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Monday, October 7, 2013
Don't get excited LOL
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No you are not seeing things...this is an extra short blog because I am working on the boys yearly photobooks. As you can, I am a liiiitttlllle behind :-P
Maybe I will actually blog again one day....I barely have time to do my day to day things. I thought with twins being in school couple of mornings a week, I'd have all this fantastic free time....not so much.
New house is great....feeling more settled. I have a TON of before and after pics that I would love to share but I need to work on the boys photobooks first then I will share house pics :-)
So if you want to review Jakob's 2nd year of life in pictures, please be my guest :-) I thought mainly family would like to see it so I wanted to share, enjoy the many facial expressions of Jakob hehe
Shutterfly photo books offer a wide range of artful designs and embellishments to choose from.
No you are not seeing things...this is an extra short blog because I am working on the boys yearly photobooks. As you can, I am a liiiitttlllle behind :-P
Maybe I will actually blog again one day....I barely have time to do my day to day things. I thought with twins being in school couple of mornings a week, I'd have all this fantastic free time....not so much.
New house is great....feeling more settled. I have a TON of before and after pics that I would love to share but I need to work on the boys photobooks first then I will share house pics :-)
So if you want to review Jakob's 2nd year of life in pictures, please be my guest :-) I thought mainly family would like to see it so I wanted to share, enjoy the many facial expressions of Jakob hehe
Thursday, July 11, 2013
I'm baaaacccckkk!
Hi there!
I'm doubt my ramblings were missed much but I really enjoy blogging. It's a great outlet for me and I can't wait to have this printed out so boys can later enjoy my ramblings also lol
So quick recap of past 3 months:
* busy
* busy
* busy
* BUSY!
That pretty much sums up the past 3 months. Seriously, highlights include but not limited to:
A super fun trip to South Carolina to see my little brother graduate college. Sheesh...if I didn't feel old, I sure do now! So proud of him!! He is now on a mission trip in Uganda, praying for him daily and love hearing his updates!
Gavin graduated preschool ::sniff sniff:: Bittersweet because we are so very proud of him but he is growing too quickly! I simply cannot believe he will be going to Kindergarten this year. He will be in school from 8:30-3:30. On the rough days where nothing keeps him happy, I look forward to these days but I am really going to miss him.
We went camping with friends, same place we went last year. So very much fun!! I am NOT a camper. I would much rather stay in an RV ANYDAY or even a cabin with solid walls and a bathroom. The past 2 years we have stayed in tents. We have gone to Frontiertown in Ocean City, Maryland and it is perfect for the kiddos.
We bought a house,
Those ginormous tress by front door will be gone very, very, very soon! There are Christmas lights still in them that I am guessing have grown into the tree by now! We will be moving in beginning of August. In the meantime it is being cleaned, painted completely (even ceilings!), refinish hardwood floors, new carpet upstairs and replacing front door.
And listed our current house for sale,
It was officially listed on June 17 or there abouts. I can't remember. We have had a few showings and so far received great feedback but no offers yet. Keep us in your prayers for a sale soon!!!
You may ask yourself why we are moving.....I am pretty sure Marcin and I have reassured each other for the past 3 months that while it is a ridiculous amount of work, in the long run...it will be worth it. Marcin will be closer to work, the boys will attend school in Red Clay School District and it will also give us more options for middle school and high school. We looked in this area initially but were really discouraged by the homes.....older homes, higher prices and a lot of work needed. It was also intimidating to see these houses that needed so much work. So clearly, a new construction home was much more appealing. In retrospect, we should have sucked it up and just bought a house in Pike Creek/Hockessin but for some reason I guess that just wasn't meant to be. Plus we have learned a lot of things that we would have done different so it may have worked out for the best. We love our current house! We have put a lot of love, tlc, stress, tears and most of all money into. Hopefully potential buyers can see that and want it for their home.
The new house will be beautiful once we are finished with it! The previous owner lived there for seven years and I would be willing to wager he didn't clean it in all those years he lived there. I spent almost 4 hours cleaning the kitchen on Tuesday...I still have to get the shop vac on top of cabinets and wipe out all cabinets. The kitchen needs to be replaced since it is original oak cabinets with cream....yes, CREAM appliances lol I have grand plans for the kitchen design but until then, I will be painting cabinets white and counter tops. Hoping to get new stainless steel appliances in a few months and replace cabinets and counter tops with granite in a couple of years. They are nice cabinets just outdated.
One of my absolute favorite parts is the mudroom!! It is so unbelievable functional & large and that makes me so very happy!!! It leads to the garage and there is a door to the deck from mudroom. So kids can strip down in there from pool or outside and not track it inside the entire house.
Did I mention new house has a pool?!?! This was actually clean, I was SHOCKED! lol We weren't looking for a pool but it wasn't a deal breaker either. It makes me nervous with the kids but I have a top lock for every door in house. There is a fence and locked gate around pool that they cannot get into unless an adult helps them. We were all there Tuesday and the boys had a great time in the pool!! Even Jakob was swimming around :-) The happiness and smiles on their faces made all the craziness and stress disappear....for a few minutes. It was pure bliss :-D
So while things are crazier than usual here, you do what you have to do to get through it. Eventually our home will sell and I will cry because I will miss it. We brought our babies home to this house, they did all of their first here. I have no doubt we will be making great memories at the new house also. I see many sunny summer days by the pool....probably in the rain if anything like this summer :-)
Stay tuned for a lot of before and after. Painters are in this week, I can't wait to see the changes!!!
I'm doubt my ramblings were missed much but I really enjoy blogging. It's a great outlet for me and I can't wait to have this printed out so boys can later enjoy my ramblings also lol
So quick recap of past 3 months:
* busy
* busy
* busy
* BUSY!
That pretty much sums up the past 3 months. Seriously, highlights include but not limited to:
A super fun trip to South Carolina to see my little brother graduate college. Sheesh...if I didn't feel old, I sure do now! So proud of him!! He is now on a mission trip in Uganda, praying for him daily and love hearing his updates!
Gavin graduated preschool ::sniff sniff:: Bittersweet because we are so very proud of him but he is growing too quickly! I simply cannot believe he will be going to Kindergarten this year. He will be in school from 8:30-3:30. On the rough days where nothing keeps him happy, I look forward to these days but I am really going to miss him.
We went camping with friends, same place we went last year. So very much fun!! I am NOT a camper. I would much rather stay in an RV ANYDAY or even a cabin with solid walls and a bathroom. The past 2 years we have stayed in tents. We have gone to Frontiertown in Ocean City, Maryland and it is perfect for the kiddos.
We bought a house,
And listed our current house for sale,
It was officially listed on June 17 or there abouts. I can't remember. We have had a few showings and so far received great feedback but no offers yet. Keep us in your prayers for a sale soon!!!
You may ask yourself why we are moving.....I am pretty sure Marcin and I have reassured each other for the past 3 months that while it is a ridiculous amount of work, in the long run...it will be worth it. Marcin will be closer to work, the boys will attend school in Red Clay School District and it will also give us more options for middle school and high school. We looked in this area initially but were really discouraged by the homes.....older homes, higher prices and a lot of work needed. It was also intimidating to see these houses that needed so much work. So clearly, a new construction home was much more appealing. In retrospect, we should have sucked it up and just bought a house in Pike Creek/Hockessin but for some reason I guess that just wasn't meant to be. Plus we have learned a lot of things that we would have done different so it may have worked out for the best. We love our current house! We have put a lot of love, tlc, stress, tears and most of all money into. Hopefully potential buyers can see that and want it for their home.
The new house will be beautiful once we are finished with it! The previous owner lived there for seven years and I would be willing to wager he didn't clean it in all those years he lived there. I spent almost 4 hours cleaning the kitchen on Tuesday...I still have to get the shop vac on top of cabinets and wipe out all cabinets. The kitchen needs to be replaced since it is original oak cabinets with cream....yes, CREAM appliances lol I have grand plans for the kitchen design but until then, I will be painting cabinets white and counter tops. Hoping to get new stainless steel appliances in a few months and replace cabinets and counter tops with granite in a couple of years. They are nice cabinets just outdated.
One of my absolute favorite parts is the mudroom!! It is so unbelievable functional & large and that makes me so very happy!!! It leads to the garage and there is a door to the deck from mudroom. So kids can strip down in there from pool or outside and not track it inside the entire house.
Did I mention new house has a pool?!?! This was actually clean, I was SHOCKED! lol We weren't looking for a pool but it wasn't a deal breaker either. It makes me nervous with the kids but I have a top lock for every door in house. There is a fence and locked gate around pool that they cannot get into unless an adult helps them. We were all there Tuesday and the boys had a great time in the pool!! Even Jakob was swimming around :-) The happiness and smiles on their faces made all the craziness and stress disappear....for a few minutes. It was pure bliss :-D
So while things are crazier than usual here, you do what you have to do to get through it. Eventually our home will sell and I will cry because I will miss it. We brought our babies home to this house, they did all of their first here. I have no doubt we will be making great memories at the new house also. I see many sunny summer days by the pool....probably in the rain if anything like this summer :-)
Stay tuned for a lot of before and after. Painters are in this week, I can't wait to see the changes!!!
Friday, April 12, 2013
lol yep I am still here!
It's um...been a while. A long while....almost 3 months. It doesn't seem that long but 4 boys keeps a girl busy! And exhausted, phew!
A few recaps:
Family - We are great! It has been a l.o.n.g. winter with all the germs going around but I think we survived, HOORAY!!! We ended it with a bang by having a icky stomach virus Easter weekend and the week following. I had it and it was awful! I stayed home all day on Easter...it was not safe to leave the house, ugh! Gavin is registered for Kindergarten...how is he old enough for that?! He is taking a break from drums :-( This makes us sad but he seemed to be ready and was losing interest. He wants to do swimming and possibly soccer this year. He is currently obsessed with Angry Birds....so much so that we had to limit his screen time to twice a day. He would wake up and not say good morning but 'Can I play a game?" um..no you may not! Sheesh! Kaleb is a riot! The things this kid says cracks me up! He is all boy and seems to have entered his Terrible THREE's a few months early because everything is no and he just ignores you instead of following directions. However, he quickly makes up for it with his awesome cuddling skills and sweet voice. Jakob is still very passionate about daily life, lol His speech is getting much better which makes it that much more fun to see more of his personality verbally and understand him better. He will continue with his speech therapy for articulation. He is an instigator...he always has been the first provoke someone but this character trait continues to thrive ;-) He still does his own thing most of the time. Now that his speech is getting better, I have noticed Gavin and him playing together more often but Jakob definitely marches to his own beat, I love that!
These 3 boys drive me insane most days but I love them with all my heart :-) I miss them when I am away from them but some days can't get out of the house fast enough when I am home :-P They make us laugh constantly with the things they say or come up with. Such a blessing to watch them grow up together and hear them laughing...I am pretty sure there I is no better sound in the world!
Marcin is currently in Las Vegas for the weekend celebrating a friends upcoming wedding. I am not at all bitter that he is in Vegas and I am home with 3 adorable boys...not bitter one bit ;-) I am also not bitter that it was monsoon weather in Delaware this morning along with dreary, cloudy day while he calls to tell me that they are going to lay out by the pool because it is THE perfect day. hmph. He deserves it....he works hard at the office AND at home. I am so glad that he went and I hope he has fun!
I am super, super excited with my surgery results!!! Seriously, I still stare at my midsection and can't believe it is mine. It hasn't looked this flat since my Freshman year in college. I have gone shopping a couple of times and it was actually an enjoyable experience. Usually I would go shopping and go directly to area that had loose fittings tops and pants at least a size larger to accommodate my midsection. What a HUGE sigh of relief (And fun feeling) to have clothes fit properly. Seriously...amazing. I was terrified to do the surgery and the mommy guilt was bad pre-surgery. A few days afterwards I thought I would never feel normal again and began to wonder if I made the right decision. 3 months out and barely any swelling left.....mommy guilt gone and I am 100% confident it was a good decision :-) I still can't feel my stomach (think C-section incision numbness but entire stomach...weird!) and some may question whether I am related to Frankenstein if they saw the hip to hip scar I have, working on that with silicone strips. I imagine it will fade with time.
After much discussion, we have decided to move. Initially we thought we would stay in our house and send boys to private school Gavin currently attends for preschool. However, that would be around $20k PER year, ouch. As we all know, tuition will only go UP through the years so it will get higher. I love the school, truly I do but that is a lot of money that could be going into college savings. There are two very good public districts in Delaware....Red Clay, the one that Marcin works in, in the Pike Creek/Hockessin/Greenville area and Appo district which is south of us. Or actually the neighborhood directly beside us. Seriously...the district line runs between our developments. When we bought our house...we anticipated 2 children and liked to think we could swing private with two...still a lot of money but a bit more doable. As you know, we have 3 children not 2, so the crappy district we are in is not going to work. We have been in contact with a realtor and watching the market in both of these school districts. Red Clay is more ideal because Marcin's office and work functions are in that area. This area also has less inventory and a lot of interest which results in the home costs being more than where we currently live. Same builder of our home is in that area....same model of our current home is $50-80k more in that area simply because of location. Just to give you an idea.
We have looked at 2 homes so far...one was too old. The other price was too high considering it would need new roof AND windows within the next 5 years or so. Again, no rush but I have become a little obsessive about it for a few reasons...1) it is FUN to look at houses whether to picture your family in that house or to make fun of the 'decor' 2) what if I am not looking and I miss THE house?! 3) I want to learn about different aspects on houses such as heating elements, septic vs. public, plumbing pipes, etc. Our first two homes have been new construction and while I drive Marcin crazy with all my questions...how else to learn, right? 4) I am just nosey and want to see how other people live lol Interesting stuff....seriously. Someone had a barn door hung above their fire place mantle, another had their kitchen island wallpapered and another had a fireplace IN their kitchen island...I am still curious why that is needed.
