Adventures in a Big Girl Bed

As of right now, I'm still undecided about the bed rail. Yes, she has "fallen" out a couple more times. No injuries to report yet. I don't think there will be. So, I still don't know what I'll do. The debate is still on.



BUT, here are more of Taylor's adventures in her Big Girl bed... she has now realized she can get up and down in the middle of the night. She doesn't play though. Nope. In fact, I woke up yesterday morning to her voice. "She's up and playing" I thought. So I walked into her room to get her and bring her into my room. She wasn't there. I checked the bathroom. She wasn't there either. So I looked over the stairs, and there she was. Just wandering around down stairs. Who knows what time she got up. I'm sure it wasn't too long. For some reason, instead of being totally freaked out by this, I think it's funny. I know I should be seriously nervous... but I'm not. She's fine. And we've decided to put a baby gate up at the top of the stairs.



BUT, this morning, at 4, Taylor came strolling into our room. "I want my daddy." I wish chris could have been awake to hear it (I had been up nursing Maddie.) so I picked her up and set her in bed with us, Thinking she would go back to sleep. Silly me. She stayed up and asked for Elmo or Mickey every 5 minutes. I kept trying to tell her that they weren't up yet, and she shouldn't be either, but she insisted they had to be on TV. Anywho... around 7 she finally fell asleep... on my hips. Maddie was laying beside me on my arm... I was on my side, and taylor was laying in front of me with her head on my side. Every little move I made woke one of them up. Needless to say, I'm a little tired today. The point of this BUT is that we may be moving the baby gate from the top of the stairs, to the door to the girls room. I'm not sure about it yet though.

To Rail or not to Rail

These are so ugly, but could it help?

It was bound to happen at some point, and I have to say, I'm a bit relieved the waiting is over.

Taylor fell out of her new big girl, twin sized bed.

I think she was already awake and just trying to get down, got tangled up in her blankets/sheets, and fell the two feet or whatever to the floor.

I heard the thud and the crying start. I ran in to save the day (dadadaDUH - Super MOM!), gave her a quick hug and one of my healing kisses (That's right. One of my super powers is the power to heal others with my kisses! That's why chris rarely gets sick :P ) With that, the crying was over. She was cool. She asked for her Monkey and her Bunny (will she ever name them something else?) and the event was over!

So here's my question... It will probably happen again - her falling out of bed. Is it one of those rights of passage in childhood, like the chicken pox and skinned knees... or should I try to keep it from happening? Do we rail or not?

Would something like this make a difference?

Keep in mind when answering this question... she was not asleep when she fell out of bed. Atleast, I don't think she was.

Moving with my Big Girls

Well, it was kinda sudden... but we moved. Not all the way yet, we're still working on that. But we slept here at my in-laws last night.

I didn't know if we were ready for this or not, but Taylor slept in a big girl bed last night. It took her a while to actually fall asleep, but i think the biggest part of that was we kept her up so late. And the TV was on. If it's on, she'll watch it. So we've decided... NO TV WHEN IT'S TIME TO SLEEP. She did cry just a bit, and this morning, I woke up with her and Maddie in my bed. But hey, it's a start. She also napped very well in her big bed today. I'm sure part of that was her staying up so late last night. She was pooped. So Taylor is sleeping in a twin bed now! It doesn't have rails on the side yet... But we'll get them. Hopefully she won't fall out before we have a chance to get them. If she does real well, maybe we won't get them. Who knows.

Maddie has even napped in her crib too. I'm so excited for all this. For my girls to have their own room, and for me and chris to have our own room again. Taylor has room to play with all her awesome toys she got for christmas. It's awesome.

I am going to miss my family. I loved having my mom and dad there everyday to ask questions and to help me with my girls. It's wonderful to be able to see the "grand" parent side of them. They're both great at it. I'm going to miss seeing my brothers and sister everyday too. They're turning into awesome people.

I'm going to miss our ward too. It's the tiniest ward I've ever been in, but everyone is so nice. I'm made tons of new friends and renewed alot of old friendships. I'm still going to go to playgroup and stuff. I'd miss all my friends if i didn't, and it's an excuse to see my family too.

Anyways. I'm so excited to be here with chris's mom and dad. They're super nice and we love them very much. Be on the lookout for pics of the girls room. As soon as I get my camera over here, they'll be up!

Snow Day Anyone?

