Monday, February 28, 2011

What a floody mess...

I never considered myself a really sentimental person. I always love the memories behind things, picking up that toy and being assaulted with a past event when I was seven and wearing blue corduroys and had a haircut up to my ears. But I never thought of myself as one who needed to hold on to material things. It just isn't my style.
Well the flood we got sort of proved me wrong. A tree root blocked our drain pipe in the basement (we found out yesterday, 4 days too late) and the basement flooded with almost 2 inches of water. Ehh, no big deal. Two inches isn't much...Well,  it is when you have a basement FULL of cardboard boxes holding all of your things. Pictures of my mom, like the collage my sister and I made for her funeral. Presents from Chris like the giant stuff teddy bear he and Landon brought into Cracker Barrel while I was working on Valentine's Day. The jewelry box I got from my Grandma, and the box of porcelain dolls I had collected in my younger years (My Grandma and Grandpa had a porcelain doll store, they poured the molds and everything). Every year I would painstakingly step through the store, eyeing each doll with deep child scrutiny, until I saw the perfect doll that would come home and sit next to my growing collection.
I cried as I sorted through all of these things. Useless crap that I never looked at, never even thought of unless I happened to open the box looking for something else. "Out with the old, in with the new." I had always decluttered my house and "modernized" it, buying a frame here or there, finding a new coffee table or curtains. I love change, and the two easiest things to change are the decorations and my hair. But the basement had always stayed the same, piled with boxes of memories and useless crap that, for as much as I preach my lack of sentimentality, I cherished.
I brought this on myself. Seriously. For months I've been saying "I'll get to it." "Once I get the cabinets set up I'll get it all put away." "I just need to buy another shelf." Well, the cabinets were set up, I bought another shelf. And one box got put away. Then the motivation left me, or Nevaeh would start crying, or some other excuse would drag me (willingly) away and I'd revert to the first excuse "I'll get to it." Lesson learned, just a little too late.
It won't kill me, obviously. I'll get over it, and honestly I'm not really that upset. It's more of a "I really wish this hadn't happened...this really...really sucks."


On a side note...Landon wants nothing to do with Nevaeh this weekend :-( She, of course, is completely in love with him and is constantly trying to grab his shirt and mash her open mouth against his cheek for an extra sloppy kiss, extra slobber please. The whole weekend he's pushed her away (gently) saying "Get way baby sistuh." And cried to me that she was hurting him (right...). Not sure what this fit is about, but I guess I can't force her on him, and he usually loves her so I'm assuming (hoping) this is just a jealous phase. He was all about her when she was first born but then I think the reality set in that he didn't get all of Daddy and Beebee's attention anymore, and that doesn't sit well with him. At his mom's house, he has his older brother Anthony and older sister Shaylynn, but he's the youngest so he never had his mommy all to himself, he doesn't know any different, so there's no real reason for him to experience jealousy (at least attention wise). So I just have to keep telling myself that. Especially when he says the extremely hurtful "I wanna go home." :-( :-( that one breaks my heart. I understand, mommy's is probably more fun because she has a zoo (literally) in her house, and Anthony and Shay can run around and play with him and not just drool, and they were there before he was so he didn't have to get used to having the around, and Ashley doesn't discipline him (ie, corner, must eat his dinner) etc etc etc. I get it. I know he loves us. But still...ouch :-(

Floody hell weekend!! Bring back the sunshine and happiness pleaseeeee :-)

Friday, February 25, 2011

Personality Explosion!

Ohhh 6 months, how I enjoy thee :-) You really make my daughter shine! Her personality is just bursting through like a warm sunrise on a cold day!

The other day we were at my dad's, picking up Nevaeh after my husband and I's anniversary. Dad and his wife Sus have a runt jack russel terrier named Sophie. She reminds me a lot of Spunky from the old cartoon Doug! Well, Nevaeh is not used to dogs, so everytime Sophie would bark, Vae would cry :-( I held her facing Sophie and told her it was ok, just to growl back! and then demonstrated by growling at Sophie.
A little while later, Chris (hubby) was holding Vae in a standing position, and Sophie came bounding up to her in her typical overly excited fashion. Nevaeh let loose with a war cry of babbling! Sophie stopped dead in her tracks, backed up and looked at Nevaeh like she was an ax murderer. Nevaeh realized what she did so continued shrieking and waving her arms frantically in the air, really showing that mutt who's boss! (I'll even post the video I took on here because it is TOO hilarious not to share!!) She now does this for everything that scares her. The squeaky giraffe toy, a sudden peek-a-boo she wasn't anticipating. War cry! "I'll show those scary things what's what!"