That is all in our world, nothing exciting....just life. I would say I will try to do a better job blogging but I am too busy looking at houses and doing drive bys to see if the backyard is decent or not. No, seriously...I will try but my life is hectic. And to think when I had ONE child, I thought life was hectic...little did I know LOL Happy weekend everyone!
A few recaps:
Family - We are great! It has been a l.o.n.g. winter with all the germs going around but I think we survived, HOORAY!!! We ended it with a bang by having a icky stomach virus Easter weekend and the week following. I had it and it was awful! I stayed home all day on Easter...it was not safe to leave the house, ugh! Gavin is registered for Kindergarten...how is he old enough for that?! He is taking a break from drums :-( This makes us sad but he seemed to be ready and was losing interest. He wants to do swimming and possibly soccer this year. He is currently obsessed with Angry Birds....so much so that we had to limit his screen time to twice a day. He would wake up and not say good morning but 'Can I play a game?" um..no you may not! Sheesh! Kaleb is a riot! The things this kid says cracks me up! He is all boy and seems to have entered his Terrible THREE's a few months early because everything is no and he just ignores you instead of following directions. However, he quickly makes up for it with his awesome cuddling skills and sweet voice. Jakob is still very passionate about daily life, lol His speech is getting much better which makes it that much more fun to see more of his personality verbally and understand him better. He will continue with his speech therapy for articulation. He is an instigator...he always has been the first provoke someone but this character trait continues to thrive ;-) He still does his own thing most of the time. Now that his speech is getting better, I have noticed Gavin and him playing together more often but Jakob definitely marches to his own beat, I love that!
These 3 boys drive me insane most days but I love them with all my heart :-) I miss them when I am away from them but some days can't get out of the house fast enough when I am home :-P They make us laugh constantly with the things they say or come up with. Such a blessing to watch them grow up together and hear them laughing...I am pretty sure there I is no better sound in the world!
Marcin is currently in Las Vegas for the weekend celebrating a friends upcoming wedding. I am not at all bitter that he is in Vegas and I am home with 3 adorable boys...not bitter one bit ;-) I am also not bitter that it was monsoon weather in Delaware this morning along with dreary, cloudy day while he calls to tell me that they are going to lay out by the pool because it is THE perfect day. hmph. He deserves it....he works hard at the office AND at home. I am so glad that he went and I hope he has fun!
I am super, super excited with my surgery results!!! Seriously, I still stare at my midsection and can't believe it is mine. It hasn't looked this flat since my Freshman year in college. I have gone shopping a couple of times and it was actually an enjoyable experience. Usually I would go shopping and go directly to area that had loose fittings tops and pants at least a size larger to accommodate my midsection. What a HUGE sigh of relief (And fun feeling) to have clothes fit properly. Seriously...amazing. I was terrified to do the surgery and the mommy guilt was bad pre-surgery. A few days afterwards I thought I would never feel normal again and began to wonder if I made the right decision. 3 months out and barely any swelling left.....mommy guilt gone and I am 100% confident it was a good decision :-) I still can't feel my stomach (think C-section incision numbness but entire stomach...weird!) and some may question whether I am related to Frankenstein if they saw the hip to hip scar I have, working on that with silicone strips. I imagine it will fade with time.
After much discussion, we have decided to move. Initially we thought we would stay in our house and send boys to private school Gavin currently attends for preschool. However, that would be around $20k PER year, ouch. As we all know, tuition will only go UP through the years so it will get higher. I love the school, truly I do but that is a lot of money that could be going into college savings. There are two very good public districts in Delaware....Red Clay, the one that Marcin works in, in the Pike Creek/Hockessin/Greenville area and Appo district which is south of us. Or actually the neighborhood directly beside us. Seriously...the district line runs between our developments. When we bought our house...we anticipated 2 children and liked to think we could swing private with two...still a lot of money but a bit more doable. As you know, we have 3 children not 2, so the crappy district we are in is not going to work. We have been in contact with a realtor and watching the market in both of these school districts. Red Clay is more ideal because Marcin's office and work functions are in that area. This area also has less inventory and a lot of interest which results in the home costs being more than where we currently live. Same builder of our home is in that area....same model of our current home is $50-80k more in that area simply because of location. Just to give you an idea.
We have looked at 2 homes so far...one was too old. The other price was too high considering it would need new roof AND windows within the next 5 years or so. Again, no rush but I have become a little obsessive about it for a few reasons...1) it is FUN to look at houses whether to picture your family in that house or to make fun of the 'decor' 2) what if I am not looking and I miss THE house?! 3) I want to learn about different aspects on houses such as heating elements, septic vs. public, plumbing pipes, etc. Our first two homes have been new construction and while I drive Marcin crazy with all my questions...how else to learn, right? 4) I am just nosey and want to see how other people live lol Interesting stuff....seriously. Someone had a barn door hung above their fire place mantle, another had their kitchen island wallpapered and another had a fireplace IN their kitchen island...I am still curious why that is needed.
That is all in our world, nothing exciting....just life. I would say I will try to do a better job blogging but I am too busy looking at houses and doing drive bys to see if the backyard is decent or not. No, seriously...I will try but my life is hectic. And to think when I had ONE child, I thought life was hectic...little did I know LOL Happy weekend everyone!
Saturday, January 19, 2013
oh man..we are in for it! TODDLER BEDS!
The other day Marcin mentioned making the transition to toddler beds for J&K. Originally we wanted to wait as long as possible for this transition, for obvious reasons hehe However, due to my surgery I cannot lift anything really for 5-6 weeks. I want to think I will able to before then but I am guessing probably now. And even I can, not the best idea since there is a lot of healing going on that I can't even see. Anywho, I told Marcin I thought it would be a sensible idea because I won't need help every during week getting lil guys in/out of beds at nap times. Kaleb has already been climbing in and out of his crib. Jakob will swing a leg over but thats it.
So this morning while Gavin and I sat on couch snuggling watching Care Bears and J&K ran around/watched tv/sat/fought/laughed/etc., Marcin got started on feeding the monitor through the wall although didnt' quite work but it is safey from reach of little hands. Eventually we all went upstairs to 'help' :-) Eh hem...I sat on the glider and supervised (see? I am being a good patient today) Marcin & Gavin put Jakob's toddler rail on first...at first I think Jakob was upset because he started yelling and pointing at his bed like it was broken. Then we explained it was his 'big boy' bed and he was excited when he realized the endless opportunities this presented him with.
In fact he was so excited, he decided to take off his pajamas, find a bucket for his head and run around like a crazy child! lol He is such a silly kid!!
Kaleb was also excited by Jakob's new bed...Kaleb always wants to climb in Jakob's bed. I do not understand the fascination of it. As you may have guessed, when Kaleb saw Jakob's toddler bed he wanted to 'lay down tooooooo.' Jakob complied at first. Then Jakob decided no one was allowed in his bed. Period. I just hope he stays in it and sleeps during nap and night time!
Marcin then tells Kaleb that its his turn to get a big boy bed too! Kaleb's eyes get really big and he says, "I AM SO EXCITED!" He truly was excited, he was jumping around like a monkey and couldn't wait to get in his new bed!
Gavin was a great helper with both beds, such a little man :-)
Kaleb was not nearly as possessive over his new bed. He invited everyone to come lay down and tuck their toes :-)
I am not certain how this will go...could be good or really bad :/ I REALLY hope it does signify an end to naps. I have a feeling it may for a week or so until they adjust. I also hope it doesn't result in super early morning wake ups.
These guys are in their owns rooms....we went back and forth on this when I was pregnant with them. I was pretty adamant about them having their own rooms. I was terrified, regardless of how many say they get used to each other, that they would wake one another up. We also had the space so I figured why stress over it. At the time we had two spare rooms upstairs, one was being used as a guest room. Thankfully we were also in the process of finishing our basement and we had put an extra room down there. That room became the new guest room and J&K got the two rooms upstairs.
Wish us luck!
Kaleb was also excited by Jakob's new bed...Kaleb always wants to climb in Jakob's bed. I do not understand the fascination of it. As you may have guessed, when Kaleb saw Jakob's toddler bed he wanted to 'lay down tooooooo.' Jakob complied at first. Then Jakob decided no one was allowed in his bed. Period. I just hope he stays in it and sleeps during nap and night time!
Marcin then tells Kaleb that its his turn to get a big boy bed too! Kaleb's eyes get really big and he says, "I AM SO EXCITED!" He truly was excited, he was jumping around like a monkey and couldn't wait to get in his new bed!
Gavin was a great helper with both beds, such a little man :-)
Kaleb was not nearly as possessive over his new bed. He invited everyone to come lay down and tuck their toes :-)
I am not certain how this will go...could be good or really bad :/ I REALLY hope it does signify an end to naps. I have a feeling it may for a week or so until they adjust. I also hope it doesn't result in super early morning wake ups.
These guys are in their owns rooms....we went back and forth on this when I was pregnant with them. I was pretty adamant about them having their own rooms. I was terrified, regardless of how many say they get used to each other, that they would wake one another up. We also had the space so I figured why stress over it. At the time we had two spare rooms upstairs, one was being used as a guest room. Thankfully we were also in the process of finishing our basement and we had put an extra room down there. That room became the new guest room and J&K got the two rooms upstairs.
Wish us luck!
Thursday, January 17, 2013
First follow up AND I got out of house, YIPPEE!!!!
Sadly I have not been out of my house since I got home last Saturday. Clearly, I haven't missed much but a lot of grey skies and rain, ugh! I was anxious to get to my follow up with plastic surgeon because I had a lot of questions.
I really like the plastic surgeon, he is great but he wasn't too helpful in the post-op area. He just said I would be in a lot of pain and take my med. I like for things to be more specific than that. For example, the shower confusion. The nurse at hospital said I could not take a shower for at least a couple of weeks (ICK!) but on my discharge papers, the doc said I could shower. It seemed to be routine to get an antibiotic after surgery to prevent any infections but I didn't get that either.
My only instructions at discharge were 1) I can shower 2) empty grenades 3-4 times a day 3) open binder a few times a day for 10 minutes or so 4) rest, alot. um....ok.
So that is that I have been doing. Except for the shower part...I tried that once, it hurt. I won't be doing that again for a few days. Not to mention it was too much work with the drainage tubes going every which a way, not being able to bend to wash some places, etc. Overall, just a pita. So I will just continue with my sink bath and get Marcin to help me wash my hair. I tried the No Rinse Shampoo....very interesting stuff. Worked pretty well....my hair looked clean for about 2 days. not bad.
At my follow up today, the nurse Dana was SUPER helpful! I asked her where she was a week ago and why she is not doing rounds at the hospital to help out the patients! She said she is currently putting together a post-op packet. I told her I would be happy to help because I feel I have learned a lot the past week that could be helpful to others. She gave me her email....I hope she is prepared for my email LOL
So Dana took stitches out of my new belly button. That was weird...being that my entire stomach is numb and tingly ( IF you have had a c/s, remember the numbness around c/s scar? think of that but all over your midsection, weird.) I don't like to touch it because it freaks me out to know I am touching it but can't feel it.
I digress....she then proceeded to hold one end of the tube close to my stomach and then squeeze all the way down the tube to the grenade.UM WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! lol it did not hurt me but seeing her do it made it hurt. She explained I should have been doing this all week. I told her no one told me to do that. She also said I could let the grenades just hang down....currently they are safety pinned to my binder. They are not something I feel should just be 'hanging' down....what if one comes out? what if I get wrapped up in them while I sleep? the tubes are as long as my legs! I told her that was not a good idea for me but good to know :-P
I inquired about showering..she said that yes absolutely I could shower. THANK YOU!
Back pain....comes with the territory. She had some ideas for sitting and propping legs up, blah blah blah. I have already tried those things...did/does not work. I will deal with it and thank god for percocets!
She gave me a fancy new binder...it is super sexy too!!! Blogger isn't letting me insert a pic but picture this.....nude color biker shorts that go from bottom of chest to top of knees. S.E.X.Y. This is soooooo much more comfy than the other binder the hospital gave me. I am loving Dana at this point! lol
She said to keep on my pain meds as I need them...I told her that is about 2 every 4 hours. She suggested I alternate with 800mg tylenol with the percocets. hmmmm....maybe next week ;-)
I go back to see her next week to have my drainage tubes/grenades taken out. HOORAY!!! YIPPEE!!!! WOO HOO!!!! I hate these darn things....always in my way and stress me out! She said to keep them in as long as I tolerate them, up to 10-14 days. I asked her what the point of the drains were, she explained that the area of my surgery is so large and will produce too much fluid for my body to absorb, the drains help with that. Some surgeons do not do the drains but the fluids will then build up in your body and you have to go to doc to get them drained. YUCK! *sigh* so one more week with the darn drains. One week down....I can do this!
I was thinking this morning, I feel the best in the mornings, that overall this experience has not been awful. It is a temporary inconvenience and fortunately we have fantastic family and friends helping us out. I wouldn't want to do it again by any means but I know some people who are considering this surgery and on a scale of 1-10, I would put it around a 5. It is tolerable.
Maybe....just maybe I will post my before and after pics. If you want to see, I will happily email them to you but I am not ready for them to be in blogger world just yet :-P
I really like the plastic surgeon, he is great but he wasn't too helpful in the post-op area. He just said I would be in a lot of pain and take my med. I like for things to be more specific than that. For example, the shower confusion. The nurse at hospital said I could not take a shower for at least a couple of weeks (ICK!) but on my discharge papers, the doc said I could shower. It seemed to be routine to get an antibiotic after surgery to prevent any infections but I didn't get that either.
