and now we can breathe

after a super-busy weekend, i feel almost bored today! we kicked off the weekend by going to sarah and ste's for lunch and to see aunt mary. the kids had fun playing with the cars- parking garages are fun, as long as they're made by fisher-price or little tikes... :)playing cars

after lunch we headed over to green bay to spend the rest of friday and saturday with kandace and duey. friday night we had spaghetti and played wii bowling until almost 11 pm... my shoulders are still a bit tender from it!
saturday kandace, madison and i hit hobby lobby while cole went to the park with duey and daddy. i think duey was more excited about it than cole was- but it sounds like they both had fun.

auntie kandace got a toy plane for cole from the smithsonian in washington d.c.; you can read about her trip on their blog. looks like it was super fun!

and with the laid-back saturday afternoon came more wii... that thing is addicting! cole "played" too... his control wasn't plugged in, but he thought it was a blast anyway. it's amazing how smart kids are- friday night when he found the joystick control, he immediately ran over to the screen and pretended to play along! all this time, i thought he wasn't paying attention since he seemed to be getting into just about everything he shouldn't have been playing with. guess he was absorbing it subconsciously or something...

wearing daddy's hat. really, he did think it was pretty nifty to look like daddy but he had a slight fever so he wasn't feeling 100%.

we came back home saturday night because sunday was special meeting. we went to wausau this year because it's a little closer than brillion. cole was a bit antsy during the morning meeting and in the afternoon he napped for about a half hour and then sat pretty well, considering it was another 2-hour stretch with pretty much no nap. after we got home, though...

...he played next door with henry! cole's never been in a sandbox before, so he thought that was pretty neat. he also got a kick out of pushing around henry's lawnmower (it makes bubbles) and little bike. funny how other people's toys are more fun, huh? really, though, it's good for cole to get a little interaction, and henry's such a sweet little guy (he's almost a year older than cole). and poor miss maggie- she started crying every time madison started crying... that little girl has THE cutest pre-cry pout ever.

this is from saturday... this is for the grandpa's and for auntie elissa, uncle logan and cousin coy (and any other john deere die-hards). yes, madison has a jd onesie!

now: the thing i've been waiting SO anxiously for... our new diapers!! they came early this afternoon, just after i put cole down for a nap (in case anyone thinks these kids nap easy, let me tell you- he was awake for about 3 hours before he finally conked out. and woke up 45 minutes later....). i put one on madison right away- they're the one-size style, and she's fitting into the smallest setting. cole's in the biggest, and so far, no leaks!! madi had her's on for about 4 hours and when i changed her, the soaker pad was really wet but her skin was barely damp. nice! we'll see how they do on cole before i give a full review, but for right now, i can say that i'm happy with them!

and speaking of cole, he got to try the new diapers after his very short nap. the reason he's laying on the floor with no pants? well, daddy came home from work right as he got up and mommy dragged him upstairs so he could see how the new diapers work. cole got very mad when daddy went downstairs to take a shower so mommy had a very hard time getting his diaper on... pants were not even attempted. once cole got downstairs and realized that daddy was in the bathroom and he couldn't open the door, a 20-minute tantrum ensued. at first mommy thought cole was getting sick because of all the crying and clinging (but madison needed to get dressed so she couldn't hold cole at the moment) so cole got some tylenol. he loved it and was quiet until mommy put it away, then the tantrum picked up right where it had abruptly ended. once daddy was done in the shower and opened the bathroom door, cole was happy. the tears and screaming stopped on a dime and all was well once again.

yikes.

a day of upgrades

i can post now because cole is playing with his daddy (the giggles are priceless) and madison's in her bassinette (screaming- we've tried everything and so now it's time for a little space. for us AND her...). i'm beyond thrilled; just check out the before and after's:my stove this morning (except it wasn't outside). only three burners work, one of those three works some of the time and gives off little sparks when it DOES connect. the range top is crooked (it's like it's warped) and the oven is beyond all hope of ever being clean.

my stove this afternoon: beautiful! all the burners work, it's a glass-top, the oven is spotless, the timers and clock work (the ones on the old stove didn't), it's all nice and what more can i say? it's perfect! thanks to sears we found a discontinued display model that had a nice markdown, so it came home with us.

we also upgraded the sewing maching. not because we wanted to but because we had to. i was SO excited about my little sewing maching we got last week, but i didn't have a chance to try it out till yesterday. lo and behold, the plug-in for the footpedal has a faulty connection. being married to an electrician with proper tools has it's perks...:) we took it to the appleton walmart to return it today; the receipt ended up who-knows-where, but we were lucky enough to have gotten one with a price sticker right on the box. so we got store credit (because of the no receipt thing) and went over to the craft department to see what else they had. this one (see above) was affordable and about 20 times better... it came home with us. after lots of trial stitching and quite a bit of frustration (that tension issue just didn't want to be resolved), we finally have it stitching right. and this time, the receipt is safely tucked away. can't wait to use it... as soon as i get more thread. i used all of the stuff i have that coordinates with my fabric trying to make tight bobbins. eh, new machine, first use... there's always a kink or two to be worked out. i think we got it, though, judging from the nice results of the last few test runs. watch out, etsy, i'm on my way!