With the 6 month mark sliding across the plate today as well (Ahhh I can't believe it's been half a year!) Vae has also decided naps are for chumps. The past week her usual hour morning nap chopped down to 20 minutes, her afternoon 2 1/2 hour snooze stopped short at 30 minutes, and her evening hour nap didn't happen. She kept her eyes pried open till her 9pm bedtime and wasn't even grumpy about it! I figured her nap schedule would be changing around now, but really? Only a total of 50 minutes in one day? Come on! Baby needs her sleep and Mama got a lot done during the old 4 1/2 peaceful hours!

The Jumperoo is possibly the best invention ever made for babies. Ever since Vae discovered she has strength in her legs and can pump them widely, that's all she does! If you hold her she wants to stand up, be tossed (gently) in the air, or just spaz out by flailing all of her limbs and shaking her head like a crazy miniature woman. On the floor? Fuh-get about it! She'll get those legs going and have herself scooted clear into another room in a matter of minutes. I don't even want to THINK about the crawling that's fast approaching. She can get herself up onto her knees, rock back and forth, and one leg will make the exciting slide forward but she hasn't quite figured out she has to move her arms and the other leg too or else she'll faceplant (also hilarious). When I put her in her exersaucer (you know, the thing that doesn't move!) She does her very best to try and vault herself of it, and the poor exersaucer just can't contain all that energy! So, I invested in a Jumperoo, the one for the floor, not the doorway one as we do not have the needed framed doorways for it. OH MY GOODNESS! I set her down in that thing and it's like lightening struck her toosh. I thought she was gonna bounce right out the door! She is definitely way happier in this amazing contraption :-)

Then comes the stuff she can't figure out yet. This trait has Daddy written all over it! Like the wallet she can't get unsnapped (shopping fiend, already??) Her little brows will furrow deep over her huge blue eyes and her lips will purse into serious concentration. If she can't figure it out she'll either give a huff of frustration and throw it down, then move onto something else, or she'll look up at me with the insistent "MOM, do this for me!" face. If she DOES figure it out...I better hope she's on low solid ground cause this kid will jump out of her skin! Sort of like when I give her rice cereal hinted with a dash of cinnamon and she, quite literally, flips out of her bumbo seat because she is so delighted at the sweet taste on her tiny tongue buds :-)

Hey future! You're looking pretty exciting. I'm excited to see what's in store, especially for my little slice of Heaven!! (pun intended)

Monday, February 21, 2011

Home

Home is where the Heart is. Where is my Heart? My Heart is in my husband Chris, in my daughter Nevaeh, in my stepson Landon, in myself. My Heart is in my family, and family can go anywhere.

I was born and raised in Lima, Ohio. Ok technically I was born in Bluffton, half an hour North, but we lived in Lima. Hell, I even lived in the same house for 12 years! and if that house ever pops up for sale, I will go to hell and high water to try and get it, and raise my kids there. Population...ehh 40k or so. Everybody knows everybody's business. I graduated with 85% of the kids I went to preschool with. My class had 87 students in it. My husband was also born and raised there. He lived all over (very literally, everytime we drive around he says "hey I used to live there!"

Neither of us are fond of our hometown. When my mom died a year and a half ago, my brother and sister took me out to dinner and said that my mom was worried most about me. I was 19 at the time, just starting my life, and she wanted me to be close to my brother and sister so they could help me. So I talked it over with Chris, who was then just my boyfriend, and he picked up his life and moved with me to Dayton, Ohio. We enrolled in school, got our jobs, got engaged <3. Of course then everything changed. I got pregnant in December, 2009, three months after my mom died and 2 months after we moved. Chris' son Landon was in Wapak, an hour North of us. My brother was working many hours and his wife had their first son December 26, 2009. My sister was finishing school and working two jobs. Unfortunately neither of them had or have the time to be the family they promised my mom they would be. I'm not mad at them, obviously they have to live their own lives. But Chris and I only moved here because of them. We hate it here. We never thought we'd miss Lima but it is a heck of a lot better than here! Everyone we've met turns out shady. No, I seriously mean everyone. Maybe we just attract the wrong people, I don't know. It's a hassle driving an hour to get Landon and his mom doesn't cooperate with it at all. She and her husband say it was our decision to move so we should have the responsibility of bringing him to and from Dayton...well, Chris had a long heated discussion with Ashley about that one, got it sorted out quick. Regardless of our decision, it is joint parenting and things will be dealt with equally. Not she does everything or we do everything. (I'm not dogging on her, I love her to death. It was just a disagreement that needed working through).
To put it short...we are moving back to Lima in June. I am not working or going to school right now, I'm home with Vae. Chris graduates end of May and can transfer to Lima until he finds a good job, whether it's around that area or wherever. Hopefully we won't be there forever, but if we are then so be it. I just want to be with my family.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

