An Early Christmas

Today I was lucky enough to open up one of my Christmas presents.  Yep, I cheated.  Actually I cheated when ended up buying the gift for myself.  But in my defense I have to say that some things are just meant to be purchased by yourself and not your husband.  I'm talking about these little beauties...

I've been wanting a pair of boots since my mission and I finally found a pair that fit right.  The price was right up my ally too!  Only twenty bucks.  I do have to give Chad a little bit of credit since he has tried in years past to find me the perfect pair of boots.  But like I said, it's been hard for me to find a good fit.  (I have such skinny legs)  I'm hoping to get a second pair (brown) for Christmas too.
So, why did I end opening these a few weeks early?  A couple of reasons: snow and bunions.  There I said it.  I have bunions.  If you don't know what those are they look a little bit like this...

I have them on both feet and have had them for most of my life.  Unlike some people who get bunions (from wearing tight shoes) I got my bunions from my dad's side of the family.  Love those good ol' genetics.  Anyway, since Chad had surgery on his wrist earlier this year our family deductible has been met which means I get to have surgery tomorrow morning on my right foot.  YIPPEE!! 
Okay I'm not that excited.  I mean, who really chooses to surgery just for the fun of it.  It's also a crummy time of the year to be doing this, but I must admit it will be nice to have them taken care of.  They have been a big source of pain and embarrassment for long enough. 

So, since I'm having foot surgery tomorrow, and since I'll bee in an orthodic foot brace for 6 weeks I decided that I was allowed to open one gift early and enjoy it for the day.  Unfortunately they've been worn and put back in their box and now I'm trading them in for a different kind of boot.

OH JOY!

Tut, tut, tut...it looks like rain.

Actually, it's a mixture of rain and snow that is quickly becoming just snow.  It's a good thing though.  Rain and snow bring needed moisture to the area.  Moisture that will be needed in the summer months.  Moisture that packs that mountains with snow for skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling.  Moisture that makes it okay to drink up some warm cocoa and pull out all the fluffy blankets that are in storage.Rain (and snow) are a good thing! 

Except when a mother tries to take her two small girls to the grocery store to stock up for the week.  Unfortunately, there are times when moisture creates soggy wet groceries.  Moisture that saturates a mother from head to two while she unloads the girls and takes them into the store, and then tries to load them back into the car followed by the groceries.  Moisture that ends up dripping from the heads of two tired little girls.  Moisture that makes it impossible to find a dry cart to set little baby bums into.  Moisture that turns my kitchen floor into a wet yucky mess.

Ah, good ol' moisture.

Can't live without them

Since the girlies have taken over my house I've found that I go through things so much quicker than before. 
Things like:

1. Diapers--okay I never really bought these before we had our girls, but I seem to buy boxes of these every time I walk through the doors of Walmart.  And I mean boxes!!!  (This includes wipes as well)

2. Laundry Detergent

3. Dishwasher Detergent--I swear I do a load of dishes everyday.

4. Milk

5. Food

6. Apple Juice

7. Stain Remover--for clothes and carpet

8. Snacks

9. Patience

10. Sanity

On the flip side, I've gotten to experience things that I never really was able to before we had the girls. 
Things like:

1. Story Time

2. Wet Slobbery Kisses

3. Afternoon Walks

4. PBS Kids

5. Snuggling together on the couch all bundled up in blankets

6. Naked Baby Bums....one of my favorites :)

7. "Pweese!!!"

8. Some of the best hugs I've ever had

9. Parenthood

Hide n' Seek

I'm missing a bottle.  Last week I had both of my girls sitting on the couch enjoying some apple juice in their bottles.  It looked something like this....

Well, after the girls were done with their juice, both bottles ended up on the floor.  Once I got around to picking them up, Kinsie's yellow bottle was nowhere to be found.  I didn't think too much about it, until Saturday rolled around (my cleaning day) and the bottle was still M.I.A.  Now, a week later, Chad and I are assuming the bottle is gone forever. 

Here's our theory:

First, some background info.  At the beginning of the month Chad and I sat down at the computer to over our monthly budget.  Britnee sat on the floor, content to let mommy and daddy get stuff done.  Kinsie, however, decided she needed some entertainment.  So, I allowed her to play with my wallet.  She was in heaven!  After we were done I started putting my wallet back together and discovered I was missing a credit card and my Sam's Club card.  Luckily, I found them the next morning right were you would expect to find them...

...in the car, of course!  So, thinking I had discovered a secret little cache of Kinsie's I laughed and thought nothing of it.  That, however, was at the beginning of the month.  Since then, we have been playing the most interesting game of hide n' seek with Kinsie.  I think she would normally love playing this game, but of course she's too young to really realize what it is she's doing.  At least I don't think she knows what she's doing!?!  This past Saturday (after the loss of the bottle) we found ourselves searching for one of Kinsie's shoes.  We kept asking Kinsie where her shoe was and spent a good 20+ minutes looking everywhere.  We were stumped.  I mean there really are only so many places a shoe can go.  Finally it dawned on me that Kinsie has been spending a lot of her time trying to reach for all the goodies in the pantry.  Sure enough...