more new things...

yup, we're on a roll over here!! now that madison's a little older, there's something "big" happening almost every day!for instance, cole can now get on and off almost any piece of furniture all by himself. this includes the papasan, where he likes to look at his books!

awww! looks like madison's kissing cole back. really, she's gearing up to start screaming, but it looks cute!

here's madison's new thing: the bumbo! cole was just over 3 months when he sat in it for the first time... he was pretty slouchy, too. madison will be 3 months next week wednesday and she sits in it like she's been doing it for ages. funny thing how kids are so different!

sittin' tall and sporting her new cowgirl onesie. auntie sasa, this photo's for you! we got them from target yesterday and they go so well with her little pink-stitched jeans from old navy. quite the get-up, and cute as all-get-out.

i couldn't resist posting this one- i think madison was expressing herself rather well; cole put her paci in several times and she kept spitting it back out. big brother means well but sometimes he just doesn't get the hint!

as for mommy's new things, well, all i have to add is that the second coat on the dining room walls is all finished. now for the trim...

learning new things!

but first things first, otherwise i get lost if i post out of order. we'll start with yesterday...this is the outfit great-auntie mary sent to madison from montana! i promised to post a photo when she wore it... she's even wearing the pretty tights! thanks again aunt mary... it's adorable! :)

cole at grandma and grandpa's house yesterday afternoon- what a goof!

cole this morning; he was walking on his knees!! i hardly ever do it, and he's never tried it until now... first time and he did it perfectly! he thought he was big stuff. i love it when kids learn new things. unless...

...the new thing is this. yeah, in public too. it was one of those times where we should have told him that crayons don't belong in his nose but we were laughing too hard to say anything intelligible. thank goodness for camera phones... this one's a keeper. i can't figure out if he's a typical little boy (most likely) or if he's really a genius and is thinking outside the box (possibly but not likely). it could go either way... maybe it's both. whatever the case, the waitress at the oshkosh ihop may never be the same. (yes, duey, there's only one ihop in oshkosh...)

that's our boy...!

anyway, we decided to take advantage of kelvin's time being laid off and do stuff. like today: he wanted to go to hobby town so we went along and hit the outlet mall. i was hoping to find some really good deals on clothes (for the kids, nephew, new little ones, etc... i'm not to the point where i'm ready to get myself anything yet- maternity clothes are still my duds of choice. hear that, belly??) but didn't find anything. the children's place usually has super deals... today they had racks and racks of shirts and tops for $2. i looked, but didn't get anything because there were no bottoms! i looked all over- i guess there are lots of kids running around with pants and no shirts. but i did find my favorite scent at bath and body works... i LOVE the "sleep" aromatherapy. it's lavender and vanilla and it's absolutely dream! it was all about 75% off, so i stocked up on lotion and body spray. yum. so even though i didn't find anything for the kiddos the day wasn't a waste- we had fun just being out together!

paci thief!!

we seem to have a paci thief in our house. i think he's about 2 1/2 feet tall, sandy hair, big blue eyes, goes by the name of "boog"... for whatever reason, he can't seem to get enough of his baby sister's paci. he's got his own but i guess they don't taste as good or something. goodness knows we have a shortage so they have to share, hahahaha. seriously- we have so many different kinds it's not funny. we have the infant soothies, the soothies for 6 months+, we have some gerber naturals (the ones that feel the same as nursing), binkies, several orthodontic-shaped ones and then madison's round gerber ones. cole seems to like hers the best...

i love the way she's looking at him!

"what?"

"moooooom!" (yep, i think it's started already... the tattle-tale wailing!)

my new toy- yes, it's small, but it was affordable and i don't need something with all the bells and whistles, just basic stitching. now i won't have to hand-stitch slings; that takes forever ! i haven't tried it out yet... my dining room project needs to be finished first.

dining room before: stained woodwork with tan and green mottled walls.

dining room after: chocolate walls and crisp white woodwork.

yes, i painted the woodwork, gasp. apparently one of the mens' ten commandments is "thou shalt not paint the wood", but if this mommy is at home all day, she's not about to stare at wood trim that's beat up and has several different shades of paint around the edges. besides, kelvin said he likes it so i'm forgiven. anyway, i got the first coat on all but one corner of the dining room, and most of the trim is primed. the laundry room door and a little of the trim there is finished (paint and all), which is what i took a photo of. and yes, cole is sticking his finger down madison's throat. i think he misplaced the paci. either that, or i had it so he wouldn't suck on it. either way the littlest one IS being tortured. he meant well, but his method has a little to be desired.

lions, tigers and daddy, oh my!

yes, daddy's home!!!!daddy and madison on wednesday evening.

