Babies, Brownies and Blessings

Our's is a sick little germ-infested home this week. Pneumonia, sinus infection, fevers. And that's just this week. I'm starting to wonder at the effectiveness of my handwashing... Anyway, I've learned a couple tricks over the years. And just so we're clear, I have my Mom-hat on right now. These are Mom-tricks, not nurse-tricks. Ever tried giving a febrile 3 year old tylenol or ibuprofen during the night? They are groggy, sick, and miserable. And now, you need to shove 5-10ml of fluid down their throat. I realized that for such occasions it's nice to have the infant concentration on hand. It's contains more milligrams of medication per milliliter so you give less. The dropper comes in handy, too, for shoving it between their little lips. So instead of 7.5ml of children's tylenol, I can give 2.5ml. And it'll go in and not come back out again! The other trick I learned has to do with infants. When giving a med (into the side of their...

A friend's Facebook status caused me to have some flashbacks today. Her little guy got into the children's ibuprofen bottle. The Childproof ibuprofen bottle. I think he was just dipping his fingers in when she caught him. I wasn't that lucky. BigBoy #1 is my ibuprofen guzzler and childproof-cover locksmith. On TWO separate occasions he downed half the bottle. Yep, twice. Great parenting, I know. The first time I was in a panic. I was certain he was going to end up with a GI bleed, need his stomach pumped, etc. Poison Control calmed me down. Turns out for his weight (he was a large 2 year old) he could've drank 3/4 of the bottle before it would've been a problem. Give him something to eat to absorb some of the med and watch for puking was the advice given. And, of course, keep the meds out of reach. Great advice and I followed it. Until the next time it happened... We were remodeling the kitchen and nothing was where it belonged. 6 a.m. one morning I hear a little...

The last 10 years have changed us much. Most of the growth has been good. There's a lot of growing up that needs to happen when you marry at 20. In some ways that may have made our journey easier. We matured together and didn't develop too many bad habits pre-marriage. We certainly didn't find our way without help. I thought I'd share a few of the books that have helped us get this far fairly gracefully. And of course, God is the main source for our joy and love over the years. Most of these books both Bri and I read together. A couple of them I read and they changed me tremendously. Maybe one day Bri will check them out, too   although I quit holding my breath a few years ago! :) The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work John Gottman, PH.D. This was one of two books recommended in my Marriage and Family Development class in college. Gottman did a 48 hour study of many couples and watched for 6 signs that the marriage was in tr...

Once again I have several little "blog-able" thoughts running through my head but none of them are particularily exciting in their own right. Onto another hodge-podge, this and that post! Oven and Wires Last week started with a broken oven. And melting wires going into our electrical box. Every time this type of stuff happens I'm so grateful for my husband. He can fix it. Cheaply and correctly. He saves us hundreds of dollars by putting on his electrician hat. Another couple hundred by being my oven technician. I gave him permission to take the $600 we saved and buy me something nice for V-day. Of course, Dave Ramsey wouldn't hear of that since we didn't actually have an extra $600 so I was blessed with a budget that's not screwed up instead of some expensive bauble. That makes me just as happy! The board that needed replacing in the oven. The one at the bottom has a soot stain. That's not supposed to be there, I guess! Claire Claire started clappin...

*Lest you are considering skipping this post due to the last few days of overly-dramatic reactions to life's little challenges, I assure you there is NO whining and fussing this time!* :) Last weekend we spent 48 fun-filled hours with my whole family. They made the 7-8 hour trek from Roseau, Badger, TRF area in 3 vehicles with 7 adults and 5 children under 7. I was delighted to be on the "receiving" end of their presence instead of the "driving and riding" end. The boys woke that morning asking to see their cousins and grandparents. They just couldn't get here quickly enough! "When are my friends going to be here, Mom?" "I bery miss them and can't wait to see them." Finally the caravan arrived and the fun began! It's amazing how quickly everyone settles in with the bigger kids heading downstairs, the little ones up with the family. It's starting to get easier as our kids are growing up a bit. No longer needing th...