XoX

Pink or Blue?
I've always thought there was a decent line between feminine and masculine. Especially when it comes to infants, putting the wrong type of green on a girl can cause a mistaken gender. Likewise the wrong style of blue jeans can get a little boy all sorts of "Aww she's so cute!"
Such a cute little jacket right?! It's blue, but has a sweet girly decide on the inside of the hood and sleeve cuffs. Pair this with a pink onesie and hat, and it's a very adorable FEMALE ensemble. Well, I thought so anyway. Vae and I traveled through the bitter Ohio cold to daddy's school to meet him for lunch. Out of the 5 people who approached us to awe over her, 3 of them used "he" "him" and "his." Ok...I get that she's wearing blue, and that could confuse people. I even get that not everyone would see the femininity of the design on the hood and sleeve. But she's wearing pink underneath it for pete's sake! (note to self, google origin of "pete's sake"). Chris said I need to stop dressing her in that jacket because everytime I do she is assumed a boy :-( Well she looks like a girl to me! And I get tired of dressing her in pink and purple, I like other colors, too! I don't restrain myself to just feminine colors, I'm certainly not doing the same for my bebe GIRL!



XoX
I really do like getting free stuff. It almost never happens, and when it does it's typically one of those cheap dollar store items that break within 20 minutes, or a hand-me-down (which I've grown accustomed to, since I'm the younger of two girls).
OXO Tot is a company that paired up with Our365, a website where moms can join together with questions, discussions or just good times oggling sweet little ones. I joined Our365 about a month after my daughter was born, and it's fast become my new Facebook (not that I don't spend my share time on there, too). They recently created a group called Mom Says Reviewers. It's a group where, every so often, they post new products not yet on the market, and the first X amount of people to respond will be sent that product to test it out, then all they have to do is send a response of what they think of the product. Well! I got my product today! A handy bottle cleaner with a flexible neck, sturdy brisles, a nipple cleaner and a stand so it doesn't have to lay on a yucky sink or dirty counter and collect bacteria. I haven't used it yet, so I can't give an accurate "Mom Review" on here yet, but I'm excited! Plus it looks pretty cool, and I'd imagine it's a little pricier than the cheap bottle scrubbers I usually buy. So from this momma, my personal opinion as of now is...it's free, so I like it!


 
When it's cold outside...WHERE is the month of May?!
I like style...I try to be fashionable on an extremely modest budget, but usually my happenin' clothes are dangerously close to out of style by the time I can afford to replace them. But please...do I really have to wear layers and layers 6 months out of the year?!

I stopped bothering to hang my coat in the closet, it saddens me to much to have to drag that door open daily, take the coat off the hanger, and replace it later in the day when I return from freezing my tail off. I fight the winter blues every year, and usually by February I've talked myself into just dealing with it. Of course, by February there's only a month or two left of the white crap and soon cool breezes that prickle my skin with bumps will arrive, followed shortly by the warm and hot sun beating down on my (hopefully) tan skin.


Time Flies
I used to get grounded from reading. Not TV, or from going out, but from books. I would read at least one book a day, burying my nose in the pages of hundreds of authors. Fiction, mystery, fantasy. You name it, I read it or wanted to.
My stepmom Sus got me this for Christmas. I'm about 3 chapters into it so far (hey, it's really hard to get anything done with kids, let alone relax and read!!)


 
Close your eyes and Drift away...
HA, yeah right, Mom! Nevaeh is entering her 6 month of life and she is determined to stay awake through the whole thing!

Her to die for eyes peel open after just a few minutes of naptime, and red rims surround them by bedtime. Luckily she is still sleeping solid through the night, maybe waking up once because she threw her paci to the other end of the crib and can't find it (I see a softball in her future). But naptime? Fuh-get about it! She refuses to sleep in her crib, probably because she thinks it's nighttime and she's not ready for that yet. So I'll put her in the living with me and then I'll very quietly go about my business. It's not a big deal, I don't work so I don't mind her being out with me, but hopefully this doesn't last forever. Imagine trying to go about the house with a one year old dozing on the couch! Uhh, not gonna happen!


 
Partyyyyy!!
I'm awaiting the arrival of my 5th niece :-) (3 nephews, and one unknown gender baking in another sister in law!) She is due in April, and I am taking Jackie (hubby's sister) baby shopping. Waaahoooo!! I love children, but seeing as I want to span mine out a couple years in between, I gotta get my fix where I can! So in light of that, I wanted to make a fun kit for her other 5 children (3 girls, 2 boys).

Crayons, markers, candies, decorate-me frames, foam pills that grow into animals when placed in water, and noise makers. This completes the baskets for each of the kids. Sibling rivalry is pretty intense over there so I wanted to put the same thing in each basket and just mix up the colors.


 
Well, that does it for me tonight! I have an awfully cute little person yelling at me from her play rug. "Moooommmyyyyy! Come play with me!"