My only instructions at discharge were 1) I can shower 2) empty grenades 3-4 times a day 3) open binder a few times a day for 10 minutes or so 4) rest, alot. um....ok.
So that is that I have been doing. Except for the shower part...I tried that once, it hurt. I won't be doing that again for a few days. Not to mention it was too much work with the drainage tubes going every which a way, not being able to bend to wash some places, etc. Overall, just a pita. So I will just continue with my sink bath and get Marcin to help me wash my hair. I tried the No Rinse Shampoo....very interesting stuff. Worked pretty well....my hair looked clean for about 2 days. not bad.
At my follow up today, the nurse Dana was SUPER helpful! I asked her where she was a week ago and why she is not doing rounds at the hospital to help out the patients! She said she is currently putting together a post-op packet. I told her I would be happy to help because I feel I have learned a lot the past week that could be helpful to others. She gave me her email....I hope she is prepared for my email LOL
So Dana took stitches out of my new belly button. That was weird...being that my entire stomach is numb and tingly ( IF you have had a c/s, remember the numbness around c/s scar? think of that but all over your midsection, weird.) I don't like to touch it because it freaks me out to know I am touching it but can't feel it.
I digress....she then proceeded to hold one end of the tube close to my stomach and then squeeze all the way down the tube to the grenade.UM WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! lol it did not hurt me but seeing her do it made it hurt. She explained I should have been doing this all week. I told her no one told me to do that. She also said I could let the grenades just hang down....currently they are safety pinned to my binder. They are not something I feel should just be 'hanging' down....what if one comes out? what if I get wrapped up in them while I sleep? the tubes are as long as my legs! I told her that was not a good idea for me but good to know :-P
I inquired about showering..she said that yes absolutely I could shower. THANK YOU!
Back pain....comes with the territory. She had some ideas for sitting and propping legs up, blah blah blah. I have already tried those things...did/does not work. I will deal with it and thank god for percocets!
She gave me a fancy new binder...it is super sexy too!!! Blogger isn't letting me insert a pic but picture this.....nude color biker shorts that go from bottom of chest to top of knees. S.E.X.Y. This is soooooo much more comfy than the other binder the hospital gave me. I am loving Dana at this point! lol
She said to keep on my pain meds as I need them...I told her that is about 2 every 4 hours. She suggested I alternate with 800mg tylenol with the percocets. hmmmm....maybe next week ;-)
I go back to see her next week to have my drainage tubes/grenades taken out. HOORAY!!! YIPPEE!!!! WOO HOO!!!! I hate these darn things....always in my way and stress me out! She said to keep them in as long as I tolerate them, up to 10-14 days. I asked her what the point of the drains were, she explained that the area of my surgery is so large and will produce too much fluid for my body to absorb, the drains help with that. Some surgeons do not do the drains but the fluids will then build up in your body and you have to go to doc to get them drained. YUCK! *sigh* so one more week with the darn drains. One week down....I can do this!
I was thinking this morning, I feel the best in the mornings, that overall this experience has not been awful. It is a temporary inconvenience and fortunately we have fantastic family and friends helping us out. I wouldn't want to do it again by any means but I know some people who are considering this surgery and on a scale of 1-10, I would put it around a 5. It is tolerable.
Maybe....just maybe I will post my before and after pics. If you want to see, I will happily email them to you but I am not ready for them to be in blogger world just yet :-P
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
b.o.r.i.n.g.
6 days post-op...I am over it! LOL The first two days were fun and nice, now I am ready to be recovered and move on.
Unfortunately that is not the way it works *sigh*
I over did it yesterday. I have been taking 2 percocets every 4 hours...they knock me out and I hate that drug induced foggy head. So yesterday I thought I would try taking 1 perc every 4 hours. Big mistake. I felt ok until the afternoon and then it felt like doc had inserted a full sheet of metal in place of my stomach. The numbness was painful and my back was killing me, so back to 2 percocets I went. 2 hours later and I felt fantastic, except for the back pain. That doesn't really stop...in retrospect, I should have rented a walker with tennis balls for a few days.
I had a slight anxiety attack last night when I realized I didn't have enough meds to get me to my follow up appt tomorrow =0 I called doc office this morning completely prepared to beg for them because when I had my c/s, they would not give me anymore. Told me to take 3 motrin. hmph...I need more than 3 motrin. The nurse listened to my winded explanation and said, "Of course we can give you more but you need to come pick up the script. We cannot call in a narcotics script." I told her my husband would be there to pick it up. She is an angel I tell ya lol
So 6 days post-op....overall physically I feel pretty good except my back. Mentally I am sad because I can't play or snuggle with my boys. Nor can I really snuggle with hubby. This dreary grey weather outside doesn't exactly cheer a girl up either. oh well. I'd rather be stuck inside on a day like this instead of a nice, sunny warm June day.
I am still being a recluse upstairs in our sitting room. On the plus side, this darn room is actually getting some use! who knew?! hehe We have an extra love seat up here and it has been perfect for me to sit with my computer, cell, drinks, magazines, meds, water, etc. I have been downstairs a few times but I realize it is better if I stay upstairs for a few reasons:
1) I rest more upstairs
2) I feel like I should be helping when I am downstairs. I can't really help so then that becomes guilt that I can't help
3) I hate telling the boys I can't pick them up or play with them
4) it's quiet up here. I am thinking these pain meds amplify noises or something lol
I can still hear them all downstairs...the boys laughing, Jakob yelling no because he didnt' get his way or wants to do something himself. They don't really miss me that much which I am fine with....sort of. If they missed alot then they would be crying for me all the time and that would drive anyone crazy. Plus I am so glad that as tired as they probably are (And won't admit to me), my dad and Gay get to spend some time with the kids and bond with them. The boys are having a great time with them. They leave on Friday....I am not sure who will be the saddest? them? the kids? me? marcin? lol
I have completed a photobook and 2 calendars! I have 2 more photobooks to finish up...I think I can do that by end of week, HOORAY!!! it is easy to pick out pictures while in my percocet haze...hard to type or see letters very clearly. They all run together hehe
I received a fantastic surprise when I got home from hospital and another one yesterday. My friend Keeley picked the perfect time to send my birthday gift...a box of goodies and these awesome headbands that I've wanted since I visited her in April! As a matter of fact I need to order some for a couple of belated birthday gifts :/ They do not slip at all!
http://www.sweatybands.com/
My other friend Meg sent me some super cute and comfy pj pants with a People Magazine. Now some may be thinking...a magazine? I was so excited for this magazine! I gave up long ago on reading magazines....they end up at the bottom of the mail pile unread. I actually got to read ALL of this one! As soon as they drainage tubes are taken out, I will be wearing my comfy pj pants! HOORAY!!!!
ok time for some online shopping before I forget what I need to look for! EK!!! thanks for reading my random thoughts ;-D
Unfortunately that is not the way it works *sigh*
I over did it yesterday. I have been taking 2 percocets every 4 hours...they knock me out and I hate that drug induced foggy head. So yesterday I thought I would try taking 1 perc every 4 hours. Big mistake. I felt ok until the afternoon and then it felt like doc had inserted a full sheet of metal in place of my stomach. The numbness was painful and my back was killing me, so back to 2 percocets I went. 2 hours later and I felt fantastic, except for the back pain. That doesn't really stop...in retrospect, I should have rented a walker with tennis balls for a few days.
I had a slight anxiety attack last night when I realized I didn't have enough meds to get me to my follow up appt tomorrow =0 I called doc office this morning completely prepared to beg for them because when I had my c/s, they would not give me anymore. Told me to take 3 motrin. hmph...I need more than 3 motrin. The nurse listened to my winded explanation and said, "Of course we can give you more but you need to come pick up the script. We cannot call in a narcotics script." I told her my husband would be there to pick it up. She is an angel I tell ya lol
So 6 days post-op....overall physically I feel pretty good except my back. Mentally I am sad because I can't play or snuggle with my boys. Nor can I really snuggle with hubby. This dreary grey weather outside doesn't exactly cheer a girl up either. oh well. I'd rather be stuck inside on a day like this instead of a nice, sunny warm June day.
I am still being a recluse upstairs in our sitting room. On the plus side, this darn room is actually getting some use! who knew?! hehe We have an extra love seat up here and it has been perfect for me to sit with my computer, cell, drinks, magazines, meds, water, etc. I have been downstairs a few times but I realize it is better if I stay upstairs for a few reasons:
1) I rest more upstairs
2) I feel like I should be helping when I am downstairs. I can't really help so then that becomes guilt that I can't help
3) I hate telling the boys I can't pick them up or play with them
4) it's quiet up here. I am thinking these pain meds amplify noises or something lol
I can still hear them all downstairs...the boys laughing, Jakob yelling no because he didnt' get his way or wants to do something himself. They don't really miss me that much which I am fine with....sort of. If they missed alot then they would be crying for me all the time and that would drive anyone crazy. Plus I am so glad that as tired as they probably are (And won't admit to me), my dad and Gay get to spend some time with the kids and bond with them. The boys are having a great time with them. They leave on Friday....I am not sure who will be the saddest? them? the kids? me? marcin? lol
I have completed a photobook and 2 calendars! I have 2 more photobooks to finish up...I think I can do that by end of week, HOORAY!!! it is easy to pick out pictures while in my percocet haze...hard to type or see letters very clearly. They all run together hehe
I received a fantastic surprise when I got home from hospital and another one yesterday. My friend Keeley picked the perfect time to send my birthday gift...a box of goodies and these awesome headbands that I've wanted since I visited her in April! As a matter of fact I need to order some for a couple of belated birthday gifts :/ They do not slip at all!
http://www.sweatybands.com/
My other friend Meg sent me some super cute and comfy pj pants with a People Magazine. Now some may be thinking...a magazine? I was so excited for this magazine! I gave up long ago on reading magazines....they end up at the bottom of the mail pile unread. I actually got to read ALL of this one! As soon as they drainage tubes are taken out, I will be wearing my comfy pj pants! HOORAY!!!!
ok time for some online shopping before I forget what I need to look for! EK!!! thanks for reading my random thoughts ;-D
Monday, January 14, 2013
4 days post surgery !
I did it...I actually went through with it. There were a few moments when I was scared to death and wanted to back out. For those of you who aren't aware, I had a procedure last Friday....an abdominoplasty with liposuction to be exact. Also known as a tummy tuck.
Over the past 2 years I have gone back and forth on this surgery. It terrified me, the mom guilt was ridiculous, the amount of money was ridiculous, the recovery & all the help we would need (i.e. inconveniencing others) and it was something all for me. After my 2nd consult with surgeon, I scheduled surgery. This was during summer. Boy that time flew by and before I knew it it was January....then January 10, then the big day, ACK! The plastic surgeon told me numerous times the recovery would be much worse than a c-section and it was by far the worst recovery out of all the surgeries he does. Lovely. I have had 2 c/s and some days felt I would rather not know what I was getting myself into but then after the surgery, I was thankful for my c/s experience...those surgeries have definitely made it easier to cope with this recovery.
So doc cut me hip to hip below bikini line, ouch! I have a drainage tube attached to a grenade looking container on each hip for excess fluid, yuck! I have to wear a binder around my abdomen (just like I did after c/s) and empty out the hand grenades :/ Overall, 4 days post-op I feel pretty good. I am still taking 2 percocets every 4 hours, going to try and cut back to one tomorrow. I have a check up with doc on Thursday and again next week to hopefully get the tubes taken out. They are annoying.
I havent seen the boys and gotten any cuddles in FOUR days....man I miss those little guys :-( Saturday I came home with Marcin and my dad and Gay took boys in basement while I snuck upstairs to my room. I have been hiding out since. They don't seem to miss me too much, at least I get to hear those sweet laughs and Gavin talking nonstop. I am really worried about them accidentally pulling on the drainage tubes. I believe Gavin would be ok but the lil guys worry me. I decided today to be a recluse for one more day :-P Hopefully I can catch up on my hugs and kisses tomorrow!
I thought I would have been much more productive while sitting on my butt for a few days. I have finished one out of 3 photo books I need to do. I need to complete one photo calendar and clean out my inbox. I want to watch a good movie but I have yet to find one that holds my interest :-( I tried '10 Years'.....nope. I then tried "Young Adults" with Charlize Theoron...nope. I was really hopeful Breaking Dawn part 2 would be on DVD by now *sigh* IF you have any suggestions, send them my way! Or some good tv series you have been watching :-)
Thanks!
Over the past 2 years I have gone back and forth on this surgery. It terrified me, the mom guilt was ridiculous, the amount of money was ridiculous, the recovery & all the help we would need (i.e. inconveniencing others) and it was something all for me. After my 2nd consult with surgeon, I scheduled surgery. This was during summer. Boy that time flew by and before I knew it it was January....then January 10, then the big day, ACK! The plastic surgeon told me numerous times the recovery would be much worse than a c-section and it was by far the worst recovery out of all the surgeries he does. Lovely. I have had 2 c/s and some days felt I would rather not know what I was getting myself into but then after the surgery, I was thankful for my c/s experience...those surgeries have definitely made it easier to cope with this recovery.
So doc cut me hip to hip below bikini line, ouch! I have a drainage tube attached to a grenade looking container on each hip for excess fluid, yuck! I have to wear a binder around my abdomen (just like I did after c/s) and empty out the hand grenades :/ Overall, 4 days post-op I feel pretty good. I am still taking 2 percocets every 4 hours, going to try and cut back to one tomorrow. I have a check up with doc on Thursday and again next week to hopefully get the tubes taken out. They are annoying.
