Love this guy!

Liam has started taking baths with Magdalena every night and it is the cutest thing! He loves to play with the toys, and splash! This is what I love about having two children. I love the opportunity to see them play and interact. Maggie is in love with Liam. When you ask her what her brother's name is she'll say "Wee-um. He's a baby" every time. I love it! He is, of course, completely obsessed with her.

And by the way, the ring around the outside of the tub isn't "dirt", it's Maggie's bath crayons that won't fully clean off. She rubbed it into the rubber sealant all over the bathtub. Ugh.

Sleep Training, Part 3

People might disagree with me, but for us, sleep training totally and completely works. It worked for Maggie, and it has worked for Liam!
Liam is now going to sleep every night, and twice a day for naps, all by himself. We put him down sleepy, but not asleep. I nurse him before we put him down, and as soon as he starts rubbing his eyes, into bed he goes.
He is also now sleeping in his crib. No more swing for my big boy. We haven't used it for 5 days!
Not only is he falling asleep on his own, he is also sleeping much longer. Last night, he slept in his crib for 6 hours in a row. A month ago, I would have to lie down with him for a 1/2 hour to put him to sleep, and I would have to do it every time he woke up, which was about every two hours.
He usually doesn't cry at all when we put him down, and when he does, it lasts 5-10 minutes and then he is out.
I can't imagine my life if I had refused to let Liam cry at all at night. It was hard, but I was secure in knowing that all his needs were met. He was fed, dry, cozy and tired. He just needed me to be a little firm and tell him that he needed to sleep on his own. The only other option would be co-sleeping the entire night and that doesn't work for me or my husband. Or my lifestyle.
Now that I am going to school, I am so relieved that Liam will be able to sleep peacefully when I am gone. It is a huge weight off of me to know that at much as needs me, he doesn't need to fall asleep. And, I am going to start pumping again so that he will still be able to exclusively breastfeed , even while I am at school.
Good sleep for everyone rocks!!

I'm a Star. My Mother in Law Says So.

That's right. After years of hemming and hawing, I am going back to college. I am even registered for classes and working out financial aid. It's happening for sure.
Why now? Well, here's one honest reason: Mark has not gotten a job. He has applied for lots, had lots of interview, even second interviews, but was never offered a position. Sucky. So, we have no money. By going to school full time, I can receive grants and student loans. I can receive enough for our family to survive solely on, if necessary. And when I graduate, I will hopefully be able to get a job that would support us, if necessary. Mark is also going back for at least one year of school. Hopefully when he is done, he will be more attractive to employers. At the very least, he will leave with two associate degrees.
I am majoring in Medical Office Administration, and plan to transfer to Chico State after I get my GE done at Butte College. Basically, this field interests me, I feel I would excel in it and the forecast for job availability and sustainability is really good.
Because I registered late, it was hard to find classes that were open, were transferable credits and fit my schedule. After hours of figuring it out, I am enrolled in Intro to Shakespeare (Yeah!), Health, American History after 1866 aaanndd Intro to Sculpture. Yes, I said Intro to Sculpture. As in art. I am so excited about this class, I can barely sit still. My arty/crafty side is just dying to come out again and I will finally have opportunities to express myself.
I am only going to school two days a week, from 8-2, with one night class a week. My mom is going to watch the kids and since they both adore her, I feel like it will work out great.
I am nervous about going back to school. I'll admit it. But I am mostly excited. I'm excited to use my brain in different ways than I've gotten used to. I'm excited to have something in my life that is clearly outlined, with obvious expectations and grading scales. I relish the opportunity to do something that I turn it, with my name and receive feedback on.
Parenthood is full of grey areas, both with big stuff and little stuff. There are so many times where you're hoping you're doing a good job, but you know you won't ever know you're final grade as a parent. I do my best, and some days I feel victorious. Some days I feel utterly defeated.
Besides the end result of employment, I also look forward to returning to school for personal reasons. I was a very good student for many years, usually at the top of every class. Then in high school, I derailed for a year (combination of a boy, lots of weed smoking, underage drinking and family stresses) and failed many classes. I worked my butt off my senior year in order to graduate. I ended up getting a 4.0 that whole year, including the college classes I took on top of my six high school classes. And I spoke at Graduation. So there.
Anyway, after that one horrible year, I saw myself as a failure, academically. Even though I managed to pull through and become a model student my senior year, I still felt marred. Like I did something really dirty. I failed classes. And then I realized it wasn't so bad. I could fail. Heck, I could fail all I wanted and nobody really cared. So, I did.
I had some successful semesters at Junior College years ago, but I never really knew what I wanted to do or had motivation. So I mostly got A's in the classes that interested me and failed the others. I like absolutes. Either I shine or I crash and burn.
I feel like going back to school now is right. I am confident in who I am. I have motivation to succeed as I have two very young children watching me, and learning from me. I know I might not be perfect at everything, but I also can't imagine not trying my hardest.
And just so you know, my secret dream is that Mark will get a high paying job in the next year or two and then I can transfer to Chico State as an Art major. Because that would be unbelievably awesome. Even if I can't major in it, art is definitely going to play a part in my education.
I honestly don't want to ever work full time. I would love if I worked part time, and maybe Mark could have a job with reduced hours, too. Or he could work full time and we could have a lot of money. Haha. I still consider myself a stay at home mom, just one who is very busy :)

Summer means...

