The Song and Dance Technique

Oh, the things we do to appease a grumpy child...

Austin caught one of my tactics on camera this morning. Here I am in all my morning glory using one of my most effective techniques to remedy the morning grumps: The Song and Dance.

http://youtu.be/Omg1W3ciTEM

It's Hard...

It's hard being a toy around this house.



Between two dogs and a toddler, most don't stand a chance.

Best of luck to you my walrus friend. My guess is you will be finished off by the end of the week.

Photo Shoot Bloopers

If you follow my other blog, Thriving Home, you'll soon see a post featuring this skirt tutorial. (Since you've continued to follow me on Learn and Go, you get sneak peeks like this!).



I wanted Adelyn to be my model to show how cute the skirt looks on a baby girl. However, trying to get a useable picture of an eight month old is quite the challenge. I ended up with a few usable pictures but overall, most weren't good. I thought I'd share some of the bloopers with you of our photo shoot.

Squirmy

What's up, slow shutter speed?

On the move.

Throwing a toy mid-picture.

Grabbing the camera.

Knees.

"Dress Up Day"

Uh oh, we found the blanket...

A quick roll with blanket in hand gets us here...

I was laughing while taking this picture.

She keeps me on my toes!

Texts to My Husband

As I was looking over my texts today, I found the ones to Austin gave me a chuckle. Here's an insight into my side of our conversations today:

"Flushable liners = awesomeness"

"Her newly found gymnastic ability is driving me nuts. She's flipped over 3 times now."

"Been trying to go down for nap for 30 min."

"I'm just letting her fall asleep on her tummy. This flip flop game is over."

"Mommy wins!"

httpv://youtu.be/BpdVjUxD0q8

"Life is so hard for you."

httpv://youtu.be/SqAHCojxC50

"What time you think you'll be home today?"

"K. We are all going down for naps soon."

Uses for an iClone

A while back, I posted about our Very Merry Christmas and some of the odd gifts my brother schemed up for each of us. One of the gifts that I didn't mention was a life-size cardboard cutout of Austin. Hilarious right? It gave us a big laugh but after the moment had passed, the question in my mind was, "What the heck are we going to do with this thing?"

Well, Austin found a good way to put his clone to use. The college ministry he works for, Vertias, recently had a conference in St. Louis. The clone of Austin made an appearance in front of the 150+ people there.  Not just any appearance. In fact, Austin's "iClone" had his own special powerpoint presentation of his good and bad uses.

He for sure got some good laughs out of this. Here is what they came up with:

Top Five Uses of an iClone

Top Five BAD Uses for an iClone

Mommy Wants a Silent Night

 Got this in the mail from a family friend of ours, Linnea.

Too cute!

Somebody Found Her Scream

My parents will never let me forget about how loud I was as a child.

Don't worry parents of mine, what goes around comes around.

httpv://youtu.be/024mn0f84U8

Hehe.

Source

My Pet Peeve

Dear Neighbors and Columbia citizens who slowly approach and stop at the stop sign in front of my house with the base in your car so loud that it vibrates my walls:

You are my pet peeve.

I seriously grow irritated every time you pass.

When I hear your car approaching my house all I hear is someone who is desperate for attention or someone who feels the need to prove themselves through a ridiculous method of loud music. And lets be honest with ourselves, shall we? There is NO way you are enjoying the music that you are playing with it that loud.

And at 3 am, really?

Oh, and somehow you know to approach and stop in front of my house just as my sleep-deprived, nap-fighting child is about to doze off. Thank you. Thank you very much for your consideration of others as you attempt to prove your masculinity to the world.

Sincerely,

Angry Neighbor



 

Webcam 101 for Seniors

This video is SO STINKING FUNNY. Watch it wall the way to the end. I giggled my whole way through it. (Click on picture to go to video).

Figures...

This is very typical of me.

Buying a mass quantity of detergent before testing it out to make sure Adelyns tush didn't get a rash from it. Well, all of my cloth diaper loving followers are coming out of the woodwork to inform me that Charlie's Soap detergent is known to cause rashes on baby bottoms.