I havent seen the boys and gotten any cuddles in FOUR days....man I miss those little guys :-( Saturday I came home with Marcin and my dad and Gay took boys in basement while I snuck upstairs to my room. I have been hiding out since. They don't seem to miss me too much, at least I get to hear those sweet laughs and Gavin talking nonstop. I am really worried about them accidentally pulling on the drainage tubes. I believe Gavin would be ok but the lil guys worry me. I decided today to be a recluse for one more day :-P Hopefully I can catch up on my hugs and kisses tomorrow!
I thought I would have been much more productive while sitting on my butt for a few days. I have finished one out of 3 photo books I need to do. I need to complete one photo calendar and clean out my inbox. I want to watch a good movie but I have yet to find one that holds my interest :-( I tried '10 Years'.....nope. I then tried "Young Adults" with Charlize Theoron...nope. I was really hopeful Breaking Dawn part 2 would be on DVD by now *sigh* IF you have any suggestions, send them my way! Or some good tv series you have been watching :-)
Thanks!
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Christmas = SUCCESS! 13 days......
Even though I felt like I would never get everything done for 'Santa' we did it and the boys were so excited!!
J&K were happy just ripping open the wrapping paper :-P And even more happy when they saw the fun toy inside lol Their favorite gifts were some Hess trucks and Mr. Potato Head :-)
Gavin first opened his electric guitar stand but couldn't find his guitar. Santa had hid it behind tree, hehe He finally discovered it and was over the moon! He also got his speaker, wire and guitar. He has played it every day since Christmas....strumming along singing a song. So stinkin' cute!!! He has also inquired if he can take guitar lessons at drum school :-) Fortunately for him, his drum teacher also plays guitar so it looks like we will be learning guitar for a bit. Although I like the drums better....they require more energy.
Marcin and I got a few things for each other but we decided we needed to concentrate on the kiddos. I was pretty proud of myself because from Santa each kid got 4-5 items (Well except Gavin since his guitar required some accessories). I have been Christmas shopping since summer :-) All of their gifts were excellent condition second hand gifts and I saved a lot of money! Yep even the guitar, amp and huge 20 inch Ride cymbal gavin received.
It was a good holiday! Now to get ready for New Years....you know us, we go all out with a huge party to attend, formal wear, hotel, etc. HA HA! kidding....we will be home with the kids :-) I plan to cook some steaks, lobster tail, hoppin' johns, cornbread and something sweet for dessert. I really hope I make it to midnight but that is always hard to tell. Then its my birthday, WOO HOO!!!! I am having a difficult time processing the fact that I am turning 35...its just strange. I don't feel 35 but then again I am not certain what 35 should feel like. Of course I am always tired but I blame that on my children because their endless energy is exhausting!
13 days until my Christmas and birthday gift for next 10 years or so....the tummy tuck! Best.Gift.Ever. :-D I had my pre-op appt a couple of days ago. I didn't expect much from this appt because I had two consults so I could ask my 1,001 questions/stresses/concerns. The plastic surgeon is great....very nice, straight forward and laid back. I like this in a doctor. I get to pre-op, they have me undress down to bra/underwear and give me this paper half shirt to put on...really? whats the point? LOL not to mention it was FREEZING!! I ask for a blanket but thankfully Doc was coming right in, whew! Seriously, I had goosebumps! This was how appt went:
Doc: How are you?
Me: good!
Doc: I need to take two pictures of midsection. I will cut from hip to hip, take out this pocket of skin/fat, pull skin down, reposition belly button, lipo flanks and home you go. Here is painkiller script. Any questions?
Me: (Deer in headlights look on my face) Um........I was nervous for this appt today, can you give me anything for nerves day of or before?
Doc: Do you like wine?
Me: Yes
Doc: That's all I can give you, he says while laughing. ( I am not sure what is so funny since its ME going under knife!)
I continue to bombard him with more questions that I already know answer too but I need the reassurance that the answers are all the same LOL They are. I'll be down for the count for at least a week, 2 drainage tubes for 10-14 days, not able to stand up straight or lay flat for at least a week, may take longer to lay flat. He said out of all he cosmetic surgeries he does, this is the most painful recovery. Lovely. Although I told him I would rather expect the worst and be pleasantly surprised if its better than I anticipate. It makes sense that the recovery would be rough....midsection is a huge part of the body that the body relies on for many things. I am as ready as I am going to be.
One of my top concerns are the boys....I am going to miss them. I know I will be here and see them but I won't be able to cuddle, pick them up for kisses or play alot. Mom guilt 150% *Sigh* Such as life :-) Wish me luck, pray for me....whatever you do, please keep us in your thoughts!!
J&K were happy just ripping open the wrapping paper :-P And even more happy when they saw the fun toy inside lol Their favorite gifts were some Hess trucks and Mr. Potato Head :-)
Gavin first opened his electric guitar stand but couldn't find his guitar. Santa had hid it behind tree, hehe He finally discovered it and was over the moon! He also got his speaker, wire and guitar. He has played it every day since Christmas....strumming along singing a song. So stinkin' cute!!! He has also inquired if he can take guitar lessons at drum school :-) Fortunately for him, his drum teacher also plays guitar so it looks like we will be learning guitar for a bit. Although I like the drums better....they require more energy.
Marcin and I got a few things for each other but we decided we needed to concentrate on the kiddos. I was pretty proud of myself because from Santa each kid got 4-5 items (Well except Gavin since his guitar required some accessories). I have been Christmas shopping since summer :-) All of their gifts were excellent condition second hand gifts and I saved a lot of money! Yep even the guitar, amp and huge 20 inch Ride cymbal gavin received.
It was a good holiday! Now to get ready for New Years....you know us, we go all out with a huge party to attend, formal wear, hotel, etc. HA HA! kidding....we will be home with the kids :-) I plan to cook some steaks, lobster tail, hoppin' johns, cornbread and something sweet for dessert. I really hope I make it to midnight but that is always hard to tell. Then its my birthday, WOO HOO!!!! I am having a difficult time processing the fact that I am turning 35...its just strange. I don't feel 35 but then again I am not certain what 35 should feel like. Of course I am always tired but I blame that on my children because their endless energy is exhausting!
13 days until my Christmas and birthday gift for next 10 years or so....the tummy tuck! Best.Gift.Ever. :-D I had my pre-op appt a couple of days ago. I didn't expect much from this appt because I had two consults so I could ask my 1,001 questions/stresses/concerns. The plastic surgeon is great....very nice, straight forward and laid back. I like this in a doctor. I get to pre-op, they have me undress down to bra/underwear and give me this paper half shirt to put on...really? whats the point? LOL not to mention it was FREEZING!! I ask for a blanket but thankfully Doc was coming right in, whew! Seriously, I had goosebumps! This was how appt went:
Doc: How are you?
Me: good!
Doc: I need to take two pictures of midsection. I will cut from hip to hip, take out this pocket of skin/fat, pull skin down, reposition belly button, lipo flanks and home you go. Here is painkiller script. Any questions?
Me: (Deer in headlights look on my face) Um........I was nervous for this appt today, can you give me anything for nerves day of or before?
Doc: Do you like wine?
Me: Yes
Doc: That's all I can give you, he says while laughing. ( I am not sure what is so funny since its ME going under knife!)
I continue to bombard him with more questions that I already know answer too but I need the reassurance that the answers are all the same LOL They are. I'll be down for the count for at least a week, 2 drainage tubes for 10-14 days, not able to stand up straight or lay flat for at least a week, may take longer to lay flat. He said out of all he cosmetic surgeries he does, this is the most painful recovery. Lovely. Although I told him I would rather expect the worst and be pleasantly surprised if its better than I anticipate. It makes sense that the recovery would be rough....midsection is a huge part of the body that the body relies on for many things. I am as ready as I am going to be.
One of my top concerns are the boys....I am going to miss them. I know I will be here and see them but I won't be able to cuddle, pick them up for kisses or play alot. Mom guilt 150% *Sigh* Such as life :-) Wish me luck, pray for me....whatever you do, please keep us in your thoughts!!
Sunday, December 23, 2012
finally...ready for Christmas!!
I honestly did not think we would get here! All I need is a pack of C batteries and a bottle of wine, good to go!
I got the rest of my baking finished up yesterday....sugar cookies, peanut butter blossom (YUM!!!), red velvet bundt cake and mini oreo cheesecake (Thank you pinterest....seriously if you are an Oreo lover, you will love, love, love these things!) Run to the store, get the ingredients and make them before the ever popular News Years resolution to eat healthy, LOL http://www.threesquarechef.com/2011/06/mini-oreo-cheesecakes.html
We got all the gifts wrapped last night...clean up house over next couple of days, work on bathroom and wait for the Big Guy to come visit :-)
When Gavin was born we decided we would stay in Delaware for Christmas instead of traveling. It is hectic enough to travel, let alone over the Christmas holidays so we felt this was a great idea. Especially after J&K were born...home it is! Pre-kids we would alternate Thanksgiving and Christmas with our families. It makes me sad not to have my family with me during the holiday but my prince charming was in Delaware....whats a girl to do?! :-)
Growing up our Christmas celebration was we were able to open one gift on Christmas Eve. Leave out the cookies and beer for Santa. Santa came while we slept and all of our gifts were laid out around the tree, couch, somewhere was designated for our things. I had two younger brothers so we each had our 'section' hehe Then we would spend the day going from house to house eating, playing pollyanna, etc. I did not like the going from house to house part. I wanted to stay home and play with my new stuff, hmph It was always so rushed on an already busy day.
As an adult, this didn't change much until I got married and adopted some new Christmas traditions. Obviously, Marcin's family does things a little differently than mine does. I guess you could say Santa comes while you are eating Christmas Eve dinner :-) We all go to my In-laws house, eat dinner and then open all the presents. They don't open anymore presents on Christmas day, all are opened on Christmas Eve. He also told me they didn't do stockings :-( My Christmas stocking was always my favorite thing to go through...this is where the good stuff always was!!!
Now as a parent, Marcin and I had to come to a compromise on this because as you can see Santa visits each family at different times :-) So we developed our own Christmas traditions, as most married couples probably do. We go to church and chase our children around, then Marcin's parents house for Christmas Eve dinner, take lots of pictures and open all gifts that Santa bring there. We tell the kids we have to hurry to get home because Santa will be coming to our house next! We come home, put out the cookies and vodka/beer/milk and leave Santa a short note thanking him for all his hard work and gifts, get kids in bed and get to work! Some wrapped gifts under the tree, a few things not wrapped but by the tree such as an electric guitar and cymbal, fill the stockings up with goodies and sleep, aahhhhh.
Kids wake up, open up presents, play, play, play, play, play, play and play some more. Take lots of pictures. Last year we had the family over to our house for brunch. We loved this because we didn't have to pack up the kids and rush anywhere. They are able to play with their new toys and family can come see the rest of their Santa gifts.
Now that I have gotten everything done, I am excited to see these sweet faces light up over their gifts and the idea of Santa. I need to enjoy this while I can until they figure out whats going on, like I did and used to sneak downstairs in middle of night to find someone else placing gifts under the tree. (Sorry dad...you probably didn't know I was doing this lol)
I got the rest of my baking finished up yesterday....sugar cookies, peanut butter blossom (YUM!!!), red velvet bundt cake and mini oreo cheesecake (Thank you pinterest....seriously if you are an Oreo lover, you will love, love, love these things!) Run to the store, get the ingredients and make them before the ever popular News Years resolution to eat healthy, LOL http://www.threesquarechef.com/2011/06/mini-oreo-cheesecakes.html
We got all the gifts wrapped last night...clean up house over next couple of days, work on bathroom and wait for the Big Guy to come visit :-)
When Gavin was born we decided we would stay in Delaware for Christmas instead of traveling. It is hectic enough to travel, let alone over the Christmas holidays so we felt this was a great idea. Especially after J&K were born...home it is! Pre-kids we would alternate Thanksgiving and Christmas with our families. It makes me sad not to have my family with me during the holiday but my prince charming was in Delaware....whats a girl to do?! :-)
Growing up our Christmas celebration was we were able to open one gift on Christmas Eve. Leave out the cookies and beer for Santa. Santa came while we slept and all of our gifts were laid out around the tree, couch, somewhere was designated for our things. I had two younger brothers so we each had our 'section' hehe Then we would spend the day going from house to house eating, playing pollyanna, etc. I did not like the going from house to house part. I wanted to stay home and play with my new stuff, hmph It was always so rushed on an already busy day.
As an adult, this didn't change much until I got married and adopted some new Christmas traditions. Obviously, Marcin's family does things a little differently than mine does. I guess you could say Santa comes while you are eating Christmas Eve dinner :-) We all go to my In-laws house, eat dinner and then open all the presents. They don't open anymore presents on Christmas day, all are opened on Christmas Eve. He also told me they didn't do stockings :-( My Christmas stocking was always my favorite thing to go through...this is where the good stuff always was!!!
Now as a parent, Marcin and I had to come to a compromise on this because as you can see Santa visits each family at different times :-) So we developed our own Christmas traditions, as most married couples probably do. We go to church and chase our children around, then Marcin's parents house for Christmas Eve dinner, take lots of pictures and open all gifts that Santa bring there. We tell the kids we have to hurry to get home because Santa will be coming to our house next! We come home, put out the cookies and vodka/beer/milk and leave Santa a short note thanking him for all his hard work and gifts, get kids in bed and get to work! Some wrapped gifts under the tree, a few things not wrapped but by the tree such as an electric guitar and cymbal, fill the stockings up with goodies and sleep, aahhhhh.
Kids wake up, open up presents, play, play, play, play, play, play and play some more. Take lots of pictures. Last year we had the family over to our house for brunch. We loved this because we didn't have to pack up the kids and rush anywhere. They are able to play with their new toys and family can come see the rest of their Santa gifts.
