was quite cold! Don't forget to donate!
Showing posts with label Little Victories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Little Victories. Show all posts
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Happiness is...a Good Cause
Our family got in on the alsicebucketchallenge and were happy to participate -- although I don't know how much awareness we provided. Oh well, it was fun!
James was by far the most traumatized, even though it was quite cold! Don't forget to donate!
James was by far the most traumatized, even though it was quite cold! Don't forget to donate!
Friday, January 17, 2014
You Got to Admit It's Getting Better
...It's getting better all the time!
I realize I didn't blog, I mean at all, in the month of December. It was a little crazy, but mostly I was a little preoccupied dealing with this:
Potty training, without question or competition, is the worst part of parenting so far -- bar none! Since the beginning of October there has been seemingly endless tantrums and accidents and I can't decide if her bedding has never been cleaner or never been dirtier. And perhaps the worst of all this has been me...I definitely became a monster mom during this process!
That being said, she's basically potty-trained, both day and night!! There are occasional accidents (like maybe 2 per week), and sure, she's two so there are still tantrums. But at least one kid is totally out of diapers. We're so excited -- we're giving a whole new meaning to potty dance!!
I realize I didn't blog, I mean at all, in the month of December. It was a little crazy, but mostly I was a little preoccupied dealing with this:
Potty training, without question or competition, is the worst part of parenting so far -- bar none! Since the beginning of October there has been seemingly endless tantrums and accidents and I can't decide if her bedding has never been cleaner or never been dirtier. And perhaps the worst of all this has been me...I definitely became a monster mom during this process!
That being said, she's basically potty-trained, both day and night!! There are occasional accidents (like maybe 2 per week), and sure, she's two so there are still tantrums. But at least one kid is totally out of diapers. We're so excited -- we're giving a whole new meaning to potty dance!!
Friday, June 14, 2013
Alexa's REALLY Awesome Schedule
I did it! I've been wanting to do this for a long time now and I did it! YAY FOR ME!
Okay...what did I do?
Mothers of toddlers, I'm sure you've heard about all the benefits of having a schedule for your little one. Seriously, there are literally hundreds of articles, books, studies, opinions, etc. that you can find about how schedules improve behavior and make everyone's life easier. For me there was just one problem...
I mean, whose life actually can be that way? Some days involve shopping, others involve trips to the library, others involve staying at home getting some cleaning done. Also, Alexa, being 2, is unpredictable from one day to the next. Last week she was a nightmare, this week she's like a totally different child. And some days she sleeps until 9am (rarely, but it happens), and other days she's up at 6:30am, which totally changes our plans for the morning. So sometimes breakfast is at 7am and sometimes it's at 9:30. And sometimes I need her to have nap at 12:00 and sometimes it can't happen until 2:30 (thank you 11:00 church)...you get the idea!
So, when I was reading all these articles, books, and studies, I'm thinking "uhhh, so how do I make a schedule for such an unpredictable creature?" It was very discouraging. After a while the thought occurred to me that "obviously, you need to have events and times in your schedule that can be moved around."
And so it became very clear what I needed to do: MAGNETS!
Everything from the times to each event to the day of the week and even the sun in the corner (I have varying weather pictures depending on what it looks like outside) are magnetic and rearranged daily. It's a great activity to do each morning with my 2-year old and a great resource for both of us to make sure we're not spending too much time in front of the TV or computer and that we're getting adequate amounts of play and work time each day.