Today is the day. WAS the day. The long-awaited ornery-ectomy was to take place for BigBoy #2. This morning he needed it, bad. The fighting, crying and yelling that began as soon as the boys woke just about did me in. But today was going to be the beginning of the end of sickness for BigBoy #2. Out with the tonsils and adenoids, in with the happy, feeling good boy. Those plans were changed. By yogurt. 3 ounces of Dannon Smoothie Strawberry Burst yogurt. BigBoy #2 is a big breakfast eater so I knew it would be a challenge to keep him from eating this morning. He was allowed popsicles and jello, though, so I thought that would be a delight to any little 3 year old. Popsicles for breakfast!! He wanted yogurt. I said no. He said yes. Yada yada. I won the battle for a while. I intercepted an almost intereference when I found him disobediently grabbing a yogurt out of the fridge. We had done our best to explain why this was not an option for him. And he gets popsi...

Tomorrow is the big day. Caleb's Orneryectomy (aka tonsilectomy and adenoidectomy)  will take place early in the afternoon. Bri and I are both feeling a bit apprehensive. It's hard to choose surgery for your child, even if it is the best option and the long-term benefits will be worthwhile. Caleb, on the other hand, is looking forward to it. At 3 he doesn't quite get what's going on but he keeps asking if it's time to go to the hospital yet! We did our best to explain without scaring (and scarring). He won't be able to eat anything in the morning which might be rough. Breakfast is usually first on his list when he wakes. But he can have popsicles and pudding until about 8am so he might think it's his lucky day! There's a chance he'll have to stay the night in the hospital, depends on how well he takes fluids post-op. He's a stubborn one so we may be in for a fight for a few days. We covet your prayers and ask that you'll lift up...

I enjoy special days. It's fun to get a few trinkets for the kids and wish everyone a happy {fill in the blank} day. Sometimes we just need something to celebrate, especially at this point of winter. I do, however, struggle with every special day for one reason. Red #40. The food coloring. The food coloring that's in EVERYTHING. The food coloring that makes my children possessed crazy. Several years ago we discovered that BigBoy #1 doesn't tolerate artificial colors and flavors all that well. Turns out not every child spins around in circles or could run a marathon after eating a couple skittles. We didn't know, he was our first child. My sister-in-law turned us on to this idea as she was trying the "all natural" diet with her youngest for similar reason. And it worked! As time has gone by, we've been able to let the boys eat artificial colors and flavors occasionally. We had to work up to that point, the first several months required...

It's a trap and I know it. Doesn't always keep me from falling into it, though. When, Then... When I get this, Then I'll be happy. When I get the right products, Then I will keep my house cleaner. When my kids are older, Then I'll have more time. When Bri gets on days, Then we'll get together with other people more. When we have more money, Then we'll give more. When we have more money, Then we won't want/need as much. When the kids start sleeping past 6am, Then I'll get up earlier and spend time with God. Every time my When comes to pass, the Then proves itself to be a lie. Time to change my thinking from When, Then to How, Now. How can I change Now?

Colds have been having their say around our house lately. The coughing is incessant and disruptive. Not to mention miserable for those who are doing the hacking. BigBoy #1 has the cough without any other junk  so I've been sending him to school. Before heading out the door yesterday I gave him some cough medicine. It was the children's Mucinex and it comes in a little packet. The medicine itself is in "pebble" form. I emptied it into his mouth and he says... "Mmm, it tastes like the American Flag." Huh. Several "clarifying" questions floated through my mind like: How do you know what an American Flag tastes like? Why do you say that? What does it taste like exactly? Then I realized what he was talking about. Pop Rocks. Fireworks. American Flag. I love that he equates our flag with the wonder of fireworks... I was struck unexpectedly with overwhelming appreciation for our freedom, our country and the men and women who sacrificed much ...

It has been years since this has happened. It's as rare as a lunar eclipse. And I'm so excited! My WHOLE family is coming down this weekend! Well, almost whole. My nephew, Bry, won't be here but the rest of the clan will. I actually don't know the last time the entire Melby crew graced the Cities. It's been many years since my older sister has been down. And her husband has NEVER been here (to "da Cities")! I feel a bit compelled to impress since Danny's a newbie but after all these years, I still don't know what would constitute a great time down here. Oh, did I mention that there will also be 8 kids under 7 years old? So a good time is going to be a bit relative. :) We've made a few plans, though, and I think it's going to be a blast. Sledding, skiing (for my brothers), Children's Museum (for us parents and kids), Aquarium at MOA (for all of us!). Then there's the "non-events" which happen to be my favor...