madison's been a bit colicky in the evenings- you should hear her roar (hence the "lions and tigers" part of the post title). how one tiny person can make such a racket, i have no idea. many times, holding her does nothing... although last night cole played with kelvin while i took her upstairs and rocked her; i stripped her down to her diaper and wrapped her in her fuzzy blanket and after awhile she was happy. ok, so we've found the solution: quiet time in the rocking chair with the blanket. BUT... when daddy's not home, it's not going to work because if we bring big brother with us, there will be no quiet. if we leave big brother downstairs, not only will there be a small child screaming at the bottom of the steps (not quiet either), it's not safe to leave him by himself. hmmmm. we have a dilemma. good thing daddy's home all next week! (that's right, no work... and travel work doesn't start for another 2 or 3 weeks, so he just might be home for awhile).

this is what daddy got for cole yesterday. yes, he got spoiled!! but hey- we don't do it every day, so we can justify it. the weight limit on the thing is up to 65 pounds, so he'll get years of use out of it! we went to appleton yesterday and picked it up then. i also got a new phone... almost 2 years coming!! i dropped it around the time cole was born and the faceplate cracked, so for this long, i've been waiting for it to fall to pieces. fortunately, it didn't happen... and since my contract was up for renewal we got a good deal. i got a pink lg rhythm... i'm lovin' it!

anyhoo, back to the tractor- cole's feet don't reach the pedals yet, but he thought it was more fun to stand next to the seat and push it all over the place. he even managed to steer it into the kitchen!

daddy and madison after a busy and exciting day...

...and she's been a daddy's girl ever since! no joke- she'll cry for mommy, but once daddy has her, she's all smiles (or at least no tears). you can't see it on the photo but there was a big alligator tear hanging on her bottom lashes on one eye. it was just SO sweet- the big tear, the reproachful look in mommy's direction, the way she was clinging to her daddy... made my heart melt!

i can't say enough how great it is to have kelvin back home- the kids are loving it, i'm happy to have someone else around so i can get things done (hahahahaha), and kelvin's thrilled to be back as well. he said that madison just got a little bigger, but cole's face changed a lot while he was gone. huh... i'd have never guessed that cole changed more than madison!

today we ordered some bumgenius cloth diapers... we're giving them a whirl. after reading several unbiased reviews, the pick was between them and fuzzi bunz. both had top raves and very few complaints, and since bumgenius had the best deal for one-size packages, we went with those. i also ordered some flushable liners and all natural stain soap. the liners will be nice for getting rid of the #2's... especially for madison, since her messes are pretty messy! and speaking of messes... cole had two "firsts" yesterday. not milestones, really, but "firsts" all the same. he had his first shower, which was REALLY interesting. he was fascinated but scared out of his wits at the same time. the reason for the shower? his first tub poo. yes, his first. until yesterday, he had never once made a mess in the tub, not even as a newborn. it took him almost 20 months, but he finally did it. not that i'm congratulating him, i'm just saying it took him that long! yes, an interesting start to the day!

just because

i didn't take any pictures of the kids yesterday or today... *gasp*! hey- i've been a bit busy with the dining room, and besides, it's been one (ok, two) of those days where for the better part of the waking day, at least one small being is crying about something. sigh. gotta have those days too, i guess. i forgot about this shot- i like it!

so- i'm almost done priming the dining room- i should be able to get more done once cole's in bed. if madison would just keep her paci in, i could get a LOT more done. i swear, i'm ready to tape that thing in place! it would cut down on at least half the crying that's coming from her. anyhoo... i'm excited to be close to half-done with the entire project. from what kelvin said this afternoon, they'll most likely be coming home sometime this weekend after all. can i just say i am SO happy and can't wait?? like y'all wouldn't have guessed that... yes, i am so anxious to see him, but i'm also looking forward to not having to do everything myself with only two hands. i think moms flying solo should get an extra set or two of hands if they want. sure, we'd look funny but we'd be a little more sane, maybe! then again, the gape-mouthed stares i'd get at the grocery store would probably send me back to somewhere near insane... haha. oh, and one more thing before i forget- cole drank from a straw on monday night!! he was intent on taking a sip of grandma's soda so she let him, of course. first time he's ever tried a straw and he got a nice gulp. his eyes got all watery from the fizz which was pretty cute. wow- i'm pretty impressed that he did it on the first try... can we have the same luck with potty training? (i know, i ask way too much). which reminds me, i found a deal on bulk cloth diapers... i found 24 bumgenius one-size diapers for just under $400. any mommy who's used these knows that's a pretty good deal. but if anyone out there knows of a place to get them for an even better deal, please let me know!! i know $400 seems like a pretty steep price, but when you're diapering two kids for at least another year (depending on when cole decides to potty train) and one for another year beyond that, well, the cost of disposables would run about $2500 for that entire time, so... that, and cloth are more eco-friendly. i'm thinking a little extra laundry is well worth the price.