Overall this project took me a few evenings, a couple hours at Kinko's, and about $15 for the laminating. Schedule events include the following items:
How exciting that we have this great tool and that it can grow with her. Here is a list (w/ links) to the Dingbat Fonts I used for the pictures (I also recently used them for a potty training chart I made, so I think they will continue to be very useful):
1. Pea Cookie’s Doodles, 2. Pea Delilah’s Doodles, 3. Pea Jokilyn Doodles, 4. Pea Shelley Belley’s Doodles, 5. Pea Stacy’s Doodles, 6. Pea Stacey’s New Doodles, 7. Pea The Bees in Love Doodles, 8. Pea Tisha’s Doodles, 9. Alfabilder, 10. Dingpartment Store, 11. ForKids, 12. Girl Characters, 13. Kawaii Food II, 14. LiveStyle, 15. PeaxWebdesignFreeIcons, 16. Scrapicons, 17. Tombats Three
Once again, yay for me (and you're welcome)! To see more things I plan on do-doing this summer, check out my list!
Okay...what did I do?
Mothers of toddlers, I'm sure you've heard about all the benefits of having a schedule for your little one. Seriously, there are literally hundreds of articles, books, studies, opinions, etc. that you can find about how schedules improve behavior and make everyone's life easier. For me there was just one problem...
practically speaking I cannot do the same thing day after day in the same way
at the same time!
I mean, whose life actually can be that way? Some days involve shopping, others involve trips to the library, others involve staying at home getting some cleaning done. Also, Alexa, being 2, is unpredictable from one day to the next. Last week she was a nightmare, this week she's like a totally different child. And some days she sleeps until 9am (rarely, but it happens), and other days she's up at 6:30am, which totally changes our plans for the morning. So sometimes breakfast is at 7am and sometimes it's at 9:30. And sometimes I need her to have nap at 12:00 and sometimes it can't happen until 2:30 (thank you 11:00 church)...you get the idea!
So, when I was reading all these articles, books, and studies, I'm thinking "uhhh, so how do I make a schedule for such an unpredictable creature?" It was very discouraging. After a while the thought occurred to me that "obviously, you need to have events and times in your schedule that can be moved around."
And so it became very clear what I needed to do: MAGNETS!
(poor lighting in the kitchen means you need to ignore the graininess of the pictures)
Everything from the times to each event to the day of the week and even the sun in the corner (I have varying weather pictures depending on what it looks like outside) are magnetic and rearranged daily. It's a great activity to do each morning with my 2-year old and a great resource for both of us to make sure we're not spending too much time in front of the TV or computer and that we're getting adequate amounts of play and work time each day.
Overall this project took me a few evenings, a couple hours at Kinko's, and about $15 for the laminating. Schedule events include the following items:
Blank Sheets for Writing in Special or Unpredictable Events
Bath Time Bedtime
Room Time Church
TV Time x2 Swimming
James Time Potty Time x2
Playtime Quiet Time
Lunch Soccer
Shopping Dance
Dinner Crafts
Family Time Make Lunch
Breakfast Make Dinner
Chores Friends
Snack x2 Park
Reading Outside
Clean-Up Mom Time
Naptime Library
Daddy Time
How exciting that we have this great tool and that it can grow with her. Here is a list (w/ links) to the Dingbat Fonts I used for the pictures (I also recently used them for a potty training chart I made, so I think they will continue to be very useful):
Once again, yay for me (and you're welcome)! To see more things I plan on do-doing this summer, check out my list!
Monday, June 10, 2013
Let's Get Established, Yeah Yeah Yeah!
"Who, being loved, is poor?" -Oscar Wilde
Okay, cards on the table: I got married when I was 19-years old. Yup, I was a baby, and I looked like a baby, too. See?
It's crazy to think how young I was, and when I tell people, even those of the Mormon faith who tend to marry young anyway, I usually say my surprising young age with a quiet and ashamed voice. Not because I think I made a poor choice, but it seems to me that the world thinks I missed out on a lively single-life experience or that because of my marrying age divorce is inevitable or something along those lines.
Well, amid the sea of statistics and opinions that say Nick's and my marriage (he was only 23) is destined to be ridden with regrets and separation, a friend found and shared an article with me that helps me lift my head with pride about my decision to marry young!
"The fairytale wedding is [seen as a] gateway into adult life. But in my
experience, this idea about marriage as the end of the road is pretty
misguided and means couples are missing out on a lot of the fun."