Now that I have gotten everything done, I am excited to see these sweet faces light up over their gifts and the idea of Santa. I need to enjoy this while I can until they figure out whats going on, like I did and used to sneak downstairs in middle of night to find someone else placing gifts under the tree. (Sorry dad...you probably didn't know I was doing this lol)
Friday, December 21, 2012
Glad the Mayans were wrong!
I love my life...I was not ready for the world to end! What now? Any other apocalyptic predictions?
A quick countdown recap....
Christmas - 3 days away. I have not wrapped a thing. Nothing. I did manage to get a little bit of baking done. Wrapping will get done at some point in next 2 days. The Christmas spirit just isn't with me this year...well it was back at beginning of November, ya know when the Halloween, Thanksgiving AND Christmas decor was out in the stores? It is so commercialized.
35th Birthday - 10 days away. ACK! Rumor has it Marcin has some birthday plans for me, HOORAY!!!!!
Surgery - 20 days away. EEEEEEEKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!! OMG! Pre-op appt is next Thursday. Which reminds me, I need to get some bloodwork done at some point.
I started going to a chiropractor this past week. My first time ever. Ever since J&K were born, my arms fall asleep. It started out at night, then a little during day and now my finger joints ache. My arms will be so numb that it feels like knives stabbing me if I try to push a button my iphone just to see what time it is. ouch. My doctor had me get a neck xray and suggested probably a pinched nerve most likely from carrying two big babies until 37 weeks :-P Chiro agreed so we shall see if it helps, I hope so because it is not very pleasant feeling.
My boys....well they have all been sick past 2-3 weeks. I just LOVE this time of the year ;-)
Gavin is doing great! Seems to be taking a break from his drums..he still drums on everything but hasn't been playing them as often. He is on an electric guitar kick :-) He is enjoying school and his friends there. We made the final school decision and we are keeping him at the school he currently attends. You know when a decision just feels right....that is this decision for me. I think Marcin is on the same page....if it weren't for the expenses of private school then he would fully be on same page. It can be done....we will revise budget and make it all work, somehow. Super happy about this decision!!! He will be excited to see all his friends again next year!
Kaleb doesn't stop talking.....EVER! I love hearing his sweet voice, so cute and you can't stay mad at him! He has become quite the stubborn, non-listener though. hmph, not fun! He loves to stack things...cars, blocks, trains, boxes from pantry, etc. If it can be stacked, sorted or lined up...Kaleb will do it :-) He also likes 'BIG JUMPS!" He jumps off of everything...
He is growing so fast....I had to put him in some 3t pants already! Size 9 shoes, whew! He has taken to climbing out of his crib :-P He also climbs back in lol
Jakob has become a great listener. We joke that J&K have switched for a while :-) Jakob is still very independent but you ask him once and he listens! His speech is getting better, HOORAY!!! It is still difficult to understand him sometimes but he gets his point across. Jakob loves cars....he drives them on all the ledges in the house along with the various race tracks we have :-)
I still look at these 3 little beings in amazement that I am their mom.....ME!!! And Marcin is their dad. We are PARENTS! The tragedy at Sandy Hook school was with me for days. When the event happened at Columbine, while I was sad...that was in 1999. I was 21 and no children, I didn't have the perspective I have now. When I saw Sandy Hook on the news...my heart just hurt for those families. I couldn't stop thinking of getting my kids up in the morning how those families wouldn't be starting their day like that. The unopened Christmas gifts. It doesn't make sense to me....
I hope you all have a Merry Christmas! Enjoy the time with your families and give them all extra hugs this year, be thankful for them :-)
A quick countdown recap....
Christmas - 3 days away. I have not wrapped a thing. Nothing. I did manage to get a little bit of baking done. Wrapping will get done at some point in next 2 days. The Christmas spirit just isn't with me this year...well it was back at beginning of November, ya know when the Halloween, Thanksgiving AND Christmas decor was out in the stores? It is so commercialized.
35th Birthday - 10 days away. ACK! Rumor has it Marcin has some birthday plans for me, HOORAY!!!!!
Surgery - 20 days away. EEEEEEEKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!! OMG! Pre-op appt is next Thursday. Which reminds me, I need to get some bloodwork done at some point.
I started going to a chiropractor this past week. My first time ever. Ever since J&K were born, my arms fall asleep. It started out at night, then a little during day and now my finger joints ache. My arms will be so numb that it feels like knives stabbing me if I try to push a button my iphone just to see what time it is. ouch. My doctor had me get a neck xray and suggested probably a pinched nerve most likely from carrying two big babies until 37 weeks :-P Chiro agreed so we shall see if it helps, I hope so because it is not very pleasant feeling.
My boys....well they have all been sick past 2-3 weeks. I just LOVE this time of the year ;-)
Gavin is doing great! Seems to be taking a break from his drums..he still drums on everything but hasn't been playing them as often. He is on an electric guitar kick :-) He is enjoying school and his friends there. We made the final school decision and we are keeping him at the school he currently attends. You know when a decision just feels right....that is this decision for me. I think Marcin is on the same page....if it weren't for the expenses of private school then he would fully be on same page. It can be done....we will revise budget and make it all work, somehow. Super happy about this decision!!! He will be excited to see all his friends again next year!
Kaleb doesn't stop talking.....EVER! I love hearing his sweet voice, so cute and you can't stay mad at him! He has become quite the stubborn, non-listener though. hmph, not fun! He loves to stack things...cars, blocks, trains, boxes from pantry, etc. If it can be stacked, sorted or lined up...Kaleb will do it :-) He also likes 'BIG JUMPS!" He jumps off of everything...
He is growing so fast....I had to put him in some 3t pants already! Size 9 shoes, whew! He has taken to climbing out of his crib :-P He also climbs back in lol
Jakob has become a great listener. We joke that J&K have switched for a while :-) Jakob is still very independent but you ask him once and he listens! His speech is getting better, HOORAY!!! It is still difficult to understand him sometimes but he gets his point across. Jakob loves cars....he drives them on all the ledges in the house along with the various race tracks we have :-)
I still look at these 3 little beings in amazement that I am their mom.....ME!!! And Marcin is their dad. We are PARENTS! The tragedy at Sandy Hook school was with me for days. When the event happened at Columbine, while I was sad...that was in 1999. I was 21 and no children, I didn't have the perspective I have now. When I saw Sandy Hook on the news...my heart just hurt for those families. I couldn't stop thinking of getting my kids up in the morning how those families wouldn't be starting their day like that. The unopened Christmas gifts. It doesn't make sense to me....
I hope you all have a Merry Christmas! Enjoy the time with your families and give them all extra hugs this year, be thankful for them :-)
quick december update and house stuff
I haven't blogged in over 3 weeks...how is that possible? how is it possible that Christmas is in THREE DAYS?! I am not ready....at all. I should be wrapping presents but I can't gather the motivation to do so. Obviously they will get done sometime this weekend..at least that is the plan.
December started out by meeting a wonderful friend in Conshohocken ( no clue if I spelled that correctly!). We met up at Ikea and browsed for a bit and then went for lunch. It was a fun day just to catch up with her. We live a couple hours apart and we have tried numerous times to gtg with kids during week and someone was always sick or something came up, so we decided to do adult time, best idea ever! The following week we had a super fun and gorgeous wedding of two good friends of ours. Marcin was in the wedding so rehearsal dinner Friday and the weddin in philadelphia saturday. We even got to stay over Saturday night =0 Needless to say, it took me a few days to catch up on my sleep because by Sunday, I was exhausted! I can only imagine how tired the newlyweds must have been! Then we went out AGAIN the following weekend to see a band that we saw over summer at beach wedding, we met a couple of friends there, much fun!
This brings us to this weekend....how did that go by so fast?!
In the midst of all of this, we have also taken care of the kids hehe I have also had some house projects going on which turned out pretty well:-)
I started in the master bath...Marcin and I repainted all the molding and doors. I also painted the builder oak cabinets a dark espresso and gave the walls a fresh coat of paint. I still need to do horizontal stripes on the walls. Marcin will hopefully finish up the hardware for cabinets/drawers and frame out the mirrors.
OH and I had a fabulous idea that did NOT come from Pinterest, HA!!! I will be sure to share if it works out....light covers. I hate the builder lights in there and I had an idea one day while painting. We shall see if it works out :-)
This is Marcin's side. My side, across the bathroom is pretty much the same. We are thinking of doing a small strip of tile btw the mirror and cabinet.
This is our idea for the mirror frame....
I added a couple of things to the foyer, not sure what I think about it but it is staying for now or until I (we) find something I (we) like better :-)
The sheer panels on the side windows here really bugged me!! It didn't help that I had to attach them with 3M command strips and the boys ALWAYS pulled them down because they would run to the window to pull curtain side and down it would come, RRRRR!!! So to pinterest I went....I saw an idea I liked but modified it a bit. So this is before.....
I think it turned out cute! The boys STILL pull them aside to look at window but it is easier to adjust and put back :-) I feel like the door needs to be a different color though......
My other idea was to make a little sitting area for guests to have somewhere to sit to take off/put on shoes, hangs up coats, shoes, etc. We have the 'formal' living room (aka waste of space) to the left of the front door, so I figured I could use some space in there. I also had my toy bench from when I was a kid. My grandmother kept it for me until about 5 years...we brought it back with us when we went to pick up my piano from Mississippi :-)
Here is my toy bench before....
I had some leftover paint from the cabinets, so I used that and made a cushion on top. Here is our new sitting area....
I LOVE the fabric I found for the cushion :-) It works!
Um so yep....along with the fun, craziness of our lives we have somehow managed to get all of this done. It looks really productive when I look at it now. YAY US!!!! We hope to finish up our bathroom in the next couple of weeks.
December started out by meeting a wonderful friend in Conshohocken ( no clue if I spelled that correctly!). We met up at Ikea and browsed for a bit and then went for lunch. It was a fun day just to catch up with her. We live a couple hours apart and we have tried numerous times to gtg with kids during week and someone was always sick or something came up, so we decided to do adult time, best idea ever! The following week we had a super fun and gorgeous wedding of two good friends of ours. Marcin was in the wedding so rehearsal dinner Friday and the weddin in philadelphia saturday. We even got to stay over Saturday night =0 Needless to say, it took me a few days to catch up on my sleep because by Sunday, I was exhausted! I can only imagine how tired the newlyweds must have been! Then we went out AGAIN the following weekend to see a band that we saw over summer at beach wedding, we met a couple of friends there, much fun!
This brings us to this weekend....how did that go by so fast?!
In the midst of all of this, we have also taken care of the kids hehe I have also had some house projects going on which turned out pretty well:-)
I started in the master bath...Marcin and I repainted all the molding and doors. I also painted the builder oak cabinets a dark espresso and gave the walls a fresh coat of paint. I still need to do horizontal stripes on the walls. Marcin will hopefully finish up the hardware for cabinets/drawers and frame out the mirrors.
OH and I had a fabulous idea that did NOT come from Pinterest, HA!!! I will be sure to share if it works out....light covers. I hate the builder lights in there and I had an idea one day while painting. We shall see if it works out :-)
This is our idea for the mirror frame....
I added a couple of things to the foyer, not sure what I think about it but it is staying for now or until I (we) find something I (we) like better :-)
The sheer panels on the side windows here really bugged me!! It didn't help that I had to attach them with 3M command strips and the boys ALWAYS pulled them down because they would run to the window to pull curtain side and down it would come, RRRRR!!! So to pinterest I went....I saw an idea I liked but modified it a bit. So this is before.....
And after........
I think it turned out cute! The boys STILL pull them aside to look at window but it is easier to adjust and put back :-) I feel like the door needs to be a different color though......
My other idea was to make a little sitting area for guests to have somewhere to sit to take off/put on shoes, hangs up coats, shoes, etc. We have the 'formal' living room (aka waste of space) to the left of the front door, so I figured I could use some space in there. I also had my toy bench from when I was a kid. My grandmother kept it for me until about 5 years...we brought it back with us when we went to pick up my piano from Mississippi :-)
Here is my toy bench before....
I had some leftover paint from the cabinets, so I used that and made a cushion on top. Here is our new sitting area....
I LOVE the fabric I found for the cushion :-) It works!
Um so yep....along with the fun, craziness of our lives we have somehow managed to get all of this done. It looks really productive when I look at it now. YAY US!!!! We hope to finish up our bathroom in the next couple of weeks.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Noted-I need to SLOW down
I screwed up....I have been in the process of getting school apps together to apply to various Kindergartens for Gavin. In my usual Type A way, I had all apps together and in order that they were due. One of the important ones was 2nd to last because it was due 12/21. In my head....it was 12/21. Wednesday, i went to website to check that i had all the paperwork i needed to submit app. Website informed me that open registration was closed. WHAT!!? My heart dropped....how did i miss this?! i never miss things like this, the closing date was not until 12/21. WRONG....it was 11/21. wth?:/ I still submitted app but Gavin wont be in the lottery, just waiting list AFTER lottery. We had a very slim chance to begin with but now we have zero.
I was pissed, Marcin was upset. It was a mistake but not one I would normally make. I realized that i need to slow down. Life is busy enough as a family of 5 with just the day to day things....add preschool, outside activities, speech therapies, drum lessons, life events,etc and you have a lot going on.