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Hospitality at it's Finest

Anyone who knows me personally can verify that I am the cleanest slob you'll ever meet. My house (and when I was still co-dependent on my parents, my bedroom) is always a disaster area. When I get a phone call that someone is coming over, I go on warp speed and power clean like it's nobody's business. If you are ever to grace the threshold of the Smith residence, please do not be insulted when I banish you from every closet door ;-)
This is my daughter's room

hahahaha!! Fooled you :-) I WISH my daughter's room looked like this. The kid isn't even crawling yet so I have no one to blame but myself, but seriously her and Landon's room is terrible! I wish I could have every room look like Martha Stewart everyday, and some times it does (on a much cheaper scale) but it only lasts a day. And it's all me, hubby is anal about being clean and the kids don't use anything except what I set out for them (and then don't put away).
My theory is if my house gets to a certain point of disarray...it's time to move. Which is not a very feasible way of living now that I have kids and roots. Luckily though, we will be moving in June so a total overhaul can take place then! I will try my hardest in the meantime to go through boxes, throw stuff out, give stuff away. Thankfully I know plenty of people needing things...and I apologize in advance to those people because they will be heaped upon whenever I get off my toosh and gut this house!


MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME HUMOR..."When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me!"
Well, in your face mom :-) no lawn mowers took off my toes! But a door at your lovely place of business back when I was 6 did take off my entire big toenail on my left foot. The culprit? My 8 year old sister and 2 cousins who said I was too little to play with them, so they shut the door on me :-( Well, on my foot. And then my mom had to deal with a screaming 6 year old while her and my aunt peeled the nail off of my toe, which was hanging on for dear life by a little sliver. That little sliver probably hurt more than the rest of the nail being torn off instantly.

MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME FORESIGHT..."Make sure you wear cute, clean underwear...in case you're in an accident."
No accidents yet *knock on wood* but when I went to the hospital to be induced for the birth of my daughter (stubborn turd was 2 weeks overdue, and 2 doses of castor oil couldn't even make her budge) you better believe I had on my cutest lacy pink panties! Which was kind of sick humor on my part, because not only was I not wearing underwear 90% of the time, the wreckage that took place in that area was anything but cute or lacy! Even when I was discharged 3 days later, I wedged a cute (albeit oversized) pair of "sexy" black panties over the hospital underwear that came up to my belly button, with the monster pad and ice pack gently resting between it. Hey, when you go through excrutiating and exhausting pain like that, you need all the cuteness you can get!

and finally (for tonight) MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME JOY..."Always appreciate what you have, because one day you may not have it."
I took special advantage of this one tonight. The movie Mamma Mia came on TV. That had been one of my mom's favorite movies, and I remember everytime a song came on we would turn the volume way up and jam out (in an ABBA sort of way). So when it came on tonight, I honored the memory by turning up the volume as loud as a 5 month old's ears can tolerate and grabbed my bebe girl and whirled her around the house, singing at the top of my lungs and dancing too weirdly, all the while melting inside at the peels of laughter I erected from her. I have a feeling my daughter is going to endure (hopefully happily) a lot of re-enacted memories :-)

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Justice is Served


My mother was the greatest parent ever to grace this planet with her presence. Ok, that's an extremely biased opinion, but after all, this is my blog! So the opinion stands :-)
She was constantly saying "One day you'll have kids, and they will turn out just like you!"

Now, to clarify, that wasn't always a loving statement. It was usually shouted/voicemailed/gritted through teeth or something to that degree. I was stubborn, independent, hyperactive and had a dimpled smile that could light up any room. That room would be so bright with my smile that nobody would notice my long little fingers swiping the marker off the table to scribble all over the walls when they turned their backs. To put it lightly (pun intended) I was Ornery.
Other times, that statement would be said as a comfort, or a promise. A reassurance that I would have the same privilage as she did, to be blessed with wonderful children who would brighten up my life with a glow that I couldn't possibly understand until said day. That reinforces my opinion of her being the greatest parent ever. But that is for another blog.

To make a long story relatively short...

Technically Landon Christopher is my stepson. My husband and I met 2 weeks after he and his exgirlfriend (well, then girlfriend) conceived him, so I was there for the whole pregnancy etc. (Surprise! Me and the mom get along great, but again, that will be another blog).
Landon has a similar personality to what I was, but since he's not biologically mine I can't legitimately take credit. He is just like his father, and I was just like Chris was, so I like to think my mother's curse/blessing came true after all.
(Landon was born July 30, 2008. 7lbs2oz 19 1/2 in.)
My pride and joy. I can take full credit for this one! (Well half, I guess. She does have a daddy!) Nevaeh Christine is everything I dreamed of, and everything my mom promised. Ornery, sweet, stubborn, a dimply smile that could light up the darkest room. She has barely started her life in this world and already I see her changing it more than I could ever imagine.
(Nevaeh was born August 25, 2010. Two weeks overdue and induced, 9lbs7oz, 22 in.)