Then, the very next day (Sunday), I once again found myself asking Kinsie where her dress was.  She had picked up her dress while I was doing Britnee's hair and had managed to relocate it to some unknown place.  I was careful this time to start with the pantry, but the dress was nowhere to be found.  At that point I gave up and decided to go with another dress.  So, I changed her diaper, put on the new dress, and threw the old diaper away.  Look what I ended up finding in the process...

Yep, the dress in the dirty diaper trash can....SICK!  Since Sunday I have spent a good portion of my day fishing stuff out of this very trash can.  Things like....

...Britnee's clothes...

...the case for my glasses...

...and her favorite books.

Now all of this, in conjunction with the fact that Chad witnessed Kinsie throwing away Britnee's bottle in our larger trash can, has led to the simple conclusion that the yellow bottle (and who knows what else) has been tossed out for good.  At least my credit card didn't end up with the same fate!

Where does the time go?

That statement really applies to my life right now, on so many levels, however I actually know the answer.

First of all I've been attempting to accomplish some "fall" cleaning around here. Technically it's more organizing than anything, but it's making my life feel a little less crazy knowing where everything is. I've finished with the girls room and their clothes, their bathroom, the hall closet, the closet in our office, and the kitchen pantry. Sweet victory.

Then, I've been spending any free moment I have (which isn't that much since the girls don't take naps together anymore) creating things, working on projects, and coming up with some super fun ideas for the blog that my sister and I are doing together. I have a huge list that I'm trying to whittle away at and I've been trying not to let this aspect take over my life, but it's been hard since the creative juices are overflowing right now. I've actually enjoyed this outlet as it's given me something to do that's only for me (and those who check out our blog).

I've also spent a good portion of my time watching my girls literally grow up before my eyes. This is when I really start asking myself where the time has gone. Everyday Kinsie is learning some new death defying feat, or simply a new word, and with Britnee around she's seems that much older. Not to mention that next month she starts nursery. Is it bad for a mom to cry when they drop off their kid to nursery for the first time?

The same applies to Britnee. I'm amazed at all the little thing this girl can accomplish ever though she isn't crawling, scooting, or pulling herself up onto furniture. Not being able to do those things is the only reason she still feels like a little baby to me. Let's keep it that way!!!

With all of these things keeping e preoccupied I've neglected my blog. Which normally I wouldn't be kicking myself over, but since I look at my blog as my personal journal I really hate to slacking off on it. Especially now that Kinsie and Britnee both rule the house. So, I plan on trying to do better and intend to begin right now with these updates.

PUPPY LOVE
In July my sister got a miniature poodle for her birthday.  Her name is Nixxie, and she's the cutest little thing.  At the beginning of September Chad took off to Florida for work and left us girls at home.  I actually choose not to fly 5 straight hours with two girls who were to be contained on a lap.  So, we headed out to see family for the week instead.  We stayed with my parents and let the girls run/sit free with Nixxie for a good part of the time.  So cute!

STORY TIME

My girls love reading books.  Kinsie asks me to read to her more times than I can count, and I'm sure Britnee would too if she could walk.  Don't get me wrong, I love it.  There is nothing I want more than for my kids to have a love of reading and books.  That's why I love finding Kinsie doing this.

That just makes me smile!  As soon as I was done taking these pictures I turned around to find Britnee looking through a book by herself.  I tried to capture that moment too, but she simply wanted to play with me instead.

Don't you just love these two.  They make my heart happy!

Change is in the air!

And I don't mean Fall! 

I usually love change.  I enjoy trying new things, getting that fresh start, and having a new outlook on life.  (No, we're not moving)  As much as I enjoy the new beginning that comes with change, there are those  times in life when change isn't all that it's cracked up to be.  For example: I don't like it when it's time to change the laundry, or when I've changed about 10 plus diapers in one day.  I also don't enjoy change when it interrupts a perfectly good thing that I have going; like a routine and set schedule with my girls.

Our life used to be so predictable.  Believe me, with two girls this close together in age predictability is the only thing that keeps you sane.  We had everything all worked out:
Girls up about 7:00
Breakfast around 8:00
Nap time (FOR BOTH OF THE GIRLS) 10:00
Both girls awake around 12:30
Lunch 1:00
Britnee down for second nap around 3:00
Play time until 4:30
Go outside and wait for Daddy to come home 4:30-5:00
Dinner at 6:00
Both in bed by 7:30

LIFE WAS GREAT!!!!

But now! 
Britnee up around 4:30, then again around 6:30
Both officially up by 7:15
Breakfast around 8:00
Britnee down around 10:00, 10:30, sometimes 11:00
Kinsie down....hopefully no later than 1:30....if I'm lucky
Lunch around 1:00
Britnee now doesn't go down for a second nap
Play Time until 4:30
Wait for Daddy outside 4:30-5:00
Dinner at 6:00
Bedtime is now contingent upon their naps for the day and the stress level of Mommy :)

LIFE IS NOW UNPREDICTABLE....and I'm not sure how I feel about it.

I guess this is just another stage that I have to push through until I can learn to manage, and accept, the shift in their schedules.  I don't mind, really I don't!  It's just, now I don't know when I'm supposed to squeeze in a shower.

Oh well, I suppose I'll have time to shower when they are both in college.

So, here's to all the little changes that life brings to each of us!  May we learn to love the moment we're in and continue to count each blessing that comes our way.