Clearly I'm spreading myself too thin. On an average day i have a difficult time remembering things or putting coherent sentences together but when life gets hectic, i have more issues remembering. I am well aware the my, eh hem, age does not help things. So i decided to take a step back and prioritize a little better. The holidays probably aren't the ideal time to do this but I am. Every holiday i'm cooking and baking like crazy to ship it all out to family & friends. Just last week I was thinking about this and wondering how on earth I was going to accomplish it this year....there just isnt enough time. After this incident, I simply decided I wouldn't be able to. The stress, time and my sanity wont survive it:-P Plus the boys are having a great time with the holiday season...i want to enjoy every minute of it! So if you were looking forward to my zucchini bread & other goodies this year, I apologize but maybe it will come next year:)
I'm going to stay home more often during week. This can be challenging with 3 energetic boys but it needs to happen. Not only does this allow me to spend more down time with boys but i spend less ( marcin will love this! ha!) but it gives me an opportunity to get more done around the house like the never ever ever ever ever ending laundry. Seriously, i cannot keep up. i hate it and i need to get
over it because it's only going to get worse lol
I need to start meal planning so dinners are taken care weekly and im not stressing at 4:00 what im going to cook.
I need to put my phone down. Jakob brought me my phone the other day.... another sign. This means even my 2 year old has picked up on how often i have my phone:(
I need to stop worrying about cleaning.... the mess will still be there in 30 minutes after im done watching Gavin's 'show' :)
I have more ideas on my mind but I'm thinking i should start with baby steps. Lets face it, my Type A self only allows so much lol I will be utilizing my phone calendar...yes this means using my phone but i need to remember things. I should probably add Gingko to my morning vitamin/supplements:-) Lesson learned...
I was pissed, Marcin was upset. It was a mistake but not one I would normally make. I realized that i need to slow down. Life is busy enough as a family of 5 with just the day to day things....add preschool, outside activities, speech therapies, drum lessons, life events,etc and you have a lot going on.
Clearly I'm spreading myself too thin. On an average day i have a difficult time remembering things or putting coherent sentences together but when life gets hectic, i have more issues remembering. I am well aware the my, eh hem, age does not help things. So i decided to take a step back and prioritize a little better. The holidays probably aren't the ideal time to do this but I am. Every holiday i'm cooking and baking like crazy to ship it all out to family & friends. Just last week I was thinking about this and wondering how on earth I was going to accomplish it this year....there just isnt enough time. After this incident, I simply decided I wouldn't be able to. The stress, time and my sanity wont survive it:-P Plus the boys are having a great time with the holiday season...i want to enjoy every minute of it! So if you were looking forward to my zucchini bread & other goodies this year, I apologize but maybe it will come next year:)
I'm going to stay home more often during week. This can be challenging with 3 energetic boys but it needs to happen. Not only does this allow me to spend more down time with boys but i spend less ( marcin will love this! ha!) but it gives me an opportunity to get more done around the house like the never ever ever ever ever ending laundry. Seriously, i cannot keep up. i hate it and i need to get
over it because it's only going to get worse lol
I need to start meal planning so dinners are taken care weekly and im not stressing at 4:00 what im going to cook.
I need to put my phone down. Jakob brought me my phone the other day.... another sign. This means even my 2 year old has picked up on how often i have my phone:(
I need to stop worrying about cleaning.... the mess will still be there in 30 minutes after im done watching Gavin's 'show' :)
I have more ideas on my mind but I'm thinking i should start with baby steps. Lets face it, my Type A self only allows so much lol I will be utilizing my phone calendar...yes this means using my phone but i need to remember things. I should probably add Gingko to my morning vitamin/supplements:-) Lesson learned...
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
My amazing Goodwill find!
I don't do the Black Friday shopping or I guess we should call it 5 Days a Week Black Friday since really the sales started 4-5 days early? Sorry but that takes all the fun out of it! lol Anyways....I won't start on that tangent.
This past Saturday Goodwill in Delaware was having 50% all clothing items. Mind you....kids clothing is already usually btw $2-8 depending on which location and what you are buying so this was a great deal! I had planned to make a morning of it and browse around to see if I could find any good spring/summer things for boys ( I did but more on that later).
The Elkton Goodwill store is 10 minutes from my house and I haven't been there in a long time. I thought I'd stop in and see if there was anything good whether it be frames I can paint, clothes/shoes for kids, toys, etc. As soon as I walk in, its like the heavens opened and the sun was shining on one item....a Roland td-5 V electric drum set.
Pretty sure I don't need to tell you about Gavin's love of drums but he really and I mean really loves the electric drums. He first discovered these at drum school and he loved them. Unfortunately for him, they were sold at a nice hefty price of $1100. Gavin would ask me if he could have some electric drums someday and I always told him that they cost alot of money so probably not anytime soon:-(
So you can possibly imagine my unbelievable excitement when I saw this set at Goodwill. I thought surely the price would be way too much (even at Goodwill) and a lady was browsing around them talking on her phone and started telling her friend about them....WHAT?! No no no no no....these drums were mine! If only I could see the darn price tag! She walked away for a few minutes and I snatched the tag off of them to give to cashier, hehe. I was shocked that the price tag said only $40!!!! I thought surely it couldn't work or was missing a major component. It had clearly been in a corner or storage for a while and needed a good cleaning. i needed an amp or headphones to listen to them...oh yes, electric drums have a headphone input, aaaaaahhhhh silence while Gavin drums away. I had to run to Big Lots to get a cheap pair of headphones, switch cars ( I was in fun car) and I came back to hook this sucker up. IT WORKED! From my research on google, it also seemed to have all the parts. I text Gavin's drum teacher to tell him what I 'd found and if there was something I was missing here. I sent him the pics and specs, he said it all looked to be there and if it worked, I had found and incredible deal because this drum set costs btw $500-1200 depending on the condition. The motherboard alone is currently $160 on ebay. This exact set was selling on ebay for $800. I told you it was an amazing deal. I am still excited about finding it 4 days later! Gavin is going to be over the moon excited when he sees this....he probably won't get it until his birthday because 1) he doesn't need it right now 2) it is better for him to learn more on the acoustic drums 3) where the heck are we going to put it? I guess we need to build an additional room on our house and pad the walls for Gavin's music room lol
I found some other great deals this day also once I recovered from my excitement :-) I bought 34 items mostly Underarmour, Carters, Gap, Old Navy, Sonoma, Madden Girl (super cute NEW sandals for $8!), tanks from Target NWT, some large PJ pants for me to have for after my surgery and a really nice fleece lined Gap coat for Gavin (not for a couple years but in such great shape I couldn't pass up) all for the grand total of $36.75. Nice, huh?
It was a fantastic shopping day for me :-) I also did a little Cyber Monday shopping to check some family Christmas gifts off my list, more great deals. It just makes me so happy!!!!!
This past Saturday Goodwill in Delaware was having 50% all clothing items. Mind you....kids clothing is already usually btw $2-8 depending on which location and what you are buying so this was a great deal! I had planned to make a morning of it and browse around to see if I could find any good spring/summer things for boys ( I did but more on that later).
The Elkton Goodwill store is 10 minutes from my house and I haven't been there in a long time. I thought I'd stop in and see if there was anything good whether it be frames I can paint, clothes/shoes for kids, toys, etc. As soon as I walk in, its like the heavens opened and the sun was shining on one item....a Roland td-5 V electric drum set.
Pretty sure I don't need to tell you about Gavin's love of drums but he really and I mean really loves the electric drums. He first discovered these at drum school and he loved them. Unfortunately for him, they were sold at a nice hefty price of $1100. Gavin would ask me if he could have some electric drums someday and I always told him that they cost alot of money so probably not anytime soon:-(
So you can possibly imagine my unbelievable excitement when I saw this set at Goodwill. I thought surely the price would be way too much (even at Goodwill) and a lady was browsing around them talking on her phone and started telling her friend about them....WHAT?! No no no no no....these drums were mine! If only I could see the darn price tag! She walked away for a few minutes and I snatched the tag off of them to give to cashier, hehe. I was shocked that the price tag said only $40!!!! I thought surely it couldn't work or was missing a major component. It had clearly been in a corner or storage for a while and needed a good cleaning. i needed an amp or headphones to listen to them...oh yes, electric drums have a headphone input, aaaaaahhhhh silence while Gavin drums away. I had to run to Big Lots to get a cheap pair of headphones, switch cars ( I was in fun car) and I came back to hook this sucker up. IT WORKED! From my research on google, it also seemed to have all the parts. I text Gavin's drum teacher to tell him what I 'd found and if there was something I was missing here. I sent him the pics and specs, he said it all looked to be there and if it worked, I had found and incredible deal because this drum set costs btw $500-1200 depending on the condition. The motherboard alone is currently $160 on ebay. This exact set was selling on ebay for $800. I told you it was an amazing deal. I am still excited about finding it 4 days later! Gavin is going to be over the moon excited when he sees this....he probably won't get it until his birthday because 1) he doesn't need it right now 2) it is better for him to learn more on the acoustic drums 3) where the heck are we going to put it? I guess we need to build an additional room on our house and pad the walls for Gavin's music room lol
I found some other great deals this day also once I recovered from my excitement :-) I bought 34 items mostly Underarmour, Carters, Gap, Old Navy, Sonoma, Madden Girl (super cute NEW sandals for $8!), tanks from Target NWT, some large PJ pants for me to have for after my surgery and a really nice fleece lined Gap coat for Gavin (not for a couple years but in such great shape I couldn't pass up) all for the grand total of $36.75. Nice, huh?
It was a fantastic shopping day for me :-) I also did a little Cyber Monday shopping to check some family Christmas gifts off my list, more great deals. It just makes me so happy!!!!!
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
countdowns.....
I have alot of countdowns!
Thanksgiving - 2 days.
How is this possible? When did time begin to go so quickly!? I don't like it. I can still remember clearly as a kid the summers when I was 9 or 10 years old how summers would go on forever and forever. I was bored to death and couldn't wait for school to start. Hmph...note to self, make sure boys appreciate being a child while they can :-)
I am very excited for Thanksgiving! I love to cook and I especially love to cook Thanksgiving! We will be staying in Delaware for the holiday. We felt like the summer was just so hectic that we needed to stay home. I am jealous because my dad and Gay are hosting Thanksgiving at the river house and I know it will be great! Very sad we are going to miss it but I just can't imagine packing up car and driving 12 hours:-P
Our Thanksgiving menu will consist of- Baked brie with cranberries, pecans (Fresh from my grandmother!), roasted red pepper bruschetta, fried turkey, small ham, stuffing & giblet gravy (minus the giblets!) baked mac&cheese, sweet potato casserole, squash casserole, roasted butternut squash, lemon pie, chocolate chip cookies, pecan pie and I am sure Marcin's mom will bring some other yummy dishes :-) It is going to be a good eatin' day! I can't wait! lol
Christmas - 30 days.
WHAT?! I am proud to say I finished shopping for boys in September, WOOT! I am also proud to say that most of their gifts were from consignment. Yep you read that right. Toys in perfect condition for a steal, I do love to save some money! I just need to get some of their stocking stuffers. Marcin and I aren't exchanging anything big this year. There are a lot of house projects like expanding our shower and granite in kitchen that we hope to do, so those will be our gifts to each other. Also our stocking stuff. I need to get started on my baking and family gifts, after Thanksgiving. One thing at a time!
Is it bad that I am not looking forward to decorating for Christmas? I love it but I hate taking it all down and putting it away. We are going to have the tree within every ones reach this year....anyone want to start a bet on how many times it will go crashing to floor? LOL I am really hoping for zero :-P
My *gulp* 35th birthday, ACK! - 37 days. January 1
Let's discuss this....how in the hell am I so close to 35?! That is old (Reh...I don't need any of your comments here, I am well aware, thank you very much!). I don't feel that old....although my primary doc is quick to point out my age when I complain of my knees making a weird noise up and down steps, my back hurting, arms falling asleep while I sleep, being tired all the time.....she says this is all natural process of aging. hmph. I need to find a new doctor who will prescribe me a placebo pill to make me feel like my concerns are warranted lol Other than that, I don't feel old. I look around me at people who are older and they don't seem old either. It is just the number 35....halfway to 40. Any chance 35 is the new 25?!
I wonder what fabulous party Marcin has planned for my 35th birthday? ****WINK WINK**** I am sure he understands what a milestone this is and how we MUST celebrate, right honey? I am also certain he has already started planning the shin dig, I have the best hubby ever!
Tummy tuck - 47 days. January 11
Excited. Nervous. Scared. Relieved. Terrified. My pre-op appt is 12/24. My thoughts on the surgery shift from day to day. I know in the end I will be happy I did it but my lord the recovery scares me to death! Surgeon said recovery will be worse than c-section recovery due to him repairing my abdominal wall muscles (aka...putting them back together). Apparently the muscles healing is what causes the most pain and I will be walking like a hunchback for a few days because I won't be able to stand up straight. Lovely.
It seems like so long ago I scheduled this and now it is less than 2 months away. They are going to have to give me a Valium or something to take 24 hours before surgery so I will be calm enough to show up! Kidding...I will show up because I will have already given them money by then LOL
A friend suggested a website, www.realself.com that has alot of forums and before/after pics of all sorts of plastic surgeries. While I know better and I should have skipped the pictures, I am sucker for before/after pics. I love them!Weight lost, makeovers.....and now plastic surgery. Some women were posting pics from a day or two after their surgery.....EK! Their tummies literally looked like mrs. frankenstein with stitching from hip to hip. Surgeon said this would be the incision but it will be below bikini line. He then said I should in a bikini by summer....whats that? a bikini? we shall see :-P A friend asked me if I would post before/after pics because she too loves them, knowing how much I like to see progress, I might but I am on the fence. I will definitely be taking them along with measurements because I am curious how many inches I will lose from my waist. On realself.com, I will say that the post-surgery 10-12 week shots looked great. Maybe I should just concentrate on those?