The article goes onto say a lot of other things, but the jist of it is that since we all have to get financially established and secure our place in the world anyway, why not do it married to your favorite person and enjoy that establishing period all the more??
Good question!
The first example to the contrary I can think of is Scrooge in The Muppet's Christmas Carol who had someone he really cared about and lost her because they didn't have enough money for a descent home.
You maybe snickering to yourself because that maybe a juvenile example, but it's one that is not far from how some people choose to go about their single life -- alone AND poor. How sad! Why not be poor WITH someone who makes poverty a lot more pleasant??
A close friend asked us yesterday if we've been in school our entire married life, and we confirmed their suspicions. You could absolutely say that for the past 7+ years of marriage Nick and I have been getting "established." We don't have tons of excess resources. Neither of us ever spent a summer backpacking through Europe. Our birthday and Christmas gifts have usually been very small and inexpensive items. More than once we've bailed each other out of tough/expensive fixes using creative methods. We have had to say to each other many times four of the most loving words one mate can say to another: "We can't afford it."
However, like the article said: we have also had so much fun!! There's not a thing about my financially poor life with Nick that I would change because it has not felt like it was lacking in anything that truly matters! Oh how I love cuddling up with him at night and reminiscing about the life we've established together -- side-by-side, hand-in-hand, as we smile and laugh because we haven't had waffles in months since there are no extra resources to replace our broken waffle iron.
As I look ahead to our 10th, 15th, 20th, 50th, etc. anniversaries, I think how precious these "good ole' days" are going to be to us! How grateful I am to have found my eternal mate so early in my life and to have had the extraordinary opportunity to get established along side him!
Friday, August 17, 2012
#49: Grow a Plant
Late Spring we decided to plant a small garden in our raised garden beds we built on our back patio.
Our feeling on our garden was that we'll plant it, water it, and let the sun and the dirt do their thing. If something grew, great! If not, we'll try something different next year.
On our first attempt at gardening we have had 8 strawberry plants, 1 bell pepper plant, and 1 watermelon plant that have thrived in our little garden. There was, unfortunately, one casualty: our beloved cantelope didn't make it. Fare thee well our little withered friend.
As a quick side note, do you remember what our patio looked like when we moved in? I'm really just proud of how much we've done whether or not anything grew. But I digress...
Our feeling on our garden was that we'll plant it, water it, and let the sun and the dirt do their thing. If something grew, great! If not, we'll try something different next year.
On our first attempt at gardening we have had 8 strawberry plants, 1 bell pepper plant, and 1 watermelon plant that have thrived in our little garden. There was, unfortunately, one casualty: our beloved cantelope didn't make it. Fare thee well our little withered friend.
Our strawberry plants when they produced fruit for the first time!
Nick and Alexa water the garden together practically every morning. It's so cute!
That HUGE plant Nick is watering is our watermelon plant. It definitely has a Manifest Destiny approach to the garden.
Alexa and I just after we finished enjoying some delicious strawberries. Yeah, my bangs need trimmed - back off!
We actually were able to grow things! Who knew my science teachers instructing me on photosynthesis were actually right! We will definitely be doing this whole thing again year after year! Go Sun, Dirt, and Us!!
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Dreaming and Doing
I have spent more time than I should have in the past few days dreaming instead of doing. Does that ever happen to you? You dream so much and your dreams seem so nice that actually being productive in reality gets in the way. Mostly I've been feeling that all my dreams can't come to fruition right now due to any number of reasons: it's impractical, there's not enough money, there's one too many kids to get things done, there's too many cysts on my ovaries. You get the idea.
Am I the only one that ever feels this way? A bit limited by my circumstances; like my dreams are too big for me to actually do anything about? (For example, I spent a precious naptime on a website last week creating my dream house. I only got through the first floor before I realized what an incredible waste of time the "project" was.)