NOW you tell me.

Anyone want to buy 950+ loads worth of detergent? It works great assuming you aren't wearing cloth diapers.

Most Popular Pregnancy Q&A

Since I work primarily with high school students and college students, I get a lot of the same (and sometimes hilarious) questions. Here are some of the most popular pregnancy questions answered:

 

 

"When are you due?"

June 19th

"How are you feeling?"

Depends on the day. Some days are a breeze, others feel like I have done a triathlon. Overall though, not too much to complain about.

"How are you sleeping? Does she kick at night?"

Again, depends. It kind of goes in a cycle. I'll sleep bad a few nights in a row and then get so tired that I sleep hard the next night. There have only been a few nights where she has kept me up kicking. I told Austin this morning that Adelyn decided to throw a 3 a.m. dance party last night. Dances included the Macarena, line-dancing, river-dancing, and something resembling the Superman dance.

"Any weird cravings?" (people LOVE this question)

I'm still on a blue Gatorade kick. Grapefruit all of the sudden sounded really good too. Popsicles as well.


"Are you going to have an epidural?"

Lord willing.

"Is the nursery ready?"

Pretty much. I still want to deep clean it and figure out how some of our new gadgets work (monitor, pack 'n play, etc.).  But if we had the baby tomorrow, it wouldn't be like we are scrambling to get things ready.

"How is Austin handling all of this?"

Pretty good. Once he realized that Adelyn could hear him and recognize his voice, he's been chatting it up with her. We've also gotten into the habit of reading to her every night (which is something we want to continue to do until she's too old for it). He has told me that every time I call he wonders if "this is the call."

"How do you think your dogs will do with the new baby?"

I think they'll be just fine. We've had a quite a few babies at our house recently and they seem to be getting used to them. I imagine Sophie will be a bit jealous and Chauncey will be a bit shy and skeptical of the new arrival. Hopefully they'll figure out she's more than a squeaky toy.


"Is your belly button sticking out yet"

Still in there. It's getting smaller and a bit more strained but is still an inny.

Questions NEVER to ask a pregnant woman:

"Wow- are you like due tomorrow??" (I haven't gotten that one but know people who have)

"Are you higher risk because of your age?" (People, I'm 28 years old. Not 40. No my childbearing age is not high risk)

"Are you so freaked out about delivery?" (No, but your tone makes me think I should be...)

"Do you realize that you have to push out something the size of a watermelon?" (I like to think of it more as a rotisserie chicken, but yes. Thank you for the reminder of my near future.)

I Can't Stop Giggling

Seriously, for the last 10 minutes I've been in a constant state of giggling while browsing a website I found. Let me explain...

Most avid phone texters can relate to the woes of the auto-correct feature. I've had my share of misplaced words that go unedited before sent to friends or family. It can be confusing and really embarrassing if the wrong word is misplaced.

Well, I stumbled on this website where people can share their embarrassing/slightly inappropriate texts they sent that had been incorrectly auto-corrected. Haha.

http://damnyouautocorrect.com/

The Joys of Craig's List

 I have a strong Love/Hate relationship with Craig's List.

Love it for obvious reasons: great deals, local, unique finds, etc. Hate it for mainly one reason: Unreliable people. I think the anonymity of buying and selling on Craigs List makes people flake out more on their commitments. I'm always a little leery of  my business dealings but the lure of a good deal always brings me back to browse. 

Lately, I've been a stalker of the Baby & Kids section. What I discovered is that there is an abundance of baby swings selling for around $20. I was registered for a baby swing at Target that costs around $130. Wowza. I couldn't bring myself to allow my family and friend to pool together $130+ for a swing that I could very easily get for $20.  So I've been on the hunt for a baby swing. And boy did I hunt...

See all the links in purple? Those are ones that I clicked on at one point or another. Yikes. That's embarrassing. Anyway...









I'd emailed a few people here and there trying to nail down a good deal. I eventually landed on one that I liked.  Pretty new, $20, good ratings, etc. After some emailing, we arranged a time to meet.