Tennessee Definition of Snow Day

A day in which school is canceled
in other states cancelation is due to the presence of snow or ice

and the hazards it creates in travel

No actual snow needs be present in Tennessee

chance of snow? school is closed

no chance of snow, but it's cold? school is closed

I guess I understand the fact that it's really cold - like negative and single digits!

But at the same time, it's in the teens and twenties during the day.

There are places in the US where this is the temp for the whole winter season.

I'm 100% sure kids in these places don't get out of school simply because the high of the day is only 21.

I sound a bit like a grump. Honestly I'm not. I actually am glad that it's a snow day today, because then my little bro and sis are home for the day. They can help me with the girls since I need to start packing our stuff up. I just think it's a bit silly. That's all. I wish there WAS snow on the ground. I want to go play in it.

My 16th Girls

Happy Birthday girls!


Today, Taylor is 20 months old, and Madison is 4 months old (time to pierce those ears)

Here's some facts about my little cuties.


(I think taylor look so funny in this one. I have no idea what she was saying to me, but I love her expression. It cracks me up. This pic just reminds me of some tabloid celeb shot.)
Taylor...

• She can say anything now, and does. This includes "Stop It" which she says to me on average about 200 times a day.
• she talks in little sentences, 3-4 words
• she usually loves nap and bed time, and will ask for it if we keep her up too late
• she has to have her sippy cup before bed. That will be changing before the end of the month
• Her hair fits all up into a pony tail now (it's in one in these pictures.)
• She LOVES water
• She loves clothes
• She loves to be Naked even more!
• She REALLY loves Elmo.
• She's learning how to go to the bathroom in a toilet!
• She'll eat just about anything you put in front of her.
• Her favorites are cookies and candy. Also beans, veggies, and any kind of noodles. Oh yeah, and rice.
• Taylor is learning her letters. Her favorite way to learn them is to play on mommy's computer and point them out on the keyboard!
• Taylor was born 1 week late.

Madison

• She loves to talk.
• She loves to smile.
• She enjoys talking shoes with her aunt Jamie
• She sleeps with mommy and daddy
• She's been kinda rolling over for a few weeks, but really got it down on wednesday, the 14th! She's a rolly polly now.
• She can hold herself up on all fours now. She's a strong little girl.
• She's started playing with toys, holding them, reaching for them, looking at them.
• She's found her hands too, and will go cross eyed from looking at them too closely!
• She adores her sister. Taylor can usually get maddie to stop crying.
• Maddie was born almost a week early.
• If she had come out one minute earlier, she would have been born at 9:16 on 9/16.
• She's started eating baby cereal because mommy aint enough anymore.
• She's a very sweet spirit and a very good baby.

Our girls are our pride and joy. They are my favorite people in the world. I love spending time with them everyday and I'm greatful to be their mommy! They are the biggest blessing in mine and their daddy's lives. I can't believe how much they've grown in the 20 and 4 months they've been here. It's going by too fast. I wish it would slow down a bit, but at the same time, I can't wait for what's up ahead.

Happy birthday girls!

Heavenly Naps

My girls are both pretty good sleepers. Today though, they are AMAZING sleepers.

Nap time started today at about 1:15 to 1:30.

It's 5:02. Neither one is awake. Both are sleeping very soundly.

I have even tried to wake them up a bit. I came in the room, turned on the lights, turned up the TV. Nothing.

Both are still asleep. I hope this doesn't mean tonight is going to be horrid. That would not be cool.

Here are my sleeping beauties.

Can you spot the kid? LOL... Taylor has too many stuffed animals in her bed. But, these are the overflow from her stuffed animal canopy.

Sweet Taylor Brynn

My baby, Madison Emmarie!

Thank goodness for nap times!

Oh, also... I don't drug my kids. I swear!

Maddie's sleeping

My girls had lunch a bit later today than usual. Guess nap time caught up with madison.

Crochet a bit much?

I don't know if you can see it, but there is a bruise on the right side of my index finger! It's from crocheting so much. I am up at 12:17 in the morning, crocheting hats. Gotta get these hats done.

Naked

Whenever I give taylor a bath, or change her diaper, I always say "Naked!" I'm afraid I may have created a monster here. Taylor will now run around saying it when I take her clothes off. She'll even say it when she catches me or chris changing clothes.