One of my favorite speakers gave me a nice counterpoint on the matter:
Ya know what? The cinnamon rolls turned out delicious and we ended up taking some to a new family in the area. The question at hand is then, why do I let this inner-naysayer make so many decisions for me, and paralyze me in such a crippling way? Someone once told me to never take advice from your fears. For some that's easy, but it is a constant battle for me to just start something, especially if I haven't done it before.
That same favorite speaker of mine, in a different discourse, said this:
There's a lot more I find can be done, despite my circumstances, when I spend less time dreaming and more time doing.
Am I the only one that ever feels this way? A bit limited by my circumstances; like my dreams are too big for me to actually do anything about? (For example, I spent a precious naptime on a website last week creating my dream house. I only got through the first floor before I realized what an incredible waste of time the "project" was.)
(Looks cool though right?)
One of my favorite speakers gave me a nice counterpoint on the matter:
"Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty. Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty...What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. So what if the eggs are greasy or the toast is burned? Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside."I nearly let my own interior critic stop me from making a new meal I had never done before. It was so simple, but because I didn't know one step in the process I didn't actually make it for weeks. On Tuesday I did it! No, it wasn't perfect, but I did it, and sometimes that's the hardest part. The same fear (no surprise it was another cooking ambition) overcame me on April 1st until Nick said "it seems like you are trying to come up with every excuse not to make these. Either do it or don't and move on."
Ya know what? The cinnamon rolls turned out delicious and we ended up taking some to a new family in the area. The question at hand is then, why do I let this inner-naysayer make so many decisions for me, and paralyze me in such a crippling way? Someone once told me to never take advice from your fears. For some that's easy, but it is a constant battle for me to just start something, especially if I haven't done it before.
That same favorite speaker of mine, in a different discourse, said this:
"Let’s make sure to set our 'do it' switch always to the 'now' position!"Today I am going to do that. I am not going to waste precious time thinking of what could be instead of creating what could be. No, I can't do everything that my clever mind concocts, but there's a lot more I can do as I set out with my "do it switch" in the "now position."
There's a lot more I find can be done, despite my circumstances, when I spend less time dreaming and more time doing.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Friday the 13th My Butt
The rest of the week has felt like this:
And today felt like this:
Take that cracked lips and new tooth (that's seven)! Apparently Friday the 13th is our lucky day!
And today felt like this:
Take that cracked lips and new tooth (that's seven)! Apparently Friday the 13th is our lucky day!
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Making My Workout Spiritual
The more I study the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the more I realize that it is so profound in its simplicity. It's all about transformation.
Transforming sinners into saints, men and women into Gods and Goddesses, individuals into families, carnal into eternal, and, in this case 151.4 lbs. into 135 lbs.
151.4 lbs is what I weighed in yesterday morning, I think the most I have ever weighed in my life. I honestly don't know if other people can tell I weigh that much (I am quite muscular), but I can sure tell, and I don't like it.
And you know, I've said it before, I can do hard things, and so if I don't like something about my life, I can change it!
I have tried eating healthier and running daily in the past, and the thing with eating well and exercising is that when you do it consistently, it actually works! Two summers ago I weighed 135ish pounds and felt great and got compliments from people on how I looked. I had eating healthy goals and ran 2 miles 5 days a week (I know around here that's child's play, but back then that was a lot for me).
Back then I had been told by my Reproductive Endocrinologist that exercising daily would help the cysts on my ovaries chill out a bit and help the crazy medication he was giving me work better. So that was my motivation when I wanted to be lazy instead of run or when I got tired while running. I would push myself and say "This is for you little baby. I'm going to be better for you. I'm going to run faster for you. I'm going to run harder for you." And so on and so forth. It was all about becoming a mother, which worked as motivation for me back then.