I met up with her at the Home Depot parking lot. She seemed very sweet, had two kids with her (one who had gotten car sick on the way making her 20 minutes late to our rendezvous). Poor lady.

Anyway, after emphatically apologizing for her tardiness, she pops open her truck and pulls out the swing. However, it isn't the swing in the picture. It was entirely different and a bit older looking. I was totally caught off guard and racking my brain to figure out what to do.

I assumed that amidst my wheeling and dealings I had mistakenly contacted the wrong person about the swing I had really wanted.  I assumed that the error was on my end and that I had replied to her Craigs List ad accidentally. I chalked it up as another Pregnancy Brain mistake.

I didn't have the heart to say that I made a mistake and didn't want it. I mean this woman had driven 30 minutes with a carsick kid to meet me. She really didn't seem like someone who would hussle me either. So, I bought the swing. The swing I didn't really want but didn't have the guts to say no to. Ugh. Here's a picture of it. It's not horrible. It's just a lot older and has a lot more wear and tear.

Well THEN, I got home and hopped on my computer to figure out where I had mixed up my communication. Turns out, I WASN'T wrong! The picture that she had posted was in fact NOT the swing that she brought. WHAT?! How did this happen?

And you know what, right now I don't have any answers. I am waiting for a response to my email I sent her sheepishly explaining that I didn't say anything about the wrong swing she had sold me. The dilemma is: Is it my fault that I bought the swing I didn't want or is it her fault that she sold me a different swing than advertised. When I word it like that, it's probably more my fault. Ugh.

So now I have a swing that I'm not super crazy about that I'll probably end up selling on Craigs List, encountering flaky people who say they want it but will never follow through with actually buying it.

The Joys of Craig's List

Baby Gift Ideas

 With Christmas around the corner, I am foreseeing some baby gifts coming my way. Here are a few suggestions for those wanting to dress Baby C. 

(Pictures from The Bump)

Gluttony

I wasn't the only one who overate on Thanksgiving...

Below is my sister's dog, Cooper. He managed to rip open a bag of dog food and eat two-thirds of it before being stopped.

He is suffering the consequences of his gluttonous behavior.

Dear Husband of Mine:

Dear Husband,

First of all, I want you to know I love our home. I really do. However, as I bounce around from blog to blog, I can't help but plan for the future. I thought it would be beneficial to share some plans I have for our next home. Since you are a visual creature, I will shower you with pictures of my vision.

For starters, a non-negotiable in our next home:  two vanities. I love you but I don't love sharing one small vanity with you.

Lets talk about our kitchen. A breakfast nook with benches. Mmmm.

 What house isn't complete without a colorful coffee station? I know you don't drink coffee, but it'd be great for hosting.

 I'm loving the huge kitchen island. Add that to the list, dear.

Lets talk bedrooms a bit. This would make a great guest bedroom, don't you think?

 And how about this one for a strapping young lad we might have some day?

Another kids room idea in case we have twins or something. Always be prepared!

Loving the clean, crisp feel of this one as well.

 Oh, here's a living room I like too. Lots of big comfy chairs. Lots of natural light. French doors that open up to our glorious back yard.

 Speaking of yards, having a wrap around front porch like this one that is looking out on our front yard would be AWESOME. Can you whip that up for us, dear one?

 I think we've also learned that having a mudroom would be awesome. Don't worry. I have some ideas for that too. 

 In the mudroom somewhere, we'd have this amazing sink. Dog baths, rinsing out dirty shoes, cleaning vegetables from our garden- you name it. This sink can handle it.

Attached to the mud room, would be a garden room. Yep. A place to keep all the plants, seeds, flowers, tools, etc. It would of course be clean and colorful. My two favorite adjectives.

 We'd also have a great outdoor space. Something like this.

 I've saved my favorite room for last. 

My craft room.

Excuse me while I wipe away the drool.

 I hope you have enjoyed a tour through our future home. We might both have to get three jobs and be in a constant state of debt, but it will be worth it.