I am five pounds away from my pre-pregnancy weight with twins. The more weight I lose ( I haven't lost anymore weight since August), the worse my 'kangaroo pouch' became. I have not tried any ab exercises because after my first consult with surgeon, he said it was a waste of time. While some of my muscles in my abdominal wall are attached, most are not.They were ripped apart by two big, healthy baby boys :-) Surgeon also believes that once he repairs my stomach muscles, it may alleviate some of the back pain I constantly have. Below are my post from my first consult with surgeon and then a nice before/after pic of abdominal wall.
http://michalskifive.blogspot.com/2011/06/abdominoplastyscary-stuff.html
http://michalskifive.blogspot.com/2011/08/it-has-name-diastasis-recti.html
In the meantime, I feel like I need to prepare like I did for all my babies to be born by making lots of freezer meals, numerous trips to BJ's to buy bulks of paper products, frozen pizza and dinosaur chicken nuggets and get things ready! I got a cleaning service for Mothers Day and she is scheduled to come 2 days before surgery so that is set :-)
Thanks for listening to my ramblings and happy thanksgiving everyone! I will be busy cooking for next 3 days so probably no blogging. I suck at the blogging everyday. I just can't do it....it is just too much effort sometimes to get off couch and get my computer. However, I am aiming for 2-3 times a week :-)
Thanksgiving - 2 days.
How is this possible? When did time begin to go so quickly!? I don't like it. I can still remember clearly as a kid the summers when I was 9 or 10 years old how summers would go on forever and forever. I was bored to death and couldn't wait for school to start. Hmph...note to self, make sure boys appreciate being a child while they can :-)
I am very excited for Thanksgiving! I love to cook and I especially love to cook Thanksgiving! We will be staying in Delaware for the holiday. We felt like the summer was just so hectic that we needed to stay home. I am jealous because my dad and Gay are hosting Thanksgiving at the river house and I know it will be great! Very sad we are going to miss it but I just can't imagine packing up car and driving 12 hours:-P
Our Thanksgiving menu will consist of- Baked brie with cranberries, pecans (Fresh from my grandmother!), roasted red pepper bruschetta, fried turkey, small ham, stuffing & giblet gravy (minus the giblets!) baked mac&cheese, sweet potato casserole, squash casserole, roasted butternut squash, lemon pie, chocolate chip cookies, pecan pie and I am sure Marcin's mom will bring some other yummy dishes :-) It is going to be a good eatin' day! I can't wait! lol
Christmas - 30 days.
WHAT?! I am proud to say I finished shopping for boys in September, WOOT! I am also proud to say that most of their gifts were from consignment. Yep you read that right. Toys in perfect condition for a steal, I do love to save some money! I just need to get some of their stocking stuffers. Marcin and I aren't exchanging anything big this year. There are a lot of house projects like expanding our shower and granite in kitchen that we hope to do, so those will be our gifts to each other. Also our stocking stuff. I need to get started on my baking and family gifts, after Thanksgiving. One thing at a time!
Is it bad that I am not looking forward to decorating for Christmas? I love it but I hate taking it all down and putting it away. We are going to have the tree within every ones reach this year....anyone want to start a bet on how many times it will go crashing to floor? LOL I am really hoping for zero :-P
My *gulp* 35th birthday, ACK! - 37 days. January 1
Let's discuss this....how in the hell am I so close to 35?! That is old (Reh...I don't need any of your comments here, I am well aware, thank you very much!). I don't feel that old....although my primary doc is quick to point out my age when I complain of my knees making a weird noise up and down steps, my back hurting, arms falling asleep while I sleep, being tired all the time.....she says this is all natural process of aging. hmph. I need to find a new doctor who will prescribe me a placebo pill to make me feel like my concerns are warranted lol Other than that, I don't feel old. I look around me at people who are older and they don't seem old either. It is just the number 35....halfway to 40. Any chance 35 is the new 25?!
I wonder what fabulous party Marcin has planned for my 35th birthday? ****WINK WINK**** I am sure he understands what a milestone this is and how we MUST celebrate, right honey? I am also certain he has already started planning the shin dig, I have the best hubby ever!
Tummy tuck - 47 days. January 11
Excited. Nervous. Scared. Relieved. Terrified. My pre-op appt is 12/24. My thoughts on the surgery shift from day to day. I know in the end I will be happy I did it but my lord the recovery scares me to death! Surgeon said recovery will be worse than c-section recovery due to him repairing my abdominal wall muscles (aka...putting them back together). Apparently the muscles healing is what causes the most pain and I will be walking like a hunchback for a few days because I won't be able to stand up straight. Lovely.
It seems like so long ago I scheduled this and now it is less than 2 months away. They are going to have to give me a Valium or something to take 24 hours before surgery so I will be calm enough to show up! Kidding...I will show up because I will have already given them money by then LOL
A friend suggested a website, www.realself.com that has alot of forums and before/after pics of all sorts of plastic surgeries. While I know better and I should have skipped the pictures, I am sucker for before/after pics. I love them!Weight lost, makeovers.....and now plastic surgery. Some women were posting pics from a day or two after their surgery.....EK! Their tummies literally looked like mrs. frankenstein with stitching from hip to hip. Surgeon said this would be the incision but it will be below bikini line. He then said I should in a bikini by summer....whats that? a bikini? we shall see :-P A friend asked me if I would post before/after pics because she too loves them, knowing how much I like to see progress, I might but I am on the fence. I will definitely be taking them along with measurements because I am curious how many inches I will lose from my waist. On realself.com, I will say that the post-surgery 10-12 week shots looked great. Maybe I should just concentrate on those?
I am five pounds away from my pre-pregnancy weight with twins. The more weight I lose ( I haven't lost anymore weight since August), the worse my 'kangaroo pouch' became. I have not tried any ab exercises because after my first consult with surgeon, he said it was a waste of time. While some of my muscles in my abdominal wall are attached, most are not.They were ripped apart by two big, healthy baby boys :-) Surgeon also believes that once he repairs my stomach muscles, it may alleviate some of the back pain I constantly have. Below are my post from my first consult with surgeon and then a nice before/after pic of abdominal wall.
http://michalskifive.blogspot.com/2011/06/abdominoplastyscary-stuff.html
http://michalskifive.blogspot.com/2011/08/it-has-name-diastasis-recti.html
In the meantime, I feel like I need to prepare like I did for all my babies to be born by making lots of freezer meals, numerous trips to BJ's to buy bulks of paper products, frozen pizza and dinosaur chicken nuggets and get things ready! I got a cleaning service for Mothers Day and she is scheduled to come 2 days before surgery so that is set :-)
Thanks for listening to my ramblings and happy thanksgiving everyone! I will be busy cooking for next 3 days so probably no blogging. I suck at the blogging everyday. I just can't do it....it is just too much effort sometimes to get off couch and get my computer. However, I am aiming for 2-3 times a week :-)
Saturday, November 17, 2012
I am in love with a vacuum...
A few months ago Marcin and I were at Kenny's Asian restaurant. I had one martini type drink and with my zero tolerance, let's just say its a good thing I was not driving, sheesh ( LIGHT WEIGHT!). So we are finishing up our dinner and a server comes by to clean under the tables. He was using some sort of light vacuum. I stopped him and inquired what this wonderful product was and then declared I needed one right then! The server thought this was funny....Marcin did too and was making fun of me for not getting out more and the fact that I couldn't stop talking about this little vacuum/sweeper thingie. In my world, it is the little things :-)
I am forever sweeping or vacuuming our house, especially the first floor. The boys just leave a path of crumbs and dirt as they walk, even if they aren't eating or wearing shoes. By the end of the day, I would have swept at least 3 times and maybe one more time before I go to bed. So when I discovered this little vacuum.....I immediately got on Amazon to see what was available.
I found this and it is aaaaaaaamazing :-) http://www.amazon.com/BISSELL-Perfect-Cordless-Rechargeable-2880A/dp/B00440EO6S/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1353208611&sr=8-9&keywords=bissell+vacuum
It is the perfect height instead of bending over constantly to sweep and it can get all the edges and some corners because it has the little spinner brushes on the front corners to catch things. I can use it on the hardwood and carpet! So instead of bringing out the big vacuum, I can do a quick sweep over things downstairs which can buy me at least a week or two until I need the bigger vacuum for a good vacuuming!
Possibly the best thing of all with this cute little sweeper....the boys love it! Seriously, they fight over whose turn it is. When they make a mess on the floor, we just have to ask them to go get the vacuum and clean it up. Believe it or not, they listen!!! I am certain this will not continue forever so we are enjoying this little slice of heaven while it last!
It is easy for them to turn on and manuever, WOOT!!!
This is for all the strangers who tell me repeatedly how my house will never be clean again having three boys in my house.....TAKE THAT! LOL
So if you are wondering what to add to your Christmas list....this, you need this!
I am forever sweeping or vacuuming our house, especially the first floor. The boys just leave a path of crumbs and dirt as they walk, even if they aren't eating or wearing shoes. By the end of the day, I would have swept at least 3 times and maybe one more time before I go to bed. So when I discovered this little vacuum.....I immediately got on Amazon to see what was available.
I found this and it is aaaaaaaamazing :-) http://www.amazon.com/BISSELL-Perfect-Cordless-Rechargeable-2880A/dp/B00440EO6S/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1353208611&sr=8-9&keywords=bissell+vacuum
It is the perfect height instead of bending over constantly to sweep and it can get all the edges and some corners because it has the little spinner brushes on the front corners to catch things. I can use it on the hardwood and carpet! So instead of bringing out the big vacuum, I can do a quick sweep over things downstairs which can buy me at least a week or two until I need the bigger vacuum for a good vacuuming!
Possibly the best thing of all with this cute little sweeper....the boys love it! Seriously, they fight over whose turn it is. When they make a mess on the floor, we just have to ask them to go get the vacuum and clean it up. Believe it or not, they listen!!! I am certain this will not continue forever so we are enjoying this little slice of heaven while it last!
This is for all the strangers who tell me repeatedly how my house will never be clean again having three boys in my house.....TAKE THAT! LOL
So if you are wondering what to add to your Christmas list....this, you need this!
Thursday, November 15, 2012
drums...drums...drums and more drums
We definitely have a 'drummer boy' this Christmas. I am listening to Gavin play in the basement now while lil guys nap. Gavin drums on everything....his hands are constantly drumming on something picking out a beat and asking me, "hey mom...did you hear that beat? pretty cool!" I even asked his teacher the other day if he drums on the tables at school...yes he does. He drums in the car, on the deck, on the trees, his bike, his seat in the car, the car, his legs, my legs, Marcin's leg, J&K if they would sit still long enough....the kid is always drumming :-)
Even when we are eating....he is drumming with his fingers on the table. For a few weeks we attempted to break Gavin of this habit because it is not the best manners to drum on the table. He doesn't even realize he is doing it....as soon as we would tell him to quit, he would look at us as if questioning what we were talking about and then look down at his hands like he just remembered what he was doing. We finally decided to pick our battles and let him be :-P Meal times are chaotic enough at our house....a little finger drumming on the table isn't going to hurt anyone. The rare times we all go out to eat, we will put this rule firmly in place but at home, it will be ok :-)
This is what he set up today in the living room, along with the ipad for beat support (the app he was using allowed him to record him drumming along with the beats). He had every pot, pan and lid (cymbals) out, sitting in the chair drumming away :-)
He is constantly rearranging his drums downstairs because the cymbals sound differently in different locations (he claims) or one is not in a reachable (is that a word?!) location so it needs to be relocated. A new cymbal is adding to his Christmas list daily because he informs us he needs a Ride cymbal, a Crash cymbal and a Splash cymbal. Thanks to his drum teacher, I now know what these are but at $100-300 a pop....not anytime soon :-P Even on Craiglist, they are expensive :/ One of the guys at the music store did sell me a Ride cymbal for $20, perfect! I need more of those. You may wonder where Gavin got the idea that he needed all these drums as cymbals. We have Neal Peart to thank for this (for those of you not up on your rock bands, he is THE drummer of all drummers and is the drummer for Rush). Gavin watches him on You Tube all the time :-) Mr. Peart often has this sort of set up when he plays,
Can you see where Gavin is going with his pot/pan set up? Yes....these pictures above are Gavin's dream. I am pretty sure he is going to be beyond thrilled when he sees his Ride cymbal on Christmas morning. Along with his electric guitar and amp. Yes we are glutton for punishment. The guitar amp does have a headphone input though, yippee!!! I had originally found the guitar on a consignment site over the summer thinking it would be a birthday gift but he ended up getting a larger drum set so we held off. I still am not sure if he is responsible enough to take care of the electric guitar but we will give him a chance....there are going to have to be some strict rules put into place to ensure he learns how to handle it and care for it. Regardless of whether it was a used item or not....to him it is brand new (and in great condition!) and he is learning to take better care of things, I have a feeling this will always be a work in progress.