Once we decided that adoption was our Plan A, my running eventually tapered off and became extremely sporadic, and became a decision I had to make everyday instead of one I had already made. For me losing weight cannot be just about the weekly weigh-in, because I won't lose weight everyday/week and sometimes I'm willing to sacrifice a pound or two for a delicious slice of cheesecake or a mountain of French Toast.
This is where making my workout and "diet" (I put it in quotes because 2,000 calories is what I should be eating, I'm just going to be more diligent about it) spiritual is so important. Weight loss goals come and go, but living physically well is a lifestyle, just like living spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually well are. It's about transforming the self that is "acted upon" by cravings and slothfulness into the self that acts upon those things with self-control and determination. (source, verse 14) It's about transforming the self that is eating too often to tidy the house into the self that is able to serve others because the new self has her life in order.
I'll share more about the specifics of my workout and diet plan soon, I just thought I would pontificate upon some of my thoughts as of recently in regards to my body and how I am trying to accept it for what it is as well as make it the best I can! And as a parting thought, here was something I found extremely funny on Pinterest the other day. Enjoy!
PS As a little bonus, if I continue to get up at 6am daily and workout 6 days a week, I get to cross off a couple goals from my 101 in 1001 list. YAY!
Transforming sinners into saints, men and women into Gods and Goddesses, individuals into families, carnal into eternal, and, in this case 151.4 lbs. into 135 lbs.
151.4 lbs is what I weighed in yesterday morning, I think the most I have ever weighed in my life. I honestly don't know if other people can tell I weigh that much (I am quite muscular), but I can sure tell, and I don't like it.
And you know, I've said it before, I can do hard things, and so if I don't like something about my life, I can change it!
I have tried eating healthier and running daily in the past, and the thing with eating well and exercising is that when you do it consistently, it actually works! Two summers ago I weighed 135ish pounds and felt great and got compliments from people on how I looked. I had eating healthy goals and ran 2 miles 5 days a week (I know around here that's child's play, but back then that was a lot for me).
Back then I had been told by my Reproductive Endocrinologist that exercising daily would help the cysts on my ovaries chill out a bit and help the crazy medication he was giving me work better. So that was my motivation when I wanted to be lazy instead of run or when I got tired while running. I would push myself and say "This is for you little baby. I'm going to be better for you. I'm going to run faster for you. I'm going to run harder for you." And so on and so forth. It was all about becoming a mother, which worked as motivation for me back then.
Once we decided that adoption was our Plan A, my running eventually tapered off and became extremely sporadic, and became a decision I had to make everyday instead of one I had already made. For me losing weight cannot be just about the weekly weigh-in, because I won't lose weight everyday/week and sometimes I'm willing to sacrifice a pound or two for a delicious slice of cheesecake or a mountain of French Toast.
This is where making my workout and "diet" (I put it in quotes because 2,000 calories is what I should be eating, I'm just going to be more diligent about it) spiritual is so important. Weight loss goals come and go, but living physically well is a lifestyle, just like living spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually well are. It's about transforming the self that is "acted upon" by cravings and slothfulness into the self that acts upon those things with self-control and determination. (source, verse 14) It's about transforming the self that is eating too often to tidy the house into the self that is able to serve others because the new self has her life in order.
I'll share more about the specifics of my workout and diet plan soon, I just thought I would pontificate upon some of my thoughts as of recently in regards to my body and how I am trying to accept it for what it is as well as make it the best I can! And as a parting thought, here was something I found extremely funny on Pinterest the other day. Enjoy!
PS As a little bonus, if I continue to get up at 6am daily and workout 6 days a week, I get to cross off a couple goals from my 101 in 1001 list. YAY!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Isn't It Ironic, Don't Ya Think?
I'm a pear. Yes, my body shape is a pear. For most of my life I haven't really liked that about myself, but what can I do?
When I would get discouraged, one of my high school buddies would remind me that I have "perfect child-bearing hips," so when I had kids it would be easier on my body.
Isn't it ironic?