Tonight, we put taylor to bed... Fully clothed. She had a button up shirt and pair of pants on for her pajamas. We had just changed her diaper and laid her down like every other night. She was talking to herself, playing with her stuff animals she sleeps with. She kept saying "Naked" and then I heard velcro. She got this monkey for christmas that has velcro on his hands and so I assumed the velcro I heard was this. We kinda laughed at Taylor saying Naked, I guess we thought she was talking about a doll or something. After a minute I asked chris, "Is taylor playing with the monkey?" "No, he's right here!" The monkey was on the floor beside chris.

I instantly knew that I would find taylor sitting naked in her bed. the velcro was from her diaper. She's learned how to take her clothes off. She unbuttoned her shirt, pulled off her pants, and stripped off that diaper. My little "Naked" monster! I love it!

A day of rest, a day of the usual, a day of sick

Sunday is a day of rest. A day to relax, spend time with your family, and go to church. We did the first two this past Sunday. We just weren't feeling real well, and decided to skip actually going to church. Awful I know. Moving on...

I had this huge list of things I needed to do and could actually work without being interrupted since Chris was home and could help with the girls. I needed to clean our room, clean the bathroom, do laundry (honestly like 3 hampers overflowing!), crochet 50+ hats (not all in one day)... lots to do. So what do you think I did?

I slept. Almost all day long. I woke up at like 4:30 PM and thought, oh no! I've slept the entire day away. What a waste! I'm a lazy bum! It almost made me sick to think of all that needed to be done that I didn't do. I felt bad guilty. Then I started really thinking about it.

Sunday is a day of rest right? I haven't slept through the night since SEPT 16... and actually, it's been before that, cause I was tossing and turning all big and pregnant. I needed that sleep. I had been crazy cranky with both the girls and chris. I just felt off that day, and the nap helped. Some. It was a warning of what was to come this week.

I did get some laundry done that evening though. I washed our bathroom rugs. I have this weird fetish thing about bathroom rugs. I LOVE the way clean rugs look and feel. It's AMAZING. Even better if they're right out of the dryer! I lay them out nice and flat and sometimes I'll just stand on them. Sometimes I won't. Sometimes I'll walk on the edges of the floor so I'll avoid putting that first foot print into the freshly cleaned rugs. It's like that when I vaccum the floor too. I hate putting those foot prints on the nice lines/patterns that are created by the vaccum. I'm only slightly obessive compulsive. Just a bit.

Anywho - Monday, I got alot done. Well, I felt like it. I got some hats made, played a bit with the girls. Finished up the laundry. I didn't however get chris's tags for his truck. They expired in Dec. With the hustle and bustle of the holidays, we forgot/put it off. Chris keeps mentioning it to me at odd times, so I never remember during the day that it's on my to do list. Besides, he told me he was taking a certain check to a certain bank to cash it, so we'd have some cash to get go through Marta and get the tags. :) He didn't have time though. Maddie did get a shot (had to borrow the parents car!) so she was a bit off. I gave her some Tylenol to help her out. She seemed to do fine.

Last night, was like most every night. Nothing fancy happened. I've felt just a tad bit off, but I figured it was my crazy naps on Sunday (I was awake for barely 12 hours on Sunday.) Then this morning came. I felt like I was beaten last night in my sleep. My chest is KILLING ME. It hurts to BREATHE. I'm coughing, feeling dizzy, feeling nauseous, having chills, have a fever... It feels like there is a ton of sand in my chest. I hate being sick. I hate that I can't be up doing what needs to be done, playing with the girls, taking care of them. Luckily, my mom is here to save the day.

She took over the girls and let me sleep (though the nap made me feel even worse.) She even folded laundry for me that's been sitting out since sunday and yesterday. Kyle pitched in too, watching taylor when he got home from school and holding maddie while my mom cooked dinner. I did go out and get chris's tags today, though I felt like I could barely get out of bed. It wasn't that bad though... we have a drive thru county clerk's office here in sumner! So I drove through the bank, then marta, then off to get the tags. never had to get out of the truck! Now I get my car back. Chris was great when he got home from work. He bought me some meds, and a dr. pepper. Also bought a 12 pack of mountain dew, which I drank one of also. I think a combination of all the meds and caffeine have got me feeling a little better. I'm sure once the caffeine wears off I'll be back to feeling poopie. If I'm not better tomorrow, I'll probably go to the doc. I can't be sick right now. Sick=Unproductive. I need productive.

Great News for BabyLuvGifts

I just read this article about the new CPSIA law regarding childrens products.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a0Xr2Iw1Vi_8&refer=us

Apparently cotton and wool are going to be exempt from testing. I have been buying mixed blend and acrylic yarns because they cost less, and I think they're easier to work with, but i am going to be switching to cotton and wool come Feb 10th to be able to stay in compliance with the law.