I get the question often," How do you cope with those drums in your house?!" I'd have to guess two reasons I/we can handle it #1) Gavin is pretty good and can carry a beat. It is not endless banging the drums. #2) I tune it out, most of the time. Being a mom to 3 boys, I have learned to tune many things out :-P
Here is a little sweet song from Gavin that Marcin caught on video,
Even when we are eating....he is drumming with his fingers on the table. For a few weeks we attempted to break Gavin of this habit because it is not the best manners to drum on the table. He doesn't even realize he is doing it....as soon as we would tell him to quit, he would look at us as if questioning what we were talking about and then look down at his hands like he just remembered what he was doing. We finally decided to pick our battles and let him be :-P Meal times are chaotic enough at our house....a little finger drumming on the table isn't going to hurt anyone. The rare times we all go out to eat, we will put this rule firmly in place but at home, it will be ok :-)
This is what he set up today in the living room, along with the ipad for beat support (the app he was using allowed him to record him drumming along with the beats). He had every pot, pan and lid (cymbals) out, sitting in the chair drumming away :-)
He is constantly rearranging his drums downstairs because the cymbals sound differently in different locations (he claims) or one is not in a reachable (is that a word?!) location so it needs to be relocated. A new cymbal is adding to his Christmas list daily because he informs us he needs a Ride cymbal, a Crash cymbal and a Splash cymbal. Thanks to his drum teacher, I now know what these are but at $100-300 a pop....not anytime soon :-P Even on Craiglist, they are expensive :/ One of the guys at the music store did sell me a Ride cymbal for $20, perfect! I need more of those. You may wonder where Gavin got the idea that he needed all these drums as cymbals. We have Neal Peart to thank for this (for those of you not up on your rock bands, he is THE drummer of all drummers and is the drummer for Rush). Gavin watches him on You Tube all the time :-) Mr. Peart often has this sort of set up when he plays,
Can you see where Gavin is going with his pot/pan set up? Yes....these pictures above are Gavin's dream. I am pretty sure he is going to be beyond thrilled when he sees his Ride cymbal on Christmas morning. Along with his electric guitar and amp. Yes we are glutton for punishment. The guitar amp does have a headphone input though, yippee!!! I had originally found the guitar on a consignment site over the summer thinking it would be a birthday gift but he ended up getting a larger drum set so we held off. I still am not sure if he is responsible enough to take care of the electric guitar but we will give him a chance....there are going to have to be some strict rules put into place to ensure he learns how to handle it and care for it. Regardless of whether it was a used item or not....to him it is brand new (and in great condition!) and he is learning to take better care of things, I have a feeling this will always be a work in progress.
I get the question often," How do you cope with those drums in your house?!" I'd have to guess two reasons I/we can handle it #1) Gavin is pretty good and can carry a beat. It is not endless banging the drums. #2) I tune it out, most of the time. Being a mom to 3 boys, I have learned to tune many things out :-P
Here is a little sweet song from Gavin that Marcin caught on video,
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Kindergarten?!
How is our "baby" already needing to register for kindergarten? It seems very surreal to me to be completing applications for Charter schools and other districts (in Delaware you can 'choice out' to other districts or other schools within your district that aren't in your feeder pattern). The boys will not be attending the elementary school in our feeder pattern. Period.
When we moved into our house, I was well aware of the fact that we were moving into a not so great school district. I worked in the district for a few years. Many of the teachers and principals I worked with were great...it was the student population I wasn't crazy about. Some kids just had too many life experiences at a young age that we didn't want our kids exposed to in 1st grade or playing spin the bottle in 3rd grade during lunch. The kids were NOT exchanging a kiss. Spin the bottle has upped the ante over the years:/
However, when we moved into our house, we figured on two kiddos and we could send them to an averaged priced private school or choice them out. Obviously we figured incorrectly on the two kiddos part :-P So average priced private school is out. We thought we had a good chance with a Charter school here but we miss the 5 mile radius criteria by literally 2 inches. Our next door neighbors are in the radius but we are not, hmph. We are still applying but it is a lottery so we shall see. It can't hurt to apply :-) That leaves choicing out to other districts or within our district. Thankfully Marcin works for one of the districts. One particular school in his district I worked at for a few months while the school counselor was on maternity leave. I loved it, great school and the principal is great! And Marcin can take Gavin to school! It is about 20 minutes from our house, which is fine by me :-)
Last year we discussed possibly keeping Gavin back a year since he is a July baby. I guess that is still on the table, we haven't really talked about it much this year. Gavin seems to be doing really well in Pre-4. His teacher says he really enjoys their activity tables, he focuses (especially on things that interest him!) and works well with others in the class. I am looking forward to more feedback in the Spring.
Marcin and I were also discussing J&K future preschool. I'd imagine they will also go to same preschool Gavin has attended last 2 years. J&K miss the age cut off in Delaware by FOUR days :-P So I inquired with the school whether or not they made exceptions for students so close to the deadline. I was told that yes they do but students must be assessed for school readiness by the teacher in August of the attending school year. Like I said....never know until you ask :-P
This is very interesting.....this would mean that J&K could start preschool NEXT year! All of our children would be in school, WOO HOO!!!! lol But we talked about it some more and we aren't 100% that this would be ideal for J&K. They are both smart little guys but I remember Gavin when he was there age. {yes...yes..yes.. I know we shouldn't compare but it is impossible not to!} By their age Gavin knew his ABC's, could count to 10 and knew all his colors. He was also already an avid drummer. Granted he was our first and only child for two years so we had oodles of time to obsess and teach him things. J&K have zero interest in ABC's although Kaleb does recognize a few letters. Jakob LOVES to spell his name. Kaleb can sometimes count to 5 but after that he skips around. Jakob, no interest. They are both learning their colors. They are getting there and I know all of this could change within a matter of weeks but here is my thing...they are boys. Energetic boys at that :-) I would much rather have them start preschool right before they turn 4 in 2014 and succeed than possibly set them up for failure if we start them too early. If a student is not challenged in school....there are advance placement classes and other ways to make it more interesting/challenging. If a student is struggling, different story. They will be pulled out of regular class for special services, get discouraged and overall have a difficult time.
Not to mention this puts 3 years between Gavin and J&K in school! So 3 years between Gavin starting college and J&K starting college...if they choose to attend college. I can't even think about college..... current tuition costs terrifies me, what will it be in 14 or 16 years?! We started college savings accounts for the boys when they were born so hopefully if they go, we will be able to cover one freaking year, ugh!
When we moved into our house, I was well aware of the fact that we were moving into a not so great school district. I worked in the district for a few years. Many of the teachers and principals I worked with were great...it was the student population I wasn't crazy about. Some kids just had too many life experiences at a young age that we didn't want our kids exposed to in 1st grade or playing spin the bottle in 3rd grade during lunch. The kids were NOT exchanging a kiss. Spin the bottle has upped the ante over the years:/
However, when we moved into our house, we figured on two kiddos and we could send them to an averaged priced private school or choice them out. Obviously we figured incorrectly on the two kiddos part :-P So average priced private school is out. We thought we had a good chance with a Charter school here but we miss the 5 mile radius criteria by literally 2 inches. Our next door neighbors are in the radius but we are not, hmph. We are still applying but it is a lottery so we shall see. It can't hurt to apply :-) That leaves choicing out to other districts or within our district. Thankfully Marcin works for one of the districts. One particular school in his district I worked at for a few months while the school counselor was on maternity leave. I loved it, great school and the principal is great! And Marcin can take Gavin to school! It is about 20 minutes from our house, which is fine by me :-)
Last year we discussed possibly keeping Gavin back a year since he is a July baby. I guess that is still on the table, we haven't really talked about it much this year. Gavin seems to be doing really well in Pre-4. His teacher says he really enjoys their activity tables, he focuses (especially on things that interest him!) and works well with others in the class. I am looking forward to more feedback in the Spring.
Marcin and I were also discussing J&K future preschool. I'd imagine they will also go to same preschool Gavin has attended last 2 years. J&K miss the age cut off in Delaware by FOUR days :-P So I inquired with the school whether or not they made exceptions for students so close to the deadline. I was told that yes they do but students must be assessed for school readiness by the teacher in August of the attending school year. Like I said....never know until you ask :-P
This is very interesting.....this would mean that J&K could start preschool NEXT year! All of our children would be in school, WOO HOO!!!! lol But we talked about it some more and we aren't 100% that this would be ideal for J&K. They are both smart little guys but I remember Gavin when he was there age. {yes...yes..yes.. I know we shouldn't compare but it is impossible not to!} By their age Gavin knew his ABC's, could count to 10 and knew all his colors. He was also already an avid drummer. Granted he was our first and only child for two years so we had oodles of time to obsess and teach him things. J&K have zero interest in ABC's although Kaleb does recognize a few letters. Jakob LOVES to spell his name. Kaleb can sometimes count to 5 but after that he skips around. Jakob, no interest. They are both learning their colors. They are getting there and I know all of this could change within a matter of weeks but here is my thing...they are boys. Energetic boys at that :-) I would much rather have them start preschool right before they turn 4 in 2014 and succeed than possibly set them up for failure if we start them too early. If a student is not challenged in school....there are advance placement classes and other ways to make it more interesting/challenging. If a student is struggling, different story. They will be pulled out of regular class for special services, get discouraged and overall have a difficult time.
Not to mention this puts 3 years between Gavin and J&K in school! So 3 years between Gavin starting college and J&K starting college...if they choose to attend college. I can't even think about college..... current tuition costs terrifies me, what will it be in 14 or 16 years?! We started college savings accounts for the boys when they were born so hopefully if they go, we will be able to cover one freaking year, ugh!
Monday, November 12, 2012
Toddler beds for twins....
I am NOT looking forward to this transition and hope to put it off for as long as we can! lol Even though I look at J&K and they seem so big in their cribs. I feel like they both can crawl out if they wanted to but *knocking on lots of wood* they haven't yet. Gavin never did.....he never even attempted it. We moved him to a toddler bed right before his 3rd birthday!
I sold both of our pack n plays because I had them put out in basement when the hurricane came thru, just in case we needed to sleep down there. They discovered them and climbed right in.....and over....and from one to the other. They had a great time! However, I did not. I was not ready for that. I was ready to sell them and get them out of the house but where will they sleep when we go somewhere?!
So that got me to thinking about toddler beds for two kids at once. Gavin was awesome once we moved him. He stayed in his room and played until he was ready for sleep. He wouldn't stay in bed and we found him in various places throughout his room asleep but he wasn't a kid who would try to leave his room repeatedly. Jakob, I will admit...I am a little anxious to think what he will do with the freedom to roam his room. I can see him being the one to climb onto his dresser and use his room as a romper room! I know for a fact he will not stay in bed and will take a while to go to sleep. We are going to have to put safety locks on everything in his room and remove everything! HA!!! I am not as anxious for Kaleb but being that he loves to 'BIG jump' off everything and has no fear, I am little worried about what he will discover to get into. Kaleb doesn't play around with his sleep....I think he will stay in bed and go to sleep.
They are not in the same room....me, being the sleep nazi that I am, was to worried they would wake one another up. I know everyone says twins learn to sleep through it but I couldn't take the chance. We had an extra room upstairs we were using as a guest room and thankfully we had recently finished our basement with a spare room. So we did two nurseries upstairs and moved guest room to basement. Their rooms are across the hall from each other though so I envision them yelling back and forth once they figure this out, hehe
As always, should be an interesting transition (That we hopefully won't make until another year!)
I sold both of our pack n plays because I had them put out in basement when the hurricane came thru, just in case we needed to sleep down there. They discovered them and climbed right in.....and over....and from one to the other. They had a great time! However, I did not. I was not ready for that. I was ready to sell them and get them out of the house but where will they sleep when we go somewhere?!
So that got me to thinking about toddler beds for two kids at once. Gavin was awesome once we moved him. He stayed in his room and played until he was ready for sleep. He wouldn't stay in bed and we found him in various places throughout his room asleep but he wasn't a kid who would try to leave his room repeatedly. Jakob, I will admit...I am a little anxious to think what he will do with the freedom to roam his room. I can see him being the one to climb onto his dresser and use his room as a romper room! I know for a fact he will not stay in bed and will take a while to go to sleep. We are going to have to put safety locks on everything in his room and remove everything! HA!!! I am not as anxious for Kaleb but being that he loves to 'BIG jump' off everything and has no fear, I am little worried about what he will discover to get into. Kaleb doesn't play around with his sleep....I think he will stay in bed and go to sleep.
They are not in the same room....me, being the sleep nazi that I am, was to worried they would wake one another up. I know everyone says twins learn to sleep through it but I couldn't take the chance. We had an extra room upstairs we were using as a guest room and thankfully we had recently finished our basement with a spare room. So we did two nurseries upstairs and moved guest room to basement. Their rooms are across the hall from each other though so I envision them yelling back and forth once they figure this out, hehe
As always, should be an interesting transition (That we hopefully won't make until another year!)
Sunday, November 11, 2012
sweet tea
I love the stuff! I grew up on it....I cannot remember a time in my life when sweet tea wasnt as readily available in my house as water. I suppose this is part of life in the south, hehe
So, of course, I have also always had sweet tea in my house until a couple weeks ago. It was a sad day when I realized my kids were addicted to the stuff. Seriously, I was making at least 2 gallons a week! Eh hem....way too much sugar for our already energetic boys lol Even though I always make decaf tea, the sugar is not helpful. So Marcin decided to cut back also. So I decided to see what life would be like without sweet tea in our house. Being that it hasn't been hot outside, it wasn't too hard to live without it....I missed it. There were days when I REALLY wanted a nice, cold glass of sweet tea. If it were summer....it would be harder to give it up!
Granted, we did survive those two weeks and the boys only asked for it a couple of days and then finally learned to stop asking :-P Hooray for us for surviving but I caved today and made a gallon, omg.....so good! I bet it will be gone by tomorrow!
So, of course, I have also always had sweet tea in my house until a couple weeks ago. It was a sad day when I realized my kids were addicted to the stuff. Seriously, I was making at least 2 gallons a week! Eh hem....way too much sugar for our already energetic boys lol Even though I always make decaf tea, the sugar is not helpful. So Marcin decided to cut back also. So I decided to see what life would be like without sweet tea in our house. Being that it hasn't been hot outside, it wasn't too hard to live without it....I missed it. There were days when I REALLY wanted a nice, cold glass of sweet tea. If it were summer....it would be harder to give it up!
Granted, we did survive those two weeks and the boys only asked for it a couple of days and then finally learned to stop asking :-P Hooray for us for surviving but I caved today and made a gallon, omg.....so good! I bet it will be gone by tomorrow!
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