I've also started a weight management program--management because I have control, to some extent, over my body...pounds just don't disappear! So I did a little research and found this awesome information about my beloved pear body shape:
On a really exciting weight gaining note, Alexa weighs 10 lbs, has been promoted to Size 1 diapers, is growing out of many of her newborn sleepers (even the cute ones...tear), and is 13 weeks old tomorrow! Seriously, it's all going by too fast!
When I would get discouraged, one of my high school buddies would remind me that I have "perfect child-bearing hips," so when I had kids it would be easier on my body.
Isn't it ironic?
I've also started a weight management program--management because I have control, to some extent, over my body...pounds just don't disappear! So I did a little research and found this awesome information about my beloved pear body shape:
"Anyone can be a pear, but this shape is more common among women, and it actually evolved because fat stored in these areas aids in fertility and breast-feeding. It's an interesting fact — but I know as well as anyone that this type of fat is harder to lose."
Isn't it ironic?
And one of my favorite fashion sites which enoucourages me to be proud of my pear-shape says:
And one of my favorite fashion sites which enoucourages me to be proud of my pear-shape says:
Isn't it ironic? Don't ya think?
So I press forward with my infertile body chalk-full of fertile supporting elements. And yet, I remain optimistic that even though my fertility is out of my hands, the fat content of my fertile elements is not. Good luck to me!
So I press forward with my infertile body chalk-full of fertile supporting elements. And yet, I remain optimistic that even though my fertility is out of my hands, the fat content of my fertile elements is not. Good luck to me!
On a really exciting weight gaining note, Alexa weighs 10 lbs, has been promoted to Size 1 diapers, is growing out of many of her newborn sleepers (even the cute ones...tear), and is 13 weeks old tomorrow! Seriously, it's all going by too fast!
Monday, April 11, 2011
Abra Cadabra!
The Hoping to Adopt families on our Find Your Family Page are disappearing!
I absolutely love deleting buttons of previously hoping to adopt families that have found their families from that page! Which I did this morning, so I'm pretty happy.
Congratulations to everyone who no longer needs an adoption button on that page, and congratulations to families still hoping and preparing for your family. Our prayers and thoughts are most sincerely with you!
If you want your button added to that page, just send us an email with the HTML code to rachelandnicholas@gmail.com and we will surely add that for you! I love adding buttons almost as much as I love taking them down!
I absolutely love deleting buttons of previously hoping to adopt families that have found their families from that page! Which I did this morning, so I'm pretty happy.
Congratulations to everyone who no longer needs an adoption button on that page, and congratulations to families still hoping and preparing for your family. Our prayers and thoughts are most sincerely with you!
If you want your button added to that page, just send us an email with the HTML code to rachelandnicholas@gmail.com and we will surely add that for you! I love adding buttons almost as much as I love taking them down!
We thought you should know that Alexa is happy for you, too, wherever you are in the adoption process!
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Thursday, September 23, 2010
A Smattering of Pictures
I do love making my house feel like home, but honestly it's not really easy for me. Sometimes it takes a while, like this project. My fear: what if I put in all this work, and hate it...or worse, someone else hates it.
Well, on Monday, Nicholas and I did it together. Wanna see?
This is what we started with (a big, scary wall):
Well, on Monday, Nicholas and I did it together. Wanna see?
This is what we started with (a big, scary wall):
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Happiness is...Liberation!
I graduated. That's right, I am no longer a student!! I cannot even explain how good it feels to sit here, blog, watch So You Think You Can Dance (on Hulu), all in my PJ's, without thought to an assignment. Bliss.
So I know it's Thursday, but in honor of my new found liberation, this is the only post you're getting out of me tonight. Here's a picture to make you happy, just like I am right now!
It just makes me happy. Liberate yourself today!!
So I know it's Thursday, but in honor of my new found liberation, this is the only post you're getting out of me tonight. Here's a picture to make you happy, just like I am right now!
It just makes me happy. Liberate yourself today!!
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