The statement made that it's not like the toy police will be at our doors on Feb. 11th makes me feel a bit like more exemptions are to come. It's kind of like the CPSA is saying, "Don't worry, don't close up shop, we're trying to fix it."

Hopefully this is a step in the right direction. What we really need is for the CPSIA to just go away. They need to get rid of it.

All the recalls from 2007 (all 43 million of them) were recalls from products that were not in compliance with previous laws! Instead of addressing the issue about non-compliance with already existing laws, Congress created the CPSIA, an all encompassing pile of poop.

Here's a great quote from an article I just read...
"How did this happen? The Emperor's new set of invisible clothes were borne of anger from "43 million toys recalled in 2007". [See http://www.todaysthv.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=78263.] What exactly happened in 2007? The lead-related recalls related to LEAD-IN-PAINT, not lead in substrates. [In addition, there was one tort involving one piece of lead jewelry.] Lead-in-paint has been illegal for decades. I hate to be a killjoy, but this means that the problem in 2007 was compliance with law, not the strictness of the rules. This is a behavioral issue, not a restrictions issue, and requires a thoughtful solution tailored to the nature of the problem (lack of compliance). By extending the law well beyond the known safety issue (lead-in-paint) to a laundry list of imaginary risks not associated with actual injuries, we end up arguing about whether cloth dolls, culturally-authentic clothing, microscope bulbs and Harry Potter books present a lead danger. If we are going to pay to prevent safety "risks" of that microscopic magnitude, why stop there? If children's products up to age 12 are such a serious (and undefined) lead safety issue, why aren't dog toys? Why aren't products for adults? What about industrial products? What about products we put on spaceships?"

Here's where I found it... http://learningresourcesinc.blogspot.com/2009/01/cpsia-emperor-has-no-clothes.html

Pee pee in the Pot-tay!

Taylor did it! This morning, right after breakfast, she told me she had to go potty. So i took off her pants and her diaper, she sat at the toilet and a few minutes later... she'd done it! She peed in her potty. I was so excited, I embarassed her! If I embarass her at onlya year old, can you imagine what she'll think of me when she's a teen? We called daddy, she got chocolate, and we told mamie! I'm so proud of her. I talked to Zoni about it and she said when her kids would use the bathroom, they would do a little dance around the house singing "Pee pee in the pot-tay!" doing a little cha-cha thing. I'm gonna use that. Next time taylor goes, we're dancing and singing. I can't wait!

Daddy's Sick and the Best Sound Ever

Chris had to come home early from work today because he's sick. This NEVER happens. Chris will usually suck it up, but he's pretty bad. There was a plus side. He taught Taylor what sick is!

Before chris got sick last night, He was playing with Maddie and getting her to laugh. This is one of the best sounds EVER.

And Last but not least... I took this fun little quiz thingy to figure out where I belong. So here you go.

You Belong in 1951

You're fun loving, romantic, and more than a little innocent. See you at the drive in!

What Year Do You Belong In?

No More Baby Hats as of Feb 10.

I was talking to Carrie and Monica about this the other day. I had only read a few blogs and forums about this until today. I knew basically what it was about though... Starting February 10th, it will be illegal to sell any children's item unless you have had it tested for lead and Pthalates (the bad stuff in plastics that everyone's freaking out about right now.)

I do need to say that YES! I agree that items need to be tested. I don't want my daughters eating and drinking from items containing high levels of pthalates. I don't want them to play with toys that contain lead. I want their toys, clothing, and anything else they come in contact with to be safe. But I enjoy buying handmade items. I like to think that someone put their heart and soul into what they're making. And the whole small town feel of it is enchanting. I don't know anyone who doesn't enjoy a craft fair or flea market with all their hand crafted clothing, toys, etc. But starting Feb. 10th, you won't see that kind of thing anymore. The costs for testing will be far to great for these people (including myself.)

And it's not like you can sell and just say it's not certified or tested. It is unlawful to not furnish the required certification.

Okay - So the yarn and other materials I use are all made in the United States and tested by the companies that produce them. Yes they are tested for lead and Pthalates. But does that count? No. The Finished product must be tested. Every Handmade dress. Every Different hat. Every type of toy. And the costs for testing are outrageous. Only the big companies like Matel and Fisher Price will be able to afford the testing.