Swimming!

Mark and I have both always loved the water. We had an above ground swimming pool growing up, and I spent many hot summer afternoons swimming, playing and making up dance routines. Now, my mom has an awesome in ground pool, and we go over there at least twice a week to swim. Maggie loves the water, and now loves to practice holding her breath. We plan to put her back in swimming lessons in the fall, when it gets too cold to swim in unheated pools. I want her to be able to enjoy this year round- and I want her to learn how to swim and get out of a pool if necessary.

I love watching her in the water. She loves playing games, practicing swimming, jumping in and spinning in her tube. She is getting an awesome tan, too, despite the globs of sunscreen she wears every time she's outside. I just love swimming!

Whooo's Crafty?

I made this little felt owl for Liam last week. I didn't use a pattern, heck I didn't even draw a pattern first! I just free cut, purposefully making all the lines a little bit wonky. I loved the idea of an imperfect little guy, with everything a little bit off. I hand sewed it, and it took one whole night, about six hours. I love this Owl, and now want to make so many more animal friends for my kids.

I often get caught up by my perfectionism. I don't want to start a project, because I am afraid I can't do a good enough job. No longer! This little guy has given me to courage to just try. Because even though his beak is a little off center and his feet aren't the same size or shape, I love him. And so does Liam.

One of my favorite things to do...

is to spend a day at my mom's house. I cook all day, Maggie and Mark go swimming and my mom hangs out with Liam. Yesterday, I made these:

Cinnamon Rolls from scratch (they were breakfast this morning!) I planned to put a glaze on them, but they were sweet and delicious all on their own.

And for dinner, we ate our weight in egg rolls. I love to make our own egg rolls, and have been doing it for years and years. My sister and I used to love to make them for our family when we were teenagers. I use the recipe on the back of the Won Ton wrappers and it is delicious!

New Kitchen Staff

When we finally found the right "Resort" on our trip, this is the sign that greeted us. Mark and I laughed about it the whole time we were there:

Things must have been pretty bad at that restaurant if they needed to advertise that they had a new staff! And no, we never ate at the restaurant.

Our Trip

Maggie and Liam both did so, so well during the driving (6-7 hours each way!). Liam was especially "good" and only cried when he was hungry or needed a diaper change. He was a dream, really! Maggie was also very well behaved, but she got antsy and frustrated at times. She did not sleep much at all during the drive. She mainly watched movies, but also played with toys and colored. She did get carsick up the mountain, and threw up everywhere. Poor girl.
When we arrived, we discovered we had somehow been given the wrong name of our resort. So, we were 6 hours away from home, with no cell phone service and no idea where to go. The kids were both crying, hungry and tired by this time. It took two hours to find our group, and I will be honest when I say I did not handle the stress of that very well. I had a full blown panic attack and it was not pretty. I pulled myself together, and we finally figured out where to go.
Once we got there, Maggie was so excited, and so thrown off by being in a completely new environment. She did not settle down the whole time we were there and had extreme difficulty eating and sleeping. She also was totally overwhelmed by the huge amount of people there, trying to talk to her or hug her. By day two, she (and Mark and I) were DONE. She was still feeling a little under the weather, and we decided to just pack up and come home.
Meeting Mark's extended family was AWESOME. I loved everybody, especially the side of the family from Hawaii. Mark's oldest Aunt had 7 children, raised in Hawaii, and they all have children (if not grandchildren) also raised there. They were so welcoming, so happy to meet more of their family and just a good time. It was so fun!
We all (about 40 of us!) drove to the top the mountain, and then hiked about 10 minutes to say goodbye to Mark's Grandma. She passed away in January, and wanted her ashes spread there, where she grew up. It was beautiful, and completely different from any other memorial service I have attended. Everyone spread her ashes around, including all the children. With bare hands. We used a cup.
Then a tree was planted, and everyone stood around, sharing memories and talking her Mark's Grandpa. Mark's grandparents celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary before she died. Can you imagine 70 years of being a partner to someone and then they are gone? His Grandpa was so moved by the gathering of family and I was so, so proud that we managed to join them. Our kids were the youngest by years, and they were appreciated. Liam was passed around like...well something you pass around a lot. He loved every minute of it!
I will never forget Mark's Grandpa giving Mark a hug and then saying "I want to be around to see this one walk. Because he's amazing." while gesturing to Liam. I totally lost it at that point. I love having two amazing families, now. There are so, so many people that love us and our children.
Was our trip fun? Not really. But, it was full of extremely important, memorable moments. We got to spend time with Mark's brother and his wife, and that is always good. Liam loved both of them, especially his brother.
I am so happy we went. It was a big moment. And I felt like we accomplished something big. I am so, so proud of my children. And now I really, really want to go to Hawaii and spend time with that side of the family.

