ahhhhhhh...

... sun-dried laundry! yum. even though my sun-dried laundry was a load of diapers, they still smelled good!! i just realized that that's really the only time you can say that diapers smell nice.
thanks to my wonderful better half, i have a clothes line between the house and the garage. there's not much room (and not a lot to work with) so it's nothing fancy but it works for me! don't need anything fancy, really... the simpler the better.

ahhh... laundry is HARD work. you got it, baby!!

(i couldn't resist- the hand flopped in front of her face and her thumb just barely hangin' in there, it was too cute!)

on a sidenote: i've got the diaper bag all packed and ready for tomorrow. it's all for cole; he's going to high school! no, he's not some newly-discovered genius (he's no dummy either, since at 21 months he's already got fake-sleeping down to an art), it's for auntie sarah's parenting and child class. i did it in high school too... i'm not worried about whether or not cole will be ok, i'm worried about whether or not he'll behave!!

as for the whole fake-sleeping thing... last night cole was still running back and forth about 15 minutes after being tucked into bed, so i went up to try to settle him down and get him back into bed. he wasn't loud, not so much as a peep, but from the sound of his little feet overhead, he was one busy little boy. well, i got up there and there was no sign of him- the closet door was wide open but no cole. it didn't look like he was in his bed, but i checked anyway... sure enough, there he was, wedged tightly against the rail, covers all the way over his head. his eyes were closed and he was completely still... if it weren't for the fact that he was puffing and sweaty, he'd have fooled me. oh, and to add to the little charade? he lazily pried his eyes open, like he'd really been sleeping.

smarty-pants...

mother's day

i meant to post yesterday but didn't get the chance... even though it's a day late, happy mother's day to all the mommies out there!!

we had a nice day yesterday- everyone was reasonably happy (and by everyone i mean the kiddos) which made for an excellent day! i got a sweet mother's day card and then after meeting we went out to eat at half nelson's. yummy as always!! we ran into levi, kayla, ruth, chris and alicia there so it was fun to chat with them (as always... fun bunch!). cole fell asleep about 10 minutes from home, which meant we still had our normal sunday routine- teeny weeny nap in the car and a flat-out refusal to nap in bed. if he hadn't needed his diaper changed, i think he would've taken one, but he slept all the way through the change (i even left his pants off so he wouldn't get woken up by having them put back on) and then was wide awake as soon as he was changed. go figure. we let him play by himself in his room for a few hours- we were hoping that he'd eventually fall asleep, maybe just out of boredom, but no such luck. as long as he wasn't crying, we figured he'd be fine by himself. and he was. anyway, with a tiny little nap comes a big case of the crankies, usually. we were surprised that it wasn't nearly as bad as usual, although cole did get a few time-outs after pushing it to "three".

this was his time-out temper tantrum... taken AFTER he fell off the chair and landed on his face while doing the exact same thing. usually he learns pretty quick; guess the urge to throw a fit overtook his common sense.

daddy felt sorry for cole, having to bend down and crawl to push his lego train car thingy on the floor; he stacked lots of legos on top of it so cole could push it without bending over. all i had to say was "wow", while thinking that pushing those things on your hands and knees is pretty much the NORMAL way to do it, but whatever...! yup, those are my boys!

a little update on the 1,2,3 magic deal: it's going a lot better than i expected! we started this in the late afternoon on friday and considering that cole is barely 21 months, he's really getting the hang of it. the hardest part of the system is the "no talking, no emotion" part. that means that once you start counting, you ONLY count, you don't give them any more warnings, discussions, whatever. and when it's all over, whether or not there was a time out, you just leave the issue alone instead of bringing it up again (unless it's a very serious thing, like chasing the cat with a steak knife, for example). even things like "are you going to be good now?" or "i hope you learned your lesson" are discouraged... it's pretty interesting. i have to really bite my tongue because it's first instinct to tell cole that he's got to be good (after his time out). i know that this probably seems really strange to some people, and that's fine- everyone has their own way of raising kids! this seems to be working for us, because cole has started listening just a little bit better, which makes us super-happy!!

eeep!

one guess. and no, it wasn't a mouse.

yes, he helped himself!

kisses!!

well, hello!

so- we got this cool lego table and tons of legos... stuff i would've died for when i was young enough to still enjoy legos, and what's cole's toy of choice today? the broom.

now if we can just get him to sweep stuff into a pile instead of pushing it around and spreading it out, i'll have one less thing to do!

city-wide rummage sales were today... we didn't get out. it was gray and damp and cold this morning so i really didn't have any motivation to take the kids out in the stroller. besides, cole was busy pushing the limits and getting time outs. the 1,2,3 magic system seems to be taking hold so far... sometimes we only get to one, other times he pushes it to two and there are the times when he gets to three and a time out, but for only the second day, i think he gets the idea. i know all things take time and consistency but he's a bright kid so i think we'll have some luck with it. i recommend it to anyone who is having issues with their kids- of any age!! it's worth a try... and like all things, it won't work for everyone, but if you're at the end of your rope, it might be worth looking at! anyway, i digress... we stayed in for the morning, but i got a load of diapers washed, the ironing done, bread made and even had time to sit down for extra book and play time with cole!! i thought maybe we'd take a look at some of the sales in the afternoon, but by the time cole got up from his nap it was just after 4, so everyone was packing up. it was still gray and not too warm so i'm not too bummed. there will be plenty of rummage sales in the coming months!