With our economy in shambles, this is definately something we DON'T need. This is many people's livelihood, doing craft shows, and selling online. What are they going to do now?

Here's another blog about it. I thought this was very interesting.
http://mommysmartini.blogspot.com/2008/12/day-congress-killed-small-business.html

And here is a Summary of the CPSIA of 2008
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-4040&tab=summary

There are lots of things to do to help change this law. Check out the blog post at Mommysmartini in the link above. There are tons of links that will be helpful. This is definately a law that needs readdressing. Maybe people will contact their congressmen, and we can get this fixed so small businesses can stay open. I hope so. Or bye bye Baby Luv!

Our Very Merry Christmas

I realized, It's over a week after christmas and I haven't posted anything about it, as of yet. So here goes... Our wonderful christmas!

I'll start with the youngest little angel in our family... MADDIE
Maddie didn't get a whole lot, but lets face it... she's only 3 months old. There's not alot to buy for that age, besides clothes, and believe me... WE HAVE PLENTY! So maddie got a tray for her bumbo chair! She also got 101 Dalmations on DVD. She got a chalk placemat thingy. Yeah... I feel a bit like she was Ripped of. But seriously, what could we buy her? She did get a TON of stuffed animals from Mamie and Papa. And a car with a mommy and baby from Grandma and Grandpa! Moving on

Taylor's christmas was OUT OF THIS WORLD... Seriously, no 1 year needs to ever have such a good christmas. :) But it was so much fun for her. From Grandma and Grandpa, she got a super cute Doll House that makes noises and such when you ring the door bell or press on the phone and such. it's super cute. We got her a talking Elmo chair, A leapfrog DVD, a Potty, and a few other little things, including a ton of candy in her stocking. My mom and dad went a bit nuts when it came to stuff for taylor. My dad had fun with it all. They got her a Potato Head Kit that had 2 potatoes and 5 different outfits! They got her a wooden table with two chairs for her to sit at and eat or color. They got her a drum set, a rocking horse, a stick horse, and a POWER WHEELS PRINCESS 4 WHEELER. She also got a baby doll and a carrier and outfit for her. She got dress up clothes. And she has loved EVERYTHING. You would think that such a little kid getting so many things, she'd focus on just a couple things, but no. She LOVES them all. She loves to play on her drum set, which is real metal, but not real loud. She loves to ride her power wheels. She loves her elmo chair, her new table, her potato heads, her dolls, She has had a blast playing with everything. We had to rearrange our room in order to fit it all in! No joke!

I had an awesome christmas. Not only was it great to watch my girls get things, I got some pretty great stuff too. I got the Sex and the City DVD, both x-files movies on DVD, the new book by Nicholas Sparks, The lucky one, some awesome penguin pants, and some other great things!

Chris had a good christmas too. He got a new IPOD in UT orange! He got the Night trilogy by Elie Wiesel, Some awesome DVD's including I am Legend and The Hulk.
All in all it was a great holiday! Here's some pictures!

Here's Taylor in her Santa Suit. Super Cute!

Maddie in her christmas Dress! She doesn't look too happy about it.

Grandmother and Maddie.

Maddie LOVES to be talked to. Maddie and Leann

Christmas Eve we all open one gift at my parents house... PAJAMAS!

Christmas Morning, Taylor checking out her new toys with her Juice in hand!

Maddie and Mamie with Maddie's New Dolphin.

Taylor Drumming

Taylor and Maddie with their rocking horse.

Maddie, Getting ready to go see Grandma and Grandpa on Christmas Day.

Grandmama's Party at Grandma's House.

Jennifer and G-Mama

Brandon and Rodney

Mark, Matt, and Lu

Maddie and her Great Aunt Linda

Yup, Christmas was good this year. HOpe it's just as good next year!

Mr. and Mrs. Taylor

My little brother was married today. It was beautiful. There couldn't have been better weather. LeeAnn was beautiful. Michael was handsome. And everyone else was dressed their best too. Here's just a little bit that I got.



Taylor had a blast dancing... especially with her daddy.



Maddie just chilled the whole time.

whoops... forgot to turn that one.

It's me and Taylor!

MOre dancing

leeann, taylor, and maddie

taylor, daddy, and papa

i love this one.

this one here makes me want to cry it's so sweet.

the happy couple.

I'm so excited for them. Now they get to spend the next 7 days in Hawaii! I'm so jealous. I hope they have fun. I'm sure they will.