Cousins

Liam and his cousin, Nate, were born 8 days apart. Being pregnant with my sister and watching our boys grow up together has proved to be one of the biggest blessings of my life. I love these two boys so much separately, when you put them together it is just too cute. These pictures are from about 3-4 weeks ago. I love to see them play together!

First Family Vacation!

Well, it looks like we are actually going to get to go on our trip tomorrow! Maggie has been very sick for the last week (after being moderately sick for the past four months). Yesterday, thick white mucus (yummy!) started coming out of her eyes. I freaked, and figured it was pinkeye. Having had pinkeye once when I was pregnant, I knew it started with the mucus.
This morning, she woke up feeling much better. Her earache is gone thanks to antibiotics, and her eyes were totally clear. She didn't cough at all last night and she has been bouncing off the walls with energy. She even ate a little lunch, which was awesome because she hasn't eaten very much the past four or five days.
She is at the Doctor's right now with Mark, just to get a clean bill of health and to make sure it's not Pinkeye.
We are leaving tomorrow at 5:00 in the morning to drive six hours. We are going to a lake in the mountains of central California with Mark's whole family. His Grandma passed away a few months ago, and Saturday would have been her birthday. On that day, we are spreading her ashes in the mountains that she loved dearly her whole life.
We have a cabin waiting, borrowed a SUV from a family member to get there, and have all the necessary supplies to keep the kidlets happy (I hope!). We have only gone on one other overnight vacation with Maggie, and this is Liam's first vacation. I am ready to relax, reflect and enjoy all the free babysitting.
I am excited about the trip, but nervous about the log drive and sleeping arrangements. I am trying my best to let loose and not get all worked up over the details. It will work out, because it always does. See you when we get back! I promise to take lots of pictures...but I'm sure you learned long ago not to trust my promises on this blog :)

Easy, Homemade Baby Food

I love making Liam's food and was happy to discover how easy it is. I like to set aside an afternoon and make three or four different foods. I usually need to spend about 2 hours every two weeks, so it's not a huge time commitment or anything.

First off, I would head to a website like http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/ and read about what foods your baby can be eating at this point. Or better off, talk to your pediatrician. I did, and I feel comfortable serving all of these meals to Liam. He is a very, very good eater and also eats a lot! When I have fed him jarred food, he can eat two jars at each meal.

I choose to make his baby food for very practical reasons. It is very inexpensive, and is much cheaper than jarred baby food (approx. $30/week versus approx. $5/week). I can see every fruit or vegetable or protein that goes into his food, and I know it's quality. I can choose organic with the products that really matter to me. I can tailor the ingredients and the textures to fit his needs exactly. I love knowing that there is some love in every bit of food he has!


First of all, I figure out the best method for each food. Today, I cooked a chicken dinner meal (pureed chicken, peas and carrots), pureed zucchini and summer squash, and a mango and blueberry puree. I also have a large batch of sweet potato puree frozen in the freezer. He has had all these food separately before and did really well with them. So I decided to mix it up! Usually the options are either steam or boil, depending on the type of food you are cooking. Today I decided to simmer the chicken with frozen peas and sliced fresh, organic carrots. I also simmered the frozen mango chicken and frozen blueberries I had bought fresh a few weeks ago. I sauteed the squash in a non stick pan with a teaspoon or two of olive oil. I sauteed the squash because they have such a high water content. You don't really need to add water to them.

After cooking, I let the food cool. Then, I put in it my blender with a small amount of the cooking liquid. My blender is a Cuisinart and is very powerful. I think a food processor is a safer bet unless you are sure your blender can handle it. I add about 1/4 cup of cooking liquid at a time until I reach the desired consistency.

I then transfer the cooled puree into either ice cube trays or muffin tins. I like the size of the muffin tins because it is closer to the amount Liam eats, but it can be a little tricky to get them out of the tray once they have frozen. After about an hour, I dump out the ice cube tray onto a paper towel, then put them into a Ziploc bag. Most nights, I leave the purees in the refrigerator to thaw overnight. The next day, I have thawed baby food ready. Usually, I mix his food with a little bit of whole grain multi grain cereal, made with oats, spelt and barley and I also add breast milk or a little formula. For something like the "chicken dinner", I would not add any cereal.

And there you go! It's that easy. Try it, you'll like it!

"Mom, stop taking pictures and start feeding me, please!"