There are a million acronyms and abbreviations out there now thanks to texting and social networking. I'd love to say that I'm up on them all but that would be a lie. By the time I realized that LOL didn't mean Lots Of Love  (and I KNOW I'm not the only one who thought that!),  it was so overused that I refuse to text it. Nothing worse than an impotent acronym. However, there are times that I really do LOL when I read a text. Just last night Bri sent a funny text that made me LOL. But I thought that if I were to say LOL he wouldn't understand just how much I LOL'd. As a result of this quandry I'd like to propose a new abbreviation/acronym. This is for those of us who like the idea behind LOL  but want something to really get the point across that we think something is funny:  NRILOL  (No Really, I Laughed out Loud) What do you think? Would you use it?  :)

As my recent grumblings indicate, I'm a little low on sleep and patience. What mom parent isn't? Our challenges may be unique, but the cumulative result of exhaustion and shortness that we all experience when raising children gives us a common understanding. SteroidBoy (BigBoy #2) was up for a couple hours during the night. Happy but a bit too hopped up to sleep. I was wishing I was hopped up, too, as long as I was up. By the time morning came my husband knew my need and jumped out of bed before I could fuss my way out. Delighted, I sleepily burrowed in and snoozed another couple hours. I woke refreshed but still ready to get out of the house...alone. Since we're always in need of some sort of food, I volunteered to get groceries. I ran  headed out to the van, sat in the quiet and delighted in having my own space. Deep breath. Eyes closed. Prayer on my lips. Lord, bless this time. Renew my spirit... Cranking Third Day, I pulled out of the driveway, o...

It's been a rough 6 months for our 3 year old. He hasn't gone more than a week's time without some sort of illness. A string of ear infections, pneumonia, coughing, colds, strep, sinus infection. Courses of antibiotics. Now steroids. You get the picture. The thing is, he's ornery. Really. Really. Ornery. I'm not certain if he's just "3 year old ornery" or if its more than that. Right now I'm banking on it being more than that. In a couple weeks he's going to get his tonsils and adenoids out. It's going to be miserable for a while afterwards but I'm counting on a big return for my misery. I'm hoping that along with taking the tonsils and adenoids, they will take the ornery out of him, too. I've heard of it happening. And I'm praying it will for us, too.

Several weeks ago I was struggling with a decision. I posted  my dilemma and asked for your help. And you came through! Just days after I placed my order, I got a great little package in the mail, return sender: Must Have Moxie. I didn't even make it in the house before ripping open the package. Want to see what I chose? (I apologize for all these shots of me, feels a little funny...)  BLUE bling earrings work with flannel! Little closer shot of the sparkle and shine!!   Sporting both my new necklace and earrings.   Aren't they fun?  Just wearing the earrings makes me feel a little less housewife/mom and a little more the girl my husband married ten years ago. They've become a staple accessory to complement my boring scrub blues. And I've had so many people exclaim over them! Just the other day a dear friend said how much she liked my blue balls... :) Valentine's Day is coming up, maybe you should head on over to Must Have Moxie  and g...

I've become a living, breathing cliche. The whole "you're going to miss this", "the days go slow, the weeks and months fly by". We have now reached the "he's growing up so fast!" stage/cliche. And once again it's so true for me. Today was Kindergarten Registration. My 5 year old BigBoy #1 is ecstatic! And growing up so fast. I almost missed Registration Day. By chance I checked out the school website yesterday to see what time school will start for him next year. A large bulletin caught my eye declaring Feb. 1st Registration Day. In 24 hours! What needs to be done? Paperwork? Is this one where we meet teachers? What would've happened if I had missed it??? Umm, yep... This is our first time. Gotta love those first time parents, huh? :) Turns out, just a few forms, a birth certificate and proof of residence are needed. In less than 5 minutes we were in and out. Met the principal, chatted a bit about classroom size, turned in for...