about a boy

this is a "cole post"... he's been up to a lot lately! namely, stairs- he can go up them himself (has for quite some time) and down as well. so naturally, he thinks he can climb them any old time he wants to and gets pretty frustrated when he's told that he has to stay off the stairs unless mommy or daddy go with him. he's also been 'helping' daddy with various projects, like turning his crib into a "big boy bed"!!

daddy putting on the first rail... (*sniff*)

cole helping daddy get everything square and all

ta-daaaaa!!

i have to say that his first night in his big boy bed went exceptionally well, even though it got off to a rough start. he went to bed fine- i rocked him for a few minutes, per our usual nightly ritual, and when i left him for the night, he was laying in his bed all happy, not a care in the world. that is, until i realized that i forgot a diaper for madison. i had no choice but to go back in and waddaya know? the crying started. we have a baby gate across cole's doorway, but that wasn't really the entire issue- it was mostly that mommy wasn't going to stay and play with him. the screaming started, and i wasn't about to cave within the first few minutes (he's got to get used to the bed, new freedom and the entire situation in general) and go coddle him; besides, madison was having a cranky time and kelvin was in the shower so i was kind of tied down. i figured that if he was still upset once kelvin was out of the shower, i'd go settle him down. in the meantime, for about 15 minutes, i heard the indignant screams mingled with the sound of small feet running laps around his room. and by the time i was free to go tend to the little mister? he was fast asleep in his bed. he stayed there all night and did fine with his nap today too. what a good boy!!

we hit some of the rummage sales in town today- city-wides are tomorrow, but several of them were open today too. we found a lego table and two bags full of legos for $12.50. SCORE!!! cole's thrilled, needless to say...

... and in typical cole fashion, promptly started pushing the table around. sigh.

last night i made it to the "discipline tips and tricks" presentation at the library. just madison and me... kind of like 'mommy time'. i'll take what i can get!! anyway, there was just myself and one other mom, so it was pretty one-on-one. we learned about exactly what takes place during growth spurts and why they're so difficult for kids. the lady also talked about positive reinforcement and things like that. i did learn a few good things, so it was worth the short walk across the street. i went back today and found a copy of "1,2,3 magic"... seems it might be a good book since it's ready to fall apart. i've started reading it and already applied the basics to cole twice tonight. simply put, it's giving your child two chances to correct inappropriate behavior before hitting "3", which is a time out. our example? cole was pitching a tantrum because we had to come home from next door. i told him to settle down... he didn't, so i told him "one", he didn't stop (of course- he's got no clue but if we're consistent, he'll get the idea before long). "two" brought no change, so then it was "three. that's a time out" and up to his room he went. once he settled down, i went and got him, spoke nothing of the incident and off we went to play. it's a good theory and hopefully it'll work for us. there's a bit more to it, but that's the basic idea. i also got, at the suggestion of the lady who gave the presentation, a few board books that involve emotions. he's not old enough to identify his emotions, so illustrations in a fun book may help him to eventually understand. we have the books for a whole month... maybe i'll be able to find some at goodwill or barnes and noble so we'll have them when madison hits this stage. eh, toddlers... !!

(mostly) about a girl

not to seem biased (because really, i'm not...) but this little girl has one of the cutest grins. she makes smiling contagious. happy in her bumbo...

yesterday we went to oshkosh to try to score some good deals on clothes for this summer and stuff. it never fails to amaze me how just when you think you're all set and don't need to get clothes for the kids for awhile, a new season and new sizes just kinda sneak up on you. argh!
we found a pair of swimming trunks for cole... the tag said they're "diaperless", so we'll see how well those plastic underwear thingies attached to them hold up. interesting... much less bulky if they work. even the swim diapers bulk up a little in the water.

this is how cole signs "i love you". he's just started attempting this one, and doesn't quite have it right yet. but we know what he means!!

madison's close to sitting up on her own... won't be long!! this is where she's at- she can sit this way for about a minute or so before rolling to the side.

she's also started multi-tasking... playing with her toy tray (she got the toy on a string all by herself, i might add) and keeping paci in. paci usually falls out pretty quick- maybe it helps her concentrate better?? anyway, this morning she was sucking away on paci AND grabbing ahold of her toys. go, squish!!

full of grins!

our little man watching daddy mow the lawn. after awhile, we went outside (he got new sandals for the summer so we had to try them out) and "helped" daddy finish washing the truck. no photos of that because i had a very spitty little girl on my hands. yuck. then we went next door to play with henry and maggie for a few minutes. i got cole the striped shirt from the children's place for $4... i got a 24 month size, thinking 18-mo would be too small by august and they had no 2T in that color. boy was i wrong- we definitely could have gotten the 18-mo size- this shirt's big enough for two of him!! we also found two pairs of shorts and a three more summer tops. my guess is both kids will be spending plenty of time in just their diapers, so i'm not too gung-ho on the summer wardrobe for either of them.

tonight at the library there's a presentation on discipline tips and tricks... i think we're going to go check it out. cole's got a MAJOR case of the "terrible two's" starting. this started before he turned one, but lately it's been pretty intense. our neighbor also recommended something called "1,2,3 magic"... said it worked for her oldest when nothing else would. hopefully we can get to the library tonight... and even better, get something out of it, if cole lets us!!

who says mondays are 'blah'??

yeah, they usually are, but not this week! auntie sarah came over after school so monday was fun. we had supper and then went outside for some outdoor fun.we started with the sidewalk chalk that uncle duey and auntie kandace gave cole for his birthday...

... moved on to watching the scenery over daddy's shoulder...

... waved at the firetrucks...

... and took a walk around the block. cole kept wanting to run into the street and random yards, so auntie sarah tried to distract him with a game; he'd trot along as fast as he could with auntie sarah next to him and then try not to run into her when she suddenly stepped in front of him. he got quite a few giggles out of it for awhile!

(thanks, sarah- we had fun!!)

after cole was in bed, i made some home made baby wipes. i like huggies wipes, but as long as we're trying to save a little money, i figured i'd try to make my own. there are lots of recipes out there, and many of them use essential oils and a carrier oil (like olive or almond), and while i'd love to try them, i know that oil isn't good for cloth diapers. yeah, it's not very much oil and i'm pretty sure enough soaks into the skin that it probably wouldn't build up on the diapers, but just to be sure, i went with water and baby wash instead. i found some earth's best natural baby wash at target and mixed a little of it with a cup of hot water, then poured it over my neatly folded stack of paper towel. the most time-consuming part is cutting and folding the paper towel. we'll try this batch and see how well we like it. so far, it's not bad. they feel a little slippery (i used viva paper towel, so maybe something a little coarser wouldn't feel that way) but other than that... not only is it a TON cheaper (think 12 dozen wipes from one roll of paper towel) but it's nicer for little ones' skin. water and baby wash is pretty plain and simple and gets the job done!

my wipes...

miss madison in cole's cool shades this morning. she wakes up THAT bright....

cole wanted to put them on her. awww- what a sweet big brother!!

we're still here...

... and at the urging of a very impatient someone on facebook (ahem. you know who you are.) i MUST post. so here we are. it's been a bit busy lately- always out and about! silly me, thinking that i'd get more done when kelvin's laid off because he can watch the kids for me! being cooped up makes him a bit cagey so we end up going places. like friday- we went to appleton for awhile. saturday we had a baby shower to go to and ended up staying for supper, and yesterday we went to my mom and dad's for lunch. chase was visiting ( we haven't seen him for AGES), and mary and dale and ted were there as well and we wound up staying for supper there too. so yeah- we've been away from the computer!!before heading out for appleton, cole took a few minutes to show madison how to play with the toys on her swing. he doesn't know this, but she figured it out herself a little while back.

madison and mommy... my first instinct is to delete any photos with me in them, but then i remember that there aren't that many of me with the kids so they don't get wiped. unless they're particularily hideous...

this is what shopping does to miss squish. she shops till she drops. (or something to that effect)

i think chase is hungry...

cole had a blast yesterday... there was so much for this little boy to do, he didn't even have to get into trouble!! he was outside most of the time and he and i took a nice long walk. for those who know the trails at mom and dad's, cole made it almost all the way to the hunting cabin. by. him. self. yes, his little legs just wouldn't stop moving! we hitched a ride in uncle tedly's rubber trucky on the way back, though. even that was fun- cole got to steer and beep the horn.

a short moment inside- a mozart in the making!

this old play shopping cart got more than it's fair share of use when us kids were little, and now cole's continuing the tradition. he just pushed (or pulled) it aimlessly for the longest time!

i didn't have the camera along on our walk, but cole was SO sweet, giving me all the stones he found along the way. he'd bend down, pick one up, kind of "oooh!" over it, then hand it to me. i've forgotten just how much of a 'treasure' stones are when you're small. i feel so honored to have gotten all those little stones from my son- really. i'm not joking- to him, they were pretty special, so the fact that he thought they'd be a great present for mommy was just overwhelming!

he also found two pieces of old pottery. strangely, they didn't get the same "oooh!" and enthusiasm that the plain stones did, but still... what a sweet little boy!!

and speaking of sweet little ones, i can FINALLY (after about 6 weeks) tell you all to check out elissa and logan's blog for some news. that is, if you haven't already. eh, you probably guessed it after reading those last two lines anyway. but still, check it out anyway, if you haven't :)